2012 Preakness Post Positions: Tiger Walk Won't Be Deterred by Horrible Draw

The gods of horse racing appear to be conspiring against Tiger Walk so much as sniffing victory at the Preakness Stakes on Saturday, though that won't keep him from trying, at the very least.

The Sagamore Farm product was essentially shafted with the rail post at Pimlico, from which no horse has won since Tabasco Cat in 1994, preceded by Bally Ache in 1960.

Then again, this isn't the first time Tiger Walk's gotten the short end of the draw. As farm general manager Tom Mullikin said of Tiger Walk's post position to Jack Shinar of BloodHorse:

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"It's not ideal. He's the worst drawing horse of all time. He's had seven starts and faced 57 horses. There have only been four on the outside. You can't control, so what are you going to do. It will be fine."

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In that sense, Tiger Walk may be uniquely equipped to parlay that dubious spot into a positive result. Bad luck or no, Tiger Walk has managed to finish no worse than fourth in each of his last five events.

Of course, the Kentucky Derby is not among the races in which Tiger Walk fared so well. He didn't partake in the Run for the Roses at Churchill Downs on Cinco de Mayo, which in itself suggests that, perhaps, he wasn't good enough to contend for the Triple Crown in the first place.

The Derby aside, Tiger Walk has run well at Pimlico in practice and has a jockey, in Kent Desormeaux, who's twice guided horses to victory at the Preakness.

If nothing else, Tiger Walk can draw upon the competitive spirit of Kevin Plank, the owner of Sagamore Farm and founder of Under Armour, who will surely implore his prized horse to "protect his house," what with the race being run in Baltimore and all.

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