Spend a Buck Is Back in the Money Again : Jersey Derby Victory Earns Colt a Record $2.6 Million

Spend a Buck carried Laffit Pincay across the finish line and $2.6 million to the vault in a little more than two minutes Monday, but trainer Cam Gambolati’s heart was in his shoe by the time the brilliant 3-year-old got to the wire first in the Jersey Derby.

Challenged fore and aft--by Huddle Up for the lead through the first six furlongs and by Creme Fraiche on the inside and El Basco on the outside in the battle through the stretch--Spend a Buck proved best by a neck before 30,360 fans at Garden State Park, assuring owners Dennis and Linda Diaz of the $600,000 winner’s purse and a $2 million bonus, the biggest payday in racing history.

Creme Fraiche, rallying on the far turn and actually edging ahead of Spend a Buck for a few strides near the quarter pole, finished second, a head in front of El Basco, who came from last and also tried to run down the winner in the stretch.

Spend a Buck has had some sterling performances--he won two Garden State races by 20 lengths and captured the Kentucky Derby by 5 lengths to be eligible for the track’s bonus--but Monday’s win was even more spectacular. Pushed by Huddle Up in an early speed duel that led to punishing fractions, the bay son of Buckaroo still had enough left to hold off the gang attack by Creme Fraiche and El Bosco.

“This showed that he’s a great horse and the best 3-year-old in the country,” said Gambolati, an experienced, unknown trainer before Spend a Buck entered his life last year. “They tried every way to beat him. Huddle Up tried to run with him all the way and then those other two tried to get him in the stretch. I lost about three heartbeats when those two closers came after him in the end. I knew he was game, but how game can a horse be?”

It was a $260,000 payday for Pincay, the jockey earning 10% of the purse and the bonus after Angel Cordero, Spend a Buck’s regular rider, honored an earlier commitment by riding Track Barron Monday in the Metropolitan Handicap at Belmont Park. Track Barron ran third, which meant about $3,000 to Cordero.

Pincay, winning two races on his only two mounts earlier in the program, misjudged the finish line in one of them, but made all the right moves with Spend a Buck. When Creme Fraiche got a nose or a head in front, Pincay went to his whip for the first time, hitting Spend a Buck right-handed.

“I thought we might be in trouble,” Pincay said later, “but when I hit him, he responded. That shows you why he’s the good horse he is.”

Pincay hit Spend a Buck three more times from the right side, then switched to the left for a tap or two before the finish line.

“I felt somebody coming on the outside (it was El Basco),” Pincay said, “but I was more concerned with the horse on the inside (Creme Fraiche), because he was running stronger at that point.”

After El Basco, it was 4 3/4 lengths back to his stablemate, Purple Mountain, who finished fourth. The rest of the order of finish in the nine-horse field was Skip Trial, Huddle Cup, I Am the Game, Bolting Holme and Ah So Tony.

Spend a Buck was timed in 2:02 3/5 for the 1 miles, which was 1 4/5 off the track record. The fractional times were :45 2/5 for a half mile, 1:09 for six furlongs and 1:35 for a mile, which was as fast as the track record. Spend a Buck paid $2.10 across the board as the 1-to-20 favorite. Creme Fraiche paid $2.20 and $2.10, El Basco paid $2.10, and the exacta on Spend a Buck and Creme Fraiche returned $7.60.

Spend a Buck, purchased as a yearling by the Diazes out of a bankruptcy sale, started the day 20th on the career-earnings list, but he now has earnings of $3,998,509, second only to John Henry’s $6,597,947. While the 10-year-old John Henry has made his the old-fashioned way, earning his first paycheck seven years ago, Spend a Buck has leaped to second by making a record $3,330,524 this year.

The ground broke out from under Spend a Buck at the start, causing him to come over into Purple Mountain, the horse inside him leaving the gate. “After that,” Pincay said, “I had to let him run, because I didn’t want to get shut off. He relaxed once he got the lead (going past the stands the first time). He reminds me a lot of Conquistador Cielo (the first of three straight Belmont Stakes winners for Pincay in 1982), because he’s a fighter and he can run.”

Huddle Up, making only his seventh lifetime start, was ridden by Darrel McHargue, who was surprised to be as close as he was. “Although the early fractions were fast, they weren’t that fast considering how fast the track was playing today,” McHargue said. “My horse isn’t as seasoned as the others, and he tired at the three-eighths pole. It looked like one of those days where Spend a Buck might get beat.”

Much later, Robbie Davis, riding El Basco, had the same feeling. “I thought we were gonna nail him (Spend a Buck),” the jockey said. “But my horse drifted out a little and hung, and the other horse was just gamer.”

Pincay thought he was a head behind Creme Fraiche on the turn for home; Eddie Maple, Creme Fraiche’s jockey, figured it was only a nose.

“We might have had the lead for five strides,” Maple said. “But then the other horse responded good. The other one was just too much horse. He had the most heart and the most talent to get him through the stretch.”

Spend a Buck’s owners turned their backs on the Triple Crown when they skipped the Preakness following the Kentucky Derby victory. Traditionalists criticized the decision, but some of them may be having second thoughts after Monday’s lucrative win.

Dennis Diaz and Gambolati said that it will be three or four days before they make a decision regarding the Belmont Stakes, the third Triple Crown race, which is scheduled for June 8.

“Wait until the Belmont,” Robbie Davis said. “A mile and a half, that might be Spend a Buck’s best test.”

Spend a Buck’s best test really came Monday, with $2.6 million on the line. The colt and Laffit Pincay passed it as though there were only peanuts at stake.

THE MONEY LIST THOROUGHBRED HORSES WITH TOP CAREER EARNINGS

Name St 1 2 3 Earnings xa-John Henry 83 39 19 9 $6,597,947 xb-Spend a Buck 13 9 2 2 $3,998,509 c-Slew o’Gold 21 12 5 1 $3,533,134 d-All Along 21 9 4 2 $3,015,764 Spectacular Bid 30 26 2 1 $2,781,607 Trinycarol 25 18 3 1 $2,644,516 Affirmed 29 22 5 1 $2,393,818 x-Wild Again 24 8 4 4 $2,088,109 Majesty’s Prince 43 12 10 10 $2,075,299

x--still in training a--includes $500,000 bonus in 1984 b--includes $2 million bonus in 1985 c--includes $1 million bonus in 1984 d--includes $1 million bonus in 1983