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After a Year to Remember, Fonner Park Returns Friday

In 2020, America discovered Fonner Park in Grand Island, Nebraska. With COVID-19 raging, Fonner was one of a handful of tracks able to soldier on in the months of March, April and May, producing handle numbers that shattered anything they had done before. Jockeys, trainers and horses who had been toiling in obscurity for years were thrust front and center, their every move covered by TVG. Fonner was a feel-good story at a time when those were in short supply.

The little track is back. Fonner's 2021 meet begins Friday, but it won't be anything like last year. While the coronavirus is still a serious problem, most racetracks are running, so there are no openings on the simulcast schedule for Fonner to take advantage of and the competition from places like Gulfstream, Aqueduct and Santa Anita means that Fonner's handle will dwindle back into the low six figures. They're back to running a Friday-through-Sunday schedule and know that their season in the spotlight is a thing of the past.

“In 2020, we knew there was something very specific going on because of COVID,” said Fonner CEO Chris Kotulak. “We were running on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday at a time when there were just five racetracks in the country running. During the week, it was just us and Will Rogers Downs. Of course, that isn't the case anymore. On top of that there are quite a few other sporting events and other wagering opportunities now. Vegas is back. Sports betting is certainly more profound than it was a year ago. The rest of the world has other betting options now so I'm not sure that anybody in Paris or Santiago, Chile will be betting on us like they were last year.”

Not that there will be a pall over this opener. It's just that Fonner will go to back to being what it always was, a local track that has learned how to survive without bells, whistles, million dollar handles or graded stakes. It's the people of Nebraska that have made Fonner special, something out of a different and better era for the sport. Pre-pandemic, the on-track crowds were so healthy that they sold out all the seats in the grandstand on Saturdays. This year, the fans will be allowed back, but, because of COVID-19, Fonner plans to limit the crowd to 75% of capacity. That will allow them to seat about 4,000 fans.

“These people love their horse racing and they love to have a good time in the afternoon,” Kotulak said. “We're here to give them what they want. They are rabidly eager to return.”

Kotulak said that a mask mandate will be strictly enforced and that anyone who refuses to wear one will be asked to leave. It's personal for him. In October, both he and his wife tested positive for the virus.

“It knocked me out for almost an entire month,” he said. “I had tremendous fatigue and body aches, a little bit of a headache. I'm over it but that doesn't mean I am invincible. I want everybody else to go by that same mantra.”

Some things will be the same from last year. Jake Olesiak will be back to defend his riding title. The Isai Gonzalez barn and the Kelli Martinez barn will likely battle it out for leading trainer. And Fonner, which added several horizontal wagers last year to satisfy demand, will be back with a betting menu that includes Pick Fours and Pick Fives.

“We're going to resume as if there was no change at all in our presentation,” Kotulak said. “That means offering all of the additional Pick Four and Pick Five wagers we added to our wagering menu last year. When we did that, people just gobbled them up.”

While Kotulak understands that handle will fall dramatically at the upcoming meet, he's hopeful that at least some of the horseplayers who discovered Fonner last year liked it enough that they will be back for more.

“People realized that Fonner Park is a charming little gem of racing in the United States,” he said. “There were people who had never seen racing from Fonner Park before and I think many of them were pleasantly surprised. How many Thoroughbred tracks are there that conduct racing over a five-eighths of a mile racetrack? That was new for a lot of people and I think they liked that up close, tight action that happens on a five-eighths racetrack.”

This year's meet will run through Kentucky Derby Day, May 1. The highlight will once again be the April 24, $75,000 Bosselman Pump & Pantry/Gus Fonner Stakes. It was won last year by Sleepy Eyes Todd (Paddy O'Prado), who will attempt to become the first horse in history to pull off the Bosselman-Saudi Cup double.

It's easy to be optimistic about Fonner's future. In the November election, Nebraskans voted to allow the state's racetracks to open up casinos. Fonner has yet to select a company it will partner with to build the casino, but Kotulak said expectations are that the casino will be up and running toward the end of this year. That will mean that the track's future is guaranteed and that the 2022 meet will feature a healthy bump in purses. Kotulak expects they will double.

