By Jack Shinar
Trainer Carl O'Callaghan earned his first stakes win when front-running Kinsale King courageously held off the veteran sprinter Delta Storm by a neck in the $100,000 Vernon O. Underwood Stakes (gr. III) (VIDEO) at Hollywood Park Dec. 6.
Sent off at odds of 7-1, the 4-year-old Kinsale King was ridden to victory by Martin Garcia for owner Dr. Patrick Sheehy’s Super Horse. O'Callaghan, who turns 34 Dec. 7 and has been training for less than a year, called Super Horse "the backbone of my operation."
“I'll be 34 tomorrow,” said O'Callaghan, who has five wins at the meet. “I'm going to go home and cook a big fat steak and mashed potatoes then come back here and do it all again.”
Leaving from the rail, Kinsale King broke outward, bumping Machismo at the break while heading to the front with Delta Storm pressing on his outside in second. The 5-year-old Argentine Mr. Cacht, making his first U.S. start for trainer Jeff Mullins, raced in third. And that's the way they remained all the way around. Quarter-mile fractions for the opening four furlongs were an even :23.23 and :46.53.
Kinsale King took a slight advantage into the stretch and inched away a bit, but the 8-year-old second-choice Delta Storm, ridden by Rafael Bejarano, drew ever closer as they battled through the lane. Just as it appeared Delta Storm would finally overcome the leader in the final strides, Kinsale King found an answer with strong encouragement from Garcia to win gamely. It was 1 1/4 lengths back to Mr. Cacht and Felipe Valdez. The final time was 1:09.67 over the Cushion Track.
Noble Court, the 124-pound highweight and 2-1 favorite in the field of seven, rallied belatedly but lacked much closing punch and wound up fourth. He was followed by Paul's Hope, Machismo, and Talkin to Mom Roo. The latter was eased in the final furlong and removed from the track by horse ambulance after crossing the finish line.
Previously with trainer Eoin Harty, Kinsale King was turned over to O'Callaghan during the Del Mar meet this summer. In his only other prior start since, the Yankee Victor gelding scored by three lengths at odds of 61-1 at Oak Tree Oct. 30 in an optional claiming allowance race at six furlongs. He had been working in spectacular fashion at Hollywood since then, most recently blowing out three furlongs in a bullet :35 breeze Nov. 30.
“I was confident, very confident,” O’Callaghan said. “He trained so good going into the race. He's got a lot of heart, and that's what it's all about is heart. He's always had trouble with his feet -- he's had a lot of quarter crack problems. My blacksmith has been there every day with me, side by side, nursing him through the feet. We loved him last time, but he wasn't 60-1 today, was he?
The lightly-raced Kentucky bred ran his record to 3-0-1 in six starts. He more than doubled his earnings to $117,080 with the Underwood victory.
"The first time I rode him I found out he's a much better horse on the lead, so I was going to send him no matter what,” Garcia said. “I let him get comfortable on the lead. He has so much heart, he keeps going and going, he wasn't going to let anyone by. He's just a different horse when he's in front. Especially today, he ran with some really nice horses. I was surprised the way he won last time, but not today."
Marvin Little Jr. bred the dark bay, who is out of Flaming Mirage, by Woodman. Kinsale King sold for $67,000 at Barretts in May 2007.
Sent off as the fourth choice, Kinsale King paid $16.40, $7.80 and $5.80. A gallant effort in the stretch from 11-time winner Delta Storm resulted in second money for the Mike Mitchell trainee. He returned $3.80 and $2.80. Mr. Cacht was $6.40 to show in a solid U.S. debut.
Earlier on the card, Rummysecret War produced the highest priced winner at the meeting at $216.40. The Oscar Garcia-trained 4-year-old was ridden by Silvio Amador, who had his first Hollywood Park winner.
Copyright © 2009 Blood-Horse Publications. All rights reserved internationally.
rachel
Monday, December 7, 2009
Friday, December 4, 2009
Hialeah Asks to Run Thoroughbreds
By Jim Freer
In letters it sent Dec. 1, Hialeah Park is asking other pari-mutuels in the Miami-Fort Lauderdale market for permission to start running Thoroughbred races during its Quarter Horse meet that extends through next Feb. 2.
Those substitute Thoroughbred races are not permitted for Hialeah’s meet under current Florida laws, according to the Florida Division of Pari-Mutuel Wagering. Marc Dunbar, an attorney who teaches gaming law at Florida State University, said he agrees with that regulatory agency’s interpretation.
