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‘Better With Every Race’: Jesus’ Team To Use Claiming Crown Jewel As Pegasus Prep

Grade 1 stakes-placed in his two most recent starts, Jesus' Team will return to his roots Saturday with a start in the $150,000 Claiming Crown Jewel at Gulfstream Park.

Grupo 7C Racing Stable's 3-year-old gelding, who became eligible for the Jewel while winning a claiming race for maidens at Gulfstream last March, is scheduled to use the Claiming Crown headliner as a prep for a planned start in the $3 million Pegasus World Cup Invitational (G1) at Gulfstream Jan. 23.

The Jewel, a 1 1/8-mile stakes for 3-year-olds and up that started for a claiming price of $35,000 or lower, will be featured among nine stakes restricted to horses that have started for a claiming price at least once.

Jesus' Team enters the Jewel off a third-place finish in the Oct. 3 Preakness Stakes (G1) at Pimlico and a second-place finish Nov. 7 in the $1 million Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile (G1) at Keeneland – unlikely results from a horse that broke his maiden for a $32,000 claiming price in his fifth career start March 18.

“He went to Ocala for 10 days after the Breeders' Cup. He is training very good for the Claiming Crown,” sand trainer Jose D'Angelo, whose stable is based at Palm Meadows, Gulfstream Park's satellite training facility in Palm Beach County. “I think this is a good race for him before the Pegasus. He needs a race before the Pegasus.”

After his breakthrough 3 ¾-length maiden win, Jesus' Team was transferred to D'Angelo, for whom the son of Tapiture came right back to score a dominating 6 ¾-length victory in a $25,000 claiming race May 8. A most promising second-place finish behind graded-stakes winner Sole Volante in a stakes-quality June 10 optional claiming allowance at Gulfstream raised the expectations of his connections.

Following a creditable fourth behind future Kentucky Derby (G1) and Breeders' Cup Classic (G1) winner Authentic in the Haskell (G1) and a runner-up finish in the ungraded Pegasus at Monmouth, Jesus' Team finished third in the Jim Dandy (G2) at Saratoga while equipped with blinkers for the first time. The Kentucky-bred gelding, who was purchased for $30,000 at the 2018 Keeneland September sale, overcame traffic on the far turn to finish a distant third behind Gulfstream Park Oaks winner Swiss Skydiver and Authentic at 40-1 in the Preakness Stakes at Pimlico. Sent to post at 62-1 for the Dirt Mile, Jesus' Team closed to finish second behind runaway winner Knicks Go.

“I am very proud of my horse. He's getting better and better with every race,” D'Angelo said. “I think he will run a very good race Saturday.”

D'Angelo was the leading trainer in Venezuela before joining his father Francisco, also a former titlist in Venezuela, in South Florida in 2019.

“I'm happy for the races Jesus's Team has run. He has made me very proud,” said D'Angelo, who saddled his first horse in the U.S. in June 2019 and saddled his first winner with his second starter three weeks later. “I'm happy to be training in this amazing country.”

Luis Saez, who was aboard for the Dirt Mile, has the return mount Saturday.

Calumet Farm's Dack Janiel's, also a horse who performed extremely well on Breeders' Cup Weekend at Keeneland, is scheduled to seek his first stakes victory in the Claiming Crown Jewel.

The Jack Sisterson-trained 3-year-old gelding is coming off a third-place finish in the $200,000 Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance (G2). Dack Janiel's set or pressed the pace to hold a narrow lead in mid-stretch before weakening late in the 1 5/8-mile route.

“Dack Janiel's is a horse that has always overachieved for us, but he really thrives on racing. He just won 10 days before the Thoroughbred [Aftercare] Alliance, but we wheeled him back in a week at Oaklawn [in April] and he won bringing him back quick,” Sisterson said. “He seems to thrive on his training and running, so we ran him [at Keeneland] and he ran a competitive race against some tough horses. Fortunately, he's eligible for Claiming Crown Jewel.”

Dack Janiel's became eligible for the Jewel in January when he ran third in a $30,000 maiden claiming race on turf at Fair Grounds. The son of Tonalist came right back to win an off-the-turf maiden special weight race at Fair Grounds a month later. After finishing off the board in the Jeff Ruby Steaks (G3) at Turfway, Dack Janiel's followed up a fourth-place allowance finish at Oaklawn with a starter allowance victory eight days later. Winless in his next three starts, he returned to winning form in a $50,000 claiming race at Keeneland that set him up for his strong showing in the Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance.

“He's very straightforward. He trains himself. There's no hiding his running style. He goes right to the front,” said Sisterson, who will train in South Florida for the first time this winter. “He seems to run his best races forwardly placed, so we're obviously not hiding any tactics heading into next Saturday.”

