IT is in his hands. And they are the most capable hands in the game today. Hall of Fame jockey Mike Smith rides Justify in the Belmont Stakes today. They’re one win away from winning the Triple Crown. Sure, the enormity – or the desperation – might not be as grand as when American Pharoah stopped a 37-year drought in 2015, but the achievement will be the same.
Smith was inducted into thoroughbred racing’s Hall of Fame in 2003. The New Mexico native made it big, venturing from Santa Fe Downs to the bright lights of New York, winning New York jockey titles, Triple Crown races and Breeders’ Cup races with alacrity and poise. Certainly, his induction into the Hall of Fame signaled the back nine of an exhilarating career.
Back nine? Smith doesn’t know back nine. Since 2003, the gentle-handed tactician has ridden Horse of the Year Zenyatta, champions Arrogate, Songbird and Royal Delta, plus Shared Belief, Drosselmeyer, Game On Dude and dozens of other superstars. Justify? With a Belmont Stakes win, perhaps, he becomes the greatest of the greats for the 52-year-old jockey.
What has been your mindset over the past five weeks?
“I haven’t let everything soak in yet, I still have a race to win, I’m just trying to concentrate on each race individually. You just stay busy, I stay working out, same routine. I will say, it creeps into your head every now and then, it’s fun to think about for a second but I take it right out of my head. The way I’m going in is I’ve got a race to win. I’m not thinking about the other two races, I’m just thinking about this race and what we’ve got to do for him to run his best.”
What do you have to do for him to run his best?
“He’s a very straightforward horse, good Lord willing he’ll jump (from the gate) well, just let him do his thing. You don’t look to try to get the distance, slow the pace down and all that. He’s a naturally high cruising speed horse and he fires, he gives you what he’s got. He’s really talented. If he’s in front, great, if he’s sitting off somebody, that’s fine too. He doesn’t have to be on the lead. As long as he’s in a nice comfortable rhythm, he’s going to run well.”
Is it easy to let a horse do his thing?
“Each horse is different, Zenyatta sat way back and would come up with a big run, some horses have a short run, some horses have a distance question, you ride them accordingly. He’s got such a big beautiful stride, I just let him do what he’s comfortable doing. And the good thing about him, you can turn him off and on. I can use him out of there and I can ask him to set off of them, he’s content to do what I ask him to do, that helps a whole lot.”
Was there an anxious moment in the Kentucky Derby?
“I knew we were going kind of quick, when Bolt D’Oro come at me going under the wire, kind of forced my hand, I said, ‘man, this is awful early to be going this quick.’ But he was well within himself, he was happy, he wasn’t going to let anybody pass him that day.”
How about the Preakness trip?
“It was the first time he was bullied around a little but he handled it, he was all for it, he didn’t mind it one bit.”
It looked like you were easy on him in the last stages of the Preakness?
“Yeah, I was thinking ahead of time. I didn’t want him to do any more than he had to do especially on that track, I felt we had the race under control, although Bravazo did finish strong, he certainly surprised me a little bit. I wouldn’t have geared him down if I didn’t think we were okay. When I say geared down, I rode him hard to get out and away from Good Magic and then I was like, ‘Stay like this. Stay like this.’ I looked under my arm a couple of times to make sure.”
He listens to you that well?
“Oh yeah, you slam on the peddle, he’ll jump again.”
What was his reaction to winning the Derby and Preakness?
“He’s just laid back. I let him shut down and he just starts walking, next thing you know he’s walking like the pony. He hangs his head and you think, ‘boy, he must be really tired.’ And then, whoop, there he goes, he gets a pep in his step and seems okay.”
Can you compare him to another horse?
“It’s hard to compare them, they’re all different. The good ones are fast, they’ve got a mind to go with it and they’ve got a burst, an acceleration to go along with it that makes them who they are. I’ve been blessed to ride great horses, older horses. You pray for a fair opportunity and if it’s meant to be, it will be.”
Have you always been religious/spiritual?
“Since I was a kid, I’ve always been that way. It’s just me, either I’m giving Him thanks that we all made it back safe even if we didn’t win and giving Him all the praise and glory if we do win. Just try to be a humble winner and a gracious loser, that’s the way you’re supposed to be; we’re humans, it can be trying at times.”
How did you win two Belmonts?
“Palace Malice was sitting right off them, Drosselmeyer was a little further back. They were both talented horses in a good place early and finished strong.”
What was your worst Belmont ride?
“Well the worst thing that ever happened to me in the Belmont was Prairie Bayou (injured and euthanised). I was crushed, he was my first Triple Crown horse, I won the Preakness on him, he was just such a kind, beautiful horse, just a little gelding, you just loved being around him. That one will always hurt. You try not to get that attached.”
