Richard's Boy captures Jess Jackson Owners' Handicap

The favored Richard’s Boy ($5.40) took advantage of a light 105-pound impost as he captured the $62,975 Jess Jackson Owners’ Handicap on Saturday at the Sonoma County Fair at Santa Rosa.

Owners and trainers can pick the weight for their runner, and Rockingham Ranch and Peter Miller quickly secured the services of Ricardo Gonzalez, the lightest rider in Northern California.

The 3-year-old Richard’s Boy, who won the Desert Code earlier this year sprinting on the turf at Santa Anita, had the outside post in the field of 10. He sat in midpack while racing wide down the backstretch.

He made a strong move while three wide on the turn, getting a clear run and saving a bit of ground as stalker Feisty’s Cause bolted. He still was third in the stretch but had dead aim on the 61-1 pacesetter Tricky Liz.

He quickly put the longshot away as he got first run on Tiz Point, who finished well but still was a neck behind at the finish. Richard’s Boy was only four-hundredths of a second off the track record, running five furlongs on the turf in 56.51 seconds.

Aalsmeer was a length back in third, holding off Fueled by Bourbon by a head.

Richard’s Boy, a gelded Cal-bred son of Idiot Proof, earned $42,150 for his fifth victory in eight starts as he raced against older for the first time. He now has earned $242,240.