Swiss Skydiver Emerges from Preakness Win in Good Order

After walking Swiss Skydiver a few turns in the stakes barn at Pimlico Race Course on the morning of Oct. 4, trainer Ken McPeek was still trying to wrap his mind around the 3-year-old filly's sensational triumph in the Oct. 3 Preakness Stakes (G1) under jockey Robby Albarado.

"I should probably retire today," McPeek said, "because I don't think it can get higher than this. I really don't. She's beat so many odds. I'm beyond proud of her, proud of Robby, and everyone who's handled her. It's been a real team effort. I have some unbelievable people who work for me that help handle the details."

Peter Callahan's Daredevil  filly not only beat the boys in the Preakness, but registered the second-fastest running time in the storied history of Maryland's signature Triple Crown race. The 1:53.28 clocking for her thrilling 1 3/16-mile tour of the Pimlico oval was second only to 1973 Triple Crown champion Secretariat's 1:53 stakes-record time.

"It was surreal," McPeek said. "It's still surreal."

HAMMONDS: Swiss Skydiver Turns Back Authentic to Win Preakness

Swiss Skydiver defeated Kentucky Derby Presented by Woodford Reserve (G1) winner Authentic by a resolute neck to become the sixth filly to win the Preakness and first since Rachel Alexandra got the better of Derby winner Mine That Bird in 2009. After saving ground on the first turn and into the backstretch aboard the McPeek trainee, Albarado made a decisive move that propelled the filly into the lead heading into the far turn, easing his mount around tiring pacesetter Thousand Words before darting back to the rail inside Authentic. Swiss Skydiver and Authentic dueled around the turn and through the stretch with the 11-1 filly gamely holding off the 3-2 favorite to the wire.

The grade 1 victory aboard Swiss Skydiver was Albarado's first since 2017, as well as his first graded stakes win of 2020. The veteran jockey, who has ridden the winners of more than 5,200 races and $220 million in purses, has experienced slowing business the past few years but showed the racing world that he can still win the big ones.

"The thing about it was that we took a negative and made it into a positive. We didn't have a rider until Saturday night (Sept. 26)," said McPeek, who was left without a rider when Tyler Gaffalione opted out. "I called Robby right away and I said, 'Here's what it is going to take for you to ride her. We're going to offer the mount to Mike Smith and wait for his agent to call me back. If his agent says no then I'm going to present to the owner that you're going to ride her. He said, 'OK, let me know, let me know.'

"We waited for Mike Smith's agent to return our offer, but once I got confirmation he couldn't ride her, I called Robby and said, 'You're on.' I said, 'But here's what we're going to do. We're flying up together; we're going to get on her all week.' I think it was fortuitous because he got on her every day and got to know her. He spent time with her and, every day, he got more confident in her. You need a rider with confidence because if she takes you there, she'll win. We pulled it off."

Swiss Skydiver is scheduled to ship to Churchill Downs Oct. 5 to prepare for a start on the Nov. 7 Breeders' Cup program at Keeneland. She has secured automatic berths in both the Longines Breeders' Cup Distaff (G1) and the Longines Breeders' Cup Classic (G1).

"I like the mile and a quarter of the Classic, but the Distaff, today, is probably the wiser move. But the farther she goes the better," McPeek said. "We can sit on it. We won't make a rash decision."

Swiss Skydiver entered the Preakness with four graded stakes victories against 3-year-old fillies, including the Alabama Stakes (G1) at Saratoga Race Course, and second-place finishes in the Toyota Blue Grass Stakes (G2) at Keeneland against the boys and the Longines Kentucky Oaks (G1) at Churchill. Her victory in the final leg of the reshuffled 2020 Triple Crown puts her in the discussion for Horse of the Year, McPeek said.

"I think you have to make a case for her. I mean, she's run every month of the year except April, and she ran at the end of March and early May. You have to make a case for her. She's entertained coast to coast, north, south, east, west," he said. "She's amazing. She's not even tired today. She's a throwback horse."

Disappointed Baffert Praises Swiss Skydiver

Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert praised Preakness winner Swiss Skydiver and her jockey Albarado during a visit to the stakes barn Sunday morning, and said he was still stunned with the outcome of the race.

While Baffert's Authentic put in a game finish, he did not get the pace-setting, catch-me-if-you-can trip under John Velazquez that he had at Churchill four weeks earlier. Instead, Authentic stalked Baffert's other starter, Thousand Words, early on. It was the reverse of what Baffert expected.

"I thought he would be on the lead," Baffert said. "This horse is a free-running horse. He wants to be out there and going. The other horse was there, but they weren't really going that fast."

The first quarter was run in :24.48, which turned out to be the slowest of the race.

"I have to give credit. Robby Albarado rode just a great race. The mare ran a great race," Baffert said. "They went 1:53. It's not like he didn't show up."

A month earlier at the top of the stretch in the Derby, heavily favored Tiz the Law looked poised to overtake Authentic, but he could not complete the task and wound up second. Baffert was on the other end of that scenario in the Preakness.

"After all of that, I'm still surprised he just could not get by her," Baffert said. "She just was game. It was one of those things where I said, 'All right, come on, get by her.' They were running, they were leaving the field. It was, 'Wow, did that really just happen?' But he showed up and he ran. The other horse (Thousand Words), he was sort of spinning. He just wasn't running at all."

Baffert said both of his colts came out the race in good shape and will be shipped back to California Monday. He said Authentic will be prepared for the Breeders' Cup Classic. Baffert has two other likely Classic runners, the 4-year-olds Improbable and Maximum Security.

Baffert was bidding for a record eighth Preakness victory. He had completed the double with his five previous Derby winners, but the 2020 Triple Crown schedule was changed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, putting four weeks, not two, between the races. Still, Baffert said he was very confident.

"It's the kind of race where I ran second but it was like, 'What happened?'" he said. "I felt really good about him coming into this race, the way he had been working, the way he had been acting. He was fresh. I told Johnny, 'He's really sharp.'"

'No Excuses' for Art Collector's Subpar Run

Trainer Tommy Drury Jr. looked Art Collector over Sunday morning and said the colt came out of the race in good shape. Bruce Lunsford's homebred son of Bernardini , ridden by Brian Hernandez Jr., ended up fourth, a head behind Jesus' Team.

Art Collector, the 2-1 second choice in the wagering, was Drury's first Triple Crown starter and came into the Preakness unbeaten in four starts this year.

"I didn't see a whole lot for excuses. For whatever reason he just didn't quite have that normal turn of foot that we see from him," Drury said. "Around the first turn it looked like Brian tried to kind of get out and couldn't quite get that done. Down the backside he tried to take the same spot that Swiss Skydiver took and unfortunately didn't have enough horse to get there. No excuses at this point. We're going to take our hat off to the filly. She ran great and I'm thrilled for Kenny. We'll get back home and regroup and figure out where we want to go next."

Drury said the Breeders' Cup Classic is still an option for the colt, who missed the Derby with a minor foot injury.

"It certainly is a possibility, along with a lot of other races," Drury said. "I think the big thing is to get him back home and make sure he's OK. He seems to be fine this morning. … We just need to regroup a little bit and figure out what to do next."

Grupo Seven C Stable's Jesus' Team, who finished third at 40-1, exited the Preakness in good order, said trainer Jose D'Angelo.

"I'm very happy for my horse and my team. My horse ran good. He ran a fast time in the stretch," D'Angelo said. "Our next plan may be the Breeders' Cup."