What’s the key to riding the Belmont?
“I learned in New York on that big, big track, you’ve got to get a horse happy and comfortable, if not, it’s a long way to go. When you get one happy and comfortable, wherever that’s at, they’re going to run. It’s just a matter if you’re good enough to keep on running or run on by them.”
How important is the mile and a half – farthest of the Triple Crown races?
“Some people think you have to be way back, you don’t necessarily have to be that far back, but then I’ve seen horses come and nail them. They have to be able to get the distance, you can have them in that comfortable rhythm but if they can’t get it, they just can’t get it. If you do too much early, there’s no way you’re going to get the distance. Just getting them in that good, comfortable rhythm, wherever that is.”
Do you have any doubts in Justify handling the distance?
“I don’t think he’ll have a problem with it. I’m looking forward to hopefully a dry track, he should like the big old turns, he’s a big, powerful horse.”
Justify won the Derby and Preakness over sloppy tracks, is he better on a fast surface?
“I think he is, but we’ll see. He runs over the slop because he’s very athletic and he’s got a lot of try in him.”
You picked up the ride after Drayden Van Dyke won on Justify. Did you talk to him about it?
“Sure, we talked about it. He understood, we had a long talk. His turn will come. There is nothing like experience, you just keep being you and keep being good, believe me, you’ll get plenty of opportunities. It happens to everybody, it’s part of the game. He understood.”
You’ve gone through ups and downs.
“Sure, I’ve been taken off all kinds of horses, I can name champion after champion.”
How did you persevere over that?
“I never took it personal. I saw people who did and it certainly didn’t work to their advantage and I saw people who handled it very well: ‘Thank you for the opportunity, hey, keep me in mind down the road.’ Man, those guys would come back and win for those same people, win big ones and even win bigger ones. You learn through watching. I watched myself. Trial and error.
“I’ve been upset, that didn’t go over very well. I handled it well with Bob (Baffert) the first time, he took me off Vindication. I was unbeaten on him, I just won the Breeders’ Cup on him and he put (Jerry) Bailey on him. I said, ‘you know what, I appreciate the opportunity, just put me on the bench, don’t trade me off the team. When you think I’m riding good enough, you put back in.’ And that’s exactly what he did.”
Have you talked to Baffert about it?
“Oh yeah, he said, ‘that was the best way you could handle something.’ He told me, ‘I always thought about you, I always wanted to make it up to you, at some point I knew I would.’”
Wow, he made it up to you?
“When I started riding better in his eyes, there you are. You got to understand, these horses aren’t ours.”
Describe when you came to New York for the first time.
“It was the greatest thing in the world. Come to New York City as a young kid, started doing well right off the bat.”
What’s the best part of riding in New York?
“Everybody talks about it, doesn’t matter what you’re doing, it’s just different in New York. Just listen to the song, ‘If you can make it there, you can make it anywhere…’ It’s a wonderful, tough place but what a place it is to succeed.”
What’s it like to come back to New York?
“I love coming back. I’m very happy in California, but it’s so cool to come back to New York. I’ve got great friends, great people who are behind me, it’s great to come back and see everyone. For some reason, they like me there.”
What was the first Triple Crown you remember?
“Secretariat. I remember right where I was sitting. My grandmother had just gotten a brand new coffee table that had a mirror in the middle of it, I thought that was the neatest thing. I was sitting right on that table watching it. She put the TV on because the race was coming on, me and my grandfather sat right there and watched it.”
Did you think you were going to be a jockey?
“That’s when I started thinking about thoroughbreds. I was a big Quarter Horse guy then. My first dream was to win the All American (Futurity), not the Kentucky Derby. I never won it, I always said I was going to be the first jock to win the All American and the Kentucky Derby, but I thinking I’m running out of time to hold onto one going 440 yards.”
How different is it to get the chance of a Triple Crown at this stage of your career?
“I’m so blessed for the opportunity. Sometimes you get things in life when you’re able to handle them, some things come to some people too early and maybe you don’t handle it so well. I thank God it’s come to me this late, not early because I’m not so sure I would have handled it the right way. Not to say I’m going to handle it, I’ve still got a race to win. But win, lose or draw, I’m prepared for whatever outcome.”
What’s the message of a 52-year-old jockey if he wins the Triple Crown?
“Keep yourself in good shape, stay healthy, good and strong, you can keep on keeping on. Work at it. The body is a tool, if you don’t use it, it’ll grow old on you quick. The mental part is the best, because experience is a wonderful thing to have, man, when you have that experience…”