leading trainer | Horse Racing Free Tips

Aqueduct Fall Meet Concludes with Ortiz, Jr., Pletcher, Klaravich Titles

Jockey Irad Ortiz, Jr., Hall of Fame trainer Todd Pletcher, and owner Seth Klarman's Klaravich Stables wrapped up Aqueduct's 15-day fall meet with the titles in their respective divisions Sunday. Ortiz, Jr. earned his eighth riding title at the Ozone Park track with a fall record of 76-21-7-12, a 27.63% win rate, and earnings of over $1.44 million. His five fall stakes included three on Saturday: the GII Remsen S. with Mo Donegal (Uncle Mo), the GII Demoiselle S. with Nest (Curlin), and the GIII Go For Wand S. with Lady Rocket (Tale of the Cat). Jose Lezcano and Luis Saez tied for second in the rider standings with 17 wins apiece.

Pletcher notched 13 wins during the meet, with a total scoreboard of 52-13-8-7 and earnings of over $1.55 million. His 25% win rate was also highlighted by five stakes, including three on Saturday: the GI Cigar Mile with Americanrevolution (Constitution), and the joint Remsen and Demoiselle wins while partnered with Ortiz, Jr. It was Pletcher's first Aqueduct fall title since 2018. Christophe Clement and Chad Brown tied for second in the trainer standings with 11 wins each.

Klaravich Stables won the fall meet leading owner title for the second straight year with five total wins and a final record of 17-5-0-5. With earnings just shy of $260,000, it was the stable's fourth owner title on the NYRA circuit this season. Michael Dubb and Repole Stable tied for second with four wins each.

The 56-day winter meet at Aqueduct will kick off Thursday, Dec. 9. First post on the eight-race card is 12:50 p.m. ET. The meet will feature 46 stakes races worth nearly $6 million in purses and will conclude Sunday, Mar. 27.

The post Aqueduct Fall Meet Concludes with Ortiz, Jr., Pletcher, Klaravich Titles appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Source of original post

Ortiz Jr., Pletcher Win Leading Jockey, Trainer For Aqueduct Fall Meet

Irad Ortiz, Jr. led all riders at the 15-day fall meet at Aqueduct Racetrack to earn his eighth riding title at Aqueduct Racetrack in Ozone Park, N.Y. Hall of Famer Todd Pletcher compiled 13 wins, leading all trainers through the fall meet, with Klaravich Stables claiming the title as leading owner with five wins.

Ortiz, Jr., 29, finished the meet with a record of 76-21-7-12 and earnings of more than $1.44 million, winning at a 27.63% clip. He garnered five stakes victories during the Big A fall meet including a triumph aboard Peter Brant's Serve the King in the Grade 2 Red Smith on November 20 as well as the Key Cents when piloting the Pletcher-trained Classy Edition.

On Saturday, Ortiz, Jr. added three more stakes victories to his ledger when piloting the Brad Cox-conditioned Lady Rocket [G3 Go for Wand], as well as Mo Donegal [G2 Remsen] and Nest [G2 Demoiselle] to their respective wins for Pletcher on Cigar Mile Day.

Despite not riding in New York on Sunday, Ortiz, Jr., who was in his native Puerto Rico to ride at Camarero, maintained his lead over all other riders, with Jose Lezcano and Luis Saez tying for second with 17 wins apiece.

Pletcher scored five stakes wins during the meet, spearheaded by Americanrevolution capturing the G1 Cigar Mile presented by NYRA Bets. In addition to his trio of Cigar Mile Day scores, he saddled Repole Stable's Never Surprised to victory in the Gio Ponti on November 26 and Classy Edition in the Key Cents.

Pletcher boasted a ledger of 52-13-8-7 for the meet with earnings in excess of $1.55 million, while winning at a 25% clip. It was his first Aqueduct fall title since 2018, when he tied with Rudy Rodriguez with a dozen victories apiece.

