One of the happiest people at Churchill Downs May 3 was Florida pinhooker Eddie Woods. He bought Kentucky Derby Presented By Yum! Brands (gr. I) winner Big Brown for $60,000 at the 2006 Fasig-Tipton Kentucky October yearling sale and resold the colt the following year for $190,000 at the Keeneland April sale of 2-year-olds in training.
“It was exhilarating, unbelievable!” declared Woods after leaving the winner’s circle celebration. “I always thought he would win it, but to actually see it happen, it was a totally different ballgame.”
When Woods bought Big Brown he thought the colt’s future was on the turf. In fact, the son of Boundary broke his maiden on grass by 11 ¼ lengths at Saratoga last year.
“Look at his pedigree, it’s turf,” Woods said. “But obviously, he’s a phenomenal athlete. He’s overcome everything. Boundary is a good sire, but they (his offspring) don’t go that far. This horse (Big Brown) is a turf horse; he shouldn’t run on the dirt. He’s doing things he shouldn’t be doing.”
When Woods was preparing Big Brown to be sold as a juvenile, "he was always really nice,” the pinhooker said. “The nicest thing about him was he went everywhere with his ears pricked, always, right from the first time we ever saw him at Fasig-Tipton.”
Bright, alert, and eager, Big Brown grew up to be a classic winner and he has a shot to sweep the Triple Crown, something that hasn’t been done since Affirmed accomplished the feat in 1978.
Big Brown has won all four of his career races, including the Florida Derby (gr. I) and an allowance event at Gulfstream Park.