2013 Kentucky Derby: Stacked Field Will Produce True Triple Crown Contender

It’s the question on all our tongues every year, come early May when the Kentucky Derby rolls around the corner: Will we finally see another Triple Crown?

It’s a worthy and justified inquiry. We haven’t seen one horse take the Kentucky Derby, Preakness and Belmont Stakes since 1978, when Steve Cauthen rode Affirmed into history. For God’s sake, we’ve seen Halley’s comet flit through the sky more recently than we’ve seen a Triple Crown winner. By eight years.

But year after unfulfilling year, like wishful clockwork, we find ourselves praying to see something special, a horse worthy of its place in the record book. And this year? 2013? Something about it gives me that funny, special feeling.

There is, of course, no true way to tell if we’ll see a Triple Crown winner. Only Biff from Back to the Future II possesses that power of certainty. But there are hints that I think presage a special year of horse racing.

First and foremost among those hints is the strength of the starting field. This year’s Kentucky Derby lacks the panache of other years; there’s no household name we’re crossing our fingers to see race. There’s no big-ticket attraction, like LeBron James, racing to assume his place atop the thoroughbred throne. 

But what this Kentucky Derby field lacks in top-heaviness, it makes up for with remarkable depth. We don’t have a strong inkling on who will come out on top. But we do know, sans a couple of horses, that whomever it is has a very real chance of taking home the Preakness. And from there it’s just one race ‘til glory.

Let’s start at the top, with Revolutionary. He looked like a serious contender, winning the Louisiana Derby on March 30th, and has found himself among the trendiest picks come Saturday. So has Goldencents, ridden by the pioneer jockey Kevin Krigger, who won the Santa Anita Derby last month in the best performance of his career.

It’s already been a progressive week, what with Jason Collins’ immeasurable courage coming out of the closet. How beautiful would the narrative be if Krigger followed that up by becoming the first African-American to win the Kentucky Derby? How about a Triple Crown?

But the quality racers don’t stop there. Not by a long shot. How about Normandy Invasion, a late-closer whose stock in the past days has proved an apt metaphor for his skills? He’s closing down the stretch, down to an 8-1 shot at time of publication, and he’s fully capable of becoming a factor down the stretch run. Same goes for Orb, who rolls into the Derby on an impressive four-race win streak. 

And what about Verrazano, a wildly impressive colt who, despite my reservations, has the upside (and the name) to become a Triple Crown winner. No doubt at all. And after him comes the rest of the field; maybe there’s an I’ll Have Another hiding amongst the pack, eager to come out of nowhere and sweep our imaginations.

Listen, let me be clear: I’m not completely crazy. I’m pragmatic enough to not bet on a Triple Crown this year, all odds being equal. But I do think there’s some credence to the concept of competition. It will take a massively impressive performance to rise above this field, and that momentum—if not for the horse, than definitely for the jockey—could be enough to fuel something powerful.

Come on, folks: It’s 2013. Stranger things have happened.