Tag: Preakness Stakes

Southern California Shipper Rombauer Tops Saturday’s El Camino Real Derby

A field of nine is entered to take flight in the feature race at Golden Gate Fields on Saturday afternoon, the Grade 3, $100,000 El Camino Real Derby for 3-year-olds. The El Camino Real Derby, run at the distance of one mile and an eighth on the “all-weather” Tapeta main track, offers ten Kentucky Derby points to the winner and an all-expenses paid, free berth into the second leg of the Triple Crown, the Preakness Stakes. In order for the winner to earn the latter incentive, he or she must be Triple Crown nominated.

This year's El Camino Real Derby field is packed with Southern California shippers. The likely favorite, Rombauer, draws the outside post in the field of nine and is one of six entrants who make the trip north from their home base at Santa Anita Park. Rombauer makes his 3-year-old debut in the El Camino Real Derby, having most recently placed fifth in the Grade 1 Breeders Cup Juvenile in November. Earlier in the fall, Rombauer finished as the runner up in the Grade 1 American Pharoah Stakes at Santa Anita. The current leading rider at the Golden Gate Winter/Spring meet, Kyle Frey, picks up the mount for trainer Michael McCarthy. Frey won the 2017 El Camino Real Derby aboard longshot Zakaroff while McCarthy scored a victory one year later with the filly Paved.

Javanica seeks to become the second filly in the El Camino Real Derby's 40 year history to take home the gold medal. Javanica, a royally bred gal by Medaglia D'Oro out of Grade 2 winning mare Shuruq, has finished second in her last three starts, all against stakes competition. Eoin Harty trains for Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum's Godolphin LLC, with veteran rider Frank Alvarado slated to navigate. Javanica will be breaking from post position 7.

Hall of Fame conditioner Richard Mandella saddles a 2021 El Camino Real Derby contender in Petruchio, by white-hot stallion Into Mischief. After breaking his maiden on turf two starts ago, Petruchio tried winners for the first time in the Grade 2 Los Alamitos Futurity and completed the trifecta. Local jockey Irving Orozco rides for the first time.

Trainer John Shirreffs sends Waspirant to the Bay Area for another shot against stakes company. Most recently, Waspirant ran fourth in the Grade 3 Sham Stakes behind two of the top 3-year-olds in California, the Bob Baffert trained pair of Life Is Good and Medina Spirit. The son of Union Rags is out of the Storm Cat mare Life Is Sweet, who won the 2009 Grade I Breeders Cup Ladies Classic (now named the Breeders Cup Distaff). Jockey Assael Espinoza has the call for owners Pam and Marty Wygod.

Owner Reddam Racing LLC and trainer Doug O'Neill won the 2016 El Camino Real Derby with Frank Conversation and, five years later, campaign the California-bred Play Chicken. Winner of the King Glorious Stakes for state-breds at Los Alamitos last December, Play Chicken looks to rebound after an off-the-board finish in the California Derby on January 16 at Santa Anita. Evin Roman is named to ride; Roman guided Kingly to a second-place effort in the 2019 El Camino Real Derby.

Positivity rounds out the list of Southern California contenders. His best run to date came in the summertime as a 2-year-old, winning the Graduation Stakes at Del Mar while sprinting on dirt. He also ran second in his next start, the Golden State Juvenile. Both aforementioned races came against California-breds. Trainer Paddy Gallagher employs his go-to Northern California rider, Julien Couton, to ride.

Three local contenders look to play spoiler for the heavy hitters from Southern California. It's My House, trained by Jamey Thomas, broke his maiden sprinting two weeks ago and stretches out in distance. Tesoro, who unofficially hit the wire first in his career debut, was disqualified for interference with another rival and enters the El Camino Real Derby still a maiden. Recent starter allowance winner Govenor's Party completes the trio of local talent and is expected to go off at a big price for trainer Dan Franko. William Antongeorgi III rides It's My House, Catalino Martinez hops aboard Tesoro and Cristobal Herrera retains the mount on Govenor's Party.

The El Camino Real Derby is Race 8 on a 9-race program at Golden Gate Fields.

First post on Saturday is 12:45 PM PT, with scheduled post time for the El Camino Real Derby stamped at approx. 4:15 PM PT.

The $100,000 El Camino Real Derby (3-year-olds at one mile and an eighth)

  1. Positivity (trainer Paddy Gallagher, jockey Julien Couton)
  2. Waspirant (John Shirreffs, Assael Espinoza)
  3. Tesoro (O.J. Jauregui, Catalino Martinez)
  4. It's My House (Jamey Thomas, William Antongeorgi III)
  5. Petruchio (Richard Mandella, Irving Orozco)
  6. Play Chicken (Doug O'Neill, Evin Roman)
  7. Javanica (Eoin Harty, Frank Alvarado)
  8. Govenor's Party (Dan Franko, Cristobal Herrera)
  9. Rombauer (Michael McCarthy, Kyle Frey)

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Early Nominations For 2021 Triple Crown Due Jan. 23

Early nominations for 3-year-old Thoroughbreds to become eligible to the 2021 Triple Crown series are due Saturday, Jan. 23 with a $600 payment.

