Horse Racing: Arkansas Derby day recap: $41,000,000 bet, Nadal and Charlatan win Ky. Derby preps

[MiamiScreamingEagles]

Yay! Two of my favorites mated and produced a baby girl. Good job, mommy.



It’s A Girl! Champion Songbird Has Filly By Tapit - Horse Racing News | Paulick Report


Songbird, a two-time champion and near-record priced auction horse, had her second foal, a filly by commercial juggernaut Tapit, on Jan. 26 at Timber Town Farm in Lexington, Ky.

The announcement was made through Timber Town's social media channels, which reported that both mare and foal were doing well following the birth.

The birth comes just two days shy of the calendar birthday for Songbird's first foal, an Arrogate filly who was born on Jan. 28, 2019.

 

[MiamiScreamingEagles]

Steve Haskin listed his annual Kentucky Derby Dozen list which he does weekly this time of year. there was no change from the prior week. There are three prep races on Saturday (Aqueduct, Gulfstream and Santa Anita). It is still very early in the process but in order to get acclimated to some key 2020 contenders, here is his current edition:

Source:
Derby Dozen - January 28, 2020 - Presented by Shadwell Farm
Derby Dozen - January 21, 2020 - Presented by Shadwell Farm

Rank	Horse	Trainer	Sire
1	Dennis' Moment	Dale Romans	Tiznow
2	Storm the Court	Peter Eurton	Court Vision
3	Thousand Words	Bob Baffert	Pioneerof the Nile
4	Tiz the Law	Barclay Tagg	Constitution
5	Gouverneur Morris	Todd Pletcher	Constitution
6	Independence Hall	Michael Trombetta	Constitution
7	Maxfield	Brendan Walsh	Street Sense
8	Green Light Go	Jimmy Jerkens	Hard Spun
9	Three Technique	Jeremiah Englehart	Mr. Speaker
10	Anneau d'Or	Blaine Wright	Medaglia d'Oro
11	Authentic	Bob Baffert	Into Mischief
12	Enforceable	Mark Casse	Tapit

[TBODY] [/TBODY]

 

[MiamiScreamingEagles]

January 29, 2020

• There are three Kentucky Derby preps on Saturday. They will be posted here shortly.
• A light day of racing.

Tampa Bay (Florida):

• Race 7: Horses sent off at 40-to-1 and 45-to-1 finished 1st and 2nd, respectively, to make for an $830 $2 exacta.
• Daniel Centeno had five mounts and added three wins to his collection. His 32 wins is third best at the meet.

Gulfstream (Florida):

• Tyler Gaffalione had five mounts and added three wins to his collection. His 23 wins this year is fifth best in North America. His $1.5 million earned this year is second best. He has the fifth most wins at the meet and the second highest winning percentage among that quintet.

 

[MiamiScreamingEagles]

WITHERS STAKES

What: Grade 3. A Kentucky Derby prep race and the winner will achieve 10 points towards admission. Withers is the Derby trail's fourth official stop in New York after Tiz the Law won the Champagne (G1) in Octobert, Shotski prevailed in the Remsen (G2) and Independance Hall was the champ in the Jerome.
Where: Aqueduct Racetrack, South Ozone Park, Queens, NY
When: Saturday, February 1, 2020, Race 8
Time: 4:25 pm Eastern Time
Who: 3-year-olds
Distance: 1 1/8 mile
Surface: Dirt
Purse: $250,000
TV: TVG
History: Inaugurated in 1874.
Kentucky Derby prep schedule: Kentucky Derby Prep Races
Preview: https://www.paulickreport.com/news/triple-crown/shotski-bids-to-double-his-derby-points-in-withers-at-aqueduct/
Note: There is a Georgia-bred in this race. That is a rarity for any track as only five started last year but I do not recall the last Georgia-bred to run in New York. There horse had four starts at Parx (PA) and one at Laurel (MD) prior to here.​

PP	Horse	Jockey	Wgt	Trainer	M/L
1	Mr. Shortandsimple (KY)	Reylu Gutierrez	118	Rudy R. Rodriguez	-
2	Monday Morning Qb (MD)	Jorge A. Vargas, Jr.	120	Robert E. Reid, Jr.	-
3	Max Player (KY)	Dylan Davis	118	Linda Rice	-
4	New Commission (GA)	Abner Adorno	118	Diane M. Day	-
5	Shotski (KY)	Luis Saez	123	Jeremiah O'Dwyer	-
6	Prince of Pharoahs (NY)	Kendrick Carmouche	118	Linda Rice	-
7	Vanzzy (KY)	Junior Alvarado	120	Michael V. Pino	-
8	Portos (KY)	Jose Lezcano	118	Todd A. Pletcher	-

[TBODY] [/TBODY]
[TBODY] [/TBODY]

​

 

[MiamiScreamingEagles]

ROBERT B. LEWIS STAKES

What: Grade 3. A Kentucky Derby prep race and the winner will achieve 10 points towards admission.
Where:Santa Anita Park, Arcadia, CA
When: Saturday, February 1, 2020, Race 6
Time: 3:00 pm Pacific Time
Who: 3-year-olds
Distance: 1 1/8 mile
Surface: Dirt
Purse: $100,000
TV: TVG
History: Inaugurated in 1935
Kentucky Derby prep schedule: Kentucky Derby Prep Races
Preview: Thousand Words Leads Baffert’s 1-2 Punch In Robert B. Lewis - Horse Racing News | Paulick Report
Note: Bob Baffert sends out what could be his top Kentucky Derby contender (Thousand Words) at this moment.​

