Borel maintains low profile as Bradley's house guest

LOUISVILLE, Ky. – The dog days of summer might qualify as downtime for some folks on the Kentucky racing circuit, but not Buff Bradley.

Bradley was as busy as ever this week. After having to grin and bear the disqualification of Nawlins Kitty from first to eighth Wednesday in the $100,000 Ta Wee Stakes at Indiana Grand, Bradley was getting ready to board a New Jersey-bound plane the following morning to run Divine Warrior on Saturday in the Grade 3 Jersey Shore at Monmouth Park.

Back in Kentucky, with Churchill Downs as his work base and his spacious Indian Ridge Farm in Frankfort as his home base, there was also a lot going on. Aside from shuttling horses to and from Ellis Park, where he has won or tied for four training titles since 2009, Bradley is mulling over plans for his two stable stars, Divisidero and The Player, while also entertaining a house guest of note.

The guest is Calvin Borel, whose abrupt retirement from his Hall of Fame career as a rider in March was followed by his virtual disappearance from the planet to address what Bradley described as “personal issues” related to his marriage.

“Calvin’s been staying in our basement the last few weeks,” said Bradley, a married father of three. “He’s been riding my mower pretty much every day and coming to the barn to work horses and just getting his thoughts together. He’s in a good frame of mind, and he still maintains a very keen interest in racing.”

Rumors have gone around that Borel, a three-time winner of the Kentucky Derby, will emerge from retirement to ride sometime in the near future, although Bradley said the jockey is keeping any such decision to himself. A return would not be a major surprise given Borel’s age (49) and the fact that his life has been consumed by riding races since well before he was licensed at 16.

Meanwhile, Bradley is pulling back the reins on Divisidero, who has been under consideration for the Aug. 13 Arlington Million, and The Player, who was a good second last weekend behind Cupid in the Indiana Derby.

“I’d say Divisidero is only possible for the Million,” said Bradley. “His energy level hasn’t been up to snuff. He’s still tired since I worked him” on July 8 at Churchill, a five-furlong breeze in 1:03. “He actually worked real well with Calvin on him. At this point, with the hot weather and all, I’m thinking we’re probably going to give him a little break before all the big races in the fall.”

Divisidero won the Grade 1 Woodford Reserve Turf Classic on Kentucky Derby Day at Churchill before finishing fifth in his lone subsequent start, the Grade 1 Manhattan on Belmont Stakes Day.

As for The Player, the 3-year-old colt is headed soon to Indian Ridge for a 60-day break. “Same thing with him,” said Bradley. “We want him right for the big fall races. We’ve run him pretty hard to this point.”

Fugate a longshot specialist

Beware the longshots sent out by Pete Fugate. From his small stable at High Pointe near LaGrange, Ky., Fugate has sent out three winners from 15 starters in the last year, and all have paid huge $2 win mutuels: Obsidian Splendor at $71.40 and $47.40 last fall and, more recently, a first-time starter named National Girl at $64.20 in the opening race last Sunday at Ellis Park. His return on investment for 2015-16 is $9.15 for every $2 bet.

“This last one was really great,” said Fugate, 57. “The filly is owned by my groom, Jorge Rodriguez, and his brother, Emeterio.”

Fugate long has been closely affiliated with Hall of Fame trainer Jack Van Berg, for whom he went to work as a teenager. “I’ve worked for Jack off and on since 1976,” said Fugate.

◗ National Girl was the first winner in the United States for apprentice rider Arturo Aparicio, who wasted little time getting a second winner when Knee Pads prevailed in the fourth race at Ellis Park last Sunday. Aparicio, 18, rides with a seven-pound allowance. He is from Panama, and his book is being handled by Julio Espinoza. Aparicio went winless with 12 mounts at Gulfstream Park before moving north.

◗ Didiel Osorio, who led the Ellis jockey standings with seven winners when the three-day race week began Friday, will be among the featured guests next Saturday morning when Ellis offers fans an inside look during a new promotion entitled “Making of a Racehorse: Let’s Get Started!” The event is sponsored by Ellis and the Kentucky division of the Horsemen’s Benevolent and Protective Association. Further information is available through their websites.

◗ The career win total for Corey Lanerie stood at 3,995 when racing resumed Friday at Ellis. Lanerie will become the 69th jockey in North American racing history to reach the 4,000-win milestone, and it’s quite possible he would achieve it from his 19 mounts at Ellis during the three-day weekend. Lanerie, 41, has been the dominant jockey at Churchill in recent years.

◗ The Sunday feature at Ellis is a $39,000 turf sprint that drew a full field of 3-year-olds an up. It’s the lone allowance and the eighth of nine races on a card that starts at the usual 12:50 p.m. Central.

◗ The Keeneland Library Lecture Series will present a repeat performance of Walter May’s one-man show about legendary turf writer Joe Palmer at 7 p.m. Tuesday in the sales pavilion at the Lexington track. May previously performed “This Was Racing: An Evening with Joe Palmer” in March 2015.