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Scott Wells To Retire As President And GM At Remington Park, Lone Star

Remington Park and Lone Star Park president and general manager Scott Wells will retire from his position this fall. Global Gaming Solutions, LLC, owner of Remington Park and Lone Star Park, announced Wells' decision Thursday.

Wells was on staff at Remington Park for three years beginning in 1990 soon after the the Oklahoma City, Okla., track first opened for live racing in 1988. Wells returned to Remington to his present position in 2005 and has directed operations at the track since then. He assumed the role of president and general manager at Lone Star Park in Grand Prairie, Texas, in 2013.

“Scott Wells is an icon in the horse racing industry and a mainstay at Remington Park across parts of four decades,” said Skip Seeley, CEO of Global Gaming Solutions. “His steady guidance and his deep expertise of track operations have been integral to the success of both Remington Park and Lone Star Park in Texas. He helped create Remington Park as a destination in the racing industry and he leaves a legacy of superlative service both to horsemen and racing fans in Oklahoma, across the country and around the world,”

A native Oklahoman, Wells trained Quarter Horses and Thoroughbreds for 17 years, including training the winner of the state's first official Thoroughbred race, Ye Song, at Blue Ribbon Downs in 1984. Wells finishes his career with 31 years of racetrack management, managing five racetracks in three countries.

In 1990, Scott became a columnist for the Daily Racing Form. He rose through the ranks as a Remington Park employee through 1992. He then served as assistant general manager at Hollywood Park in California, then general manager of Ruidoso Downs in New Mexico. In 1999, Wells was hired by Lone Star Park to reopen the national racetracks of Mexico and Uruguay, as well as for consulting jobs in other Latin American countries.

With passage of State Question 712 in Oklahoma in November 2004, Wells returned to the United States and became president and general manager of Remington Park, a position he has held for more than 16 years.

Wells says Remington Park is his all-time favorite racetrack. “Through all the accomplishments, the changes and the challenges in racing, working with the Remington Park team has been the highlight of my career. From the hundreds of employees to the thousands of customers and people involved directly in the horse business, I have been blessed with friendships which will last a lifetime.

“I am eternally grateful for the leadership of Global Gaming Solutions and the Chickasaw Nation for entrusting me with the reins of both Remington Park and Lone Star Park. For me it has been a constant labor of love and there's no denying I will feel a special pang of remorse when I hand off that final trophy for the Springboard Mile on December 17. However, I know the traditions of excellence started by that initial leadership group of 1988 will continue long after I have moved on.”

Wells will remain in his position through the end of the Remington Park Thoroughbred meet, which ends December 17, 2021.

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Nick Tammaro Named Track Announcer At Sam Houston Race Park

Sam Houston Race Park is pleased to announce that Nick Tammaro will assume the role of track announcer when the 2022 live racing season gets underway on Jan. 6. The Houston native will call races for the 50-day Thoroughbred live racing season as well as the 25-day Quarter Horse meet, which runs from April 22-June 18.

Tammaro, 37, has been a racing fan since childhood, making his first trip to Fair Grounds in New Orleans with his father when he was just six. He attended races at Trinity Meadows regularly growing up in the Dallas area and was hooked on the game by the time he went to the 1993 Belmont Stakes. He has been involved in the racing industry for over 13 years as public handicapper, speed figure maker and odds maker. His handicapping skills have earned him eight trips to the National Handicapping Challenge in Las Vegas as well as a top 5 finish in the Breeders' Cup Betting Challenge.

Born in Houston, Tammaro has been an enthusiastic supporter of Sam Houston Race Park for over two decades.

“I was there the second day that Sam Houston opened in 1994,” said Tammaro. “I have always loved horseracing; it's in my blood and I still feel the excitement every time I walk into the track.”

He credits track announcer Travis Stone for giving him the opportunity to call his first race at Louisiana Downs twelve years ago. When Sam Houston Race Park's previous announcer Chris Griffin departed for Parx, Tammaro was given the opportunity to call races for six weeks during the Quarter Horse season.

“It was a lot of fun and I am excited to join the fraternity of announcers,” he added. “Racing is on the upswing at Sam Houston Race Park and the sky is blue as we head into 2022.”

Tammaro, who earned in B.A. at the University of Dallas and M.B.A. at the University of Houston, resides in Pearland, a growing suburb south of downtown. He and his wife, Norma, are proud parents of a 2-year-old daughter, Alessandra.

“Nick has been a part of the Sam Houston Race Park team for many years as our morning-line oddsmaker and guest handicapper,” said Sam Houston Race Park's Senior Director of Racing Operations Frank Hopf. “He did a tremendous job calling races during our Quarter Horse meet. His passion for the sport of horseracing is contagious and will be a major asset to our team.”

