According to statistics provided by Equibase Company, trainer Jamie Ness won his 1,000th race on Thursday, September 23 when he sent out Afleet Ashley in the ninth race at Presque Isle Downs. Ness began his training career at Canterbury Park.
News and notes from around the Thoroughbred racing world, compiled by NTRA Communications.
HURRICANE IKE SHIPS IN FROM CALIFORNIA FOR SATURDAY’S SUPER DERBY
Six three-year-olds were entered for Saturday’s Grade II, $500,000 Super Derby, to be run at 1 1/8 miles on the dirt at Louisiana Downs in Bossier City, La. The race is scheduled to air live on both TVG and HRTV.
The 9-5 morning line favorite is the John Sadler-trained Hurricane Ike, who comes in off a fourth-place finish in the Grade I King’s Bishop Stakes on August 28 at Saratoga. Prior to that, the Southern California based colt had captured the April 24 Derby Trial and was being pointed to the Preakness before a minor injury to his left hind leg sent him to the sidelines. Joel Rosario has the mount on Saturday, and the pair will break from post position 4.
“He should be up close to the lead,” Sadler told Mary Rampellini of Daily Racing Form after the colt arrived from Hollywood Park yesterday. “Hopefully, he’ll be in front.” An intriguing challenger to Hurricane Ike is Golden Moka, who is a perfect 4-for-4 in his career. He beat fellow Canada breds last time out in the Prince of Wales Stakes at Fort Erie. That race, his 2010 debut, followed three wins as a 2-year-old in Panama.
Golden Moka breaks from post 5 with jockey A. Stephens on board. Golden Moka is listed at 3-1 on the morning line.
The complete Super Derby field, in post position order, is: Ricky Tick (jockey: Marlon St. Julien, morning line odds: 15-1); Arctic Comet (John Jacinto, 20-1); Apart (Jesse Campbell, 3-1); Hurricane Ike (Joel Rosario, 9-5); Golden Moka (Anthony Stephen, 3-1); and Distorted Economy (Pat Valenzuela, 5-2).
SARA LOUISE MAKES 2010 DEBUT IN GALLANT BLOOM HANDICAP
Saturday’s Grade II, $150,000 Gallant Bloom Handicap is the first Breeders’ Cup Challenge race of Belmont Park’s fall championship meet. The winner of the 6 1/2-furlong dirt sprint at the Elmont, N.Y., oval will earn a berth in the November 5 Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Sprint.
Hoping to earn that berth are the connections of Sara Louise, who will make her 2010 debut in the field of nine fillies and mares. Second by a head in last year’s Gallant Bloom to Indian Blessing, the daughter of Malibu Moon went on to finish fourth in the 2009 Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Sprint, and was last seen winning the Top Flight Handicap at Aqueduct Racetrack in November. A series of minor issues delayed her return to the races as a 4-year-old, but she has been training steadily through the summer.
“We hoped to get her to race at Saratoga,” said Rick Mettee, assistant to Godolphin trainer Saeed bin Suroor. “We hoped that this would be her second race of the year and we could go into the Breeders’ Cup as her third of the year. She had some real good works up at Saratoga on the synthetic track and yesterday she worked really well here.”
Highweight under 119 pounds and Hall of Fame jockey Edgar Prado, Sara Louise drew post 2 and was tabbed the morning-line favorite at 2-1.
“I think it’s a good field but I think the best of her form would hold up,” said Mettee. “She’d have to run really well to justify her second start of the year running in the Breeders’ Cup. It should be an interesting race.”
A filly that could derail a victorious return to the track by Sara Louise is the 3-year-old Rapport, who has won three of her last four starts, most recently an impressive 3 ½-length triumph going wire-to-wire in the Victory Ride at Saratoga on August 28 against fellow 3-year-olds.
“She’s a really nice filly, and she worked well the other day, and we’re very happy with where she’s at,” said her Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert. “You just never know when you’re going up against older mares. It’s a step up in grade, too, but I think she’s up to it.”
Martin Garcia will fly in from California to ride Rapport, 3-1 on the morning line from post position 8.
Trainer Bobby Ribaudo will saddle Qualia for her third straight graded start. Second by a head in the Bed o’ Roses in July at Belmont Park, she was never a factor after having the saddle slip in the Grade I Ballerina Stakes at Saratoga on August 28.
“This will clear everybody’s mind if we get back on track,” said Ribaudo of Qualia, 5-1 on the morning line under Rajiv Maragh from post position 4. “We went into the Ballerina with the Breeders’ Cup in mind, and hopefully, this race will put it back in our minds.”
The complete Gallant Bloom Handicap field, in post position order, is: Lovely Lil (jockey: Mike Luzzi, morning line odds: 20-1); Sara Louise (Edgar Prado, 2-1); First Passage (Jose Lezcano, 15-1); Qualia (Rajiv Maragh, 5-1); My Jen (Julien Leparoux, 8-1); Devil by Design (David Cohen, 15-1); Moontune Missy (Alan Garcia, 8-1); Rapport (Martin Garcia, 3-1); and Pretty Prolific (Calvin Borel, 12-1).
BREEDERS’ CUP POST TIME AND WAGERING MENU ANNOUNCED
The Breeders' Cup announced today the wagering menu and post times for the, 27th Breeders' Cup World Championships, to be held on Friday, November 5 and Saturday, November 6 at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Ky. This year's wagering menu on the 14 Breeders' Cup races is a veritable "Bettors' Banquet” of wagering opportunities including two all Breeders' Cup Ultra Pick Sixes; $6 million in guaranteed pools; 10-cent Superfectas, 50-cent Pick 4s, rolling Pick 3s, and trifectas; a Ladies' Classic - Breeders' Cup Classic daily double; and the Breeders' Cup Jockey Bet. For the first time, all 14 Breeders’ Cup races will have a maximum of 14 betting interests.
There will be a total of 10 races (six Breeders' Cup races) on the Championship Friday program that begins at 2:00 p.m., and 11 races on the Championship Saturday card (eight Breeders' Cup races) that gets underway at 12:05 p.m. The preliminary race order for the Friday Breeders’ Cup races calls for the Marathon (4:10 p.m.) to kick things off, followed by the Juvenile Fillies Turf, the Filly & Mare Sprint, the Filly & Mare Turf, the Juvenile Fillies and the and the Ladies Classic. On Saturday, the first Breeders’ Cup race will be the Juvenile Turf (1:50 p.m.), followed by the Dirt Mile, the Turf Sprint, the Juvenile, the Mile, the Sprint, the Turf and the Classic.
The race order for both days of the World Championships will be finalized on Wednesday, October 27. The remainder of each day’s card will be set after entries and post-positions are drawn on Tuesday, November 2. "Year after year racing fans around the world know they’re going to find great horses on the track and exceptional value in the betting pools,” said Ken Kirchner, President of FalKirk International and the manager of the Breeders' Cup wagering and simulcasting operations for the last 14 years. “The Championships give both the novice and the big player a chance to cash big tickets on their investment. With fractional bet levels at ten cents for superfectas and 50 cents for trifectas, Pick 3s and Pick 4s, this betting menu should appeal to fans at every level.”
Friday, September 24, 2010
Thursday, September 23, 2010
Ness Nears 1,000 Wins
Trainer Jamie Ness is approaching a personal milestone of 1,000 all time wins. Through racing yesterday, September 22, Ness was at 998 wins. He has four scheduled starts for today at Presque Isle Downs.
