Hollywood Turf Cup | Horse Racing Free Tips

Resurgent Kent Desormeaux Voted Jockey Of The Week

Veteran jockey Kent Desormeaux closed the Del Mar Bing Crosby meet on a high note by winning two graded stakes during the track's turf festival. His achievements earned the title of Jockey of the Week for Nov. 22 through Nov. 28. The honor, which is voted on by a panel of racing experts, is for jockeys who are members of the Jockeys' Guild, the organization which represents more than 1050 active, retired and permanently disabled jockeys in the United States.

The holiday weekend card featured seven stakes races on the Jimmy Durante Turf Course. Riding for trainer Phil D'Amato on Friday, Desormeaux was aboard the stretch-running Say the Word for the first time in the G2 Hollywood Turf Cup. Say the Word was last in the field of seven for the first mile of the 1 1/2-mile contest for 3-year-olds and up. Desormeaux swung Say the Word to the outside at the top of the stretch and in a drive to the wire overtook his stablemate Acclimate to win by a length in 2:27.62. The win was Desormeaux's first in the Hollywood Turf Cup.

Trainer John Shirreffs gave a leg up to Desormeaux on Beyond Brilliant in Saturday's G1 Hollywood Derby. In the field of 14, Desormeaux was riding Beyond Brilliant for the third time. From an inside post, the duo made every pole a winning one finishing the nine furlong test over Santin by a neck in 1:48.84.

“All the credit for this win goes to the barn,” said Desormeaux to the Del Mar publicity office. “They've done wonders with this horse the past month. When I rode him last time (10/31) at Santa Anita, he was a handful to control. Today he was easy.”

The victory was the first for Desormeaux in the Hollywood Derby. He has 87 stakes wins at Del Mar, ninth most of all riders.

After a slow start to the meet, Hall of Famer Desormeaux came on strong to finish 4th in the Del Mar standings with 10 wins and $1,153,196 in purses.

Desormeaux outpolled Tyler Gaffalione who was the leading rider in wins for the week, Jose Lezcano who won three stakes races, Jose Ortiz with two Grade 1 stakes and one Grade 3, and Irad Ortiz, Jr. who won four stakes races.

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Say The Word, Desormeaux Have Final Word In Hollywood Turf Cup

Agave Racing Stable and Sam-Son Farm's Say the Word swung clear at the top of the stretch and scampered down the lane to capture the $251,000 Hollywood Turf Cup at Del Mar Friday afternoon in Del Mar, Calif.

The 6-year-old gelded son of More Than Ready ran a mile and one half on the Jimmy Durante Turf Course in 2:27.62 under Hall of Fame rider Kent Desormeaux to score by a length and take down a first prize of $150,000 in the Grade 2 headliner.

Phil D'Amato trains the winner and he also trains the runner-up, The Elwood Johnston Trust, Timmy Time Racing, et al's Acclimate, who set all the pace in the marathon, but couldn't hold off his stablemate at the end. Finishing third a neck back was Mr. and Mrs. William Warren Jr.'s Friar's Road.

Say the Word, who is a Canadian horse bred by the Sam-Son Farm of Rick Balaz of Ontario, paid $13.00, $5.80 and $4.00 across the board. Acclimate returned $8.80 and $4.40, while Friar's Road paid $3.20.

“This horse has had so much trouble before this; it was great to see him win. Kent (Desormeaux) did like he said he would and kept him covered up, then go him clear in the stretch and let him stretch his legs,” said D'Amato.

Desormeaux, who was winning his 86th stakes at Del Mar, kept his horse covered up for the majority of the journey, shifted him all the way outside at the top of the lane and kept him to a drive to the wire. It was the veteran's seventh lifetime score and the winner's share increased his earnings to $882,792. All of his wins have come on the turf.

“I've got to give Phil (trainer D'Amato) the credit for this one,” said Desormeaux. “He told me it was hard to get this horse to settle, so I told him I'd do the European thing: I'd put him up some horse's rear (force him to stay in position) and wait until the end. My peers always ask me who's my star and what that means is I'll put a star by the horse that I think will carry me 70 yards from the wire. And Umby (rider Umberto Rispoli) had the star today (Rispoli was aboard Friar's Road, the horse Desormeaux drafted in behind).”

In the track's continuing Pick 6 Single Ticket Jackpot Wager, the bet once more couldn't be conquered by the fans and its carryover moved up to $510,986. With only two days of racing left in the season, there's a real possibility that the wager could go all the way to Sunday's closing day and cause a mandatory payout that afternoon, a situation that usually greatly enhances the pool for the players.

First post for both Saturday and Sunday's races will be 12:30 p.m.

