Retama Park positions El Joven, La Senorita as Breeders' Cup preps

Retama Park near San Antonio has made notable changes to its most prestigious races, the El Joven and La Senorita stakes for 2-year-olds at a mile on turf. The races have been moved up a month, positioning them as potential stepping-stones to the Breeders’ Cup, while the purse for each has been boosted from $75,000 to $100,000.

The El Joven, for colts and geldings, and the La Senorita, restricted to fillies, will be run Oct. 11. They are part of a six-race stakes schedule for the upcoming meet at Retama, with the total value of the races set to be $450,000. The track opens Sept. 5, a month earlier this season. The 26-night meet will run through Nov. 29.

The El Joven, captured by such horses as the eventual Grade 1 Secretariat Stakes winner Admiral Kitten, could produce candidates for the BC Juvenile Turf at Santa Anita. The La Senorita has a chance to do the same for the BC Juvenile Fillies Turf. The first round of nominations closes July 11 for the El Joven and the La Senorita.

Retama’s stakes schedule also includes a pair of $75,000 divisions of the Texas Stallion Stakes for 2-year-olds at six furlongs Nov. 15.

Stall applications for the meet are due July 25, said racing secretary James Leatherman.