Julien Leparoux has the mount on the Calumet Farm homebred.

Team Valor International and David Burnett's Storm Runner, who finished seventh in the 2018 Florida Derby (G1), has returned to Gulfstream to run in the Jewel. The Dale Romans-trained son of Get Stormy became eligible for the Jewel by coming off a seven-month layoff to win a $20,000 claiming race at Churchill Downs June 28. Following a four-month layoff, Storm Runner captured a Nov. 4 starter allowance on turf at Churchill Downs.

Corey Lanerie has the call aboard Storm Runner.

Trainer Michael Maker, who has saddled a record 17 Claiming Crown winners, will send out Paradise Farms Corp.'s Treasure Trove for a start in the Jewel. The 4-year-old son of Tapizar was claimed for $40,000 out of his most recent start, a second-place finish in an optional claiming allowance at Indiana Downs.

Tyler Gaffalione, who captured titles at all six meeting in Kentucky this year, has the call.

Leitone, the defending Jewel champion, will defend his title for owner/trainer Victor Carrasco Jr., who claimed the Chilean-bred 6-year-old for $40,000 out of a victory at Belmont Park June 20. The son of Dunkirk has been off-the-board in his two starts since being claimed.

Hector Berrios has the call aboard Leitone.

Stakes-placed on turf last time out, D P Racing LLC's Prince of Arabia will move to dirt for the Jewel. The 7-year-old gelding, who finished a troubled third in the Ricard Henry Lee last out, achieved his most recent victory in an off-the-turf Feb. 20 optional claiming allowance at Gulfstream. Robby Albarado is scheduled to ride Prince of Arabia for the first time.

My Purple Haze Stable's Rebelde and Flying Pheasant Farm LLC's Toughest 'Ombre round out the field.

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Shocker–Gulfstream Races Go Off at Post Time

After years of dragging its races out and running as many as seven or eight minutes after the listed post times, Gulfstream Park had a major surprise for horseplayers Wednesday on the opening day of the Championship Meet. The races were run at their advertised post times.

The change was ushered in by Aidan Butler, who had been working at the California tracks for The Stronach Group, the owners of Gulfstream, before he was recently promoted and reassigned, with his new duties including overseeing Florida racing.

“There are so many reasons why it is the right thing to do,” Butler said. “It’s the right thing to do from the aspect of the enjoyment of the sport. It’s the right thing to do when it comes to professionalism and being efficient. It’s the right thing to do for the animals. You don’t want them hanging around out there when it’s hot and going around and around in circles. Going forward, the team at Gulfstream and the team at The Stronach Group, we want to try to be the best at everything we do. That might sound cheesy, but that’s what we are striving for. That involves everything we do.”

Butler was aware of several postings on social media praising Gulfstream for the new strategy, many of them from horseplayers who had grown tired of having to guess when a Gulfstream race was actually going to be run.

“I didn’t expect the amount of feedback we have been getting because I just saw it as an operational tweak,” he said. “This is one of many things we want to tweak. I see that it is being well received.”

The post time drag was instituted as a means to increase handle, the idea being that giving bettors so much extra time before a race is actually run would lead to more money being put through the windows. Having to wait for the Gulfstream races could also have had the effect of keeping people from betting on other tracks. However, another possibility was that no extra money was actually being bet because players knew they could wait until the very last minute to place their bets and weren’t fooled by the post times that were listed.

Butler was among those that didn’t believe that the drag was having a positive impact on handle.

“I don’t believe what they were doing was productive,” he said. “All that it ended up doing was causing confusion. We all want horse racing to be taken super seriously and as a really good wagering sport and an enjoyable thing to be involved with. Then all these things happen across the industry, and I’m not just talking about post times, that are a little bit rinky dink. I don’t know how else to describe it. It’s not what you would find at an ‘A class’ sporting event. We need to refocus a little bit and find things like this and address them.”

Speaking prior to the day’s fourth race, Butler said it was too early to tell if the change had negatively impacted handle with gamblers having to adjust to a new schedule and possibly getting shut out. A possible plan to first take the drag down to three or four minutes was discussed but then abandoned.

“They had been doing this for such a long time that we were thinking of backing into this slowly,” he said. “But then even if handle was going to be a little light at first because people weren’t getting their bets in, we decided to get right into it. Sometimes you are better off having that shock so more people hear about what you are doing and more people will pay attention.”

While Gulfstream was one of the first and worst offenders when it came to the post time drag, the majority of tracks in the U.S. followed their lead to the point where it is rare to see races go off on time anywhere. Butler said that, going forward, all of The Stronach Group tracks will strive to have their races go off on time.

