Tag: People

Caesars’ Joe Morris Named Jockeys And Jeans Ambassador

Jockeys and Jeans, a volunteer group dedicated to raising funds for the Permanently Disabled Jockeys Fund (PDJF), today named Caesars Entertainment Inc. Vice President of Racing Joe Morris an official Jockeys and Jeans Ambassador. In this role, Morris will advocate for wounded jockeys' financial support, make known the inherent dangers of racing, and help in jockey recovery.

Morris joins the Executive Director of the Indiana Horsemen's Protective and Benevolent Association and Jockeys and Jeans 2021 Man of the Year Brian Elmore as well as Hall of Fame Jockeys Ron Turcotte, Laffit Pincay Jr, Chris McCarron, Jorge Velasquez, Mike Smith and Javier Castellano as Jockeys and Jeans ambassadors.

“It's hard putting into context what this level of participation means to horse racing's fallen heroes,” said Barry Pearl, President of Jockeys and Jeans. “It's more than a response to a huge human need and desire to make a difference. It's the recognition by leaders of another major corporation that the advocacy of former injured riders is one of the most significant in the entire horse racing industry and of which Morris knows firsthand as one of the most successful executives this sport has produced.”

Morris was instrumental in Caesars Entertainment becoming the named sponsor of the Jockeys and Jeans Fundraiser on September 11, 2021, at Monmouth Park. Caesars Entertainment will also be the title sponsor of the Jockeys and Jeans Fundraiser this summer at Churchill Downs.

The love for horse racing developed early for Morris when he went to work on his uncle's harness horse breeding farm in Maine at the age of 12. After graduating from the University of Maine, Morris dove into the horse racing industry and built his experience through many roles. From president of Thoroughbred Owners of California to chief financial officer and vice president at New Hampshire's former Hinsdale Raceway and more, Morris crafted his industry knowledge before eventually taking on his current role of senior vice president of racing for Caesars Entertainment. 

Morris oversees all operations at Caesars' five racetracks, which under his leadership have each set wagering records.

“The importance of the safety and wellbeing of our human and equine athletes is of the utmost importance,” said Joe Morris Jr., Senior Vice President of Racing at Caesars Entertainment. “At Caesars, we believe everyone in our industry should be active in financially assisting our fallen riders and we're honored to take a leadership role with Jockeys and Jeans to support the PDJF and our disabled riders.”

Jockeys and Jeans was founded in late 2014. It holds an annual stallion season sale, fundraising event and to date the all-volunteer group has raised over $2 million for the Permanently Disabled Jockeys Fund. The charity provides a monthly stipend of $1,000 to 60 jockeys who suffered career ending racing injuries, about 40 of whom are either paraplegic or quadriplegics.

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Battle Of The Big Mouths: Announcers Go Head To Head In Celebrity Harness Match Race For Aftercare

Rivalries are an inherent part of horse racing — Zenyatta and Rachel Alexandra. Affirmed and Alydar.

And tonight, Aiello and Prewitt. They're calling it the “Battle of The Big Mouths.”

Race announcers often inspire strong feelings from race fans, as their voices guiding us through some of the biggest moments in a track's season. But unlike horses and jockeys, it's rare that two of them might actually compete head to head, as their jobs are usually operated in parallel to each other. This evening, between the fourth and fifth races at Pompano Park, Pompano announcer Gabe Prewitt and Gulfstream Park announcer Pete Aiello will take up the reins themselves in a specialty celebrity match race for charity.

Followers of either race caller on social media may have seen the two trading trash talk in recent days. (Aiello is a fan of professional wrestling, thus having years of preparation to invent a grandstanding persona.) Aiello surprised Prewitt by crashing a broadcast on the Pompano Park track feed, only to be “escorted out” afterward, and somehow also managed to pop up during an interview spot Prewitt gave to TVG yesterday.

