Paulick Report | Horse Racing Free Tips

Rocketry Enjoying Downtime Before Tackling Another Campaign

Centennial Farms' Rocketry, a last-out winner of the 1 5/8-mile Grade 2 Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance on Nov. 6 at Keeneland, is enjoying some downtime at the farm in Middleburg, Va.

Trainer Jimmy Jerkens said the now 7-year-old Hard Spun horse will return for another campaign.

“He had a good season,” said Jerkens. “There's not much for him in the winter time, so we're giving him a couple months off at the farm.”

Centennial Farms' Mihos, a 5-year-old Cairo Prince horse, worked a half-mile in 49.77 for Jerkens on the Belmont dirt training track on December 27.

With a record of 14-3-1-3, Mihos finished fourth in the seven-furlong G3 Bold Ruler Handicap on Oct. 31 on a muddy track at Belmont and was second last out on Dec. 11 in a seven-furlong optional-claiming sprint at Aqueduct.

“There's a mile allowance race next week that we're aiming for. We're hoping for some improvement with him,” said Jerkens.

Jerkens said Shortleaf Stable's Rift Valley will look for additional ground after earning a 69 Beyer when rallying from ninth to score by 1 ½-lengths at second asking in a seven furlong state-bred maiden sprint on Dec. 20 at the Big A.

“He wants to go further. We're looking to stretch him out and then we'll probably try turf when that opens up, too,” said Jerkens.

Bred by Jonathan Thorne, the 4-year-old Pioneerof the Nile colt was a $400,000 purchase at the 2018 Fasig-Tipton Saratoga Preferred New York-Bred Yearling Sale.

Chiefswood Stables' homebred Weyburn, a 3-year-old Ontario-bred son of Pioneerof the Nile, garnered a 67 Beyer when graduating at third asking over a sloppy Aqueduct main track on Dec. 5 when sprinting seven furlongs.

Jerkens said he had considered the Jerome for Weyburn but had to change course.

“We were thinking about the Jerome, but he got sick and that was the end of that,” said Jerkens. “We'll look for the next 'a other than' for him.”

Out of the A.P. Indy mare Sunday Affair, Weyburn is a half-brother to the versatile multiple graded stakes winner Yorkton.

The unraced King James, a sophomore son of Nyquist of the multiple stakes winning Unbridled's Song mare Inspired, worked a half-mile in 49.79 on Dec. 29 on the Belmont dirt training track.

While Inspired was a turf sprint specialist, Jerkens said King James will get his shot on both surfaces.

“He's out of a filly that did all her best running sprinting on the turf,” said Jerkens. “He's doing good but he's still a ways off. We'll see what he can do on the dirt, but I'd imagine the turf will be his thing given his mother. The Nyquists like the turf.”

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Cardenas Picks Up NYRA Leading Apprentice Rider Title In Pursuit Of His Dream Career

Luis Cardenas said he wanted to be a jockey ever since he was a child living in the Lima district of Punta Negra in Peru. In 2019, he had the chance to fulfill his dream, making the first three starts of his professional career. In 2020, those incremental steps led to big things, as Cardenas posted 41 wins to lead all apprentice riders on the NYRA circuit.

Last year was full of milestones for the now 23-year-old Cardenas, who notched his first win with a come-from-behind effort aboard Solitary Gem in the eighth race at Aqueduct Racetrack on Jan. 10. In total, 2020 saw Cardenas post a 41-51-50 ledger in 582 mounts at NYRA tracks for earnings of more than $2.2 million while competing in a jockey colony that boasts Eclipse Award champions, Hall of Famers, and American Classic winners.

“I had a nice start at the beginning of the year and so many people on the backstretch who I worked for were real supportive,” Cardenas said. “I recently watched my first ever race on replay and I think to now and I see the improvement. That's the key. You just have to take care of your own business. It's one of the best colonies in the world and I always wanted to compete with the best, and it's taught me a lot.”

Cardenas moved to the United States when he was 12, settling in New Jersey. His father worked with harness horses, though Cardenas said being a jockey remained his goal as he got older. His first foray into the career came when he worked as a groom and hotwalker at Monmouth Park.

He then trekked to South Carolina to work at the Webb Carroll Training Center, providing a background knowledge that proved invaluable when he came to New York in 2017 to work as an exercise rider for trainers such as Leah Gyarmati, Bruce Levine and Randi Persaud.

