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Dakota Gold Dazzles In Nownownow At Monmouth

Trainer Danny Gargan probably won't need to do any more convincing with owner Dean Reeves about sending Dakota Gold to the Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf Nov. 5 at Del Mar Thoroughbred Club in Del Mar, Calif.

The horse stated his case emphatically on Sunday at Monmouth Park in Oceanport, N.J.

Dakota Gold, a New York-bred son of Freud, turned in an eye-catching performance on closing day at Monmouth Park, capturing the $500,000 Nownownow Stakes for 2-year-olds by 2½ lengths.

Ridden by Isaac Castillo, Dakota Gold stormed from off the pace in the one-mile grass feature, flashing under the wire in 1:36.31 over a turf course labeled “good” to improve to 2-for-2 lifetime.

After winning his debut at 5½ furlongs in an off-the-turf Maiden Special Weight race at Saratoga Race Course in Saratoga Springs, N.Y., by 4½ lengths on Sept. 2, Dakota Gold showed why Gargan was so eager to get him on the grass.

“I just couldn't wait to get him on the grass,” said Gargan. “We knew he had this kind of turn of foot on the grass. There was some pace in the race and he just flew by. When the jockey asked him he just galloped by. It was pretty impressive. You get lucky and get a horse like this once in a while. I think this horse has as much talent as any younger horse I've ever had.”

Dakota Gold, owned by Reeves Thoroughbred Racing, will likely get a chance to show off that talent next in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf on Nov. 5 at Del Mar, said Gargan.

“There was a New York-bred race today at Belmont at seventh-eighths on the dirt,” said Gargan. “Dean and I discussed it and I really wanted to run here. I'm just glad I got the opportunity to do it and Dean gave me a chance.

“I told him if we win this we can go to the Breeders' Cup, so I think Dean is going to let me going to the Breeders' Cup.”

For the 23-year-old Castillo, this was the signature victory of his young career.

“This is the biggest win of my career, the biggest purse I have ever won,” he said. “It's incredible. It feels great. This is a fantastic horse, a championship-type horse.”

Sent off at 5-1 in the field of nine, Dakota Gold was back in the pack as There Are No Words and Grooms All Bizness set early fractions of :21.41 and :45.56 to the half, at which point Dakota Gold was sixth. Castillo swung Dakota Gold wide coming out of the turn and he simply breezed past the field, with Royal Spirit rallying for second. It was another six lengths back to 4-5 favorite Coinage in third.

In the $100,000 Smoke Glacken Stakes that served as the supporting feature, New Jersey-bred Speaking dazzled a field of open company 2-year-olds with a 3¼-length victory.

Trained by Eddie Owens, Jr. and ridden by Gerardo Corrales, Speaking turned in a sharp winning time of 1:10.12 for the six furlongs. Forty Stripes was second, 2¼ lengths ahead of Practical Coach in third.

“He doesn't know he's a Jersey-bred – and we're not going to tell him, either,” said Owens. “He showed us a lot of potential in the mornings so we have had high expectations for him. His first race he did everything professionally (winning by 6¼ lengths) so we knew he was going to be a very nice horse.

“Today, he was eye-popping. Very nice. I don't know what we have in store for him yet. We made no long-term plans. We'd like to get him to try two turns. But we're taking it race by race right now. We'll see what we find for him next. Wherever we go next I love the way he ran today. He showed us a lot. He did it with ease.”

Speaking, a Holly Crest Farm homebred, returned $3.60 to win as the favorite in the field of eight. The recently-gelded son of Mr Speaker is now 2-for-2 lifetime.

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Golden Brown Scores In Joey P. At Monmouth

Golden Brown isn't just enjoying his golden years, he's excelling in them.

The 6-year-old gelding notched his sixth state-bred stakes victory and the 10th overall win of his career by surging to a one-length victory over Like What I See in Sunday's $85,000 Joey P. Handicap at Monmouth Park in Oceanport, N.J.

The victory was one of six winners on the 12-race card for jockey Paco Lopez.

Though he had never raced at the five-furlong distance in his previous 30 career starts, while also being absent from the turf since Nov. 9, 2019, Golden Brown overcame both variables to outclass eight other Jersey-breds, clocking home in :56.55 over a firm turf course.

“Year after year, he just shows up here,” said winning trainer Pat McBurney. “He's getting up there in age but :56.2 today was really impressive, I thought. He seems to be as good as he has ever been.”

A Grade 3 winner in 2018 (the Kent Stakes at Delaware Park in Wilmington, Del.), the son of Offlee Wild boosted his career earnings to $744,620 with his latest victory. It was also his second state-bred stakes victory of the meet.

“I was worried about him being back on the turf and trying this short but he is a very good sprinter,” said Lopez. “He is one of those horses who can do anything. I wanted to make sure he was in a good position so maybe I rode him a little more aggressively early because of this race being short.

“Every time you ask him he gives you something. I love this horse. Long, short, dirt, turf … he can handle anything.”

Lopez has an insurmountable lead as he closes in on his eighth riding title at Monmouth Park entering the final weekend of racing starting Friday. His 100 winners are almost double the total of runner-up Isaac Castillo (53).

For Golden Brown, meanwhile, it marked the first time in his lengthy career that he has tried something shorter than 5½ furlongs. His racing debut in 2017 was at 4½ furlongs. He has won short, long, in the slop, on the dirt, and on the turf.

“I would have preferred 5½ furlongs over five but he has been sprinting so well this year we needed to take a shot,” said McBurney. “I literally said to the owners as the horses were going into the gate that I did not realize it had been so long that he has been on the turf. The one long turf race he would normally run in (the Dan Horn) was canceled this year so we didn't have that to run in and just with him having been a little sick and playing catch up with him I decided to keep him short and in Jersey-bred company. We can't pass that up.”

