Papa's Golden Boy will try to run them off their feet on closing day

The Emerald Downs surface has been known to sometimes favor speed. So, it seems appropriate that the fastest horse on the grounds, Papa’s Golden Boy, will put his considerable speed on display in the first race on the final day of the 2020 meet Thursday. The six-furlong dash for 3-year-olds and up drew six horses, and there is not much doubt Papa’s Golden Boy will be the one they have to run down.

Post time for the conditioned allowance race, which carries a $40,000 claiming option, is 5 p.m. Pacific.

Trained by Vince Gibson, Papa’s Golden Boy is gunning for his fourth win at the meet. The 4-year-old son of Harbor the Gold took them all the way in a $25,000 maiden claimer in his first start of the year June 25 and proved it was no fluke when he romped by eight lengths in a nonwinners-of-two or Washington-bred nonwinners-of-three allowance race on July 16.

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Taking a big step up in class, he set a wicked half-mile time of 43.14 seconds and held a six-length lead at the eighth pole in the 6 1/2-furlong Mount Rainier, but he staggered home and was nipped at the wire by Elliott Bay.

With his usual rider Gary Wales aboard, he faded after setting the pace in the Grade 3 Longacres Mile and $40,000 Muckleshoot Classic, both routes. He got back on track with a front-running victory Oct. 15 at the same level as his July 16 win.

Papa’s Golden Boy will break from the rail with Wales aboard. Catch him if you can.

Trainer Blaine Wright will have Windribbon pressing Papa’s Golden Boy early and Oh Marvelous Me coming late.

A winner of 10 races, Oh Marvelous Me appears to have the best shot of catching Papa’s Golden Boy. In his last start, he came from a stalking position to win a second-level allowance race with a $40,000 claiming option on Oct. 7. He could pick up the pieces if his stablemate and Catfish Hunter can soften up Papa’s Golden Boy.

Oh Marvelous Me will break from post 3 with leading rider Alex Cruz aboard.

Jockey, trainer races settled

The jockey and trainer races were decided quite a while ago. Cruz goes into the final two days of the meet with 65 wins. Second in the standings is Juan Gutierrez, who has won 48 races. Gutierrez became the all-time leading rider at Emerald on Oct. 14. Cruz has won at least one race in the last 23 racing days.

Frank Lucarelli, the all-time leading trainer at Emerald, will win his seventh title in a romp. He has 40 wins at the meet, 13 more than Jorge Rosales, who sits second in the standings.

Lucarelli plans to have a stable at Golden Gate and Sam Houston over the winter. He usually takes a string to Turf Paradise, but because of the uncertainty there, he is going to see what racing is like in Texas.

Emerald plans to open for training for the 2021 season on March 1, with opening day in the middle of May, track president Phil Ziegler said.