Sports

Fortify doesn’t make grade

It has long been the goal of Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum — the ruler of Dubai, and a dominant force in international racing — to win the Kentucky Derby with one of his Godolphin Stable horses.

For years, the sheikh’s modus operandi was to train his horses in Dubai over the winter (after several of them raced in the U.S. as 2-year-olds), then ship them to Kentucky for the Derby. But of the seven Godolphin colts that ran for the roses from 1999 through 2009, the best finish was China Visit’s sixth in 2000.

Last year, Godolphin changed its strategy, leaving Alpha in the U.S. over the winter with trainer Kiaran McLaughlin. Alpha emerged as a legitimate Derby contender as a 3-year-old, winning the Count Fleet and the Withers before finishing a rough-trip second in the Wood Memorial, beaten a neck.

Alpha came out of the Wood with a foot infection that forced him to miss two scheduled workouts at Churchill Downs, but he was pushed into the Derby anyway, finishing 12th. The son of Bernadini came back to win the Jim Dandy by two lengths and the Travers in a dead-heat.

This year, Godolphin only nominated one horse to the Triple Crown, Fortify, who was among the top-class 2-year-olds last year in America, winning first time out at Saratoga by 5 1/2 lengths, then finishing second in the Hopeful, third in the Champagne and fourth in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile behind 2-year-old champion Shanghai Bobby.

But rather than following the Alpha route, Fortify took the old path of returning to Dubai, where he finished a dismal sixth making his seasonal debut in the United Arab Emirates 2,000 Guineas on Valentine’s Day. As a result, Fortify, 12th on last week’s “Derby Dozen,” has dropped off the list.

Considering that Alpha was also sent to Dubai, where he finished last of 12 in the Maktoum Challenge on Feb. 7, one has to think that perhaps he and Fortify should have stayed in the U.S. with McLaughlin. No doubt Sheikh Mo is wondering the same thing.

* Saturday’s El Camino Real Derby over the synthetic surface at Golden Gate Fields, won by longshot Dice Flavor, and today’s Southwest Stakes at Oaklawn Park complete the first round of preps for the May 4 Kentucky Derby, where a victory in any of the 19 races is worth only 10 points toward a starting berth in the Derby’s 20-horse field.

The second round of eight preps, where a win is worth 50 points, commences Saturday with the Fountain of Youth at Gulfstream Park and the Risen Star at the Fair Grounds.