Hansen- Derby horse number #2

Meet derby horse #2 , Hansen the gray, almost white horse Aint he stunning? I have a soft spot for the greys , I have to admit. Let me tell you a little about him. He is out of the sire, Tapit which can be traced back to AP Indy , and on his mother's side he is out of Stormy Sunday which can be traced back to Storm Cat. In all of his starts , he has placed 1st except one race and that was the Holy Bull Stakes. I first became familiar with him in the 2011 Breeders cup Juvenile, when he upset the favorite , Union Rags. I was impressed by that race because he was able to hold a narrow lead throughout the race and keep it until the end. However, it seemed though, towards the end of that race, he began to tire out. So the question that is brought up is, can he go the distance? Tapit, his sire won the Wood Memorial which is at a mile 1/8, and he won the a few races going a mile , and he won the Laural Futurity at age 2, going a mile 1/16. His mother won most of her races going at 6.2 F which is equivalent to just under a mile. So on his sire's side, he has the distance capability, but that lacks on his mother's side. His sire raced in the 2004 Kentucky Derby but finished 4th behind Smarty Jones, who would later go on to win the Preakness Stakes. Storm Cat, found on his mother's side proved he was a successful miler, and he won The Young American Stakes going at 1/16th. So that could be an indicator that Hansen may not have the capacity to go all three distances. All of Hansen's wins have been at 1 mile 1/16 and 5.2 furlongs, and a mile. I believe he can pull of a Kentucky Derby win but the Preakness and Belmont, according to his pedigree is not looking good.

I am impressed by Hansen though. I began to watch his races and I see that he likes to be in the front or up close to the pace setter, and he is a gutsy horse. He reminds me almost of a horse last year in the derby who showed he had guts, Shackleford. He is well ridden by his jockey, and he breaks well from the gate and his recent works have been wonderful. It is obvious he is loving KY, and he is taking to the track well, but his pedigree concerns me. I believe the only way he can pull off a derby win and perhaps a Preakness win is by staying close to the leader and for his jockey to conserve as much energy as possible. I say this horse is definitely top 3.... regardless. He is a beautiful and stunning horse but I do not see him as a likely Triple Crown winner, just based upon his pedigree , but if it were based upon his works and his recent wins and the amount he has won, I would put him in the probable list.