2 on the Road to the Kentucky Derby Leaderboard following his late-closing victory in SaturdayвЂ™s $401,000 Santa Anita Derby (Grade I). 2 ON ROAD TO KENTUCKY DERBY LEADERBOARD WITH SANTA ANITA DERBY VICTORY вЂ“ C R K StableвЂ™s Honor A. вЂњWe are thankful a horse like Volatile got us one step closer to that mark.вЂќДЄsmussen had three horses entered on Sunday while Romans had one. вЂњItвЂ™s been a little bit frustrating not getting there yet,вЂќ Asmussen said. Asmussen trailed Dale Romans 737-to-736 wins at the start of SundayвЂ™s 10-race program at Churchill Downs. With VolatileвЂ™s victory in the Aristides, Asmussen moved one win closer to becoming Churchill DownsвЂ™ all-time leading trainer. вЂњIвЂ™ve been around horses for a long time and to see a horse have that much acceleration, so quickly, is incredible,вЂќ said retired trainer and Churchill Downs racing official Steve Penrod. The racetrack was still buzzing Sunday morning after Volatile recorded what some deemed one of the most impressive performances they have seen beneath the Twin Spires. Volatile, trained by Hall of Famer Steve Asmussen, was two one-hundredths of a second off the 13-year-old track record when he stopped the clock in a scorching 1:07.57 for six furlongs.

VOLATILE EARNS 109 BRISNET SPEED RATING WITH SCINTILLATING ARISTIDES VICTORY вЂ“ Phoenix Thoroughbred III and Three Chimneys FarmвЂ™s top-class sprinter Volatile earned a stout 109 Brisnet Speed Figure with his eye-catching eight-length score in SaturdayвЂ™s $100,000 Aristides presented by Woodford Reserve (Listed). вЂњI donвЂ™t have a passport and a top hat would look goofy on my head. While Ward has become a regular trainer on the international scene, Scherer plans to remain stateside. and targets many of the international race meets including Royal Ascot. The world-traveling Ward has horses based throughout the U.S. WardвЂ™s horses are stabled in Barn 35 at Churchill Downs. вЂњIвЂ™ve got a good pep in my step working with these horses.вЂќ вЂњSince I took that phone call from Wesley, IвЂ™ve dropped eight pounds and ate more food than ever before,вЂќ Scherer joked. Scherer spent the majority of his training career based in Louisiana and was introduced to WardвЂ™s father, Dennis, in the 1960s. Scherer has nearly six decades of experience training horses and has 1,413 victories since statistics started being regularly kept for horse racing in 1976.

When Wesley asked me to come help out at the barn, of course I told him I would.вЂќ вЂњI was down on horses and had planned to come back to Louisville to hang out with my son. вЂњI was sitting down in New Orleans this winter and Wesley called me and asked what I was going to do this spring,вЂќ said Scherer, who turns 81 in July. That plan changed when Scherer received a call from longtime friend Wesley Ward asking for help with his Churchill Downs division of horses. When veteran trainer Merrill Scherer planned his return to Kentucky this spring from New Orleans, he was going to help his son, Eric, and daughter-in-law, Marianne, with their small string of horses at Churchill DownsвЂ™ Trackside Louisville.

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