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Stronach 5: Friday’s $54 All-Star Ticket

An allowance optional claiming event for 2-year-olds on the turf from Gulfstream Park and a restricted allowance event from Laurel Park highlight Friday's popular Stronach 5.

The Stronach 5, with an industry-low 12-percent takeout, will begin at 3:49 ET with Laurel Park's eighth race. The final two legs of the sequence will be contested on the turf from Gulfstream.

The Stronach 5 All-Star Ticket is only $54 with one single coming in the third leg.

Laurel's eight race is a very competitive allowance event for Maryland state-bred or sired 3-year-olds and up. Stone Courageous is the tepid 3-1 morning-line favorite. Dark Hollow Farm's Toy, trained by Michael Trombetta, comes into the race off a seven-month layoff. After breaking his maiden in his sixth attempt, he won an entry-level allowance event in May despite getting steadied.

After Gulfstream's eighth race, a claiming event for $6,250 3-year-olds and up at six furlongs, the third leg of the Stronach 5 returns to Laurel for a field of nine claimers going six furlongs. Halfinthewrapper, the 2-1 favorite, runs for the first time since being claimed by trainer John Robb.

The last two legs of the Stronach 5 at Gulfstream will both be run on the turf. Gulfstream's ninth race, the fourth leg of the sequence, features seven 2-year-olds at a mile. Whatmakessammyrun, third Nov. 6 in the Atlantic Beach at Aqueduct for trainer by George Weaver, is the 2-1 favorite. Mike Maker will saddle Risk Manager, a son of Lookin At Lucky who broke his maiden in his debut at Keeneland Oct. 16 at a mile on the turf.

The Stronach 5 concludes with Gulfstream's 10th race, an allowance optional claiming event for 3-year-olds and up at five furlongs on the turf. Pay Any Price, making the last start of his career, has won 16 of 24 starts at Gulfstream and will be favored. Team Valor International's Last Opportunity cuts back in distance for trainer Todd Pletcher. Cash Now will make his turf debut for the Brad Cox barn.

Friday's races and sequence

· Leg One – Laurel Park 8th Race: (9 entries, 1 mile) 3:49 ET, 12:49 PT

· Leg Two –Gulfstream Park 8th Race: (8 entries, 6 furlong) 4:06 ET, 1:06 PT

· Leg Three –Laurel Park 9th Race: (9 entries, 6 furlongs) 4:18 ET, 1:18 PT

· Leg Four –Gulfstream Park 9th Race: (7 entries, 1 mile turf) 4:36 ET, 1:36 PT

· Leg Five –Gulfstream West 10th Race: (12 entries, 5 furlongs turf) 5:06 ET, 2:06 PT

Fans can watch and wager on the action at 1/ST.COM/BET as well as stream all the action in English and Spanish at LaurelPark.com, SantaAnita.com, GulfstreamPark.com, and GoldenGateFields.com.

The Stronach 5 In the Money podcast, hosted by Jonathan Kinchen and Peter Thomas Fornatale, will be posted by 2 p.m. Thursday at InTheMoneyPodcast.com and will be available on iTunes and other major podcast distributors

The minimum wager on the multi-race, multi-track Stronach 5 is $1. If there are no tickets with five winners, the entire pool will be carried over to the next Friday.

If a change in racing surface is made after the wagering closes, each selection on any ticket will be considered a winning selection. If a betting interest is scratched, that selection will be substituted with the favorite in the win pool when wagering closes.

The Maryland Jockey Club serves as host of the Stronach 5.

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NTRA Eclipse 50 Contest: Fan Vote To Decide Best Champions Of Past 50 Years

The NTRA today announced that voting is underway at www.NTRA.com in the NTRA Eclipse 50 Contest which asks fans to select their top 10 favorite Eclipse Awards champions, along with their favorite champion jockey and trainer, from the past 50 years.

One contest participant will be selected to win a trip for two to Lexington, Ky., and spend a day at the races at Keeneland Race Course, tour the Four Roses Bourbon Distillery and visit historic Spendthrift Farm, one of the world's most prestigious Thoroughbred stallion farms.

The Eclipse 50 ballot consists of 10 horses, one jockey and one trainer from each of the past five decades selected by a panel consisting of media, racing historians and others. The complete list of the Eclipse 50 champion horses and individuals can be accessed at the following link: https://www.ntra.com/wp-content/uploads/NTRA-Eclipse-50-Horses_Individuals.pdf.