“My partner is better at two things – he's a much better pro wrestling fan than I am and he's a much better trash talker than I am,” said Prewitt Monday afternoon. “But my production team and I are working on one more little thing as we speak. We're not out of tricks just yet.”

 

Aiello had the idea for a celebrity match race several years ago, and this past winter began the process of convincing Prewitt they could harness their substantial fan followings to raise money for aftercare. In the hype leading up to the contest, supporters of Prewitt are asked to donate to New Vocations Racehorse Adoption (which rehomes many Standardbreds in addition to Thoroughbreds), while Aiello has a fundraiser going for the Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance.

Fans of Prewitt can donate here and fans of Aiello can donate here.

“My thought was, you guys [in racing] take yourselves way too seriously,” said Aiello. “We can tell a story that's a fictional story but based on a common love for the athlete, the animal, the horse and people will gravitate to that. We can have fun with it.”

“As Pete was trying to sell me on this idea, I thought it was a little goofy, to be honest with you,” said Prewitt. “But I've been pleasantly surprised by the amount of traction we've gotten, and I've really been blown away by the money we're still getting.”

Both announcers had several industry supporters offer to match whatever was raised on GoFundMe. Prewitt has also had commitments of additional donations from Caesars Entertainment, the Florida Amateur Driving Club, and Equine Equipment, while Gulfstream and Horseshoe Indianapolis have promised to match the donations Aiello raises. The two put their heads together this week and estimated between contributions and match arrangements, they could pull in as much as $30,000 or more to assist retired racehorses.

 

Aiello will be driving Don't Chip Me, while Prewitt will drive Casie's Believer over 5/8 mile. Both mares, their drivers are assured, are “bomb-proof.” With assistance from Hall of Fame driver Wally Hennessey and trainer Joe Chindano, both have done some practice runs with their horses and last week practiced with the starting gate. Fellow announcer Jason Beem will come in to call the event, and has also pitched in making the promotional graphic used here.

Both have supreme confidence in their horses, both veteran race mares, and have bonded with them in the run-up to tonight's battle.

Happy to get a few last-minute jabs in to his opponent, Aiello said that if nothing else, he can take comfort in knowing that his fan base can out-power Prewitt's, no matter the race outcome.

“He has stacked the deck. The deck is stacked,” said Aiello. “I have the outside draw, he has the starter on his team, he has the home field advantage even though one Twitter poll shows there's more fans of mine than there are of his. I'm going to walk into this as the underdog and I'm going to get a lot of people booing on the rail. He's got a lot of advantage, but he's not going to have the advantage of the right horse because I have complete confidence in her.”

Prewitt agrees that the pressure is all on Aiello, who has been refining his race strategy in recent days.

“I am prepared for battle, so to speak,” said Prewitt. “Mr. Aiello has done quite a bit of talking. He's got arguably the sharper horse right now and the most experience. I think all the pressure's on Pete Aiello. There's no substitute for experience, but he better not take me lightly.”

Barbs aside though, both announcers have had fun in the run-up to the event. For Prewitt, it has been a productive distraction from the impending closure of Pompano, which will run its last race in one week.

“I've worked here so many nights, called so many races here,” said Prewitt. “What a different perspective, to be out on the track looking up at the grandstand. All the times I've been here, you think you know every nook and cranny of the place.

“It's been a bit of a bittersweet season, but this has been fun because it's taken my mind off the inevitable.”

For Aiello, the community support around the event has been heartening, particularly given how little crossover usually takes place between many of the key entities. Two tracks, two different types of racing have united in the effort, which spotlights two charities which work together but are often in competition for funding. Maybe that's because both sports have some shared universal truths.

“Whether we work for different companies or different breeds, we all work for the common love for the horse,” said Aiello. “The thing that I hope shines through tonight is my not-athletic-self and Gabe, he doesn't have a ton of experience, we're going to do this and these two mares are going to make us look like rock stars. That's super cool.”