That won't make Fonner Park Santa Anita Park or anything close to it, but that's OK. Fonner has never tried to be something that it's not.

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Saudi Cup Notes: Charlatan Should Move Forward From Malibu, Sleepy Eyes Todd ‘Fit And Good’

The following notes about contenders in the $20 million Saudi Cup, scheduled for Feb. 20, were provided by the Jockey Club of Saudi Arabia.

Bangkok (IRE) – Andrew Balding's challenger took a first look at the dirt track on Wednesday with some gentle exercise.

Balding's wife and assistant Anna Lisa said: “He didn't do anything really smart today, the plan is that he will do something a bit quicker on Thursday. He went round the dirt and he seemed to enjoy it, he will wear special plates on Saturday, it should not be an excuse.”

Anna Lisa Balding said it would be a significant moment for Bangkok to be carrying the King Power Racing silks of the late Vichai Srivaddhanaprabh.

“The chairman of King Power said he wanted to race on the world stage, and this is a race you want to be in,” she said. “There are horses in the race that are better than him, it would be great to see him just up and close to them on Saturday.”

Charlatan (USA) – The Bob Baffert-trained son of Speightstown remained in the quarantine area on Wednesday, jogging an easy 1600m (one mile) over the training track.

“We stayed back (in the quarantine area) on the training track this morning,” assistant trainer Jimmy Barnes said. “It's our normal routine, we had our breeze day (Monday), walk day (Tuesday) and with the training track being right there we just stayed there. He jogged a mile. Twice around; it's a half-mile track.”

One of the top international contenders for Saturday's race, Charlatan has been here for a week and has settled nicely into his regular routine, according to Barnes.

“He's a very good traveler. That hasn't been any kind of a factor. The weather has been pleasant. It hasn't been hot so that always makes the trip easier. (We've) been here over a week and ready to get it on.

“The rest of the week we will go back to our regular galloping up to a race. We'll gallop a mile and a half tomorrow. We will stay on the main track Thursday and Friday. Not sure what we're doing on race day but I'll talk it over with Bob and see what he wants to do.”

Making only his second start since last May, the 4-year-old colt comes into Saturday's affair off an impressive win in the Grade 1 Malibu Stakes at Santa Anita Park

“Bob is really good off the layoff,” Barnes said. “Our horses are usually fit and ready. We look forward to him moving forward off that race – absolutely.”

Chuwa Wizard (JPN) – With handler Ryui Okubo supervising, the 6-year-old horse had a final piece of fast work over 1200m (six furlongs) on the dirt track under Keita Tosaki.

“I was asked to start galloping him with 1200m to go and drove him a bit strongly towards the end of the stretch,” said Tosaki.

“He was moving nicely and felt really good, responding to me so well. I understand that the American horses are very fast, so I want to make a plan depending on how the tempo in the race will be.

“I think the surface here is quite different from a Japanese dirt track. The dirt itself is smoother than Japan, I think Chuwa Wizard will suit the surface.”

Okubo added: “He moved beautifully this morning. I told the jockey to start cantering slowly from the 1200m pole and then pick up gradually before driving him strongly for the last stage of the stretch. I think he is in really good form. There will be some horses who are going fast in the field, so between middle and outside draw will be preferred.”

Extra Elusive (GB) – The 6-year-old Mastercraftsman gelding had a breeze on the dirt track.

“We are very happy with him,” said Andre Alencar, travelling head lad to Extra Elusive's trainer Roger Charlton. “We took him to the dirt track today and had a little breeze up, a little blow. He feels very good and happy – we can't ask for more. He's doing everything we ask him to.

“He's very relaxed; probably the change of scene has made him more relaxed than usual, and he's coping very well and he's on the right path. He won't go back out on to the main dirt track again now, he'll just stay on the training track.”

Knicks Go (USA) – Brad Cox-trained Knicks Go came out briefly to the dirt track and a one-lap jog in the wrong/clockwise direction along the outside of the track under assistant trainer Dustin Dugas. Owned by Korea Racing Authority, he enters with four consecutive one-sided victories, two in allowance company (at Oaklawn Park and Keeneland), the Grade 2 Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile and Pegasus World Cup. He will have a five-week gap from the Pegasus to Saturday.

