Jaylan Clary | Horse Racing Free Tips

Knuckley, Clary Keep Neatherlin Legacy Alive With Don’tcrossthedevil

You could be forgiven if the fifth race at Louisiana Downs Monday evening was well off your radar screen, but Don'tcrossthedevil (Cross Traffic)'s 4 1/4-length victory in the one mile and 70 yard allowance completed a long and winding road to redemption for co-owner Kevin Knuckley and trainer and breeder Jaylan Clary. Clary bred the 4-year-old gelding with her late father, trainer Michael Neatherlin, and the bay made his winning debut at Remington Park just weeks after Neatherlin died in the fall of 2021. A second open-lengths victory briefly had the bay on the Derby trail in early 2022, but after a failed stint in California, Don'tcrossthedevil is back in the Midwest with Clary and was back in the winner's circle for the first time since 2021.

“I pinhook mostly and I actually got started with that through Mike Neatherlin,” Knuckley recalled. “He called me in January of 2021 to buy in on three different horses and also asked if I wanted to buy into this 2-year-old that he and his daughter Jaylan bred. One of Mike's favorite expressions was, 'I'm telling you, Kevin. I'm telling you. You got to listen to me. This horse is special.' And I had to agree. We settled on an $80,000 market value and I bought a quarter of him for $20,000.”

It didn't hurt that Knuckley was already familiar with the family. He and his father had raced Don'tcrossthedevil's dam, the stakes-placed The Devil Is Mine (Devil His Due), in their Double Knuck Stables.

“She was a stone-cold runner herself, but she had some issues,” Knuckley said of the mare. “But she's produced some pretty nice babies and this is probably one of the better sires she's been bred to in Cross Traffic.”

The plan was to give Don'tcrossthedevil time to grow up before he made his first start, but the timing of that debut effort was pushed further back than expected.

“He was a big, lanky horse, so he needed to grow into himself a little bit,” Knuckley said. “We wanted to start him a little later in his 2-year-old year. We were angling for August or September and we took him to Remington. But Mike got COVID. He got it really bad and it killed him. He passed away in September. Don'tcrossthedevil was actually supposed to start the day after Mike died. We had to scratch him out of that race because of that.”

The loss hit Knuckley hard.

“He was a big brother, a mentor to me in this business,” Knuckley said. “He was the one who got me started pinhooking and we raced horses with Mike. Everything, foundationally, that I know about this business goes back to Mike. I watched his kids grow up, Jaylan and his stepson Lane Richardson. And now I am partners with Lane in pinhooking and I've got three runners in training with Jaylan.”

A few weeks after Neatherlin's passing, Don'tcrossthedevil fulfilled the Texas horseman's belief in him, breaking his maiden at Remington Park by 1 1/2 lengths. He added a six-length victory in an allowance race a month later.

“Both times I cried like a baby,” Knuckley said of those victories. “I mean, I just bawled. Because I missed Mike so much. And I know how proud he was of his daughter and me. And being able to team up like this–how special it was. All of these emotions just came up.”

The two impressive victories led to some inquiries to sell the promising young runner.

“The phone started ringing a couple of times [after his first win],” Knuckley said. “Jaylan priced him at $200,000 or $250,000, no one really bid at that point. His next race, he won again. And did it really impressively. The phone rang again. And finally we came to terms with Mark Martinez [of Agave Racing].”

Martinez purchased Don'tcrossthedevil for $225,000, with Knuckley staying in for 10%.

“He probably would have been the favorite for the Springboard Mile at Remington, but Mark didn't have any connections there and he raced with Phil D'Amato, who had an assistant at Oaklawn,” Knuckley recalled. “We shipped him to Oaklawn and on Jan. 1, we put him on the Derby trail in the Smarty Jones. That was a nightmare. It was rainy, terrible trip, everything, and he didn't do well there at all. We put him in the Southwest and that was a mess, too. We took him off the trail and shipped him out to California under Phil's direct training.”

Things didn't improve for the gelding out on the West Coast where he was well-beaten in three starts. Martinez was ready to call it quits, but Knuckley couldn't let go of his last connection to Neatherlin.

“We tried routing him, we tried him on the grass,” Knuckley said of Don'tcrossthedevil's time in California. “But we just couldn't put it together. Phil has probably 175 horses in his barn and I think this horse just got lost in the program and in the shuffle out there. Mark said he was ready to drop him for $16,000-$20,000 at Santa Anita. And I flat out told him, that's giving him away and they are going to take him. And he said, 'I am done.' This is a guy who payed $225,000 for this horse and he was ready to walk away from him.”