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Rockemperor Tabbed As Morning-Line Favorite In Hollywood Turf Cup

Madaket Stables, Wonder Stables, Dubb, Kisber and Caruso's Rockemperor will go favored in Friday's headliner at Del Mar – the $250,000 Hollywood Turf Cup – a Grade 2 crucible for 3-year-olds and up that has attracted seven long-winded competitors and will be contested at a testing mile and one half on the Jimmy Durante Turf Course.

The marathon will be run for the 40th time (the first 32 editions were conducted at now-closed Hollywood Park) on the holiday weekend nine-race card as the 7th Race and will reward its winner with $150,000.

Rockemperor, an Irish 5-year-old horse by the Danehill sire Holy Roman Emperor, comes into the headliner off a troubled trip in the $4 million Breeders' Cup Turf at Del Mar on Nov. 6. The bay horse could only finish eighth of 14 that afternoon but he's been a steady sort throughout his career with 15 in-the-money placings in his 21 starts. He's currently sporting a bankroll that reads $954,404 and either a first- or second-place finish Friday would make him a racing millionaire.

Rockemperor is trained by eastern kingpin Chad Brown, who has been a regular participant in the fall turf stakes at Del Mar in recent years and the conditioner has nabbed the saddle services of Del Mar's leading rider, Flavien Prat, for the Friday journey.

Here's the complete lineup for the feature from the rail out with riders and morning line odds:

Amerman Racing's Award Winner (Juan Hernandez, 12-1)
William and Suzanne Warren, Jr.'s Friar's Road (Umberto Rispoli, 3-1)
Agave Racing Stable or Sam-Son Farm's Say the Word (Kent Desormeaux, 4-1)
John M.B. O'Connor's Astronaut (Victor Espinoza, 8-1)
Pantofel Stable, Wachtel Stable or Gary Barber's Cupid's Claws (Abel Cedillo, 12-1)
The Ellwood Johnston Trust, Timmy Time Racing, et al's Acclimate (Ricky Gonzalez, 4-1)
Rockemperor

Acclimate also ran in the BC Turf, but finished far back in the field. The 7-year-old gelding by California sire Acclamation is a seven-time winner of $633,872. He was beaten only a whisker in the mile and one-quarter John Henry Turf Cup at Santa Anita on October 2 in his race before his Breeders' Cup try. He's conditioned by Phil D'Amato.

Friar's Road was just a nose behind Acclimate in the John Henry in his most recent attempt. The 4-year-old Quality Road colt works out of the barn of trainer Mike McCarthy and appears to have found a home running long on the grass.

Say the Word, a 6-year-old gelding by More Than Ready, has purse earnings of $672,792. He was a fast-closing third in the Hollywood Turf Cup last year. D'Amato trains him, also.

Astronaut was victorious in the Del Mar Handicap at 11 furlongs on turf on August 21. The 4-year-old colt is by Quality Road and races out of the barn of conditioner John Shirreffs.

Last year's Hollywood Turf Cup was captured by Donegal Racing, Bulger and Coneway's Arklow, who set a stakes record of 2:26.31 in the process.

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Acclimate, Rockemperor Among Seven Entered For Friday’s Hollywood Turf Cup

Phil D'Amato-trained Acclimate, John Shirreff's Astronaut, and Chad Brown-conditioned Rockemperor, last seen at Del Mar Thoroughbred Club in Del Mar, Calif., in the $4 million Grade 1 Longines Breeders' Cup Turf, are among seven entered today for Friday's $250,000 G2 Hollywood Turf Cup.

A victory, or high placing, for Acclimate, Astronaut, or Rockemperor, would salve the sting of ill-starred efforts in the Breeders' Cup, in the case of Astronaut and Rockemperor after gaining entry through “Win and You're In” victories.

Astronaut rallied in the stretch for a half-length victory in the Del Mar Handicap at odds of 24-1 on Pacific Classic Day in August. Hall of Fame jockey Victor Espinoza found no clear path in the BC Turf, however, had to check hard before the quarter pole and finished 12th of 14. Rockemperor won the Turf Classic at Belmont Park in Elmont, N.Y., in October but was in tight quarters throughout in the BC Turf and finished eighth.

Acclimate, with one win and three narrow losses in graded events leading up to the BC Turf, was close to the pace early before fading to last.

The post position draw was scheduled this afternoon. The entrants, in alphabetical order: Acclimate (Ricky Gonzalez); Astronaut (Espinoza); Award Winner (Juan Hernandez); Cupid's Claws (Abel Cedillo); Friar's Road (Umberto Rispoli), Rockemperor (Flavien Prat), and Say The Word (Kent Desormeaux).

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