Cyrus Alexander, Shotgun Kowboy split up after Lone Star Handicap one-two finish

Cyrus Alexander and Shotgun Kowboy have gone their separate ways after a one-two finish in the Grade 3, $200,000 Lone Star Park Handicap on Monday. Cyrus Alexander was back in his Santa Anita stall on Wednesday, according to trainer Jerry Hollendorfer, while Shotgun Kowboy was shipped to an Oklahoma farm for a brief freshening, said trainer C.R. Trout.

Cyrus Alexander, a 4-year-old by Medaglia d’Oro, won the first stakes of his career in the Lone Star Handicap. He stalked the pace and went on to a 2 1/2-length win over a field that included Grade 3 winners Shotgun Kowboy and Carve. For the effort, Cyrus Alexander earned a Beyer Speed Figure of 98.

“I thought he ran a good race,” Hollendorfer said. “Actually, that was his best race. We were pleased he tied his high [Beyer] number. This horse is bred so well. If we can get him to do that a couple of more times, he’s got a chance to be a real nice stallion prospect. He’s a beautiful-looking horse.”

Cyrus Alexander is a half-brother to 2010 Kentucky Derby winner Super Saver. He races for Spendthrift Farm and Stonestreet Stables.

Plans for Cyrus Alexander are to be determined, said Hollendorfer. The horse had hooked Grade 1 winners Hoppertunity and Effinex at home before shipping to Texas, and Hollendorfer said he wants to find the right kind of spot for Cyrus Alexander.

“We’d like to win a couple of races in a row and get his confidence up,” he said. “We’ve been running against really good company, and I thought the company there in Texas was real decent company. I’m happy to see him defeat a group of horses like that.”

Shotgun Kowboy emerged from the Lone Star in good order, said Trout, who made no excuses. The trainer also bred and owns the horse, who last year won the Grade 3 Oklahoma Derby at Remington Park.

“He just got outrun,” Trout said. “A better horse outran him. Shotgun ran his race. I’m really proud of the horse.”

Trout said Shotgun Kowboy will be considered for the Grade 3, $300,000 Cornhusker Handicap, a 1 1/8-mile race July 2 at Prairie Meadows.

“We’ll see who’s going to be in that, make up our mind where we want to go,” Trout said. “We’ll look at some other [stakes], but right now, the Cornhusker is the one I want to go in, I think. If we go, we’ll get up there four or five days before the race, let him gallop over the track.”

Trout said Shotgun Kowboy would spend about seven to 10 days in Oklahoma before returning to Lone Star.

Summit in New Mexico

The stakeholders in the New Mexico racing industry are scheduled to come together this summer at either Ruidoso Downs or The Downs at Albuquerque to discuss a host of different topics, including a proposal that would suspend horses who test positive for certain substances. The date of the meeting is still being determined, said Izzy Trejo, the new executive director of the New Mexico Racing Commission.

“It’s going to bring all the issues to the table to sort them out,” said Trejo, adding that the summit idea was brought forward by the management of Sunland Park.

One topic on the table is a proposal to suspend a horse from competition for 60 days if he tests positive for a Class 1 or Class 2 drug or any anabolic steroid. The horse would be placed on the stewards’ list for that period and, if he tests positive again after that time, could face another 60-day suspension.

“We’re still working on the verbiage,” said Trejo. “We want to start penalizing the horse because right now, trainers are getting caught with the positive and they get booted out of racing, and the owners just go on and find another trainer. We think this can get the owners’ attention because the horse will have to sit at the farm or the stall for a few months. We’re hoping to get people’s attention.”

The commission already has one policy in place in which violators could have horses suspended from racing. The panel began out-of-competition drug testing in April, and if a horse is not produced for testing, the horse can be suspended from racing for up to 120 days and the trainer for up to 180 days. The new program calls for about 40 horses per week to randomly have blood drawn at the current meet at SunRay Park. The first round of tests all came back clean, said Trejo. There also is testing at the current meet at Ruidoso.

In other topics for the summit, race dates will be discussed, said Trejo. Sunland had requested an all-Thoroughbred meet for next season but withdrew that application at a recent meeting. Sunland is in discussions with horsemen’s groups on the matter, said Trejo.

Other discussions will concern streamlining the adjudication process, said Trejo.