PP	Horse	Jockey	Wgt	Trainer	M/L
1	Encoder (KY)	Mike E. Smith	124	John W. Sadler	-
2	Thousand Words (FL)	Flavien Prat	124	Bob Baffert	-
3	Tizamagician (KY)	Victor Espinoza	120	Richard E. Mandella	-
4	Royal Act (KY)	Abel Cedillo	120	Peter Eurton	-
5	High Velocity (KY)	Joel Rosario	120	Bob Baffert	-
6	Zimba Warrior (FL)	Jose Valdivia, Jr.	120	J. Keith Desormeaux	-

[TBODY] [/TBODY]
[TBODY] [/TBODY]

 

[MiamiScreamingEagles]

HOLY BULL STAKES

What: Grade 3. A Kentucky Derby prep race and the winner will achieve 10 points towards admission. This is the first Florida prep race for the Derby.
Where: Gulfstream Park, Hallandale Beach, FL
When: Saturday, February 1, 2020, Race 11
Time: 5:04 pm Eastern Time
Who: 3-year-olds
Distance: 1 1/16 mile
Surface: Dirt
Purse: $250,000
TV: TVG
History: Inaugurated in 1990 after one of the most dominant Florida-breds of all-time. Holy Bull won 13 of 16 lifetime races.
Kentucky Derby prep schedule: Kentucky Derby Prep Races
Preview: 2020 Holy Bull Stakes Cheat Sheet​

1 Toledo

JOCKEY / Irad Ortiz, Jr.
TRAINER / Chad C. Brown
OWNER / Juddmonte Farms, Inc.
BREEDER / Juddmonte Farms Inc​

2 Uncork the Bottle

JOCKEY / Edgard J. Zayas
TRAINER / Saffie A. Joseph, Jr.
OWNER / Bassett Stables
BREEDER / Kenneth L Ramsey & Sarah K Ramsey​

3 Tiz the Law

JOCKEY / Manuel Franco
TRAINER / Barclay Tagg
OWNER / Sackatoga Stable
BREEDER / Twin Creeks Farm​

4 Ete Indien

JOCKEY / Luca Panici
TRAINER / Patrick L. Biancone
OWNER / Shanahan, Linda, Bacon, Sanford, Dream With Me Stable, Inc., Horse France America, D P Racing LLC and Patrick L. Biancone Racing LLC
BREEDER / Robert B. Tillyer & Eric Buckley​

5 Clear Destination

JOCKEY / Paco Lopez
TRAINER / Ashlee Brnjas
OWNER / Colebrook Farms
BREEDER / Seek Again Syndicate & Cedar Gate FarmLLC​

6 Relentless Dancer

JOCKEY / Jose L. Ortiz
TRAINER / Michael J. Maker
OWNER / Paradise Farms Corp., Raymond, Terry and Wagner, Jana
BREEDER / Paul Pruett​

7 Mayberry Deputy

JOCKEY / Julien R. Leparoux
TRAINER / Kenneth G. McPeek
OWNER / Walking L Thoroughbreds
BREEDER / Marianne Stribling​

 

[MiamiScreamingEagles]

Thursday, January 30, 2020

Aqueduct (New York):

• Race 9: The $.50 Pick 4 paid over $16,000.
• Race 7: Whyisshesoolucky (Luis Cardenas/Randi Persaud) paid $94.00 for the win. The 22-year-old rider from Peru is now a 7-pound bug, he lost his 10-pound bug earlier this month.
• Race 2: Junior Alvarado was tossed at the gate but won later on the card.
• Race 1: Jose Lezcano and Eric Cancel, the latter replaced on the balance of the card, were involved in spill but thankfully with no injury to rider or equine athletes.

Gulfstream (Florida):

• Luca Panici hit the board with all three mounts. He won at 16-to-1 and placed with 10-to-1 and 63-to-1 shots, the latter which paid $40.60 for second. Anyone who played Panici successfully today has to be ecstatic.
• Race 2: The $2 exacta paid over $900.
• Race 9: Bacchanalia (Irad Ortiz, Jr./Chad Brown) won and paid $20.60. Those connections at that price is not expected.
• Race 10: A winning ticket as someone hit the $.20 Pick 6 $103,243.84.

Fair Grounds (Louisiana):

• Adam Beschizza (riding infraction, 15-day suspension), Shaun Bridgmohan (injured last week) and Jack Gilligan (injured last week) were off their mounts today as a result from the same race on Jan. 24.

Golden Gate (California):

• Canceled: Racing was canceled through the weekend due to a gas leak in the area which affected the hot water supply at the track.

 

[MiamiScreamingEagles]

Friday, January 31, 2020

Aqueduct (New York):

• Danny Gargan...what else can be said? He finished January 26 13-2-1 (50%/62%) nationally after a win today. He has been training since 2013 and has never had anything close yearly to his month in 2020. He has won with 10 of his 14 past starters including 5 of his past 6 with the only loss in the $3,000,000 Pegasus.
• Race 7: Sir Winston (Dylan Davis/Mark Casse) won at 4-to-1 and withstood an objection. It was his second race since winning the 2019 Belmont Stakes and 4th victory in 12 starts.

​

Gulfstream (Florida):

• Tyler Gaffalione was one of three riders with two victories. He is having a strong meet and is above 20% winning.
• Race 11: The winning combination was Edgar Prado and Keith Chudzik. The jockey has 7,047 victories, 9th most all-time. The trainer has 11 wins since sending out horses for the first time in 2006. He is also the breeder and owner. Good story.

