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Denise Martin, Co-Owner Of California Chrome, Dies At Age 61

It is with great sadness that Martin Racing announces the passing of Denise Martin, the co-founder, and heart, of Martin Racing, a Thoroughbred and Standardbred breeding and racing organization based in Alpine, Wyo., with global equine holdings. The accomplished chemist, business leader, horse owner and mother to two died on June 14 at age 61.

With her husband and co-founder Perry serving as the public voice and operations manager for Martin Racing, Denise took on the critical role of managing all communications and behind-the-scenes business needs for the small, family-owned organization, which was founded in 2016.

The Martins were thrust into worldwide fame in 2014, when their wildly popular and charismatic colt California Chrome won the Kentucky Derby and the first of his two Eclipse Award titles as North America's Horse of the Year. The California-bred superstar, whom the Martins co-bred and initially raced in partnership with Steve and Carolyn Coburn under the stable name Dumb Ass Partners, also won the 2016 Dubai World Cup and eight additional graded stakes races before he retired in 2017 with earnings of $14,752,650 — a North American record at the time.

California Chrome's storybook success enabled Martin Racing to expand internationally. In addition to supporting their first homebred via stallion syndicate participation, originally in Kentucky and now in Japan, the Martins currently stand Thoroughbred stallions in California, Louisiana and Wyoming, and the Hambletonian-winning Standardbred sire Trixton in Canada.

Their homebred colt Mo Mosa won Lone Star Park's Grade 3 Steve Sexton Mile Stakes on May 31.

“Denise greatly enjoyed interacting with racing fans, whether she communicated with them in person or through California Chrome's official social media channels,” said Perry Martin. “She also was solely responsible for all of Martin Racing's charitable giving endeavors.”

A trained chemist and California State University graduate, Denise was CEO of Martin Testing Labs in Sacramento, Calif., from its creation in 2000 to its sale in June 2020. She previously worked for the United States Air Force as a civilian employee at McClellan Air Force Base.

In semi-retirement, the Chicago native served her adopted Wyoming community on the North Alpine Water District Board of Directors. She also recently began taking online university courses on Astronomy, and was building a telescope to view the clear Wyoming night sky.

Denise is survived by her loving husband of 35 years, Perry, her daughter Kelly Martin, her son Perry Martin Jr., her brothers Andrew Brudniak and Richard Brudniak, her Golden Retriever Tizzy, 76 Thoroughbred horses and seven Standardbred horses.

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Family First: Victor Espinoza Back At Santa Anita And Raring To Go

Victor Espinoza does not plan to retire anytime soon.

The affable native of Mexico, his smile as imminent and bright as the sunrise, burst onto the international racing scene with the fairytale horse California Chrome seven years ago, swept the Triple Crown on American Pharoah a year later and became a global celebrity, appearing on “Dancing with the Stars” and “The Tonight Show,” with lucrative commercial offers his for the taking.

A member of the Hall of Fame since 2017, Espinoza's honors could fill a mansion's mantle, among them Santa Anita's George Woolf Memorial Jockey Award, three ESPYs as best jockey, three Kentucky Derby wins and the “Excellence in Sports Performance Yearly Award” presented by the ABC Network.

But it's not all take. He understands it is better to give than to receive, which is why Espinoza has been donating 10 percent of his sizable income to the City of Hope pediatric research and treatment center in Duarte to aid children stricken with cancer.

All that became relatively meaningless, however, on July 22, 2018, when he suffered a severe neck injury during a workout spill at Del Mar.

The damage was career-threatening, but Espinoza labored through it and was back riding and winning seven months later.

But on May 23 he turns 49 and today appears to be merely a dot on racing's map. He has ridden in only 22 races at Santa Anita this meet, winning two, the last coming aboard Stella Noir on March 19.

But figures can be deceiving. This is not to say elder statesmen in the jockey colony find mounts hard to come by this meet, since fellow Hall of Fame members Kent Desormeaux, 51, and Mike Smith, 55, ride here too, fulfilling one vital requirement: you must be present.

Victor Espinoza still has a passion for the game and his priorities in order.

“He had to step away for a while,” said his agent of eight years, Brian Beach, explaining Victor's sparse participation this meet. “He went to Mexico to help his mother, who is in her 80s and required some medical attention, but we didn't want to publicize it. He kept a low profile and it cost him time.

“While all that was going on, just about every horse he had been riding ran, and since we had kind of a small circle of business to start with, it's been kind of tough.

“We're trying to get back to riding, but with two and three days of racing a week and short fields, it's been difficult.

“But Victor is healthy and ready to go. He's a workout fiend and been posting his workout videos on Instagram, so we're looking for the right opportunities to come along.”

Don't bet against them. Victor Espinoza always looks at the glass as half full, and with career purse earnings approaching $205 million, safe to say racing needs Victor more than Victor needs racing.

Little wonder he once called himself “The luckiest Mexican on earth.”

