A void on this year's TC trail

One of things lacking from this year's Triple Crown trail is the multi-million dollar purchase of a Kentucky Derby contender.

Jess Jackson tried to fill that void when expressing interest in Ahmed Zayat's Eskendereya, but any apparent deal fell through, and the multi-billion dollar owner of Horses of the Year Curlin and Rachel Alexandra has supposedly shifted his focus to another Triple Crown candidate in Gotham Stakes winner Awesome Act.

Jackson acquired both Curlin and Rachel Alexandra during their three-year-old seasons and went on to win the Preakness Stakes with both along with six Eclipse Awards between the two of them across three racing seasons.

Indeed, Jackson has accomplished a lot in a relatively short time as a high profile player in Thoroughbred racing and breeding (the billionaire winemaker has been involved for decades but ramped up his involvement this century), but the Kentucky Derby has so far alluded him. Back in January, I thought his Tiz Brian might make some noise on the trail, but he lost a maiden race, wasn't nominated, and hasn't raced since.

With Darley and Coolmore not as noticably active this year in pursuing Triple Crown contenders, other owners willing to pony up big bucks for a "ready-made" Derby hopeful might get a deal relative to what well-bred three-year-old stakes winners had been fetching a few years ago (Coolmore's acquisition of Majestic Warrior after he won the 2007 Hopeful Stakes valued the A. P. Indy colt at $60-million). I do not know the value of the offers Jackson supposedly made for Eskendereya and Awesome Act, but I'd wager my delicious doorstop for your crummy old danish that it was a lot less than sons of Giant's Causeway and Awesome Again would have brought a few years ago.

High profile acquisitions are nothing new to the Triple Crown trail, with Ahmed bin Salman's purchase of 90% of War Emblem after the colt's Illinois Derby win being the most successful example of buying a "ready-made" Kentucky Derby prospect. War Emblem went on to win the 2002 Derby, Preakness, and Haskell en route to champion three-year-old male honors and a big-money syndication deal with a Japanese stud farm.

Although not "high profile acquistions" as three-year-olds, the past two Kentucky Derby winners were all purchased privately after their racing years had begun. IEAH Stable bought into Big Brown following his career debut, and Mark Allen and Leonard Blach, D.V.M., acquired Mine That Bird ahead of the Breeders' Cup after the Birdstone gelding had won stakes at Woodbine.

Each of the past three Preakness winners (Curlin, Big Brown, and Rachel Alexandra) were all acquired by their classic-winning owners after their racing careers had begun.

Indeed, that route can be incredibly successful, as certainly both I.E.A.H. and Jackson would attest, which is why the latter is likely testing those waters again--likely with Awesome Act, but even if that doesn't pan out, Jackson obviously has his pocketbook open.