Oaklawn (Arkansas):

• David Cohen entered today 0-for-8 in 2020 and started this meet suspended. He won three of his seven starts today, two for Canadian Norm McKnight who was winless in 2020 with seven starters.
• Race 2: Calvin Borel had the favorite in a field of 12 and won for the first time since early November while snapping a 27-race losing skid.

Santa Anita (California):

• Joel Rosario won his final three mounts and finished the day 5 3-2-0. Not too bad.
• Rafael Bejarano won. He won. He actually won. First victory in 2020 with his 32nd mount. That is uncommonly unflattering for a longtime good rider.
• Flavien Prat won the first two races.

-

 

[MiamiScreamingEagles]

Part 1 of 2

Saturday, February 1, 2020

• Brad Cox, a finalist for the top trainer in North America for 2019, had three wins today, five the past two days.
• Todd Pletcher won three times and is 7 3-1-3 the past two days.
• Meadowlands, harness, surpassed the $3,000,000 handle. That is huge for harness.

Aqueduct (New York):

• Dylan Davis was the star of the day with three victories including the Kentucky Derby prep. He is having an exceptional meet.

​

• Race 8: Max Player (Dylan Davis/Linda Rice) won the $250,000 Grade 3 Withers. Max Player was the lightest run horse with just two starts and both at Parx in Philadelphia. The victor received 10 points towards entry into the Kentucky Derby.

​

• Handle: Over $9.3 million.

Tampa Bay (Florida):

• Antonio Gallardo added two wins. He has 27 victories in 2020, second most among all North America riders.

Gulfstream (Florida):

• Handle: Over $18,000,000 bet on the card today. It is February in south Florida.
• Card: Five stakes races included four graded.
• Turf: Three races were off-the-turf including the fifth race in which 9 of 14 were scratched.
• Irad Ortiz, Jr. added three wins to his total. He has 73 wins at the meet, 18 more than his closest challenger. Safe to say he knows how to ride.
• Emisael Jaramillo had seven mounts and finished 7 2-2-0. All four times he hit the board were his final four mounts. His 40 wins is fourth highest at the meet.
• Chris Landeros is now winless with 66 rides this meet. This can be a difficult meet to make inroads and beat some of the big guns but that number is startling.
• Todd Pletcher is one of four trainers with 20+ wins this meet, his 25 victories is the best.
• Race 6: Tonalist's Shape (Irad Ortiz. Jr./Saffie Joseph) is 4 4-0-0 lifetime after winning the Grade 3 $150,000 Forward Gal. She has won with four riders in four races.
• Race 7: One terrific finish in which Javier Castellano and Jose Ortiz dueled.
• Race 8: Cheermeister (Emisael Jaramillo/Armando De La Cerda) wired the field and paid $17.20 in winning the Grade 3 $100,000 Sweetest Chant.
• Race 9: Mischievous Alex (Irad Ortiz, Jr./John Servis) romped to victory in the Grade 3 $150,000 Swale, a race of 3-year-olds. From Servis, the winning trainer, "Chuck (owner) and I will talk about that. Originally, we thought maybe a one-turn mile is his best distance. I kind of got the feeling Irad thought that also, but he's so classy and so push-button, that might carry him a little further. I really think, me personally, a one-turn mile is going to really hit him on the head. Is he a mile-and-a-quarter horse? I don't think so." This was a highly anticipated race by many but with a surprising outcome. Green Light Go (Javier Castellano/Jimmy Jerkens) and Untitled (Jose Ortiz/Mark Casse) finished third and fourth, respectively, and were sent off at nearly overwhelming co-favorites as both were under the watchful eyes of many. Untitled won his debut by 11 lengths but then was surprisingly transferred to the barn of Casse from Ralph Nicks who trained the second place finisher Shivaree under the direction of Emisael Jaramillo. Perhaps there was a little satisfaction by Nicks with this outcome.
• Race 11: Tiz the Law (Manny Franco/Barclay Tagg) was awkward at times but played the part well in winning the $250,000 Holy Bull. The connections received 10 points toward entry into the Kentucky Derby. Get ready for the Funny Cide mentions, same trainer, owners and of course a New York-bred. The son to Constitution, a hot sire, is 4 3-0-1 lifetime and was purchased for just $110,000. He already has earned close to half a million dollars.

​

 

[MiamiScreamingEagles]

Part 2

Mahoning Valley (Ohio);

• Race 8: Yuri Yaranga won for the 2,000th time and on board a 40-to-1 shot who prevailed over the favorite. Nice dramatics. The rider has 14,585 career starts.

Oaklawn (Arkansas):

• Attendance: Estimated at 14,000.
• Handle: Exceeded $5,4 million.
• Prices: The anticipated high payouts haven't been there as yet in the early stages of the meet.
• Florent Geroux/Brad Cox went back-to-back with wins.
• Race 6: Taraz (Florent Geroux/Brad Cox) won the $150,000 Martha Washington Stakes easily at 1-to-9. She is a perfect 3 3-0-0 and tried two turns for the first time. She is being compared to Rachel Alexandra.
• Race 8: Special Relativity (Orlando Mojica/Robertino Diodoro) won the $125,000 American Beauty Stakes and paid $14.00. She looked like a standout despite being avoided by many players.

Fair Grounds (Louisiana):

• Race 9: Was that the longest stewards' review of an objection in the history of horse racing? Sure felt like it.
• Mitchell Murrill, one of the few jockeys in recent times from Alabama, finished 8 3-1-2 and took over the lead as the winningest rider at the meet. He has the lowest winning percentage (13%) among the four riders with 30+ victories.
• Brad Cox (18), Ron Faucheux (18), Steve Asmussen (17) and Thomas Amoss (17) are in a close battle for leading trainer this meet.