“He's had two good works since the race and seems to be moving well,” Cox said. “He's continued since the Pegasus to show us what he showed us prior to the Pegasus and prior to the Breeders' Cup. This race is back a little quick, but one thing that gives us confidence is that he won the Pegasus without Lasix and this race is without Lasix, too. Another thing is this is five weeks from the Pegasus and it was five weeks between his allowance win where he broke the track record at Keeneland and the Breeders' Cup.

“He had a little bit of a freshening of a couple easy weeks after the Breeders' Cup and before the Pegasus, so this is sort of a second race off a layoff for him. Hopefully, after the race, he gives us confidence that he can travel internationally and compete.”

Cox is planning ahead with the 5-year-old grey.

“Right now we're treating him as if this is his time to shine,” Cox continued. “If he's able to do well in the Saudi Cup and then do well in Dubai, that would be very special. If he were able to win the Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile, Pegasus, Saudi Cup and Dubai, it would be very similar to what Arrogate did with the Travers, the (Breeders' Cup) Classic, Pegasus and Dubai. If he were able to do something like that, it would go down as one of the great streaks in racing history.

“We would try to get through these two and then ship him back to the States and work our way back from the Breeders' Cup after this. Whether that's the Dirt Mile or the Classic, his runs in Saudi Arabia and Dubai will tell us which one, so it's one race at a time.”

Max Player (USA) – The Steve Asmussen-trained son of Honor Code remained in the quarantine area.

Military Law (GB) – Nasir Askar's Musabbeh Al Mheiri-trained Military Law hand-walked on Wednesday after arriving late on Tuesday evening from Dubai. The gelded 6-year-old son of Dubawi exits an impressive victory in the Group 2 Al Maktoum Challenge Round 1 over 1600m (one mile) at Meydan.

“He just hand-walked today and shipped over well,” said Maria Ritchie, assistant trainer.

“We're looking forward to the race with him and we know he can see the distance. There will be pace, which is good. He was fresh last time, so he did well over the mile, but he obviously travels 2000m (1 1/4 miles).

“He was good that day and he has come forward, I think. Hopefully he won't be too far back off the pace. It's hard to come from too far back. We'll gallop him (a blowout breeze) down the stretch on Friday.”

Mishriff (IRE) and Global Giant (GB) – Cantered on the dirt track with Al Rajhi Bank Saudi Derby entry New Treasure. Mishriff was ridden by jockey David Egan and Global Giant by John Gosden's travelling head lad Tony Proctor.

“All three horses had an easy canter today and they are all handling the surface well,” said Gosden's son and assistant, Thady. “They seem to be enjoying themselves. Mishriff was very relaxed around there.”

Simsir (IRE) – Fawzi Nass was on hand to watch Bahrain International Trophy winner Simsir get over the dirt track on Wednesday morning. The trainer and co-owner (through the Bahrain-based Victorious racing stable) was pleased with his easy canter around the oval.

Nass said: “He did his big work in Bahrain on Sunday. All he and my other horses need to do is just 'tick over' and today they cantered about six and a half furlongs. It's their first time on the big track and one or two of them were a bit fresh, which is understandable on a new track, but hopefully they'll be more settled tomorrow. Simsir is doing very well.”

Sleepy Eyes Todd (USA) – The Miguel Angel Silva trained Sleepy Eyes Todd came onto the dirt track on Wednesday morning where he stood for about 10 minutes before warming up.

Miguel Angel Silva explained: “He always does that. He comes onto the track and first has a look. He then galloped for two rounds. He went a bit faster the second time round. He is fit and good.”

Tacitus (USA) – The 5-year-old son of Tapit came out of Tuesday's 600m (three furlongs) workout over the dirt track “super” according to Neil Poznansky, assistant to trainer Bill Mott and who was aboard Tacitus for Tuesday's drill.

“He jogged a mile on the training track (this morning),” added Poznansky, who was again in the saddle this morning.

Tacitus, who finished fifth in last year's inaugural edition of the Saudi Cup, has been racing well in the United States since that effort and last ran in the G1 Breeders' Cup Classic at Keeneland finishing fourth.