“We’re going to try to be as efficient as we can with these times,” he said. “There might be times where we don’t want to end up crashing into other racetracks. That’s not going to be the norm. The norm, hopefully, will be what you saw today at Gulfstream.”

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Gulfstream’s 2020-2021 Championship Meet Features $13.06 Million Stakes Schedule

The 2020-2021 Championship Meet at Gulfstream Park in Hallandale Beach, Fla. will get under way Wednesday for the first of 84 days of Thoroughbred racing contested by the most popular and accomplished horses, trainers and jockeys in the country.

Racing will be conducted primarily on a Wednesday-Sunday schedule with a first-race post time set at 12:35 p.m. through March 27. Under COVID-19 pandemic protocols, racing will be conducted without spectators. Gulfstream's races will be streamed live at 1/STBet.com, Xpressbet.com; and gulfstreampark.com.

The 2020-2021 Championship Meet will offer a stakes schedule of 75 stakes, 36 graded, worth $13.06 million in purses.

The $3 million Pegasus World Cup Invitational (G1) and the $1 million Pegasus World Cup Turf Invitational (G1) will be run Jan. 23, co-headlining a program with seven graded stakes. The Pegasus World Cup, won by Mucho Gusto last year, has been designated as a 'Win and In' race for the $20 million Saudi Cup in Riyadh Feb. 20. The Pegasus World Cup Turf will be a qualifier for the $1 million Middle Distance Turf Handicap on the Saudi Cup undercard.

The $800,000 Florida Derby (G1), which has produced the winners of 60 Triple Crown races, will headline a March 27 program that will offer 10 stakes, 6 graded, including the $250,000 Gulfstream Park Oaks. The 2020 Florida Derby was won by Tiz the Law, who went on to win the Belmont (G1). Swiss Skydiver, who captured the Gulfstream Park Oaks, went on to beat the boys in the Preakness Stakes (G1).

Gulfstream's program for 3-year-olds will kick off with the $100,000 Mucho Macho Man Dec. 12, followed by the $200,000 Holy Bull (G3), a 1 1/16-mile Florida Derby prep that will headline a Jan. 30 program with five graded stakes, including the $100,000 Swale (G3), a seven-furlong sprint for 3-year-olds. The $350,000 Fountain of Youth (G2), the 1 1/16-mile final prep for the Florida Derby, will be featured on a Feb. 27 program with nine graded stakes.

The Road to the Gulfstream Park Oaks will start with the $100,000 Forward Gal, a seven-furlong sprint for 3-year-old fillies on the Jan. 30 Holy Bull undercard. The $200,000 Davona Dale, the mile final prep for the Gulfstream Park Oaks, will be contested on the Feb. 27 Fountain of Youth undercard.

The $200,000 Fort Lauderdale (G2) kicks off Gulfstream's turf program Dec. 12 while offering an opportunity for Pegasus World Cup Turf invitational candidates to prep over the Gulfstream turf course. The $200,000 Mac Diarmida (G2), a 1 3/8-mile race for 4-year-olds and up, will be one of six graded turf stakes on the Fountain of Youth card. The $200,000 Pan American, a 1 ½-mile stakes for 4-year-olds and up, will top six turf stakes on the Florida Derby program.

The 2020-2021 stakes program will launch Saturday with the return of the Claiming Crown, a popular program for horses that have started for a claiming price at least once during the past two years. The $150,000 Jewel, a 1 1/8-mile stakes for 3-year-olds and up that have started for a claiming price of $35,000 or lower, is featured among nine Claiming Crown stakes. Jesus' Team, who finished third in the Preakness and second in the Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile (G1), is expected to headline the field for the Jewel.

Irad Ortiz Jr. will be back to defend the riding titles he won in 2018-2019 and 2019-2020. Luis Saez, who finished second behind Ortiz by just one and two wins respectively, will seek to regain the title he won the previous two seasons. Hall of Famers John Velazquez, fresh off his Breeders' Cup Classic (G1) victory aboard Authentic, Javier Castellano, a five-time Championship Meet titlist; and Edgar Prado, who ranks eighth all-time with 7,089 wins, will head a jockey's colony that will include young guns Tyler Gaffalione, Jose Ortiz, and South Florida's year-round leader Edgard Zayas.

Todd Pletcher, who regained his training title last season, will seek his 17th Championship Meet title. Horsemen shipping in include Shug McGaughey, Bill Mott, Mike Maker, Mark Casse, Ken McPeek, Chad Brown and Christophe Clement. New stables at Gulfstream and its satellite training center Palm Meadows in Palm Beach include Brad Cox, Jack Sisterson, Brittany Russell, Jeremiah Englehart and Butch Reid.

