Churchill Downs a Sloppy Playground for Tiz the Law

Tiz the Law was reacquainted with his racing-surface nemesis Sept. 2 at Churchill Downs with an easy morning gallop over a sloppy track.

The 3-5 morning-line favorite for the Sept. 5 Kentucky Derby Presented by Woodford Reserve (G1), Tiz the Law lost for the only time in seven starts when last encountering the slop at Churchill Nov. 30. Racing in the Kentucky Jockey Club Stakes (G2) in his final start as 2, the Constitution  colt settled for third, beaten three-quarters of a length.

If the 3-year-old was uncomfortable with the wet going Wednesday, it didn't show. After being escorted onto the track by a pony carrying trainer Barclay Tagg, the colt proceeded to gallop kindly under Heather Smullen in a light piece of exercise.

"The track is really off so we just gave him a canter around," said Tagg. "We didn't do any serious galloping. Tomorrow, the next two days, we'll track to get some serious gallops into him."

Tiz the Law, owned by Sackatoga Stable, arrived Sept. 1 in Louisville after flying from New York. Wednesday was his first day of Derby Week training over the track.

It rained early Wednesday morning and showers are forecasted to continue through Sept. 3 before the weather clears. Sunny skies are forecast Sept. 4, the day of the Longines Kentucky Oaks (G1), and on Derby Day.

A fast track in the Derby is therefore likely—different than the conditions Tiz the Law experienced at Churchill in the Kentucky Jockey Club when he was also boxed in for much of the race.

"I like a fast track for him, but he seems to handle everything," Tagg said. "He was pretty young and pretty green then. He didn't come out of the gate good. He kind of left one hind leg there, slithered out of there, and (opposing jockeys) could control him, what they wanted to do. It was pretty easy to keep him blocked in there."

Tiz the Law will be Tagg's sixth Derby starter and first since 2008, when Tale of Ekati  and Big Truck ran fourth and 18th, respectively. Tagg, 82, won the Derby in 2003 with Funny Cide, a gelding owned by Sackatoga.

Sackatoga and Tagg have teamed together for 20 years, a lasting owner/trainer relationship. Assistant Robin Smullen has also been involved in the ride.

"People ask me (about the pairing) all the time and I tell them, 'If a guy wins the Kentucky Derby for you, why in the world would you think of going somewhere else?'" said Jack Knowlton, managing partner of Sackatoga Stable. "And in addition to that, I'm around him a lot at Saratoga and more recently, a lot in Florida, and I just know how good horsepeople he and Robin are, how they care for their horses."

While Tagg is reserved, Knowlton's energy leading up to the Derby pours out of him.

This experience is why he and the other Sackatoga members are in the sport. Their passion is one of the reasons a stud deal that was brokered with Ashford Stud allowed the New York-bred colt to race through his 4-year-old year, health permitting, Knowlton said.

"The thing is, we have 35 partners in this horse," Knowlton said. "He's a once-in-a-lifetime horse. Let's be able to enjoy it."

Already he has notched five graded stakes triumphs, including three consecutive grade 1s—the Curlin Florida Derby (G1), the Belmont Stakes Presented by NYRA Bets (G1), and the Runhappy Travers Stakes (G1).

The Derby, to be run without fans amid COVID-19 and with limited owner access, has left Knowlton scrambling to get his partners to the race.

"Still hoping I am going to get a few more tickets here at the last minute so all the folks that want to come to this (can) come," he said. "Hopefully on to the Preakness (G1) and Breeders' Cup and we'll see what happens. It's a thrill for all of these people and I don't want it to end."

Also on the track Wednesday was a late addition to the Derby, South Bend, who ran fourth behind Tiz the Law in the Travers. 

Hall of Famer Bill Mott, who won the Derby last year with Country House upon the disqualification of Maximum Security, began training South Bend this summer after the horse was purchased privately following a runner-up finish in the Ohio Derby (G3). His current owners are Gary Barber, Wachtel Stable, Peter Deutsch, and Pantofel Stable.

Mott's Kentucky assistant Kenny McCarthy said the Algorithms  colt arrived in Louisville days ago, an earlier flight than the one that carried Tiz the Law. Originally he had been under consideration for either the Pat Day Mile Stakes Presented by LG&E and KU (G2) or the American Turf Stakes Presented by Smithfield (G2T), a pair of $500,000 races on the Derby undercard.

But then Art Collector was not entered in the Derby due to a minor foot issue, removing a leading contender, and changing the thinking of his owners, McCarthy said.

"You know, they're all sporting men—they said, 'You know what, you don't get a chance every year. Let's take a shot,'" McCarthy said.

South Bend is a 50-1 outsider on the morning line, just as Country House was a longshot in 2019 when he started at 65-1.

"The Derby, anything can happen, right? We learned that last year," McCarthy said.