Sam Houston Race Park's 2021 live racing season ended on Aug. 7 and officials reported that handle numbers, previously announced following the Thoroughbred meet, continued on a high note throughout the 42-day Quarter Horse racing season.

2021 Total: $26,641,427 42 Days $619,568 Average per Day

2019 Total: $9,012,707 20 Days $450,635 Average per Day

“We were pleased to see the increases in handle continue into our Quarter Horse meet,” said Sam Houston Race Park's General Manager Dwight Berube. “Our goal heading into 2021 was to offer a quality racing program for both breeds. We are grateful for the support from our horsemen and women as well our loyal horseplayers who responded strongly to our industry-low takeouts and full complement of wagering opportunities.”

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CHRB’s Dr. Gregory Ferraro Named Laffit Pincay Award Recipient

Dr. Gregory Ferraro, the current chairman of the California Horse Racing Board and a veterinarian for over half a century who has made an enduring impact on California racing as a practicing veterinarian, an equine surgeon and a medical executive, has been named the 17th recipient of the Laffit Pincay, Jr. Award. He'll be honored in that role at Del Mar with ceremonies during this Saturday's TVG Pacific Classic Day program.

The Pincay Award, named for and presented by the Hall of Fame rider, goes to those who have served the sport “with integrity, extraordinary dedication, determination and distinction.”

“I can think of few people who fit the requirements for this award better than Dr. Ferraro,” stated Pincay. “He has been a champion for horses and horse people throughout his life and his mark on our game will go on and on. He most certainly deserves this award and it will be my honor to salute him with it.”

Dr. Ferraro, 75, a native of San Francisco and a graduate of University of California, Davis and the renowned UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine, was a working veterinarian and surgeon on the tracks of Southern California for 27 years. Subsequently, he accepted the position of Director of the Center for Equine Health at UC Davis where for 17 years he led efforts to promote research and education in equine medicine to the advantage and health of all breeds of horses.

His list of accomplishments across his stellar career is exceptional. It was Dr. Ferraro who designed and developed the horse ambulances that are used on North American tracks. Working in partnership, he also developed a splint that can be applied to stabilize lower leg injuries in horses.

Among his other innovations and insights, Dr. Ferraro was among the first to adapt human arthroscopic surgical techniques to horses. He also co-founded the Southern California Equine Foundation, a humane society whose goal was to stop animal suffering. Among other things, that group established equine hospitals on the backstretches of Hollywood Park and Santa Anita Park, the latter of which continues to provide diagnostic, surgical and medical services to injured horses.

One of his colleagues at the University of Davis' Center for Equine Health, Dr. Carrio Finno, DVM, PhD, spoke highly of Dr. Ferraro's leadership in that role:

“Dr. Ferraro's application of scientific studies to support critical decisions has revolutionized the industry's approach to Thoroughbred racing, health and safety,” she said. “Through advocating and facilitating collaborations between equine clinicians and basic science researchers, (he) set the stage for bringing the brightest minds together to advance equine health.”

Dr. Ferraro has lent his expertise to many industry organizations and boards and has held numerous leadership positions including those of the Racing Board Medication Committee, the Southern California Equine Foundation, the International Animal Welfare Training Institute and the Dolly Green Research Foundation. He is currently a member of the American Association of Equine Practitioners and the American Veterinary Medical Association.

Pincay was at one point the world's winningest jockey with 9,530 victories. He rode for 39 seasons, including 27 summers at Del Mar, where he is still the leading rider with 1,011 firsts. The Panamanian native was voted five Eclipse Awards as the nation's foremost rider and led the country in earnings seven times. Now 74-years-old, he lives in Arcadia near Santa Anita Park and maintains a close connection to the game.

The list of previous Pincay Award winners follows:

2019 – Julie Krone

2018 – Martine Bellocq

2017 – Mike Smith

2016 – Chris McCarron

2015 – Victor Espinoza

2014 – Art Sherman

2013 – Eddie Delahoussaye

2012 – John Harris

2011 – Jerry/Ann Moss

2010 – Oak Tree Racing Assn.

2009 – Merlin Volzke

2008 – Pete Pedersen

2007 – Elwood (Bud) Johnston

2006 – Mel/Warren Stute

2005 – Noble Threewitt

2004 – Bob Benoit

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Spendthrift’s B. Wayne Hughes Dies At 87

B. Wayne Hughes died peacefully Wednesday in his home at his beloved Spendthrift Farm, with loving family by his side.

The longtime horse racing visionary and leader – best known within the industry for returning Spendthrift to prominence – was 87.

Hughes had been one of the sport's most influential figures of the 21st century, with wide-ranging contributions that will forever impact Thoroughbred breeding and racing. He purchased Spendthrift in 2004 and traded in his residence of California for a life on the farm in Lexington. Hughes quickly began restoring the historic brand and its land, renovating almost all the farm's signature structures and returning Spendthrift as a viable commercial breeding operation.

