charlie marquez | Horse Racing Free Tips

Maryland Apprentice Marquez Heading To New York, To Team Up With Cordero

Teenaged jockey Charlie Marquez, the top apprentice and third-leading rider at Laurel Park's summer meet, is moving his tack from Maryland to New York under the tutelage of Hall of Fame rider Angel Cordero Jr.

Marquez, 17, who rides with a five-pound weight allowance, entered Saturday ranked third in wins (33) and starts (231) and fifth in purses earned ($944,681) at Laurel's extended summer meet. He had four mounts on Saturday's closing day program.

“There's nothing like Laurel. I love all the people. The environment's great, the horses are great. I just wanted to try something new in my career,” Marquez said. “I always wanted to go to New York. It's just another chapter of my life, so I want to see where that goes.”

Represented by agent Kevin Witte in Maryland, Marquez also finished third at Laurel's truncated winter meet with 24 wins and 132 mounts, and was fifth with $513,254 in purse earnings. He registered hat tricks March 8 and 15, the latter the final card before live racing was paused for 2 1/2 months in Maryland amid the coronavirus pandemic, returning May 30.

“I'm excited. I hope to do good. I have a very good agent up there,” Marquez said of his move. “Angel Cordero Jr.'s going to take my book. He's a great mentor, a good agent and has a lot of connections, so hopefully we can be a good team and work together to get some wins.”

After riding in seven amateur races in 2019, three at Laurel and four at Parx, with two seconds and two thirds, Marquez made his professional debut at age 16 running fourth on Up Hill Battle Jan. 1 at Laurel. The Columbia, Md., native got his first winner in his eighth career mount Jan. 9, also at Laurel, with Sierra Leona.

The son of Carlos Marquez Jr., a multiple graded-stakes winner of more than 3,150 career races currently riding in Puerto Rico, Marquez is also the grandson of Carlos Marquez Sr., another successful rider who taught at Puerto Rico's famed Escuela Vocacional Hipica jockey school.

Marquez registered seven two-win days during Laurel's summer meet. He joins forces with the 77-year-old with Cordero, a winner of 7,057 career races who previously represented Hall of Famer John Velazquez and currently handles the book of Manny Franco, regular rider of Florida Derby (G1), Belmont (G1) and Travers (G1) winner Tiz the Law.

“I can't really explain it. It's just an honor. I couldn't be more grateful. But I can't forget about all the people here that helped move me along and made me the rider that I am now where I think I can compete up in New York,” Marquez said. “I don't think there's anyone like Angel Cordero. He's a Hall of Fame rider and they call him the King of Saratoga. It's an opportunity I just had to take, and I'm very excited and looking forward to teaming up with him.”

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21st Career Win For Veteran Gelding Oak Bluffs Is 900th For Trainer Eppler

Veteran campaigner Oak Bluffs, a 10-year-old gelding making his 59th career start, came with a measured run from dead last to roll past five rivals in the stretch and earn his 21st career victory and the 900th for owner-trainer Mary Eppler as live racing returned Thursday to Laurel Park in Laurel, Md.

Under patient handling from 16-year-old apprentice Charlie Marquez, Oak Bluffs ($8) was unhurried in the early stages of the 5 1/2-furlong sprint for claimers 3 and up over Laurel's world-class turf course, trailing by 7 1/2 lengths after the opening quarter-mile.

Oak Bluffs circled the far turn in the three path, was floated out five wide once straightened for home, ranged up on pacesetter Stroll Smokin inside the eighth pole and pulled clear to win by three-quarters of a length in 1:02.98 on Kelso layout labeled firm.

“It looked like he won pretty easily,” Eppler said. “You don't see many horses win 21 times, but we've taken good care of him.”

Oak Bluffs debuted Aug. 18, 2013, at Monmouth Park and raced three times for breeder Patricia Generazio and trainer Bruce Alexander before making her first start for trainer Teresa Pompay in May 2014. Trainer Jamie Ness claimed him for his Jagger Inc. stable in February 2015 and Eppler spent $5,000 to halter him nine months later out of a show finish at Laurel Park.

Eppler lost Oak Bluffs for a $25,000 tag in March 2019 at Gulfstream Park, claiming him back that June for $20,000 out of a turf sprint win at Monmouth Park. Overall, the bay son of Defrere has a record of 21-9-6 with $721,846 in purse earnings.

“He's been so much fun, and that's why I claimed him back,” Eppler said. “I want to make sure he has a good home.”