But Brunetti said he believes two provisions of Florida’s pari-mutuel law are “contradictory,” and that he plans to use one provision to pursue his request to start running Thoroughbred races. He said he and his attorneys had not determined whether and how they might make a request to the Florida DPMW.
Hialeah’s last Thoroughbred meet was in 2001. The track was closed until it began its initial Quarter Horse meet Nov. 28.
Brunetti said Thoroughbred races could help Hialeah Park economically. He noted that handle has been “disappointing” during the first four days of the Quarter Horse meet, when fields have been small because some horses are still being shipped from other states.
Brunetti said he was not aware that Calder Race Course on Nov. 30 cut off access for horses to ship in for stabling or to race until Dec. 14. Calder took that step as a precaution while it has quarantined three barns after one horse that previously was stabled there was diagnosed with Equine Herpes virus (EHV-1).
Calder on Dec. 1 indefinitely postponed the $100,000 Tropical Turf Handicap (gr. IIIT) and $100,000 My Charmer Handicap (gr. IIIT), adding that it plans no other schedule changes.
Brunetti said the timing of his request to run Thoroughbred races at Hialeah was “coincidental” with the situation at Calder.
Calder, which is racing through Jan. 2, and Gulfstream Park, which will begin its season the following day, are among tracks to which he sent the letter.
Officials of those two tracks declined comment on Brunetti's letter. On the afternoon of Dec. 3, Brunetti said he had not received any response from either track.
Brunetti has not determined how many Thoroughbred races he would run per day. But he said he would give first preference to Quarter Horses, and that trainers of those horses understand and accept his plan.
His interpretation of Florida law is that one provision would permit Hialeah to run as many as half its races as Thoroughbred races during the 40-day Quarter Horse meet--if approved by all horse and Greyhound tracks within a 50-mile radius of his track.
The Hialeah, Fla., track estimated its overflow attendance was more than 26,000 on opening day, a Saturday when it offered free admission and free parking.
But most in that crowd were there for the event, and not to wager. Data from Equibase Co. shows total handle of $233,833 for eight races--about $29,000 per race. A breakdown between betting on-track and approximately 100 simulcast sites, including tracks outside Florida, was not available.
But, as Hialeah officials expected, handle and attendance dropped for the eight-race cards for the next three days.
On Nov. 29, a Sunday, handle was $111,928, and Hialeah estimated attendance was 3,000.
Handle was $103,261 Nov. 30 and $139,563 Dec. 1. An individual who was at Hialeah said crowds both days were less than 1,000.
One industry official said those numbers don’t seem low for a Quarter Horse card on weekday afternoons.
But on Dec. 3, Brunetti said he expected all-sources handle for days other than opening day would average between $150,000 and $200,000.
Brunetti has said he has already spent about $20 million in renovating Hialeah. He is hoping for enactment of a pending law that would enable the track to have a 50-50 mix of Thoroughbred races and Quarter Horse races.
Officials of the DPMW said that agency would not speculate on whether enactment of the pending law this month would enable Hialeah to start running Thoroughbred races during its current meet.
The pending law also would enable Hialeah to build a casino with Las Vegas-style slot machines.
Enactment is being held up amid a dispute between the Florida legislature and Gov. Charlie Crist over terms of a gaming compact for the Seminole Tribe of Florida.
Dunbar, a partner in the Pennington Law Firm in Tallahassee, said he is one of numerous observers who do not expect a resolution of the Seminole issue or enactment of the law this year.
Hialeah will resume its four-day-a-week racing Dec. 5.
During its first four days, Hialeah averaged about 6.75 starters per race.
Brunetti said that is partly because some horses have not yet arrived from Lone Star Park in Grand Prairie, Tex., which ended its meet Nov. 28, and from several other Quarter Horse tracks.
About 500 of Hialeah’s 800 stalls are occupied. If all stalls are not taken by Quarter Horses within the next week, Brunetti said Hialeah Park would admit Thoroughbreds for stabling and training on its dirt track.
“Wesley Ward is interested, and I hear that several other Thoroughbred trainers are interested,” he said.
“Hialeah has a wonderful surface,” Ward said. “I would look forward to the possibility of having horses there.”
Ward said that could include stabling and training, along with racing, it if is permitted. Ward’s multi-state operation includes horses stabled at Calder. He is a regular at Gulfstream meets.
“If I raced at Hialeah, it would be with horses that did not fit (conditions) for races at Gulfstream or Calder,” he said.
The question of Hialeah being able to run Thoroughbred races during its current meet revolves around two back-to-back paragraphs in Florida racing law.
One paragraph allows a Quarter Horse permit-holder to run up to half its races as Thoroughbred races if it obtains written consent of all Thoroughbred, harness, and Greyhound Tracks within a 50-mile radius.
