Another Oaklawn meet is underway and with the Arkansas track offering the highest purse structure in the country during the winter months, expectations are that it will be another banner season in Hot Springs. To discuss the Oaklawn season, the TDN Writers' Room podcast presented by Keeneland called upon track president Louis Cella to explain why Oaklawn has become such a phenomenon. Cella was this week's Green Group Guest of the Week.
“It's because we don't charge $12 for a beer,” Cella said when asked how Oaklawn continues to draw such big crowds. “We just gave away six tons of corned beef, two sandwiches and a Coke for a dollar last Saturday. To put that in perspective, we had thunderstorms and rolling electric blackouts all day Saturday. Yet we had close to 15,000 people giving away six tons of corned beef because that's their expectation. That's what they want to do. It's all part of having fun. It's part of the excitement of what we offer. We continually focus on affordability and the $2 bettor and more importantly, family.”
Cella has made some changes since taking over as track president in 2017, including the building of a hotel on track grounds. Another is a longer meet. For this meet, Oaklawn will be open from Dec. 9 through May 6. Cella said the extended season has been a success.
“It is working,” he said. “More importantly, our horsemen seem to love it. It fills in a gap. Equally important is that the city of Hot Springs and our community love it.”
And when it comes to the question that always seems to come up whenever Oaklawn is involved…
“I get asked that all the time, when are you going to put in a turf course?” Cella said. “We're not going to put in a turf course. The time of year that we run, call it December to April to May, means we might have to start turf racing in April. It's just not conducive for us.”
Elsewhere on the podcast, which is also sponsored by Coolmore, the Pennsylvania Horse Breeders Association, XBTV and West Point Thoroughbreds, Zoe Cadman, Randy Moss and Bill Finley discussed the latest chapter of the Jason Servis story. Servis is facing four years in prison, which Finley said would be a surprisingly light sentence considering that Jorge Navarro got five years. Other subjects included the announcement by the Federal Trade Commission that the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority cannot go ahead with plans to start its anti-doping and medication control (ADMC) program on Jan. 1 and the suspension handed down by the New York Gaming Commission to NYRA clocker Rich Gazer for changing the distance of a workout. Moss called Gazer's suspension “an absolute joke.”
In on-the-track news, the crew took a look back at the win by Faiza (Girvin) in the GI Starlet S. at Los Alamitos and looked ahead to this weekend's action, which includes the GII Los Alamitos Futurity and the Springboard Mile at Remington Park.
Every week, the TDN publishes a roundup of key official rulings from the primary tracks within the four major racing jurisdictions of California, New York, Florida and Kentucky.
Here's a primer on how each of these jurisdictions adjudicates different offenses, what they make public (or not) and where.
With the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act (HISA) having gone into effect on July 1, the TDN will also post a roundup of the relevant HISA-related rulings from the same week.
California
Track: Los Alamitos
Date: 12/11/2022
Licensee: Francisco Orduna-Rojas, jockey
Penalty: One-day suspension, $250 fine
Violation: Excessive use of the whip
Explainer: Having violated the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority Rule #2280 (Use of Riding Crop) and pursuant to Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority Rule #2282 (Riding Crop Violations and Penalties – Class 3), Jockey Francisco Orduna-Rojas, who rode Mr. Clutch in the first race at Los Alamitos Race Course on December 9, 2022, is suspended for one (1) day (December 17, 2022), and fined $250.00 for two (2) strikes over the limit. Furthermore, Jockey Francisco Orduna-Rojas is assigned three (3) violation points that will be expunged on June 22, 2023, six (6) months from the date of final adjudication pursuant to Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority Rule #2282 (Riding Crop Violations and Penalties – third offense since July 3, 2022. Jockey Francisco Orduna-Rojas has accrued a total of nine (9) points. Pursuant to California Horse Racing Board rule #1766 (Designated Races), the term of suspension shall not prohibit participation in designated races.
