Ben Perkins | Horse Racing Free Tips

Remembrances: Dr. Peter Hall

Tom Thornbury:
One of the best has left us. Dr. Peter Hall died quietly in his sleep earlier this week. He was a real race-tracker; a track vet in New Joisy in the summer, and Florida in the winter. He had his hands on some of the greats, and as I recall, Holy Bull was the best in his memory.

Wherever we stopped in Ocala, he knew someone there from his years on the track. With his flawless recall for directions to any farm he had previously visited, we referred to him as GPS Hall. His humor was infectious. Many times he would get to giggling, while telling a joke, that he almost couldn’t get the punch-line out. I had to pull the car over more than once, because we had laughed ourselves into convulsions.

One of the all-time greats in my book; those who knew him, worked with him, and were lucky enough to learn from him, will forever cherish our time with Pete. In his honor, several of us will have an “All American” tonight. As he would tell you, “Hey, hey pally, you fill a tall glass with ice, and add two scoops of Dewar’s.”

Rest In Peace, pally.

Darren Fox:
I had the pleasure of spending a summer with Dr. Hall on the Keeneland inspection team in 2008. Countless hours of fun conversation and great stories made the days go by in a blink.

His sense of humor is what is most memorable along with his great laugh. When his laugh really got going it would set the rest of us off even more so than the original joke.

I enjoyed visiting on trips to Ocala to see him and his wife Patty, their chocolate lab ‘Bear Dog’ and hear about their grandchildren, his golf game or his total number of miles walked for the year and see if he was on track to hit his target that year, which was usually in the 1,500 mile range. His trips down memory lane through the picture board of old photos in his garage was pure gold.

Rarely without a smile, a “hey laddie” or a glint in his eye to let you know that a funny quip or story was close at hand made every minute in his company the absolute best.

We will miss you Doc! Rest in Peace.

Ben Perkins, Sr.:
Ben Jr. and I have had the privilege of knowing Pete Hall as a vet and a friend for some thirty years. Pete was brilliant, funny, outspoken and unique. I cannot think of anyone I’d trust more with the safety and well being of our horses. I could count on Pete to tell me what he thought, whether I liked it or not. After a long, hot summer day at Monmouth Pete would not turn down an invitation for a quick stop at Bar Bombay for a Dewar’s… I was usually buying.

I will miss him at OBS in the spring where we shared stories many times retold, along with tales of Pete’s escapades at his beloved home at the Villages.

Gary King:
I was very sad to hear about the passing of Dr. Peter Hall earlier this week, and would like to echo some of the sentiments expressed above.

I was lucky enough to spend time with Dr. Hall during a placement with Keeneland in the spring/summer of 2009. He was a great man for a story, a joke, and to share the knowledge he had acquired from a lifetime dedicated to caring for Thoroughbred horses.

There are some great stories about Dr. Hall, some of which are best not published, but every one of them remind me of his infectious sense of humor. He and his wife, Patty, visited Ireland in the summer of 2010, where he particularly enjoyed the traditional Irish music in Cunningham’s bar in Kildare Town, while sipping on one or two Irish whiskeys. He seemed to leave a lasting impression on everyone he met, and my family still speak very fondly of him to this day.

Dr. Hall was a brilliant character, and most importantly a brilliant man. I will always cherish the time I spent with him.

Ar dheis Dé go raibh a anam.

If you would like to share a tribute or a story about Dr. Peter Hall for publication, please email Gary King (garyking@thetdn.com).

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‘This Is What I Love Doing’: Breen Leads Monmouth Trainer’s Standings At Mid-Way Point

In some ways, Kelly Breen is as surprised as anyone that he will reach the midpoint of the Monmouth Park meet atop the trainer standings and as the favorite to win the title.

That's because he originally thought he was too heavy on 2-year-olds, too light on claimers, didn't have the overall numbers and wasn't sure how consistently he would be able to keep adding to his stable as the meet progressed.

“I thought I came in here a little short on the stock that a normal leading trainer would have,” said Breen. “Approximately one-third (19 of 62) of the horses I have here are 2-year-olds. With the pandemic you can't get to the 2-year-olds until later in the season. So they're pushed back. You're training horses more than you are racing horses.

“I knew to offset that we would have to be active in the claim box.”

The adjustment seems to have worked. Breen, who won the training title at Monmouth Park in 2005 and 2006, heads into the 18th racing day of the now 36-day meet on Friday with 12 winners from 45 starters to top the trainer standings.

He is three winners ahead of his closest competitor, Ben Perkins, Jr., but will only have one opportunity to add to his total during the six-race twilight card on Friday that starts at 5 p.m. Breen will send out Life On The Edge, already a winner at the meet, in the sixth race

“I'm still on the fence about my chances (to win the title),” he said. “So many different things go into winning a training title. A lot of variables.”

Breen said he “lost about six horses I liked for Monmouth Park at Gulfstream, and you can't replenish because Florida rules are you can't take them out of state for at least 90 days. I was coming back here before that so it just didn't work out. You come in feeling you're a little short.”

He also knows with the logjam behind him in the standings that a trainer is just one hot streak away from joining or passing him atop the standings. That happened with Perkins, who had four winners on Sunday's card and has won with seven of his last nine starters.

Jose Delgado, Mike Dini and Jerry Hollendorfer, each with eight winners, are in the title chase mix as well.

For the 51-year-old Breen, though, the training title would be especially significant since the New Jersey native has called Monmouth Park home since he started training in 1992.

