Whittingham’s Pimlico Hopes High : But His Colt, Lively One, Is an 8-1 Shot to Win the Special

Uh-oh, Charlie Whittingham is talking about winning another important race.

The last time Whittingham predicted a victory in a rich race, the 76-year-old trainer saddled Sunday Silence to win the Kentucky Derby last Saturday.

Sunday Silence has settled down at Pimlico, where he’ll try to add the Preakness, the second jewel in the Triple Crown, here next Saturday, but first Whittingham will send out another of his colts--Lively One--in today’s $700,000 Pimlico Special.

A victory by Lively One in the Special would be more unlikely than Sunday Silence’s upset of Easy Goer in the Derby.

At least Sunday Silence went to Churchill Downs after a rousing victory in the Santa Anita Derby.

Lively One arrives in Baltimore with an overall record of only five victories in 18 starts, one win in his last seven races and he’s without a stakes victory since he beat a mediocre field in the Swaps at Hollywood Park more than nine months ago. That race was so unimpressive that the national committee that rates stakes downgraded the Swaps to a Grade II this year.

The Pimlico Special has drawn 12 starters, and while Cryptoclearance, another horse who loses a lot more than he wins, is only a lukewarm 2-1 favorite, Lively One is not considered a threat on the morning line. He’s 8-1, behind the entry of Cryptoclearance and Lustra, as well as Slew City Slew, Brian’s Time and Little Bold John.

Here’s the 12-horse lineup for the 1 3/16-mile race, with jockeys and weights:

Proper Reality, Jerry Bailey, 118 pounds; Little Bold John, Donnie Miller, 120; Slew City Slew, Laffit Pincay, 118; Cryptoclearance, Jose Santos, 123; Saratoga Passage, Eddie Delahoussaye, 113; Stalwars, Antonio Castanon, 112; Templar Hill, Andrea Seefeldt, 108; Brian’s Time, Randy Romero, 118; Lively One, Robbie Davis, 117; Granacus, Kent Desormeaux, 113; Blushing John, Pat Day, 117, and Lustra, Tony Graell, 107.

This field is not filled by the headliners who ran in last year’s Special, which Pimlico dusted off after a 30-year absence.

A year ago, the pot was $200,000 less, but the six-horse field still included three stars from the excellent 3-year-old class of 1987--Alysheba, Bet Twice and Lost Code. Bet Twice won a three-quarter-length decision from Lost Code, with Alysheba, the 3-5 favorite, struggling home fourth in one of the few lackluster performances by the eventual choice for horse of the year. Cryptoclearance finished third and Little Bold John ran fifth.

Cryptoclearance is a plodder who has won 11 of 37 starts. But this year he’s won two of three decisions from the speedy Slew City Slew in Florida, taking the Donn and Widener Handicaps and finishing third in the Gulfstream Park Handicap.

Brian’s Time has won close to $1 million, but he wasn’t up to beating the best 3-year-olds last year, finishing second to Risen Star in the Preakness and running a badly beaten third behind the same colt in the Belmont.

Lively One is a Whittingham trainee who didn’t win the Kentucky Derby. Whittingham didn’t get his first Derby win until Ferdinand came along in 1986.

Sired by Halo--who also gave the Derby Sunday Silence, and before him Sunny’s Halo in 1983--Lively One ran 12th last year at Louisville. In the Breeders’ Cup Classic at Churchill Downs in November, Lively One finished ahead of only one horse.

Still, when Whittingham talks, people have reason to listen. Before this year’s Derby, Whittingham didn’t guarantee a win with Sunday Silence, but he questioned the fiber of the opposition that Easy Goer had been facing. Now Whittingham says that Sunday Silence has the makeup to become a Triple Crown champion.

As for Lively One, Whittingham says: “This horse is awful good right now, real good. I expect him to run a strong race.”

That’s about as ecstatic as Whittingham will get before a race.

Horse Racing Notes

Lustra is in the Pimlico Special to assure an honest early pace for his stablemate, Cryptoclearance. . . . The track is expected to be fast today. . . . The field for the Preakness is likely to include Sunday Silence, Easy Goer, Dansil, Hawkster, Houston, Pulverizing, Rock Point and Imbibe. . . . With Laffit Pincay staying at Hollywood Park next Saturday to ride Bayakoa, Angel Cordero takes over on Houston in the Preakness. . . . Winning Colors, winless in six races since winning the Kentucky Derby last year, runs today in the Shuvee Handicap at Belmont Park.