Information provided by Equibase
Information provided by Equibase
Thursday, September 16, 2010
Win A Trip To Secretariat Premiere
Daily Racing Form is giving away two trips to the Hollywood premiere of the movie Secretariat. You can register to win HERE.
Wednesday, September 15, 2010
PURSUE A DREAM GOES ALL THE WAY ON THE FRONT TO WIN THE DEBARTOLO BREEDERS’ CUP AT REMINGTON PARK
OKLAHOMA CITY – Pursue A Dream took advantage of his rail post position, going to the front of the field a few strides from the start of Labor Day’s $125,000 Edward J. DeBartolo Memorial Breeders’ Cup at Remington Park. He took the lead and was never headed by any of his eight rivals, leading every step in winning the 1-1/8 miles turf event.
Owned by Emerald Bay Stables of Minneapolis, Minn. and trained by Mich
ael Biehler of Jones, Okla., jockey Bobby Walker, Jr. guided Pursue A Dream through easy fractions of :24.49 for the opening quarter-mile, :49.37 for the half mile, 1:13.49 after three quarters of a mile and 1:37.29 for the mile. The veteran rider had plenty left in the stretch to fend off a late challenge by Heza Wild Guy to win by a half-length.
Quite A Handful was another half-length behind the top pair in third while the filly Peach Brew made a wide rally into fourth. While Pursue A Dream went to a lead he would never give up, it wasn’t exactly what Walker wanted to do concerning his strategy going into the DeBartolo. “I wanted to be close, not necessarily on the lead,” Walker said. “I rode him a little aggressively so I could at least have a position. I wound up on the lead and that’s how it worked out.”
Pursue A Dream was 6-1 in the wagering and paid $14 to win, $7.80 to place and $4.20 to show. Heza Wild Guy paid $9.60 to place and $4.40 to show in finishing in the money of the DeBartolo for the second straight year, after running third in 2009. Quite A Handful was made the 9-5 wagering favorite, off his ninth-place performance in the Grade 1, $1 million Arlington Million last month. He paid $3.40 to show for his third-place effort.
Pursue A Dream is a 5-year-old gelding by Macho Uno from the Kitwood mare Kitty On the Track, bred in Kentucky by Adena Springs. He won for the seventh time in 37 career starts and for the fifth time at Remington Park. The DeBartolo winner’s share of $75,000 moves the lifetime bankroll for Pursue A Dream to $280,336. This was the first win in the DeBartolo for all of the connections of Pursue A Dream. The race is named in honor of the late founder of Remington Park who passed in 1994.
Pursue A Dream is being pointed to The Remington Green Stakes on October 10th, a race in which he finished fourth last year.
Owned by Emerald Bay Stables of Minneapolis, Minn. and trained by Mich
ael Biehler of Jones, Okla., jockey Bobby Walker, Jr. guided Pursue A Dream through easy fractions of :24.49 for the opening quarter-mile, :49.37 for the half mile, 1:13.49 after three quarters of a mile and 1:37.29 for the mile. The veteran rider had plenty left in the stretch to fend off a late challenge by Heza Wild Guy to win by a half-length.Quite A Handful was another half-length behind the top pair in third while the filly Peach Brew made a wide rally into fourth. While Pursue A Dream went to a lead he would never give up, it wasn’t exactly what Walker wanted to do concerning his strategy going into the DeBartolo. “I wanted to be close, not necessarily on the lead,” Walker said. “I rode him a little aggressively so I could at least have a position. I wound up on the lead and that’s how it worked out.”
Pursue A Dream was 6-1 in the wagering and paid $14 to win, $7.80 to place and $4.20 to show. Heza Wild Guy paid $9.60 to place and $4.40 to show in finishing in the money of the DeBartolo for the second straight year, after running third in 2009. Quite A Handful was made the 9-5 wagering favorite, off his ninth-place performance in the Grade 1, $1 million Arlington Million last month. He paid $3.40 to show for his third-place effort.
Pursue A Dream is a 5-year-old gelding by Macho Uno from the Kitwood mare Kitty On the Track, bred in Kentucky by Adena Springs. He won for the seventh time in 37 career starts and for the fifth time at Remington Park. The DeBartolo winner’s share of $75,000 moves the lifetime bankroll for Pursue A Dream to $280,336. This was the first win in the DeBartolo for all of the connections of Pursue A Dream. The race is named in honor of the late founder of Remington Park who passed in 1994.
Pursue A Dream is being pointed to The Remington Green Stakes on October 10th, a race in which he finished fourth last year.
Thursday, September 9, 2010
NTRA Thoroughbred Notebook
News and notes from around the Thoroughbred racing world, compiled by NTRA Communications.
BELMONT FALL MEET OPENS WITH BOWLING GREEN HANDICAP
Al Khali may find himself at the perfect distance when he competes in the Grade II, $150,000 Bowling Green Handicap over 1 3/8 miles on the Inner Turf Course on Saturday, September 11, opening day for the 2010 Fall Championship Meet at Belmont Park in Elmont, N.Y.
After taking the Saranac, Al Khali was off the board in his next four starts before he returned to the winner’s circle two starts back with a gate-to-wire triumph in a 1 1/16-mile optional claimer at Belmont on July 8. Trying 1 ½ miles in the Sword Dancer Invitational at Saratoga on August 14, the 4-year-old led in the stretch but was outkicked and finished third.
“We thought he might be one who could get the trip,” said Hall of Fame trainer Bill Mott of the decision to try Al Khali at 1 ½ miles. “It looks like that last furlong might have stretched him out a little, but a mile and three eighths might be in his range.”
Al Khali, the 4-1 second choice who was assigned 116 pounds, will be ridden by Julien Leparoux for the first time and leaves from post position 3.
Remaining at the same 1 3/8-mile distance is the 2-1 morning-line favorite Winchester, most recently third in the United Nations at Monmouth Park on July 3. Prior to that performance, the Christophe Clement-trainee upset stablemate and reigning Champion Older Horse Gio Ponti with a half-length decision in the Manhattan Handicap over 1 ¼ miles at Belmont on June 5.
“He’s had the summer off, but he’s ready to go,” said Clement of Winchester, who will carry 119 pounds, leave from post position 5, and once again have the services of Cornelio Velasquez.
Trainer Barclay Tagg has elected to keep Dry Martini on the grass following a seventh in the John’s Call at Saratoga on August 6.
“It looked like he liked [the turf] all right,” said Tagg. “He’s a pretty classy horse – I wouldn’t run him against Gio Ponti or Get Stormy; the turf division is never easy – but running him on grass might help him last longer, keep him happy, and he might enjoy it. It’s a very forgiving surface.”
Dry Martini, whose five stakes victories include the Suburban Handicap, drew post 7 under Edgar Prado and 115 pounds at 12-1 on the morning line.
Grand Couturier picked up his first victory of 2009 in the Bowling Green and will try to repeat history on Saturday when he aims for his first win in 2010. Sixth last time out in the Sword Dancer, a race he won in 2007 and 2008, the 6-year-old son of Grand Lodge was installed at 8-1 and was assigned 117 pounds. Alan Garcia will ride from post 2.
From the rail out the complete field with horse, jockey and weight is: Simmard (jockey, John Velazquez, weight, 115); Grand Couturier (Alan Garcia, 117); Al Khali (Julian Leparoux, 116); Strike A Deal (Ramon Dominguez, 117); Winchester (Cornelio Velasquez, 119); Gabriel’s Hill (Eibar Coa, 113); Dry Martini (Edgar Prado, 115); Southwest (Javier Castellano, 113); Interpatation (Channing Hill, 116); Followmyfootsteps (Rajiv Maragh, 113); and Jeune-Turc (Jose Lezcano, 116).
