'Late Mail' Lifts Kentucky Derby, Triple Crown Early Nomination Roster to 414

Feb 07, 2014 John Asher

The nomination of a 3-year-old Thoroughbred to the 2014 Triple Crown races received via “late mail” has lifted the overall total for early nominations to the coveted three-race series of American classics to 414.

Even Echo, a Kentucky-bred son of Street Hero owned and trained by Myung Kwon Cho, has been added to the roster of early nominations that was announced on Saturday, Feb. 7. The addition of Even Echo raised the number of early Triple Crown nominees produced in Kentucky to 303.

Also, trainer Todd Pletcher’s record total of early nominees has been reduced by one with a change of trainer for Rosedown Racing’s Bashart. The son of War Front, winner of the With Anticipation (Grade II) at Saratoga, is now trained by Christophe Clement.

The change dropped Pletcher’s individual total of nominees to 41 – still far above the previous record of 32 he established in 2012. The addition of Bashart raised Clement’s total of Triple Crown-eligible trainees to two.

Nominations to the 2014 Triple Crown opened Jan. 2 and closed on Jan. 25, and required payment of a $600 fee for each nominated horse. The 2014 late nomination period, which requires a payment $6,000 for each nominated 3-year-old, opened Sunday, Jan. 26 and continues through Saturday, March 22.

The 2014 Triple Crown series opens on Saturday, May 3 with the 140^th running of the 1 ¼-mile Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Ky. The 139^th Preakness, the 1 3/16-mile second jewel, is set for Saturday, May 17 at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Md. The 146^th running of the Belmont Stakes, its 1 ½-mile final leg, is scheduled for Saturday, June 7 at Belmont Park, in Elmont, N.Y.

Information on the Triple Crown nomination process and nominations forms are available online at www.TheTripleCrown.com.