This week’s show has so much information we had to bring in three guests. Billy Reed, a well-known, accomplished sportswriter in Kentucky and a three-time Eclipse Award-winning turf writer, died Feb. 5 in Louisville, Ky. He was 79. He served as president of the National Turf Writers Association (now the National Turf Writers and Broadcasters) from 1988-90. His three Eclipse Awards came when writing for the Louisville Courier-Journal (1979), Lexington Herald-Leader (1988), and Thoroughbred Times (2008). Multiple Eclipse Award winner Jennie Rees worked alongside Reed covering racing in Louisville for decades. She will join us to put Reed’s career in perspective. Leading up to the Kentucky Derby, Byron King updates his weekly “Derby Dozen” on bloodhorse.com every Tuesday. He will join us on a regular basis as the Derby Preps take more focus leading up to the 1st Saturday in May. According to King, “In years past, a 15-length score in the Robert B. Lewis Stakes (G3) from a horse like Messier (https://www.bloodhorse.com/horse-racing/thoroughbred/messier/2019?source=BHonline) would have vaulted such a 3-year-old toward the top of the Derby Dozen, but not in 2022 with Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert suspended by Churchill Downs Inc. Barring a change in the status of Baffert trainees (i.e. barn switch, legal action), no cracking the 'Dozen for such types for now.” His current top three are: Rattle N Roll, Smile Happy and Zandon. Vic Stauffer has a long resume in the world of racing. While familiar to most as the current voice of Oaklawn Park, he’s called races at Gulfstream Park, Hialeah Park, Hawthorne Race Course, and spent 13 years at Hollywood Park in California. He has also earned two Eclipse Awards for radio and broadcast. He’s also served stints as a jockey agent and is an accomplished handicapper. Stauffer will join us to discuss his “Life and Times” in the sport and of his new home base in Hot Springs. We’ll ask him for his opinion of the Derby preps thus far and his impression of Newgrange, who remained unbeaten in three starts, when he forged past the leaders late for a 1 1/2-length win over Barber Road in the Grade 3, $750,000 Southwest Stakes at Oaklawn Park. There are two graded stakes carded for Saturday. Distaffers will match strides for $250,000 in the Bayakoa.
Super Stock, the winner of last year’s Arkansas Derby at Oaklawn, is on pace to launch his 4-year-old season Feb. 12 in the Grade 3, $600,000 Razorback, said trainer Steve Asmussen. The Razorback will be run over 1 1/16 miles. Super Stock won the Zia Park Derby at the distance in November. The earner of $1.1 million races for Erv Woolsey and Asmussen’s parents, Keith and Marilyn Asmussen.