ROSARIO CROWNED DEL MAR RIDING KING WITH THRILLING WIN IN FINAL RACE
In a blazing, all-out finish, jockey Joel Rosario won one of the most dramatic and exciting jockey races in years at Del Mar. A victory yesterday in the final race of the 37-day meeting gave him the riding title by a count of 57-56 over Rafael Bejarano. Rosario closed from last to first on Tiz Argent to eke out a victory at the wire over horses ridden by Patrick Valenzuela and Bejarano.
Rosario and Bejarano engaged in a seesaw battle throughout most of the season, as well as on the last day, which saw Rosario triumph four times. The day opened with Rosario, trailing Bejarano by one victory, winning the first two races and Bejarano countering by winning the next two. A third win for Rosario tied it up again and set things in motion for the dramatic finish.
“I was very, very lucky today,” said Rosario. “It was very exciting, and I’m happy for everything.”
FAIRPLEX PARK OPENS TODAY – WITH A MATCH RACE BETWEEN TWO TOP JOCKS
Historic Fairplex Park begins its 72nd season of horse racing today at the Los Angeles County Fair in Pomona, Calif. The 2010 race meet runs 15 days through Sept. 27.
Highlighting the opening day program is a match race with horses ridden by Martin Pedroza and David Flores, the runaway leaders at Fairplex Park in career and stakes victories. The match will be the sixth race and will be contested at a mile and one sixteenth.
The match race is the brainchild of Fairplex Park racing secretary Tom Knust. “I was at Canterbury Downs in 1988 when Shoe [Bill Shoemaker] was contemplating retirement,” Knust recalled. “They thought it would be a good idea to have a match race between Shoe and Julie Krone instead of a match race between horses, so I thought a race between Pedroza and Flores would be a natural.”
While Pedroza and Flores have raced against each other countless times during their careers, neither has participated in a match race.
“They have ridden against each other -- one against the other -- in morning workouts,” said Pedroza’s long-time agent, Richie Silverstein, “but I can’t ever remember either riding in a match race. It will be exciting, but as far as who will win, a lot depends on the form of the two horses. You can’t change a horse’s style because of a match race, but it will be good for the fans. There will be those who favor David, and those who support Martin,” said Silverstein.
TURFWAY PARK OPENS TODAY FOR ITS FALL MEET; LAUREL TO REOPEN SATURDAY
Turfway Park in Florence, Ky., opens its 52nd fall race meet today with a full slate of activities on tap. The meet, which ends October 3, encompasses 16 days of live Thoroughbred racing, highlighted by the Grade III, $100,000 Turfway Park Fall Championship this Saturday. For the third year, the Turfway Park Fall Championship, a one and one half mile event on Polytrack, has been designated a Breeders' Cup Challenge "Win and You're In" race, with the winner guaranteed a spot in the $500,000 Breeders' Cup Marathon at the Breeders' Cup World Championships at Churchill Downs.
The Fall Championship drew a field of 10, including Coolcullen Times, Eldaafer, Falling Knife, Lignon’s Hero, Sligovitz, and Smarten Destiny.
On Saturday, live racing returns to Laurel Park in Laurel, Md. The opening day card includes the Geisha Stakes and an all-turf Pick 3 to end the program. Opening day features free admission, an open house with live music and a barbecue on the apron, wine and appetizers in the clubhouse and foosball and air hockey in the Horse Wizard Room. The 57-day stand will feature live racing on Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday afternoons through Dec. 18.
CONTENTIOUS NEW JERSEY “WIVES” SET FOR REUNION SHOWDOWN SUNDAY
Monmouth Park track announcer Larry Collmus created an international sensation with his stretch call of the seventh race at Monmouth Park on August 22 when Mywifenosevrything and Thewifedoesntknow hooked up in a memorable stretch duel.
Apparently that race did not settle the score between the two contradictory fillies, so they will square off again Sunday in the eighth event on the 12-race card at the Oceanport, N.J. oval.
Collmus enthusiastically joined the spousal spat in the August 22 encounter. Down the stretch the two came, with the announcer giving a blow-by-blow account of the battle, capped by a final line: “Mywifenosevrything. Thewifedoesntknow. They’re one-two. Of course they are!”
The replay of the race and Collmus’s call became a viral sensation on YouTube and has generated more than 1,000,000 hits to date.
Since that first spousal “conflict”, Collmus has appeared on the CBS-TV Early Show and the nationally syndicated Inside Edition. The race replay was featured prominently on ESPN’s SportsCenter, and was also aired on the Today Show (NBC), Good Morning America (ABC), World News with Diane Sawyer (ABC) and on CNN broadcasts. Collmus also did a live interview with a radio station in Auckland, New Zealand.
In that August 22 race, the Jane Cibelli-trained Mywifenoseverything --ridden by Elvis Trujillo -- scored by two lengths over Thewifedoesntknow --trained by Ed Broome and ridden by Carlos Marquez Jr.
And for those who disdain handicapping but can’t resist a good hunch, the “Wife” exacta returned a generous $29.40.
Monmouth Park gates open Sunday at 11:30 a.m., with post time for the first race at 12:50 p.m. The “Wife” race is slated to go off at 4:02 p.m. It will air live on TVG.
T-shirts celebrating the last meeting of the “Wife” horses are available for $18 at the Monmouth Park gift shop in the grandstand, or online at www.monmouthparkstore.com.
BLACK-EYED SUSAN $2.2 MILLION BONUS PROGRAM ANNOUNCED
MI Developments Inc. (MID) introduced this week the Black-Eyed Susan 2.2 bonus program for three-year-old fillies, which could award $2.2 million in bonuses ($2 million to the owner and $200,000 to the trainer) to the winner of the 2011 Black-Eyed Susan Stakes at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore on May 20, 2011. The Black-Eyed Susan purse will also be increased for 2011 from $150,000 to $250,000.
The Black-Eyed Susan 2.2 is designed to allow both East and West coast based three-year-old fillies to qualify by having preliminary races take place at Gulfstream Park, Santa Anita Park, Golden Gate Fields and Portland Meadows.
“We have worked hard to take Black-Eyed Susan day to the next level, and this promotion, in conjunction with the enhanced purse, will increase the amount of excitement,” said Maryland Jockey Club President Tom Chuckas.
TICKET SALES FOR 2010 BREEDERS’ CUP AHEAD OF LAST YEAR’S PACE
With two months until the November 5-6 Breeders' Cup World Championships at Churchill Downs, advance ticket sales for this year’s two-day event are outpacing sales over the same period last year by almost double. Heading into the Labor Day holiday weekend, Breeders’ Cup and Churchill Downs had sold $7.2 million in reserved seating for the Breeders’ Cup compared to $3.7 million in advanced sales for the same period in 2009, when the event was held at Oak Tree at Santa Anita Park, and total attendance for the two days was 96,496.
To help meet the increased demand, the Breeders’ Cup is releasing for sale a limited number of Premium Box Seats overlooking the finish line and a limited number of premium tickets with indoor dining options. These seats had previously been reserved for Churchill Downs’ personal seat licensees, 85% of whom elected to purchase Breeders’ Cup tickets. In addition, while several sections of reserved seating are sold out, there are a limited number of Reserved Grandstand seats still available at single-day prices as low as $20. Breeders’ Cup officials attributed the robust sales to a variety of factors, including strong local interest in the greater Louisville market, the capacity and variety of reserved seating options at Churchill Downs and the potential that undefeated Champion Zenyatta may attempt a repeat of her 2009 victory in the $5 million Breeders’ Cup Classic.