The second paragraph states that a Quarter Horse permit holder within 50 miles of a Thoroughbred track cannot run any Thoroughbred races while that other track is running a meet.
Gulfstream and Calder have a combined year-round schedule. Thus, the second provision prohibits Hialeah from running any Thoroughbred races, notwithstanding the first provision, Dunbar said.
Dunbar’s firm represents Gulfstream, its parent Magna Entertainment Corp. and several gaming industry manufacturers. He noted that Gulfstream and Hialeah were allies in passing the gaming law that has not been enacted. That law would allow Gulfstream to use its long-standing Quarter Horse permit to hold night racing--combining Thoroughbred and Quarter Horse races.
The pending law would remove the current law’s two provisions that restrict Hialeah from holding Thoroughbred races, for up to half its meets.
“I am making this request now to point to the importance of clearing up these contradictions and getting the new law in place,” Brunetti said.
Copyright © 2009 Blood-Horse Publications. All rights reserved internationally.
In letters it sent Dec. 1, Hialeah Park is asking other pari-mutuels in the Miami-Fort Lauderdale market for permission to start running Thoroughbred races during its Quarter Horse meet that extends through next Feb. 2.
Those substitute Thoroughbred races are not permitted for Hialeah’s meet under current Florida laws, according to the Florida Division of Pari-Mutuel Wagering. Marc Dunbar, an attorney who teaches gaming law at Florida State University, said he agrees with that regulatory agency’s interpretation.
But Brunetti said he believes two provisions of Florida’s pari-mutuel law are “contradictory,” and that he plans to use one provision to pursue his request to start running Thoroughbred races. He said he and his attorneys had not determined whether and how they might make a request to the Florida DPMW.
Hialeah’s last Thoroughbred meet was in 2001. The track was closed until it began its initial Quarter Horse meet Nov. 28.
Brunetti said Thoroughbred races could help Hialeah Park economically. He noted that handle has been “disappointing” during the first four days of the Quarter Horse meet, when fields have been small because some horses are still being shipped from other states.
Brunetti said he was not aware that Calder Race Course on Nov. 30 cut off access for horses to ship in for stabling or to race until Dec. 14. Calder took that step as a precaution while it has quarantined three barns after one horse that previously was stabled there was diagnosed with Equine Herpes virus (EHV-1).
Calder on Dec. 1 indefinitely postponed the $100,000 Tropical Turf Handicap (gr. IIIT) and $100,000 My Charmer Handicap (gr. IIIT), adding that it plans no other schedule changes.
Brunetti said the timing of his request to run Thoroughbred races at Hialeah was “coincidental” with the situation at Calder.
Calder, which is racing through Jan. 2, and Gulfstream Park, which will begin its season the following day, are among tracks to which he sent the letter.
Officials of those two tracks declined comment on Brunetti's letter. On the afternoon of Dec. 3, Brunetti said he had not received any response from either track.
Brunetti has not determined how many Thoroughbred races he would run per day. But he said he would give first preference to Quarter Horses, and that trainers of those horses understand and accept his plan.
His interpretation of Florida law is that one provision would permit Hialeah to run as many as half its races as Thoroughbred races during the 40-day Quarter Horse meet--if approved by all horse and Greyhound tracks within a 50-mile radius of his track.
The Hialeah, Fla., track estimated its overflow attendance was more than 26,000 on opening day, a Saturday when it offered free admission and free parking.
But most in that crowd were there for the event, and not to wager. Data from Equibase Co. shows total handle of $233,833 for eight races--about $29,000 per race. A breakdown between betting on-track and approximately 100 simulcast sites, including tracks outside Florida, was not available.
But, as Hialeah officials expected, handle and attendance dropped for the eight-race cards for the next three days.
On Nov. 29, a Sunday, handle was $111,928, and Hialeah estimated attendance was 3,000.
Handle was $103,261 Nov. 30 and $139,563 Dec. 1. An individual who was at Hialeah said crowds both days were less than 1,000.
One industry official said those numbers don’t seem low for a Quarter Horse card on weekday afternoons.
But on Dec. 3, Brunetti said he expected all-sources handle for days other than opening day would average between $150,000 and $200,000.
Brunetti has said he has already spent about $20 million in renovating Hialeah. He is hoping for enactment of a pending law that would enable the track to have a 50-50 mix of Thoroughbred races and Quarter Horse races.
Officials of the DPMW said that agency would not speculate on whether enactment of the pending law this month would enable Hialeah to start running Thoroughbred races during its current meet.
