Takes

Tyler Reddick is the first driver in NASCAR history to start a season 3-0.

Tyler Reddick... he did win today. But he's won of the previous two won races as well. So he is the first driver in history to start the season three and oh. He goes three and oh after going winless last year. First guy to do the first three races of the year.

The 2025 Black-eyed Susan field is the weakest the race has seen in a long time

It's, it's not a, honestly, it's not a really good black eye, Susan. Okay. In fact, it's one of the worst black eye Susans that I've seen in a long time in terms of quality... it's a pretty weak field.

The horse Mystik Dan (Sovereignty) is a 'beta' and a pussy for skipping the Preakness

I'm saying I'm gonna prank call sovereignty. I we should harass this horse. This is a beta horse. This is what happens. It's a horse that's been coddled its entire life... accomplished one thing... This horse is a fucking pussy.

Sovereignty is a much better workhorse at Churchill Downs than he has been in the past

One of those kind of horses... is Sovereignty trained by Bill Mott, stretch runner Godolphin second in the Florida Derby. He is always been just a very average workhorse, and he's looked a lot better in the morning here at Churchill Downs than he has in the past.

A prime Secretariat could not win a race with a 235-pound Big Cat in the saddle

No shot, Big Cat, no shot. I'm sorry to tell you that. [You would finish] probably dead last. Even if you were an accomplished equestrian, at that weight riding Secretariat? No. He'd be up the track.

National Treasure will win the Preakness Stakes

I'll take National Treasure. I think he's gonna control the pace... to me that gives him the edge.

I was the last person to talk to Dale Earnhardt before his fatal crash at the 2001 Daytona 500

Dale Earnhardt came up to me and he goes, 'I just have to say, you've brought me and my daughter so much closer, your show.' ... Other than his crew chief essentially, I was the last person to talk to him.

The 'Drive to Survive' series fakes rivalries and misrepresents F1 driver personalities

I think there were a few things yeah where I was not really happy with. And especially, you know, faking rivalries between drivers. That to me is a tough one because of course it did wonders in America. But also I think sometimes they portray a few drivers differently to how they actually are. And then of course the people who are new to F1 think, oh, this guy is a bit of a Dick or whatever. Which in real life is not.

Red Bull is cheating in Formula 1

I've found my perfect niche niches that I don't watch any second of the race. And then just say someone cheated after. Cause it was great. It was like, I didn't watch a second a Monaco. And then I was like red bull cheats.

Early Voting has a rest advantage that could challenge Epicenter in the Preakness

I agree with you. I think that [Epicenter] stands out in the field on paper, but Early Voting would have an edge he'll he'll probably set the pace. Epicenter should be right behind him. And Early Voting does have the edge of rest having not run since the Wood Memorial. So that will help his chances.

The Preakness is historically a better race for fillies than the other Triple Crown races

I do think that the Preakness is usually a better race for fillies. We haven't had a Kentucky Derby, a Philly that's won the Kentucky Derby since winning colors in 1988... But we saw Rachel Alexandra, for example, beat the boys in the Preakness. I think that was 2009, very impressively.

Rich Strike will not win the Preakness

Rich Strike is a dog. Hold on. Horse racing needs a bad boy... but he's not going to win the Preakness. So it will be, it will go away quickly.

Max Verstappen was at fault for the crash with Lewis Hamilton at Monza

Max's car is literally on Lewis's head, and he just walked away... I said Max is a jerk... Max obviously drives to the edge... I would say my rule of thumb is nine times out of 10. If you drive over another guy's head, it's probably your fault.

Max Verstappen is currently the best driver in the world

He's [Max Verstappen] the best in the sport right now. All time salty Instagram post after... but right now he's number one... Max Verstappen is the best racecar driver right the second.

Max Verstappen will eventually be the F1 World Champion

Max Verstappen is going to be world champion. That's what everyone says. I believe it as well.

Formula One drivers are weighed more than almost anyone because car performance depends on maintaining a precise combined weight of the driver and vehicle

They get weighed after breakfast. They get weighed before they get in the car. They get weighed after they get out of the car because... we have to have them at a consistent weight... it's a combined weight between the driver and the car.

Medina Spirit will almost certainly be disqualified from the Kentucky Derby

If the split sample comes back, the second sample that Baffert is sending out to verify the presence of beta-methasone in the horse's system, if it comes back positive, the horse is going to be disqualified almost certainly from the Kentucky Derby... I feel pretty confident in saying that the horse will probably be disqualified.

Bet against Medina Spirit in the Preakness because his Kentucky Derby victory was due to an fluke easy pace

If you're a better player, and the odds of the horse in the Preakness reflect what he did in the Kentucky Derby when he got away with such an easy, advantageous trip... then you're supposed to bet against horses like this. So that's the justification against Medina Spirit.

My Kentucky Derby win has a huge asterisk because of Bob Baffert

I finally did win the Kentucky Derby, and I talked about it ad nauseum for the days afterwards, and then that one win has a huge asterisk because Bob Baffert is addicted to shooting his horses up with steroids.

Essential Quality is a machine but hasn't run a fast race yet

He's just a machine so far... The one knock on him... [is] he's yet to run what most people would consider to be a fast race by Kentucky Derby favorite standards.

Essential Quality will NOT win the 2021 Kentucky Derby

I can't tell you who I'm going to pick, but it's not Essential Quality.

iRacing takes the same skill set as real life racing

The thing is, is in iRacing, it takes the same skill set to be good in iRacing as it does in real life, where other sports like a football player doesn't mean he's going to be a good Madden player. ... You're using the same controls.

Ryan Newman surviving his Daytona crash is a testament to NASCAR's safety improvements

The fact that he was able to survive that wreck with serious injuries, but the fact that he's still alive is just incredible and it's honestly like a testament to what NASCAR has done since Dale Earnhardt passed away at the Daytona 500 20 years ago.

