New York Racing Association | Horse Racing Free Tips

Longshots Fuel $54,460 Payoff In NYRA’s Cross Country Pick 5

Exciting racing action from Belmont Park and Churchill Downs comprised Saturday's Cross Country Pick 5, which returned $54,460 for selecting all five winners for the 50-cent wager with a total pool of $128,145.

Big Engine powered the wager's first leg, defeating Tribecca by a half-length in a six-furlong main track sprint for allowance optional claimers in Belmont's Race 7. Off at 10-1, Big Engine complete the course in 1:10.07 under jockey Jose Lezcano, returning $23.40 on a $2 win wager. Trained by Linda Rice, Big Engine bested an eight-horse field that included stakes-winners T Loves a Fight and Celtic Chaos.

Action shifted to Churchill for the second leg, with Estilo Femenino rallying from last-of-10 at the half-mile mark to post a three-quarters of a length victory in the one-mile dirt contest for allowance optional claimers in Race 8. The 25-1 longshot, piloted by Joseph Talamo and trained by Hall of Famer Steve Asmussen, paid $53.60.

Belmont's Race 8 started the first of three graded stakes to close out the sequence, with trainer Chad Brown notching the exacta in the Grade 3, $100,000 Noble Damsel for fillies and mares 3-years-old and up going one mile on the Belmont Widener turf in Race 8. Two English-breds, Viadera and the 2-1 favorite Blowout, ran 1-2 for Brown, who won his fifth consecutive Noble Damsel. Joel Rosario, aboard Viadera [$13] won his third Noble Damsel in the last four runnings as his 4-year-old Bated Breath filly surged along the rail to edge Blowout by a neck in a final time of 1:32.06.

Churchill got in on the stakes action in Race 9 when Mr. Money earned the purse with a 1 ¼-length victory in the Grade 3, $100,000 Ack Ack for 3-year-olds and up going one mile on the main track. Conditioned by Bret Calhoun, Mr. Money went off at 6-1 but used a strong move near the rail to draw away from runner-up Bourbon Calling. Ridden by Gabriel Saez, Mr. Money completed the course in 1:34.85 and returned $14.80.

The finale saw a familiar face make a return trip to the winner's circle, as Firenze Fire registered a 2 3/4-length score in the Grade 2, $150,000 Vosburgh going six furlongs on Belmont's Big Sandy. The Kelly Breen trainee punched his ticket to Keeneland, with the 81st running of the Vosburgh serving as a “Win and You're In” qualifier for the Grade 1 Breeders' Cup Sprint on November 7 in Kentucky. Off as the 2-1 second choice behind favorite and eventual runner-up Funny Guy, Firenze Fire, who hit the wire in 1:09.74, was ridden by Lezcano and paid $7.20.

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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Apprentice Charlie Marquez Teams With ‘Legend’ Angel Cordero For New York Debut

The New York Racing Association's jockey colony is one of the most talented in the world, with a room that claims Hall of Famers, Eclipse Award champions, and American Classic winners. But 17-year-old Charlie Marquez said he won't be intimidated when he makes his New York debut on Friday, where the apprentice rider will look to build on a successful start to 2020 that has seen him become a regular at Laurel Park in Maryland.

“I'm extremely excited,” Marquez said. “It's been a dream of mine to ride in New York and ride at Belmont. I've had a great mentor in my agent Angel Cordero, who is a legend, especially in New York. Hopefully, we go places and everything goes as planned.

“I don't fear any jockey,” he added. “Of course, they're better than me, but I'm just focusing on myself and learning as much as I can. I'm just practicing and working hard to do what I can to become the best.”

Marquez has registered 63 wins in 394 mounts in 2020. Officially starting his career with seven mounts in 2019, Marquez won his first career race on January 9 at Laurel aboard Sierra Leona, who gave him his second win 10 days later over the same track. This year, he has compiled a 63-57-44 record with earnings of more than $1.5 million and has also earned winner's circle trips at Delaware Park and Penn National.

On Friday, Marquez will make his debut at historic Belmont Park, where he is scheduled for six mounts on the 10-race card. By moving his tack north, he will be competing against the likes of Hall of Famers John Velazquez and Javier Castellano, Eclipse Award-winners Jose and Irad Ortiz, Jr., and Belmont Stakes-winner jockey Manny Franco, who shares the same agent as Marquez in Cordero, Jr.

A three-time Kentucky Derby-winner, Cordero, Jr, who captured 7,057 races, was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1988.

Marquez is one of three apprentice riders in New York during the 27-day fall meet, joining Luis Cardenas and Heman Harkie.