Nominations can be made online at www.TheTripleCrown.com or by calling the Churchill Downs Racing Office at (502) 638-3825. Information regarding nomination forms to be mailed can also be found on www.TheTripleCrown.com.

The 2021 Triple Crown will begin with the 147th running of the $3 million Kentucky Derby Presented by Woodford Reserve (Grade I) at 1 ¼ miles on Saturday, May 1 at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Ky. The 146th running of the $1 million Preakness (GI), its 1 3/16-mile second jewel, is set for Saturday, May 15 at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Md. The 153rd running of the $1.5 million Belmont Stakes (GI), the series' 1 ½-mile final leg, is scheduled for Saturday, June 5 at Belmont Park in Elmont, N.Y.

Last year's Triple Crown attracted 369 nominations, 347 horses during the early phase and 22 horses during the late nomination phase.

Horses not nominated during the early phase can be made eligible between Jan. 24-March 29 with a $6,000 payment. Any horse not nominated during the early or late phases can become Triple Crown eligible through payment of a supplemental nomination fee due at the time of entry for each Triple Crown race: the Kentucky Derby ($200,000), Preakness ($100,000) and Belmont ($50,000).

Representatives accepting Triple Crown nominations for the host tracks include:

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‘Better With Every Race’: Jesus’ Team To Use Claiming Crown Jewel As Pegasus Prep

Grade 1 stakes-placed in his two most recent starts, Jesus' Team will return to his roots Saturday with a start in the $150,000 Claiming Crown Jewel at Gulfstream Park.

Grupo 7C Racing Stable's 3-year-old gelding, who became eligible for the Jewel while winning a claiming race for maidens at Gulfstream last March, is scheduled to use the Claiming Crown headliner as a prep for a planned start in the $3 million Pegasus World Cup Invitational (G1) at Gulfstream Jan. 23.

The Jewel, a 1 1/8-mile stakes for 3-year-olds and up that started for a claiming price of $35,000 or lower, will be featured among nine stakes restricted to horses that have started for a claiming price at least once.

Jesus' Team enters the Jewel off a third-place finish in the Oct. 3 Preakness Stakes (G1) at Pimlico and a second-place finish Nov. 7 in the $1 million Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile (G1) at Keeneland – unlikely results from a horse that broke his maiden for a $32,000 claiming price in his fifth career start March 18.

“He went to Ocala for 10 days after the Breeders' Cup. He is training very good for the Claiming Crown,” sand trainer Jose D'Angelo, whose stable is based at Palm Meadows, Gulfstream Park's satellite training facility in Palm Beach County. “I think this is a good race for him before the Pegasus. He needs a race before the Pegasus.”

After his breakthrough 3 ¾-length maiden win, Jesus' Team was transferred to D'Angelo, for whom the son of Tapiture came right back to score a dominating 6 ¾-length victory in a $25,000 claiming race May 8. A most promising second-place finish behind graded-stakes winner Sole Volante in a stakes-quality June 10 optional claiming allowance at Gulfstream raised the expectations of his connections.

Following a creditable fourth behind future Kentucky Derby (G1) and Breeders' Cup Classic (G1) winner Authentic in the Haskell (G1) and a runner-up finish in the ungraded Pegasus at Monmouth, Jesus' Team finished third in the Jim Dandy (G2) at Saratoga while equipped with blinkers for the first time. The Kentucky-bred gelding, who was purchased for $30,000 at the 2018 Keeneland September sale, overcame traffic on the far turn to finish a distant third behind Gulfstream Park Oaks winner Swiss Skydiver and Authentic at 40-1 in the Preakness Stakes at Pimlico. Sent to post at 62-1 for the Dirt Mile, Jesus' Team closed to finish second behind runaway winner Knicks Go.

“I am very proud of my horse. He's getting better and better with every race,” D'Angelo said. “I think he will run a very good race Saturday.”

D'Angelo was the leading trainer in Venezuela before joining his father Francisco, also a former titlist in Venezuela, in South Florida in 2019.

“I'm happy for the races Jesus's Team has run. He has made me very proud,” said D'Angelo, who saddled his first horse in the U.S. in June 2019 and saddled his first winner with his second starter three weeks later. “I'm happy to be training in this amazing country.”

