Kentucky Derby 2012: Horses Most Likely to Rebound at Preakness Stakes

In sports, the best doesn’t always win.

Horse racing is no different. The following thoroughbreds fell short at the 2012 Kentucky Derby, but if entered in the Preakness Stakes, they boast the ability bounce back with a vengeance.

3. Went The Day Well

Went The Day Well entered the Kentucky Derby as an underdog, but according to his trainer Graham Motion, they could’ve ended the day…well (sorry, I had to). And Motion knows what it takes to win the Kentucky Derby—he’s also Animal Kingdom’s trainer.

Chris Korman of the Baltimore Sun reported that Motion said that an awful start “cost him five, six lengths. Johnny was seven, eight lengths back further than he wanted to be going into that first turn. That made all the difference. I think he could have won. I really do believe he could have won. We could have made history.”

With an explosive start, Went The Day Well will have a great chance to make history in the Preakness.

2. Union Rags

Went The Day Well wasn’t the only horse plagued by a botched start.

Colin Fly of the Sun Times reported that Union Rags got trapped between horses out of the starting blocks. The horse’s jockey Julien Leparoux told reporters, “He broke a step a step slow and he usually breaks well from the gate. Then he got bumped and we dropped far back. I had nowhere to go where I could make a move.”

For yet another horse, a strong start holds the potential to be the difference between victory and one more failure.

1. Bodemeister

Bodemeister proved its beastliness jumping out to an incredible lead before I’ll Have Another put together a comeback that just happened to be a bit more incredible. But Bodemeister, without a doubt, possesses the physical ability to jump out to another lead in the Preakness—and hold it.

According to ESPN’s Claire Novak, Bodemeister’s owner Ahmed Zayat raved about his horse saying: “We have a brilliant horse, there's no doubt about it; he'll come back. We want him healthy and to see how good of a horse he is. I'm very proud of my trainer, very proud of my horse. Next time.”

And next time, potentially at the Preakness, Bodemeister should be the favorite.

David Daniels is a featured columnist at Bleacher Report and a syndicated writer.

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