GIII West Virginia Derby | Horse Racing Free Tips

West VA Derby Winner Red Route One Targets Dueling Grounds Derby

Sunday's GIII West Virginia Derby winner Red Route One (Gun Runner) is expected to make his next start in the National Thoroughbred League Dueling Grounds Derby Sept. 3 at the FanDuel Meet at Kentucky Downs.

The Steve Asmussen-trainee began his career with a victory over the Kentucky Downs grass last year and owner Ron Winchell is a co-managing partner with Marc Falcone in Kentucky Downs and its sister The Mint Gaming Hall properties.

“I think since he had been successful there last year, we have always had our eye on Kentucky Downs to bring him back and run him this year,” said David Fiske, the longtime racing and bloodstock manager for Winchell Thoroughbreds. “Because he was successful and because the purses are what they are. We were hoping to get him into the richest race that made sense, and after winning (the $500,000 West Virginia Derby), the Dueling Grounds Derby looks like a real possibility.”

“It seems like all year long, he's been dropping out the back and the makes a big run, which is kind of like how a lot of turf races are run,” Fiske continued. “Slow early and fast late. Sometimes if there is enough pace in front of you and you can get there and sometimes you don't.”

Another Asmussen-trained graded-stakes winner from last weekend also is likely headed to Kentucky Downs. GIII Troy S. winner Cogburn (Not This Time) is set to contest the GII Ainsworth Turf Sprint, a six-furlong race Sept. 9 whose winner earns a fees-paid spot in the GI Breeders' Cup Turf Sprint.

“I think obviously he has excelled on the turf, being undefeated, and gave me a great feel today,” Asmussen told Saratoga's publicity team after the Troy S. “I feel great to beat the field that we did and now we can think big. We hopefully have a Breeders' Cup horse. We have had one Turf Sprint winner in the past (2011 winner Regally Ready), so hopefully we have another one. We had planned on running here and then Kentucky Downs, but we'll see how we come out of this and figure out what we should do.”

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West Virginia Derby Switches to Sunday This Season

Mountaineer Park's premier stakes, the GIII West Virginia Derby, will shift to the first Sunday in August with a later post time this year in an effort to make the $500,000, nine-furlong race for 3-year-olds better stand out against national simulcast competition.

The West Virginia Derby, plus the supporting GIII $200,000 West Virginia Governor's S. at 1 1/16 miles for 3-year-olds and up, will now be carded Sunday, Aug. 6, after the track received unanimous permission for that change at Tuesday's West Virginia Racing Commission (WVRC) meeting.

The purses for both stakes remain level from last year.

Jim Colvin, Mountaineer's racing director, detailed to commissioners the reasons for the switch.

“This year, we are requesting to run our Derby on Sunday versus Saturday [because] we are trying to stay off the Grade I races [at competing tracks] on Saturday. I know there was some problems in the past about races overlapping, That was one of the reasons,” Colvin said.

In 2022, the West Virginia Derby went off at 5:56 p.m. Eastern, just seven minutes after Saratoga's GI Whitney S., the nation's marquee race that Saturday. In 2021, the West Virginia Derby went off a 5:39 p.m., 11 minutes ahead of the 5:50 p.m. Whitney.

“We are also changing the [first] post time to 5 p.m. instead of the normal 2 p.m. post time on Derby day,” Colvin continued. “The seventh and eighth races, which would be the Derby and Governor's races, would be close to being in prime time on TVG as well.”

Starting Apr. 30, Mountaineer will race 124 dates on Sundays through Tuesdays, with Wednesdays added June 21-Dec. 13. Colvin said another aim with the switch to Sunday is so bettors don't get caught off guard with the Derby being carded on a non-standard Saturday.

“We felt, honestly, to move back to a [regularly] scheduled race day would [keep customers from] getting confused on what days [we're] racing,” Colvin said.

Also at the Apr. 18 meeting, Mountaineer was unanimously granted approval by the WVRC to be reimbursed out of the capital improvement fund for two recentl projects.

One was a $44,000 main track sand upgrade project. Ironically, even though West Virginia is one of two states (along with Louisiana) that is under a federal injunction that will keep the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act (HISA) Authority's rules from being implemented until a lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of HISA gets decided in full, Mountaineer has opted to abide by one of the HISA standards regarding track safety in case that injunction expires during the running of the upcoming meet.

WVRC executive director Joe Moore explained it this way: “In the Racetrack Safety Program, HISA requires the racetracks to replace and regrade their sand on an annual basis. Mountaineer, even though we're not under HISA, saw this as a safety issue and wanted to go ahead and complete it before the start of this racing meet, in the chance that HISA would come into effect in West Virginia [sometime] during their meet and require them [to either do] this or stop racing until it's completed.”

