Mauling his competition March 15th in the Tampa Bay Derby, Big Truck delivered for trainer Barclay Tagg, who may still be smiling. BT's huge win jostled War Pass.
He rattled. He rumbled. He revved. He rolled. He roared.
Big Truck motored to notice March 15th in the Tampa Bay Derby, racing past Kentucky Derby favorite War Pass and the field. Trained by Barclay Tagg, the large and Mack truck-muscled Big Truck may produce the last laugh for Tagg.
In 2007, Tagg's Triple Crown-touted Nobiz Like Shobiz proved as unpredictable as he was talented. Tagg's well-pedigreed schoolee failed to fire in Derby competition after running an awesome Wood Memorial. Tagg spent the season getting the colt figured out. Blinkers, no blinkers. Lugging out. Lugging in. Etc. Nobiz did his own thing.
But the Big Truck, 3 for 7, looks manageable, and Tagg is smiling.
In 2003, Funny Cide provided lots of reasons for Tagg to do that before getting pushed back to third in the mud of the Belmont Stakes by Empire Maker and Jerry Bailey.
No one's pushing Big Truck around. Where's he headed?
Nobiz and Funny Cide didn't get far after their Triple Crown potentials faded.
As things stand now, Big Truck has already reconfigured the season's Derby puzzle. War Pass had looked unbeatable, but the sleek Rolls Royce cruiser left the Tampa Bay Derby beaten and beaten up. Nick Zito says War Pass is okay -- thank goodness -- after an early jostling in the race that produced cuts on his legs. With War Pass's last place finish in the Tampa Bay Derby, skinny-faced Pyro, the Triple Crown road's ugly duckling, is now the Kentucky Derby top dog.
Can Big Truck turn the Kentucky Derby tables? Or, even, perhaps, finally give Barclay Tagg the last laugh in the Triple Crown?