Fans may enter the Eclipse 50 Contest one time per valid name, e-mail address and phone number at https://www.ntra.com/fanvote/. Eclipse 50 voting will conclude on Monday, Jan. 25. The winning entry along with the all-time top 10 equine champions, jockey and trainer will be announced on Jan. 28 on the Eclipse Awards virtual broadcast on TVG, Racetrack Television Network and other outlets.

Each day throughout the promotional period the NTRA will release video vignettes of different Champions selected to be among the Eclipse 50 greats. Click on the following links to view the first two vignettes in the series to be released: https://www.ntra.com/eclipse50-horse1/ and https://www.ntra.com/eclipse50-horse2/.

Individuals participating on the panel that selected the Eclipse 50 and Champion trainers and jockeys were: Edward L. Bowen, Charlsie Cantey, Adam Coglianese, Irwin Cohen, Steven Crist, Dora Delgado, Tom Durkin, Bob Ehalt, Bill Finley, Tracy Gantz, Jim Gluckson, Amy Gregory, Tom Hammond, Evan Hammonds, Gregory Harbut, Steve Haskin, Charles Hayward, Jay Hovdey, Alicia Hughes, Dave Johnson, Jonathon Kinchen, Cate Masterson, Tom Law, Tim Layden, Amy Owens, Ray Paulick, Tom Pedulla, Mike Penna, Jay Privman, William (Billy) Reed, Jennie Rees, Ramiro Restrepo, Tom Robbins, Peter Rotondo, Andy Serling, Ellis Starr, Todd Schrupp, Mary Simon, Lynne Snierson, Denise Steffanus, Sonny Taylor, and Jon White.

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Track Records: Was Keeneland’s Dirt Course Faster Than Average On Breeders’ Cup Weekend?

Four track records were set on Keeneland's dirt course during the Breeders' Cup this year, leading concerned fans as well as several horseplayers and turf writers to publicly question the the surface. Those questions led Jim Mulvihill to seek out answers, which he compiled in a feature for the Thoroughbred Racing Commentary.

The facts, Mulvihill said, are that three of the four records were set by heavy favorites, and the dominant nature of those wins led credence to the idea that the winners had run exceptionally fast. Mulvihill also explained that there is a relatively limited sample size of relevant races, since Keeneland reinstalled and reconfigured the dirt course in 2014, rendering previous dirt records non-comparable.

A few racing professionals' answers included:

Champion horseplayer Paul Matties, who makes his own figures for Keeneland races, said: “It was definitely the fastest Keeneland that I've seen in a long time. Even compared to the end of the meet, which was a little fast for them, it was still probably a second faster than those days. It was definitely different, so there was some truth to what the people speaking up were saying.”
Timeform and DRF Chief Speed Figure Maker Craig Milkowski noted that the track condition rating, a measure of final average times, was 9 on Breeders' Cup Saturday. “That was higher than average for Keeneland,” he said. “During the spring, they're usually 6-7 and for the summer meet they were more like 7-8. So it wasn't just the horses; the track was definitely fast.”

Meanwhile, the official response from the Breeders' Cup was that the track surface was no faster than normal on Breeders' Cup weekend.

“Breeders' Cup, Keeneland and third-party experts, including Dr. Mick Peterson and the University of Kentucky, worked together for many months to have a safe and consistent racing surface and there were never any discussions on producing fast race times,” a statement from Breeders' Cup read. “On event days, Dr. Mick Peterson was in constant communication with both Keeneland and Breeders' Cup racing teams to keep us apprised of all conditions. The racing surface and moisture levels were consistent throughout both race days. The fast times are reflective of the best horses in the world competing.”

Read more at the Thoroughbred Racing Commentary.

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$400,000 Rainbow 6 Jackpot Guarantee Wednesday At Gulfstream Park

The 20-cent Rainbow 6 jackpot pool will be guaranteed at $400,000 Wednesday at Gulfstream Park in Hallandale Beach, Fla.

First race post Wednesday is 12:35 p.m.

The popular multi-race wager went unsolved for the fifth day of the Championship Meet Sunday, when winners in the sequence included Cajun Embers ($65.40), My Boy Blue ($23.80), Competitive Speed ($20.40) and Choate Bridge ($25.20).

Multiple tickets with five of six winners were each worth $2,554.74.

There will also be a Super Hi-5 carryover Wednesday of $4,584.26.

The jackpot pool is only paid out when there is a single unique ticket sold with all six winners. On days when there is no unique ticket, 70 percent of that day's pool goes back to those bettors holding tickets with the most winners, while 30 percent is carried over to the jackpot pool.

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