Mike Maker, annually among the country's leading trainers in starts, wins, and purses earned, is planning to have a presence in Maryland this fall.
The 53-year-old Maker, based primarily in the Midwest but with seasonal strings in Arkansas, Florida, Indiana, Louisiana, New York,and Texas, will have 15 stalls at Laurel Park's calendar year-ending fall meet, which begins Friday, Sept. 30.
“I'm looking forward to it,” Maker said. “It'll be a small string, but with limited grass opportunities here in Kentucky I think it's a good fit.”
Maker is coming off a meet at all-turf Kentucky Downs, where he is the track's all-time leading trainer and set single-season records this year in starters (65), wins (12), and purse earnings ($2.34 million). Among Maker's wins were the Mint Million (G3) with Somelikeithotbrown and Kentucky Turf Cup (G2) with Red Knight.
“For us, it's a chance to run on the grass and have a presence there,” Maker said of Laurel. “Then we can swap the horses out as we need.”
Maker is a native of Michigan who walked hots for his father, George, at Hazel Park and defunct Detroit Race Course. At 13, he bought his first horse with money earned from delivering the Detroit Free Press, and won in his first start. He worked his way up to an assistant for his father and apprenticed under Hall of Famer D. Wayne Lukas for 10 years before going out on his own in 2003.
Palatial Times provided Maker with his 3,000th career victory Aug. 7 at Ellis Park. Known for his success turning claiming horses into stakes winners, Maker has trained a dozen millionaires, including 2011 champion 2-year-old male Hansen and fellow Grade 1 winners Zulu Alpha, Bigger Picture, and Henley's Joy.
Maker has had success shipping to Maryland for stakes, this year winning the What a Summer with Time Limit Jan. 29 at Laurel and Miss Preakness (G3) with Lady Scarlet May 20 at Pimlico Race Course, where he also finished with the third-most points in the Preakness weekend trainer bonus standings.
Last year Maker finished second in the bonus standings after winning the Black-Eyed Susan (G2) with Army Wife, Pimlico Special (G3) with Last Judgment, and Maryland Sprint (G3) with Special Reserve on the dirt, as well as the Dinner Party (G2) on turf with Somelikeithotbrown. At Laurel, he won the Baltimore-Washington International Turf Cup (G3) with Field Pass and Japan Turf Cup with Tide of the Sea.
Maker earned the top Preakness weekend trainer bonus in 2020, its stakes pushed back to October amid the coronavirus pandemic, following wins in the Hilltop with Evil Lyn and Laurel Futurity with Catman.
Statistics compiled by Equibase show Maker with a record of 17-7-10 and purse earnings of $1,737,423 from 79 lifetime starts at Laurel and Pimlico. He is 7-5-6 with $493,513 in purses at Laurel, including 24-6-2-3, $364,893 in grass races.
In 58 lifetime stakes races in Maryland, Maker has 11 wins, five seconds, seven thirds and $1,513,331 in purses earned. His first Maryland stakes win came in the 2017 Pearl Necklace at Laurel with I'm Betty G.
“We've had good luck in Maryland,” Maker said. “It's just been a matter of the horses fitting and finding the right races and having them show up on the day.”
Maker ran seventh with a pair of horses on Saturday's stakes-filled program – Miss Preakness (G3) winner Lady Scarlet in the Weather Vane on dirt and 2020 American Turf (G2) winner Fancy Liquor in a fourth-level optional claiming allowance on turf.
Stall applications for Laurel's fall meet, which runs through Dec. 31, are due Saturday, Oct. 1.
The post ‘With Limited Grass Opportunities Here In Kentucky I Think It’s A Good Fit’: Maker To Have String At Laurel Park appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.