USA Rugby Sevens will be in striking distance of first place going into the Paris tournament

The point is that this is the penultimate. So it's the second to last tournament. If we're in striking range going into Paris. We already are. We're in first. Which is the last leg. I might pull a Hong Kong and just fly over to Paris. ... I'm going to say it right now. We'll be in fucking striking distance because I have faith in our boys.

Country House skipping the Preakness is a smart move to protect his legacy

If I'm country house, if I'm that horse, I'd probably do the exact same thing. Because you're never going to top that. You are going out completely at the top of your game. You're a Kentucky Derby winner. And why would you ever try to follow that up?

Maximum Security's disqualification from the Kentucky Derby was 100% the correct call

The actual change from Maximum Security getting kicked out of the race at the end, that was the correct call. 100%. You can't just drift in front of other horses. You have to give them a path.

Maximum Security's Florida Derby win was 'phony' because he wasn't pressured

Let's make Maximum Security into the villain... there should be kind of an asterisk by his last win in the Florida Derby because the competition in that race just basically handed him the race... Everybody else just decided to take back, and all of a sudden this horse is just cruising.

Bet against Bellafina in the Kentucky Oaks because she doesn't like the track at Churchill Downs

The favorite in the Oaks is going to be a horse named Bellafina... The only bad race Bellafina has ever had in her life was... here at Churchill Downs. She doesn't look very good [this week]... for a horse to have those negatives and to be the favorite, I think it's a good horse to bet against.

I gave my pit crew a $40,000 total bonus for winning the Daytona 500

I gave them each a $2,000 bonus, which, I mean, there's 20 guys, so that's $40,000. Plus, I give a tip to my pit crew. I offer them $200 a man if we can pick up one spot per pit stop.

I expect Denny Hamlin to win at least five races this year

Hey, man, I'm proud of you, man. We bounced back after a tough year last year and started off right, so I expect at least five wins.

Toyota will have a big year in NASCAR in 2019

Is this going to be a big year for Toyota? Should be. That was the other thing. We got four great drivers... we only had four or five cars, but we found a way to finish one, two, three [at Daytona].

Call to Mind is the top horse to bet in the Belmont Gold Cup

The horse's name is Call to Mind, M-I-N-D, Call to Mind, number one in the Belmont Gold Cup tomorrow. I don't know what the price is going to be... but there's another horse if you want to hook that one up in some exotics.

The Curse of Apollo in the Kentucky Derby is absolute BS

To be honest with you, 2018, it's absolute BS. It should have gone up in flames six years ago with a horse named Bodie Meister... now this year there are two horses, Justify... and Magnum Moon... it matters not even a little bit.

Justify is the most likely winner of the Kentucky Derby

I think Justify is probably the most likely winner, although he's going to be the favorite.

LeBron James could never be a NASCAR driver because he is too tall

It'd never happen. Why? Because he couldn't even fit in the damn car. 5'11" is the perfect height. The tallest ever has been like 6'5". That's kind of max for the cars the way they're built.

Mares can continue to race effectively while pregnant

Some of those horses have that special glow. That's when you know they're pregnant. No, seriously. There have been numerous situations in horse racing where Mayors that were just on the verge of retirement and were bred still continue to race and race well for a while while they were carrying a baby. That does happen.

Rushing Fall is the horse to watch in the Friday Breeders' Cup races

There's a horse named Rushing Fall, trained by Chad Brown... She's had two starts. She won them both. Last time out, she looked like an absolute superstar. I think she is on her way to maybe some spectacular things.

Gun Runner has the best chance to beat Arrogate in the Breeders' Cup Classic

I think this is Gun Runner's race to lose... Gun Runner's got better, Arrogate seems to have gotten a little bit worse and I think this is Gun Runner's race to lose.

Dale Jr. is the undisputed face of NASCAR

Dale Jr. is the face of NASCAR. Well, I mean, that would be Dale Jr. Oh, but he's retiring. Yeah, but he's definitely the face of NASCAR.

Patch (the one-eyed horse) has zero chance of winning the Kentucky Derby.

What I told the people at NBC, if that horse [Patch] wins the Kentucky Derby, I'm going to immediately jump off the set. The heck with the TV show. I'm going to run down to the winner's circle and get my picture made with Patch. I love the horse, [but he's going to be 40-1].

Classic Empire is bad value for the Kentucky Derby

He's going to be the favorite, and he might be the favorite, and he's not going to be worth the shorter price. [No bet on Classic Empire].

Looking at Lee is a great longshot to include in trifectas and superfectas for the Kentucky Derby.

I think the most likely [longshot] is a horse it's going to be a big price, his name is Looking at Lee. He'll like the distance, he'll just keep coming, keep coming. And he's a good horse to put in third and fourth in those trifectas and superfectas.

Abel Tasman is a strong play to win or run well in the Kentucky Oaks.

Another [horse] called Abel Tasman, trained by Bob Baffert. Those are two horses that have also run pretty well from slightly off the pace, and that ought to play pretty well in the Oaks.

Nyquist the horse is officially finished

I'm going to say that Nyquist is finished. That horse is done. He's so finished that he's done.

Nyquist is not a slam dunk to win the Preakness due to potential rain

There's a probability that it's going to be a hellaciously rainy day on Saturday. [Nyquist] has never run in conditions like that before... Whereas Exaggerator, the horse that he beat in the Derby... he won very impressively in conditions like that.

American Pharoah was more talented than Nyquist

American Pharoah was a brilliant kind of horse... American Pharoah [was] like a wild horse. Nyquist is sort of like the consummate professional... I think at this point, I would take American Pharoah. I think he has more overall talent than Nyquist.