Sam Houston (Texas):

• David Cabrera had three wins to raise his total in 2020 to 25 which is tied for fourth most among all riders in North America.
• Karl Broberg was a perfect 2 2-0-0 and with both winners ridden by David Cabrera. The trainer has the most wins this year in North America with 38.

Golden Gate (California):

• Canceled: Racing was canceled through the weekend due to a gas leak in the area which affected the hot water supply at the track. The issue began earlier in the week.

Santa Anita (California):

• Bob Baffert won twice including the Kentucky Derby prep race with a million dollar horse that gave him victory #3,000 lifetime. The man knows the big stage.

​

• Flavien Prat had three wins and rode victories in two of the graded stakes.
• Race 8: Midcourt (Victor Espinoza/John Shirreffs) won the $200,000 Grade 2.
• Race 7: United (Flavien Prat/Richard Mandella) won the $200,000 Grade 2 and has now earned over $1 million lifetime.The 5-year-old gelding has 4 wins in 12 starts.
• Race 6: Thousand Words (Flavien Prat/Bob Baffert) was determined in winning the $300,000 Grade 3 Robert B. Lewis which was worth 10 points towards admission into the Kentucky Derby. Baffert's latest treasure is a son of Pioneerof the Nile and was purchased for $1,000,000 at the Keeneland September 2018 sale. The winner is 3 3-0-0 lifetime and was bred in Florida. Dare I say it? Affirmed...Unbridled....Silver Charm...Thousand Words?

​

• Handle: Over $12 million wagered.

Beyer figures were revealed for the three Kentucky preps on Saturday:

Tiz the Law got a 100. Next up is either the Louisiana Derby or the Florida Derby.
Thousand Words got a 92. I haven't seen Baffert's plans but I would assume the Arkansas trail is possible.
Max Player got an 86. Next up is the Wood Memorial.​

 

[MiamiScreamingEagles]

Sunday, February 2, 2020

• Schedules: Some schedules were adjusted due to the "Big Game."

Aqueduct (New York):

• Harvey's Lil Goil (Junior Alvarado/Bill Mott) shipped from Florida and romped at 3-to-5 with her second win in three lifetime starts, this being the $100,000 feature. The 3-year-old filly is a daughter to American Pharoah and I would assume is named after the late breeder/owner Harvey Clarke. Following the race, some comments: “She was much the best; I was just the pilot,” Alvarado said. “At the half-mile [mark], she switched gears and I let her run along there. She took over and didn’t do much… I didn’t want to fight with her to make her stand properly [in the gate], but then she hopped at the break a little bit. In a stakes race, that’s not what you want, but she was much the best, so it didn’t matter.”
  Leanna Willaford, assistant to winning conditioner Bill Mott, said, “She ran really well and to expectations, or possibly even better. She came back up to us from Florida last week and has been here for a few days. She had been here prior from July until when she broke her maiden, so we know her well. She looks really about the same since she’s left and is progressing well, so it’s exciting.” Source: Pharoah Filly Runs Up the Score in Busanda

Tampa Bay (Florida):

• Antonio Gallardo had a natural hat trick beginning with the third race. He won his 50th race in the 39th racing day of the calendar. Needless to say but he is the meet's leading jockey. He is the second winningest rider in North America this year.
• Race 6: Declared no contest after fallen rider Jose Batista was in a prone position and outriders alerted the active participants.

Gulfstream (Florida):

• Handle: Over $12.7 million bet. More than $30,000,000 was bet on the last two cards.
• Race 6: Eve of War (John Velazquez/Todd Pletcher) was bet heavily from an 8-to-1 m/l to go off the even-money favorite and she looked sweet in her debut. Pletcher has a baby 3-year-old filly who trounced the field today.

​

• Race 5: Favorites lost in each leg. The $1 Pick 4 returned over $30,000. The $.50 Pick 5 was a staggering $405,174.
• Race 3: A very long review to determine whether Jose Ortiz (at 14-to-1) interfered with Julien Leparoux. The prevailing thought was yes but the stewards said no. Certain riders seem to get the benefit of the doubt.

​

• Irad Ortiz, Jr. was winless with six rides and only hit the board once: 6 0-0-1. Stop the presses!

Oaklawn (Arkansas):

• Prices: OK, this is to what I am accustomed at Oaklawn, at least somewhat. While few bombs won only two favorites topped tickets.
• Race 1: Nick Zito ended a 24-race losing streak with his first win since October at Parx. At 24-to-1, the winner was the second highest odds in a field of 10. Zito won two Kentucky Derby races and is in the National Hall of Fame but he has minimal stock these days.
• Race 4: The $.50 Pick 4 returned over $5,200.
• David Cohen won twice and now has six wins the past three racing days, his total for the meet to date.

Santa Anita (California):

• Race 1: Bob Baffert won for the 3,001st time.
• Umberto Rispoli, who is trying North America for the first time after much success in Europe and Asia, has the fifth most wins at the meet with 10.
• Handle: Over $5 million bet with just seven races on the card and fields in the 5-to-7 range..

 

[MiamiScreamingEagles]

Andy Serling is a New York promoter but if he truly feels this way, I am on board. Junior Alvarado has a horse that could be better than one compared to Rachel Alexandra? Sign me up. Bill Mott won't be quick to remove Alvarado from the mount I suppose.