Owned by ABL Stable, Dominic Bossone, Peter Donnelly, and Natalie Schnoor, Golden Brown was mid-pack in the early stages as I Like What I See blazed early fractions of :22 flat for the opening quarter and :44.96 for the half. Lopez angled Golden Brown outside coming out of the final turn, going three-wide, and he was able to wear down I Like What I See late. It was another four lengths back to the McBurney-trained Lucky Jaime in third.

Golden Brown paid $4.80 to win.

The final weekend of racing for the 55-day Monmouth Park week starts with a nine-race card on Friday. First race post time Friday, Saturday, and closing day on Sunday is 12:15.

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Isaac Castillo Not Content With Breakout Year, Sets Sights On More Stakes Wins

After a year of “firsts,” 23-year-old jockey Isaac Castillo knows exactly what's next to keep his career on the rising arc it's now on.

“I need to win more stakes races. That's the next step for me,” he said.

After the breakout year Castillo has had at Monmouth Park, stakes victories are part of the logical progression that has seen the native of Panama improve his win total for all six years he has been riding.

This year has been particularly noteworthy as Castillo heads into a heavy three-day workload at Monmouth Park this weekend.

He is currently second in the Monmouth Park rider standings with 49 wins, trailing only Paco Lopez, the runaway leader seeking his eighth title. Last year he won 21 races at the meet.

Castillo also has 87 overall wins from 541 mounts after winning 36 races from 284 mounts a year ago.

“I'm very happy with the way everything is going,” he said. “It feels good to have this success. I have worked hard and the trainers have supported me. I would say it's even better than I expected this year.”

Castillo's other “firsts” in 2021 include riding in a Grade 1 race – something he did twice on the same day, with a mount in both the TVG.com Haskell Stakes (Basso) and the United Nations (Oceans Map). Neither longshot showed much but Castillo was grateful for the experience.

“It meant a lot just to ride in a Grade 1 race for the first time, and to do it twice in the same day was special for me,” he said.

Castillo said the momentum for his big year started at Tampa Downs over the winter and carried through to the Monmouth Park meet. His work ethic has taken that to another level this summer.

Though he has won two stakes races at the meet – the Rainbow Heir Stakes with Belgrano and the Regret Stakes aboard Bronx Beauty – he knows they have to come with more frequency at this stage of his career. He is convinced they will.

“I am seeing what happens if you keep working hard,” he said. “I'm out there every morning doing what I can do to get better. I want to be good and I know you have to work hard to get there. Good things happen if you work hard.

“The funny thing is I am not tired at all, not mentally or physically, from how much I have ridden this year. It just makes me hungrier. Hopefully more trainers will see the success I am having and I will continue to get better and better horses to ride.”

And finishing second in this case is actually something to feel good about.

“That would be a big accomplishment. There are a lot of good jockeys here,” he said. “Everyone knows how tough Paco Lopez is here. He's hard for anyone to beat. So being second to him would be a big deal for me.”

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Saturday’s Cross Country Pick 5 Pays $3,774 To Winners

Saturday's Cross Country Pick 5 featuring action from four tracks paid $3,774.50 for selecting all five winners for the 50-cent wager. The total pool was $53,291 for the sequence that included races from Monmouth Park, Woodbine Racetrack, Ellis Park, and historic Saratoga Race Course in Saratoga Springs, N.Y.

Monmouth, located in Oceanport, New Jersey, kicked things off when Dream About Me defeated favorite Endless Front by a half-length in a 1 1/16-mile maiden turf contest for fillies and mares 3-years-old and up in Race 8. Trainer by Jimmy Toner and ridden by Isaac Castillo, Dream About Me rallied from seventh to complete the course in a final time of 1:45.48. She paid $13.20 on a $2 win wager.

Woodbine's Race 7 saw Hazelbrook record a 1 3/4-length win under Jason Hoyte in a 6 1/2-furlong maiden claiming contest for fillies and mares 3-and-up on the all-weather track. Hazelbrook, conditioned by Lorne Richards, paid $5 as she posted a final time of 1:16.42 at the Rexdale, Ontario-based course.

Action switched back to Monmouth for the wager's biggest upset when Trilogy edged Strong Breeze by a head to win a 5 1/2-furlong turf sprint for 3-years-old and up at 18-1 odds for trainer Ronald Abrams. Trilogy, piloted by Nik Juarez, returned $39.40. The Northern Afleet gelding posted a final time of 1:05.73.

Ellis Park was the site of the lone favorite to post a victory when Amiche won by 1 1/2 lengths in a one-mile turf maiden race for fillies and mares 3-and-up in Race 8. Trained by Cherie DeVaux and ridden by Brian Hernandez, Jr., Amiche went gate-to-wire in clocking in at 1:35.06 at the track in Henderson, Kentucky. She paid $3.60.

Baby Yoda closed the sequence at the Spa with an impressive 4 1/4-length win in a 6 1/2 furlong main track allowance sprint in Race 10. Trained by Hall of Famer Bill Mott, Baby Yoda, under Jose Ortiz, surged to the wire in 1:14.33, returning $14.40. Baby Yoda earned a 114 Beyer Speed Figure for the win.

The minimum bet for the multi-track, multi-race wager is 50 cents. Wagering on the Cross Country Pick 5 is also available on track, on ADW platforms, and at simulcast facilities across the country. Every week will feature a mandatory payout of the net pool.

The Cross Country Pick 5 will continue each Saturday throughout the year. For more information, visit NYRABets.com.

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