Journalism may be in the record books as the seventh straight beaten favorite in the Kentucky Derby (G1), but that doesn't mean trainer Michael McCarthy has lost any faith in his grade 1-winning 3-year-old colt.
"I've lost zero confidence in him," McCarthy said about the son of Curlin . "When he worked on the Sunday before the Derby, I thought it would take an incredible effort to beat him—if the racetrack was like it was (that day). Mother Nature had other ideas. But I still think his effort was very, very good."
The runner-up effort on a sloppy track in the Run for the Roses, finishing 1 1/2 lengths behind the victorious Sovereignty, was surely good enough to install Journalism as the 8-5 morning-line favorite in a May 17 edition of the $2 million Preakness Stakes (G1) at Pimlico Race Course that will be contested without the Kentucky Derby winner.
And that price could easily sink lower by the 7:01 p.m. ET post time for the second jewel in the Triple Crown, as the Kentucky Derby snapped the Santa Anita Derby (G1) winner's streak of four straight wins, three in graded stakes.
"He got pinched at the start in the Kentucky Derby. I wanted to be five lengths off the lead at one point and I'd say we were closer to 10. He seemed like he picked it up fine from the half-mile, but if it came down to a muddy track or a clean trip, I'd rather have the clean trip. I just didn't think the mud was going to be that big of an issue for him," McCarthy said May 14 at Pimlico's Preakness barn after Journalism galloped for a mile on a wet surface. "I just wish we could have those first 100 yards over again."
McCarthy, who saddled Rombauer to a victory in the 2021 Preakness, was not disappointed that Sovereignty's connections elected to skip the Preakness in favor of running in the June 7 Belmont Stakes (G1), creating a seventh straight year in which there will not be a Triple Crown bid in the final leg. But he expressed some eagerness to face Sovereignty again and rekindle the East vs. West rivalry.
"I guess to the casual fan," McCarthy said when asked if the Preakness is different without the Kentucky Derby winner. "But it's still a Triple Crown race and it carries a lot of clout. It would be nice to have a rematch at some point. If Sovereignty stays healthy, Journalism stays healthy, and somewhere down the road we can hook up, it would be great for the fans and sport. I would love it. We are certainly not going to duck him."
To that end, McCarthy said he would consider running in the Belmont Stakes at Saratoga Race Course if Journalism lives up to expectations in the Preakness.
"If he gives a good account of himself Saturday (we'll consider it)," McCarthy said about the 1 1/4-mile final leg of the Triple Crown. "He had three races in seven weeks as a 2-year-old and that didn't seem to bother him. Three races in five weeks is a little bit different but he's a hardy horse. He seems like he has plenty of constitution and a mile and a quarter, mile and three-sixteenths, mile and a quarter doesn't seem like it will be an issue for him. It's in the back of our minds."
Out of the Uncle Mo mare Mopotism, Journalism has won four of six starts and earned $1,638,880. Owned by Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners, Bridlewood Farm, Robert LaPenta, breeder Don Alberto Stable, Elayne Stables 5, Mrs. John Magnier, Michael Tabor, and Derrick Smith, he was bought for $825,000 at Fasig-Tipton's The Saratoga Sale in 2023 from the Denali Stud consignment.