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Saturday’s Racing Insights: Half to California Chrome Debuts at Keeneland

Sponsored by Alex Nichols Agency

3rd-KEE, $79K, Msw, 3yo, 6 1/2f, 2:12 p.m. ET
OXO Equine LLC's Primary Endpoint (Pioneerof the Nile) makes his debut in a salty-looking Keeneland maiden special weight Saturday. The $600,000 Fasig-Tipton November '18 weanling is a half to none other than two-time Horse of the Year California Chrome (Lucky Pulpit). Brad Cox has been preparing the bay at Fair Grounds for this. Curlin Lane (Curlin) was a $500,000 KEESEP yearling buy by Albaugh Family Stables. The Dale Romans pupil is out of a SW/GSP mare who has already produced two stakes winners, including SW/GSP Street of Gold (Street Sense). A number of runners enter off of solid debut runs: Shadow Matter (Macho Uno) earned a field's-best 75 Beyer Speed Figure when finishing second at Fair Grounds Mar. 4–one slot ahead of $500,000 OBSAPR pick-up and grandson of Silverbulletday K C Rocket (Kantharos); $350,000 Fasig-Tipton Saratoga grad Recidivist (Into Mischief) was runner-up at Turfway Mar. 4; and Mr Annoying (Kitten's Joy) goes turf to dirt after rounding out the trifecta at Gulfstream Feb. 26. TJCIS PPs

SPEIGHTSTER TURNED BACK AFTER OBS IN AT SANTA ANITA

4th-SA, $76K, Msw, 3yo, 6 1/2f, 4:39 p.m. ET
Bobby Bo (Speightster), the $100,000 SARAUG yearling turned $1.1-million OBSAPR juvenile who was subsequently turned back, reportedly for cribbing, makes his debut on the GI Runhappy Santa Anita Derby undercard for Bob Baffert and Little Read Feather Racing's pinhooking partnership, Solana Beach Sales. The powerful :20 4/5 breezer is out of a MSP mare who was a big-figure, 6 1/2-length debut winner as a November juvenile. Baffert also entered Juddmonte homebred Laurel River (Into Mischief), who was fifth on debut here last October as the 13-10 chalk. He's out of a full-sister to MGISW Emollient (Empire Maker). Secret Weapon (Candy Ride {Arg}), a $650,000 KEESEP buy, will be saddled by Simon Callaghan on behalf of Qatar Racing and his breeder Peter Blum. He hails from the family of GSW Multiple Choice, MSW Inspired, SW Initiation and GISW Well Chosen. Bender (Curlin) cost $575,000 at Keeneland September. The Richard Mandella-trained dark bay is half to the MGSW millionaire Clearly Now (Horse Greeley) and GSW Bendable (Horse Greeley). TJCIS PPs

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Flashback: ‘Alchemy In Dubai’ As Chrome Wins 2016 World Cup

The Dubai World Cup meeting celebrates its historic 25th anniversary on March 27, with six Group 1 races and three Group 2s, including one of the world's premier races, the $12 million Dubai World Cup, sponsored by Emirates Airline.

Over the next week, the Dubai Racing Club will pay tribute to each of the previous Dubai World Cup winners. Today, we rewind to 2016 when California Chrome won the Dubai World Cup under Victor Espinoza for trainer, Art Sherman.

California Chrome and his connections had a score to settle in 2016. A year earlier he had arrived in Dubai in a flurry of publicity, carrying a weight of expectation after being crowned the 2014 Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes winner.

Despite his humble breeding he had defeated some of the most blue-blooded Thoroughbreds ever to enter a starting gate in the USA. He prepped for the 2015 Dubai World Cup in the Grade 2 San Antonio Invitational, finishing second and went straight to the Dubai World Cup. Yet that race – at the time the richest on the planet with a US$10m prize purse – eluded him. He was pipped to the post by the Saeed Bin Suroor-trained Prince Bishop under William Buick.

Yet trainer Art Sherman and his assistant, son, Alan Sherman remained undaunted, gave their hugely popular stable star a break and brought him back into training for a second crack at the Dubai World Cup in 2016.

On the big day jockey, Victor Espinoza, California Chrome's long-term partner, sent his mount to the head of affairs from his draw, second widest in gate 11. He was content to sit wide, just off the pace as Frankie Dettori, a veteran of three Dubai World Cup victories, dictated affairs aboard the Todd Pletcher-trained Mshawish.

Once they rounded the home turn, Espinoza asked California Chrome for an effort. Only too happy to oblige the chestnut pulled away from the pack in a matter of strides, leaving the field stretched out behind him, with the UAE Derby winner, Mubtaahij running into second and the Bob Baffert-trained Hoppertunity a fast-finishing third.

After the race it transpired that Espinoza had ridden his finish with a saddle that had slipped backwards under his horse's belly.

“Turning for home, I couldn't wait any longer and I had to go because I felt like the saddle was slipping,” he said. “I was just trying to keep my balance and not move my body. I wasn't that concerned about it (the slipped saddle), I just kept looking forward and thinking: 'Where's the wire?'.

“There's alchemy in Dubai – Chrome turns to gold,” said race commentator, Terry Spargo as the yet-to-be anointed 2016 Horse of the Year crossed the line.

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