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Ellis Park Kicks Off Runhappy Summer Meet With Limited Attendance

The RUNHAPPY Summer Meet at Ellis Park in Henderson, Ky., kicked off Thursday with what is the new normal, at least for now: capacity limited to 50 percent in two reserved-seat areas and no general admission. To Henderson Mayor Steve Austin, just staging an opening day with any spectators was a victory after the havoc the COVID-19 pandemic has wreaked on the world, including horse racing.

“It's great,” Austin said. “We were concerned that maybe we weren't able to have an opening day at Ellis Park. It is limited participation, but it's great to have that. I'm glad the governor worked with Ellis Park and the tracks to get some folks in right now and maybe the possibility of increasing attendance in the future. It's something people look forward to. It's an annual event, kind of like baseball, every summer Ellis Park opens. So it's great that Ellis Park is opening today, and great that we have a number of people here – and it'll be even better once it can be enlarged as far as attendance.”

Four of Thursday's races were forced off the turf by the deluge of rain in recent days. All the same, a healthy total of $2,212,620 was wagered on the nine-race card, the majority across the country through online betting platforms as most racetracks that are running are doing so without spectators.

“It's been a tough few months for Ellis Park and the whole community, and I was really pleased that we could put together this race day today,” said Ellis Park general manager Jeff Inman. “The community pulled together and supported us. The staff pulled together and supported us, and I couldn't be prouder of everybody.”

If it was a unique opening day, with the seating limitations, Inman said: “I think the fans overall are positive…. A few people are disappointed that they can't be on the rail or in the grandstand. But most of them are really happy and positive that we actually have live racing again.”

Inman acknowledged some opening-day operational glitches, specifically with the race video camera work.

“We lost a few cameramen at the last minute; we desperately tried to get them hired,” he said. “Our camera work today wasn't our best. We're working on it, and working to have that problem fixed as quickly as possible.”

The strength of the jockey colony lived up to its billing.

James Graham, last year's leading rider at the meet, took the early lead by winning the first race on the maiden-claimer Smirk for Hall of Fame trainer Bill Mott. Graham followed that with victory on Calumet Farm's Easy Shot in the sixth race, a second-level allowance race that came off the turf.

Rafael Bejarano, back riding at Ellis Park regularly for the first time since he left for California in 2007, didn't waste any time getting back in the winner's circle, either, taking the second race on the $16,000 claimer Gangly for trainer Ron Moquett.

The first 2-year-old race of the meet was won by the first-time starter All I Know, who shipped in from Keeneland for owner-trainer Jason McCutchen. All I Know paid $41.60 to win after leading all the way under Crystal Conning in the five-furlong race to prevail by 1 1/2 lengths over 9-1 Fast Bob, with favored Looting third. Conning is an apprentice jockey who has won with six of her last 12 mounts, including her last three – one each at Ellis, Belterra and Indiana Grand. She began riding last year.

Julien Leparoux, who will ride regularly at Ellis Park for the first time this summer after going to Saratoga for most of his career, won the finale aboard the maiden Not A Problem for trainer Rusty Arnold.

“Especially because some of the situations we've faced, we've really been blessed with a lot of talented jockeys this year,” Inman said. “And that is really part of what we can offer this year. We were blessed to get the RUNHAPPY sponsorship, and one of the reasons we did was because of the great 2-year-old program that we have here at Ellis Park. We have some really good horses, we have some really good jockeys. There's going to be a lot to look forward to this meet.”

Ellis Park runs through Sunday, then is closed for live racing (while remaining open for Historical Horse Racing gaming and simulcasting) next week to accommodate Keeneland's five-date make-up meet. Ellis resumes live racing July 17 with a Friday through Sunday format through Aug. 30, with the track's traditional closing seeking turned over to Churchill Downs for a delayed Kentucky Derby Week.

Management is hoping that after the break for Keeneland, additional areas in the grandstand boxes and picnic tables on the racetrack apron will be available for the public as reserved seating.

“We have to have contract tracing (ability), so we have to do seats by reservations,” Inman said. “So if you come here hoping to be on the lawn or the grandstand, we're not there yet.”

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‘Right Horses In The Right Spot’: James Graham Hoping Luck Holds Again This Summer At Ellis Park

James Graham won last year's Ellis Park riding title amid what likely was the toughest jockey colony in track history. Now he'll try to repeat his crown against an even deeper assembly of riders during the RUNHAPPY Summer Meet at Ellis Park that begins Thursday and runs through Aug. 30.

Graham won the 2019 Ellis title with 26 wins to nip the 25 accrued by three-time defending champion Corey Lanerie and Tyler Baze, who had just relocated from California to Kentucky. Graham has been adept this past year in winning meet championships in photo finishes, taking the Fair Grounds winter title in New Orleans with 63 victories, one better than Mitchell Murrill and three more than Colby Hernandez, both of whom will be based at Ellis Park for the first time.

Lanerie, who has won five Ellis titles overall, was out of state riding on the last day of the 2019 meet, when Graham won two races to secure his first crown at a Kentucky track.

“We got lucky,” Graham said. “Corey was out of town the last weekend, just about. If Corey had been there, would he have won two or one? Would Tyler have gotten lucky? With a couple of better trips from the horses he rode, he might have won it, too. Just luck. Riding the right horses in the right spot in the right time.”

But don't think that the 41-year-old doesn't take deep pride in winning his first riding title in Kentucky, after having won riding titles at Chicago's Arlington Park and New Orleans' Fair Grounds.

“Always, always,” Graham said. “Every win is an achievement.”

Still, he insists he didn't think about winning the title until the final days.