"With its loyal fan base for racing, our home state of Kentucky is traditionally one of the strongest markets for the Breeders’ Cup World Championships. That interest combined with the broad range of choices at a state-of-the-art racing facility and the possibility of a truly historic Breeders’ Cup Classic has produced the strongest pre-event sales in Breeders’ Cup history,” said Breeders' Cup President and CEO Greg Avioli. "We're very excited to be running one of our premier races under the lights on Friday and we look forward to staging two days of the finest racing in the world at Churchill Downs."
BELMONT FALL MEET OPENS WITH BOWLING GREEN HANDICAP
Al Khali may find himself at the perfect distance when he competes in the Grade II, $150,000 Bowling Green Handicap over 1 3/8 miles on the Inner Turf Course on Saturday, September 11, opening day for the 2010 Fall Championship Meet at Belmont Park in Elmont, N.Y.
After taking the Saranac, Al Khali was off the board in his next four starts before he returned to the winner’s circle two starts back with a gate-to-wire triumph in a 1 1/16-mile optional claimer at Belmont on July 8. Trying 1 ½ miles in the Sword Dancer Invitational at Saratoga on August 14, the 4-year-old led in the stretch but was outkicked and finished third.
“We thought he might be one who could get the trip,” said Hall of Fame trainer Bill Mott of the decision to try Al Khali at 1 ½ miles. “It looks like that last furlong might have stretched him out a little, but a mile and three eighths might be in his range.”
Al Khali, the 4-1 second choice who was assigned 116 pounds, will be ridden by Julien Leparoux for the first time and leaves from post position 3.
Remaining at the same 1 3/8-mile distance is the 2-1 morning-line favorite Winchester, most recently third in the United Nations at Monmouth Park on July 3. Prior to that performance, the Christophe Clement-trainee upset stablemate and reigning Champion Older Horse Gio Ponti with a half-length decision in the Manhattan Handicap over 1 ¼ miles at Belmont on June 5.
“He’s had the summer off, but he’s ready to go,” said Clement of Winchester, who will carry 119 pounds, leave from post position 5, and once again have the services of Cornelio Velasquez.
Trainer Barclay Tagg has elected to keep Dry Martini on the grass following a seventh in the John’s Call at Saratoga on August 6.
“It looked like he liked [the turf] all right,” said Tagg. “He’s a pretty classy horse – I wouldn’t run him against Gio Ponti or Get Stormy; the turf division is never easy – but running him on grass might help him last longer, keep him happy, and he might enjoy it. It’s a very forgiving surface.”
Dry Martini, whose five stakes victories include the Suburban Handicap, drew post 7 under Edgar Prado and 115 pounds at 12-1 on the morning line.
Grand Couturier picked up his first victory of 2009 in the Bowling Green and will try to repeat history on Saturday when he aims for his first win in 2010. Sixth last time out in the Sword Dancer, a race he won in 2007 and 2008, the 6-year-old son of Grand Lodge was installed at 8-1 and was assigned 117 pounds. Alan Garcia will ride from post 2.
From the rail out the complete field with horse, jockey and weight is: Simmard (jockey, John Velazquez, weight, 115); Grand Couturier (Alan Garcia, 117); Al Khali (Julian Leparoux, 116); Strike A Deal (Ramon Dominguez, 117); Winchester (Cornelio Velasquez, 119); Gabriel’s Hill (Eibar Coa, 113); Dry Martini (Edgar Prado, 115); Southwest (Javier Castellano, 113); Interpatation (Channing Hill, 116); Followmyfootsteps (Rajiv Maragh, 113); and Jeune-Turc (Jose Lezcano, 116).
ROSARIO CROWNED DEL MAR RIDING KING WITH THRILLING WIN IN FINAL RACE
In a blazing, all-out finish, jockey Joel Rosario won one of the most dramatic and exciting jockey races in years at Del Mar. A victory yesterday in the final race of the 37-day meeting gave him the riding title by a count of 57-56 over Rafael Bejarano. Rosario closed from last to first on Tiz Argent to eke out a victory at the wire over horses ridden by Patrick Valenzuela and Bejarano.
Rosario and Bejarano engaged in a seesaw battle throughout most of the season, as well as on the last day, which saw Rosario triumph four times. The day opened with Rosario, trailing Bejarano by one victory, winning the first two races and Bejarano countering by winning the next two. A third win for Rosario tied it up again and set things in motion for the dramatic finish.
“I was very, very lucky today,” said Rosario. “It was very exciting, and I’m happy for everything.”
FAIRPLEX PARK OPENS TODAY – WITH A MATCH RACE BETWEEN TWO TOP JOCKS
Historic Fairplex Park begins its 72nd season of horse racing today at the Los Angeles County Fair in Pomona, Calif. The 2010 race meet runs 15 days through Sept. 27.
Highlighting the opening day program is a match race with horses ridden by Martin Pedroza and David Flores, the runaway leaders at Fairplex Park in career and stakes victories. The match will be the sixth race and will be contested at a mile and one sixteenth.
The match race is the brainchild of Fairplex Park racing secretary Tom Knust. “I was at Canterbury Downs in 1988 when Shoe [Bill Shoemaker] was contemplating retirement,” Knust recalled. “They thought it would be a good idea to have a match race between Shoe and Julie Krone instead of a match race between horses, so I thought a race between Pedroza and Flores would be a natural.”
While Pedroza and Flores have raced against each other countless times during their careers, neither has participated in a match race.
“They have ridden against each other -- one against the other -- in morning workouts,” said Pedroza’s long-time agent, Richie Silverstein, “but I can’t ever remember either riding in a match race. It will be exciting, but as far as who will win, a lot depends on the form of the two horses. You can’t change a horse’s style because of a match race, but it will be good for the fans. There will be those who favor David, and those who support Martin,” said Silverstein.
TURFWAY PARK OPENS TODAY FOR ITS FALL MEET; LAUREL TO REOPEN SATURDAY
Turfway Park in Florence, Ky., opens its 52nd fall race meet today with a full slate of activities on tap. The meet, which ends October 3, encompasses 16 days of live Thoroughbred racing, highlighted by the Grade III, $100,000 Turfway Park Fall Championship this Saturday. For the third year, the Turfway Park Fall Championship, a one and one half mile event on Polytrack, has been designated a Breeders' Cup Challenge "Win and You're In" race, with the winner guaranteed a spot in the $500,000 Breeders' Cup Marathon at the Breeders' Cup World Championships at Churchill Downs.
The Fall Championship drew a field of 10, including Coolcullen Times, Eldaafer, Falling Knife, Lignon’s Hero, Sligovitz, and Smarten Destiny.
On Saturday, live racing returns to Laurel Park in Laurel, Md. The opening day card includes the Geisha Stakes and an all-turf Pick 3 to end the program. Opening day features free admission, an open house with live music and a barbecue on the apron, wine and appetizers in the clubhouse and foosball and air hockey in the Horse Wizard Room. The 57-day stand will feature live racing on Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday afternoons through Dec. 18.
CONTENTIOUS NEW JERSEY “WIVES” SET FOR REUNION SHOWDOWN SUNDAY
Monmouth Park track announcer Larry Collmus created an international sensation with his stretch call of the seventh race at Monmouth Park on August 22 when Mywifenosevrything and Thewifedoesntknow hooked up in a memorable stretch duel.