The pending law also would enable Hialeah to build a casino with Las Vegas-style slot machines.
Enactment is being held up amid a dispute between the Florida legislature and Gov. Charlie Crist over terms of a gaming compact for the Seminole Tribe of Florida.
Dunbar, a partner in the Pennington Law Firm in Tallahassee, said he is one of numerous observers who do not expect a resolution of the Seminole issue or enactment of the law this year.
Hialeah will resume its four-day-a-week racing Dec. 5.
During its first four days, Hialeah averaged about 6.75 starters per race.
Brunetti said that is partly because some horses have not yet arrived from Lone Star Park in Grand Prairie, Tex., which ended its meet Nov. 28, and from several other Quarter Horse tracks.
About 500 of Hialeah’s 800 stalls are occupied. If all stalls are not taken by Quarter Horses within the next week, Brunetti said Hialeah Park would admit Thoroughbreds for stabling and training on its dirt track.
“Wesley Ward is interested, and I hear that several other Thoroughbred trainers are interested,” he said.
“Hialeah has a wonderful surface,” Ward said. “I would look forward to the possibility of having horses there.”
Ward said that could include stabling and training, along with racing, it if is permitted. Ward’s multi-state operation includes horses stabled at Calder. He is a regular at Gulfstream meets.
“If I raced at Hialeah, it would be with horses that did not fit (conditions) for races at Gulfstream or Calder,” he said.
The question of Hialeah being able to run Thoroughbred races during its current meet revolves around two back-to-back paragraphs in Florida racing law.
One paragraph allows a Quarter Horse permit-holder to run up to half its races as Thoroughbred races if it obtains written consent of all Thoroughbred, harness, and Greyhound Tracks within a 50-mile radius.
The second paragraph states that a Quarter Horse permit holder within 50 miles of a Thoroughbred track cannot run any Thoroughbred races while that other track is running a meet.
Gulfstream and Calder have a combined year-round schedule. Thus, the second provision prohibits Hialeah from running any Thoroughbred races, notwithstanding the first provision, Dunbar said.
Dunbar’s firm represents Gulfstream, its parent Magna Entertainment Corp. and several gaming industry manufacturers. He noted that Gulfstream and Hialeah were allies in passing the gaming law that has not been enacted. That law would allow Gulfstream to use its long-standing Quarter Horse permit to hold night racing--combining Thoroughbred and Quarter Horse races.
The pending law would remove the current law’s two provisions that restrict Hialeah from holding Thoroughbred races, for up to half its meets.
“I am making this request now to point to the importance of clearing up these contradictions and getting the new law in place,” Brunetti said.
Copyright © 2009 Blood-Horse Publications. All rights reserved internationally.
Wednesday, December 2, 2009
McLaughlin Takes Suspensions for Trace Levels
By Claire Novak
Trainer Kiaran McLaughlin will serve three concurrent 30-day suspensions handed down by the Kentucky Racing Commission for three individual medication violations, the New York-based horseman confirmed Dec. 1.
The suspensions, which run from Dec. 1-30, are for positives of ipratropium bromide, a bronchodilator the Association of Racing Commissioners International has classified as a Class B drug—one that has the potential to impact performance. Traces of the drug were found in three of McLaughlin’s runners at Keeneland during the 2009 fall meet.
The levels were “sub-nanogram”--.16 nanograms, .26, and .39. McLaughlin in a Dec. 1 statement released the test results and said he was assured such levels wouldn’t impact a horse’s performance.
The positives include one in Bluegrass Princess, Dell Ridge Farm’s 3-year-old winner of the Oct. 23 Pin Oak Valley View Stakes (gr. III) division one. The other positives were found in Darley Stables’ 2-year-old Liston, winner of an Oct. 9 allowance race, and in a third-place finisher Oct. 15.
According to Kentucky state steward John Veitch, the horses were disqualified and placed last, and purse redistribution was ordered as part of the ruling.
Joe Mahoney, spokesperson for the New York State Racing and Wagering Board, said New York would uphold the suspension and that McLaughlin had already arranged to have his horses run in the name of his assistant, Art Magnuson.
According to the statement issued by McLaughlin, the traces of ipratropium bromide detected through urine samples came from a therapeutic medication called Atrovent, “recommended and prescribed by my veterinarian for horses in my stable that have developed a cough from recurrent airway obstruction–a bronchial reaction to hay dust.”
Atrovent, McLaughlin said, is a bronchodilator administered to the horse through the use of a facemask.
“It was recommended because it is short-acting and does not have the steroidal or corticosteroidal properties associated with other medications used for this condition,” the trainer said. “I was advised to withdraw use of the medication for any horse entered to race at least 48 hours prior to such race. I have followed these guidelines in each instance since I began using this medication.
