Coal Battle Racing Louisiana Trainer Briley Toward Big Dreams
A 72-year-old Louisiana-based trainer has his first horse on the Road to the Kentucky Derby
Training a horse on the Road to the Kentucky Derby seemed like an unreachable dream for Lonnie Briley, but Coal Battle has now won two 10-point prep races and the 72-year-old Louisiana native might have to expand his aspirations.
“I never even thought about ever going to the Derby,” Briley said. “Now, it’s just crazy. I can’t believe it.”
Coal Battle, the 3-year-old son of Coal Front, won last Saturday’s Smarty Jones Stakes at Oaklawn Park by four lengths, improving on his half-length victory in the Springboard Mile at Remington Park on Dec. 13. The colt is easily the best horse Briley has trained, and while the effervescent horseman knows the competition will get harder in the next few months, he believes in his colt.