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Will Walden, Son Of WinStar CEO, Joins Training Ranks

A new face in the training ranks this spring is 31-year-old Will Walden, son of WinStar Farm President/CEO and Racing Manager Elliott Walden.

“I just got my license two or three months ago,” said Walden, who hopes to have his first starter during the Keeneland Spring Meet.

“I've got all babies.”

Elliott Walden, who won the 1998 Belmont (G1) with Victory Gallop, won 116 races at Keeneland, including 22 stakes. He retired from training in 2005, and much of the equipment from his shedrow has found a second life with Will.

“He kept a lot of stuff in storage just in case one of us (kids) got in the business,” Will said.

And the best advice father gave son about starting a training career?

“Be decisive,” Will said, “and don't be afraid to humble yourself and ask for help.”

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78-Year-Old Gerald Bennett Pushes Toward Seventh Straight Training Title At Tampa

Five winners since last Sunday have enabled Gerald Bennett to strengthen his grip on the top spot in the standings as he seeks a Tampa Bay Downs-record seventh consecutive uncontested training title and his eighth overall.

Bennett sent out Estilo Varonil to win today's first race, a six-furlong, $8,000 claiming sprint, a week after he claimed the 4-year-old gelding for that price from a victory. Fernando De La Cruz rode Estilo Varonil, who is owned by Bennett's Winning Stables, Inc., outfit.

The victory gives Bennett 31 for the meeting, eight more than Juan Arriagada and nine ahead of Kathleen O'Connell, with 18 days left in the meeting (including the June 30 card, which for record-keeping purposes is the official final day of the 2021-2022 season and also marks the start of the track's annual two-day Summer Festival of Racing).

Bennett has averaged almost 57 winners over his six championship seasons, but he is competing against tougher competition this year, both on the racetrack and at the claims box. Through March, 286 horses had been claimed at Tampa Bay Downs (slightly more than four per performance, by average), with almost $3.3-million paid out by purchasers.

Running a horse for an equal or lower claiming price by dropping it in class is a riskier strategy than ever at Tampa Bay Downs, where rival trainers are poised to pounce when a likely bargain attracts their attention. But with victories the primary objective, taking that chance is often the best option.

“The competition (in the claiming ranks) is tougher than ever, with all the trainers here who have been doing a lot of claiming this season,” Bennett said. “And sometimes I have to put two horses in a race to make it 'go,' so in that case, you're going to have to wait another few weeks before both horses can make their next start.”

The difficulty in getting proposed races to fill has resulted in Bennett starting such quality campaigners as He's Smokin' Now, Arcadia Calls and Confessor a combined six times during the entire meeting.

“But we've claimed 17 horses, so I've got the stock back here (to defend his title) if enough races fill,” added Bennett, referring to the conditions issued by the Racing Office that horses must fit to compete in a given race. “I'm feeling pretty good about it now that we're getting rolling again, but you don't want to jinx yourself,” he said, laughing.

Whatever happens, Bennett isn't going to stand idle. On Saturday, his 3-year-old filly Ready to Film won the sixth race, minutes before the skies opened and heavy rains and lightning caused the cancellation of the last four races on the card.

The 78-year-old conditioner wasn't here to join the winner's-circle scene, or to get drenched. Instead, he was at Gulfstream Park to saddle 4-year-old colt Carpenters Call for a third-place finish in the Grade 3, $100,000 Kitten's Joy Appleton Stakes.

Jamie Ness is the track record-holder for most consecutive training titles, with nine won from 2006-2007 through 2014-2015. However, two of those were joint titles, as Ness tied for the top spot in 2009-2010 with O'Connell and in 2010-2011 with Bennett.

Since last Sunday, Bennett has won five races here from 15 starts, after winning only four races from March 2 through March 26.

Neither of Bennett's runners Sunday, Estilo Varonil nor unplaced eighth-race entrant Irish Dream Girl, was claimed.

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