“When you're this close of course you want to win it. There isn't anybody out there who would say no,” said Breen, who set a personal best with 66 winners overall a year ago. “This is a prestigious racetrack. To put another feather in my cap would be awesome. This is my home track so there are a lot of things going for me here, owners that have been with me a long time.

“I won the title here in 2005 and 2006 and then I was a private trainer and I did that for a while. So you lose contact with some owners and a lot of the big outfits I used to train for aren't racing as much. I'm on the market again and making more phone calls to get horses than I ever have in my life but this is what I love doing. It's just different. So winning the title again, if that happens, would mean a lot.”

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Claudio Gonzalez Living The ‘Dream’ With Haskell Contender Lebda

The first time Claudio Gonzalez showed up on the Monmouth Park backstretch, he was a recent Chilean immigrant and a teenager who barely spoke English and was in dire need of any job.

Now he'll roll through the stable gate with a horse he'll saddle on Saturday in the Grade 1, $1 million TVG.com Haskell Stakes, a race that offers the opportunity to qualify for spots in both the Kentucky Derby and Breeders' Cup Classic.

“This is a big race for me. It's my first Haskell,” said Gonzalez, 45, who last year was honored as Maryland's leading trainer for the third straight year. “Everybody dreams of that, to run in the biggest races. As soon as I was starting to learn to be a trainer, that was my dream. It is for any trainer.

“But to have a horse in the Haskell, especially, is very important to me. I worked there on the backside for about 15 years and that is the most important race there. This will be my first time back at Monmouth in two years so it's going to be really exciting for me to come back and have my horse run in the biggest race.”

Gonzalez, who started at the bottom in the barn of fellow Chilean Juan Serey in 1995 and had a short stint with Gary Contessa before joining the operation of Monmouth Park mainstay Ben Perkins, Jr., will send out Euro Stable's Lebda in the Haskell.

The two-time stakes winner in Maryland this year finished sixth last time out in the Grade 3 Ohio Derby.

“In his race in Ohio he went the first quarter in :22 and he got tired,” said Gonzalez, who could have a banner day as he will also run Harper's First Ride in the Grade 3 Monmouth Cup at a mile and an eighth on the main track, one of five stakes races on the undercard. “But he came back good. He's been learning all the time and he keeps moving forward. The horse is doing great and has been training very well and that's why we decided to come to the Haskell. He's a classy horse.”

Even if he doesn't visit the Monmouth Park winner's circle after either race Gonzalez is already a proven winner. He beat testicular cancer in 2008.

Through his surgery, treatment protocol and recovery, he was unable to work for six months. He was terrified he wouldn't be able to support his wife and family, but Perkins, his wife, Susan, and those who owned horses in the barn treated him just like family. Their compassion, emotional support and financial support were lifesavers.

“Benny told me right away that no matter what, they would take care of me,” said Gonzalez, who is married with three children. “They said right away that they wanted to help me. They never said no. They always said yes, even before I had symptoms. They paid me every single week. There are not too many people who would do that for someone. All the time, they brought the check to me. They never missed even one week. Every week they brought a check to me.

“For all the rest of my life I have to say thank you to Benny and the owners who helped me. They are special.

“Every time I see Benny, his wife, and every one of the owners I go over and say thank you again. They are the nicest people and they are very good people.”

Perkins, a multiple graded stakes trainer, told the Laurel Park press office at the time, “A lot of my owners are hands-on guys and they're around the barn. A lot of them are people that had been with us for a while. They knew what Claudio was putting into the operation and they were all willing to help out when he needed help. It was a full group thing.

“Everybody pitched in. The guys knew him and they knew the kind of person he was. He's a good family man. He's got a great wife and kids, and everybody was glad to help.”

When Gonzalez recovered and went back to work for Perkins, he decided to try going out on his own with five horses he would take care of early in the mornings before and late in the evenings after his regular job. His second starter was a winner on Nov. 14, 2012 at Laurel, and he got his first his first stakes win in September of 2013 in Monmouth Park's Jersey Girl Handicap.

Now in his ninth year as a trainer, he heads into the Haskell with 793 career victories and almost $22 million in earnings through July 15.

“This is very exciting,” said Gonzalez, whose sole graded stakes score came in the 2017 Frank DeFrancis Memorial Dash with former two-time New Jersey-bred champion Chublicious.

Adding to the incentive of the Haskell is the race's designation of “Win and You're In” reward for the $7 million Breeders' Cup Classic on Nov. 7. Because of the reshuffled and reconfigured Triple Crown this year, the Haskell Stakes for the first time will also offer Kentucky Derby qualifying points of 100-40-20-10 to the first four finishers.

“I know, I know. There is a lot at stake on Saturday,” said Gonzalez, who will give regular rider Alex Cintron a leg up in the Haskell. “It would be very nice to qualify for those races and run in my first Kentucky Derby and maybe then in my first Breeders' Cup. But first we have to run in the Haskell. Then we'll see. It all depends on how he runs, and then (if he gets points) how he comes back from the race, how he trains going forward, and all that. Then we can decide what we can do. But, yes, it would be very nice to pick up 100 Derby points.”

Lebda, who was purchased for $100,000 by Euro Stable's Valter Ramos and is one of seven horses he has with Gonzalez, is a longshot in the Haskell, having been installed at 20-1 on the morning line.

But don't count Gonzalez out. After all, the once-jobless immigrant teenager who showed up on the backside and the cancer survivor has already beaten the odds. Twice.

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