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The 2020 Washington Annual Awards celebration was held via Zoom Saturday evening, February 27. Many industry members tuned in via their phones or other devices to be part of the ceremonies.

Kristin Boice and Marylou Holden's talented juvenile Bodenheimer was named horse of the year. This year the award honored the late Washington horseman Richard Wright. The son of 2020 leading sire Atta Boy Roy was a stakes winner at both Keeneland and Prairie Meadows last year. He is trained, as was his sire, by now Kentucky resident Valerie Lund. In addition Bodenheimer, who is the second stakes winner Larry Romaine bred out of the stakes-winning A. P. Indy mare Beautiful Daniele, was named champion turf horse and shared co-champion two-year-old honors with undefeated Dutton.

Dutton, who races for Rising Star Stable VIII and is trained by Howard Belvoir – who received one of three special racing achievement awards – is from the first and only crop of the late Washington champion Noosito, who was not only Washington's leading freshman sire, but also the second leading 2020 freshman sire on the West Coast.

Champion two-year-old filly honors went to Chad and Josh's Time for Gold, who was victorious in two Emerald Downs stakes. Her owners, Chad Christensen and Josh McKee, were also the state's leading owners of Washington-breds. Time for Gold was one of three progeny of Harbor the Gold who won stakes victories for the successful partnership.

2019 Washington horse of the year Baja Sur, by Smiling Tiger, added two more championship titles to his impressive total: champion older horse or gelding and champion sprinter. He races for Auburn residents John and Janene Maryanski and Gerry and Gail Schneider.

Warlock Stables, Kelly Dougan and trainer Roddina Barrett's Alittlesstalk encored her 2019 champion title with an even more impressive record in 2020 when the four-year-old daughter of Demon Warlock won two stakes and placed in two more in her seven-race skein.

Tawnja Elison's Unmachable, by Macho Uno, also took off where he had in 2019. The state's champion two-year-old added two more stakes wins, one over older runners, to earn the champion three-year-old title. His trainer, Jack McCartney, was also honored with a special training achievement award.

Glen Todd-owned and -trained Miss Prospector gave her sire Harbor the Gold his 24th state champion runner when she took champion sophomore filly honors.

Other horse honors went to Omache Kid (plater), Fortune's Freude (most improved plater), Melba Jewel (broodmare) and Winter Knight (OTTB).

The WTBOA/WHPBA Special Recognition Award was warmly given to Washington Horse Racing Commission executive secretary Doug Moore for all the work he put into getting approval for racing at Emerald Downs and holding the WTBOA August horse sale amid complex COVID-19 restrictions and protocols.

Other awards were given to Mr. and Mrs. Frederick Pabst, who took their sixth leading breeder title; and to jockey Juan Gutierrez for gaining a record number of wins at Emerald Downs.

The program for the event is posted on the WTBOA website at www.washingtonthoroughbred,com.

The post Bodenheimer Named 2020 Washington Horse Of The Year appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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Hronis Racing's Chaos Theory, claimed for $62,500 last out by trainer John Sadler for his main owners – Pete and Kosta Hronis — made good on his first trip over the grass in California with a come-from-behind, one-length tally in Saturday's $101,000 Green Flash Handicap at Del Mar near San Diego, Calif.

The 5-year-old gelding, who was last seen in action at Churchill Downs in Kentucky on June 14, was handled by Umberto Rispoli, the newcomer to Del Mar this season who has shown a special affinity for its grass course. The Green Flash score was his sixth stakes victory of the meet with five of them coming on the turf. He's now won 23 turf races in 69 tries, a remarkable 33% clip on the green.

“It was beautiful.,” said Rispoli. “He surprised me because he broke so sharply. I figured we'd be a little farther back, but it put us in a great spot just behind the speed. At this distance you can't get too far back. I had a lot of horse turning for home. I thought we'd get there.”

Chaos Theory, by Curlin, paid $5.60, $3.40 and $2.80 across the board as the race favorite. He picked up $60,000 for the score bringing his bankroll to $260,554.

Finishing second was Maryanski and Schneider's Baja Sur and running third was W. C. Racing's Torosay.

Chaos Theory covered the five furlong distance in :56.22.

“We've got a great grass sprint program in California and Santa Anita is actually adding a turf chute,” said Sadler. “So we have a variety of distances on the grass and this horse is kind of a specialist — 5, 5 ½ furlongs so I thought he would be a great fit in California, that's why we brought him out. He's a good horse. We were pleased with his race today.”

The stakes win was the second of the meet and second in the Green Flash (2008, Get Funky) for trainer Sadler. He now has 78 stakes wins at Del Mar, moving him ahead of Ron McAnally and into second place on Del Mar's all-time trainers' list.

The post Chaos Theory Proves Sharp Claim For Sadler, Winning Green Flash Handicap appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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