Track: Los Alamitos
Date: 12/11/2022
Licensee: Steve Knapp, trainer
Penalty: Return of claim amount, $20,000
Violation: Medication violation, voided claim
Explainer: In the matter of the claim submitted for the horse Butkus; Having received first notice of a Prohibited Substance (Phenylbutazone) in the post-race test sample, pursuant to Horse Racing Integrity and Safety Rule 2262 (c)(5) (Void Claim), the claim submitted for the horse Butku, in the second race on October 28, 2022, at Santa Anita Park is hereby deemed void. The horse, Butkus trained by Steve Knapp shall be returned to previous owner Reed Saldana and Reed Saldana shall return the amount of the claim of $20,000 to owner Leslie Blake by December 26, 2022. Furthermore, Trainer Reed Saldana and Trainer Steve Knapp have reached an agreement for the care and training of the horse during the time the horse was in the claimant's barn.
NEW HISA STEWARDS RULINGS
The following rulings were reported on HISA's “rulings” portal, except for the voided claim rulings which were sent to the TDN directly. Some of these rulings are from prior weeks as they were not reported contemporaneously.
One important note: HISA's whip limit is restricted to six strikes during a race.
Violations of Crop Rule
Hawthorne
Constantino Roman – violation date December 9; $250 fine and one-day suspension, 7 strikes
Rishawn Blanche – violation date December 4; $250 fine and one-day suspension, 9 strikes
Mahoning Valley
German Terraza – violation date December 9; $250 fine and one-day suspension
Oaklawn Park
Christian Alexis Park – violation date December 11; $250 fine and one-day suspension, 7 strikes
Remington Park
Benjamin Landeros – violation date December 12; $250 fine and one-day suspension, 8 strikes
Tampa Bay Downs
Eddie Santiago – violation date December 9; $250 fine and one-day suspension, 8 strikes
Miss Mattie Martin – violation date December 9; $250 fine and one-day suspension, 8 strikes
Turfway Park
Thiago Canuto – violation date December 2; $250 fine and one-day suspension, 7 strikes
Zia Park
Alfredo Juarez Jr. – violation date December 12; $250 fine and one-day suspension, 7 strikes
In this new TDN column, Christie DeBernardis will tell the stories of accomplished and/or popular former racehorses who are now enjoying second careers as show horses, track ponies, etc.
Champion sprinter Whitmore (Pleasantly Perfect) and Laura Moquett's relationship goes back to when he was just a 2-year-old who refused to go around the racetrack without some coaxing. Fast forward seven years and that cantankerous juvenile is now an Eclipse winner and Breeders' Cup winner and has been retired from racing as Moquett's personal riding horse.
On Thursday, less than 13 miles from the scene of Whitmore's greatest racetrack triumph, the pair had their show ring debut in the Retired Racehorse Project's competitive trail event at the Kentucky Horse Park.
“We had some issues to deal with between the wind and sun creating some scary shadows,” Moquett said. “He looked at the first obstacle and said hard no, but he worked through it and completed the course. I was really proud of him. He kept his composure really well despite that, which was incredible.”
She continued, “He had so many groupies. It was phenomenal. They followed him from the barn all the way up to the course. They were adoring. It was really cool to see. If this gets even one person to give a horse a second shot at a new career, that is so important.”
Whitmore entered Ron and Laura Moquett's barn as a rambunctious 2-year-old and was initially owned by their Southern Springs Stables. While new owners later bought into Whitmore, one thing remained unchanged and that was Laura Moquett, who was the chestnut's regular rider and traveling companion.
“As a 2-year-old, I really had to focus on him because he was a maniac,” Moquett said. “We couldn't get him around the racetrack, not one lap, and would not go the right direction. We did a bunch of schooling on that to teach him to go forward. We kept him company, even breezing, until the last couple of years because otherwise he would stop in the middle of the track and do some shenanigans. But, with company, he did his job and ran other horses down, which is funny because it ended up being his running style.”
She continued, “Basically, if I was in town, I would be on his back every day. If we had to go out of town for a stakes race, I was his companion. Most of it was great, but sometimes he pushes your buttons and he loves doing it.”
