Robin Goodfellow’s Racing Tips: Best bets for Thursday, February 11
Sportsmail's racing expert Robin Goodfellow dishes out his tips for Thursday's meetings at Newcastle and Kempton.
Month: February 2021
Report: Prat, Longtime Agent Lawson Split; Brad Pegram To Handle Book
Flavien Prat has split from agent Derek Lawson, who has represented Southern California's leading jockey since he came to the U.S. from his native France to ride full time at the end of 2014. Daily Racing Form reported the split and the fact that Prat's hiring of agent Brad Pegram has forced Drayden Van Dyke to make a change.
Pegram has represented both Van Dyke and Hall of Famer Mike Smith, but California rules restrict an agent from having more than two riders.
Van Dyke told Daily Racing Form's Steve Andersen he's “been swamped with calls already” but added that he was going to take a few days to consider options, including relocating to another circuit.
The change will take place effective Feb. 26, according to the report.
Prat did not give a reason for the move, telling Andersen, “I felt like it was time to make a change.”
The 28-year-old Prat has won numerous Southern California riding titles while working with Lawson. He is currently fourth behind Juan Hernandez, Umberto Rispoli and Joel Rosario in the Santa Anita jockey standings, with 19 wins from 113 mounts, a 17% winning percentage. Van Dyke is 5-for-49.
Now in his seventh year riding full time in Southern California, Prat has compiled 987 victories from 4,921 mounts with his horses earning over $76 million. He won the 2019 Kentucky Derby aboard Country House via the disqualification of Maximum Security and has won three Breeders' Cup races.
Van Dyke, a 26-year-old native of Louisville, Ky., has been riding since 2013 and has 721 career wins from 4,530 starts for mount earnings of $45.5 million. Among his 18 Grade 1 victories is a win by Stormy Liberal in the 2018 Breeders' Cup Turf Sprint.
Pegram has close ties to the Bob Baffert stable, with Smith getting many of the Hall of Fame trainer's top horses. Van Dyke has previously ridden a number of Baffert's top young prospects. Pegram is the nephew of longtime Baffert client Mike Pegram and the son of longtime agent Jim Pegram.
The post Report: Prat, Longtime Agent Lawson Split; Brad Pegram To Handle Book appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.
Gulfstream: Thursday’s Rainbow 6 Jackpot Pool Guaranteed At $1.3 Million
The 20-cent Rainbow 6 jackpot pool will be guaranteed at $1.3 million Thursday at Gulfstream Park.
The Rainbow 6 went unsolved for the 11th straight racing day Wednesday, when multiple tickets with all six winners were each worth $21,145.52.
A mandatory payout of the Rainbow 6 jackpot pool is scheduled for Saturday's 12-race program that will also feature the $100,000 Gulfstream Park Sprint (G3) and the $100,000 Gulfstream Park Turf Sprint (G3).
The jackpot pool is usually only paid out when there is a single unique ticket sold with all six winners. On days when there is no unique ticket, 70 percent of that day's pool goes back to those bettors holding tickets with the most winners, while 30 percent is carried over to the jackpot pool. However, on mandatory payout days the whole pool is paid out to the bettor or bettors holding tickets with the most winners in the six-race sequence.
Undefeated Structor, idle since winning the 2019 Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf (G1), is entered in an optional claiming allowance on Saturday's program at Gulfstream Park.
Don Rachel and Jeff Drown's 4-year-old son of Palace Malice, who was injured while training last June, is undefeated in three starts, including the Pilgrim (G3) at Belmont prior to his Breeders' Cup score.
Jose Ortiz is scheduled to ride the Chad Brown trainee in the mile turf race carded as Race 10.
WHO'S HOT: Leading rider Irad Ortiz Jr. doubled aboard Eagerly ($4.40) in Race 6 and Little Bit Good ($13.80) in Race 10. Miguel Vasquez scored back-to-back aboard Choose Joy ($9.60) in Race 8 and Soldollie ($13) in Race 9.
The post Gulfstream: Thursday’s Rainbow 6 Jackpot Pool Guaranteed At $1.3 Million appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.
Keepmeinmind Staying Put for Southwest
Despite the weather-enforced postponement of the GIII Southwest S., Keepmeinmind (Laoban) will remain in his stall at Oaklawn Park and will pass this weekend's GII Risen Star S. at the Fair Grounds, trainer Robertino Diodoro confirmed Wednesday.
“In the end, I feel better running him out of his own stall,” Diodoro said.
The bay colt, who was third in the GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile before breaking his maiden in the GII Kentucky Jockey Club S. Nov. 28, turned in his sixth breeze of the year Monday in Hot Springs, going a half-mile in :49.60 beneath jockey David Cohen.
“David did a great job again working him,” said Diodoro, Oaklawn's leading trainer last year. “A horse like him, as aggressive as he is, you get the wrong guy on him and all of sudden your nice, easy half-mile work could turn into :45, :46. Even with those other works, it's the same thing. He's a horse that you've definitely got to have the right guy on or you could really blow a work.”
The Southwest is also likely to attract champion Essential Quality (Tapit) and MGISW Jackie's Warrior (Maclean's Music).
The post Keepmeinmind Staying Put for Southwest appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.