Apparently that race did not settle the score between the two contradictory fillies, so they will square off again Sunday in the eighth event on the 12-race card at the Oceanport, N.J. oval.
Collmus enthusiastically joined the spousal spat in the August 22 encounter. Down the stretch the two came, with the announcer giving a blow-by-blow account of the battle, capped by a final line: “Mywifenosevrything. Thewifedoesntknow. They’re one-two. Of course they are!”
The replay of the race and Collmus’s call became a viral sensation on YouTube and has generated more than 1,000,000 hits to date.
Since that first spousal “conflict”, Collmus has appeared on the CBS-TV Early Show and the nationally syndicated Inside Edition. The race replay was featured prominently on ESPN’s SportsCenter, and was also aired on the Today Show (NBC), Good Morning America (ABC), World News with Diane Sawyer (ABC) and on CNN broadcasts. Collmus also did a live interview with a radio station in Auckland, New Zealand.
In that August 22 race, the Jane Cibelli-trained Mywifenoseverything --ridden by Elvis Trujillo -- scored by two lengths over Thewifedoesntknow --trained by Ed Broome and ridden by Carlos Marquez Jr.
And for those who disdain handicapping but can’t resist a good hunch, the “Wife” exacta returned a generous $29.40.
Monmouth Park gates open Sunday at 11:30 a.m., with post time for the first race at 12:50 p.m. The “Wife” race is slated to go off at 4:02 p.m. It will air live on TVG.
T-shirts celebrating the last meeting of the “Wife” horses are available for $18 at the Monmouth Park gift shop in the grandstand, or online at www.monmouthparkstore.com.
BLACK-EYED SUSAN $2.2 MILLION BONUS PROGRAM ANNOUNCED
MI Developments Inc. (MID) introduced this week the Black-Eyed Susan 2.2 bonus program for three-year-old fillies, which could award $2.2 million in bonuses ($2 million to the owner and $200,000 to the trainer) to the winner of the 2011 Black-Eyed Susan Stakes at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore on May 20, 2011. The Black-Eyed Susan purse will also be increased for 2011 from $150,000 to $250,000.
The Black-Eyed Susan 2.2 is designed to allow both East and West coast based three-year-old fillies to qualify by having preliminary races take place at Gulfstream Park, Santa Anita Park, Golden Gate Fields and Portland Meadows.
“We have worked hard to take Black-Eyed Susan day to the next level, and this promotion, in conjunction with the enhanced purse, will increase the amount of excitement,” said Maryland Jockey Club President Tom Chuckas.
TICKET SALES FOR 2010 BREEDERS’ CUP AHEAD OF LAST YEAR’S PACE
With two months until the November 5-6 Breeders' Cup World Championships at Churchill Downs, advance ticket sales for this year’s two-day event are outpacing sales over the same period last year by almost double. Heading into the Labor Day holiday weekend, Breeders’ Cup and Churchill Downs had sold $7.2 million in reserved seating for the Breeders’ Cup compared to $3.7 million in advanced sales for the same period in 2009, when the event was held at Oak Tree at Santa Anita Park, and total attendance for the two days was 96,496.
To help meet the increased demand, the Breeders’ Cup is releasing for sale a limited number of Premium Box Seats overlooking the finish line and a limited number of premium tickets with indoor dining options. These seats had previously been reserved for Churchill Downs’ personal seat licensees, 85% of whom elected to purchase Breeders’ Cup tickets. In addition, while several sections of reserved seating are sold out, there are a limited number of Reserved Grandstand seats still available at single-day prices as low as $20. Breeders’ Cup officials attributed the robust sales to a variety of factors, including strong local interest in the greater Louisville market, the capacity and variety of reserved seating options at Churchill Downs and the potential that undefeated Champion Zenyatta may attempt a repeat of her 2009 victory in the $5 million Breeders’ Cup Classic.
"With its loyal fan base for racing, our home state of Kentucky is traditionally one of the strongest markets for the Breeders’ Cup World Championships. That interest combined with the broad range of choices at a state-of-the-art racing facility and the possibility of a truly historic Breeders’ Cup Classic has produced the strongest pre-event sales in Breeders’ Cup history,” said Breeders' Cup President and CEO Greg Avioli. "We're very excited to be running one of our premier races under the lights on Friday and we look forward to staging two days of the finest racing in the world at Churchill Downs."
Friday, September 3, 2010
NHC's first prize rises to $1 million in 2012
by Dave Tuley Daily Racing Form
The first-place purse for the Daily Racing Form/NTRA National Handicapping Championship has been boosted from $500,000 to $1 million starting with the January 2012 finals, which will have a field of about 500 playing for a total purse of around $2 million. This year’s finale, slated for the Red Rock Resort in Las Vegas on Jan. 28-29, 2011, will have a field of about 321 playing for an estimated $1.1 million.
The NHC, in its 12th year, started with a purse of $240,000 and first-place prize of $100,000 with the inaugural finals in 2000. After five years, the first prize grew to $200,000 in 2005, then to $400,000 in 2007, and then to $500,000 in 2008.
“After more than a decade of steady, sustained growth, the NHC property is firmly established,” said NTRA vice president Keith Chamblin, who also acts as tournament director. “This is a good time to see how much we can expand it in the next couple of years. We want it to be on par with events like the World Series of Poker, and I think that’s very achievable with the interest of those wanting to hosting tournaments and the interest of customers in trying to qualify for the coveted spots in the NHC.”
Since the NHC’s inception, qualifying tournaments have only been allowed at NTRA member tracks, OTBs, casinos, and websites. The increases will come from that restriction being lifted.
DRF is a title sponsor of the NHC but is not involved in coordinating the qualifying tournaments or the running of the finals.
“There are hundreds of sites that offer pari-mutuel wagering in this country that might not feel a need for membership in the National Thoroughbred Racing Association – such as greyhound tracks, Quarter Horse tracks, Standardbred tracks, Native American casinos, Las Vegas racebooks, jai alai frontons – but would love to host NHC qualifiers,” Chamblin said. “By doing this, we can open it to everybody and make these increases in prize money without putting it on the backs of our members.”
Chamblin said final details are still being worked out, but currently NTRA members pay $10,000 to send three qualifiers to the finals with non-members to pay a yet-to-be determined premium that could be double the standard fee.
In another change, horseplayers hoping to qualify for the NHC will be required to pay an annual membership fee of $45 that must be paid in advance of playing in a qualifying event. If someone does not pay the fee in advance, they will just be competing for purse money and any NHC berths will fall to the next player who has not previously qualified.
“What we’re doing is instituting a program where if you want to play for the big money you have to join our organization,” Chamblin said. “It’s just like in golf, if you want to play on the tour, you have to register with the USGA. It’s the same way with other sports like billiards and tennis.”
With many more people being exposed to the NHC and wanting a chance to play for the $1 million jackpot, the membership fee was lowered from the current $100 Level 1 membership. A higher $500 fee was paid this year by Level 2 players who wanted to play for year-long prize money. Current plans call for that second tier to be eliminated next year.
Chamblin said more details in regards to when registration will begin, as well as free online tournaments and other members benefits, are still be ironed out and will be announced this fall.
The first-place purse for the Daily Racing Form/NTRA National Handicapping Championship has been boosted from $500,000 to $1 million starting with the January 2012 finals, which will have a field of about 500 playing for a total purse of around $2 million. This year’s finale, slated for the Red Rock Resort in Las Vegas on Jan. 28-29, 2011, will have a field of about 321 playing for an estimated $1.1 million.