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Saudi Cup Notes: Knicks Go’s Monday Breeze ‘Seems To Have Woken Him Up’

The following notes about contenders in the $20 million Saudi Cup, scheduled for Feb. 20, were provided by the Jockey Club of Saudi Arabia.

Bangkok (IRE) – Kept busy during the last few weeks, Andrew Balding's British challenger was in winning action only a few days ago when landing the Winter Derby Trial over 2000m (1 1/4 miles) at Lingfield.

The 5-year-old was restricted to the training track for his exercise.

“He just went for a canter,” Balding's wife and assistant Anna Lisa said. “He came here fit and seems very well. He might do something a bit quicker on Thursday but it's all systems go.”

Charlatan (USA) – Bob Baffert's Charlatan, one of the leading international contenders, had a planned walking day on Tuesday after breezing on Monday.

“He's doing very good,” said Jim Barnes, Baffert's long-time assistant who is overseeing the preparations for the 4-year-old Speightstown colt. “Tomorrow (Wednesday) we will jog on the training track. Thursday (it's) back to the main track.”

Never beaten in four career starts, Charlatan comes here off an easy win in the Grade 1 Malibu at Santa Anita Park in California on Dec. 26. Since the Malibu, Charlatan has posted a series of impressive drills at his California home base.

Chuwa Wizard (JPN) – The 6-year-old horse, a winner of the Grade 1 Champions Cup which is a qualifying race for Saturday, had an easy piece of cantering for two laps to get the feeling of the dirt track.

“I am happy to see him this morning. He seems to have settled into the new surroundings here,” trainer Ryuji Okubo said. “He travelled to Dubai last year and that helped him a lot for a long trip to Saudi Arabia.”

Extra Elusive (GB) – The dual Group 3 winner exercised quietly on the training track.

“He was out on the track for the first time this morning, and we're happy with him. He's done a couple of rounds of the training track today and he seemed to handle it well and cope with everything,” said Andre Alencar, travelling head lad to Extra Elusive's trainer Roger Charlton.

“We talked to the company who travelled him here and he travelled well; since he's been here he's been eating and drinking well. All good so far! Tomorrow we will go to the main track and have a spin around, and probably on Thursday we will have a little breeze with him.”

Knicks Go (USA) – Brad Cox-trained triple Grade 1 winner continued to tout himself in Tuesday morning, exiting Monday's 800m (half-mile) breeze (in 48 seconds) in top order.

“He came out of his breeze very well today and just walked the shed row,” said Dustin Dugas, assistant trainer and exercise rider. “He jogged up the road really well this morning and is acting like he should. The breeze seems to have woken him up since being here and his coat looks great.”

Owned by Korea Racing Authority, the 5-year-old grey six-time winner enters off four consecutive victories, including two course record-setting performances at Keeneland and a pair of Grade 1 victories in the Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile and Gulfstream Park's Pegasus World Cup.

Cox added: “We've had him a while now and he's really always trained with a lot of energy and has been aggressive. I don't know if I'm looking to see him progress as much as I am just looking for more of the same -he's been that good.”

Max Player (USA) – The 4-year-old son of Honor Code walked in the quarantine area on Tuesday morning as the Steve Asmussen charge continued his preparation for Saturday's race.

“Shipping and training went smoothly,” Asmussen said via text from the United States. “(Max Player) is doing well. Anxiously awaiting the post position draw.”

Military Law (GB) – Nasir Askar's gelding had an easy day of it on Tuesday at Meydan Racecourse in Dubai, navigating a lap around the dirt course with big-race jockey Antonio Fresu aboard.

“He just did an easy canter today,” said Maria Ritchie, assistant trainer to Musabbeh Al Mheiri. “He did a gallop (breeze) on Saturday and he's had a couple easy days to freshen up. Musabbeh is coming tonight to meet the horse.”

The son of Dubawi is shipping in on Tuesday evening with a set of UAE-based runners expected on the ground before midnight. Fresh off a victory in the Group 2 Al Maktoum Challenge Round 1 over 1600m, the bay 6-year-old was second in both the Group 1 Al Maktoum Challenge R3 behind Matterhorn and Group 2 Al Maktoum Challenge Round 2 behind Benbatl.