Colvin pointed out that Mountaineer totally replaced its main track two years ago, so the project recently completed this spring was more along the lines of routine maintenance to ensure a 5 1/2-inch uniformity of the top layer.

“At whatever point we do fall under {HISA's rules], this is basically a project that's going to have to be done annually to meet their requirements,” Colvin said. “When you have rain, some of the track ends up [washed] between the main track and the turf course. Therefore, the sand has to be replaced. We just put 300-some tons of sand on the track when we did this. It was low in some places [and] we had to add the material to get the surface consistent with the other parts of the track.”

The WVRC also approved a $79,620 capital improvement reimbursement for a rebuilt outdoor viewing deck.

“Mountaineer Park, on their apron, they have a very large deck for viewing the races,” Moore explained. “This year, the deck was in such poor shape that it was necessary, before patrons [could use it], to tear it down and replace it.”

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Mr. Wireless Proves Best in the West Virginia Derby

Mr. Wireless had done very little wrong this season, and showed up once again Saturday to collect his second consecutive graded victory in Mountaineer's West Virginia Derby.

After finding himself in front heading into the first turn, Mr. Wireless was soon headed by Kinetic Sky and Bourbon Thunder as the duo took up position to his inside while Warrant was a couple of lengths back in fourth through an initial quarter in :23.82. Latched onto the outside flank of Bourbon Thunder following a :47.86 half, the 8-5 favorite drew on even terms with the leading Bourbon Thunder on the far turn and soon put his head in front, inching clear turning for home. Offered some left-handed encouragement by Ramon Vazquez in early stretch, the gelding drifted out slightly late, prompting his rider to switch to a right-handed stick late, but the gelding had enough left in reserve to fend off Warrant by a length at the wire. The GII Wood Memorial winner Bourbonic closed from out of the clouds to be third.

“There was inside speed and he was able to sit off those two horses,” explained Vazquez. “He put himself into a good position, and when he got the lead and he kept going.”

Added trainer Bret Calhoun, “He was in good position the whole way around, and looked like the rider was sitting on a lot of horse. He ran a trouble-free race, and when Ramon asked him, he did his job.”

In regards to the gelding's next race, he said, “I hate to get too far ahead with these things, but I'd say the [GI] Pennsylvania Derby [Sept. 25] is very possible.”

Fifth in his career bow going six furlongs at the Fair Grounds Mar. 4, Mr. Wireless gained a narrow decision next time going a mile at Oaklawn Mar. 27 before making it two straight with a score adding a sixteenth at the Hot Springs oval May 1. Narrowly defeated by Warrant in the May 31 Texas Derby, the bay asserted his dominance last time, taking the July 7 GIII Indiana Derby at Indiana Grand.

Pedigree Notes:
Mr. Wireless is out of Voussoir (Arch), also responsible for the year-older Ain't No Elmers (Goldencents), who recently made the running in the GII Honorable Miss H. at Saratoga before finishing third. The 15-year-old mare is also responsible for a 2-year-old full-sister to the West Virginia Derby winner named Ain't Broke and a Goldencents colt foal. She was bred back to Gun Runner.

Saturday, Mountaineer
WEST VIRGINIA DERBY-GIII, $500,000, Mountaineer Casino & Resort, 8-7, 3yo, 1 1/8m, 1:52.49, ft.
1–MR. WIRELESS, 120, g, 3, by Dialed In
              1st Dam: Voussoir, by Arch
              2nd Dam: Blu Spur, by Northern Spur (Ire)
              3rd Dam: Seeking the Blue, by Seeking the Gold
O-JIL Stable; B-John & Iveta Kerber (KY); T-W. Bret Calhoun;
J-Ramon A. Vazquez. $311,500. Lifetime Record: 6-4-1-0,
$670,150. *1/2 to Ain't No Elmers (Goldencents), MGSP,
$268,435. Werk Nick Rating: A++. Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree.
2–Warrant, 118, c, 3, Constitution–Whisper Number, by First
Samurai. O-Twin Creeks Racing Stables, LLC; B-Twin Creeks
Farm (KY); T-Brad H. Cox. $100,000.
3–Bourbonic, 122, c, 3, Bernardini–Dancing Afleet, by Afleet
Alex. O/B-Calumet Farm (KY); T-Todd A. Pletcher. $50,000.
Margins: 1 1/4, 1HF, HF. Odds: 1.60, 1.80, 3.90.
Also Ran: Bourbon Thunder, Kinetic Sky, Americainaed. Scratched: Channel Fury.
Click for the Equibase.com chart, the TJCIS.com PPs or the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree.

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