March, 2021 | Horse Racing Free Tips

Weyburn, Roman Centurian on Course for Wood Memorial

Chiefwood Stables' Weyburn (Pioneerof the Nile) breezed an easy half-mile in :50.93 seconds over Belmont's training track Wednesday in preparation for the Apr. 3 GII Wood Memorial at Aqueduct. A winner going seven panels in the Big A slop last December, the Ontario-bred kicked off 2021 with a nose victory in the Mar. 6 GIII Gotham S., a race in which Weyburn earned 50 qualifying points to the GI Kentucky Derby.

“He just ran hard [in the Gotham] and he's not the heaviest horse in the world, so he didn't really need anything more than what he did on Wednesday,” said trainer Jimmy Jerkens of the breeze.

Weyburn was recently made the 3-1 early favorite for the $1-million Queen's Plate Aug. 22 at Woodbine-the first jewel in the Canadian Triple Crown.

Don Alberto Stable and Qatar Racing's 'TDN Rising Star' Roman Centurian (Empire Maker) is likely to make his next start in the nine-furlong Triple Crown prep, offering 100 Kentucky Derby qualifying points to the winner. The $550,000 KEESEP graduate finished fourth last out to the victorious Life Is Good in the Mar. 6 GII San Felipe S. at Santa Anita Park. The dark bay breezed back for the first time at covering a half-mile in :50.40 at Santa Anita Thursday.

“I think there's a very good chance that we will ship to New York,” said Callaghan. “He breezed very well [Thursday] and we were happy. He'll breeze again next week and it's looking more likely that we'll come.”

After a debut fourth sprinting in a maiden event won by Life Is Good in November at Del Mar, Roman Centurian stretched out to 1 1/16-miles for his second-out graduation Jan. 3 at Santa Anita. He exited that effort to finish a good second in the GII Robert B. Lewis S. at Santa Anita, rallying from last-of-six to miss by a neck to Medina Spirit (Protonico).

“I don't think the race set up very well for him last time,” added Callaghan. “We're hoping that with another race under his belt and moving to a track that we think will be more to his liking, that we'll see a good performance to move him forward.”

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Elliott Head Lad Banned For Taking Photo

Simon McGonagle, head lad to currently disqualified trainer Gordon Elliott, has been banned nine months, with the last seven months of the ban suspended, by the Irish Horseracing Regulatory Board for taking the photo of Elliott sitting aboard a dead horse that circulated on social media and led to Elliott's own six-month ban. The last seven months of McGonagle's ban will be suspended for a year, after which the disqualification will lapse. McGonagle's ban begins on Apr. 16.

McGonagle, who has been employed within the racing industry for approximately 30 years and first started working for Elliott in 2007, was found by the IHRB to have acted in a manner prejudicial to the integrity, proper conduct and good reputation of horse racing-a charge that was also brought against Elliott. McGonagle did not contest in his hearing that he took the photograph, and the committee learned that he shared it with five friends. This ultimately led to the photograph becoming public from an unknown source. McGonagle accepted that “by virtue of his actions he was part of a chain of events that has caused damage to the integrity of racing and he fully understands the outrage expressed in relation to this image.”

The IHRB said in a statement, “We will not repeat what has been said before about the awful image at the heart of this case. The taking of the image was ill-judged and in bad taste and we consider that Mr. McGonagle should have known better as a head lad involved in the industry for a considerable time. As head lad he should also show a good example to others in the yard. However, we reiterate the points made in the Elliott case that this incident is not concerned with cruelty or horse welfare. Also, having heard the evidence in this case we are no further on as to how this image came into the public domain and we can reach no conclusions on that issue. We reach the sanction having considered all of the circumstances, aggravating and mitigating factors, bearing in mind the seriousness of the offence and the need for deterrence, and considering Mr. McGonagle's personal circumstances, in order to reach a proportionate result.”

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Report: Churchill Rebuffs Interest In Purchasing Arlington For Racing Purposes

Mike Campbell, president of the Illinois Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association, told the Thoroughbred Daily News on Friday that he knows of several parties interested in purchasing Arlington Park for racing purposes. However, Campbell also said that Churchill Downs, Inc., current owner of Arlington, is only interested in selling the track for redevelopment.

“We reached out to them as a group of horsemen to see if they would allow us to pursue buying the track for pari-mutuel racing only and were told that Churchill had no interest in talking to us,” an anonymous source told the TDN.

CDI announced the sale of Arlington on Feb. 23, 2021, indicating that it would host live racing at the Illinois track through the 2021 season, which is scheduled to end on Sept. 25.

“It would do (CDI) no harm and it would not put them at a competitive disadvantage if there continued to be racing at Arlington Park beyond 2021,” Campbell told the TDN. “There would be no competition for their casino (in Des Plaines, Illinois). Gamblers who gamble on slot machines and table games, they are a different breed from horseplayers. The frustrating part for those of us who want to save this historical, iconic racetrack is the fact that everything you can glean from this speaks to Churchill wanting to not allow even racing there. That's baffling to me.”

Read more at the Thoroughbred Daily News.

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Letter To The Editor: The Place Of The Whip In Horse Racing

The whip in horse racing:

Reading this letter, one is entitled to ask: 'Who are you, to pass comment on such a contentious issue, when you have never ridden in a race?'

This is a fair comment. But as many sportsmen, whether they are golfers, tennis players, or gymnasts know, it's a bit of a not seeing the wood for the trees conundrum: because a jockey, like a boxer in a frantic fight, is often consumed in the moment of a tight finish, driven on by adrenalin, not rational thought. And invariably, when confronted with video evidence, they are most contrite.

Twenty-five years ago, I won an Eclipse Award for a radio broadcast on this very subject. And, listening to the words of Frankie Dettori, Sandy Hawley and Ted Walsh, at that time, it is evident that little has changed in the debate, even though animal rights' activists are far louder in their criticism, these days.

They say that great jockeys have great hands. Hands that immediately convey calm and confidence to any horse that they alight upon. These same hands send messages. Relax. Time to get going. And a whip, for them, is much like a balancing bar for a tight-rope walker: they wave it rhythmically in time with pumping the reins, driving their mounts to the wire.

The whip can get attention. It can steer. Now and again, it can convey urgency. And anyone who has stood at the three-eighths pole, as a field of horses leaves the backstretch and the race gets serious, will hear all manner of chirping, whistling, shouting, and the smacking of whips as riders urge their mounts on. This is natural. This is competition. But what is not acceptable is flogging horses that are well beaten, and/or striking them in the ribs (behind the girth) or even worse, around the sheath or teats.

Having worked as a traveling head lad in a top stable in France many years ago I would see horses returning after races with shocking welts that would put them off their feed and often not disappear for days. And today, at every racetrack, I strongly believe that commission veterinarians should inspect every horse after each race for signs of abuse, taking photos as evidence, and then hand out suspensions and fines based upon what they see, rather than what videos actually show.

As the great Willie Shoemaker once said, 'More horses are beaten out of the winner's circle than into it.'

Every jockey should be reminded of this. And perhaps, remembering what a great jockey he was, they will think twice before beating up an animal that is responsible for their bread and butter.

–Robin Dawson

If you would like to submit a letter to the editor, please write to info at paulickreport.com and include contact information where you may be reached if editorial staff have any questions.

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