STAKES PLACED SEATTLE BOLD MAKES 2022 DEBUT IN FRIDAY NIGHTCAP
Seattle Bold, a multiple stakes placed router last year, makes his first appearance of 2022 in Race 9 on Friday, a first level allowance, for trainer Jamey Thomas. Owned and bred by Myles McMahon, the 4-year-old son of Bold Chieftain has reportedly been working lights out leading up to Friday’s festivities. He drew post position 5 of 10 and will be ridden by Evin Roman for the first time.
“He’s training like a beast,” Thomas said in a conversation last week. “He’s been working great. We’re really excited about him. From his training, I think he’s taken a step forward from 3 to 4 [years old].”
In 2021, Seattle Bold finished as the runner up in the Silky Sullivan and Alcatraz Stakes’ behind None Above the Law, who eventually went on to beat open company in the Grade 2 Del Mar Derby last summer. In the Alcatraz, Seattle Bold finished ahead of Jungle Cry, who returned in his next start to win the Robert Dupret Derby.
Although Seattle Bold may see longer distances as the year progresses, Thomas is starting his stable star off in a six-furlong dash this Friday. We know Seattle Bold can sprint and run well fresh: in his very first career race, Seattle Bold sprinted 6 furlongs, went off at even money and won handily.
Seattle Bold will need to be fit and come with his “A game” to win on Friday. The morning line favorite in the race, Psycho Dar, comes off a decisive two and three-quarter length victory at this first level allowance condition. Being a California-bred, he is eligible to win at the level one more time. The same rule applies for R M C Hook’em, who also won at this condition in his last start and takes another crack at the level. Armando Ayuso, off to an outstanding start at the current meeting (17 for 64), retains the mount on Psycho Dar while Brayan Pena rides R M C Hook’em.
Another intriguing entrant in the closing race on Friday is A Man’s Man, who ran third behind a likely stakes caliber racer in Hey Mate on January 9. The son of Mucho Macho Man sports a pair of sharp workouts in the interim for trainer Steve Sherman. One final notable, the Steve Miyadi trained Pappy Boyington, hasn’t been seen since the summer of last year, but was consistently running well at this level against restricted 3-year-olds. He faces older horses for the first time in the Friday finale.
9-races are on the docket for Friday’s program, with first post at 12:45 PM PT.
Race 9 on Friday (First level allowance for 4-year-olds and up at 5 and ½ furlongs on Tapeta)
#1 Defense Wins (Jockey Julien Couton…trainer Jim Gilmour…morning line odds of 8-1)
#2 A Man’s Man (Assael Espinoza…Steve Sherman…6-1)
#3 Psycho Dar (Armando Ayuso…Sammy Calvario…5-2)
#4 Exhortation (Pedro Terrero…Gloria Haley…20-1)
#5 Seattle Bold (Evin Roman…Jamey Thomas…8-1)
#6 Our Bold Prince (Irving Orozco …Eddie Rich…10-1)
#7 Chief Jackson (William Antongeorgi III…D. Wayne Baker…20-1)
#8 R M C Hook’em (Brayan Pena…Victor Trujillo…7-2)
#9 Mister Bold (Heriberto Figueroa…Jeff Bonde…12-1)
#10 Pappy Boyington (Alejandro Gomez…Steve Miyadi…5-1)
2021 EL CAMINO REAL DERBY RUNNER UP FINISHER JAVANICA RETURNS TO THE BAY
Almost one year ago, 3-year-old filly Javanica was driving to the wire in search of a victory in one of Golden Gate’s most prestigious races, the El Camino Real Derby, against male counterparts. Right before she hit the wire, she looked and, in the corner of her eye, noticed a flashy dark bay or brown colt surging towards her. She did her best to out finish him, but ultimately got tagged in the last 10 yards and lost the mile and an eighth route by a neck.
The classy colt who beat her, Rombauer, went on to win the second leg of the Triple Crown, the Grade I Preakness. With that in mind, Javanica may have run the race of her life in last year’s El Camino Real Derby.