Oak Bluffs is a three-time stakes winner – the 2015 My Frenchman and 2019 Joey P. Handicap at Monmouth, and the 2018 Pennsylvania Governor's Cup at Penn National, the latter two for Eppler. Best known for her work with retired claimer-turned-multiple Grade 3-winning millionaire Page McKenney, Eppler won her first two races in 1980 with Maryland-bred Jet to Victory.

Eppler, a 66-year-old Baltimore native, became the first female to win a training title at Laurel Park with 24 victories during the 2016 fall meet. Holder of an accounting degree from Loyola College and a one-time actuary analyst in the medical insurance industry, she got her start breaking and hot walking horses at Sagamore Farm, later training 1996 Futurity (G1) winner Traitor for the late Alfred G. Vanderbilt.

“[The 900^th win] couldn't have come with a better horse. I'm very thankful,” Eppler said. “He's wonderful. He's so nice. Real easy to deal with, real easy to train, just like Page.”

Notes: Jockey Feargal Lynch missed his third straight racing day since being unseated during Laurel's third race Thursday, July 23. Replaced on each of his five mounts, he is named in six of nine races on Friday's card … Jockey Angel Cruz rode back-to-back $8 winners Thursday, Forfiftyfiverocket in Race 2 and HRH Jellybean in Race 3 … Jevian Toledo also won twice, with Tweet Away Robin ($3.60) in Race 7 and Melisande ($4.20) in Race 9 … No one had all six winners in Thursday's 20-cent Rainbow 6, growing the carryover jackpot to $4,201.79 for Friday. Tickets with five of six winners each returned $260.02 … There will also be a carryover of $1,946.06 in the $1 Super Hi-5.

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Laurel Park: First Win On ‘The Flat’ For Trainer Madison Meyers

Gordon C Keys' Maryland homebred Grateful Bred, reluctant to first load in the starting gate, took an early lead and put his rivals away for good at the head of the stretch in a stylish front-running maiden special weight triumph Saturday at Laurel Park.

The 3 ½-length victory by 4-year-old Grateful Bred ($43.20) marked the first win at a recognized flat track for trainer Madison Meyers. According to Equibase statistics, Meyers had two previous career victories – a 2016 amateur event at Great Meadow in Virginia and a hurdle race last fall in Aiken, S.C.

“It's great. We've worked hard with this horse, so it feels really good,” Meyers said. “If we can work on the antics a little bit, I think we've got a pretty nice horse.”

It was the second maiden special weight win in as many days over Laurel's world-class turf course for leading Maryland stallion Great Notion, who was represented by Kendama's victory Friday for trainer Arnaud Delacour.

Grateful Bred, making his second career start after rallying to be fourth in a similar turf sprint last October at Laurel, initially balked when approaching the gate and had to be loaded without seven-pound apprentice Charlie Marquez.

Once the doors opened Grateful Bred broke a bit slowly but was intent on the lead and quickly took command, setting fractions of 22.03 and 45.01 seconds. Grafeful Bred turned for home with a commanding six-length lead and sailed to the wire in 1:02.76 for 5 ½ furlongs over the firm All Along layout.

First Law closed to be second by a neck over Josef is Real. It was another half-length back to Our Destiny in fourth.

“The pre-race antics are a little bit worrying at times, and I was hoping for a few more weeks to kind of work with him, but this race came up and he really was telling us that he was ready to run,” Meyers said. “So, we decided just to go for it and it paid off.”

Grateful Bred had three timed works since late May for his seasonal debut, two this month, the most recent a three-furlong move in 38 seconds at the Middletown Training Center in Delaware. He was only beaten 4 ½ lengths in his debut despite a poor break under Laurel's current summer meet-leading jockey Sheldon Russell.

“When he ran here the first time last fall, he was great and went right in [the gate],” Meyers said. “I don't know if he broke so hard that he stumbled or what he did, but he stumbled and Sheldon did a great job just to steady him and he ended up getting up for fourth. We were really impressed with his turn of foot and everything.”

Howling Pigeons Farm's first-time starter First Law is a gelded 3-year-old son of Constitution, the leading second-crop sire of 2020 whose current star is Florida Derby (G1) and Belmont Stakes (G1) winner Tiz the Law.

Seventh as the narrow 5-2 favorite in his turf debut was The Cairo Kid, trained and co-owned by Annette Eubanks. The 4-year-old gelding, unraced at 2 and 3, is a son of Cairo Prince, the No. 1-ranked third-crop sire by stakes winners and graded-stakes winners including recent Ohio Derby (G3) upset victor Dean Martini.

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