Gunnevera gives trainer a first with Delta Jackpot triumph

VINTON, La. - Gunnevera managed to give Antonio Sano, his accomplished and seasoned trainer, a first Saturday when he pulled away to a 5 3/4-length win in the Grade 3, $1 million Delta Downs Jackpot.

It was the richest career victory for Sano, a winner of 19 straight training titles in Venezuela before moving to South Florida in 2010. Gunnevera on Sunday was traveling back to Gulfstream Park West.

“It was the first time we ran in a million-dollar race, and thank God we got the job done,” Sano, 53, said Sunday, crediting the support of many, including owner Peacock Racing Stables.

Gunnevera emerged from the Jackpot in excellent condition, Sano said, with plans to now target the 3-year-old preps at Gulfstream Park. He earned 10 eligibility points for the Kentucky Derby after he closed from last for a sweeping win in the 1 1/16-mile race for 2-year-olds. Gunnevera covered the distance, run on a six-furlong track, in 1:45.15 and earned a Beyer Speed Figure of 87.

“He ran awesome,” Sano said. “He answered all the questions, and ran according to what was expected with him.”

Gunnevera, who won around two turns for the first time in the Jackpot, was the favorite after finishing a respectable fifth to Classic Empire in the Grade 1 Breeders’ Futurity at Keeneland in his two-turn debut Oct. 8. Earlier in the year, Gunnevera won the Grade 2 Saratoga Special at 6 1/2 furlongs and won a maiden special weight at 5 1/2 furlongs at Gulfstream Park.

Gunnevera had shown a smart series of works at Gulfstream Park West in advance of the Jackpot. Sano shipped the horse to Louisiana a week ahead of the race and was pleased with how he handled his task Saturday, and loved his energy level on Sunday.

“He wasn’t even tired,” Sano said. “He cleaned up. It was like he didn’t even run.”

Sano had ventured to Delta Downs for stakes twice before, running second in the Grade 3 Princess in 2012 with Tough Magic and fourth in the same race in 2014, with Danessa Deluxe.

Peacock Racing Stable’s partners are Solomon Del-Valle and Guillermo Guerra, both of Venezuela, and Jaime Diaz, of Spain. The ownership group has been racing in the United States for about a year and a half, Diaz told officials with Delta, and he said the group’s second purchase was Gunnevera, a $16,000 buy at the Keeneland September sale in 2015.

“We are a new barn, but we are having a good time taking it race by race,” Diaz said.

Gunnevera is a Kentucky-bred son of the Mineshaft stallion Dialed In.

* Handle on the 11-race Jackpot card from all sources Saturday was $3,821,137, an increase of 14 percent over the corresponding card in 2015, according to Delta officials. The program featured eight stakes.