“I always had the thought growing up in Peru from the time I was 6 years old that I wanted to ride,” Cardenas said. “My dad was an exercise rider there and my grandfather was a jockey. They used to take me to the racetrack. I was 12 when I told my dad I wanted to be a jockey. I didn't care too much about anything else, I wanted to pursue that dream.

“When I moved to the United States when I was turning 13, my dad worked with harness horses instead of thoroughbreds, so it was a little difficult because I didn't have any connections at the racetrack,” he added. “But at Monmouth, I started hotwalking and grooming horses, and it helped a lot. I learned how to take care of horses and when I decided I wanted to ride, I went to South Carolina and I learned how to break babies and it helped my career a lot.”

His hard work in the mornings paid off with a career highlight last summer, as Cardenas won the opening race at the prestigious summer meet at historic Saratoga Race Course aboard Grit and Glory on July 16. Cardenas won two additional races at the Spa, which attracts some of the world's best jockeys, with wins aboard Vinda Machine and Big Package.

“The first day at Saratoga, I opened the meet with a win for [trainer] Linda Rice, who gave me a great opportunity. It was amazing,” Cardenas said. “I felt like I was a superstar. It was a great experience to ride there and I just feel very fortunate.”

Cardenas, who still maintains his five-pound bug, also overcame injury setbacks. In February, a hand injury suffered during training at Belmont Park cost him a couple of weeks, and a mild concussion prevented him from racing during part of the Saratoga meet after his hot start.

But Cardenas shrugged off those issues and had a strong Belmont fall meet. Working with agent P.J. Campo, Cardenas made the most of his mounts, posting eight wins at the Elmont-based track, before closing his 2020 with 14 wins from the start of the Aqueduct fall meet to New Year's Eve.

“Hopefully we just keep taking the right steps forward and getting the trust of the trainers and go forward,” Cardenas said.

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Jesus’ Team Puts In ‘Bullet’ Workout In Preparation For Jan. 23 Pegasus

Grupo 7C Racing Stable's Jesus' Team tuned up for a planned start in the $3-million Pegasus World Cup Invitational (Grade 1) with a 'bullet' five-furlong workout Saturday morning at Palm Meadows Training Center.

The 4-year-old son of Tapiture who most recently captured the $150,000 Claiming Crown Jewel Dec. 2 at Gulfstream, was timed in 59.75 seconds for five furlongs at Gulfstream's satellite training facility in Palm Beach County.

“He was very sharp. It was an amazing workout and an amazing gallop out too,” trainer Jose D'Angelo said. “I am very happy with the work today. I think we will have a big chance in the Pegasus World Cup.”

The Pegasus World Cup and the $1-million Pegasus World Cup Turf Invitational (G1) will co-headline the Jan. 23 program at Gulfstream Park in Hallandale Beach, Fla.

“He will have two more breezes, six furlongs next week and four furlongs the next week. Then, he will be ready for the Pegasus,” D'Angelo said.

Jesus' Team, who broke his maiden for a $32,000 claiming price at Gulfstream last March, has been stakes-placed in his last five starts, including a third-place finish in the Oct. 3 Preakness Stakes (G1) and a second-place finish in the Nov. 7 Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile (G1) at Keeneland.

Tampa Bay Derby (G2) winner King Guillermo breezed a half-mile in 47.66 seconds at Gulfstream Park Saturday morning. The son of Uncle Mo finished fourth in the Dec. 5 Cigar Mile (G1) at Aqueduct while coming off a seven-month layoff.

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‘It’s Not The 1800s Anymore’: Davis Calls For Rule Coupling Married Riders To Be Dropped

Newlywed jockeys Trevor McCarthy and Katie Davis were made aware of a unique rule earlier this week stating that if a husband and wife are riding against each other in the same race, their horses have to be coupled as one betting interest, according to published reports.

McCarthy and Davis, who were married in mid-December, were both upset to find out about this little known rule. While Davis says that the trainers she rides for will not let the rule stop them from using her, the couple is worried that the rule could have a negative impact on McCarthy's business.

“Trevor is worried it might affect his business, and if it does it could come down to me choosing to make a living or not, and that's not fair,” Davis told Bloodhorse.com's Bob Ehalt. “It's not the 1800s anymore. The rule needs to be changed. We are very competitive. We don't give each other a shot. We're both trying 150% when we ride against each other.”

Davis has reached out to the Jockeys' Guild for help combatting the rule, but she has been told by sources that it could take six months for the rule to be dropped. New York Racing Association (NYRA) senior vice president of racing operations Martin Panza says that NYRA has no power to change the rule even if they do not agree with it.