Kentucky Derby Winner 2013: Can Orb Win the Triple Crown?
By Josh Hill
When Orb crossed the finish line at the Kentucky Derby a full two-and-a-half lengths ahead of second place finisher Golden Soul, we had more than just a winner of this year’s Derby, we had a realistic possibility of ending the 35 year drought without a Triple Crown winner. Now. after every Kentucky Derby the question is asked whether or not that particular horse can win the Triple Crown and usually the answer is no. But Orb might be the one horse that changes minds and could make a serious run at a Triple Crown.
Twice now Orb has overcome odds to win major races that give him the credibility of a true Triple Crown contender. At the Florida Derby, Orb overcame the speed favoring bias and at the Kentucky Derby he managed to win the race despite it being his first foray into a sloppy track on a national stage. Both times the odds weren’t totally in Orb’s favor yet both time he came out victorious.
It’s these two wins, and the way they occurred, that has people convinced that Orb is the horse with the best chance in the last 35 years of winning the Triple Crown and breaking that nasty drought hanging over the sport.
But we’ve had strong horses win the Derby before and enter this conversation only to bottom out at the Derby and fail to win either of the next two races. It’s incredibly hard to win the Kentucky Derby but the populace’s drive to find a Triple Crown winner has almost made winning the Derby the easiest leg in the road to the Triple Crown.
Next up for Orb is the task of winning two more races in a five week period. But after watching Orb in pre-Derby workouts and the way he backed up the hype when it counted the most and after just analyzing everything he brings to the table, Orb truly looks like the best horse with the best chance in all these years to become the 12th winner of the elusive Triple Crown.