In 2008, he stood his first four home-raced stallions led by emerging kingpin sire Malibu Moon, who passed away this May at the age of 24. Hughes would revolutionize the business relationship between stallion owner and mare owner through ground-breaking programs, most notably “Share The Upside” which he designed to bonus the breeder with a vested interest in a stallion. Under Hughes, Spendthrift's slogan became “The Breeders' Farm” and he operated under a motto heard often by those who worked with him: 'Breeders are the backbone of our industry'.

“We have to take care of the breeder and level the playing field between stallion owner and breeder,” said Hughes, upon launching Share The Upside in 2010. “You have people here, they have a farm, they need to sell their foal, they need to have a chance of making money. I need to provide the best investment programs I can. Breeders participate in making these stallions, so they should be participating in the success, too.”

The inaugural stallion he offered through the Share The Upside program was his home-raced Grade One winner Into Mischief, who is now one of the most valuable horses in the world after a meteoric ascent to the top of the stallion ranks. Into Mischief is the reigning champion general sire in North America in 2019 & 2020 and is on a record-setting pace again in 2021.

Hughes also experienced his greatest successes as a racehorse owner with close relatives to Into Mischief. Beholder, a younger half-sister to the great sire, campaigned in Hughes' famed quartered purple and orange colors to become one of only three female horses in history to be a four-time champion after taking Eclipse Award honors in 2012, 2013, 2015 & 2016. She was a three-time Breeders' Cup champ and won 11 Grade Ones before retiring to Spendthrift where she currently resides as a broodmare.

After Beholder dominated males by 8 ¼ lengths in the 2015 Pacific Classic (G1) at Del Mar, Hughes said: “I've had a few good horses in the past, but she is the first horse that makes me feel lucky to be the owner. I've never had that feeling before. I think it's called pride.”

Last year, Hughes, in his 50th year as a racehorse owner, achieved the single greatest feat in horse racing by winning the elusive Kentucky Derby (G1) with the three-year-old colt Authentic – a son of Into Mischief. Authentic had become the embodiment of the pioneer spirit of Hughes, whose innovative marketing 10 years prior had given Into Mischief the best opportunity to become a successful sire. Authentic also represented that spirit through MyRacehorse.com, an upstart online horse racing ownership company that Hughes boldly championed by offering anyone with $206 an equity-based microshare of his Kentucky Derby contender.

Nearly one year ago, Authentic won the Derby for Hughes, his partners and 5,314 every-day people who had bought in and came along for the journey. Authentic would go on to win the Breeders' Cup Classic (G1) over older horses last November with Hughes in attendance at Keeneland to accept the trophy in the winner's circle. It would be the colt's final start before retiring to stud duty at Spendthrift and being named as North America's 'Horse of the Year' for 2020.

Born Bradley Wayne in Gotebo, Oklahoma, Hughes was raised the son of a sharecropper. He moved to California as a child and was introduced to horse racing by his father who took him to Santa Anita Park for the first time as an 11-year-old. Hughes was renowned for having an unparalleled work ethic from a young age, starting a newspaper delivery route as a teenager to help pay for college. He served as an officer in the Navy and went on to graduate from the University of Southern California before achieving tremendous success in business, starting such companies as Public Storage and American Homes 4 Rent.

Shortly after retiring as CEO of Public Storage in 2002, he turned much of his focus to horse racing and campaigned his first champion racehorse in 2003 when 2-year-old colt Action This Day captured the Breeders' Cup Juvenile (G1) at Hughes' home track of Santa Anita. It would be his first of six Breeders' Cup wins and six Eclipse Award wins.

Said Hughes after being honored as the 2020 Galbreath Award winner by the University of Louisville: “Thoroughbred horse racing has been a tremendous passion of mine ever since my father took me to the races as a young boy. It's something he and I got to share together, and I've been fortunate to be able to make it a large part of my life and share it with so many that are dear to me. There are few thrills greater than what horse racing can provide, and it is our responsibility to do a better job of improving this great sport so that future generations can enjoy it as much as I have.”

To have known Wayne Hughes is to know he loved life, his country, USC and its football team, the horses, and his family. Following the death of his youngest son Parker in 1998, Hughes passionately committed himself to the curing of childhood Leukemia, ultimately accomplishing astonishing results in that area.

Hughes was preceded in death by his father William Lawrence, his mother Blanche, and his son Parker. He is survived by his wife Patricia, his son Wayne Jr. (Molly), his daughter Tamara Gustavson (Eric), his grandchildren Kylie Barraza (Pat), Skylar Hughes, Grant and Greer Gustavson, his sister Sue Caldwell and family, Frank, Bill, Allen, and a host of beloved cousins and friends.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations to the B. Wayne Hughes Fund at UK HealthCare, P.O. Box 34184, Lexington, KY, 40588.

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