“I don't think about stuff like that,” Graham said. “I just think about the here and the now and riding races. I didn't realize I was as close as I was. I was just doing my work, enjoying it, because I enjoy riding. And that's what it's about. It's not about, 'Yeah, we knew we were close, but we didn't know if we were actually going get there.' Because you're worried about now and not what's going to happen in three or four days from now.”

With 15 wins, Graham also had a big meet at Churchill Downs, whose meet ended this past Sunday.

“You can never expect too much in horse racing,” he said. “You hope to have a good meet. The bonus is coming out of it without being hurt, making it through and making a living for yourself.”

Graham, a married father of three, grew up in Dublin, Ireland, coming to the United States in 2002 and working as an exercise rider in Lexington. His first summer as a jockey in America came in 2003 at Ellis Park before he moved on to ride at Chicago's Arlington Park in the summers and then on to California before returning to Kentucky fours years ago.

As the purse money got better at Ellis Park, so did the competition to win races.

Last year Florent Geroux and Baze were among those deciding that it works well to stay in Kentucky for the summer, riding at Ellis Park except when stakes business drew them out of state. Geroux is a five-time Breeders' Cup winner, including on Horse of the Year Gun Runner and Kentucky Oaks winner and champion Monomoy Girl. Baze was the Eclipse Award-winning apprentice jockey in 2000.

New for 2020 are two-time Eclipse Award-winning jockey Julien Leparoux, California mainstays Joe Talamo and Martin Garcia, Louisiana stalwart Colby Hernandez (brother of Kentucky-based Brian Hernandez) and the up-and-coming Mitchell Murrill, along with the return of two-time Ellis champ Rafael Bejarano after 13 years in California. That's in addition to the strong cast of regulars: Graham, Lanerie, Brian Hernandez, Miguel Mena, Shaun Bridgmohan and — oh, by the way — three-time Kentucky Derby-winner and Hall of Famer Calvin Borel.

“No matter where you go in Kentucky, it's always tough,” Graham said. “You've got a lot of good riders. Miguel Mena has a fantastic meet wherever he goes because he's a very good rider. You've got Mitchell Murrill coming in; he's been second at the Fair Grounds a couple of times. It's not like it's going to be easy anywhere being leading rider. And you've got Corey and you've got Brian. You got Colby Hernandez. A lot of guys are staying in Kentucky this year.

“… The riders here win races everywhere. To me, you hope everything goes well, hopefully get on some pretty nice stock. You look at the stock that ran last year, there were a lot of good horses who went to the Breeders' Cup, a lot of good 2-year-olds that broke their maidens at Ellis. The quality of horses in Kentucky has always been good. The quality of the maidens at Ellis Park have always been decent, but they've gotten better over the past couple of years. People don't want to go to New York and run against the heavy-heads like Todd Pletcher, Chad Brown and a couple of those guys who are always loaded. But we've got good horses. It's been very competitive the last couple of years in Kentucky with young horses and everybody kind of wanting to stay at home.”

With the exception of Churchill Downs meet-leader Tyler Gaffalione and Ricardo Santana Jr., who both will go to Saratoga for the summer, Ellis Park's jockeys' room will be much the same as the Louisville track. And Santana is riding the first two days at Ellis.

“I don't think there's ever been an Ellis Park jockey colony this deep, and I've been going to every meet since I was a kid,” said Jimmy McNerney, Ellis Park's announcer and race analyst. “Since we raised our purses and the quality of racing, every year the colony has gotten better. This is obviously the strongest one to date. You can go 12 deep in here. There's never been that many Derby and Breeders' Cup-winning jockeys at Ellis.”

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July 2 Insights

Sponsored by Alex Nichols Agency

HALF TO LA VERDAD DEBUTS AT ELLIS

4th-ELP, $37K, Msw, 2yo, 5f, 3:14p.m.

FUEGO CALIENTE (Will Take Charge), a half-brother to the late champion La Verdad (Yes It’s True), makes his career bow in this spot for Hall of Famer Steve Asmussen. His fleet-footed half-sister won 11 black-type races and an Eclipse Award over her lengthy career for Linda Rice, earning over $1.5-million. The bay succumbed to colic in May after producing her fourth foal, a colt by Into Mischief. Out of SP Noble Fire (Hook and Ladder), the Three Chimneys homebred is also a half to GSW & GISP Hot City Girl (City Zip) and GSP Noble Freud (Freud). TJCIS PPs

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Announcer, Analyst McNerney Hoping To Bring ‘More Educated Angles’ To Dual Role At Ellis Park

Jimmy McNerney, Ellis Park's announcer who also does the morning line and race selections for the program, is resuming his role as pre-race analyst from his booth. Rocco O'Connor, the paddock analyst the past two years, has left horse racing.

McNerney also is the race-caller at Turfway Park during the winter and a top jockey agent at Indiana Grand. He believes having a bird's-eye view of so many races helps him in his handicapping.

“I think I have unique insight just from my other duty as announcer,” said McNerney, who had been the Ellis broadcast analyst several years ago and also holds that position at Turfway Park. “Not that other people can't see it on replays, but I do catch stuff. I watch the horses on the gallop-out, whereas the normal replay stops and goes back to odds or slow-mo finish. I can see them galloping out. I watch all that stuff, really critique a race. When I prepare, I watch the last couple of replays of most horses, not only for handicapping purposes but I do it also because sometimes you need the pronunciation of a name. Probably being an announcer gives me a little more insight.

“And I'm so close to all those people down there that I have a lot of insight with the local horsemen. I know how horses are training. I hope I can bring a little more educated angles.”

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