The NHC, in its 12th year, started with a purse of $240,000 and first-place prize of $100,000 with the inaugural finals in 2000. After five years, the first prize grew to $200,000 in 2005, then to $400,000 in 2007, and then to $500,000 in 2008.
“After more than a decade of steady, sustained growth, the NHC property is firmly established,” said NTRA vice president Keith Chamblin, who also acts as tournament director. “This is a good time to see how much we can expand it in the next couple of years. We want it to be on par with events like the World Series of Poker, and I think that’s very achievable with the interest of those wanting to hosting tournaments and the interest of customers in trying to qualify for the coveted spots in the NHC.”
Since the NHC’s inception, qualifying tournaments have only been allowed at NTRA member tracks, OTBs, casinos, and websites. The increases will come from that restriction being lifted.
DRF is a title sponsor of the NHC but is not involved in coordinating the qualifying tournaments or the running of the finals.
“There are hundreds of sites that offer pari-mutuel wagering in this country that might not feel a need for membership in the National Thoroughbred Racing Association – such as greyhound tracks, Quarter Horse tracks, Standardbred tracks, Native American casinos, Las Vegas racebooks, jai alai frontons – but would love to host NHC qualifiers,” Chamblin said. “By doing this, we can open it to everybody and make these increases in prize money without putting it on the backs of our members.”
Chamblin said final details are still being worked out, but currently NTRA members pay $10,000 to send three qualifiers to the finals with non-members to pay a yet-to-be determined premium that could be double the standard fee.
In another change, horseplayers hoping to qualify for the NHC will be required to pay an annual membership fee of $45 that must be paid in advance of playing in a qualifying event. If someone does not pay the fee in advance, they will just be competing for purse money and any NHC berths will fall to the next player who has not previously qualified.
“What we’re doing is instituting a program where if you want to play for the big money you have to join our organization,” Chamblin said. “It’s just like in golf, if you want to play on the tour, you have to register with the USGA. It’s the same way with other sports like billiards and tennis.”
With many more people being exposed to the NHC and wanting a chance to play for the $1 million jackpot, the membership fee was lowered from the current $100 Level 1 membership. A higher $500 fee was paid this year by Level 2 players who wanted to play for year-long prize money. Current plans call for that second tier to be eliminated next year.
Chamblin said more details in regards to when registration will begin, as well as free online tournaments and other members benefits, are still be ironed out and will be announced this fall.
Thursday, September 2, 2010
NTRA Thoroughbred Notebook
News and notes from around the Thoroughbred racing world, compiled by NTRA Communications.
NATIONAL FUND RAISER FOR JOCKEY TAD LEGGETT TO BE HELD LABOR DAY
A fund raiser for seriously injured Quarter Horse and Thoroughbred jockey Tad Leggett will be held at racetracks across the country on Labor Day, September 6.
On that day, both Thoroughbred and Quarter Horse jockeys are asked to donate a losing mount fee to assist Tad’s family and help with costs associated with his care and rehabilitation. Tad suffered a broken neck on June 30 immediately after the third race at Fair Meadows Racetrack in Tulsa, Oklahoma.
After undergoing two extensive surgeries for the spinal injuries and to stabilize his neck, Leggett was transported to Craig Hospital in Englewood, Colorado, where he is currently undergoing rehabilitation. Craig Hospital specializes in rehabilitation and therapy for catastrophic cervical spinal cord injuries.
Because of the considerable costs associated with the procedures and rehabilitation, Leggett's medical care is reaching the insurance limits of the $500,000 on-track accident policy provided by Fair Meadows at Tulsa.
“We need the help of anybody and everybody to assist with Tad’s medical expenses,” said Terry Meyocks, National Manager of the Jockeys’ Guild. “Tad deserves a real chance to make a full recovery. It is necessary to raise this money to give Tad an opportunity to recover from his catastrophic injury.”
Tad has made significant progress over the past several weeks have regained feeling and some movement in his extremities. His wife, Tina, and family are optimistic regarding his recovery.
To bring awareness to Leggett, jockeys will be riding with a boot decal with Tad’s name. Other promotional events to raise funds will be held at various tracks, including an autograph signing at Ruidoso Downs prior to the running of the All-American Futurity with Quarter Horse jockeys, including G.R. Carter, Cody Jensen and Hall of Fame Jockey, Jerry Nicodemus.
Leggett is a 25-year journeyman jockey who has been an active member of the Jockeys' Guild since 1992. He is the career leader in Quarter Horse victories at Prairie Meadows, winning more than 400. He has also ridden at Remington Park, Lone Star Park and Canterbury Park.
The Jockeys' Guild is facilitating establishment of a fund to assist Tad Leggett and his family. Those wishing to donate should send checks to the Jockeys' Guild and mailed to 103 Wind Haven Drive, Ste 200, Nicholasville, KY 40356. Please make note of “Tad Leggett” on the check's memo line.
QUALITY ROAD LOOKS TO GET BACK ON TRACK IN WOODWARD
At the beginning of the year, when trainer Todd Pletcher and owner Edward P. Evans began mapping out Quality Road’s run to the Breeders’ Cup Classic, it included several key stops, including the Grade I Donn Handicap, the Grade I Met Mile, and the Grade I Whitney. Everything was going according to plan until the final yards of the Whitney, when Quality Road was nabbed at the wire by Blame for his first loss of the year.
Saturday, Quality Road’s connections are looking for the Elusive Quality colt to get back on track when he faces six others in the 57th running of the Grade I, $750,000 Woodward Stakes, the highlight of a Saturday Saratoga card that will also include the Grade I, $250,000 Forego Stakes for older sprinters.
“We were a half-a-head short of [being unbeaten] this year,” said Pletcher of Quality Road’s 4-year-old campaign. “Every race is paramount; they’re all important. If you lose, you regroup and try again, to regain his confidence, and regain our confidence.”
In the Whitney, Quality Road found himself alone on an easy lead, and wound up surprised in the final jumps by the fast-closing Blame. In the Woodward, Pletcher is hoping the speedy Arcodoro, front-running winner of two of his three starts this year, will give Quality Road a target in the 1 1/8th-mile race.
“We’re hoping for someone to show enough initiative so he can follow someone,” said Pletcher, who will again give John Velazquez a leg up on Quality Road, the 1-4 morning line favorite. “That would be our Plan A.”
Two colts who have tangled with Quality Road before are back for another try – Convocation, who was fourth in the Met Mile on Memorial Day, and 2009 Kentucky Derby winner Mine That Bird, who was fifth, beaten 12 ½ lengths, in the Whitney.
Trained by Jimmy Jerkens, who last week won the Grade I Travers with Afleet Express, Convocation followed the Met Mile with a second to Haynesfield in the Grade II Suburban at Belmont and a victory in an optional claimer on August 4 at Saratoga.
“He has a victory at the distance here,” said Jerkens of Convocation, who breezed a half-mile in 48.66 Tuesday. “You have to think that’s big going into a stakes.”
Mine That Bird, who has not won since his 50-1 upset in last year’s Run for the Roses, got a new trainer this spring in Hall of Famer D. Wayne Lukas. On Saturday, he will get a change of equipment with the addition of blinkers, and a new rider in Rajiv Maragh.
“We needed to move forward,” said Lukas, for whom Mine That Bird is winless in two starts. “The blinkers, the rider change – we weren’t getting results with the way things were.”