Martinez, who had by this point become a good friend, as well as a business partner to Knuckley, ultimately let him buy the horse back at a fraction of his estimated value and Don'tcrossthedevil returned home to Clary's barn. In his first start back for his breeder and original trainer, the gelding was a creditable second going 6 1/2 furlongs at Lone Star in May. He was third when stretched to a mile June 10 and made it all the way back to the winner's circle as a 25-1 longshot Monday evening.

“If you look at his running line, ever since Jaylan has had him, his Equibase numbers have gone up,” Knuckley said. “From 77, 81 and in the 90s yesterday. His best races have been with Jaylan. Yesterday, he finally did it. He found the winner's circle again and he found it with Jaylan. She bred him, she raised him and she brought this horse back. He was lost and she found him.”

Knuckley celebrated the victory a state away near his home in Texas.

“I went to Lone Star Bar and Book and I was there among a handful of strangers and they were all wondering what was going on,” Knuckley said. “I bought a round of drinks for the whole bar. It was a rush of emotions. I welled up. I thought of Mike and I was just so proud of Jaylan. And selfishly, I was happy for myself for bringing him back, for keeping the faith. We thought we had a big horse, we took our shot on the Derby trail and, as it does for most, it didn't end well. And sometimes you never see or hear from those horses again. And this horse has shown how resilient he is. I am proud of him for that.”

He continued, “As always there is that almost indescribable and unrivaled feeling of exhilaration of winning a horse race. And on top of the adrenaline and sentimental emotions that the victory carried with it, there was an unmistakable sensation of redemption. And when I spoke to Jaylan last night, we both agreed that Mike had that magnetic smile and look of pure joy on his face as he looked down upon us. We could feel how proud he is of us.”

As for what is next for Don'tcrossthedevil, Knuckley said, “I am not against trying a low-level listed stakes, maybe a $75,000 stakes or something and see what that looks like.”

5th-Louisiana Downs, $28,330, 7-17, (C), 3yo/up, 1m 70y (off turf), 1:43.45, ft, 4 1/4 lengths.

DON'TCROSSTHEDEVIL (g, 4, Cross Traffic–The Devil Is Mine {SP}, by Devil His Due) Lifetime Record: 11-3-1-1, $73,292. O-Kevin Knuckley & Pat Heinsen; B-Jaylan Renay Neatherlin (KY); T-Jaylan Renay Clary. *1/2 to Eurodevilwoman (Euroears), SP, $217,408.

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Jaylan Clary, 27, Takes Over Family Operation After Father Mike Neatherlin Dies Of COVID

As Jaylan Clary embarks on her first full year as a Thoroughbred trainer, her thoughts are never far from the man who made it possible. That's her dad, Mike Neatherlin, who died from COVID on Sept. 5 at age 65.

“I wouldn't be who I am today without him,” the 27-year-old said recently.

Clary saddled her first horse as the trainer of record on Sept. 15, with El Pando winning a Remington Park maiden race. But she is no rookie. Clary helped her dad with his racehorses as well as handling the work on their farm and training facility in Brock, less than an hour from Lone Star Park. Father and daughter worked closely together, not only with Neatherlin's modest-sized racing stable but buying yearlings for resale as 2-year-olds through her Clary Bloodstock operation.

Clary has a dozen 2-year-olds to sell this year and 10 racehorses at Sam Houston, which kicked off Texas' 2022 racing season on January 6. Her Sam Houston contingent includes eight-time stakes-winner Mr Money Bags, the 2019 Texas Horse of the Year.

“We did everything together. My dad stayed at the racetrack. I have a little boy, so I stayed at home,” she said. “We have the privilege of having a track at the house for any horses that needed some time. We have paddocks, we have a training facility. We use it to break and prep to sell the babies and for the racehorses that need time. He'd be at the track and I'd take care of everything at home, and sometimes we'd switch.”

“He knew my career was going to be racehorses, so he helped me start my business. I sold his horses for him. That's also how my brother (Lane Richardson) started out, then he branched out on his own and then my dad helped me. It's something I plan to keep doing. The reason I have racehorses is because, say I don't sell a 2-year-old, we always have the option of training and running them. We'll sell them if the time comes, or we'll keep them.”

Clary won with her first starter as the trainer of record, with El Pando taking a Remington Park maiden race on Sept. 15. In his second start, El Pando won Remington's $100,000 Clever Trevor Stakes. Clary also owns the $10,000 yearling purchase.

The stable star remains Erma Cobb's 6-year-old Mr Money Bags, who is being pointed for stakes races at Sam Houston. The gelded son of Silver City was Texas Horse of the Year as a 3-year-old when he captured Sam Houston's Jim Orbit and Groovy Stakes and Lone Star Park's Texas Stallion Stymie Division Stakes. Mr Money Bags also gave Neatherlin his first victory in a derby in New Mexico's Zia Park Derby.

