OROZCO RESTING AFTER SATURDAY SPILL
Jockey Irving Orozco, who was injured in a spill on Saturday afternoon, is resting comfortably at Highland Hospital in Oakland and is on his way to a full recovery. Orozco was aboard Pamplemiss in the third race on Saturday when the filly clipped heels approaching the top of the stretch, unseating the 24-year-old journeyman. Pamplemiss emerged from the incident unscathed.
According to agent Tom “Bomber” Doutrich, Orozco underwent two surgeries to repair abdominal injuries sustained in the incident. Since Saturday, Orozco has been alert and communicating with hospital staff, family and other visitors. The doctors are very pleased with Irving’s progress and optimistic he will continue to improve in the coming days and weeks. Orozco will be out of action for an extended period of time.
All jockeys around the world are remarkably fit and resilient athletes. The entire family at Golden Gate Fields wishes Irving the very best in his recovery process and looks forward to seeing him in the winner’s circle again soon.
EDWIN GONZALEZ NEW ADDITION TO THE JOCKEY COLONY
Edwin Gonzalez, who previously rode at Laurel Park and Pimlico in Maryland, has shipped his tack west to ride at Golden Gate for the foreseeable future. Gonzalez is a 27-year-old journeyman who has been riding in races since 2009. He holds 987 career wins, meaning he is just 13 victories shy of the 1,000 career wins milestone.
“I’m at a new track and I’m hungry,” said Gonzalez on Wednesday morning. “It’s great to be here.”
Since 2009, Gonzalez has ridden primarily in the Midwest and has won stakes races at Arlington Park, Delaware, Laurel and Keeneland. He will be represented by Fernando “Shoes” Navarro, who is eager to get Gonzalez started at Golden Gate.
“I’m excited to have him here,” said Navarro. “We’re gonna try to get him going and I think he will do well here. He has the right attitude and looks ready to work hard.”
Gonzalez has a wife, Karena, and they have one child: 1-year-old daughter Marcella. The couple is expecting a second baby in a few months-a baby boy to be named Fabian Andres.
SPECIAL FIRST POST ON BREEDERS CUP FRIDAY AND SATURDAY
This Friday and Saturday, a two-day racing spectacle takes center stage for racing fans across the globe. The 2018 Breeders Cup World Thoroughbred Championships, held in Louisville, Kentucky, features 14 championship races highlighted by the $6,000,000 Breeders Cup Classic on Saturday.
On Friday afternoon, Churchill Downs holds a 10-race card, with first post time at 12:55 PM Eastern Time/9:55 AM Pacific Time. 5 of the 10 races are Breeders Cup events, with the quartet of races scheduled for juveniles (2-year-olds). Golden Gate Fields’ gates open at 9:30 AM, at which time fans can watch and wager on the entire Breeders Cup Friday card. Golden Gate will offer a 9-race program on Friday, with first post time slated at 12:09 PM Pacific Time.
On Saturday, Churchill Downs will run a 12-race program, with first post time at 10:45 AM ET/7:45 AM PT. 9 Breeders Cup races are on the overnight for Saturday. All gates at Golden Gate open at 8:30 AM, with the first Breeders Cup race at Churchill Downs set to go off at 12:00 PM ET/9:00 AM PT. Golden Gate Fields is slated to run a 10-race card, with an early first post time of 11:30 AM.
LAKERBALL IMPRESSES AGAIN IN PIKE PLACE DANCER
Earlier in the month, Lakerball shocked racing fans with a 33-1 upset in the Surfer Girl Stakes, a prep at Santa Anita for the Breeders Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf (G1). In fact, Lady Prancealot and Summering, the second and third place finishers in the Surfer Girl, are bound for the Breeders Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf this Friday. Even though a start in the Breeders Cup may have been tempting, the connections of Lakerball decided to run their 2-year-old filly in another race: the $75,000 Pike Place Dancer Stakes at Golden Gate.
Lakerball, competing against five other locally based fillies in last Saturday’s Pike Place Dancer, went off as the even money favorite for trainer Doug O’Neill and Southern California pilot Alonso Quinonez. After stalking the pace, the daughter of Lakerville took the lead approaching the quarter pole and quickly opened up on her rivals, winning the mile turf contest by 5 lengths. Surely, bigger and better things are on the horizon for this 2-time stakes winner.
“The second favorite was coming from a sprint, so [Alonso and I] talked about that if that one took off, then we would sit off and things worked out for us,” said Leandro Mora, the longtime assistant for trainer Doug O’Neill. “It was a good pace and she finished up well-not a bad time for this type of race.”
The Pike Place Dancer was the first of eight stakes races at the Golden Gate Fall Meet. The next stake event at the current meeting is the Golden Nugget, a six-furlong sprint for 2-year-olds on November 10.
BEYER SPEED FIGURES
***A list of last week’s winners and what speed figure they received***
THURSDAY
Race 1: Girlsintheoffice-63
Race 2: King Eddie-73
Race 3: Maxinamillion-72
Race 4: Marilyn’s Smile-84
Race 5: Wright Winged-41
Race 6: Vacaville Special-58
Race 7: Diamante Appeal-24
FRIDAY
Race 1: My Friend George-65
Race 2: Turnaround-65
Race 3: Sutter-50
Race 4: Mybluebell-68
Race 5: Kid Cantina-56
Race 6: G. G. Ryder-89
Race 7: Our Renee-71
Race 8: Peppered Jo-56
Race 9: Vutzak-71
SATURDAY
Race 1: Savrola-69
Race 2: Mr. Twinery-88
Race 3: Rhyming Tiger-50
Race 4: Tiz Titus-82
Race 5: Shockazulu-53
Race 6: Lakerball-78
Race 7: Noble Contessa-57
Race 8: Midnight Swap-68
Race 9: Miss Super Saint-67
SUNDAY
Race 1: On Fire-60
Race 2: Nevada Wild Cat-45
Race 3: Bay Area-82
Race 4: The Creep-48
Race 5: Annie’s Candy-85
Race 6: I Love Romance-72
Race 7: Pop Fizz Clink-57
Race 8: Orchestral-86
Race 9: Crown Kitten-71
FINISH LINES: Northern California trainers Jerry Hollendorfer and Jeff Bonde send out two runners apiece in Breeders Cup races. Hollendorfer saddles Dueling and Gunmetal Gray in the Juvenile while Bonde tightens the girth on King of Speed in the Juvenile Turf and Miss Sunset in the Filly and Mare Sprint…Trainer Blaine Wright will spend his Breeders Cup weekend at Santa Anita. The Wright-trained Adorned, coming off an impressive maiden win in September, faces allowance foes in Race 1 on Friday. Six races later, two-time San Francisco Mile winner Alert Bay runs for Wright in the $70,000 Lure Stakes. This is Alert Bay’s first start since a win in the Rolling Green Stakes in August. On Saturday, Wright will be represented by first time starter Anothertwistafate, a $360,000 sale purchase that has reportedly been working lights out for his career debut. Jockey Juan Hernandez will fly down to ride all 3 horses…Jockey Jose Valdivia Jr. will not ride at the current fall meet, unlike previously reported. Valdivia was originally scheduled to compete at Golden Gate Fields throughout the fall but opted to move elsewhere…The 20 Cent Golden Pick Six Jackpot carryover has climbed to $10,752. We also have a Super High 5 carryover of $5,550, which will be featured in Race 1 on Thursday as long as there are no scratches.