Horse Racing: Horse racing (through 2021)

[MiamiScreamingEagles]

Umberto Rispoli won race 4. It may not be the Derby but he won on the Derby card. Good for him. Poetic justice even slightly.

The second win today for Mark Casse.

 

[MiamiScreamingEagles]

the 1 and the 11 should have special interest to NHL fans today..... both Known Agenda and Dynamic One are owned outright or co-owned by Panthers owner Vincent Viola...

He just won the $200,000 race at Belmont. Todd Pletcher trains.

 

[MiamiScreamingEagles]

$405,000+ for the $1 superfecta in race 10 at CD.

Tyler Gaffalione gets a 46-1 shot up for second.

 

[MiamiScreamingEagles]

Race 11: There are multi millions of dollars riding on this decision. My word.

What a job by Irad. Watch the replay and see his extension.

Edit: dead heat for win.

$1,000,000 purse.

 

[GKJ]

That's a heater baby

 

[Prominence Problem]

Wow!

 

[GKJ]

Horse racing is the only sport where the trainer (coach) will tell you exactly what their strategy is.

 

[SUX2BU]

Cmon Soup and Sandwich

 

[MiamiScreamingEagles]

$44 million... and counting... bet in the win pool. That is only the win pool.

 

[GKJ]

 

[PanthersPens62]

Bob Baffert......GOAT!!!

 

[SJSharksfan39]

That was a hell of a derby. Someone find out why Baffert wins all these though. Are there performing enhancing drugs in horse racing?

 

[GKJ]

Hard to count out a horse that's never let anyone pass him. Kornacki cashes the ticket

 

[SUX2BU]

A good race ......

 

[Prominence Problem]

A good race with a tight finish.

 

[GKJ]

Pletcher with 4 horses finishes 9th, 11th, 13th and 18th

 

[Prominence Problem]

Pletcher with 4 horses finishes 9th, 11th, 13th and 18th

Didn't they show him when the race finished. He just turned around and left; not happy

 

[GKJ]

Didn't they show him when the race finished. He just turned around and left; not happy

They may have. I know I saw Brad Cox who was 2nd and 4th.

 

[MiamiScreamingEagles]

Simply an exhilarating afternoon with magnificent talent on display. The weather was glorious as predicted. Entertainment galore. Get out and support your local track. The infectious vibe on days like today is unparalleled.

The Kentucky Derby:



The dead heat in the turf classic:

 

[MiamiScreamingEagles]

Medina Spirit became the seventh Florida-bred to win the Kentucky Derby which is second only to Kentucky's 112. The most recent Florida-bred to win the Kentucky Derby was Silver Charm in 1997 and prior to that Unbridled in 1990. In 1979, Affirmed won the Triple Crown and is considered by many to be the greatest Florida-bred of all-time.

Medina Spirit [/B]was originally sold for $1,000 as a yearling but then in 2020 sold for $35,000. Current owner is Saudi Arabian businessman and philanthropist Amr bin Fareed bin Mohammed bin Zedan who races under Zedan Racing Stable and is a relative newcomer to the sport. By comparison, last year's Kentucky Derby winner Authentic was a $350,000 purchase.

John Velazquez became the first jockey since Calvin Borel in 2009 to win the Oaks-Derby double. The jockey won the Derby for the fourth time and could tie the all-time mark for a rider with his next Derby mount. He has won three of the past five years.

Bob Baffert ended the day with 221 Grade I wins in North America. The record at the start of the day included Wayne Lukas's total of 219.

 

[MiamiScreamingEagles]

Saturday, May 1, 2021

Belmont (New York):

• Handle: Over $15 million.
• Manny Franco (five wins), Trevor McCarthy (four wins) and Eric Cancel (two wins) combined to win all 11 races.
• Manny Franco rode the card and ended with a fantastic 11 5-0-2 afternoon. He has won with eight of his past 16 rides.
• Trevor McCarthy rode every race but the finale and finished a 4-win day 10 4-2-1.

Pimlico (Maryland):

• Handle: $2.3 million.

Tampa Bay (Florida):

• Handle: $6 million.

Gulfstream (Florida):

• Handle: $10.8 million.
• Paco Lopez rode four winners.

