Despite many positives, meet begins in a whip-rule frenzy
Friday marks the opening of a 53-day meet at Monmouth Park, the iconic racing venue near the New Jersey shore. Purse money is appealing, the track has drawn a bevy of new outfits that should solidly support the racing product, and as COVID-19 continues waning, the prospect of a good, solid season increases.
All that, and yet Monmouth has been whipped into a frenzy this month.
Friday’s six-race twilight program marks the first in which Monmouth will implement a rule enacted by the New Jersey Racing Commission governing the use of the whip. The rule is the strictest in North America, forbidding jockeys, as well as exercise riders during training, from using the crop for anything beyond ensuring the safety of horse and rider. Riders can’t use the whip to “encourage” a mount, that is, to try and make them run harder and, potentially, faster. Even showing the animal the whip, a common practice, is forbidden, except in cases where safety could be compromised.
The rule, enforced with meaningful penalties and fines beginning with a first violation, will require subjective interpretation by stewards and, presumably, dialogue between stewards and jockeys unaccustomed to strictly hand-riding.
State steward Steven Pagano, reached by phone Tuesday, said New Jersey racing regulators forbade stewards from speaking directly to the press about any topic and referred media inquiries to a New Jersey state office. A representative in an email said the state wouldn’t comment on anything regarding the whip rule because of pending litigation backed by the Jockeys’ Guild.
Dennis Drazin, the CEO of the management company that runs Monmouth, said implementation of the rule “should be a work in progress with the stewards.”
“My own preference, though I do not control how the commission works, would be to have a period of time, whether it be 30 days or 60 days, to try and get a feel for this, with the rule in place but no penalties,” Drazin said.
Joe Bravo, Monmouth’s best-known regular rider, has led widespread outcry among jockeys regarding the rule. The Jockeys’ Guild strenuously opposes it, citing safety concerns, and filed suit to prevent its implementation. A court ruled against the Guild, which then appealed, later filing a motion to stay the rule pending a hearing on the appeal. The stay was denied, and Guild President Terry Meyocks said there’s no clear timetable for when the appeal will be heard.
Fourteen jockeys are named to ride Friday’s card, which drew 45 entrants and has limited races because of the late first post and Monmouth’s lack of lights. Listed in the order they appear on the overnight are jockeys Jorge Panaijo, Luis Ocasio, Tomas Mejia, Luis Reyes, Christian Navarro, Jose Ferrer, Carlos Hernandez, Jomar Torres, Isaac Castillo, Jose Baez, Carlos Montalvo, Keibar Coa, Sean Gilpin, and Derbe Glass.
That group has combined to win only 130 races in 2021. Several of the riders haven’t won a single race, and a couple haven’t yet ridden. The well-established riders Ferrin Peterson and Nik Juarez are expected to participate at the meet but currently are serving suspensions.
Jockeys, stewards, and Guild representatives met Tuesday in an effort to help guide the rule’s application. Meyocks participated in the call and said it assuaged none of the jockeys’ concerns.
“Whether it be the New Jersey Racing Commission or others, they should say some prayers nobody gets hurt, horses or jocks. That’s how dangerous this rule is,” Meyocks said.
It’s not entirely clear what makes the rule so perilous since a rider is permitted to carry a crop and use it if necessary. Meyocks cited instances where riders use a whip to help a horse get through a tight spot, blurring the line between “encouragement” and safety. Jockeys, according to Meyocks, can only use the whip to respond to dangerous circumstances, no to preempt them, but it’s hard to imagine stewards using the New Jersey whip rule to put humans and horses at risk.
“We’re going to evaluate all those situations as they occur,” Drazin said Wednesday. “I think they made a little progress understanding it yesterday.”
Compensating for the short Friday programs, Monmouth could card as many as 14 races on Saturdays and Sundays, when first post is set for 12:15 p.m. Eastern. Daily purses, including stakes, should average a robust $400,000. Maiden special weight races go for more than $47,000, while $5,000 claiming races boast purses above $20,000.
A host of trainers either new to the 1,600-stall Monmouth backstretch or absent for several years will compete for those purse dollars. Steve Asmussen took out a full 60-horse barn, his first season at the track in more than a decade. Todd Pletcher, who didn’t stable at Monmouth in 2020, was allotted 60 stalls this season, while Saffie Joseph Jr. has 50. Jerry Hollendorfer and Claudio Gonzalez both have about 40. Other newcomers with 20 stalls or more include Rafael Schistel, Phil Antonacci, Juan Carlos Avilia, and Michael Catalano.
Bettors also are concerned with new whip rule, though they don’t have to worry about horses racing without Lasix. Lasix is permitted in every Monmouth race save the Haskell, which is part of the no-Lasix Breeders’ Cup Challenge Series.
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Later this summer, New Jersey bettors wagering on Monmouth’s live product might be able to place their bets via a fixed-odds system first introduced at Monmouth for the 2018 Haskell Invitational and available last season on a limited basis. A bill to permit such an expansion passed one house of the New Jersey legislature earlier this month with near-unanimous support and goes before the other chamber in early June. If all goes well, Drazin said, expanded fixed-odds wagering, run by the international company The BetMakers, could be in place by the July 17 Haskell.
The Haskell, which could attract Kentucky Derby runner-up Mandaloun (who stands to be handed the Derby win if Medina Spirit, who initially tested positive for a banned race-day drug, is disqualified) is the heart of a 46-race stakes schedule that starts Friday with the $100,000 Jersey Derby.
This one-mile turf contest for 3-year-olds drew nine entrants, though Pickin’ Time runs only if the race is moved to dirt. It Can Be Done scored a sharp front-running Monmouth turf victory last summer in the Nownownow Stakes, but the pick to win the Jersey Derby is Riptide Rock.
Trained by Hollendorfer, Riptide Rock made three Oaklawn starts this year, running quite competitively in two of them, but Oaklawn has no grass course and Riptide Rock might be a grass horse. Last summer at Woodbine, making his career debut, he won a six-furlong turf sprint with speed to spare, extending his stride beautifully on the grass while looking totally capable of staying a mile.
Riptide Rock’s jockey that day, it must be noted, did not whip him a single time.