Belmont Stakes | Horse Racing Free Tips

Wild On Ice Leads Dozen Late Triple Crown Nominees

Frank Sumpter's Wild On Ice (Tapizar), winner of Sunday's GIII Sunland Park Derby, is one of a dozen 3-year-olds nominated to the Triple Crown with a late payment of $6,000 by Monday's deadline. The other late nominees (pending late mail) are: Middleham Park Racing's Road to the Kentucky Derby Condition Stakes winner Brave Emperor (Ire) (Sioux Nation); Adam Ference and Bill Dory's El Camino Real Derby winner Chase the Chaos (Astern {Aus}); John Salzman Jr., Fred Wasserloos and Anthony Geruso's multiple stakes winner Coffeewithchris (Ride on Curlin); Mrs. John Magnier, Michael Tabor, Derrick Smith, Westerberg and Jonathan Poulin's Animal Kingdom S. winner Eye Witness (City of Light); The Del Mar Group's Sunland Park Derby third-place finisher Henry Q (Blame); Lucky Seven Stable's maiden special weight winner and GI Arkansas Derby entrant Interlock Empire (Classic Empire); Brereton Jones and Naber Racing's maiden special weight winner and GI Arkansas Derby entrant King Russell (Creative Cause); Big Chief Racing's recent $50,000 claim and Arkansas Derby entrant Kolomio (Constitution); C2 Racing Stable's maiden special weight winner and GI Curlin Florida Derby entrant Mr. Peeks (California Chrome); C2 Racing Stable and Stefania Farms maiden special weight winner and Florida Derby entrant Nautical Star (Dixie Chatter); and LC Racing's two-time stakes winner Ninetyprcentmaddie (Weiglia).

There are now 381 sophomores eligible to compete in the Triple Crown series. Any horse not nominated during the early or late phases can become Triple Crown eligible through a supplemental nomination payment due at the time of entry for each Triple Crown race: Kentucky Derby ($200,000), Preakness ($150,000) and Belmont ($50,000).

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Twelve Days a Racing: Jared Shoemaker Pipes Up

Jared Shoemaker, co-managing partner of Pocket Aces Racing, grew up in Lexington and fondly remembers going to Keeneland with his extended family from the time he could walk. It was one of his favorite things to do as a child.

By the time he was in high school, he admits to spending a lot of afternoons at the track while supposedly in class. Not one to miss a good day of racing–no matter the reason–he scheduled all of his lectures at the University of Kentucky to be done by noon so he could get to Keeneland by first post.

Shoemaker has spent the last 27 years in northeastern Kentucky, where his wife is from. He invested about 10 years working in college athletics and has been in the pharmaceutical industry full-time since 2008.

Pocket Aces Racing was born over a card game among friends in 2005, hence the double ace silks. They all pitched in and bought a Victory Gallop yearling filly to eventually race at Charles Town. Aptly named 'Victory Morning', the filly won her debut by about 10 lengths in her first start in September of her 2-year-old year. People that had never been owners, and had never even imagined owning a race horse (Shoemaker included), had so much fun with it that they decided to formalize, and turn it into a business.

Almost 17 years later from that four-time winning first filly, the syndicate has grown to over 300 partners and 30 active runners, give or take a few.

Shoemaker joined TDN for a Q&A and some reminiscing. Here are his answers to breeding and racing's most poignant questions for 2022 and into the new year!

TDN: What is your racing or bloodstock highlight for this year?

JS: Temple City Terror winning the G3 Dowager at Keeneland.

TDN: Who is your value sire for 2023?

JS: Temple City

TDN: Who do you predict will be the leading freshman sire next year?

JS: Flameaway

TDN: If you could nominate one candidate (person or horse) to the Hall of Fame, who would get your nomination? Why?

JS: Perry Ouzts – 7,336 says it all. I don't care what level it is; you can't argue with that number of wins.

TDN: What is one positive change you'd like to see in racing next year?

JS: Serious, real, and swift consequences for individuals that tarnish our great sport by cheating. Enough is enough.

TDN: Who is your favorite horse of all time?

JS: Ferdinand. His win in the Derby with Bill Shoemaker aboard is what really elevated my love for racing to the next level.

TDN: What was the most exciting race you saw this year?

JS: It's personal for me – it was Temple City Terror in the Dowager. To win a graded stake at Keeneland [having grown up at the track] is everything for me.

TDN: If you could go back in time and see one race in person, what would it be?

JS: The 1978 Triple Crown Races, but if I have to pick one, the 1978 Belmont.

TDN: If you could only go to one track for the rest of your life, which one would you pick?

JS: Keeneland

TDN: If you could compete in any race in the world outside the US, which one would you want an entry in?

JS: Dubai World Cup

TDN: What was the biggest “surprise” of 2022–be it sales price, track performance, or a stallion?

JS: I don't really think I'd call it a surprise, but I'm happy to see Good Magic at the top of the First-Crop Sire list. It's great to see a son of Curlin off to such a great start as a sire.

TDN: Who would you tab as your favorite 'TDN Rising Star'?

JS: We bought a Siyouni gelding out of the HORA sale at Keeneland last month so I'll go with Intinso who won an allowance at New Castle in late October.

TDN: What is a hill you will die on when it comes to horse racing or breeding?

JS: We have to clean up the sport, but we can't fool ourselves into thinking that getting rid of the cheaters and restoring confidence in the game is the panacea for all our woes.