With a stallion career off the table for the gelded seven-time graded stakes winner, Ron Moquett consulted his partners about Whitmore's future when it came time for retirement. Everyone readily agreed to leave him in the hands of his lifelong friend Laura Moquett.
“Ron had talked to the partners and everyone came to the consensus we could keep him the rest of his life,” Moquett said. “I still wanted to be around him daily, so thankfully they were totally on board. He got injured at Saratoga last summer and they said he could come back to the races, but the partners agreed he had done more than enough. I was upset when he was injured, but I knew he was going to be okay and I would get to keep him, so it was a weird mix of emotions. It was devastating in the barn for our team because he was the big horse and had that mojo everyone wants to be around.”
That injury came during Saratoga's 2021 meet and Whitmore was given down time for the rest of the year.
“We couldn't bring him back until late December and I was just too busy at Oaklawn to start him,” Moquett said. “It didn't materialize this winter and I was just trying to get his feet back in shape. That will always be a challenge. I thought there was no way we could do the RRP, though that was all I wanted to do. I thought it would be really great for his fans to see him do something else. There are a lot of people that follow him and were upset when he got injured.”
She added, “I worked with him five or six times in the round pen just doing ground work in late March. Then I hauled him to a friend's place maybe four times and did some basic under saddle work. That was about as much as I could do until we got back to Kentucky after the Derby.”
Moquett and Whitmore did manage to fit one other outing in during their winter in Hot Springs, a trip to Oaklawn for “Whitmore Day.”
“The first day at Oaklawn he was actually decent,” Moquett said. “I think he was like, 'I'm back baby!' Days two through four, I was like I might die. One of the jocks went by and was like, 'He's going to drop you.' I said, 'He hasn't yet! Don't worry, I will make it home.' He was just so excited. By the fifth day, he realized we are just going to go out there and walk. I had the outrider next to me in case. He got out there and everyone was yelling for him and he was like, 'Okay, this is for me. That's right. I get it.' I told them if they didn't get me off the track before the gates popped and we accidentally won the race, I was taking the money.”
Once they returned to Kentucky in May, the real work began.
“He is at a barn in Goshen that the mounted police use,” Moquett said. That was part of what inspired the competitive trail idea. When he first got up here, I just legged him up trail riding at first. The first time I went anywhere with him was in June to Masterson Station for a jumper/trail night. It took me like 30 minutes to get him to the course. He was terrified of all the stuff they had set up. It blew my mind too. I was like there is no way I can do this. The mounted police take their horses to Hinkle Equestrian Center in Indiana to prep for competitions. We went over there about 12 times and that helped him a bunch. He is a fairly easy horse to ride and he will only get better. I am lucky.”
Whitmore's age and experience racing at venues from coast-to-coast have aided him in his second career.
“He has been on airplanes and at a bunch of different venues with music and crowds,” said Moquett. “I think that is an advantage, especially for this class, as is his age. He is a lot more settled than a young horse is.”
As for the future, Moquett has a few ideas, but is letting Whitmore dictate the plans.
“I would love to try the hunters with him,” the horsewoman said. “But, I am enjoying every second of it and we will see what he wants to do. It's his world, I am just living in it.”
In the 1980s the horse racing game was filled with white bridles and D. Wayne Lukas winning just about every weekend stakes race from coast to coast. The slogan which handicappers used was “D. Wayne off the plane,” referring to his ability to ship horses to different tracks and pick up stakes wins.
Several of Lukas's fillies included Landaluce, Terlingua, Lady's Secret, Life's Magic, Family Style, Lucky Lucky Lucky, Miss Huntington and the list goes on. When I think back of my first years working at the track, two fillies come to my mind: Heatherten and Sefa's Beauty. Both mares at one time were trained by Hall of Fame trainer Bill Mott.
One prestigious thing that both athletes had in common was that they both were winners of the GI Apple Blossom H. at Oaklawn Park. The Apple Blossom has been known to attract the finest fillies and mares to the Hot Springs track. The race has usually produced several champions, including Horse of the Year honorees Zenyatta and Havre de Grace.