Luis Saez, who was aboard for the Dirt Mile, has the return mount Saturday.

Calumet Farm's Dack Janiel's, also a horse who performed extremely well on Breeders' Cup Weekend at Keeneland, is scheduled to seek his first stakes victory in the Claiming Crown Jewel.

The Jack Sisterson-trained 3-year-old gelding is coming off a third-place finish in the $200,000 Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance (G2). Dack Janiel's set or pressed the pace to hold a narrow lead in mid-stretch before weakening late in the 1 5/8-mile route.

“Dack Janiel's is a horse that has always overachieved for us, but he really thrives on racing. He just won 10 days before the Thoroughbred [Aftercare] Alliance, but we wheeled him back in a week at Oaklawn [in April] and he won bringing him back quick,” Sisterson said. “He seems to thrive on his training and running, so we ran him [at Keeneland] and he ran a competitive race against some tough horses. Fortunately, he's eligible for Claiming Crown Jewel.”

Dack Janiel's became eligible for the Jewel in January when he ran third in a $30,000 maiden claiming race on turf at Fair Grounds. The son of Tonalist came right back to win an off-the-turf maiden special weight race at Fair Grounds a month later. After finishing off the board in the Jeff Ruby Steaks (G3) at Turfway, Dack Janiel's followed up a fourth-place allowance finish at Oaklawn with a starter allowance victory eight days later. Winless in his next three starts, he returned to winning form in a $50,000 claiming race at Keeneland that set him up for his strong showing in the Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance.

“He's very straightforward. He trains himself. There's no hiding his running style. He goes right to the front,” said Sisterson, who will train in South Florida for the first time this winter. “He seems to run his best races forwardly placed, so we're obviously not hiding any tactics heading into next Saturday.”

Julien Leparoux has the mount on the Calumet Farm homebred.

Team Valor International and David Burnett's Storm Runner, who finished seventh in the 2018 Florida Derby (G1), has returned to Gulfstream to run in the Jewel. The Dale Romans-trained son of Get Stormy became eligible for the Jewel by coming off a seven-month layoff to win a $20,000 claiming race at Churchill Downs June 28. Following a four-month layoff, Storm Runner captured a Nov. 4 starter allowance on turf at Churchill Downs.

Corey Lanerie has the call aboard Storm Runner.

Trainer Michael Maker, who has saddled a record 17 Claiming Crown winners, will send out Paradise Farms Corp.'s Treasure Trove for a start in the Jewel. The 4-year-old son of Tapizar was claimed for $40,000 out of his most recent start, a second-place finish in an optional claiming allowance at Indiana Downs.

Tyler Gaffalione, who captured titles at all six meeting in Kentucky this year, has the call.

Leitone, the defending Jewel champion, will defend his title for owner/trainer Victor Carrasco Jr., who claimed the Chilean-bred 6-year-old for $40,000 out of a victory at Belmont Park June 20. The son of Dunkirk has been off-the-board in his two starts since being claimed.

Hector Berrios has the call aboard Leitone.

Stakes-placed on turf last time out, D P Racing LLC's Prince of Arabia will move to dirt for the Jewel. The 7-year-old gelding, who finished a troubled third in the Ricard Henry Lee last out, achieved his most recent victory in an off-the-turf Feb. 20 optional claiming allowance at Gulfstream. Robby Albarado is scheduled to ride Prince of Arabia for the first time.

My Purple Haze Stable's Rebelde and Flying Pheasant Farm LLC's Toughest 'Ombre round out the field.

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Fan-Favorite Bodexpress Under Consideration For Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile

Following a triumphant, near track-record setting victory at Gulfstream Park West this weekend, fan-favorite Thoroughbred Bodexpress could be targeting the Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile on Nov. 7 at Keeneland. Trainer Gustavo Delgado told the Daily Racing Form that the 4-year-old exited his allowance win in good order, and that either the Dirt Mile or the Grade 1 Clark at Churchill Downs on Nov. 27 may be his next targets.

“The main thing about the Dirt Mile is that it's around two turns at Keeneland, which suits him perfectly,” said assistant trainer Gustavo Delgado, Jr.. “The subject of going to the Breeders' Cup just came up this morning, so we'll need a few days to assess everything before making a final decision. One concern is whether he'd be able to get into the field if the race were to overfill, which looks very possible. If not, the Clark would likely be the choice, since he's already shown he runs well at Churchill Downs.”

Bodexpress gained notoriety when he dropped jockey John Velazquez at the start of the 2019 Preakness Stakes and took a solo tour around the Pimlico oval. Overall, the Bodemeister colt has three wins, four seconds and three thirds in his 16 lifetime starts, earning $412,500.

Read more at the Daily Racing Form.

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