Burchell sends out his two best horses Sunday

LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Sunday is a huge day for Greg Burchell, and not just because it’s Father’s Day.

Burchell will send out the two best horses in his small stable, Sticksstatelydude and Bottle Rocket, in separate races at Churchill Downs. Sticksstatelydude could be favored in the ninth of 10 races, the $55,500 feature, despite having gone unraced for more than eight months because of a tendon strain. The 6 1/2-furlong, first-level optional $80,000 claimer drew eight 3-year-olds.

“He’s supposed to be the best horse in there,” said Burchell. “How he runs Sunday will determine what path he takes afterward.”

Bottle Rocket “really tries hard and deserves to run where he can win,” said Burchell, explaining why the gelding is being dropped out of an overnight stakes into $40,000 claiming company in the second race.

Burchell, 55, has been around the racetrack his entire life. His father is retired trainer Jim Burchell, who lives in Hot Springs, Ark., and turns 77 next month. Greg Burchell and his wife, Beth, have a 31-year-old son, Clayton, and 19-year-old daughter, Bella.

Burchell has worked numerous jobs on the track and has been close with prominent New York trainer Kiaran McLaughlin since they grew up together in Lexington, Ky. In recent years, McLaughlin has occasionally sent Burchell a horse to train on his own – such as Sticksstatelydude.

“We’re like family, so it’s all the same,” said Burchell, who has had 18 winners from 123 starts since taking out a trainer’s license in 2011. “I’ve actually been around this horse for most of his life, since he was 9 days old. He’s a really nice horse.”

The Sunday feature is part of the 20-cent Single Six (races 5-10), which offered a carryover jackpot of more than $572,000 entering Friday’s action.

Race 9

KEY CONTENDERS

Sticksstatelydude, by First Dude

Last 3 Beyers: 78-71-77

◗ A maiden victory last summer at Saratoga under McLaughlin’s name put this Virginia-bred colt on the radar, and after being scratched from the Grade 1 Hopeful with a brief illness, he ended his season with a creditable fourth behind Brody’s Cause and Exaggerator in the Grade 1 Breeders’ Futurity at Keeneland.

Twizz, by Twirling Candy

Last 3 Beyers: 85-71-28

◗ This Mike Maker-trained colt ran the heavily favored Jazzy Times into defeat before settling for second for this same allowance condition here three weeks ago.

Entertainer, by Malibu Moon

Last 3 Beyers: 79-69-76

◗ Twice stakes-placed for trainer Ron Moquett, this colt has been very consistent in 11 career starts in becoming the leading earner in the field.