Jockey Gomez Gets Journeyman Career Off to Strong Start; Full Fields, World-Class Turf Racing Kick Off Final October Weekend
Jockey Gomez Gets Journeyman Career Off to Strong Start; Full Fields, World-Class Turf Racing Kick Off Final October Weekend
Laurel Park News & Notes
Jockey Gomez Gets Journeyman Career Off to Strong Start
Dancing Rags Tops Maryland Horses in Breeders’ Cup Pre-Entries
Full Fields, World-Class Turf Racing Kick Off Final October Weekend
Average Field Size Friday and Saturday 13 with 12 Turf Races Scheduled
LAUREL, MD – His first Jim McKay Maryland Million Day was jockey Kevin Gomez’s last as an apprentice rider. Though he didn’t ride a winner on the second-biggest day of the state’s racing calendar, Gomez didn’t end the weekend without success.
Gomez, 22, picked up two winners Sunday at Laurel Park in his first day as a journeyman, including 3-year-old filly Elusive Joni in the day’s feature, a third-level optional claiming allowance. Earlier, he took Monavista Crossing all the way on the lead and held on by a neck.
“Thank God everything started off on the right foot,” Gomez said. “I think it started good and hopefully we can keep it going.”
A native of Guatemala, Gomez ranks third in the country with 67 wins as an apprentice, 10 fewer than South Florida-based Lane Luzzi and Luis Ocasio, competing primarily at Parx and Penn National; both riders still have a five-pound allowance. Gomez has earned $1.5 million in purses this year, trailing Ocasio ($2 million) and Luzzi ($1.95 million).
Gomez was 13 when he came to the U.S. in 2007 to be with his father, Oscar Gomez, a perennial leading rider at Finger Lakes in western New York who ranks third in the current meet standings with 94 wins. Kevin Gomez won his first career race on Aug. 25, 2015 at Finger Lakes aboard Aly’s Favorite Boy.
Following a short stay on the New York Racing Association circuit, Gomez arrived in Maryland last December and ended the year with 12 wins from 201 starts. He credits fellow riders such as Victor Carrasco, Alex Cintron, Horacio Karamanos and Jevian Toledo with helping further his career.
“I learned a lot. A lot of riders helped me out and tell me what to do. Everyone was teaching me every day about things I did wrong and every day I try to learn from them,” Gomez said. “They’ve been teaching me every day and I try to get something from them and keep learning. I’m still learning. I’ve been working hard every day so I try to do the same things. Frank Douglas has been doing a great job as my agent. He works hard and that’s something I need to keep it up.”
Gomez is named in three races Friday at Laurel and one each at Penn National and Charles Town. He has rides in six of 11 races at Laurel on Saturday.
Dancing Rags Tops Maryland Horses in Breeders’ Cup Pre-Entries
Chadds Ford Stable’s Grade 1-winning filly Dancing Rags, whose maiden victory came Sept. 17 at Laurel Park for Fair Hill-based trainer Graham Motion, is among 13 horses pre-entered for the $2 million Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies (G1) Saturday, Nov. 5 at Santa Anita.
The bay daughter of 2012 Belmont Stakes (G1) winner Union Rags earned an all-fees-paid trip to the Breeders’ Cup by virtue of her one-length upset victory in the Alcibiades (G1) Oct. 7 at Keeneland.
Purchased for $210,000 as a 2-year-old in training in March, Dancing Rags was third in her career debut Aug. 5 at Laurel, a 5 ½-furlong turf sprint, before graduating with a 1 ¾-length victory over next-out winner Tequilita going a mile on the main track. She stretched out to 1/1 16-miles in the Alcibiades, the same distance as the Juvenile Fillies.
Motion pre-entered three other horses in the Breeders’ Cup: two-time Grade 1 winner Miss Temple City and multiple graded-stakes winner Ring Weekend in the $2 million Mile (G1) and Happy Mesa, the second alternate in the $1 million Juvenile Fillies Turf (G1).
Miss Temple City, a 4-year-old filly, has two wins from five starts this year, both in Grade 1 races, including her most recent effort in the Shadwell Turf Mile Oct. 8. Co-owned by Sagamore Farm, she debuted with a maiden win in October 2014 at Laurel and last year captured the Hilltop Stakes at Pimlico.
Ring Weekend was seventh, beaten 2 ¼ lengths, in the Shadwell Turf Mile one race after a neck victory in the Bernard Baruch (G2) at Saratoga. The 5-year-old Tapit gelding finished fifth in the 2014 Preakness (G1) and was second by a neck in the Dixie (G2) last May at Pimlico in his first start in nearly 15 months.
Sky Mesa filly Happy Mesa won her first two starts at Laurel this year for trainer Hamilton Smith, a debut victory Aug. 14 followed by the Sept. 10 Selima Stakes at 5 ½ furlongs on turf. In her last start, she finished second in the Surfer Girl Stakes Oct. 10 at Santa Anita.
Another Fair Hill-based trainer, Arnaud Delacour, pre-entered Green Lantern Stables’ 6-year-old gelding A. P. Indian in the $1.5 million Sprint (G1). A. P. Indian is 6-0 this year including wins in the Belmont Sprint (G3), Alfred G. Vanderbilt (G1), Forego (G1) and Phoenix (G2).
Full Fields, World-Class Turf Racing Kick Off Final October Weekend
There will be full fields and a dozen races over its world-class turf course to open the final weekend of October when live racing returns to Laurel on Friday.
First race post time is 12:30 p.m.
A total of 144 horses were entered for 11 races on Friday, an average of 13.09 per race, with six races scheduled for the Fort Marcy and Kelso Turf Course layouts. Friday’s feature comes in Race 10, a second-level optional claiming allowance at about 1 1/16 miles on the main track featuring Grade 2-placed Name Changer and Bridget’s Big Luvy, the 2015 Private Terms winner at Laurel making his first start since June for trainer Kieron Magee.
Saturday’s program saw 138 horses entered in 11 races, averaging 12.54 per race, with another six set to be contested over the Fort Marcy and Kelso turf courses. The Saturday feature also comes in Race 10, a $47,000 optional claiming allowance at 1 1/16 miles on the Fort Marcy layout that attracted Grade 1 winner Chiropractor; Top of Mind, most recently second in the Commonwealth Turf Cup (G2) Sept. 24; and English Minister, second by a neck in the Find Stakes in June.
There will be a jackpot carryover of $3,026.57 in the 20-cent Rainbow 6 on Friday, which spans Races 6-11.
