Tag: brian hernandez

Half-Sister To Essential Quality, Famed Headlines Saturday’s Golden Rod Stakes

Godolphin's 2-year-old filly Famed, the half-sister to champion colt Essential Quality, will face off against Susan Moulton's dominant 10 ¾-length winner of the $200,000 Rags to Riches Sandstone in Saturday's $400,000 Golden Rod (Grade 2), a race on the Road to the Kentucky Oaks at Churchill Downs.

The 1 1/16-mile Golden Rod will award the Top 4 fillies points on a 10-4-2-1 scale toward the May 6 Longines Kentucky Oaks (G1). The Golden Rod, which goes as Race 10 at 5:27 p.m., is one of four stakes events on the “Stars of Tomorrow II” program from Churchill Downs. The others are the $400,000 Kentucky Jockey Club (G2), $200,000 Lively Shively and $200,000 Fern Creek. First post is 1 p.m.

Trained by Brad Cox, Famed has been well-backed in both of her two-career starts. She broke her maiden last out at Keeneland by 7 ¾ lengths at odds of 2-5. In her debut, the Uncle Mo filly finished second as the 4-5 favorite against 45-1 longshot Sweet Dani Girl. Famed will be ridden by Florent Geroux from post the rail.

The Kenny McPeek-trained Sandstone has won her last two races by a combined 19 ¾ lengths under jockey Brian Hernandez Jr. The filly by Kentucky Derby winner Street Sense debuted at 5 ½ furlongs in late May and finished fifth, beaten 7 ¾ lengths to stablemate and eventual $150,000 Debutante Stakes winner Behave Virginia. In her second start, at one-mile, Sandstone dusted her rivals at odds of 5-1. Her first start around two-turns was the Rags to Riches, the local prep to the Golden Rod, where she was the slight 5-2 upset winner over Yuugiri. Hernandez will once again have the call from post No. 4.

The full field for the Golden Rod from the inside out (with jockey and trainer):

  1. Famed (Geroux, Cox)
  2. Cancel This (Joel Rosario, Dale Romans)
  3. Secret Oath (David Cohen, D. Wayne Lukas)
  4. Sandstone (Hernandez, McPeek)
  5. Hal's Dream (Corey Lanerie, McPeek)
  6. Yuugiri (Tyler Gaffalione, Rodolphe Brisset)
  7. Dream Lith (Ramon Vazquez, Robertino Diodoro)
  8. Code for Success (Rafael Bejarano, Vicki Oliver)

Wagering is available online at www.TwinSpires.com, the official ADW of Churchill Downs Incorporated.

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Jockey Brian Hernandez Takes on Breeding Game

Brian Hernandez, Jr. rode three races at Churchill Downs Wednesday. He made it to the winner's circle in race nine, but that wasn't the only excitement of the day for the jockey.

Earlier that morning, he and his family posed alongside a bay mare named Unbridledexplosion (Eddington) outside of Barn 46 at Keeneland. Hernandez had ridden the mare in all but three of her 18 career starts. Now, he is her new owner.

“This is the first mare my wife and I have purchased on our own,” Hernandez said. “We bought a farm in Simpsonville a few years ago and have been putting up lay-ups for the last couple of years, but we've always discussed that one of these years we were going to go over to Keeneland and buy a mare to learn a different aspect of the game.”

Hernandez and his wife Jamie were in Del Mar for the Breeders' Cup earlier this month when Jamie was flipping through the Keeneland November catalogue while sitting in their hotel one afternoon. She landed on Hip 2759.

“She loved this mare,” Hernandez said. “She's really high on Mitole and so she wanted a Mitole baby. When she showed me her catalogue page, I was like, 'Man, I think I rode that mare.' Sure enough, I'd ridden her for Ian [Wilkes] for her whole career.”

With Hernandez aboard, Unbridledexplosion broke her maiden as a 3-year-old at Churchill Downs in June of 2014. She ran second in five of her next six starts against allowance company before adding consecutive wins to her resume in the spring of 2015–both at Churchill Downs under Hernandez. Over her three-year career, which included five tries against stakes company, Unbridledexplosion ran in the money in 12 of her 18 starts, collecting over $200,000 in earnings.