“We've had a good fall,” Pletcher said. “We had a solid Belmont meet and we were fortunate enough to have a good Aqueduct meet as well so we're thankful. The main thing is you just want the horses to perform to their capabilities. We're fortunate enough to train horses like these. You want to do the best you can with them and it's gratifying to see them do so well.”

Pletcher finished two victories ahead of both Christophe Clement, who captured the 2020 fall meet title at the Big A, and Chad Brown, who won this year's Saratoga and Belmont fall titles.

Seth Klarman's Klaravich Stables captured their fourth owner title on the NYRA circuit this season when taking the Aqueduct fall meet title for the second straight year.

Last year, Klaravich Stables tied with Repole Stable for the 2020 fall meet, each owner earning five wins apiece. Klaravich Stables mimicked that amount of victories this fall meet, which included maiden scores with the Chad Brown-trained Inflation Adjusted, Core Conviction, and Marketsegmentation.

Klaravich Stables, NYRA's overall leading owner for the past two years, exited the fall meet with a 17-5-0-5 record and purse earnings of nearly $260,000. Michael Dubb and Repole Stable tied for second with four wins each.

Live racing resumes on Thursday when Aqueduct will kick off the 56-day winter meet which runs through Sunday, March 27. The winter meet will feature 46 stakes races worth nearly $6 million in purses. First post on the eight-race card is 12:50 p.m. Eastern.

America's Day at the Races will present daily coverage and analysis of the winter meet at Aqueduct Racetrack on the networks of FOX Sports. For the complete broadcast schedule, visit https://www.nyra.com/aqueduct/racing/tv-schedule.

NYRA Bets is the official wagering platform of Aqueduct Racetrack, and the best way to bet every race of the fall meet. Available to horseplayers nationwide, the NYRA Bets app is available for download today on iOS and Android at www.NYRABets.com.

The post Ortiz Jr., Pletcher Win Leading Jockey, Trainer For Aqueduct Fall Meet appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post

Gaffalione, Asmussen Continue Churchill Dominance, Clinch Leading Jockey, Trainer Titles

With 12 races remaining in 2021 at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Ky., jockey Tyler Gaffalione has already clinched his sixth-straight Churchill Downs meet riding title. The Florida-native entered Sunday's closing day program with an insurmountable 30-18 win lead at the Fall Meet over Brian Hernandez Jr.

Gaffalione dominated throughout the year at Churchill Downs with 92 victories and more than $6.6 million in purse earnings. The next highest win total, as of Sunday, was Hernandez with 57 wins.

This was Gaffalione's seventh overall riding title at Churchill Downs. He won the 2018 Fall Meet with 21 wins. The 27-year-old's 2021 Fall Meet was highlighted by a six-win day on Nov. 12 and a five-win day on Nov. 25.

Rafael Bejarano's 17 wins was third in the standings followed by Joel Rosario (16 wins), Mitchell Murrill (15), James Graham, (11), Corey Lanerie (11), Florent Geroux (10), Joe Talamo (9), and Martin Garcia (8).

Hall of Fame trainer Steve Asmussen secured his record-extending 25th title with 20 wins entering Sunday. He was 10 in front of Brad Cox and Kenny McPeek. Asmussen had seven entries on closing day.

Overall in 2021, Asmussen lead Cox by 11 wins with 46 victories from 263 starts. His runners earned more than $4.4 million.

The Fall Meet leading owner title will be decided Sunday as M and M Racing had a 4-3 win lead over BBN Racing, Lothenbach Stables, and Ten Strike Racing. Lothenbach Stables and Ten Strike racing had no entries while BBN Racing had one entry in Race 8.

Lynn and Lola Cash's Built Wright Stables, who had three victories at the meet, could surpass M and M Racing with four entries Sunday in Races 2, 3, 5, and 9. The husband and wife duo changed their ownership name to Built Wright Stables halfway through the meet.

Calumet Farm could also surpass M and M Racing with runners in Races 3, 9, and 10 while Rigney Racing could tie M and M Racing with entries in Races 7 and 12.