TDN: Do you have thoughts on what more needs doing?

JS: We have to do a better job attracting new fans and making our sport more accessible. I realize everyone has their fiefdoms they want to protect, but the industry HAS to come together and cooperate to grow our sport.

TDN: Secretariat or Flightline? Care to stir the pot?

JS: Secretariat. Always Secretariat

TDN: The burning question on everyone's mind–do you decorate your house for the winter holidays before or after Thanksgiving?

JS: Always after.

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New Careers: Jose Santos

Jose Santos hasn't ridden in more than 15 years, but he never wanted to leave the racetrack. But finding the right role proved to be difficult. He sold feed for a number of years but said he was losing money because so many people would not pay their bills. But about a month ago, Santos, 61, found something new, signing on with Enviro Equine as a salesman. He says it's a good fit.

“I like it because it allows me to mingle with people from racetrack,” Santos said. “I went to the sales in Kentucky and have been visiting trainers and farms where I live in Florida. I am selling supplements and vitamins for the horses. It's good for them. They are good products.”

Enviro Equine calls itself a “farm-to-stable” operation, focused on sustainable practices for animals and the planet, working only with suppliers committed to sustainability and excellence.

Santos's career ended on Feb. 1, 2007 when he was involved in a spill at Aqueduct, which resulted in five broken vertebrae, a broken sternum and several broken ribs. He had planned on riding another four years, retiring when he was 50. But his doctor advised against that.

“That was a tough way to go out,” he said. “I was planning to ride until I was 50, so my career was cut short a little bit. The doctor told me the best thing was for me to retire, but that I should make my own decision. I called my mother and told her I had two spills back to back. My mother said don't wait for the third one. I quit. I had done enough. I was 46. I made the right decision.”

Santos began his career in his native Chile before moving on to Colombia. He came to the U.S. in 1984. He led all jockeys in earnings from 1986 through 1989 and in 1988 he won the Eclipse Award as the sport's top jockey. Santos won 4,083 races, including the 2003 GI Kentucky Derby and the 2003 GI Preakness S. with Funny Cide (Distorted Humor) and the 1999 GI Belmont with Lemon Drop Kid (Kingmambo). He also won seven Breeders' Cup races and was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2007.

He says that Criminal Type (Alydar) was the best horse he ever rode. In 1990 Santos teamed up with Criminal Type to win the GI Pimlico Special, the GI Metropolitan H., the GI Hollywood Gold Cup and the GI Whitney H. Trained by Wayne Lukas, Criminal Type was named 1990 Horse of the Year.

Six months after the 2007 spill, he announced his retirement, saying that if he had another accident the fear was that he would no longer be able to walk. For the first few years after he quit Santos said he just took it easy, enjoying his retirement. About five years ago, he went into the feed business, which was not for him.

“I got into the wrong business,” he said. “I was selling feed. There were a lot of people good people and they paid me. But a lot of people didn't pay me and I got in a hole. Instead of keep losing money, I stopped.”

He still finds time to follow the sport and says he enjoys watching races on television with his 9-year-old son. What does he think of today's riders?

“It's a great group of jockeys and there are a lot of really good young riders like the Ortiz brothers,” he said “I also like Manny Franco. You still have Johnny (Velazquez) and (Joel) Rosario. Tyler Gaffalione is a tremendous rider.”

What's changed, Santos said, is that the current crop of riders can get reckless.

“It is a different era,” he said. “They ride completely different from way we used to ride. They are a little careless. We used to take care of each other. If somebody was having a problem, we'd give you a shot. Now, there is a lot of bumping. They have the stewards working harder now. It's a different time. The money is not good, it's great. If I were riding now, I'd probably be riding the same way they do.”

The spill might have cost him a few years, but it didn't take away from all that he accomplished.

“I had a great career,” Santos said. “I rode for 31 years and I made it in the big time in New York. I won an Eclipse Award and I won the Kentucky Derby, the Preakness and the Belmont. The best thing of all was that I was inducted into the Hall of Fame. I was very happy with my whole career.”

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2023 Calendar Celebrates Terlingua

The 2023 Secretariat's Legacy calendar will celebrate the Triple Crown winner's daughter Terlingua, who set six stakes records on the racetrack and then produced the great stallion Storm Cat. The 2023 edition is the sixth annual fundraising calendar honoring Secretariat and his descendants. The first five calendars in the series, which started with the Living Legends theme honoring the remaining Secretariats, have raised $28,000 for equine charities over the years.

“I am very grateful to all the racing fans–especially Secretariat fans–who have supported both the Living Legends calendar series and the newer Secretariat's Legacy series, which began last year when honoring Weekend Surprise,” said writer/photographer Patricia McQueen, whose creative project is part of her research work on Secretariat as a sire. Her book, Secretariat's Legacy, will be published in early 2023.

As in previous calendars, the Tony Leonard Collection continues to generously support the series with a beautiful photo of Secretariat and Ron Turcotte before the Belmont S. Turcotte has generously agreed to autograph a limited number of calendars to help raise additional funds.

All profits from the sale of the calendar are allocated to three organizations: Bright Futures Farm and Canada's Long Run Thoroughbred Retirement Society, both accredited by the Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance; and Victory Alliance Ranch, an equine rescue and sanctuary supporting veterans and special needs children.

The calendars are available for $25 each at www.SecretariatCalendar.com. Free shipping within the U.S. is included.

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