“I have been informed that this drug is very short-acting and that its pharmacologic effect on the horse does not last beyond six hours, although the drug remains detectable at subnanogram levels beyond 24 hours.”
“The trainer freely admitted to us that he had given the medication used in conjunction with his training and treatment program in the past,” Veitch said. “He had been using a recommended period of withdrawal time that had been effective in the past and was understandably concerned that the withdrawal time was no longer effective.
“Through a number of unofficial telephone conversations with him, we were able to get his side of the story and explain to him the kind of penalty he was looking at, at which time he decided to waive his right to a formal hearing.”
“I do not believe that a protracted legal proceeding is in my best interest or the best interests of the racing industry at this time,” McLaughlin said. “Rather, I ask that the industry organizations and experts presently re-examining racing’s medication and testing policies look at this situation as it relates to zero-tolerance and, once again, the lack of uniformity.”
The first sub-nanogram levels of ipratropium bromide from McLaughlin’s Oct. 9 runner were detected by the University of Florida’s veterinary testing laboratory, which notified the Kentucky Racing Commission Oct. 28.
McLaughlin said: “I wouldn’t compromise my own integrity or the integrity of the business that I love.”
Copyright © 2009 Blood-Horse Publications. All rights reserved internationally.
Trainer Kiaran McLaughlin will serve three concurrent 30-day suspensions handed down by the Kentucky Racing Commission for three individual medication violations, the New York-based horseman confirmed Dec. 1.
The suspensions, which run from Dec. 1-30, are for positives of ipratropium bromide, a bronchodilator the Association of Racing Commissioners International has classified as a Class B drug—one that has the potential to impact performance. Traces of the drug were found in three of McLaughlin’s runners at Keeneland during the 2009 fall meet.
The levels were “sub-nanogram”--.16 nanograms, .26, and .39. McLaughlin in a Dec. 1 statement released the test results and said he was assured such levels wouldn’t impact a horse’s performance.
The positives include one in Bluegrass Princess, Dell Ridge Farm’s 3-year-old winner of the Oct. 23 Pin Oak Valley View Stakes (gr. III) division one. The other positives were found in Darley Stables’ 2-year-old Liston, winner of an Oct. 9 allowance race, and in a third-place finisher Oct. 15.
According to Kentucky state steward John Veitch, the horses were disqualified and placed last, and purse redistribution was ordered as part of the ruling.
Joe Mahoney, spokesperson for the New York State Racing and Wagering Board, said New York would uphold the suspension and that McLaughlin had already arranged to have his horses run in the name of his assistant, Art Magnuson.
According to the statement issued by McLaughlin, the traces of ipratropium bromide detected through urine samples came from a therapeutic medication called Atrovent, “recommended and prescribed by my veterinarian for horses in my stable that have developed a cough from recurrent airway obstruction–a bronchial reaction to hay dust.”
Atrovent, McLaughlin said, is a bronchodilator administered to the horse through the use of a facemask.
“It was recommended because it is short-acting and does not have the steroidal or corticosteroidal properties associated with other medications used for this condition,” the trainer said. “I was advised to withdraw use of the medication for any horse entered to race at least 48 hours prior to such race. I have followed these guidelines in each instance since I began using this medication.
“I have been informed that this drug is very short-acting and that its pharmacologic effect on the horse does not last beyond six hours, although the drug remains detectable at subnanogram levels beyond 24 hours.”
“The trainer freely admitted to us that he had given the medication used in conjunction with his training and treatment program in the past,” Veitch said. “He had been using a recommended period of withdrawal time that had been effective in the past and was understandably concerned that the withdrawal time was no longer effective.
“Through a number of unofficial telephone conversations with him, we were able to get his side of the story and explain to him the kind of penalty he was looking at, at which time he decided to waive his right to a formal hearing.”
“I do not believe that a protracted legal proceeding is in my best interest or the best interests of the racing industry at this time,” McLaughlin said. “Rather, I ask that the industry organizations and experts presently re-examining racing’s medication and testing policies look at this situation as it relates to zero-tolerance and, once again, the lack of uniformity.”
The first sub-nanogram levels of ipratropium bromide from McLaughlin’s Oct. 9 runner were detected by the University of Florida’s veterinary testing laboratory, which notified the Kentucky Racing Commission Oct. 28.
McLaughlin said: “I wouldn’t compromise my own integrity or the integrity of the business that I love.”
Copyright © 2009 Blood-Horse Publications. All rights reserved internationally.
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