A winner's circle ceremony to honor the top jockey and trainer will be held after Race 7. The owners' presentation is pending.

The post Gaffalione, Asmussen Continue Churchill Dominance, Clinch Leading Jockey, Trainer Titles appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post

Chad Brown Records Tenth Straight Belmont Fall Title; Irad Ortiz Tops Jockey Standings

Chad Brown registered 29 wins to earn his 10th consecutive title at the recently concluded Belmont Park fall meet, while Irad Ortiz, Jr. won three races on Closing Day to pace all jockeys with 33 victories during the 31-day meet.

Inflation Adjusted's win in Sunday's 10th race finale gave Seth Klarman's Klaravich Stables its eighth win of the meet, which broke a three-way logjam allowing Klaravich to become leading owner of the Belmont Park fall meet for the fifth consecutive year. Flying P Stable and Michael Dubb each finished with seven wins over the course of the fall meet.

Brown extended his dominance of the Belmont fall meet, posting a record of 29-22-18 from 111 starters with earnings of more than $3.7 million. The four-time Eclipse Award-winner for Outstanding Trainer has won at least a share of the Belmont fall meet every year since 2012. Hall of Famer Todd Pletcher concluded the fall meet with 16 wins. Christophe Clement and Linda Rice registered 16 wins each to tie for third.

NYRA's year-ending leading trainer six years running, Brown saddled eight graded stakes winners at the fall meet, racking up a pair of Grade 1 scores when Rockemperor captured the $500,000 Joe Hirsch Turf Classic on October 9 and Jack Christopher won the $500,000 Champagne on October 2. Brown also sent out Public Sector [Grade 2 Hill Prince], Fluffy Socks [Grade 2 Sands Point], Royal Flag [Grade 2 Beldame], My Sister Nat, [Grade 3 Fasig-Tipton Waya] Pocket Square [Grade 3 Athenia] and Sacred Life (Grade 3 Knickerbocker) to graded stakes victories. Shantisara won the $700,000 Jockey Club Oaks Invitational.

“I have to just thank my team, my owners and the horses,” Brown said. “Those are the three real key parts to the whole success and I'm very fortunate in all three areas to have the best. I have great horses to work with and terrific owners and a really super talented team and they deserve all the credit.”

Entering Closing Day, a three-way tie for the riding crown set up an exciting slate, with Ortiz, Jr., Luis Saez and Jose Ortiz all tied with 30 wins. But Ortiz, Jr. won three races, guiding Carom to a victory in Race 3, leading the Brown-trained Orglandes to victory in the $150,000 Zagora in Race 4 and winning aboard Big Package in an allowance optional claiming race in Race 8 that proved to the be the difference in the standings.

The 29-year-old Ortiz, Jr. finished with a 33-35-28 record in 177 mounts with earnings of $3.56 million. His brother, Jose Ortiz, challenged him for supremacy up until the final race, finishing second with 32 wins while Saez, who won aboard Rockefeller in the Grade 3, $150,000 Nashua in Race 9, was third with 31 wins.

“It feels great and it's always special every time I win a title in New York,” Ortiz, Jr. said. “This is my hometown. I'm happy, I thank my owners, trainers, my agent for doing a great job and I'm also thankful to stay healthy.”

Ortiz, Jr. was aboard for Brown-trained winners Public Sector and Pocket Square and also racked up wins with Annapolis [Grade 2 Pilgrim], Life Is Good [Grade 2 Kelso], Bubble Rock [Grade 3 Matron] and Arrest Me Red [Grade 3 Belmont Turf Sprint Invitational].

“We always compete no matter what,” Ortiz, Jr. said. “We try to do our best out there so thankfully it paid off with hard work and dedication.”

For the meet, Klaravich Stables posted a record of 8-8-8 from 40 starters, tallying earnings of $894,549.

The post Chad Brown Records Tenth Straight Belmont Fall Title; Irad Ortiz Tops Jockey Standings appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post