Jockey, Trainer Titles Going Down to Wire Entering Final Weekend
Jockey, Trainer Titles Going Down to Wire Entering Final Weekend
Connections Fielding Offers for Stakes-Placed Expedited Vision
Maryland Pride Day Saturday Features Cap Giveaway, Food & Drink Specials
Mandatory Payout Sunday in Rainbow 6, Late Pick 5, Super Hi-5
LAUREL, MD – As Laurel Park’s 33-day summer meet winds down over the weekend, the races for the jockey and trainer titles are heating up.
Victor Carrasco held a 34-28 edge over Sheldon Russell for leading rider, while Kieron Magee’s 18 wins was one more than Claudio Gonzalez entering the final three days of the summer stand, which wraps up Sunday, Aug. 20.
Carrasco, 25, is named in five races Friday and 11 of 12 on Saturday’s Maryland Pride Day program including Phlash Phelps in the $75,000 Find, Lucky in Malibu in the $75,000 Miss Disco and Shirleys Curls in the $75,000 All Brandy. He has five mounts on Sunday.
“It has been a real nice summer meet. I have a few nice mounts Friday and few live ones on Saturday like Phlash Phelps, who I would say is my favorite horse,” Carrasco said. “Hopefully we can get a few winners and finish the summer strong.”
Carrasco, the Eclipse Award-winning apprentice of 2013, is a three-time meet champion in Maryland, taking the 2015 Pimlico spring and Laurel summer titles as well as leading Laurel’s fall standings in 2013. He missed nearly six weeks with a fractured shoulder blade suffered in an April 2 spill at Laurel, returning to win with his first mount back May 11 at Pimlico.
Russell, who turns 30 Aug. 28, is named in seven races Friday, six races Saturday including Dothat Dance in the Find, Le Weekend in the Miss Disco and Bawlmer Hon in the All Brandy, and eight races Sunday. He is a six-time meet champion in Maryland and was the state’s leading rider in 2011.
Magee, 56, has been Maryland’s leading trainer each of the past three years and owns six individual meet titles at Laurel and Pimlico. He has four horses entered in two races Friday and two horses entered Saturday and Sunday.
Fifteen of Magee’s victories have come in claiming or optional claiming races. He was third with Line of Best Fit in the Delaware Handicap (G1) behind champion Songbird July 15.
“We’ve had a good summer. We claimed a couple of nice horses. We claimed Struth and he won a stake up at Delaware the same day as Line of Best Fit’s race which was nice. It’s been a good summer,” Magee said. “Let’s face it; I’m a claiming trainer, that’s what I am. That’s what we try and make a living at.”
Gonzalez, 40, has two horses entered Friday, three Saturday and four Sunday. He has three career training titles at Laurel.
Connections Fielding Offers for Stakes-Placed Expedited Vision
D Hatman Thoroughbreds and Kingdom Bloodstock, Inc.’s Expedited Vision drew the respect of horseplayers for his stakes debut last week, and garnered the attention of horse owners following his gutsy runner-up finish in the $100,000 Quick Call Aug. 9 at Saratoga.
It was the first loss from three career starts for Laurel-based Expedited Vision, sent off as the 9-5 second choice in a field of six for the 5 ½-furlong turf sprint. The 3-year-old gelding blazed through fractions of 22.42, 44.76 and 55.92 seconds before grudgingly giving way to finish a half-length behind Blind Ambition.
“It was the greatest feeling in the world for 5.4 furlongs. He ran his heart out,” trainer Phil Schoenthal said. “[Jockey] Sheldon [Russell] said he didn’t get tired and he didn’t slow down, the other horse just ran past him. They were drawing away from the rest of the field. We walked out of there with our heads held high. We’re proud of our horse and we’re happy for him.
“He had run some fast numbers on the sheets that the serious gamblers take seriously,” he added. “He belonged in the race and he figured in the race so I was happy to see him be well-received at the windows and that he ran to his odds.”
Expedited Vision, a Maryland-bred son of 2011 juvenile champion Hansen out of the Sky Mesa mare Bang Away, debuted with a one-length victory over older horses going 5 ½ furlongs on the turf June 9. He followed up with a 6 ½-length romp in a six-furlong optional claiming allowance over the main track 15 days later, both races coming at Laurel.
“We have some offers to sell him but we don’t have anything on the docket for him next,” Schoenthal said. “We’re not quite sure if he’s a better grass horse or if he’s a better dirt horse. We’re not in a big hurry to run him back anytime soon. It’s great to have options.”
Maryland Pride Day Features Cap Giveaway, Food & Drink Specials
Saturday’s Maryland Pride Day program will offer 12 races, six over Laurel’s world-class turf course and three $75,000 stakes, as well as a baseball cap giveaway and food and drink specials throughout the afternoon.
Fans can pick up a gray cap featuring the Maryland Jockey Club logo stitched in blue and horse decked out in the colors of Maryland’s state flag with the purchase of a program, while supplies last.
In addition, food and drink will be available from Flying Dog Brewery, Hidden Hills Farm & Vineyard, Jailbreak Brewing Company, Linganore Winecellars and Sagamore Spirit on the grandstand apron, where fans can also shop an array of local artisans.
First race post time Saturday is 1:10 p.m.
Mandatory Payouts Sunday in Rainbow 6, Late Pick 5, Super Hi-5
There will be mandatory payouts in the 20-cent Rainbow 6, 50-cent Late Pick 5 and $1 Super Hi-5 for Sunday’s 11-race program that concludes Laurel Park’s 33-day summer meet.
Live racing resumes Friday with a jackpot carryover of $3,809.01 in the Rainbow 6, which spans Races 6-11 and includes four races over the world-class turf course that attracted a total of 46 horses, or 11.5 starters per race.
The Rainbow 6 jackpot is paid out only when there is a single unique ticket sold with all six winners. On days when there is no unique ticket, 60 percent of that day’s pool goes back to those bettors holding tickets with the most winners while 40 percent is carried over to the jackpot pool. However, on mandatory payout days the entire pool is paid out to the holders of tickets with the most winners.
