Tag: People

Trainer Rudy Rodriguez celebrated a victory and second-place finish in Saturday's $500,000 NYSSS Great White Way at Aqueduct Racetrack when Antonio of Venice captured the seven-furlong sprint for eligible New York-sired juveniles, with Heavyweight Champs elevated from third to second position after the disqualification of Brick Ambush. Together, Rodriguez's two trainees took home $375,000 of the available $500,000 purse.

“It was a good day for us for sure,” Rodriguez said Sunday morning. “A very good day.”

Antonio of Venice, co-owned by Rodriguez with Michael Imperio, Robert Cotrone and Hibiscus Stables, notched the first stakes victory of his career under jockey Manny Franco with a rail-skimming trip in third behind pacesetting stablemate Heavyweight Champs before encountering traffic troubles in the turn. The son of Laoban angled out sharply from the rail as The Big Torpedo was pinched between him and the retreating Solo's Fury with Brick Ambush making his bid from just off the pace widest of all.

Antonio of Venice was taken all the way around Brick Ambush in the stretch and found more with each stride down the center of the course to collar Brick Ambush and post the three-quarter-length victory in a final time of 1:24.40. He was awarded a 68 Beyer for the effort.

Rodriguez expressed his gratitude for the result after the stewards' inquiry.

“Thank God he stayed up and that we enjoyed it,” Rodriguez said. “He looks good this morning. He took a nap all morning and he's a nice, cool horse to be around. I'm just happy we won and that we didn't get DQ'd. I lost my voice rooting for Heavyweight Champs in the stretch and then saw Antonio and said, 'Oh boy, come on!' Antonio stole the show. It's good for us.”

Bred in New York by Cypress Creek Equine, Antonio of Venice was bought for $35,000 by Rodriguez at the OBS March Sale of 2-Year-Olds in Training and has since banked $350,744 through a record of 6-2-1-1. Rodriguez said the robust colt emulates his late sire Laoban, a son of Uncle Mo who stood his final season at stud in Kentucky in 2021.

“I liked Laoban, and [his progeny] are nice, solid horses,” said Rodriguez. “They have good bone. Antonio of Venice put on a lot of good weight and matured with some rest. We just go steady without pushing him. Yesterday, Michael Imperio said, 'Man, this horse never looked this good.'”

Rodriguez added no further plans have been made yet for Antonio of Venice.

“We've run him a lot, so we'll see what's coming up,” said Rodriguez. “The way he looks and presents himself, it looks like he's going to be a sprinter. It's a lot of money in the New York Sire Series, so we've got a lot of options with him.”

Big Dom Racing Stable and Big Toe Stables' Heavyweight Champs made a productive career bow under Ruben Silvera and ran on gamely in the stretch as Brick Ambush and Antonio of Venice overtook him past the sixteenth pole, crossing the finish line third 2 1/4 lengths behind Antonio of Venice.

Rodriguez said he was impressed with the way the son of Solomini handled an eventful debut.

“It's very good, and the owners are very happy,” said Rodriguez. “I was expecting him to set the pace; I told Ruben, 'put him in the game and take it from there. Don't let him get behind with the kickback.' We had schooled him in the morning with the kickback, but it's way different in a race. He's been breaking very sharp from the gate. He ran the way I thought he would, and I thought the seven-eighths was going to be a little hard for him – it's a stiff race to put a baby in. He came back good and he's happy.”

Rodriguez also sent out King Freud, whom he co-owns with Frank Witz, to an even off-the-board finish in the Great White Way, and reported that the son of Freud emerged from the race in good order.

“He's a turf horse. I'll freshen him up for the turf now and maybe we'll geld him,” said Rodriguez. “He looks good today. He's a nice, solid, strong horse.”

One race before the Great White Way, Rodriguez saddled Adam Madkour's Sun and Wind in the $500,000 NYSSS Fifth Avenue, where she finished a pace-pressing fourth 3 3/4 lengths behind the Javier Castellano-piloted My Shea D Lady. The Freud dark bay had entered from a fifth-out graduation in an October maiden claiming tilt at the Big A.

“She came back good and I was very happy,” said Rodriguez. “If you look at the replay, it looked like Javier [drifted] out, and she lifted her head up a little bit. She's a wary filly, so she doesn't like to be intimidated too much. I was happy with the way she ran. She didn't embarrass herself.”

The post ‘A Very Good Day’: Rodriguez Savoring 1-2 Finish In Lucrative NYSSS Great White Way appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post

Jockeys Eduardo Gallardo and Chris Landeros escaped serious injury after being involved in a spill in Friday's ninth race at Oaklawn.

Gallardo was unseated after his mount, Tonka Warrior, clipped heels and fell. Landeros, aboard trailing Hozier, was unseated after his mount fell over Tonka Warrior.

Gallardo is off his mounts Saturday and Sunday after suffering a deep bruise on his left leg, according to his agent, Jodie Sinclair.

“The doctors are saying seven or eight days, for sure, and then we'll go from there,” Sinclair said Saturday morning. “No broken bones.”

The post Gallardo, Landeros Escape Serious Injury In Oaklawn Spill appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post

Paula Bacon was thrilled to go along for the ride as her jockey, Antonio Gallardo, pursued a title this past summer in his first season at Colonial Downs in New Kent, Va.

As the chase progressed, with Gallardo also maintaining his customary business at Presque Isle Downs in Erie Pa., Bacon marveled at his ability to stay focused and strong while riding six days a week and making the 7-to-8-hour round trip two days a week for eight consecutive weeks.