Ritchie continued: “He'll probably hand walk Wednesday, as I don't think he'll be able to go to the track yet. He's done very well since his last run. We'll probably canter on Thursday. Antonio will come in to ride him.”

Mishriff (IRE) and Global Giant (GB), both trained by Britain's champion trainer John Gosden, had their first outing on the track on Tuesday morning ahead. The pair completed a steady canter on the dirt.

Thady Gosden, who is assistant trainer to his father, said: “They travelled over really well and had a lead-out day and a trot yesterday. They arrived in the early hours of Sunday morning so have had some time to acclimatise. There's a bit of a change in the weather from Newmarket to here but I'm sure they are happy to be here in the warmth.”

The 4-year-old Mishriff, who was bred by his owner Prince A A Faisal, is no stranger to the track having run second in last year's Saudi Derby. On his return to Britain he won the Listed Newmarket Stakes before going on to Classic glory in the Prix du Jockey Club at Chantilly.

Thady Gosden continued: “It was bottomless ground on Champions Day for Mishriff's final run of last year but he had a little break and has been training well since he started back. He's in good form.

“He knows his way around here a bit and he handles the dirt well. It's a brilliant track here – obviously Mishriff is a turf horse but he handles it well. It's wonderful for Prince Faisal to have a runner in The Saudi Cup. He puts a huge amount into the sport and takes a lot of time over his horses and cares about them deeply.

“He's very passionate and it's brilliant for him to have a horse who is a Classic winner and is now coming back to his home country to hopefully run well in the big race.”

He added of 6-year-old Global Giant, a dual Listed winner who was last seen in public finishing second to fellow Saudi Cup contender Simsir in the Bahrain Trophy: “He went over to Bahrain and ran very well there. The race didn't quite go to plan as he broke a little but slowly and was finishing well late on but wasn't quite able to peg back the leader. He's in good form too. He had a little break over the winter but seems very well in himself.”

Simsir (IRE) – Simsir's trainer Fawzi Nass, who is based in Bahrain, but also has satellite yard in Dubai, said: “Simsir arrived last night. This morning we took him out for a trot on the small track next to the quarantine. He is in good form. I think he travelled well, he ate up his food last night, so all is good.”

Sleepy Eyes Todd (USA) – Miguel Angel Silva, the trainer of American raider Sleepy Eyes Todd, said on Tuesday morning: “Yesterday the horse galloped one lap and then did a two minute mile on the dirt track.

“He nearly did three miles (4800m) yesterday on the track. He was on his own and it was José, my assistant, who rode him. Today he took the day off. He is in good form, he ate all of his dinner and everything is OK right now.”

Tacitus (USA) – The 5-year-old Tapit horse completed serious training with a sprightly 600m (three furlongs) work on the dirt track on Tuesday morning under Neil Poznansky, assistant trainer for Bill Mott – who is remaining in the United States after having travelled here for the inaugural running last year.

“I thought today's breeze was quite exceptional,” said Poznansky, a former jockey who won both the North American Eclipse Award and the Canadian Sovereign Award as Champion Apprentice jockey in 1996. “He continues to mature all the time and he is mentally more focused. He's really coming into himself.”

The grey horse finished fifth in last year's race. Once returned stateside, he won the Grade 2 Suburban at Belmont Park and remained competitive in top level competition.

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U.S. Quintet Tunes Up For Saudi Cup

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia—A number of trainers with horses engaged in Saturday's Saudi Cup have been unable to travel but their horses and exercise riders have shipped in, mostly over last weekend, for the second running of the $20 million contest at King Abdulaziz Racecourse.

The 14-strong field includes two locally-trained horses, Great Scot (GB) (Requinto {Ire}) and Alzahzaah (KSA) (Worldly), who face competition from Britain, Japan and Bahrain as well as five runners from the United States.

For most of the American contingent, stronger work had taken place on the dirt track during Monday morning, meaning a walk or jog at the quarantine barn was the order of the day as a small gathering of international media and connections arrived trackside Tuesday.

There would be perhaps no more poignant winner of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia's biggest race than Tacitus (Tapit), bred and owned by the late Prince Khalid Abdullah, a member of the country's royal family and greatly admired in the wider family that is the international racing community.

