Fair Grounds: Emmett Park gets to run in Risen Star
RACE REPLAY IS NOT AVAILABLEEmmett Park was one of only six horses with more than one win among the 16 3-year-olds entered in Saturday’s Risen Star, but that meant nothing under the conditions of the race.
In the event the Risen Star overfills, which it did, preference is given to entrants by lifetime earnings, not wins, and Emmett Park’s 2 for 2 record at Turfway Park this winter had earned him a mere $27,300.
That was the 15th highest total among the 16 horses to pass the entry box Monday – lower, even, than the Wayne Lukas-trained maiden Vigorish – and as of Wednesday morning, trainer Robert Pincins was wondering if he had shipped Emmett Park to Fair Grounds from his base at the Highpoint training center on Jan. 31 for naught.
“I don’t wish anything bad on any of the other horses, though,” Pincins said during training hours Wednesday.
[ROAD TO THE KENTUCKY DERBY: Prep races, point standings, replays]
Within the hour, news came that Bond Holder was out of the Risen Star. Emmett Park must break from the 14 post, but he will get to run in the Risen Star rather than shipping back to Kentucky next week to start in the Battaglia Stakes at Turfway, Pincins’s backup plan.
Pincins (pronounced PIN-sins) has never run a horse at Fair Grounds, and in fact, has been running very few horses at all lately. A native of the Northeast, his training career began in 1977, and Pincins, based for more than 20 years in Kentucky, was good for 10 or 12 wins per season. In 2013, however, he sent out just six starters: Four of them won, and with Emmett Park having triumphed Jan. 14 at Turfway, Pincins is 1 for 1 in 2014.
Pincins has started only two horses in graded stakes his entire career, and his only stakes win came in 2003, but Emmett Park is not a hopeless bomber. A gelded son of Bob and John, Emmett Park is a May foal but he is a big, strong horse, tall but not skinny, with a handsome head and a rich chestnut coat. Debuting in a two-turn maiden race Dec. 19, he rallied along a dead rail to win by five lengths, and Emmett Park came from 18 lengths back at the second call to win his allowance race by a head.
“We called him Bubba at first. He wasn’t a very fast learner,” said Pincins. “Around September, he started changing. Pretty soon he wasn’t Bubba anymore. He’s not going to outbreak anybody, but he’s been professional in his races.”
James Graham rides Emmett Park in the Risen Star. About all he can do from this post with a horse slow from the gate is try to save as much ground as possible on the first turn and see what happens.
At least the horse formerly known as Bubba will get a chance to show what he can do Saturday.
Departing breezes
Departing, who earned more than $1.3 million winning five races as a 3-year-old during 2013, had his first work of 2014 when he drilled three furlongs in 37.20 seconds under Larry Melancon here on Wednesday.
Departing hasn’t started since he finished fourth as the 1-5 favorite in the Sept. 29 Oklahoma Derby. Earlier in the year, Departing was third in the Louisiana Derby, and sixth in the Preakness, but he won the Illinois Derby, the West Virginia Derby, and the Super Derby.
Melancon said Departing was eager to work Wednesday, and Stall said his first breeze had been pushed back about 10 days because Departing bruised the bottom of a hoof.
“He’s been wanting to work, believe me,” said Stall.
Departing won’t race until Stall’s stable ships back to Kentucky following the end of the Fair Grounds meet in late March.