A daughter of world-class stallion Medaglia D’oro, Javanica has run six races since the runner up finish to Rombauer. Only one of those races, a salty first level allowance on the turf at Del Mar over the summertime, resulted in a trip to the winner’s circle. Other notable efforts include a bronze medal in the Grade 3 Autumn Miss and a fourth-place finish in the Grade 2 Santa Anita Oaks.
In search of a lighter field and a confidence builder, Javanica returns to a track we know she likes in this Saturday’s feature race at Golden Gate, a one mile and a sixteenth second level allowance for fillies and mares. Set to be navigated by jockey Irving Orozco, Javanica breaks from post 5. Eoin Harty trains the Godolphin LLC homebred.
“I’m really looking forward to riding her,” said Orozco. “She has enough tactical speed and ability to where we should sit a good trip. I’m going in confident that she will run a really good race.”
A handful of local contenders look to spoil the party for the Southern California invader. Among them are a pair of classy hard knockers trained by Manny Badilla: Northwest Factor and Scherzo. Northwest Factor, a 10-time winner in 28 lifetime starts, hasn’t routed since May 21. That day, she out kicked Grade I placed Paige Anne for the win in an open allowance race. She makes her first start in three months for Team Badilla and will be ridden by Pedro Terrero. Scherzo, with Armando Ayuso tabbed to ride, won a first level allowance over this track two starts ago and wheels back in 19 days after a third-place finish in the Grade 3 Astra Stakes at Santa Anita.
Race 7 on Saturday (Second-level allowance for fillies and mares 4-years-old and up at one mile on Tapeta)
#1 Northwest Factor (Jockey Pedro Terrero…trainer Manny Badilla…morning line odds of 5-2)
#2 Scherzo (Armando Ayuso…Manny Badilla…6-1)
#3 Gettin Sideways (Julien Couton…Dan Markle…9-2)
#4 Tiz an Edventure (Frank Alvarado…Steve Specht…12-1)
#5 Javanica (Irving Orozco…Eoin Harty…1-1)
#6 Draw Me (Alejandro Gomez…Terri Eaton…12-1)
NOMINATIONS CLOSE THURSDAY NIGHT FOR THE 2022 EL CAMINO REAL DERBY
Nominations for the 2022 El Camino Real Derby close Thursday night. To nominate your horse to any stake at Golden Gate Fields, please contact stakes coordinator Lisa Jones at (626) 388-8062 or by e-mail at lisnpac12@hotmail.com.
The El Camino Real Derby, for 3-year-olds at one mile and an eighth on Tapeta, offers a pair of intriguing incentives. The winner of the race receives not only 10 Kentucky Derby points, but an all-expenses paid, free berth into the second leg of the Triple Crown, the Preakness Stakes. That said, the winner of the EL Camino Real Derby must be Triple Crown nominated to earn the latter incentive.
A big name amongst the list of early probables is MacKinnon, a multiple stakes winner who ran third in the Breeders Cup Juvenile Turf last year for trainer Doug O’Neill. O’Neill will likely be represented by a second entrant, Del Mo, who won a maiden special weight at Golden Gate last month. The first and fourth place finishers in the Golden Nugget Stakes in November, Boise and C’Mon Man, are gearing up for the El Camino Real Derby as is Unraptured, fresh off a dominating allowance victory on January 14.
LONGTIME BAY AREA TRAINER DELIA PASSES AWAY
The Bay Area horse racing community is mourning the loss of popular longtime trainer and former jockey William “Bill” Delia, who passed away on Thursday, January 27 due to complications of COVID-19. Delia was 75 years old.
Delia, born on December 5, 1946, began his apprenticeship as a jockey in 1966. After a race-riding career in which he piloted 304 horses to the wire first, Delia switched to training winners. Starting in 1985 and completing a career that spanned over four decades, Delia won 975 races from 7,952 starters, with his runners amassing purse earnings of $16,735,424.
A recent accolade for Delia came when, after a stellar year for his barn in 2019, the Bay Area native was honored with the California Thoroughbred Breeders Association (CTBA) Trainer of the Year award.