Marquez was third in jockey standings for the Laurel's winter/spring meet and was also third in the summer meet, serving as springboard to a bigger stage.

“Laurel helped me so much and the fellow jockeys and all the people taught me so much about riding,” Marquez said. “Having the opportunity to come up to New York, it's exciting and I think I'm ready.”

Marquez comes from a family of jockeys. Both his father and grandfather had mounts in the Kentucky Derby, with his grandfather, Carlos Marquez, Sr., running third with Hold Your Peace in 1972 and Law Talk running 19th in 1983. His father, Carlos Marquez, Jr., was ninth aboard Concerto in 1997.

Marquez, Jr. has amassed more than 3,000 career wins. In 1997, he piloted Salt It to a victory in the Black-Eyed Susan at Pimlico Race Course, a race which his father won in 1970 aboard Office Queen. This makes the Marquez pair the only father-son duo to have won the Black-Eyed Susan.

The younger Marquez will look to continue his family's success and do it with his own style.

“I like to try and come off the pace; I think it's more fun and gives you more of a rush than sitting a horse on the front end,” Marquez said. “But I think I have patience for being a 17-year-old apprentice. A lot of riders go quick and make their move quick. I like to sit and just wait and see how the horse is traveling and see where they take me.”

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NYRA Partners With Churchill Downs For Saturday Cross Country Pick 5

The New York Racing Association, Inc. (NYRA) will partner with Churchill Downs for Saturday's Cross Country Pick 5, a unique offering highlighted by three graded stakes.

Live coverage will be available with America's Day at the Races on FOX Sports and MSG Networks. Free Equibase past performances for the Cross Country Pick 5 sequence are now available for download at https://www.nyra.com/belmont/racing/cross-country-wagers.

The sequence begins at beautiful Belmont Park in Race 7 at 4:08 p.m. Eastern with a six-furlong allowance optional-claiming sprint. The 10-horse field includes Liam's Pride, winner of the Gold Fever on a sloppy Belmont strip in July; popular 11-time winner T Loves a Fight; and the talented Hidden Scroll returning to the main track following off-the-board efforts on turf for Hall of Fame trainer Bill Mott.

Action then shifts to historic Churchill Downs for the second leg [Race 8, 4:21 p.m. Eastern] where a field of 10 allowance optional-claiming fillies and mares will travel a one-turn mile on the main track. Joy Epifora, a Group 1 winner in her native Argentina, returns to the main track for trainer Ignacio Correas, IV to face a talented group that includes multiple graded-stakes placed Gold Standard for trainer Brad Cox; and half-million earner Talk Veuve to Me, a graded stakes winner trained by Hall of Famer Steve Asmussen.

A trio of graded stakes to complete the wager begins in Race 8 at Belmont Park at 4:42 p.m. Eastern with the Grade 3 Noble Damsel, a one-mile turf event for fillies and mares 3-years-old and upward. Four-time Eclipse Award-winning trainer Chad Brown sends out the talented troika of Viadera, Blowout and Noor Sahara to square off against the improving Feel Glorious, who searches for her first graded stakes win for conditioner Christophe Clement.

The penultimate leg from Churchill Downs [Race 9, 4:53 p.m.], the Grade 3, $100,000 Ack Ack, will see a field of 13 traverse a one-turn mile on the main track. Leading the charge is $1.3 million earner Mr. Money, a 4-year-old son of Goldencents trained by Bret Calhoun sporting a record of three wins from five starts at the Louisville oval. Steep opposition will be provided by Calumet Farm's Everfast, runner-up in last year's Grade 1 Preakness; and Grade 3 Razorback champ Warrior's Charge, a five-time winner for trainer Brad Cox who was elevated to first last out in the Grade 3 Philip H. Iselin at Monmouth Park.

The sequence concludes at Belmont Park in Race 9 at 5:14 p.m. with the Grade 2, $150,000 Vosburgh, a six-furlong sprint led by six-time graded-stakes winning millionaire Firenze Fire for trainer Kelly Breen. Opposition in the six-horse field is led by the John Terranova-trained pair of Funny Guy and Stan the Man.

The minimum bet for the multi-track, multi-race wager is 50 cents. Wagering on the Cross Country Pick 5 is also available 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.