“We're extremely optimistic for a fantastic Championship Meet,” said Mike Lakow, Vice President of Racing at Gulfstream. “The barns are full with many of the top trainers, including some wintering here for the first time. We're also happy with the way our turf course has thrived during the extreme rainy season here this fall.”

The 20-cent Rainbow 6, the innovative multi-race wager that has produced many live-changing payoffs over the years, will again be prominent on Gulfstream's wagering menu. The Rainbow 6, which will span the final six races each day, will be kicked off Wednesday with a $50,000 jackpot guarantee. Wednesday's Rainbow 6 sequence will span Races 5-10, including back-to-back optional claiming allowances in Races 8 and 9.

Shadwell Stable's Ashaar is scheduled to make his first start for Pletcher in Race 8, a six-furlong sprint for 3-year-olds and up. The 3-year-old son of Into Mischief hasn't seen action since finishing off the board in the Jan. 4 Mucho Macho Man at Gulfstream. Reeves Thoroughbred Racing's Ournationonparade, the only stakes winner in the field, will make his first start since finishing fifth in the Sept. 5 Smile Sprint (G3) at Gulfstream. Saez has been named to ride Ashaar, while Luca Panici is set to ride the Kathy Ritvo-trained Ournationonparade.

Tracy Farmer's Catch a Thrill, who has finished second in his three most recent starts, will be looking to break through with a win in Race 9, a five-furlong turf dash for fillies and mares. The Mark Casse-trained daughter of City Zip, who finished second in the Feb. 23 Melody of Colors at Gulfstream, will be ridden by Cristian Torres.

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Todd Pletcher Targeting 17th Championship Meet Title At Gulfstream Park

Though success has followed him year-round across the globe since launching his training career in 1996, it's safe to say that when the season turns to winter, Todd Pletcher's name has become synonymous with South Florida and Gulfstream Park.

The 53-year-old Texas native has led the Championship Meet standings in 16 of the past 17 years, including a remarkable and unprecedented streak of 15 consecutive titles beginning in 2004. After finishing second in 2018-2019, Pletcher reclaimed his crown with 48 wins last winter.

“You try to just focus on placing your horses properly and hoping they run well. I think when the streak was still intact it was perhaps a little more meaningful because if you have a streak going for that long the chances of ever duplicating that are pretty remote,” Pletcher said. “But, we'll focus on doing the best we can without being overly concerned about whether or not that ends up leading to a meet title.

“The exciting part about it is, it's kind of the time when a lot of your 2-year-olds are starting to come around and obviously turning three with a lot of big races coming up in the winter and spring, so we always look forward to that,” he added. “We've always enjoyed the Gulfstream meet. It's been historically a good venue for us and horses seem to like the surface there and run well, so hopefully we can continue that.”

Pletcher has two horses entered on Wednesday's 10-race program as he opens his title defense and quest for No. 17 during the 2020-2021 Championship Meet. The prestigious 84-day stand runs through Sunday, March 28 and features 75 stakes, 41 graded, worth $13.05 million in purses.

Michael Tabor's Eagerly, a 3-year-old son of 2015 Triple Crown champion American Pharoah, will be making his sixth career start and first since Jan. 18 at Gulfstream in Race 5, a one-mile maiden special weight for 3-year-olds and up on the grass. Listed at 9-2 on the morning line, he will break from the far outside under Paco Lopez.

“Eagerly unfortunately got stepped on by another horse in his last start there and had a fairly significant wound that took a lot of time to heal and some skin grafts and that sort of thing,” Pletcher said. “He's been training forwardly. All of his races except for an off the turf race and that particular day when he sustained that injury have all been good. We look forward to getting him back.”

In Wednesday's Race 8 feature, Pletcher will send out Shadwell Stable's homebred Ashaar, who hasn't run since finishing seventh in the Jan. 4 Mucho Macho Man at Gulfstream for previous trainer Kiaran McLaughlin. The sophomore Into Mischief colt is the program's 2-1 second choice in the six-furlong optional claiming allowance for 3-year-olds and up.

“Ashaar, I know that they liked him a lot, and he ran well in his debut. The thing that always concerns you in these types of races is when they have that optional claim on there, you're kind of running into some old warriors that have a lot of starts compared to pretty lightly raced horse,” Pletcher said. “But we're pleased with the way he's been coming along and looking forward to getting him started.”