 

[MiamiScreamingEagles]

A gate which will mimic this 24-gate version used in Australia. No more gap between posts 14 and 15.

 

[MiamiScreamingEagles]

Steve Haskin's Derby Dozen (weekly ranking):

1. Tiz the Law/Barclay Tagg
2. Dennis' Moment/Dale Romans
3. Thousand Words/Bob Baffert
4. Storm, the Court/Peter Eurton
5. Gouverneur Morris/Todd Pletcher
6. Independence Hall/Michael Trombetta

[Jose Ortiz rides this weekend at Tampa Bay]​

7. Anneau d'Or/Blaine Wright
8. Three Technique/Jeremiah Englehart
9. Ete Indien/Patrick Biancone
10. Authentic/Bob Baffert
11. Enforceable/Mark Casse
12. Royal Act/Peter Eurton​

Derby Dozen - February 4, 2020 - Presented by Shadwell Farm

---------------

Kentucky Derby future wagering pool #2 (of 4)

#1 Anneau d'Or (Blaine Wright, 30-1);
#2 Authentic (Bob Baffert, 15-1);
#3 Basin (Steve Asmussen, 30-1);
#4 Chance It (Saffie Joseph Jr., 30-1);
#5 Dennis' Moment (Dale Romans, 12-1);
#6 Enforceable (Mark Casse, 30-1);
#7 Exaulted (Peter Eurton, 50-1);
#8 Gold Street (Steve Asmussen, 30-1);
#9 Gouverneur Morris (Todd Pletcher, 30-1);
#10 Honor A. P. (John Shirreffs, 30-1);
#11 Independence Hall (Mike Trombetta, 10-1);
#12 Max Player (Linda Rice, 20-1);
#13 Maxfield (Brendan Walsh, 15-1);
#14 Nadal (Bob Baffert, 12-1);
#15 Palm Springs (Todd Pletcher, 50-1);
#16 Premier Star (Jorge Navarro, 50-1);
#17 Silver State (Steve Asmussen, 50-1);
#18 Storm the Court (PeterEurton, 30-1);
#19 Structor (Chad Brown, 30-1);
#20 Thousand Words (Bob Baffert, 15-1);
#21 Three Technique (Jeremiah Englehart, 50-1);
#22 Tiz the Law (Barclay Tagg, 8-1);
#23 Violent City (Ian Wilkes, 50-1); and
#24 All Other 3-Year-Olds (5-2).​

 

[Preds Partisan]

Tiz the Law dropped from 20-1 in Pool One. You took it back then right?

 

[MiamiScreamingEagles]

Tiz the Law dropped from 20-1 in Pool One. You took it back then right?

I touted Tiz the Law after his maiden race -- with Junior Alvarado riding -- not knowing what would transpire with the Derby. No, I don't have him at 20-to-1.

Ete Indien looked strong in finishing second in the Holy Bull to Tiz the Law. With Luca Panici riding, I will be amused if he gets the mount in a possible Derby. Haskin has the colt 9th on his current list.

 

[MiamiScreamingEagles]

Wednesday, February 5, 2020

Gulfstream (Florida):

• Joe Bravo won the first of his three rides today which provided him with his first victory in his 33rd start of 2020.
• Irad Ortiz, Jr. had his second straight 0-fer and has now lost his last 15 mounts. Not an alarming total but this is not the norm for him.

SAM F. DAVIS STAKES

What: Grade 3. A Kentucky Derby prep race and the winner will achieve 10 points towards admission. Many eyes will focus on Independence Hall. Premier Star may interest others. The #1 will be amongst the horses I use.
Where: Tampa Bay Downs, Oldsmar, FL
When: Saturday, February 8, 2020, Race 11
Time: 5:29 pm Eastern Time
Who: 3-year-olds
Distance: 1 1/16 mile
Surface: Dirt
Purse: $250,000
TV: TVG
History: Inaugurated in 1981. No horse has won the Kentucky Derby following a victory in this race.
Kentucky Derby prep schedule: Kentucky Derby Prep Races
​

PP	Horse	Jockey	Wgt	Trainer	M/L
1	Ajaaweed (KY)	Joel Rosario	118	Kiaran P. McLaughlin	4/1
2	Sole Volante (KY)	Luca Panici	118	Patrick L. Biancone	8/1
3	Albert Park (KY)	Pablo Morales	118	Michael Stidham	15/1
4	Independence Hall (KY)	Jose L. Ortiz	122	Michael J. Trombetta	6/5
5	No Getting Over Me (FL)	Samy Camacho	118	Gerald S. Bennett	20/1
6	Premier Star (KY)	John R. Velazquez	118	Jorge Navarro	3/1
7	Tiz Rye Time (KY)	Julien R. Leparoux	118	Ian R. Wilkes	20/1
8	Chapalu (KY)	Daniel Centeno	122	Arnaud Delacour	8/1

[TBODY] [/TBODY]
[TBODY] [/TBODY]

 

[MiamiScreamingEagles]

Kent Desormeaux has relocated his tack back to California, this time Golden Gate Fields. Even though he is a Cajun, I thought the move to Louisiana was a bit odd but perhaps his options were limited. He has mounts today at GGF. He is the 19th winningest rider in history with over 6,000 wins and wants to catch those who have about 350 more wins. Let's see what he has left in the tank. He turns 50 years old later this month.

