HALL OF FAMER DESORMEAUX JOINS JOCKEY COLONY
On January 1, Kent Desormeaux entered his 34th year of race riding with over 6,000 career victories. As of Sunday, January 26 (our last live racing day), Desormeaux shipped his tack to Golden Gate Fields, rode two races on the aforementioned Sunday, and indicated he would like to ride at the Bayside track for an extended period of time. He will be represented by agent J.R. Pegram.
“A couple of leaders trainers [at Golden Gate] said they would ride me if I came here,” said Desormeaux. “I’m giving it a shot. I’m all in.”
A native of Louisiana, Desormeaux is the second-most winningest Cajun jockey. The great Eddie Delahoussaye, alongside Desormeaux in the Horse Racing Hall of Fame in Saratoga Springs, posted 6,384 wins throughout a remarkable career that spanned over four decades. Desormeaux has guided 6,031 winners and, after doing the math, needs 354 more to pass Delahoussaye as the all-time winningest Cajun jockey.
With his Hall of Fame induction in mind, it’s no surprise that Desormeaux possesses an awe-inspiring resume. For one, he is a 3-time Kentucky Derby winner. He won the 1998 edition aboard Real Quiet, finished first two years later atop Fusaichi Pegasus, and was the regular rider for 2008 victor Big Brown. Desormeaux has also won 3 Preakness Stakes (in 1998, 2008, 2016) and was victorious in the 2009 Belmont Stakes with Summer Bird. He is a 6-time Breeders Cup winner, too, and has amassed career purse earnings of a whopping $285,608,407.
ANNEAU D’OR LOOKS TO SHINE BRIGHT IN THE RISEN STAR
As reported last week by major horse racing media outlets, Northern California star 3-year-old Anneau D’or will race next in the February 15 Grade 2 Risen Star Stakes at The Fairgrounds in New Orleans, Louisiana. The Risen Star, a mile and a sixteenth dirt race that awards the winner 50 Kentucky Derby points, hands out a total purse of $400,000.
For the first time, Anneau D’Or will be ridden by one of the top jockeys in North America: Joel Rosario. Rosario, with an impressive record that boasts a Kentucky Derby win and a multitude of Breeders Cup victories, picked up the call within the past couple of weeks.
Anneau D’Or, who ran second in the Grade 1 Breeders Cup Juvenile before another runner up finish in the Grade 2 Los Alamitos Futurity, will be adding blinkers for the first time in the Risen Star. The son of Medaglia D’Oro has reportedly sported “the hood” in recent workouts over the Golden Gate Tapeta, including last Saturday morning when he breezed a strong 7 furlongs in 1:29.80 seconds. New jockey Rosario flew up from his current Southern California home to get acquainted with Anneau D’Or and was aboard for the drill.
“We added a little bit of a blinker to him, been breezing him (with the equipment),” trainer Blaine Wright told Bloodhorse Magazine’s Byron King. “Everything looks pretty decent to this point. Hopefully, he will put himself in a position to come at ’em at the top of the lane.”
NOMINATIONS CLOSE FOR THE EL CAMINO REAL DERBY THIS THURSDAY
On Thursday, February 6, nominations close for next Saturday’s $100,000 El Camino Real Derby. Run at the traditional mile and an eighth distance, the El Camino Real Derby awards 10 Kentucky Derby points to the first-place finisher and, for the second year in a row, an automatic berth into the Grade I Preakness Stakes at Pimlico on Saturday, May 16.
CLAIMS
Our weekly “claims list” is as follows:
Friday, January 24
No claims
Saturday, January 25
Race 5: Mulhima (new trainer Mike Lenzini, new owner Gary Marrone)
Race 7: Arch Anthem (trainer Tim Bellasis, owners Bellasis, O’Donnell, O’Gorman, Tschanz & Tschanz)
Sunday, January 26
Race 3: Imperator (trainer/owner Dan Franko)
Race 4: Sooner Better (trainer Reina Gonzalez, owners Doyle, Gonzalez, Gutierrez & Viramontes)
Race 6: Please Do (trainer Victor Trujillo, owner Carrol Stubbs)
Race 7: Tuscan Warrior (trainer Jonathan Wong, owner MJVET Stables)
Race 9: Live It Well (trainer Rene Amescua, owner Richard Barton)
FINISH LINES: Juan Hernandez and Jonathan Wong both have commanding leads in the jockey/trainer standings…Wong scored two stakes triumphs two weeks ago at two different tracks: impressive Golden Gate maiden special weight winner Dynasty of Her Own won the Borderplex Stakes at Sunland Park while 2nd place Pike Place Dancer Stakes finisher The Adrie Factor was victorious in the Jeff and Jack Coady Sr. Stakes at Turf Paradise…Grade 3 Berkeley Handicap winner Mugaritz, recent GGF allowance winner Camino Del Paraiso and 2018 California Derby winner Kingly clash in Saturday’s $100,000 Grade 3 Thunder Road Stakes at Santa Anita. The Thunder Road is a one-mile turf contest…Leg D of the Stronach 5 wager goes as Race 3 at Golden Gate this Friday…The Rolling Super High Five wager has a carryover of $5,673 heading into the next race in which the ‘High Five is offered…Also moving forward, $29,166 has been carried over into the Golden Pick Six Jackpot pool…Happy birthday to Assistant Racing Secretary and morning line maker Steve Martinelli, who celebrated his birthday last week…This week, we give birthday shout outs to trainer Jamey Thomas, trainer Jacqui Navarre, and pony gal Brittney Moore.