HIGH EXPECTATIONS FOR THE 2018 FALL MEET
The 32-day 2018 fall meet begins this Thursday, October 18 and runs through Sunday, December 9. First post time each race day is 12:45 PM PT with two exceptions; Breeders Cup Saturday, November 3 has a scheduled first post of 11:40 AM while the first race on Thanksgiving Day, November 22, will go off at 11:15 AM.
Eight stakes races are highlight on the fall meet calendar, led by the $100,000 Grade 3 Berkeley Handicap for three year olds and upward. Four of the eight stakes races are for 2-year-olds: the Pike Place Dancer and Golden Gate Debutante for fillies, and the Golden Nugget and Gold Rush Stakes for colts and geldings.
The 20 Cent Golden Pick Six will, once again, be featured on the wagering menu. The Golden Pick Six is a jackpot wager, with the sequence coming in the last six races on each card. The 50 Cent Early Pick 5 (Races 1-5 every day) will have a player friendly, low 14% takeout, and the $1 Rolling Super Five will be on the wagering menu as well. Note that the Rolling High Five is only offered in races in which there are 7 or more starters.
“We are excited to offer eight stakes races, good quality racing and great wagering opportunities this meet,” said General Manager and Vice President of Golden Gate Fields David Duggan. “Our goal is to always make the racing product as strong as possible, and the customer service experience top notch. We will be giving our fans and horseplayers’ extensive coverage-interviews with jockeys, trainers and others-along with a number of Golden Gate Fields videos through our YouTube page. We are improving in all aspects of our product for the fans, horseplayers and horseman and look forward to continuing to do so during this meet.”
FINISH LINES: A reminder of jockeys joining the riding colony this meet: Ryan Barber (representing himself), Julien Couton (represented by Dennis Patterson), Francisco Monroy (represented by Brent Harmon), Kevin Orozco (represented by “Oakland Ron” Freitas) and Austin Solis (represented by Brent Harmon)…Jose Valdivia Jr., who won 112 races at Arlington Park this year and finished atop the rider standings there by a landslide, will be riding at Golden Gate Fields this Thursday and Friday. Valdivia rides I Will Rule in Thursday’s opener and will be aboard Synnin (Race 3) and Dutton’s Legend (Race 5) on Friday…Silvio Amador is getting close to a return to the saddle. The journeyman rider suffered a leg injury in May and has been rehabilitating over the past five months…Trainer Anthony Stabile is back at our bayside track after spending his summer at Presque Isle Downs in Erie, Pennsylvania. Stabile returns to GGF with 21 horses, six of who are unraced youngsters. “We’ll be ready to run,” said Stabile. “I’m happy to be back.”…Also returning to Golden Gate Fields is trainer Frank Lucarelli, who has a string of about 30 horses. Lucarelli raced the majority of his stock at Emerald Downs in Auburn, Washington this spring and summer…The Stronach 5 wager, a Pick 5 sequence in which all five legs are run at Stronach Group owned racetracks, features Golden Gate’s fifth race as the last leg in this Friday’s $1 wager….The 20 Cent Golden Pick 6 and $1 Rolling Super High Five pools begin anew with the start of this upcoming fall meet.