Last year Mr Money Bags won four of eight starts, including the Gillispie Fairground's GCFA Texas Bred Stakes on Aug. 28 in what proved Neatherlin's final starter. Mr Money Bags subsequently had two seconds at Remington Park before the gelding won the Zia Park Sprint Stakes for Clary. He earned it the hard way, finishing in a dead-heat for first but gaining sole victory after rival Competitive Idea was disqualified to second for interference.

“I'm so lucky to have a horse as tough as he is,” Clary said. “He doesn't get pushed around by any horse. In his race replay, you could see he wasn't going to let that horse win. It was a very emotional day. Every time Mrs. Cobb and I win, we cry. We cry together. Because she just lost Mr. Cobb and I lost my dad. So for both of us, we get emotional.”

Roy Cobb, of Mineral Wells, died in November of 2020. Roy Cobb and Neatherlin were partners on other notable horses, including racing and ultimately privately selling future Breeders' Cup Mile winner Kip Deville. Neatherlin also bought multiple graded-stakes winner Airoforce for $20,000 as a yearling before the partners resold him for $350,000 as a 2-year-old through Lane Richardson's consignment.

But Mr Money Bags is the gift that keeps on giving.

“Mr Money Bags has opened up more doors for our family than is explainable,” Clary said. “We have worked with Mr. and Mrs. Cobb since I was a young girl. I take a lot of pride in Mr Money Bags. He meant a lot to my dad. That was the only horse my dad had that was Horse of the Year. My dad had really nice horses, but he's always had to sell them. Mr Money Bags was something he got to train. He was the highlight of his training career, because he sold Kip Deville before he became Kip Deville. Mrs. Cobb herself means a lot to us. We've been through a lot with them, so many highs and lows and she's always been right there. She's an amazing lady. You don't get any better.”

Clary said her father forged his own way on the racetrack, early on sleeping in stalls and tack rooms and never owning his own place until he was 50.

“He came from absolutely nothing, was one of 12 kids and the only one who chose to be a racehorse trainer,” Clary said. “He had to make it his own way. Every owner he got, he worked very hard for.

“My dad always prepared me for the worst. When he went to the hospital, we had a lot of babies at the time. He just said, 'You've got to keep going.' For about three weeks, when I got everything moved in to the track, he was able to talk to me. As soon as it was time to start running the horses, he went on the ventilator. I ran three times under his name, and then he passed away. It was hard, but in a way he fully prepared me. The past few years my dad always said, 'I won't always be here.'

“It was a hard transition. But as far as the horses go, our owners are just amazing. They never wavered. I've actually accumulated some new owners and the owners I had want to send me more horses. Some owners, when things happen, they find new trainers, more veteran trainers. Nobody has. I'm so thankful to have owners who believe in our program enough to know that it's not gone with my dad. Everything he did, I'd do it just like him.”

Clary took over the stable at a time when Texas racing is launching a renaissance, thanks to the legislation passed that is boosting purses with revenue from the sales tax on horse feed and supplies.

“Passing that bill was such a great thing for Texas racing,” she said. “Texas in general thrives off of horses, whether it's cutting, rodeoing, racing. Everything has gotten better in Texas because of that legislation, and it's only going to get better on the sales side. I bought as many Texas-breds as I could, and I believe they're going to sell well because they are Texas-breds. And look how much tougher the trainers are getting here. Some bigger trainers are coming to Texas because these are good purses.”

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Jaylan Clary Carrying On Her Father’s Legacy With Texas Horse Of The Year Mr Money Bags

Trainer Mike Neatherlin passed away last September due to complications from COVID-19, leaving his daughter Jaylan Clary to take over his Texas-based stable, including 2019 Texas Thoroughbred Association (TTA) Horse of the Year, Mr Money Bags.

Clary is still understandably emotional about the passing of her father.

“I was the only kid in the family who loved horses,” she explained. “Learning from my father was a blessing and I am pleased to take over his stable.”

Clary will have ten Thoroughbreds stabled at Sam Houston Race Park for the upcoming season, most notably Mr Money Bags. The 5-year-old son of Silver City won the GCFA Texas Bred Stakes in his final start for Neatherlin on Aug. 28, and has since run three times under Clary's name, adding two seconds and a win in the Zia Park Sprint Stakes to his resume.

“It was both an amazing and very sad year,” added Clary. “I am so grateful that (owner) Mrs. (Erma) Cobb stuck it out and we look forward to more success with Mr Money Bags. He and jockey Ernesto Valdez-Jiminez are part of our family.”