Churchill Downs (Kentucky):

• Handle: The powerful returns on horse racing continues for the recent past and today's Churchill Downs handle exceeded $233 million with a crowd limited to 51,838. Racing is booming at most fronts. The popularity of the sport can only be experienced by attending live races or simulcast facilities. The betting numbers have been potent. Only 2019 had a higher Derby handle and that was $250.9 million with a capacity crowd.
• Handle This Week: Since opening day April 24, CD has handled over $314,000,000.
• Card: 14 races highlighted by the 147th running of the Kentucky Derby and six other graded stakes.
• Times: First post was 10:30 a.m. ET and the finale went off at 8:31 pm ET.
• Attendance: Capped at approximately 51,000.
• Flavien Prat and Irad Ortiz. Jr. rode three winners. Florent Geroux and John Velazquez had two winners.
• Bob Baffert sent out five horses and three were victorious. Chad Brown, Mark Casse and Brad Cox each won twice.
• Race 6: Blowout (Flavien Prat/Chad Brown) won the $500,000 Grade 2 Distaff Turf. She had been runner up in her last four starts but improved to 12 4-7-1. She was last out in November. Brown on layoffs and turf is exceptional.
• Race 7: Gamine (John Velazquez/Bob Baffert) was sent off the 1-to-5 favorite and excelled in winning the $500,000 Derby City Distaff Stakes, She improved to 8 7-0-0 lifetime and is officially a millionaire.

https://twitter.com/NBCSports/status/1388555101384716290​

• Race 8: Jackie's Warrior (Joel Rosario/Steve Asmussen) won the $500,000 Grade 2 Pat Day Mile. The colt received early buzz last year as the 2021 Kentucky Derby leader but that never materialized with just one prior race as a 3-year-old. He is 7 5-0-1 lifetime and ended a 2-race losing streak. Dream Shake (Flavien Prat/Peter Eurton) was a gamed runner up. The connections could have entered the Kentucky Derby but opted for this race.

https://twitter.com/Grant_Some92/status/1388568073045778432​

• Race 9: Du Jour (Flavien Prat/Bob Baffert) won the $500,000 Grade 2 American Turf Stakes. Baffert winning a turf race is among the rarest of all exceptions in horse racing. This horse is that exception with a 5 3-1-1 mark. The $1 super paid over $36,000.

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• Race 10: Flagstaff (Luis Saez/John Sadler) won the Grade I $500,000 Churchill Downs Stakes. He is $9,000 shy of being a millionaire with a lifetime mark of 19 7-6-3. Runnerup Lexitonian (Tyler Gaffalione/Jack Sisterson) was sent off 46-to-1 and placed, losing by a head. Third place finisher Whitmore (Ricardo Santana, Jr./Ron Moquett) was nosed out of second place. The $1 superfecta paid over $405,000.

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• Race 11: Colonel Liam (Irad Ortiz, Jr./Todd Pletcher) and Domestic Spending (Flavien Prat/Chad Brown) finished in a dead heat for victory in the $1,000,000 Grade I Turf Classic. A thriller, one of the best Grade I finishes a viewer could experience.

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• Race 12: Medina Spirit (John Velazquez/Bob Baffert) won the 147th running of the Grade I $3,000,000 Kentucky Derby. Medina Spirit is 6 3-3-0 lifetime and ran outside of California for the first time. Medina Spirit was originally purchased for $1,000 in 2019 and then bought for $35,000 in 2020. He is the seventh Florida-bred to win the Kentucky Derby; only Kentucky has produced more Derby winners. Velazquez won a Derby for the fourth time and could tie the mark for jockeys with his next mount. Baffert won a Derby for a record seventh time. The $1 Super High Five paid $296,000. Over $30 million was bet into the trifecta pool.

Arlington (Illinois):

• Larry Rivelli trained three winners. He is Mr. Illinois.

Oaklawn (Arkansas):

• Handle: $9 million.
• Closing day: The meet ended today. If not one of the best kept secrets in all of sport, certainly a top of the line race track.
• Leading rider: Ricardo Santana, Jr. with 68 wins.
• Leading trainer: Steve Asmussen with 60 wins.

Lone Star (Texas):

• Lane Luzzi rode four winners.
• Handle: $1.2 million.

Golden Gate (California):

• Handle: $4.1 million.

Santa Anita (California):

• Handle: $15.5 million.
• Race 9: Notre Dame (Alexis Centeno/Doug O'Neill), a $1,000,000 purchase, won for the third straight time, in his six start.
• Race 10: Madone (Juan Hernandez/Simon Callaghan) won the $100,000 Grade 3 Senorita Stakes.