What also is interesting is neither of these mares [Heatherten nor Sefa's Beauty] were inducted in the National Museum of Racing Hall of Fame. Unfortunately, their careers were before internet so there are no charts to see how they ran. Were they speed favoring? Off the pace? No pictures or videos. The only photo I found was one I purchased on eBay of Sefa's Beauty winning at Fair Grounds. Also, I reached out to Barbara Livingston who had a photo of Heatherten and her groom Randy.
What I do have is some statistics that are mind boggling. Both fillies made over 50 starts with a better than [combined] 44% win average.
Sefa's Beauty was a bargain at $30,000 and was purchased at the Fasig-Tipton Kentucky yearling sale. She was by Lt. Stevens out of Delightful Vie. Sefa's Beauty's record is 52 starts, 25 wins, 7 seconds and 8 thirds with earnings of $1,171,628.
Mott took over training when she was 4-years-old and she won 11 races before going out a winner in the Sixty Sails H. at Sportsman's Park in Cicero, Ill.
Sefa's Beauty raced under the colors of Farid Sefa. Jockeys Pat Day and Randy Romero were the mare's pilots while under Mott's care.
Sefa's Beauty only had two foals, both by Fappiano. One of them, Sefapiano, stood at stud in Michigan for a while, but was later moved to Louisiana. Sefapiano's best offspring was Jonesboro, who was a multiple graded stakes winner and stands at stud in Arkansas.
Unfortunately, she died prematurely on Oct. 25, 1989 at Taylor Made Farm. Sefa's Beauty is buried at the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington. She was owned by Farid Sefa until her death.
And then there was Heatherten. A big, beautiful gray mare by Forceten out of Heather Road by The Axe II. In 1984, while I was working at Churchill Downs, I remember walking through the barn area after feed time and would pass Mott's barn. You could not miss the tall mare in the corner stall weaving back and forth like she was listening to a disco song from the 70s.
Heatherten was purchased for $29,000 in 1980 at the Keeneland September yearling sale. In 53 starts, Heatherten had won 21 races, with 7 seconds and 4 thirds with earnings of $1,022,699.
She raced from ages three to six and had four different trainers: Robert Holthus, John Palmer, Jack Van Berg and finally Mott. From what I can see thanks to the Daily Racing Form and Equibase, John Franks had her until she was sold to [Fontainebleau Farm] for $650,000 in foal to Theatrical (Ire).
On June 2, 1984, Heatherten won the Locust Grove S. at Churchill Downs. Only eight days later on June 10, she was traveling to New York for the GI Hempstead H. at Belmont Park and she won. And 20 days later she headed back to Louisville and won the Fleur de Lis H. again at Churchill Downs. Talk about tough! In total Heatherten won five Grade I stakes races. And, still today some 38 years later, Heatherten's name can be seen in the Oaklawn program as she remains the track record holder for 1 1/16 miles in 1:40.20, which was set in the Apple Blossom in 1984.
She had several winners in Japan. Her best runner was Three Diamond (Jpn) (Theatrical {Ire}) with earnings of approximately $441,667. Heatherten was sent to Japan in 1991, while in foal to Theatrical (Ire). On June 20, 1999, the big mare passed away.
Overall, both fillies ran three times in the prestigious Apple Blossom.
Sefa's Beauty ran second in 1983; she won the Apple Blossom in 1985 and finished third in 1986.
Heatherten's quest for the Apple Blossom started in 1983, but she finished 10th; in 1984 she finished first and in 1985 she finished second.
This week, Oaklawn honored the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame members and one special trainer that came in was William I. Mott. I had the chance to sit and talk about both legends. Mott used to gallop horses that he trained and he rode both Heatherten and Sefa's Beauty in the mornings. Sefa's Beauty he said was easy to train, while Heatherten was an anxious mare that you had to be prepared for her next move. Both girls were groomed by Randy, one of Bill's best grooms, who would always wear a suit when taking his stakes fillies to the paddock on race day.
I had the past performances of both mares to show Bill. He looked at them with amazement and asked, “Did I do that?” Yes, Mr. Mott, you sure did!