Mr Money Bags will make his 2022 stakes debut in the $75,000 H-Town Stakes on Feb. 19, but Clary hopes to get a prep for him prior to that seven furlong test.

Overall, Mr Money Bags' record stands at 11 wins, five seconds, and four thirds from 23 starts, with earnings of $574,376.

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El Pando’s Clever Trevor Victory Brings Clary First Remington Stakes Win

Trainer Jaylan Clary is carrying on her late father Mike Neatherlin's legacy by shining like a thousand diamonds in her rookie meet at Remington Park in Oklahoma City, Okla.

Clary's El Pando stayed undefeated and unchallenged, winning the $100,000 Clever Trevor Stakes in the colt's second start by open daylight. The 2-year-old Kentucky-bred colt by Outwork, from the Speightstown mare Queen Negwer, had broken his maiden just as impressively by 8-3/4 lengths on Sept. 15.

Neatherlin, a strong presence as a trainer in the Southwest since the 1990s, passed away this September at 65 years of age from COVID-19 complications. As a conditioner, he had, at one point, co-owned and trained Kip Deville, the all-time winningest Oklahoma-bred racehorse in history. Kip Deville, who was a champion horse, retired with $3,325,489 in his bankroll and won the 2007 Breeders' Cup Mile at Monmouth Park in Oceanport, New Jersey. Now, Neatherlin's daughter may have a horse that ends up pretty special as well and her father had a little something to do with it.

“My dad bought El Pando when he was a yearling (for $10,000 from the Fasig-Tipton Yearling Sale in 2020),” said Clary, of Brock, Texas. “We put him back in the Texas Thoroughbred Association 2-Year-Olds in Training Sale and then Dad said, 'We're not going to sell him.'”

Neatherlin knew he was special and Clary's disappointment for not selling the colt has quickly changed to joy as El Pando may have punched his ticket to the $400,000 Springboard Mile on Dec. 17 at Remington Park.

“We're certainly looking for something bigger,” said Clary. “He rose to the occasion tonight and exceeded all expectations.”

Remington's three-time leading rider David Cabrera could not hold his excitement in after the race, especially for Clary and her dad's decision to keep the horse.

“Thank you, Mr. Mike!” Cabrera shouted as he pointed to the sky.

Clary has started her training career with 16 starters this meet, winning four, running second four times, and once third. Her horses have earned $164,135. Not bad for a fledgling conditioner.

El Pando's victory was a strong one, hitting the wire 3-3/4 lengths in front as the 9-5 second wagering favorite in the field of nine juveniles. Two longshots closed the gap in the seven-furlong race as Revenir (34-1) and Kentucky Bourbon (34-1) picked up the pieces in the final strides to run second and third, respectively. Revenir finished two lengths ahead of Kentucky Bourbon. The 6-5 betting favorite Concept checked in fourth, another 3-1/4 lengths back.

Clary owns and trains El Pando, who earned $60,000 for the win Friday night, increasing his earnings to $79,545.

El Pando covered the seven-eighths of a mile in 1:24.13 over a fast track, sitting fourth most of the way before making his move in the stretch.

“I wanted to see how he handled the dirt in the face and he was a pro,” said Cabrera. “Pulling out wide, he handled it all.”

It was the third win in the Clever Trevor Stakes for Cabrera. He also made trips to the winner's circle with U.S. Officer in 2016 and Redatory in 2017. This was Clary's first stakes victory at Remington Park. She had run second in the $130,000 David Vance Stakes on Sept. 26 with Mr. Money Bags.

El Pando showed his talent, doing all the running on his own before Cabrera finally tapped him when he drew clear with about 70 yards to go. The early fractions, set first buy Malibu Thunder and then Concept, were honest with the first quarter-mile in :22.11, the half-mile in :45.23, and six furlongs in 1:10.67.

The colt's name means sagging in Spanish and Clary said he got his name because of his swayback.

Neatherlin finished his career with combined on-track Thoroughbred-Quarter Horse earnings surpassing $2.7 million. He saddled a combined 186 winning racehorses. Clary is well on her way to paying strong tribute to her father's memory with a tremendous start to her own career.

The Clever Trevor Stakes is named after the legendary Oklahoma-bred millionaire who won the inaugural Oklahoma Derby in 1989 along with multiple graded stakes events in his career, while accumulating over a million dollars in earnings. A statue of Clever Trevor stands in the middle of the Remington Park paddock walking ring.

Remington Park racing continues Saturday, Oct. 30 with nine races. The first will be underway at 7:07 pm Central.

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