Chuckles:

I will exit this thread to begin the study of todays last couple of races at Hawthorne, which I think is a combination horse track/ car racing track (Thanx TG for the comp. Anyone else playing?)

I will exit by reiterating my original point: Phipps Stable probably doesn't put emphasis on the Derby or Triple Crown. If they did they might do all the things you have suggested and would probably make different stallion selections.

They would probably try to find a different trainer specifically for their Derby crop. IMO Shug like Frankel in terms of racing animals lightly is not comfortable with the demands of the individual races and sequence of the TC series.