After impressive storm recovery, Will Rogers opens 28-date meet
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Will Rogers Downs in Claremore, Okla., which was in the direct path of a tornado shortly after its Thoroughbred meet ended last May, has fully recovered and opens for a 28-date slate on Monday. The season will run through May 14.
Will Rogers is now home to several new barns, according to a press release from the track. At the time of the storm last season, most stables had already moved on to their next destination. In addition to barn damage, officials said there was damage to the grandstand roof. For the new season, the stable area is filled to capacity.
“It’s incredible to see the resiliency of this property and the hard work put in by the staff to build it back more beautiful than ever,” Danielle Barber, executive director of the Thoroughbred Racing Association of Oklahoma, said in a press release. “We can’t wait to welcome fans, owners, and trainers for what promises to be an outstanding season.”
The season opener Monday features eight races, led by a conditioned allowance for fillies and mares over six furlongs. Kachina, who was the runner-up in the Oklahoma Classics Distaff Sprint in October at Remington Park, will launch her season in that race, which goes as the seventh on the card. Leandro Goncalves has the mount for Kirk Thoroughbreds and trainer Kari Craddock.
Kachina’s rivals include Managing Mischief, who has recency on Kachina following a pair of starts at Oaklawn; Palacein, who moves back to dirt after running a big second in a turf sprint at Sam Houston; and Thetruthisthetruth, who won nine races in 2023 to rank as one of that year’s winningest horses in North America.
The Tuesday card offers another eight races, led by a conditioned allowance sprint that drew C W Prize. He is starting his season after winning the Jeffrey Hawk Memorial last December at Remington. Richard Eramia has the mount for Bryan Hawk and trainer Joe Offolter.
The purse for each of the allowances is $30,000. They could produce starters for some of the seven stakes that will be offered at the meet. The stakes will all be run on either Mondays or Tuesdays.
There are two open-company stakes on the schedule, the $50,000 Wilma Mankiller for fillies and mares at six furlongs April 14 and the $50,000 Highland Ice for 3-year-olds and up at six furlongs April 15. The remaining stakes are restricted to horses bred in Oklahoma.
Purses for the meet are projected to average $170,000 a card, with increases for maiden races and allowances, according to the press release.
Take Me Serious, who won the Oklahoma Classics Distaff Sprint over Kachina, was the horse of the meet last season at Will Rogers. She won two stakes at the session and on Feb. 25 worked a bullet half-mile at Will Rogers in 46.52 seconds. It was the fastest of 53 moves at the distance that morning.
Will Rogers will race every Monday and Tuesday, with a special Saturday card on May 3. There are Wednesday cards on March 19 and 26, April 2 and 9, and May 14. First post is 1:15 p.m. Central.
Trainer Federico Villafranco enters the meet five victories from a milestone of 1,000 Thoroughbred wins in North America, according to statistics from Daily Racing Form.
The meet at Will Rogers will be the first Thoroughbred racing in Oklahoma since the Remington meet closed in mid-December. According to the new condition book, Will Rogers will again be operating under the jurisdiction of the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority.
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