Tag: aqueduct

Breeders’ Cup Presents Connections: ‘Was This A Grade 1?’

Kendrick Carmouche celebrated when he crossed the wire first aboard the Jack Sisterson-trained True Timber in Saturday's Grade 1 Cigar Mile at Aqueduct, but it wasn't until he was jogging back to the winner's circle that the 36-year-old jockey recognized the full scope of his accomplishment.

“Was this a Grade 1?” Carmouche asked, voice full of emotion. “Oh, this is my first Grade 1!”

Asked to relive that moment during a telephone interview, Carmouche's voice wavered before he found the right words.

“What you see (in that video) is just half of it,” he explained. “There was so much that was built up to get up to this point of my career, so much push and so much fight, and not only a Grade 1, but the Cigar Mile. It's just unbelievable. I didn't even know it was a Grade 1 until I came back, because I don't look at the top of the program. I just look at the horses.”

A favorite of fans and fellow jockeys alike, Carmouche has mastered the art of being tough during the races while still retaining a high level of sportsmanship and humility on the ground.

His emotional win in the Cigar Mile came after more than 20,000 career starts and over 20 years in the saddle, but it wasn't Carmouche's only milestone achievement of the weekend. On Sunday, the veteran jockey wrapped up his first New York riding title. 

“I give thanks to everyone who put a good effort into supporting me and pushed me along to win this meet. I'm very appreciative,” Carmouche said. “I seized the opportunity at hand and I'm grateful for all the trainers and owners for letting me show other people that I can win races. I'm very blessed to say that I've come to New York five years ago and I got a title for the fall meet.”

Carmouche has now won 3,314 races since first acquiring a jockey's license. The son of jockey Sylvester Carmouche had spent years following his father around to different racetracks across Louisiana on the weekends, watching and learning everything he could about the sport he loved. 

Some of his favorite memories come from the small bush tracks, though one mount during a match race when he was 15 years old was enough to convince him to stick to exercise riding on a sanctioned racetrack.

“It was fun to watch it every single Saturday and Sunday of my life, and it was the best weekend any kid could have ever had,” Carmouche remembered. “It was just all friends, people coming together and having a good time. People played cards, ate good food, and just enjoyed each other; it was all good people and good memories. It got me where I'm at today.”

When Carmouche earned his apprentice jockey's license at 16, he spent four months riding in his home state, but his first real break didn't come until a family friend suggested he try Pennsylvania.

“My father told me to never pass up an opportunity,” Carmouche said. “You know, my father never really taught me about riding, he just told me to pay attention and listen. If I did have a question he gave me an answer, but mostly I just followed that.”

Over the next 14 years, Carmouche earned seven riding titles at Parx Racing.

He also rode all around the Northeast during his twenties, and remembers well the grind of long days on the track. There were days he would wake up to work horses at Delaware Park before riding the afternoon card there, then drive down to Charles Town in West Virginia to ride another six or seven races that evening. All that time he'd eat little besides a few ice chips, just enough to keep up his energy.

“This a hard world, but I'm from Louisiana, and working hard is the first thing they teach you in life,” Carmouche explained. “I got two kids, I gotta lead the way.”

Since his move to New York in 2015, Carmouche's accomplishments include receiving the 2017 Mike Venezia Memorial Award, the prestigious honor awarded to jockeys who exemplify extraordinary sportsmanship and citizenship.

With these latest two accomplishments under his belt, Carmouche said he's humbled by the faith others have put in him.

“It's just been such a journey,” said Carmouche. “I love the people and the racehorses, and the jockeys. I love everything about it.

“Believe me when I tell you, your dreams can come true. You just gotta believe in your skills. You have to stick to a couple things in life and just drill on it, and just know that if you keep fighting in life you can keep strong and your dreams can come true.”

It was extra special to share the triumphs with his agent, Kevin Bubser. Carmouche brought him into the racing business, but the two have been best friends longer than they've been business partners. 

“I knew what I was getting into,” Carmouche said, laughing good-naturedly. “We get mad at each other, but then we forget about it in the next 30 seconds. That's my boy; he's a good guy. He's getting really good at his craft, and I'm doing my part as a rider. 

