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Trainer Agustin Bezara Goes Out With A Winner

Reveron Racing Inc.'s Armando R steadily advanced around the far turn, swung wide into the stretch, and powered through the lane to a 1 ½-length victory Sunday at Laurel Park in Laurel, Md., to give trainer Agustin Bezara a win with his final starter.

Jevian Toledo was aboard Armando R ($9.20) in the two-turn claimer for 3-year-olds and up. The winning time for about 1 1/16 miles was 1:46.06 over a fast main track.

“Believe me, it's great,” Bezara said following the race. “It's a feeling with no words.”

A gelded 5-year-old son of Grade 1 winner Blame, Armando R is 3-for-6 this year and represents all of Bezara's 2021 wins from 35 total starters at Laurel and historic Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Md. Bezara said he will be relocating to Fairfax, Va.

“We are going to start some new enterprises with less stress,” Bezara said.

A champion trainer in his native Venezuela before coming to the U.S. in 2009, Bezara had 99 wins from 921 career starters with purse earnings of more than $2.6 million. He is perhaps best known for training 2012 Gulfstream Park Derby winner Reveron, who would go on to be second by a length at odds of 31-1 in the Grade 1 Florida Derby but missed the G1 Kentucky Derby with a leg injury.

Bezara, based in South Florida when he first arrived, also trained Narvaez to a fourth-place finish in the 2013 Florida Derby, three-quarters of a length ahead of 2012 champion 2-year-old male champion Shanghai Bobby. Bezara also trained stakes winner Numb Lips.

“I have a lot of great memories from this business, believe me,” he said.

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Gaffalione, Asmussen Continue Churchill Dominance, Clinch Leading Jockey, Trainer Titles

With 12 races remaining in 2021 at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Ky., jockey Tyler Gaffalione has already clinched his sixth-straight Churchill Downs meet riding title. The Florida-native entered Sunday's closing day program with an insurmountable 30-18 win lead at the Fall Meet over Brian Hernandez Jr.

Gaffalione dominated throughout the year at Churchill Downs with 92 victories and more than $6.6 million in purse earnings. The next highest win total, as of Sunday, was Hernandez with 57 wins.

This was Gaffalione's seventh overall riding title at Churchill Downs. He won the 2018 Fall Meet with 21 wins. The 27-year-old's 2021 Fall Meet was highlighted by a six-win day on Nov. 12 and a five-win day on Nov. 25.

Rafael Bejarano's 17 wins was third in the standings followed by Joel Rosario (16 wins), Mitchell Murrill (15), James Graham, (11), Corey Lanerie (11), Florent Geroux (10), Joe Talamo (9), and Martin Garcia (8).

Hall of Fame trainer Steve Asmussen secured his record-extending 25th title with 20 wins entering Sunday. He was 10 in front of Brad Cox and Kenny McPeek. Asmussen had seven entries on closing day.

Overall in 2021, Asmussen lead Cox by 11 wins with 46 victories from 263 starts. His runners earned more than $4.4 million.

The Fall Meet leading owner title will be decided Sunday as M and M Racing had a 4-3 win lead over BBN Racing, Lothenbach Stables, and Ten Strike Racing. Lothenbach Stables and Ten Strike racing had no entries while BBN Racing had one entry in Race 8.

Lynn and Lola Cash's Built Wright Stables, who had three victories at the meet, could surpass M and M Racing with four entries Sunday in Races 2, 3, 5, and 9. The husband and wife duo changed their ownership name to Built Wright Stables halfway through the meet.

Calumet Farm could also surpass M and M Racing with runners in Races 3, 9, and 10 while Rigney Racing could tie M and M Racing with entries in Races 7 and 12.

A winner's circle ceremony to honor the top jockey and trainer will be held after Race 7. The owners' presentation is pending.

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Jockey Julian Pimentel Taking A Break To Contemplate His Future

Journeyman Julian Pimentel, a Maryland mainstay since 2006 that will be forever linked as the regular rider of late Mid-Atlantic legend Ben's Cat, is taking the winter off to contemplate his future.

Pimentel, 40, finished sixth aboard Norman Lewis' 4-year-old filly Castilleja for Hall of Fame trainer King Leatherbury in Saturday's opener at Laurel Park in Laurel, Md., a six-furlong starter-optional claimer for fillies and mares 3 years old and up.

According to Equibase statistics, it was the 101st mount of the fall meet for Pimentel, 302nd of the year, and 11,299th in a career that began in his native Colombia before coming to the United States in 2000 and working as an exercise rider for Hall of Fame trainer Bill Mott. He first rode in New Jersey before making the move to Maryland.

“I've been fighting with my weight a little bit lately, so I'm going to go home to relax, spend time with family and not think about it and when I come back, I'll see what happens,” Pimentel said. “This is all I've been doing all my life.

“I've never done anything else. I have fun, but it's hard to do. Everything has to come to an end,” he added. “I'm definitely coming back, I just don't know if I'm going to ride again. I don't know exactly what I'd do.”

Pimentel has 11 wins at the fall meet, 42 this year, and 1,806 in a career that included eight Grade 3 wins and mounts in the 2019 G1 Kentucky Derby and 2011, 2014, and 2019 G1 Preakness. His victory in the 2017 G3 General George at Laurel was the first graded-stakes victory for Imperial Hint, who would go on to win four Grade 1 stakes and more than $2.2 million in purses.