 

[MiamiScreamingEagles]

Thursday, February 6, 2020

Gulfstream (Florida):

• Handle: More than $8.2 million was bet in the card.
• Repeats: Three jockeys won 9 of the 10 races. Luis Saez and Irad Ortiz, Jr. alternated wins in the first six races.
• Luis Saez had four winners on eight mounts.
• Irad Ortiz, Jr. rode three winners with six mounts.
• Paco Lopez rode two winners.
• Race 10: Gunslinger (Paco Lopez/Mary Eppler) led at the first pole in eight if his last night starts. I am not sure if I have seen that or perhaps a rare case, but though the horse doesn't usually last he is consistent. He got the lead again and never looked back, at 17-to-1.

​

• Race 9: Soldado (Luis Saez/Todd Pletcher) won despite a 10-month layoff and held off a charging Travelling Midas (Tyler Gaffalione/George Arnold) who was coming in from 467 days off.

​

• Race 8: Zulu (Paco Lopez/Elizabeth Dobles) won for Imaginary Stables in a terrific finish involving multiple horses. The trainer ended 1st and 3rd.

​

Oaklawn (Arkansas):

• Robertino Diodoro sent out four starters and won three times. He placed with the non-winner. Diodoro is 29 10-6-2 (34%/62%) at the meet, the winningest trainer.
• David Cohen won twice and tied Ricardo Santana, Jr. as the leading rider at the meet with 8 wins apiece.

 

[MiamiScreamingEagles]

Friday, February 7, 2020

Aqueduct (New York):

• Card: Canceled due to high winds.

Penn National (Pennsylvania):

• Canceled: Following the third race due to track conditions.

Laurel (Maryland):

• Canceled: Following the fourth race due to high winds.

Gulfstream (Florida):

• Track conditions: Off the turf
• Luis Saez added three wins, three consecutive mounts. He ended the day 7 3-2-0. He has seven wins the past two days. Only two riders have more wins this year in North America.
• Marcos Meneses had three wins. That could be a career best. He has won with six of his past 18 starts.
• Irad Ortiz, Jr. added two wins to his North America leading total.
• Todd Pletcher leads the meet with 28 wins. He is one of four trainers with 20+ victories.

Turfway (Kentucky):

• Pay day: Under the lights, one winner paid $122.60.

Oaklawn (Arkansas):

• David Cohen rode two more winners. He now has 10 wins to lead all riders at the meet.
• Robertino Diodoro, who often pairs with David Cohen for M + M racing, a hot young outfit, won twice and is running away with the meet lead among trainers with 13 victories.
• Race 7: Wayne Lukas, a legendary Hall of Fame trainer with over 4,800 wins, was victorious for the first time in 2020 with his 15th starter. The winner paid $42.
• Race 3: Calvin Borel, riding for his brother/trainer Cecil, won as the 2-to-1 favorite. Calvin has two wins with 10 mounts in 2020.
• Purses: With the purses high, the quality of horses may be at an all-time high and that could have affected payouts this year with the lack of bombers.
• Chel-c Bailey, a rider who is winless in 13 starts at last count, is a former MMA fighter.

Fair Grounds (Louisiana):

• Track: Off the turf.
• Jockey standings: One of the closest races currently in North America. Mitchell Murrill (37), James Graham (36), Colby Hernandez (35) and Florent Geroux (34) comprise the top four in wins.
• Trainer standings: Brad Cox (21) and Ron Faucheux both have 21 to top the trainers.

Golden Gate (California):

• Juan Hernandez won his last four mounts, among seven total and is tied for third nationally among rider wins in 2020.

Santa Anita (California):

• Race 7: Billy Batts (Umberto Rispoli/Peter Miller) won the $75,000 feature race. The trainer and jockey each won twice today. Billy Batts is scheduled to race in the $800,000 Ridiyah Dirt Mile in Saudi Arabia on Feb. 29.

​

• Jonathan Wong won with his first three starters. Including a victory at Golden Gate, he was 6 4-1-1 today.

 

[MiamiScreamingEagles]

Saturday, February 8, 2020

• Cards: The biggest cards are at Tampa Bay (three) and Santa Anita (two) with a total of five graded stakes. Gulfstream has the other graded stake in North America among the seven offered this weekend. Tomorrow, Santa Anita has the lone graded stake. Today's Tampa Bay and Gulfstream cards.

SANTA ANITA
Race #	Purse	Race Type	Distance	Surface	Starters	Est. Post
Race 1	$32,000	Maiden Claiming	6 1/2 Furlongs	Dirt	8	12:30 PM
Race 2	$55,000	Maiden Special Weight	5 1/2 Furlongs	Turf	8	12:58 PM
Race 3	$20,000	Claiming	6 1/2 Furlongs	Dirt	6	1:28 PM
Race 4	$55,000	Maiden Special Weight	1 Mile	Turf	7	1:58 PM
Race 5	$200,000	Las Virgenes S.	1 Mile	Dirt	5	2:28 PM
Race 6	$33,000	Starter Optional Claiming	7 Furlongs	Dirt	7	2:58 PM
Race 7	$100,000	Thunder Road S.	1 Mile	Turf	10	3:31 PM
Race 8	$59,000	Allowance Optional Claiming	7 Furlongs	Dirt	5	4:02 PM
Race 9	$34,000	Maiden Claiming	1 Mile	Turf	9	4:32 PM

[TBODY] [/TBODY]
[TBODY] [/TBODY]