“I wish he was here with me; I just want to give him a hug! He's just a big teddy bear. He's 6'5” and he's solid, my brother with another mother.”

The distance from his agent and from the backstretch has been one of the most unique challenges presented by 2020, but it won't be the most difficult memory Carmouche has of this year. 

In June, after watching the video of George Floyd's death at the hands of four police officers, Carmouche found himself unable to sleep for four nights until he shared a video of his emotions on social media.

“It is very sad to see what is going on in the world,” Carmouche said in the video, tears streaming down his cheeks. “I have a white wife and two kids and it's sad to see that it just never ends. It just never ends.”

Racism isn't something he's experienced on the racetrack, Carmouche said, but he can't deny that the rest of the world often sees color before anything else.

“I feel some type of way about things that are still going on in 2020, and I just don't understand some people,” he lamented. “The way I was raised is everybody is one, we don't have different colors. That's the way I've always felt.

“I don't want my kids to keep going through it. Come on guys, let's just make it better for our kids and move on. Peace and love, that's what we need more of out in the world.”

The post Breeders’ Cup Presents Connections: ‘Was This A Grade 1?’ appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post

Hold The Salsa, It’s Gravy Combine For Foodie Exacta In NYSS Great White Way

Hold the Salsa ran down Market Alert in the final furlong and fended off It's Gravy's late bid from the outside for a victory by a neck in Sunday's $250,000 New York Stallion Stakes Series Great White Way in the final stakes of the 18-day fall meet at Aqueduct Racetrack in Ozone Park, N.Y.

Owned, bred and trained by Richard Lugovich, Hold the Salsa registered his second stakes win in three attempts, adding to his victory in the Bertram F. Bongard on October 2 at Belmont going seven furlongs.

Running the same one-turn distance in the 36th running of the Great White Way for eligible New York-sired juveniles, Hold the Salsa was kept off the speed by jockey Junior Alvarado as The King Cheek led the 11-horse field through the opening quarter-mile in 22.80 seconds on the fast main track.

Market Alert took the lead with the half-mile in 46.45 with the favorite Dreamer's Disease, who was rushed into contention after a slow start, in close pursuit. Out of the turn, Market Alert was kept to the inside by Jose Lezcano, fending off a tiring Dreamer's Disease who took back. But Alvarado set down Hold the Salsa from the outside, where he surged past Market Alert and pressed on as It's Gravy made his push from the outside.

Hold the Salsa prevailed in hitting the wire in 1:25.70, registering his third win in six career starts.

“I was pretty confident coming into today. He had already won going seven furlongs,” Lugovich said. “He's a pretty hard horse to gauge because he's very quiet. Coming into the winner's circle, he doesn't look like he has much energy, but he's a very good horse. He's just quiet.”

Off at 5-1, the Hold Me Back colt returned $12.40 on a $2 win bet. The New York-bred more than doubled his career earnings to $237,775.

“When he's good, he takes me there,” said Alvarado, who will head to Gulfstream to ride in the winter. “By the five-sixteenths, I was very happy with where he was and the way he was traveling. I knew he was going to have a little something left at the end. He showed up today. I'm happy to have won the last stakes of the meet.”

Lugovich said he might try Hold the Salsa on turf in his sophomore campaign.

“It's interesting because if you look at his breeding, he's probably a mile-and-a-quarter horse on the grass,” he said. “He's only a 2-year-old, so he could see that eventually. I'll see what we can do with him next year and see how he comes up. I'm in no rush with him.”

It's Gravy, trained by Kelly Breen, maintained his maiden status but has run in the money in all four of his starts, moving to 0-2-2 after besting Market Alert by one length.

Windy Nations, Prospect Mountain, Horn of Plenty, Dreamer's Disease, The King Cheek New York One, Jacoba and Jack's American Pie completed the order of finsh. Uno was scratched.

