Monmouth | Horse Racing Free Tips

Gonzalez/Camacho Suffer Injuries In Sunday Fall At Monmouth

After initially saying he was uninjured following a spill he was involved in on Sunday at Monmouth Park–and even riding two races later–jockey Jorge Luis Gonzalez revealed Monday that he suffered a stable fracture of his L3 vertebrae from the incident that could sideline him four to six weeks.

Gonzalez went for tests at Monmouth Medical Center late Sunday night after feeling discomfort.

“I'm in a lot of pain now,” he said.

In addition, jockey Samy Camacho, involved in the same spill, will undergo further evaluation Monday in Florida to learn the extent of a right shoulder injury he suffered during the mishap, according to his agent Mike Moran.

Camacho, second in the rider standings at Monmouth Park with 29 wins, flew to Tampa Sunday night. Camacho lives in the Tampa area.

“His shoulder is sore, but the X-rays (taken Sunday at Monmouth Medical Center) did not show anything broken,” said Moran. “It could be dislocated, we're not sure. But the initial X-rays did not show a break.”

Camacho hit the turf in the fourth race when his mount, Bingo's Girl (Yoshida {Jpn}), could not avoid a fallen Momma Kim (Noble Mission {GB}) and jockey Jorge Gonzalez. Momma Kim went down after clipping heels with Gold Alliance (Goldencents), who drifted out at the three-eighths mark of the five-furlong grass event for 2-year-old fillies.

Because of the uncertainty over the extent of the injury, Moran did not yet have a timetable for Camacho's return. The 35-year-old from Caracas, Venezuela, has been riding first call for Klaravich Stables and Chad Brown at Monmouth Park, having won with eight of 14 starters for those connections at the meet.

“He will be off at least a week, maybe a couple of weeks,” said Moran. “We should know more after he sees the doctor today. He wants to be 100 percent when he does come back.”

Gonzalez, who has five wins from 42 starts at the Monmouth meet, said he has scheduled a follow-up with an orthopedist.

He said he initially did not think he had suffered any injuries in the spill and even rode Bayou Shack (Shackleford) to a second-place finish two races later.

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Spendthrift Keeps Options Open For GSW Kingsbarns

GII Louisiana Derby winner Kingsbarns (Uncle Mo) remains a possibility for either the GII Jim Dandy July 29 at Saratoga Race Course or the previous week's GI Haskell S. at Monmouth Park said Spendthrift Farm's general manager Ned Toffey.

“We're freshening him a little bit, keeping some options open,” Toffey said. “There's the Haskell and the Jim Dandy and we'll look at those, but we'll talk with [trainer] Todd [Pletcher] and just keep things open. Obviously, it gets pretty tough with fewer spots for these good 3-year-olds. You won't find too many soft spots. We still think he's a nice horse and he should move forward off his last race.”

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Salute the Stars Upsets Kingsbarns In Pegasus Thriller

Salute the Stars continued his rise through the ranks here with a determined victory in the Pegasus S. at Monmouth Park.

Coming into the race riding a two race win-streak which began when he wrapped his juvenile season with a victory against maidens at Ellis on the grass, he moved from John Ortiz to Brad Cox before his seasonal bow last out May 14 in an off-turf allowance. Winning there by a neck, he was made the 5-2 second choice behind Kingsbarns, who was reappearing for the first time since his 14th place in the GI Kentucky Derby. Bumped and steadied at the start, Salute the Stars pulled early for his head, leaving him rank entering the clubhouse turn. Joel Rosario was finally able to reason with his charge as he settled in fourth off the rail on the backstretch, and slowly inched closer from the three path in the final bend. Rallying to the outside of runners, he set his sights on Kingsbarn passing the furlong marker and surged late to run that one down by a neck on the wire.

“I was not feeling good on the backside. He was too aggressive going into the first turn. On the backside Joel did a good job getting him to relax. Even at the three-eighths pole I thought `he's not going anywhere.',” admitted Trace Messina, Brad Cox's assistant. “But when he straightened out he got going. We'll see [on the GI Haskell]. Obviously that's an option. We have a lot of 3-year-olds in this division. But that's a possibility for sure.”