“His work ethic is just amazing. Antonio has the will of a lion,” the veteran agent said after being informed of Gallardo's selection as the Boot Barn Jockey of the Month. “He's a guy who just wants to push and push and push and push. That schedule is something you'd expect a 24-year-old jockey to do.”

The 36-year-old product of Jerez de la Frontera in Cadiz, Spain rode 34 winners at Colonial Downs, six more than runner-up Mychel Sanchez. Gallardo finished second at Presque Isle Downs (a track where he has won four titles) with 85 winners, trailing only Bacon “stablemate” Pablo Morales.

During the Colonial Downs meet, which ran from July 13-Sept. 9, Gallardo mostly rode Presque Isle Downs races Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday before Bacon picked him up outside the jockeys' room Wednesday night for the haul to Colonial.

“He would drive the first 4 hours, then I'd drive the next 4 while he slept,” Bacon said. “Then he'd get up to work a couple of horses at 6 a.m. Thursday at Colonial.”

Following Saturday's Colonial cards, they returned to Presque Isle Sunday to refresh as much as possible for the next three days of racing there.

“It was taxing, but he didn't complain once,” Bacon. “It takes a special kind of drive to do that. And winning the title at Colonial, to walk in there without any business from the East Coast and walk out leading jockey – it was a real testament to his ability to make things happen.”

Gallardo is second in the Tampa Bay Downs standings with eight winners, trailing only runaway leader Samy Camacho with 20.

Tampa Bay Downs fans fortunate enough to observe Gallardo's climb from a struggling jockey who won less than 9 percent of his starts in the United States from 2009-2012 to a polished, dependable jockey capable of competing on all stages, are delighted to keep cheering him on.

His expressions and his body language fuel his backers' passion and bespeak his competitive fire, which helped him in winning five Oldsmar riding titles and setting the track's single-season mark in 2014-2015 with 147 winners.

“I'm always looking to do better. All the time, I always think that way,” said Gallardo, who won today's ninth race on the turf on 2-year-old filly With Feeling for owners Reeves Thoroughbred Racing and Steven Rocco and trainer Kevin Rice. “I'm not the kind of jockey who, if I'm doing good, wants to just stay that way. I'm always (hungry).”

With 2,489 career winners stateside, Gallardo is approaching a significant milestone. But 2,500 won't quell his ambition. And although his goals are as to be expected –win as many races as he can, possibly challenge for another Oldsmar title, stay healthy – he will also seek to extend his current streak of riding at least one graded-stakes winner to nine years in a row in 2024.

His lone graded victory in 2023 came on 3-year-old filly Mission of Joy for trainer H. Graham Motion in the Grade 3 Florida Oaks on the turf here in March.

“Trainers give me good opportunities, but I don't have as many as some jockeys,” he said. “When you get those opportunities, you have to do everything right.”

That's why they call it the big leagues – a fitting backdrop for Gallardo's skill and artistry.

The post ‘Will Of A Lion’: Antonio Gallardo Was Successful With Grueling Schedule In 2023 appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post

Michelle Cuozzo Borisenok, a longtime Thoroughbred owner, entrepreneur and philanthropist in the Capital region, and Najja Thompson, the executive director of the New York Thoroughbred Breeders, Inc., have been named to the Board of Directors of the New York Race Track Chaplaincy.

The announcement was made by Ramón Dominguez, the president of the NY Chaplaincy.

“Michelle and Najja both have a deep appreciation for the mission of the New York Race Track Chaplaincy and they are widely admired throughout the Thoroughbred industry,” Dominguez said. “We are honored to have them as board members and we look forward to working with them.”

Borisenok is well known for her steadfast support of women's leadership and she operates Brown Road Racing, a boutique Thoroughbred racing organization that provides a unique platform for female enthusiasts. Through the emphasis on the Thoroughbred, education and philanthropy, Brown Road Racing aims to empower women, foster a sense of camaraderie, and give back to the community.

The stable won the 2021 Cicada Stakes with Just Read It. Since 2016, Borisenok has also co-owned the Thoroughbred breeding farm Old Tavern Farm with her husband Walt Borisenok. She also serves on several boards in the Albany area.

Thompson joined NYTB in 2020, after nearly a decade at the New York Racing Association where he held roles in marketing, communications, and human resources. Thompson is the president of the Turf Publicists of America and serves on the boards of The New York Racing Association, Inc. (NYRA), the New York State Thoroughbred Breeding & Development Fund, the Backstretch Employee Service Team (B.E.S.T) and the Saratoga County Chamber of Commerce.

A graduate of Florida State University, Thompson developed his passion for Thoroughbred racing after being introduced to the sport by his uncle, a small breeder in Florida. Growing up attending racetracks in both Florida and New York, he followed his passion to work in the industry. In his role as executive director of the New York Thoroughbred Breeders, he works to enhance the status of New York-breds and promote the economic impact that breeders and racing contribute to New York.

The New York Race Track Chaplaincy (www.rtcany.org) ministers to the needs of the backstretch community at the NYRA racetracks (Aqueduct Racetrack, Belmont Park, and Saratoga Race Course) as well as surrounding farms through a wide variety of programs. They include enrichment programs for children, teen mentoring, women's enrichment, social service, and recreational programs, as well as educational opportunities, and non-denominational religious services.

The post Michelle Borisenok, Najja Thompson Named To New York Race Track Chaplaincy Board Of Directors appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post