Thoroughbred action continues at Aqueduct Racetrack for the 56-day winter meet that begins Thursday, December 10 and runs through Sunday, March 28. In total, 42 stakes worth $4.57 million in purses will be offered, with live racing generally conducted Thursday through Sunday until the end of February with a holiday break set for December  24 – 27 and the addition of special Monday cards on January 18 for Martin Luther King, Jr. Day and February 15 for Presidents' Day.

The post Hold The Salsa, It’s Gravy Combine For Foodie Exacta In NYSS Great White Way appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post

Carmouche, Clement Earn First-Ever New York Titles at Aqueduct Fall Meet

Kendrick Carmouche registered his first-ever riding title for a New York Racing Association meet, notching 23 victories to pace all jockeys for the 18-day fall meet at Aqueduct Racetrack that ran from Nov. 6 through Sunday, Dec. 6. Christophe Clement tallied 16 wins to lead all trainers, while Klaravich Stables and Repole Stables each campaigned five winners to finish as co-leading owners.

Carmouche, a mainstay on the NYRA circuit, earned his first NYRA riding crown by registering a 23-18-14 record in 123 mounts with earnings of more than $1.5 million. The soon-to-be 37-year-old compiled a slew of riding titles earlier in his career, racking up seven at Parx from 2008-11 in a run that earned him induction into that track’s Hall of Fame in 2015.

Closing weekend was a memorable one for Carmouche, who registered his first career Grade I win when he piloted True Timber (Mineshaft) to a 5 1/2-length victory in the GI Cigar Mile Saturday. Carmouche edged Jose Lezcano [19 wins] and Joel Rosario [16] for the top spot.

“I give thanks to everyone who put a good effort in to supporting me and pushed me along to win this meet. I’m very appreciative,” Carmouche said. “I seized the opportunity at hand and I’m grateful for all the trainers and owners for letting me show other people that I can win races. I’m very blessed to say that I’ve come to New York five years ago and I got a title for the fall meet. I’m very pleased with myself. I’m sure my mom and dad and all my fans are just so happy for me. I’m on cloud nine right now and I might not come down until next Thursday.”

Clement, who finished with the second-most wins at the Belmont fall meet, earned his first NYRA meet title, registering a 16-6-1 record with 52 starters. He edged Todd Pletcher by one win for the top spot.

“It’s my first one in New York and it feels great,” the 55-year-old conditioner said. “Nothing would be possible without the horses, the owners and the staff. I’m thrilled because New York means a lot to me. It was a good meet; we’ve won at different levels. The maidens have been running great and we won stakes races; the whole stable is doing well. I consider myself a New Yorker now, so it really means something.”

Aqueduct Fall was the fourth consecutive meet in New York where Klaravich Stables at least shared top owner status, joining the Belmont fall, Saratoga summer and Belmont spring/summer.

Thoroughbred action continues at Aqueduct for the 56-day winter meet that begins Thursday, Dec. 10 and runs through Sunday, Mar. 28.

The post Carmouche, Clement Earn First-Ever New York Titles at Aqueduct Fall Meet appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Source of original post

Undefeated Demoiselle Winner Malathaat Florida-Bound; Pletcher Thinking Kentucky Oaks For Curlin Filly

The ability to overcome adversity and will to win were on full display in Saturday's nine-furlong Grade 2, $150,000 Demoiselle for juvenile fillies at Aqueduct in Ozone Park, N.Y., when Shadwell Stable's Malathaat overcame unfavorable circumstances with a furious rally to make the grade in her third career start.

Breaking from the rail under Hall of Famer John Velazquez, Malathaat appeared to be uncomfortable taking some kickback when in behind horses, but allowed her class to prevail with a five-wide move around the turn as she collared Millefeuille in the final strides.

Trainer Todd Pletcher said he was impressed with the winning effort.

“She had to overcome a lot. I was proud of her for persevering,” Pletcher said. “When she got in the clear, she put in a strong run. It was an impressive performance considering all the adversity along the road.”

In winning the Demoiselle, Malathaat earned 10 qualifying points toward the Grade 1 Kentucky Oaks, scheduled for April 30, 2021, at Churchill Downs. Pletcher said he would like to give her two starts prior to the Oaks, which he won with Ashado (2004), Rags to Riches (2007) and Princess of Sylmar (2013).

