Duhon has strong hand at Lone Star

Trainer Paul Duhon appears to have a strong hand for the final card of the Lone Star meet on Sunday. He has three horses entered, and all will start as top choices, led by Divine Holiday.

Divine Holiday, who has won his last two starts, goes in the seventh race. He is part of an eight-horse field for the optional $40,000 claimer for 3-year-olds and up at a mile, which also drew Direct Dial, the reigning Texas-bred of the year, and stakes winners Hallelujah Hit, Analyze This Jet, and Witt’sdollarnight.

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Divine Holiday’s last two wins have come at the distance and at Lone Star. He was a 3 1/4-length front-running winner of an optional $20,000 claiming race July 5. He earned a Beyer Speed Figure of 78, one of the best last-race numbers in the field Sunday.

“I thought he ran super,” Duhon said. “He did what he had to do, and did it easy.”

Duhon’s other starters are Awesome Accent in the third and Golden Paree in the fourth. The horses are part of a 14-horse stable the trainer has at Lone Star.

Duhon said he will race at Retama Park next, then will make his way to Zia Park.

“I’ve never run in New Mexico,” he said.

Duhon said the timing of the Zia meet – which runs from September to December – works well with his plan to return to Texas for the Sam Houston meet that opens in January.

Duhon is a 62-year-old Texas native and the brother of trainers Joe Duhon and the late Gary Duhon, who died in 2018. Paul Duhon’s first training win came in 1982 at Delta Downs, and his stakes winners include Marfa’s Taxes and Wacky Patty.

Duhon’s local stable has played host to a pair of stakes winners this meet at Lone Star – Mr Money Bags and She’s Our Fastest.

Sunday’s card at Lone Star also includes the eighth race, an optional $35,000 claiming sprint at five furlongs on turf that drew multiple stakes winner Perfect to Please as well as Glory Stars, third in the Iowa Sprint Handicap at Prairie Meadows.

Gee She Sparkles to Remington

Gee She Sparkles, who remained perfect in two starts with her win in the $109,000 fillies division of the Texas Thoroughbred Futurity last Sunday at Lone Star, will likely make her next start at Remington Park.

Trainer Danny Pish said Gee She Sparkles is a candidate for the $50,000 E.L. Gaylord Memorial, a 6 1/2-furlong race for fillies on the Oklahoma Derby undercard Sept. 29.

Gee She Sparkles was a 5 1/4-length winner last Sunday and earned a Beyer of 65.

“It’s certainly hard to knock that effort,” Pish said. “She broke really sharp and she settled and she rallied. It was very textbook. We’re very proud of her.”

Gee She Sparkles was the first stakes winner for sire Race Day, according to Spendthrift Farm, where he stands.

Moro Said Ready, who won his second stakes race of the meet in the colts and geldings division of the Texas Thoroughbred Futurity, will be pointed to a division of the $65,000 Texas Stallion Stakes at Retama, trainer J.R. Caldwell said.

◗ Lone Star has been handling an average of $994,934 per day on its live races this meet, and $769,931 of that comes from offtrack markets. The figures provided by Lone Star reflect handle through July 14. Through the same date, attendance has averaged 5,640.

◗ Lone Star has requested a 44-date meet for 2020, running from April 16 to July 19, according to Bart Lang, the track’s director of racing. The dates mirror 2019.

◗ Karl Broberg has locked up the Lone Star training title. He had 67 wins into Friday night’s card, 38 more than runner-up Danny Pish. Iram Diego led all jockeys at the meet through Thursday night with 57 wins.

◗ Rick Hammerle, who most recently served as vice president of racing and racing secretary at Santa Anita, has been named racing coordinator for Oaklawn Park. He will work with officials Jed Doro and Pat Pope during the meet that opens Jan. 24.