Big Brown is horse to beat in Preakness

The undefeated colt is a 1-2 early favorite to win the Preakness Saturday.

BALTIMORE (AP) — Big Brown is the big shot at Pimlico this week: He was led to the track by police escort; installed as the 1-2 early favorite for the Preakness, and his trainer boasting about his big colt.

Life sure is good when you’re the champ — especially a perfect one. Big Brown is 4-0 and has dominated the four fields with his victory totals coming by a combined 333‚Ñ4 lengths.

Down the stretch they yawn!

“It’s our race to lose,” trainer Rick Dutrow Jr. said Friday. “He’s the best horse in the race.”

Big Brown got his first taste of the mud, going out for a light jog Friday morning. Dutrow said he wasn’t concerned about how Big Brown might handle more rain and slop if it comes on Saturday evening.

Big Brown all but scared off the Derby field from even trying to compete against him in the Preakness. Gayego is the only other horse running in the first two races of the Triple Crown series, leaving Big Brown without a true rival in a sport that desperately needs any kind of positive buzz.

“They went in different directions,” said trainer Nick Zito, who ran two horses in the Derby. “They just didn’t feel they were good enough.”

Big Brown and his 43‚Ñ4-length victory in the Derby showed his invincibility. But can he stay that way and avoid the upset at the Preakness?

Zito, who is running Stevil today, saw no weaknesses in Big Brown.

“I don’t,” he said. “Everyone saw him gallop. He looks great.”

Some of the jockeys and owners that make up the rest of the field of 12 3-year-olds seem to have conceded defeat. Zito’s not sure Stevil can hang with Big Brown. Icabad Crane jockey Jeremy Rose, who won in 2005 aboard Afleet Alex, said all the other horses were racing for second. Racecar Rhapsody trainer Ken McPeek said the race is wide open, well, except for Big Brown.

“If you throw Big Brown out, I’m sure there’s a lot of people that would really think they had a good chance of winning the race,” Dutrow said. “Finishing second or third in the Preakness is not a bad move.”

The field was knocked down to 12 Friday morning when Behindatthebar was scratched with a bruised left front foot.

Jerry Bailey, who rode aboard six Triple Crown series winners, simply shook his head no when asked if Big Brown could be beat.

“It’s unlikely,” he said. “Someone would have to improve a lot. He would have to regress a lot.”

A loss could happen. Sure, the convincing victories have quickly earned him comparisons to Triple Crown winners of the past, but the colt still has some parts of his game that he needs to prove he can handle.

The two-week turnaround is the shortest of Big Brown’s career and he’s got a couple of sore feet.

“He just burns a little bit on his right heel,” Dutrow said. “We’ve been breezing him all the time with front bandages. In the Kentucky Derby, it’s the best I’ve ever seen him come out of a race. The other two races he had some type of issues.”