Pletcher said the Curlin bay would ship to his winter division at Palm Beach Downs in South Florida this week

“She'll ship to Palm Beach Downs early this week and we'll give her an easy month. I don't know what her next target will be, we'll just see how she's doing,” Pletcher said. “Ideally, we would be looking at two races prior to the Kentucky Oaks if everything goes according to plan.”

Unbeaten in three starts, Malathaat gave Velazquez his 2,000th victory at Belmont Park with a 1 ¾-length win in a seven-furlong maiden special weight on October 9 at Belmont Park. She mirrored her winning ways into stakes company when leading at every point of call to take the one-mile Tempted on November 6 at Aqueduct. The Demoiselle was her first start going two turns.

Bred in Kentucky by Stonestreet Thoroughbred Holdings, Malathaat is the first offspring out of the Grade 1-winning A.P. Indy mare Dreaming of Julia, who also was conditioned by Pletcher. She was bought for $1.05 million at the Keeneland September Yearling Sale.

Her triumph in the Demoiselle made her a third generation graded stakes winner. Her maternal granddam Dream Rush was a four-time graded stakes winner, including the Grade 1 Test in 2007 at Saratoga.

“She's shown that she's special from very early on,” Pletcher said. “It's very hard to win three consecutive races and she's done it at three different distances now at Belmont, and over a sloppy track at Aqueduct. I'm not sure that she really relished the going but she still was able to keep finding a little more and I was proud of the effort.”

Pletcher also sent out Known Agenda for the Grade 2 Remsen, where he finished a distant third to Brooklyn Strong.

Like Malathaat, Remsen third-place finisher Known Agenda also appeared to not handle the sloppy going on Saturday, where he picked up two Kentucky Derby qualifying points.

Pletcher said he was still pleased with the effort from the Curlin chestnut out of Grade 1-winner Byrama. Owned by Vincent Viola's St. Elias Stable, Known Agenda notched a second out maiden triumph at the Remsen's nine-furlong distance on November 8 at the Big A.

“He was never comfortable and finally when he got out late in the clear he found some ground. His last quarter was pretty much the same time as the previous two, it's just at the quarter pole he was in a hopeless position,” Pletcher said. “Part of it is immaturity, greenness and not relishing the sloppy conditions. I still think he's a horse with some upside. He's still putting it together. I think a race like that and the experience he gained hopefully will move him forward, so we'll take him down to Florida as well. We'll target some of these Derby preps. There are a lot of good options. We'll play it by ear.”

Shadwell Stable's Mutasaabeq graduated in August at 5 ½ furlongs ahead of a third in the seven-furlong Grade 1 Hopeful, both on the Saratoga main track. The Into Mischief bay made his last two starts on the Keeneland turf, winning the Grade 2 Bourbon on October 4 and a last out 10th in the Grade 1 Breeders' cup Juvenile Turf.

Pletcher said Mutasaabeq could go back to the main track for the $100,000 Mucho Macho Man on January 2 at Gulfstream Park.

“We're thinking about the Mucho Macho Man with him and give him another try on the dirt,” Pletcher said. “He's been training pretty well on the dirt, so we'll explore that. We can always go back to the turf if we need to.

“We were very fortunate to be able to train for them. It's a tremendous organization,” Pletcher added regarding Shadwell Stable. “It's been an honor and a pleasure and it's nice to have some good horses for them. We've been fortunate to win three graded stakes so far this year with them.”

Repole Stable, St. Elias Stable and Stonestreet Stables' Likeable, 13th in the Grade 1 Breeders' Cup Juvenile last out, and worked a half-mile in 51.40 on November 25 at Palm Beach Downs.

“We have a lot of options for him, including an allowance race. We'll get him started around the first of January. We'll see what the new condition book at Gulfstream has to offer,” Pletcher said.

The post Undefeated Demoiselle Winner Malathaat Florida-Bound; Pletcher Thinking Kentucky Oaks For Curlin Filly appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post

Verified by MonsterInsights