TAMPA BAY
Race #	Purse	Race Type	Distance	Surface	Starters	Est. Post
Race 1	$12,700	Claiming	6 Furlongs	Dirt	8	12:12 PM
Race 2	$13,200	Maiden Claiming	6 Furlongs	Dirt	10	12:46 PM
Race 3	$10,400	Claiming	7 Furlongs	Dirt	10	1:16 PM
Race 4	$27,000	Maiden Special Weight	1 mile 40 Yards	Dirt	8	1:46 PM
Race 5	$27,000	Maiden Special Weight	6 1/2 Furlongs	Dirt	11	2:16 PM
Race 6	$22,500	Allowance	1 1/16 Miles	Turf	14	2:49 PM
Race 7	$27,000	Maiden Special Weight	6 1/2 Furlongs	Dirt	14	3:20 PM
Race 8	$175,000	Lambholm South Endeavour S.	1 1/16 Miles	Turf	8	3:59 PM
Race 9	$150,000	Suncoast S.	1 mile 40 Yards	Dirt	9	4:29 PM
Race 10	$175,000	Tampa Bay S.	1 1/16 Miles	Turf	9	4:59 PM
Race 11	$250,000	Sam F. Davis S.	1 1/16 Miles	Dirt	8	5:29 PM
Race 12	$18,200	Claiming	1 Mile	Turf	14	6:00 PM

[TBODY] [/TBODY]
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[MiamiScreamingEagles]

SAN VICENTE STAKES

What: Grade 2. A couple of top runners are on the Kentucky Derby trail but this race does not award points towards that race.
Where: Santa Anita Park, Arcadia, CA
When: Sunday, February 9, 2020, Race 7
Time: 3:30 pm Pacific Time
Who: 3-year-olds
Distance: 7 furlongs
Surface: Dirt
Purse: $200,000
TV: TVG
History: Inaugurated in 1935. Winners include Nyquist and Silver Charm.

PP	Horse	Jockey	Wgt	Trainer	M/L
1	Fast Enough (KY)	Tiago Josue Pereira	124	Rafael Becerra	12/1
2	Ra'ad (KY)	Drayden Van Dyke	120	Bob Baffert	8/1
3	Party Town (KY)	Jorge I. Velez	120	Val Brinkerhoff	20/1
4	Nadal (KY)	Joel Rosario	120	Bob Baffert	4/5
5	Storm the Court (KY)	Flavien Prat	124	Peter Eurton	9/5
6	Ginobili (KY)	Abel Cedillo	120	Richard Baltas	5/1

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[MiamiScreamingEagles]

Saturday, February 8, 2020

• Steve Asmussen had four winners with 21 starters spread across six tracks.

Aqueduct (New York):

• Race 8: Montauk Island (Jose Lezcano/Linda Rice) won the $100,000 feature race.

Tampa Bay (Florida):

• Results: Surprises through the day led to epic payouts and if nothing else a fun afternoon.
• Handle: An all-time record handle of $11,092,482, for a Sam F. Davis/Festival Preview Day card. Tampa Bay has been called a few things in recent years including "the best little race track in America."
• Card: Plenty of national talent on hand.
• French-born trainers: Four winners among three French-born trainers: Patrick Biancone, Arnaud Delacour and Rodolphe Brisset.
• Daniel Centeno had four winners with 10 mounts.
• Luca Panici seems to ride well at the track in his limited mounts. He won the biggest race of the day and placed and paid $19.80 with his other starter. It was his second graded stakes win in his North America career. He came from a racing family in Italy.
• Arnaud Delacour shipped three horses and won two of the black type races including one graded stakes. He has under 400 lifetime wins.
• Race 6: Surprise Again (John Velazquez/Kent Sweezey) won at 24-to-1. Not often Johnny V. scores with a $2 exacta ticket that topped $1,013.60.
• Race 6 (part 2): The $.50 Pick 5 was a stunning $139,972.75.
• Race 7: The $.50 Pick 3 paid over $1,500.
• Race 8: Jehozacat (Daniel Centeno/Arnaud Delacour) won the $175,000 Grade 3 at 16-to-1 and held off a furious rally from Altea (Joel Rosario/Chad Brown) at 10-to-1 in a terrific ending. The $,50 Pick 3 paid over $1,800. The $.50 Pick 4 over $9,000.
• Race 9: Lucrezia (Daniel Centeno/Arnaud Delacour) won the $150,000 non-graded race. She earned 10 points towards entry into the Kentucky Oaks.
• Race 10: Admirality Pier (Samy Camacho/Barbara Minshall) won perhaps the trainer's biggest win in her career, the $175,000 Grade 3 Tampa Bay. The winners withstood an objection/inquiry that was long in deciding and paid $44. Runner up Devamani (Joel Rosario/Chad Brown) would have been the victor if the third place finisher's claim had been allowed.

​

• Race 11: Sole Volante (Luca Panici/Patrick Biancone) won the $250,000 Grade 3 Sam F. Davis. He came from back of the pack and pasted the 3-to-5 favorite Independence Hall (Jose Ortiz/Kiaran McLaughlin) in what looked to be a bit of eiher overconfidence by the rider or perhaps shock at the performance of the eventual winner. Panici/Biancaone have two horses (Ete Indien) with Ky. Derby points. Sole Volante received 10 points towards entry into the Kentucky Derby, is 4 3-0-1 lifetime with two prior wins on turf, has only raced in the state of Florida and has won at all three tracks. His sire is from Japan. His owners bought the colt in a private sale after he was sold for $20,000 in the Ocala April 2019 sale as a birthday gift for the trainer's daughter..

​

• Race 12: But the biggest prize was saved for the finale when the payout neared half a million dollars. The person who won has an account on Twin Spires.
  