 

[GKJ]

Richard Grunder retiring today from Tampa Bay Downs

 

[MiamiScreamingEagles]

Sunday, May 2, 2021

Belmont (New York):

• Handle: $10,000,000.
• Race 9: Ballydooley (Eric Cancel/Michelle Nevin) won at 13-to-1. As is often said about New York finales, almost anything can happen and additionally Cancel seems to do his best work in these races. John Velazquez -- who should be a lock to win Jockey of the Week in North America -- was sent off 4-to-5 but finished third. The $.50 Pick 4 paid $11,000. The $.50 Pick 5 paid over $122,000+.
• Race 8: Vault (Joel Rosario/Brad Cox) won the $200,000 Grade 2 Ruffian Stakes in the race's 45th edition with a powerful kick. The Pennsylvania-bred raced at Belmont for the first time in her 21 career starts and just her second stakes race. She was sent off 7-to-2.

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• Race 7: Safe Conduct (Jose Lezcano/Phil Serpe) won as the longest shot on the board at 38-to-1. Lezcano is an excellent grass rider and should almost always be given a second look. The trainer was 0-for-23 in 2021 and hadn't won since October.
• Joel Rosario had three winners. He was just 1-for-18 in a 3-day weekend at Churchill Downs.
• Irad Ortiz, Jr. won the first two races. He is tied for the meet lead with Manny Franco at 13 victories apiece, yet with 29 fewer rides.

Pimlico (Maryland):

• Handle: $3 million. A good day as competition was lesser than normal for a Sunday. Oaklawn's meet closed and Kentucky tracks are dark until Churchill re-opens Thursday.

Tampa Bay (Florida):

• Handle: $7 million.
• Closing day: The track is dark until some point in November with the exceptions of the annual two-days of racing on June 30-July 1 which is done for fiscal obligations.
• Leading Rider: Samy Camacho, who won four times today, had 107 victories this meet to lead all riders. Antonio Gallardo, who excels at the track, won three times today and finished with 103 wins.
• Leading Trainer: Gerald Bennett, as expected, led the meet and totaled 56 wins. The 77-year-old set the mark a few days ago with the most wins ever by a Canadian-born trainer. He has 3,977 in his career.
• Richard Grunder: The unique calls of the track announcer ended at 37,587 with “And that's a wrap from Tampa... and God bless everyone involved in the Thoroughbred industry.” He has retired from race calling.

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Gulfstream (Florida):

• Handle: $8.7 million.
• Race 10: Cadillac Black (Angel Arroyo/John Shaw) was the lone first time starter in a field of 10 and won at 19-to-1. A favorite betting angle. When they win, they win big usually. Shaw owns the horse and last sent out a runner in 2013.

Lone Star (Texas):

• Simulcast: One of the most appealing simulcast feeds. Good color scheme, the brown background sets it apart from most other tracks but also the fonts are aesthetically pleasing. Maybe the white for track conditions could be darker but otherwise, near perfection. An example:

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Golden Gate (California):

• Handle: $3.9 million.

Santa Anita (California):

• Flavien Prat had a natural hat trick and finished 7 4-1-1. He had seven wins the past two days including four today.
• Handle: $11,000,000.

 

[MiamiScreamingEagles]

About 40 horses are under consideration for the Preakness in less than two weeks.

The field will be a maximum of 12.

Among the newcomers will be Concert Tour trained by Bob Baffert and ridden by Mike Smith.

Of the top four Kentucky Derby finishers, Hot Rod Charlie will deflect. His connections are returning to California and will point to the Belmont Stakes.

UPDATE: Essential Quality will also be removed from Preakness consideration.

Medina Spirit and Mandaloun and Essential Quality will point to Maryland.

 

[MiamiScreamingEagles]

15.7 million viewed the Kentucky Derby on NBC, the peak number. That is a 54% increase from 2020. 16.3 million watched in 2019, the most recent comparable date, and that mark was the highest since 2016.

The digital presentation was the highest watched since the installment as an option.

The cities with the highest ratings:

1.	Louisville	28.7/59
2.	Ft. Myers	18.2/36
3.	Knoxville	16.2/30
4.	West Palm Beach	15.5/35
5.	Cincinnati	15.1/36
6.	Cleveland	14.9/35
7.	Detroit	14.0/32
8.	Providence	13.3/31
T9.	Indianapolis	13.1/32
T9.	Buffalo	13.1/29

[TBODY] [/TBODY]