The complete Woodward field, in post position order, is: Convocation (jockey: Javier Castellano, morning line odds: 6-1); Mine That Bird (Rajiv Maragh, 10-1); Quality Road (John Velazquez, 1-4); Arcodoro (David Cohen, 30-1); Indian Dance (Kent Desormeaux, 20-1); Tranquil Manner (Alan Garcia, 15-1); and Mythical Power (Martin Garcia, 12-1).
DOZEN JUVENILE FILLIES IN DEL MAR’S DARKEY DEBUTANTE
The undefeated Wickedly Perfect, trained by Del Mar's leading conditioner, Doug O'Neill, takes the spotlight in a field of 12 2-year-old fillies, including two supplementary entries, in Saturday's Grade I, $250,000 Darley Debutante at 7 furlongs on the main track.
Wickedly Perfect broke her maiden at first asking at Hollywood Park and polished off a competitive field of seven in Del Mar's Grade III Sorrento Stakes on August 6. She's worked once since, going an easy 6 furlongs in 1:14.40 last Friday. Rafael Bejarano retains the ride on the daughter of Congrats that was bought for $70,000 at the Ocala Breeders Sales April sale of 2-year-olds in training.
The Sorrento's second-, third- and fourth-place finishers in that race -- A Z Warrior, Izshelegal, one of the two supplemental entries, and She'll Heir, are back for another shot at Wickedly Perfect. A Z Warrior won first time out at Hollywood Park, also, before getting shaded by a length to the O'Neill juvenile.
Izshelegal is still a maiden, having finished second and third in her two outings, but trainer Terry Knight and her owners think enough of her chances to put up the $10,000 supplemental fee for the daughter of Maria's Mon out of an A.P. Indy mare. Though not nominated to the Debutante, Izshelegal obviously has been highly prized, bringing a price of $130,000 at the 2009 Keeneland September yearling sale.
Knight has said all along that he expects Izshelegal, who was a fast-closing third in the Sorrento and missed second by a head, to get better with distance. Victor Espinoza will be in the irons again.
She'll Heir, trained by Vladimir Cerin for major clients David and Holly Wilson, won her first two outings, including Hollywood Park's Cinderella Stakes, but is winless in her last two starts, the Landaluce Stakes at Hollywood and the Sorrento.
Avid, a super-impressive Del Mar winner in her only start for Hall of Fame trainer Richard Mandella, is expected to get a lot of fan support. The daughter of More Than Ready will be ridden by Joel Rosario, taking over for Bejarano, who rode her in the maiden win.
Others coming into the race from victories are Sugarinthemorning, a California-bred daughter of Candy Ride trained by Hall of Famer Ron McAnally; Tell a Kelly, owned by Ike and Dawn Thrash and trained by John Sadler, who won at Del Mar August 15 and will be ridden again by Alonso Quinonez, and Rigoletta, a Del Mar maiden winner August 8, who is the other $10,000 supplemental entry.
Still in the maiden ranks along with Izshelegal is Righteous Renee, second to Avid the last time out and to A Z Warrior in her first start, Big Tiz and Distant Glow. Righteous Renee, a daughter of Dixie Union, brought $210,000 at the Barretts May sale of 2-year-olds in training.
Here's the complete field for the Darley Debutante, in post position order: She'll Heir (jockey: Brice Blanc); Wickedly Perfect (Rafael Bejarano); Tell a Kelly (Alonso Quinonez); Righteous Renee (David Flores); Big Tiz (Corey Nakatani); Sugarinthemorning (Patrick Valenzuela); Avid (Joel Rosario); Rigoletta (Mike Smith); Gone Rebel (Paul Atkinson); A Z Warrior (Martin Garcia); Distant Glow (Kerwin John); and Izshelegal (Victor Espinoza).
INAUGURAL OAK TREE AT HOLLYWOOD PARK MEET TO FEATURE ZENYATTA IN RACE AGAIN KNOWN AS LADY’S SECRET STAKES
Hollywood Park in Inglewood, Calif., will play host for the first time to the prestigious Oak Tree meeting. The 42nd season, to be known as Oak Tree at Hollywood Park, will begin on September 30 and continue through October 31. A number of Breeders’ Cup preps and the 21st California Cup, a series of stakes races restricted to California breds, highlight the 22-day season.
What will be most anticipated of those Breeders’ Cup preps is the final Southern California start for the undefeated Zenyatta. The 6-year-old daughter of Street Cry, who has been stabled at Hollywood Park throughout her career, is expected to seek her 19th win in a race that she has already won twice.
Scheduled to be called the $250,000 Zenyatta Stakes for the first time in 2010, the race at 1 1/16 miles has been restored to its original name – the $250,000 Lady’s Secret Stakes – and Zenyatta, who was returned to racing this year after her connections changed their mind about her retirement, will shoot for another victory in the Grade I event.
Zenyatta, who is being pointed for a defense of her 2009 Breeders’ Cup Classic victory on Nov. 6, won the Lady’s Secret in both 2008 and 2009 for owners Jerry and Ann Moss and trainer John Shirreffs.
The Lady’s Secret is one of four Grade I contests to be run on October 2. The others are the $250,000 Goodwood Stakes for older horses at 1 1/8 miles, the $250,000 Norfolk Stakes for 2-year-olds at 1 1/16 miles and the $250,000 Yellow Ribbon Stakes for older fillies and mares at 1 ¼ miles on turf.
The following day is topped by the $250,000 Clement L. Hirsch Turf Championship for older horses at 1 ¼ miles on turf and the $250,000 Oak Leaf Stakes for 2-year-old fillies at 1 1/16 miles.
A six furlong affair for older horses, the $250,000 Ancient Title is the last of the Grade I races at the meet and will be run on October 9.
“It’s an honor to run the Oak Tree stakes races at Hollywood Park,” said Martin Panza, Hollywood Park’s Racing Secretary. “Oak Tree has seven Grade ones that are very prestigious and extremely significant in getting horses ready for the Breeders’ Cup. We look forward to having those races run here.”
Uncertainty regarding the condition of the main track at Santa Anita triggered the move of the Oak Tree Racing Association, a not-for-profit, non-dividend paying group of California owners and breeders, away from the venue it has occupied since 1969.
LEFTY SEEN PUTTERING AROUND DEL MAR BACKSTRETCH
Golf superstar Phil Mickelson was a visitor to trainer John Sadler's barn at Del Mar Tuesday morning with his brother, Tim, a Southern California golf pro who claimed the 2-year-old colt Dancing at Dark for $40,000 out of Del Mar's first race on Sunday. It marks the first time Sadler has trained a horse for Tim Mickelson.
SPORTSNATION RANKING FANS FAVORITE SPORTS AT ESPN.COM
An ESPN.com SportsNation poll is currently asking fans to rank their favorite sports. Through 2:00 p.m. (ET) on Thursday, horse racing ranked 11th overall among the 20 choices listed. In terms of first-place votes, however, the Sport of Kings ranked third, trailing only NFL football and college football.
To vote in the poll, visit: espn.go.com/sportsnation/rank?versionId=1&listId=783
Wednesday, September 1, 2010
'Secretariat' Puts Audience In Races
Director Says 'I wanted the audience to experience the races as participants, not as spectators,' Randall Wallace tells MTV News.
By Kara Warner (@karawarn
The fall-movie season is shaping up to be chock-full of Oscar bait, and Disney's "Secretariat" is no exception. Based on a true story, the film revolves around Penny Chenery (played by Diane Lane), the woman ultimately responsible for fostering the first Triple Crown winner in 25 years. It's a feel-good film for sure, but it's designed to make audiences weepy. When we caught up with director Randall Wallace ("We Were Soldiers," "The Man in the Iron Mask") he admitted to being "an emotional critter" and wanting audiences to connect with the characters and feel something when they see the film. Translation: Bring tissues to the theater.