Cross Country Pick 5 – Saturday, September 26:
Leg A: Belmont-Race 7 (4:08 pm)
Leg B: Churchill-Race 8 (4:21 pm)
Leg C: Belmont-Race 8 – Grade 3 Noble Damsel (4:42 pm)
Leg D: Churchill-Race 9 – Grade 3 Ack Ack (4:53 pm)
Leg E: Belmont-Race 9 – Grade 2 Vosburgh (5:14 pm)

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NYRA Partners With Woodbine, Monmouth For Cross Country Pick 5 On Saturday

The New York Racing Association, Inc. (NYRA) will host the first Cross Country Pick 5 of the Belmont Park fall meet on Saturday, teaming with Monmouth Park and Woodbine Racetrack, which will be hosting its lucrative Woodbine Mile Day card.

A full field of maiden 2-year-old fillies will start the action with Belmont's Race 7 at 4:08 p.m. Eastern. Stone Town, trained by Hall of Famer Bill Mott, ran twice during the just-concluded summer meet at Saratoga Race Course, including a second on debut on July 19. The daughter of Tapizar was a $130,000 purchase at the 2019 Keeneland September Yearling Sale. Other contenders in the one-mile turf contest include the French-bred Frankel At Ascot, who was purchased for nearly $600,000 in 2019 and is now owned by Gary Barber. The daughter of Frankel, trained by Hall of Famer Mark Casse, made her debut at Belmont on July 9, running third. The Irish-bred Amortization, conditioned by Chad Brown, will make her first career start in a field that has 12 entrants and four also-eligibles, while Brynbella will go for trainer Todd Pletcher.

International flavor – and the first stakes on the card – will be added to the wager with Race 7 from Woodbine at 4:27 p.m. for 3-year-olds and up. A field of 10 will contest in the Grade 3, $125,000 Singspiel going 1 1/4 miles on the turf. Tiz a Slam will look to repeat after capturing last year's edition en route to a 2019 that saw the son of Tiznow win three straight stakes, starting with the Grade 3 Louisville at Churchill Downs. After winning the Singspiel, Tiz a Slam won again at Woodbine next out, taking the Grade 2 Nijinsky. Trained by Roger Attfield, Tiz a Slam has six graded stakes wins on his ledger and will be looking to become a winner at that class as a 3, 4, 5 and now 6 year old.

Monmouth will host the third leg with a 1 3/8-mile turf route in Race 10 at 4:41 p.m. A full field of 12, with two also-eligibles on the docket, will compete in a starter handicap for 3-year-olds and up. He Will, trained by Hall of Famer Jerry Hollendorfer, won at Monmouth on July 18 and followed with a runner-up effort at the same track on August 22 last out. Duc de Calas, conditioned by Christophe Clement, will be making his first start since March at Gulfstream Park, where he ran second against allowance company. After not racing in 2019, Duc de Calas ran out of the money in his first two starts this year before hitting the board last out.

A seven-furlong turf sprint will mark the return to Belmont for the fourth race in the wager in Race 9 at 5:14 p.m. Ten New York-bred 3-year-old and up contenders, and three main-track only entrant, will vie for supremacy. Noble Emotion, trained by Jonathan Thomas, has won two of his last three starts, including last out against allowance company on August 21 at Saratoga that marked his 2020 debut and first race off a 10-month layoff. The Clement-trained Maxwell Esquire has finished on the board in four of his last five starts.

The Grade 1, $1 million Woodbine Mile will conclude the wager in Race 9 at 5:39 p.m. War of Will, the 2019 Grade 1 Preakness winner for Casse, will now look to win a second Grade 1 on turf in addition to his victory in an American Classic. The Woodbine Mile, a “Win and You're In” qualifier for the Grade 1 Breeders' Cup Mile in November at Keeneland, will also see Casse send out March to the Arch, who is coming off a 2 1/4-length score in the Grade 2 King Edward at Woodbine on August 15. Starship Jubilee, the defending Canadian Horse of the Year, ran fourth last out in the prestigious Grade 1 Diana at Saratoga. The 7-year-old mare will look to best males, and she takes on that class in a stakes for the first time since running sixth in the 2017 Grade 2 Sky Classic. Starship Jubilee, trained by Kevin Attard and bred in Florida, is 18-5-3 in 37 career starts with earnings of more than $1.6 million.

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

Cross Country Pick 5 – Saturday, September 19:
Leg 1 – Belmont, Race 7: (4:08 p.m.)
Leg 2 – Woodbine, Race 7: G3 Singspiel (4:27 p.m.)
Leg 3 – Monmouth, Race 10: (4:41 p.m.)
Leg 4 – Belmont, Race 9: (5:14 p.m.)
Leg 5 – Woodbine, Race 9: G1 Woodbine Mile (5:39 p.m.)

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