Preakness May Not Suit Captain Bodgit

He couldn’t catch Silver Charm in Louisville and many are wondering how, then, is he going to catch him two weeks later in Baltimore.

For Captain Bodgit, Saturday’s Preakness Stakes presents many of the same obstacles he couldn’t overcome in the Kentucky Derby. He’ll have to try to make up ground against a tenacious rival who wouldn’t let him pass on Derby Day.

“I don’t know how we do it,” said Barry Irwin, the president of Team Valor, the syndicate that owns Captain Bodgit. “It looks worse, to tell you the truth.”

That would be because the Preakness is a 16th of a mile shorter than the Derby, which will give Captain Bodgit less time to catch Silver Charm. He’ll also have to close over a track that still has a speed-favoring reputation, even though the results of recent Preaknesses don’t bear that out.

“The Preakness will be tougher for us to win than the last one because of our horse’s running style and the racetrack, which is a lot more speed biased,” trainer Gary Capuano said. “Horses tend to win there a lot more on the front. We’ll see if he can overcome everything.”

Captain Bodgit was at a disadvantage in the Kentucky Derby when there was a moderate early pace, which figured to happen without a legitimate speed horse in the race. The Preakness situation looked just as bleak for him, but he may have gotten some good news Monday when Cryp Too was added to the field. He might set decent fractions, which can only help Captain Bodgit.

Still, Captain Bodgit probably needs to be closer to Silver Charm early. The Kentucky Derby winner might just be another Affirmed, the type who won’t let anybody go by without a tremendous fight.