Lanerie redeems himself with Keeneland fall title

LEXINGTON, Ky. – What happened to Corey Lanerie this summer at Saratoga will always remain a mystery – especially to Lanerie himself.

Lanerie went winless from 57 mounts at the Spa in an extended slump rendered even more peculiar by the way he dominated the regular Keeneland fall meet that ended Saturday.

Getting blanked at Saratoga “sure was hard to deal with,” said Lanerie. “It hurts your confidence and makes you start to think, ‘What am I doing wrong?’ But I’ll tell ya, this meet sure makes up for Saratoga.”

Lanerie put on the occasional riding clinic while earning his first Keeneland jockey title, finishing ahead of Julien Leparoux by a 25-19 count in 17 days of racing. His mount earnings of $1,238,982 also topped those of Leparoux ($1,201,640) and Florent Geroux ($1,049,206).

Lanerie won in a variety of ways, including his from-the-clouds upset on Brody’s Cause in the Grade 1 Breeders’ Futurity on opening weekend of the meet and a crafty front-running score aboard Gamblers Rose in a closing-day allowance. Both horses are trained by Dale Romans.

“Winning the Futurity really got things going for me,” said Lanerie.

Lanerie, a 40-year-old native of Lafayette, La., has been the leading jockey at nine of the last 10 meets at Churchill Downs in Louisville, where he lives with wife Shantel and daughter Brittlynn. He will ride the fall meet at Churchill through the end of November before heading to Gulfstream Park for the fourth straight winter, where once again he will compete on a regular basis against the top New York jockeys.

“Saratoga just wasn’t indicative of Corey’s ability,” said Romans. “It was just one of those things that happen in this game. He’s shown many times he’s on a par with the top jocks. I’ve got full confidence in him.”

Lanerie has four Breeders’ Cup mounts, with Juvenile contender Brody’s Cause foremost among them. Leparoux and Geroux have five Breeders’ Cup mounts apiece.

◗ Besides the 13 Breeders’ Cup events, entries also were taken here Monday for the supporting races on the Friday and Saturday cards.

The Grade 2, $200,000 Fayette (race 5) and Grade 2, $200,000 Marathon (race 10) are the top undercard events for Friday. Todd Pletcher, leaving little to chance, entered a trio of older horses in the 1 1/8-mile Fayette: Commissioner, Protonico, and Race Day. The $100,000 Bryan Station (race 4) is a third Friday undercard stakes.

All three of the Saturday undercard stakes are ungraded, $100,000 races: the Perryville (race 1), Juvenile Dirt Sprint (race 2), and Fort Springs (race 12).

◗ On the slight chance you might not have had your fill of racing after the Breeders’ Cup concludes Saturday, the 21-day fall meet at Churchill will open the following afternoon with a 10-race Stars of Tomorrow card. Two $80,000 ungraded stakes, the Street Sense and Rags to Riches, will highlight a Sunday program composed entirely of 2-year-old races.

Mutuel tickets bought at Keeneland can be redeemed at Churchill and all other wagering outlets in Kentucky.

◗ The three-way dead heat atop the trainer standings at the Keeneland fall meet between Mark Casse, Ken McPeek, and Steve Asmussen wasn’t the first time for such an occurrence here. At the 1960 spring meet, seven men tied for leading trainer with five wins apiece.