The most accomplished runner of his siblings thus far, Salute the Stars is the first black-type winner for Star Sighting. He has a 2-year-old full-sister Jazz Party, and a 2023 half-sister by Hard Spun. Said dam herself hails from a busy family as the half-sister to MGISW Carpe Diem (Giant's Causeway); GISW & MGSW Farrell (Malibu Moon); MGSP Doncaster Rover (War Chant); GISW J. B.'s Thunder (Thunder Gulch); and GSP Semper Fortis (Distorted Humor). Click for the Equibase.com chart or VIDEO, sponsored by TVG.

PEGASUS S., $150,000, Monmouth, 6-17, 3yo, 1 1/16m, 1:43.87, ft.
1–SALUTE THE STARS, 120, c, 3, by Candy Ride (Arg)
1st Dam: Star Sighting, by Malibu Moon
2nd Dam: Rebridled Dreams, by Unbridled's Song
3rd Dam: Key Cents, by Corridor Key
1ST BLACK TYPE WIN. O/B-Gary & Mary West Stables Inc. (KY); T-Brad H. Cox; J-Joel Rosario. $90,000. Lifetime Record: 4-3-1-0, $210,960.
2–Kingsbarns, 122, c, 3, Uncle Mo–Lady Tapit, by Tapit. ($250,000 Ylg '21 FTSAUG; $800,000 2yo '22 FTFMAR). O-Spendthrift Farm LLC; B-Parks Investment Group, LLC (KY); T-Todd A. Pletcher. $30,000.
3–Howgreatisnate, 122, g, 3, Speightster–Bee Dees Bid, by Tapit. ($67,000 Ylg '21 KEESEP). O-Imaginary Stables; B-B. D. Gibbs Farm, LLC (KY); T-Elizabeth L. Dobles. $15,000.
Margins: NK, 2 1/4, NO. Odds: 2.90, 0.50, 10.20.
Also Ran: Subrogate, Classic Catch, No Confession. Scratched: Alternate Reality, Moreau.

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Chris Griffin Named New Track Announcer at Monmouth Park

Parx track announcer Chris Griffin has been named the new track announcer at Monmouth Park starting with the 2023 meet that gets underway in May.

Griffin, the back-up announcer at Monmouth Park since 2020, will replace Frank Mirahmadi, who is taking over as the track announcer at Saratoga next summer after eight years at Monmouth Park. Mirahmadi is also the track announcer at Santa Anita.

The 41-year-old Griffin was also recently named the track announcer for the Aqueduct winter meet that runs from January through April.

“We're pleased to have Chris Griffin join us as our full-time announcer. There has been a tremendous legacy in the Monmouth Park announcer's booth for the past 50 years, from Bob Weems to Larry Collmus to Travis Stone to Frank Mirahmadi, and we feel Chris will carry on that tradition,” said Dennis Drazin, Chairman and CEO of Darby Development LLC, operators of Monmouth Park.

Griffin has been the track announcer at Parx since April of 2021, filling in at Monmouth Park in Mirahmadi's absence for the past three years as well. He also serves as the track announcer for the Monmouth-at-Meadowlands meet and will continue in that role going forward.

“It's an honor. I'm humbled,” said Griffin. “It's nice when you feel like you have worked really hard to achieve your goals of what you want to do career-wise and where you want to be.

“I have gotten to know some of the people at Monmouth Park over the past three years. To be able to fill in over that time, and to do so for Frank Mirahmadi, someone I respect immensely in this industry and as an announcer, has meant a lot to me. It's a great opportunity to be able to now get to do this full-time at Monmouth Park.”

Griffin, who hails from Santa Monica, Calif., got his announcing start with the National Hot Rod Association and Harlem Globetrotters, moving on to call races at the Humboldt County Fair in Ferndale, Calif. He has been the announcer for a variety of California fair meets as well as Portland Meadows, Los Alamitos and Gulfstream Park West.

Griffin was named the track announcer at Sam Houston in 2018. He also filled in at the Belmont Park fall meet in 2021.

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