Ben's Cat was, by far, Pimentel's greatest horse. Pimentel was aboard for 41 of 63 starts including 30 in a row from June 2012 to November 2015. Together they won 22 races, 17 of them in stakes, topped by the 2013 and 2014 G3 Parx Dash, 2012 G3 Turf Monster, 2012 Maryland Million Turf Sprint, 2013-15 Mister Diz and Jim McKay Turf Sprint, and 2012-14 Fabulous Strike Handicap. Ben's Cat was euthanized at age 11 in June 2017 due to complications from colic surgery.

“Ben's Cat was very important to me, a very good horse,” Pimentel said. “When we went to the Derby, that was great. There were a lot of good times.”

Ronnie Gerardo, Pimentel's agent since February 2009, said the jockey is leaving Tuesday for Colombia and expected to return following Laurel's 2022 winter meet, which runs through March 27.

“This may be his last mount. He's going home to give his body a break and around April, he'll see how he is and if he feels like he can go back down to 118 [pounds] again,” Gerardo said. “He's competitive. It's a little harder these days. The older you get, your metabolism slows down. He's done a good job taking care of his body. He's had a good career.”

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Gerardo said Pimentel first began thinking about taking a sabbatical when Maryland racing was paused from mid-March to late May 2020 amid the coronavirus pandemic. Pimentel had single-season highs of 1,039 mounts and $4,387,978 million in purse earnings in 2001 and 146 wins in 2011, when he also won his 1,000th race aboard Pet Me Pet Me at Delaware Park.

“He's leaning toward retirement. It all depends on his weight,” Gerardo said. “I'm praying that he'll be back because I'm going to miss him. We've been together for almost 13 years. It's a long time, especially in this game.”

Other graded-stakes winners for Pimentel are Divisidero, Control System, Evil Minister, and Runspastum. He ranks fifth with 13 career wins in the Maryland Million, five behind Hall of Fame leader Edgar Prado.

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Trainer Ingrid Mason Gears Up For Oaklawn Meet

Trainer Ingrid Mason said she plans to run Hypersport, runner-up in her Oct. 21 career debut at Keeneland Race Course in Lexington, Ky., in a maiden special weights sprint for 2-year-old fillies opening day at Oaklawn Park in Hot Springs, Ark.

Oaklawn's 66-day live meeting begins Dec. 3, which marks its earliest season opening in history and allows 2-year-old races to be carded for the first time since 1975. Oaklawn normally opens in January. Oaklawn's opening-day feature is the $150,000 Advent Stakes for 2-year-olds at 6 furlongs.

Hypersport, a forward factor from the start at odds of 31-1, was beaten a length in her 6 ½-furlong career debut after being bumped leaving the gate. Hypersport tuned up for her local debut by working five furlongs in 1:00.80 Tuesday morning at Oaklawn under Francisco Arrieta, the filly's second published breeze this month in Hot Springs.

“That's the star of my barn, Hypersport,” Mason said. “I have high hopes for her. She's a pretty nice filly. She reminds me of Sarah Sis.”

Sarah Sis bankrolled $912,667 in a 22-race career for Mason, highlighted by victories in the $150,000 Grade 3 Honeybee Stakes in 2015 at Oaklawn, $200,000 G3 Iowa Oaks in 2015 at Prairie Meadows in Altoona, Iowa, $250,000 G2 Raven Run Stakes in 2015 at Keeneland, and the $400,000 G2 Presque Isle Masters Stakes in 2016 at Presque Isle in Erie, Penn. The Honeybee was Mason's first career graded stakes victory.

A $20,000 2-year-old purchase, Sarah Sis sold as a broodmare prospect for $750,000 at Fasig-Tipton's 2016 November Sale.

Bloodstock agent Christina Jelm, on behalf of owner Mike Waters, purchased Hypersport for $100,000 at the 2020 Keeneland September Yearling Sale. Waters (Muddy Waters Racing Stables) is Mason's significant other.

Hypersport is by 2010 champion older male Blame out of Good Witch Glinda, a daughter of Unbridled's Song. Hypersport is a half-sister to the speedy Oaklawn-raced Mesoma, who set a six-furlong track record (1:07.98) in 2014 at Ellis Park in Henderson, Ky. It was his second career start. Runner-up Race Day won two graded stakes in 2015 at Oaklawn, including the $600,000 G2 Oaklawn Handicap for older horses.

“Mike picked her out off of pedigree and then I told him I was in love with her and had to have her,” Mason said. “He bought her off the Internet. I never saw her, but he had Christina over there, his agent, look at her and said he liked her.”

Mason said Hypersport flashed ability from Day 1.

“She's always been quick and showed talent,” Mason said. “She's destroyed everything in my barn, pretty much, I worked her with. She had a little bruising in her back end early on and then we backed off her. She's been good ever since – knock on wood.”

Mason also trains G T Three Fifty, an unraced 2-year-old Speightster colt, and stakes-placed 4-year-old Lykan for Waters, who won eight races in 2020 at Oaklawn to tie for sixth in the owner's standings. G T Three Fifty, Mason said, is named for a model of Ford Mustang that Waters owns. Lykan and Hypersport are also automobile-inspired names.

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Mason, the second-winningest female trainer in Oaklawn history, said she will have around 30 horses this season at Oaklawn. She won five races from 99 starts at the 2021 meeting.

“I'm actually really excited about the meet,” Mason said. “This is the most excited I've been in a long time. I didn't have good horses last year. It's hard to do good when you don't have good horses. I think I stepped it up a little bit this year, so we'll see what happens.”

Mason has 121 career Oaklawn victories. Lynn Chleborad, who also has horses on the grounds, is the winningest female trainer in Oaklawn history with 126.

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