“I always remembered her as a really hard-trying mare,” her jockey recalled. “She was second five different times in some pretty tough allowance races between Keeneland, Saratoga and Churchill. It was always in the back of my mind that she was a hard-trying mare.”

After retiring from racing, Unbridledexplosion produced a Wicked Strong colt in 2018 that has not raced followed by an Upstart colt named Unbridled Bomber who broke his maiden for Jim Ryerson at Belmont Nov. 7. She also has a yearling filly by Unified. The mare's female family includes GISW Declassify (Orientate) and GSW Life's a Parlay (Uncle Mo).

“Jamie had her heart set that she wanted this mare,” Hernandez said. “She and her mom were doing the bidding. We had agreed on a certain price and we got her below our limit, so we were all excited. My father-in-law [Jake Radosevich] signed the ticket. She was consigned by Lantern Hill Farm with Suzi Shoemaker. We sent her back to Suzi and we're going to let her foal her out. Then we'll breed her next year after we see what kind of baby we get.”

This week's purchase is not the Hernandez family's first foray in the breeding business. In partnership with Ian and Tracey Wilkes, they bred the War Front mare Social Amber to Hernandez's 2012 GI Breeders' Cup Classic-winning mount Fort Larned for the past two years. The 2-year-old, named Gus Gus, ran second to a next-out allowance winner at Ellis Park this summer. The yearling colt is already named Justblamethejock.

Hernandez said that their three children added further incentive to jump into the breeding game on their own.

“Our kids all have horses out at the farm and they love them,” he said. “They love going to the races too so we wanted to give them a different avenue with something that gets them excited that they can watch along the way.”

 

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‘A Person I’ll Never Forget’: Racing Industry Remembers Jockey Miguel Mena

Friends and colleagues from across the horse racing industry continue to share stories of jockey Miguel Mena, who tragically passed away Sunday evening in an accident on I-64 in Louisville.

Mena was a fixture around the racetrack and spent nearly every morning breezing horses for different trainers. Away from the racetrack, the 34-year-old native of Peru would constantly update his social media pages with photos of his family, including two young daughters Naelah and Montserrat. Along with his two daughters, Mena leaves behind his wife, April, and many friends and family.

Here are some memories that were shared of Mena:

· Jason Barkley (trainer): “I don't know that I can put into words what Miguel Mena has meant to us from Day 1. He was such a great person to be around and always smiling when he came to work. I was proud to have him ride for us and I was lucky enough to be his friend.”

· Declan Carroll (jockey) – “I've been lucky to know (Mena) my entire life. He was a special person and words can't describe how much he'll be missed.”

· Wayne Catalano (trainer): “Miguel was a wonderful young man. He came in cheerful. He was an unbelievable kid and great rider. I feel for his family and two young girls. They were his everything.”

· Emerson Chavez (exercise rider) – “I have so many good memories and stories to count – each one holds extraordinary value to me. … I'd like to thank him for welcoming me to my arrival in this country and offering me selfless friendship. … I'm devastated, sad and can't understand everything that happened. … Seeing so many people disgraced by his sudden departure only makes me confirm the magnificent person he was.”

· Florent Geroux (jockey): “I lost more than a friend – a true brother. He'll never be able to be replaced.”

· Tim Hanisch (agent): “I really enjoyed working with him. We had a good business relationship together but we were friends outside the track. He was one of my favorite people from the racetrack. He always had a smile on his face and was in a good mood. We'd get dinner together a lot in New Orleans at Fair Grounds. I thought a lot of him as a rider and a person. He had a really severe injury (in 2018) and admired what he showed to come back from something like that.”

· Colby Hernandez (jockey): “Miguel was not just a friend to me, he was family. There are no words that I can ever say to express our relationship. We rode for a lot of the same people and worked together almost every morning and afternoon. Things will never be the same.”

