Dallas / Fort Worth Sports

BALTIMORE (AP) ― Big Brown is the big shot at Pimlico this week: Stabled in the stall reserved for the Kentucky Derby winner; led to the track by police escort; installed as the 1-2 early favorite for Saturday's Preakness.

Life sure is good when you're the champ - especially a perfect one. Big Brown is 4-0 and has dominated the four fields with his victory totals coming by a combined 33 3/4 lengths.

Down the stretch they yawn!

"It's thrilling to have a horse like this to train," trainer Rick Dutrow Jr. said on Thursday.

Big Brown all but scared off the Derby field from even trying to compete against him in the Preakness. Gayego is the only other horse running in the first two jewels of the Triple Crown series, leaving Big Brown without a true rival in a sport that desperately needs any kind of positive buzz.

"They went in different directions," said trainer Nick Zito, who ran two horses in the Derby. "They just didn't feel they were good enough."

Big Brown and his 4 3/4-length victory in the Derby showed his dominance. But can he stay that way and avoid an upset at the Preakness?

Zito, who is running Stevil on Saturday, saw no weaknesses in Big Brown.

"I don't," he said. "Everyone saw him gallop. He looks great."

Some of the jockeys and owners that make up the rest of the field of 12 3-year-olds seem to have conceded defeat. Zito's not sure Stevil can hang with Big Brown. Icabad Crane jockey Jeremy Rose, who won in 2005 aboard Afleet Alex, said all the other horses were racing for second. Racecar Rhapsody trainer Ken McPeek said the race is wide open, well, except for Big Brown.

"If you throw Big Brown out, I'm sure there's a lot of people that would really think they had a good chance of winning the race," Dutrow said. "Finishing second or third in the Preakness is not a bad move."

The field was knocked down to 12 Friday morning when Behindatthebar was scratched with a bruised left front foot.

Jerry Bailey, who rode aboard six Triple Crown series winners, simply shook his head no when asked if Big Brown could be beat.

"It's unlikely," he said. "Someone would have to improve a lot. He would have to regress a lot."

A loss could happen. Sure, the convincing victories have quickly earned him comparisons to Triple Crown winners of the past, but the colt still has some parts of his game that he needs to prove he can handle.

The two-week turnaround is the shortest of Big Brown's career and he's got a couple of sore feet.

"He just burns a little bit on his right heel," Dutrow said. "We've been breezing him all the time with front bandages. In the Kentucky Derby, it's the best I've ever seen him come out of a race. The other two races he had some type of issues."

Like he did in the Derby, Big Brown will sport bandages on his front legs. The colt also sported a new pair of glued-on shoes Thursday afternoon outside his barn.

Big Brown, who drew the No. 7 post for the 1 3-16th-mile race at Pimlico, has hardly seem bothered by any of the challenges.

"He was inexperienced in the Derby and look what he did to the Derby field," Zito said.

Dutrow hasn't been shy about voicing his confidence in the colt. Dutrow knows he has the horse to beat and so do the odds makers - yet another fact in his favor.

Since 1911, when parimutuel wagering debuted at Pimlico, 27 Preakness favorites have started at odds of less than even money; 17 won and nine paid 50 cents to $1 or less. Riva Ridge in 1972 at 3-10 and Fusaichi Pegasus in 2000 were the shortest-priced favorites ever to lose the Preakness.

Overall, post-time favorites have won 68 times. Eight of the last 14 odds-on Preakness favorites have lost.

War Admiral (1937) and Count Fleet (1943) are the only two Triple Crown winners who went undefeated during their 3-year-old seasons. Racing hasn't had a Triple Crown winner since Affirmed swept the Derby, Preakness and Belmont 30 years ago.

"As a fan, does anybody not think this game needs a Triple Crown?" Bailey said.

Any bettor expecting a sure thing need only look to last year, when Derby winner Street Sense went off as the 6-5 favorite and was defeated by Curlin, to know no result is guaranteed. Barbaro was a 1-2 favorite in 2006 after posting the largest winning margin in the Derby in 60 years, then shattered his right hind leg just a few strides into the Preakness. Fusaichi Pegasus was a heavy 1-5 favorite, but was defeated by Red Bullet by 3 lengths.

So there is hope yet for the horses who want to be known as Preakness winners instead of forgotten also-rans.

"He is the favorite and deserves to be the favorite, but favorites get beat," said Edward Plesa Jr., who trains Hey Byrn.

(© 2010 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)