Brooklyn Boro

‘Dream’ comes true for pair of Brooklyn Boyz

Borough Natives Head to Pimlico with Hopes of Chasing Triple Crown

May 10, 2017 By John Torenli, Sports Editor Brooklyn Daily Eagle
Always Dreaming arrived at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore on Tuesday morning, hoping to win the second leg of horseracing’s Triple Crown the Saturday after next. AP Photo by Patrick Semansky
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This isn’t the story of a high-powered New York attorney and a billionaire NHL team owner who just happen to co-own the best 3-year-old colt in the world.

But rather, one about two kids from Williamsburg who realized a dream last Saturday evening at Churchill Downs.

Local lawyer Anthony Bonomo and Florida Panthers owner Vincent Viola watched in awe along with the rest of the nation last weekend as Always Dreaming, a horse that was purchased by Bonomo’s Brooklyn Boyz Stables two years ago, left 19 other competitors in the mud, grabbing the crown jewel of horse racing at the 143rd Kentucky Derby.

“Anthony and I, I think, represent everybody who went to the racetrack for the first time with their dads and were just astonished by the brilliance of these equine athletes,” said Viola, who was also President Donald Trump’s original nominee for Secretary of the Army.

“And [we] never fell out of love with the sport,” he added. “And we have to say, really, we are two kids, still, in our hearts, from Brooklyn, N.Y., Williamsburg section, who always dreamed.”

Always Dreaming was listed as a 9-2 favorite on race day, but that came after a week in which he appeared a bit too antsy and energetic, fighting against his jockey, John Velazquez, before trainer Todd Pletcher made a few tweaks to his diet.

Despite a rainy day and sloppy track, Always Dreaming posted the largest margin of victory, 2 ½ lengths, at the 1 ¼-mile Derby in six years, delivering a second win at the event for both Velazquez and Pletcher, both of whom also hail from New York.

“This is so special to win this race with Johnny,” Pletcher said. “We’ve been together for all these years and this is sweet.”

“This is the best horse Todd and I have ever come to the Kentucky Derby with,” Velazquez added.

For Bonomo, Viola and their wives, who also co-own the champion horse, the win brought a torrent of messages from well-wishers from across our fair borough.

“I didn’t know your phone could store 267 messages,” an exhilarated Bonomo told a local radio station shortly after the race.

“I’m trying to figure out how the hell I’m going to return all these. But I begged Vinny on the way over to have a party at a restaurant [in Brooklyn] that he is paying for. So all these messages, maybe we can return them in person.”

It was Bonomo’s son, Anthony Jr., who made the original purchase of the horse in 2015, and it was his wife, Mary Ellen, who named him.

“Everybody dreams of something,” she said. “Whether it’s a big event or a special day or the birth of a child or winning the Kentucky Derby.”

Now that they’ve won the race, Bonomo and Viola are headed to Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Maryland for the May 20 running of the 142nd Preakness Stakes, the second jewel in racing’s Triple Crown.

Always Dreaming arrived in Stall 40 at the track, traditionally set aside for the Derby winner, on Tuesday, aiming to continue his run at history. Only one horse, American Pharoah in 2015, has captured the Triple Crown since 1978.

The Preakness is the shortest of the Triple Crown races at 1 3/16ths of a mile, but will also feature the smallest field of the three events, currently at 10 entries.

In a best-case scenario, which would have to include a win in Baltimore the weekend after next, Bonomo and Viola wouldn’t have to travel far from their Brooklyn roots to watch Always Dreaming chase the Triple Crown.

The June 10 Belmont Stakes, which is the longest of the three Derby races at 1 ½ miles, will provide the final leg of Always Dreaming’s dash for greatness.

And this time, neither Bonomo nor Viola will have to check their phones for well wishes or advice from their fellow Brooklynites.

“That’s what our neighborhood is all about,” Bonomo said. “They carry you in times like this that are great. But more importantly, when they are not as great is when you really know the value that your friends are friends forever.”

In 10 short days, the two kids from Williamsburg who took to the track with their dads all those years ago will get to find out if this dream continues or not.

“You’re standing around at 14 [years old] and watching the racing,” Bonomo said last weekend. “And all of a sudden you’re standing here at the Kentucky Derby Even when you’re dreaming, you can’t dream it.”

Apparently, you can.

 

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