“As you can imagine, our racing family here at Golden Gate is deeply saddened,” said Golden Gate Fields General Manager David Duggan in a statement last week. “He was one guy you looked forward to seeing every morning. He was a hard worker that loved horses and racing. He had fantastic stories to share and a great sense of humor. With the news of Bill’s passing comes a dark shadow that has been cast on our backstretch.”
Jockey William Antongeorgi III, who at one point rode first call for Delia, reflected on his relationship with Bill and the good times they shared over the years. Riding in races for him, says Antongeorgi, was a treat.
“After I rode in a race for him, if we lost, he never got mad,” said Antongeorgi. “You would lose a race- you’d come back and talk to him-and he would always be the same whether you won or lost. You could have an open conversation with him, and he was very levelheaded about everything. I think part of that had to do with the fact that he was a rider and he understood what it was like to in [a jockey’s] shoes. When you go out there, that gives you confidence knowing that a trainer has confidence in you. He was a fun guy to ride for. When we won, he was always super appreciative and excited that things worked out in the race.”
Antongeorgi said his relationship with Delia was always one “of a friend, not an associate at work.”
“He was one of the highlights in the mornings,” said Antongeorgi. “With Bill, you could talk to him about business and riding and racing, but you could also talk to him about all sorts of other things. We joked around with each other all the time. We told stories and he always seemed to be in a good mood. He was never grumpy. Just a cool guy to be around. I’m really going to miss him.”
CLAIMS REPORT
Below is a list of claims from last week:
Friday
Race 2: Marilyn’s Smile (New trainer Isidro Tamayo…new owner Baseline Equine LLC)
Race 5: Miss Ski (New owner/trainer Andrew Nguyen)
Race 6: Meet the Sheriff (Isidro Tamayo…Marron Road Ventures LLC and Tamayo)
Race 6: Mohawk King (Michael Lenzini…Gary Marrone)
Race 8: Exhalting (Salvador Naranjo…Silvia Soto)
Race 8: Stone Groove (Jonathan Wong…Johnny Taboada)
Saturday
Race 2: Dark Prince (Reid France…Hat Trick Racing)
Race 3: La Popis (Owner/Trainer Dan Franko)
Race 9: Shanghai Mist (Faith Taylor…Benjamin Kelly and Taylor)
Race 9: Sunset Star (D. Wayne Baker…Richard Barton)
Race 9: What Up Now J T (Reid France…Hat Trick Racing)
Sunday
Race 1: Monstrodamous (Owner/Trainer Reid France)
Race 6: Gee Gee Whiz (Jonathan Wong…MJVET Stables)
Race 7: Shout It Out (MJVET Stables and Sergio Salguero)
FINISH LINES: Trainer Brittany Vanden Berg saddles her first Golden Gate Fields starter in Saturday’s ninth race. Vanden Berg’s 8-year-old gelding Hannity, in for a $4,000 tag, will be ridden by veteran Frank Alvarado. Vanden Berg recently moved to California after a training sting in Illinois for three years…Synthetic specialist Dynasty of Her Own is the one to beat in Friday’s fourth race, an open allowance for filly and mare sprinters. The daughter of Shanghai Bobby holds an astounding 9 for 10 lifetime record on the Golden Gate main track. Her main competition is Grade 2 placed First Star, making her first start for the Reid France barn…Trainer Ed Moger Jr. saddled Stilleto Boy to a terrific third place finish in the Pegasus World Cup last Saturday at Gulfstream Park. In the race, Stilleto Boy earned $292,500. His next start is to be determined…Golden Gate Fields will have special on-site coverage of the El Camino Real Derby next Saturday. TVG’s Caleb Keller will be live throughout the day covering the races for his network while XBTV’s Zoe Cadman is slated to give her takes on the simulcast feed with track announcer/racing analyst Matt Dinerman…Happy belated birthday to racing official and morning line maker Steve Martinelli, who celebrated his 40th birthday last Sunday. Also, happy birthday to assistant trainer Maryellen Silva and trainer Jamey Thomas, both who celebrate theirs this week…Leg E (the last leg) of the Stronach 5 wager on Friday is Race 3 from Golden Gate…$47,544 is carried over into the Golden Pick Six jackpot carryover on Friday.