Pletcher has enjoyed several career-defining moments at Gulfstream Park. It is where he won his first race Jan. 26, 1996 with Majestic Number, his 3,000th with Spring Hill Farm Feb. 11, 2012 and 4,000th with Eagle Scout March 18, 2016. He received the last two of his record seven Eclipse Awards for 2013 and 2014 in ceremonies held at the Sport of Kings Theatre, and he is the only trainer since it was inaugurated in 1952 to win Gulfstream's signature race – the Florida Derby – five times.

Over 1,100 of Pletcher's more than 5,000 lifetime victories have come at Gulfstream, where he has maintained a presence throughout the calendar year since 2017. He broke Hall of Famer Bill Mott's streak of six straight Championship Meet titles in 2010, and passed Arnold Winick's total with his 13th in 2016.

Pletcher has won 849 races during the Championship Meet since 2004, an average of 49.9 wins per winter. In 2019-2020 he picked up graded triumphs with Sombeyay in the Canadian Turf (G3) and Social Paranoia in the Appleton (G3) and ranked second with $2,085,635 in purse earnings.

Another stakes winner for Pletcher last winter was Halladay, who would go on to capture the Fourstardave (G1) at Saratoga. He is being pointed to the $200,000 Fort Lauderdale (G2) at Gulfstream as a possible prep for the $1 million Pegasus World Cup Turf Invitational (G1) Jan. 23.

Wertheimer and Frere's undefeated homebred Happy Saver, who improved to 4-0 with his victory over older horses in the Jockey Club Gold Cup (G1), is among the horses that may also show up during the meet, as well as Spinster (G1) winner and Breeders' Cup Distaff (G1) runner-up Valiance and multiple turf stakes winner Largent, both part-owned by Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners.

“Right now we're pointing Halladay for the Fort Lauderdale which, if that were to go well, we'd kind of have an eye toward the Pegasus but we'll see how he handles the mile and an eighth first,” Pletcher said. “We have him and Largent pointed for that. Valiance and Happy Saver and some of those are getting a bit of a break so if we do see them it would be toward the end of the meet.”

Pletcher has one horse, a 2-year-old English Channel colt named Turlough, entered on Thursday's card in Race 7, a one-mile maiden claiming event for juveniles on the grass.

When he returns to South Florida with sights set on defending his Championship Meet riding title, jockey Irad Ortiz Jr. will have the opportunity to join some exclusive company.

Ortiz, 28, is coming off his second straight winter championship, leading the 2019-2020 Gulfstream Park standings with 115 wins and more than $5.8 million in purses earned. Only three jockeys in track history have led the rider standings three consecutive years, the most recent being Hall of Famer Javier Castellano's record streak of five in a row from 2011-2016.

Jorge Chavez also won three straight between 1999 and 2001, while Jeff Fell shared the 1977 title with Mickey Solomone before winning it outright in 1978 and 1979. Among those with back-to-back championships are Hall of Famers Walter Blum, Alex Solis, Julie Krone and Jerry Bailey. Luis Saez won two in a row before finishing second to Ortiz each of the past two winters.

Ortiz has won the past two Eclipse Awards as champion jockey, trophies he accepted in ceremonies at Gulfstream Park, and is a leading candidate to win a third for 2020, a season abridged by the coronavirus pandemic. Through Nov. 28, Ortiz was leading all North American riders for a third consecutive year in both wins (274) and purse earnings ($20.1 million).

Since 2014, Ortiz has ranked no worse than fourth in wins or lower than third in purse earnings. He has won at least 300 races every year since 2015 with a high of 346 in 2018, and his $34.1 million in 2019 purses earned shattered the previous North American single-season record of $28.1 million set by Castellano in 2015.

One of just four jockeys to register triple digits in wins at Gulfstream, Ortiz won 135 races during his first full winter in 2018-2019, just two shy of Saez's track record set the previous season. His biggest victory during the 2019-2020 stand came aboard Mucho Gusto in the $3 million Pegasus World Cup Invitational (G1).

Ortiz returns to South Florida after earning the Bill Shoemaker Award as the most outstanding jockey at the Breeders' Cup for a third consecutive year. He won the Juvenile Turf Sprint (G1) with Golden Pal and Sprint (G1) with Whitmore, was second in the Classic (G1) on Improbable and third in the Dirt Mile (G1) aboard Sharp Samurai. Garrett Gomez, John Velazquez and Mike Smith are also three-time winners, but Ortiz is the first to win three straight since the award was launched in 2003.

Saez will have a head start for the 2020-2021 season with Ortiz under quarantine after riding at Del Mar over Thanksgiving weekend. Saez is named in 26 of 30 races over the first three days of the Championship Meet, including nine of 10 on Wednesday's opening day and 10 of 10 on Thursday.

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