The 5-year-old has rarely been far from the heat of the battle in his 15 starts. His sole finish outside the top four has been when fifth in this race last year. And if prizes were dished out on the racecourse for manners and beauty, then the stallion would rarely be headed.

While his fellow greys and Saturday rivals Knicks Go (Paynter) and Sleepy Eyes Todd (Paddy O'Prado) walked the barn, the eye-catching Tacitus paraded out onto the main track Tuesday morning in company with stable-mate Channel Maker (English Channel) to take up his customary observation post on the outside of the far bend. Admittedly, Tacitus, unlike his European counterparts, is accustomed to being trained at the track so the morning's activities in relatively quiet Riyadh will be nothing like the hullabaloo he might face at Saratoga. Nevertheless, his near-inanimate stance for a good five minutes each morning in the company of trainer Bill Mott's assistant Neil Poznansky is quite something to behold.

Once asked to move off and complete his morning's exercise, Tacitus pleased his rider in a three-furlong breeze on the widely-praised dirt track.

“I thought today's breeze was quite exceptional,” said Poznansky. “He continues to mature all the time and he is mentally more focused. He's really coming into himself.”

Tacitus and Poznansky completed their exercise alongside Channel Maker and Umberto Gomez. The 7-year-old, who was voted last season's Eclipse Champion Turf Horse, is set to line up for one of the key races on Saturday's undercard, the 2,100-metre Neom Turf Cup. Tacitus and Channel Maker will be given an easy Wednesday and will be kept to walking before returning to stronger exercise on the track Thursday.

Few horses have arrived in Riyadh with more rip-roaring form that Knicks Go, who added last month's Pegasus World Cup Invitational S. to his unbeaten 2020 season, which culminated in victory in the Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile.

The 5-year-old, who also adds another international element to proceedings as a color-bearer for the Korea Racing Authority, had an easy day following a 48-second four-furlong breeze to blow out the Monday morning cobwebs.

His rider and Brad Cox's assistant trainer Dustin Dugas said he was happy with the horse following that spin. “He jogged up the road really well this morning and is acting like he should,” Dugas reported. “The breeze seems to have woken him up since being here and his coat looks great.”

Cox added via telephone that he was, understandably, hoping for Knicks Go's progressive form to continue. He said, “We've had him a while now and he's really always trained with a lot of energy and has been aggressive. I don't know if I'm looking to see him progress as much as I am just looking for more of the same—he's been that good.”

Bob Baffert rarely misses a big international meeting with a runner but he has not accompanied the lightly-raced Charlatan (Speightstown), who atoned for his subsequent disqualification from the Arkansas Derby with a comeback win almost eight months later in the GI Runhappy Malibu S. The 4-year-old, who has finished first past the post in all four starts to date, heads for a jog Wednesday before returning to the main track on Thursday morning. He is reported to be in good order by Baffert's assistant Jimmy Barnes, who is in Riyadh with the colt.

The trio of American greys in town for the big race is completed by Sleepy Eyes Todd, whose trainer Miguel Angel Silva has travelled with him.

“Yesterday [Monday] the horse galloped one lap and then did a two-minute mile on the dirt track,” said the trainer. “He nearly did three miles on the track on his own ridden by my assistant, José. Today he took the day off. He is in good form, he ate all of his dinner and everything is ok right now.”

Thumbs Up Racing's 5-year-old has a bit to find with Knicks Go, having finished more than nine lengths adrift of him when fourth in the Pegasus World Cup off the back of victory in the GIII Mr Prospector S. just before Christmas.

American-trained runners filled four of the first five places in the inaugural Saudi Cup and Steve Asmussen will be hoping to go one better than his runner-up finish last year with Midnight Bisou (Midnight Lute). This time the trainer fields Max Player (Honor Code), who joined his stable last August and subsequently ran fifth in both the belated Kentucky Derby and Preakness S.

Communicating via a text message from the United States, Asmussen indicated that he was happy with how Max Player had taken the long journey to Saudi Arabia.

“Anxiously awaiting the post position draw,” said the trainer, who also runs GII Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf Sprint runner-up Cowan (Kantharos) in the $1.5 million Al Rajhi Bank Saudi Derby over a mile.

The draw takes place in Riyadh on Wednesday evening.

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