Preciado pleased with 2015, but not satisfied

Trainer Ramon Preciado had a career year in 2015, winning 172 races from 569 starts, a win average of 30 percent. Preciado’s horses earned more than $5.6 million.

Those figures easily bettered his previous-best 2014 season, when he won 137 races and $3.5 million in purses. Preciado repeated this year as the leading trainer at Parx Racing, where he is based.

In many professions, a year like that would be cause for celebration. But Preciado, while acknowledging he was happy with his 2015 results, is already focused on keeping his momentum going in 2016.

“We had a good year,” he said. “Hopefully, we will again. You never know. This is an up-and-down game. It is not easy.”

Preciado can be excused for looking over his shoulder, since he has built his stable from scratch. In 2001, he was the assistant trainer for Robert Camac, one of the leading trainers at Parx. When Camac and his wife, Maryann, were murdered by her son from a previous marriage, only one of Camac’s horses was given to Preciado to train.

“To people who don’t know, when you’re winning, they say you’re doing this, or they ask how come you didn’t win a certain race,” Preciado said. “What we’re really doing is working hard trying to keep our horses happy and sound.”

Preciado has 55 horses under his care.

“I’m very happy to have 40 horses,” he said. “But my owners keep buying more and more.”

Preciado said he is considering basing some of his horses in Maryland next season.

“I’ve thought about it in the past,” Preciado said. “But this might be the time to do it.

Preciado made one of the best claims of the year when he took Trouble Kid for $15,000 out of a second-place finish in a maiden-claiming race at Parx in July. Trouble Kid, who will be 4 in 2016, has since earned $392,000. His wins include the Grade 3 Gallant Bob and $150,000 Valley Forge at Parx. He also finished first in the De Francis Dash but was disqualified to second for interference.

In his most recent start, Trouble Kid finished second, beaten a neck by Stallwakin’ Dude, in the $106,000 Claiming Crown Rapid Transit at Gulfstream Park. Preciado said he considered sending Trouble Kid to the Grade 1 Malibu at Santa Anita after that race but couldn’t make satisfactory travel arrangements.

“The Claiming Crown was supposed to be his last race of the year, but he came out of it so good we wanted to send him to Santa Anita,” Preciado said. “We don’t have any plans for him now. I think we’ll just keep him in Florida for the next few months and see how things go.”