LAUREL, MD. 01-21-12---Only twenty-five trainers in North American history have saddled 3,000 winners. Laurel Park-based Dale Capuano moved to within five victories of that plateau after Maple Leaf Racer ($4) won Saturday’s third race by a nose over Wakina.

“We are getting there,” said Capuano, who won his initial race with Who’s Lucky at Bowie Race Track in 1981. “This is fun. It is neat chasing history.”

The 49-year-old has 31 training titles at the major Maryland tracks on his resume and has been the leading conditioner in the state eight times since 1991. His best year was 2001, when he ranked fourth in North America with 235 wins with a career-best $4.4 million in earnings. He has won more than 100 races 15 times.

“When you start off training you just try to win one,” added Capuano. “That is pretty much how I thought about it and all of a sudden we started winning more than 100 a year and even had a couple years with 200. Averaging 100 wins for 30 years is pretty impressive when you consider the lean years when you are first starting out.”

Among those in the top 25 all-time are Maryland mainstays King Leatherbury (3rd-6,333), Scott Lake (6th-5,142), Buddy Delp (12th-3,674) and Dick Dutrow (13th-3,665). Todd Pletcher began the day 18 victories behind Capuano.

“Pletcher is going to run by us soon,” joked Capuano. “Just hoping we get to 3,000 milestone before him.”

Capuano, who is six-of-21 at Laurel after 12 live racing days, will start two runners out of town tonight and has five entered here on Wednesday afternoon.