  $0.50 Pick 5

  3-1-3-2-12

  $435,029.40

  [TBODY] [/TBODY]

Gulfstream (Florida):

• Irad Ortiz, Jr. compiled four victories -- including three straight rides -- to add to his continental lead in 2020.
• Luis Saez added three wins.
• Race 12: Dale Romans won the finale. He ended a 0-for-35 streak to begin 2020. Remember, some label his Dennis' Moment the top contender for the Kentucky Derby.
• Race 11: Starship Jubilee (Luis Saez/Kevin Attard), a Florida-bred with much experience in Ontario, won the $150,000 feature race, a 16th win in 34 starts.
• Race 10: Edgar Prado won for the 7,048th time, the ninth most wins in North America annals. He is 10 away from surpassing Angel Cordero.
• Race 2: Joe Bravo was charging and seemed to be able to factor in the stretch when an oddity occurred. Did he stop riding? Misjudge the finish line? His reins break? Did he sense something awry with the horse? It isn't like Joe to quit. It just looked strange.

Fair Grounds (Louisiana):

• Race 6: Alms (Paco Lopez/Michael Stidham) improved to 4 4-0-0 after a victory at 2-to-5 in the inaugural Shantel Lanerie Memorial Overnight Stakes. Corey Lanerie, Shantel's former husband, finished third in the race. Shantel passed away in June 2018 at the age of 42.
• Paco Lopez made a rare stop in Louisiana. He had four rides and finished with three victories.

Oaklawn (Arkansas):

• Vibe: The track has that old school feeling with rail birds aplenty yet in a contemporary setting.
• Attendance: Over 12,000.
• Handle: $5.6 million.
• Race 7: Finally a bomber. A $2 exacta paid just under $1200. The $.50 tri paid over $1,800. And the 27-to-1 shot winner was trained Robertino Diodoro who leads the meet in wins.
• Race 4: Wayne Lukas, a Hall of Famer who entered yeterday 0-for-14 in 2020, won for the second straight day.

Golden Gate (California):

• Jonathan Wong won with his first three starters for the second straight day.
• Kent Desormeaux, who recently moved his tack to Golden Gate from a brief stop in Louisiana after many years in southern California, won the first two races and surpassed Johnny Longden into 18th place in North America record books with 6,033 lifetime wins.

Santa Anita (California):

• Race 5: Venetian Harbor (Flavien Prat/Richard Baltas) was exceptional in winning the $200,000 Grade 2 Las Virgenes. She was sent off the prohibitive favorite at 1-to-5 and defeated amongst other two Bob Baffert fillies. She could be a strong contender for the Kentucky Oaks.

XBTV on Twitter​

• Race 7: River Boyne (Abel Cedillo/Jeff Mullins) won the $100,000 Grade 3 Thunder Road.

 

[MiamiScreamingEagles]

Louisiana racing...a week in advance. This will be updated as the week progresses but these races are Ky. Derby preps:

 

[MiamiScreamingEagles]

Sunday, February 9, 2020

Aqueduct (New York):

• Race 9: The field of size of 13 may have been the largest of the meet. High prices in the finale led to a $.20 Pick 6 which returned $89,266.80.
• Manny Franco won three times.

Laurel (Maryland):

• Claudio Gonzalez entered three races and won each. He is running away with the trainer's title at the meet with a 75 26-12-9 (35%/63%) mark. He has won 7 of the past 8 races he has entered at Laurel.

Tampa Bay (Florida):

• Race 9: The $2 exacta neared $900 when a 20-to-1 and a 32-to-1 topped the ticket.

Gulfstream (Florida):

• Irad Ortiz, Jr. is in a league of his own. He has won the last two Eclipse Awards for Jockey of the Year in North America and has a sizable lead over all jockeys in 2020. Today, he won six times and finished 9 6-1-0. He is riding with confidence but his adept skills include exceptional hands and perhaps more than anything an assertive approach hion on board highly skilled equine athletes. Ortiz ended the day with a natural hat trick and has won 12 of his past 21 starts.

Oaklawn (Arkansas):

• Race 1: Lawrence Roman, owner, improved to 6 4-1-1 (67%/100%) at the meet after another of his horses won.
• Race 6: Won by a 32-to-1 shot.
• M and M Racing had two more wins and the owners lead the meet with seven victories.
• Robertino Diodoro, who often trains for M and M, is 42 17-8-4 (40%/69%) this meet.
• David Cohen added two wins to his meet lead of 12.

Turf Paradise (Arizona):

• Blazingulch won the fifth race at Tucson's Rillito Park yesterday on opening day and then ran in today's opener. He raced last throughout where he finished. I don't remember the last time I saw a horse run on consecutive days.

Golden Gate (California):

• Kent Desormeaux, who recently moved his tack to Golden Gate from a brief stop in Louisiana after many years in southern California, won twice and now has 6,035 lifetime wins which is 18th best all-time. He won rise from that spot for quite some time as next on the list is the active John Velazquez who has 130 more victories.
• Jonathan Wong won twice and the trainer has hit the board with 14 of his past 18 starters at GG.

Santa Anita (California):

• Race 7: Nadal (Joel Rosario/Bob Baffert) won the $200,000 Grade 2 San Vicente. The race had no official connection to the Kentucky Derby but this was a prep race for Baffert to gauge the talent at hand. Nadal is by Blame and is a perfect 2 2-0-0 after winning this race at the imposing odds of 1-to-9. He was purchased for $700,000 last year. Maybe he goes onto the Arkansas trail next and then onto the Kentucky Derby. At 1,306 pounds, he was by far the biggest horse in the race.

​