MTV: This is a different type of film for you. Why did the story of Secretariat speak to you?
Randall Wallace: It was funny for me, because I've never worked on something that wasn't an original screenplay for me that I hadn't started in some form or fashion, but everything else I had done involved war. [In addition to the previous two films he directed, Wallace wrote "Braveheart" and "Pearl Harbor."] People ask why I make war stories. I say, "I don't. I make love stories. It's just that war puts love in the context." It shows its depth and extent of the commitment you have to it. With this story, its call to me was that it showed a face and hope and courage as an affirmation that led not just to suffering and pain, but to victory and joy, and that was really compelling for me about this.
MTV: How challenging is it working with horses?
Wallace: It's extremely challenging, particularly because these are animals who could kill you and animals who could hurt themselves if you weren't extremely thoughtful about them. My first job out of college was, I worked with live animals. I would come from seminary at Duke University to working at a place called Opryland in Nashville. My first job, I was a manager of an animal show where barnyard animals were trained to play musical instruments. We had a pig named Pigerace and a duck named Burt Bachquack; that was my first gig. I came full-circle getting to work with thoroughbreds on this. What you find is that they have personalities and instincts of their own, and they're not unlike actors at their best. Diane Lane and John Malkovich are thoroughbreds, and they have enormous capacity. You work with people like that to find that fire and that passion.
MTV: Who in the cast was your "horse whisperer" and really took to the horses?
Wallace: John Malkovich has an amazing affection for horses. John had actually worked with one of the horses that we used — not one of our Secretariats, but one of our background horses. John would actually tell stories about what the horse was thinking and doing, and he would mimic the horse. That not only entertained us all, but it also inspired us. Leadership spreads through a whole organization, and John certainly had it in that way. Diane's commitment to become as fully immersed with those horses as Penny Chenery, the woman she was playing, had been with Secretariat is absolute. You can see it when you see the film. There are moments when she is looking into the eyes of the horse, and it's amazing what you see both in the human eyes and the horse's eyes.
MTV: We've seen movies about horses — specifically racehorses — before. What makes "Secretariat" different?
Wallace: Here's what's different about "Secretariat": The cornerstone of my approach, the first step in directing this movie visually for me, is I wanted the audience to experience the races as participants, not as spectators. Every other horse-racing move I've ever seen was one that celebrated the slow and elegant beauty of horse racing, but not its kinetic excitement, none of its danger and savagery. We had cameras skimming an inch along the ground right at the horses' hooves, with the dirt flying in the faces of the audience like its flying in the faces of the jockeys. We used real jockeys, unlike some other movies. I happen to love "Seabiscuit." I thought it was a wonderful movie. This movie is vastly more kinetic. In "Seabiscuit," you had a great actor whom you were totally prevented from putting on the horse. I hired real jockeys at every point so that the man playing Ronnie Turcotte was on the back of the horse going 38 miles an hour in heavy traffic and risking his life, so that's one big difference. Another is, let's face it, I'm an emotional critter. I'm looking for the soaring heart of something. I wanted to know what it was like when Penny faced her moment of greatest isolation and uncertainty and how she responded — her moments of sorrow and her moments of greatest joy. And I wanted the audience to participate too, and not just sit back and watch it. That's a problem with our society: It's been all too easy for us to become spectators in life, and I want to be a participant and I want the audience to share that too.
Check out everything we've got on "Secretariat. "
By Kara Warner (@karawarn
The fall-movie season is shaping up to be chock-full of Oscar bait, and Disney's "Secretariat" is no exception. Based on a true story, the film revolves around Penny Chenery (played by Diane Lane), the woman ultimately responsible for fostering the first Triple Crown winner in 25 years. It's a feel-good film for sure, but it's designed to make audiences weepy. When we caught up with director Randall Wallace ("We Were Soldiers," "The Man in the Iron Mask") he admitted to being "an emotional critter" and wanting audiences to connect with the characters and feel something when they see the film. Translation: Bring tissues to the theater.
MTV: This is a different type of film for you. Why did the story of Secretariat speak to you?
Randall Wallace: It was funny for me, because I've never worked on something that wasn't an original screenplay for me that I hadn't started in some form or fashion, but everything else I had done involved war. [In addition to the previous two films he directed, Wallace wrote "Braveheart" and "Pearl Harbor."] People ask why I make war stories. I say, "I don't. I make love stories. It's just that war puts love in the context." It shows its depth and extent of the commitment you have to it. With this story, its call to me was that it showed a face and hope and courage as an affirmation that led not just to suffering and pain, but to victory and joy, and that was really compelling for me about this.
MTV: How challenging is it working with horses?
Wallace: It's extremely challenging, particularly because these are animals who could kill you and animals who could hurt themselves if you weren't extremely thoughtful about them. My first job out of college was, I worked with live animals. I would come from seminary at Duke University to working at a place called Opryland in Nashville. My first job, I was a manager of an animal show where barnyard animals were trained to play musical instruments. We had a pig named Pigerace and a duck named Burt Bachquack; that was my first gig. I came full-circle getting to work with thoroughbreds on this. What you find is that they have personalities and instincts of their own, and they're not unlike actors at their best. Diane Lane and John Malkovich are thoroughbreds, and they have enormous capacity. You work with people like that to find that fire and that passion.
MTV: Who in the cast was your "horse whisperer" and really took to the horses?
Wallace: John Malkovich has an amazing affection for horses. John had actually worked with one of the horses that we used — not one of our Secretariats, but one of our background horses. John would actually tell stories about what the horse was thinking and doing, and he would mimic the horse. That not only entertained us all, but it also inspired us. Leadership spreads through a whole organization, and John certainly had it in that way. Diane's commitment to become as fully immersed with those horses as Penny Chenery, the woman she was playing, had been with Secretariat is absolute. You can see it when you see the film. There are moments when she is looking into the eyes of the horse, and it's amazing what you see both in the human eyes and the horse's eyes.
MTV: We've seen movies about horses — specifically racehorses — before. What makes "Secretariat" different?
Wallace: Here's what's different about "Secretariat": The cornerstone of my approach, the first step in directing this movie visually for me, is I wanted the audience to experience the races as participants, not as spectators. Every other horse-racing move I've ever seen was one that celebrated the slow and elegant beauty of horse racing, but not its kinetic excitement, none of its danger and savagery. We had cameras skimming an inch along the ground right at the horses' hooves, with the dirt flying in the faces of the audience like its flying in the faces of the jockeys. We used real jockeys, unlike some other movies. I happen to love "Seabiscuit." I thought it was a wonderful movie. This movie is vastly more kinetic. In "Seabiscuit," you had a great actor whom you were totally prevented from putting on the horse. I hired real jockeys at every point so that the man playing Ronnie Turcotte was on the back of the horse going 38 miles an hour in heavy traffic and risking his life, so that's one big difference. Another is, let's face it, I'm an emotional critter. I'm looking for the soaring heart of something. I wanted to know what it was like when Penny faced her moment of greatest isolation and uncertainty and how she responded — her moments of sorrow and her moments of greatest joy. And I wanted the audience to participate too, and not just sit back and watch it. That's a problem with our society: It's been all too easy for us to become spectators in life, and I want to be a participant and I want the audience to share that too.
Check out everything we've got on "Secretariat. "
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