· Brian Hernandez Jr. (jockey): “We are all just going through it together. We all lost such a good friend. Miguel was always in such in a good mood. He knew how to read the racing form so well. I spent the last 15 years sitting next in jocks room. It's just really hard knowing we won't see him in that room again. … There are no words, post or pictures that can describe the honor, respect or love I have for Miguel. I truly loved the friendship we had.”

· Michelle Lovell (trainer): “I will always cherish the memory of us winning my first graded stakes race together. He rode a brilliant race. He's a person I'll never forget.”

· John Ortiz (trainer): “We lost a great friend. He was a wonderful father, husband and just a great person in general. It has been an absolute honor to have worked with him. We at Ortiz Racing send our deepest condolences to Miguel's family. He will be missed by many and especially by all of us here.”

· Dale Romans (trainer): “He was such a good person. I don't know anybody who had a bad word to say about Miguel.”

· Jose Santos Jr. (agent): “Over the past two years I had the fortune to work side by side with Miguel. He was one of the most likable guys I had been around. I think a lot of us who knew Miguel felt the same way. I eternally appreciate all of the opportunities he gave me and I will never forget what we accomplished.”

· Al Stall Jr. (trainer): “There was no question his talent. He caught everyone's eye at an early age. I noticed him at Churchill in the early 2000s. The size of the race didn't bother him at all.”

Churchill Downs will hold a moment of silence following Race 5 Wednesday (approximately 3:03 p.m.). Those who are unable to attend can view the ceremony on “America's Day at the Races” on FS2 or through the simulcast channel on the Churchill Downs LIVE app.

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Kentucky Downs Stakes Winner Tiz The Bomb Headlines ‘Win And You’re In’ Bourbon

Phoenix Thoroughbred III's Tiz the Bomb, winner of the Kentucky Downs Juvenile Mile in his most recent start, headlines a field of 14 2-year-olds plus two also-eligibles entered Thursday for Sunday's 31st running of the $200,000 Castle & Key Bourbon (G2) going 1 1/16 miles on the grass.

The Castle & Key Bourbon is a Breeders' Cup Challenge race with the winner earning a fees-paid berth into the Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf (G1) to be run Nov. 5 at Del Mar. The Castle & Key Bourbon will go as the final race on Sunday's 10-race program with a 5:46 p.m. ET post time.

Trained by two-time race winner Kenny McPeek, Tiz the Bomb notched his first victory in his second start, a 14¼-length blowout going a mile on the dirt at Ellis Park. Brian Hernandez Jr. has the mount Sunday and will exit post position 12.

Another Kentucky Downs winner who figures to attract attention is Silverton Hill's Red Danger.

Trained by Brian Lynch, Red Danger has won two of three starts with his most recent score coming in the Global Tote Juvenile Sprint (L) going 6½ furlongs on Sept. 9. Luis Saez, who has been aboard for all three of Red Danger's starts, has the call Sunday and will exit post position 10.

The field for the Castle & Key Bourbon, with riders and weights from the inside, is:

  1. Brit's Wit (David Flores, 118 pounds)
  2. Stolen Base (Flavien Prat, 118)
  3. Dowagiac Chief (James Graham, 118)
  4. Martini'nmoonshine (Tyler Gaffalione, 118)
  5. Rocket One (Julien Leparoux, 118)
  6. Credibility (Edwin Gonzalez, 118)
  7. Fast N Steady (Leonel Reyes, 118)
  8. Waita Minute Hayes (Mitchell Murrill, 118)
  9. On Thin Ice (Corey Lanerie, 118)
  10. Red Danger (Saez, 118)
  11. Heaven Street (Ricardo Santana Jr., 118)
  12. Tiz the Bomb (Hernandez Jr., 120)
  13. Lucky Boss (Irad Ortiz Jr., 118)
  14. Play Action Pass (Edgard Zayas, 118).

Also-Eligibles: Vivar (Florent Geroux, 118), Red Run (Santana Jr., 118).

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