Single Six jackpot may go unhit until closing night

LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Fingers are crossed since there are still quite a few races to be run before it comes to fruition, but make no mistake that Churchill Downs officials have circled closing night, July 2, as a potentially huge night for bettors and the track.

A mandatory dispersal of the Single Six pool will be held on the final six races of a Downs After Dark card that will close the 38-day meet, and if form holds, the Single Six could attract several million dollars in wagering handle atop a jackpot that has been building since May 13.

Churchill racing secretary Ben Huffman said this week that he and his staff are very aware of the possibility of a huge jackpot offering on closing night.

“Obviously, we’re planning on carding a very competitive, big-field card to get all the attention in the market we can get,” he said.

Into Friday, the carryover stood at $622,389. Remarkably, there have been very few situations where the Single Six has been in serious danger of being swept, primarily because low-priced winners have ruled throughout. The Single Six jackpot can only be emptied when a solo ticket has all six winners.

Tickets on two improbable longshots were alive Thursday night for a Single Six sweep worth nearly $743,000 when the eighth and final race was canceled because of severe weather. On a night marked by intermittent downpours and ominous clouds, lightning strikes once again popped up as the field was about to be loaded into the starting gate shortly before 9:30 Eastern. All horses were returned to the paddock to be unsaddled and eventually led home.

The official Churchill release on the cancellation read in part: “With the safety of the equine and human athletes in mind, Kentucky Horse Racing Commission stewards, in conjunction with track officials, made the decision to cancel the race at post time.”

All vertical wagers were refunded, while an “all” situation was declared for multirace wagers, including the Single Six, which returned $592 for tickets with the five previous winners. Under Single Six rules pertaining to cancellations, no percentage of the Thursday wagers ($141,656) was withheld toward the carryover for the following day.

The stewards’ decision ultimately was validated when lightning remained in the area for nearly another hour, rendering moot the feasibility of waiting out the storm.

Debutante, Bashford Manor on closing night

A pair of $100,000 stakes for 2-year-olds, the Debutante and Bashford Manor, will anchor the Downs After Dark finale.

Steve Asmussen and Mark Casse, who have dominated juvenile racing at this meet, both intend to be represented with one horse in each six-furlong race. Casse will have Pretty City Dancer for the Debutante and Classic Empire for the Bashford Manor, while Asmussen will counter with Tricky One and Tip Tap Tapizar.

Closing night will present logistical difficulties on at least a couple of fronts. Not only does Ellis Park open its 30-day summer meet earlier in the day, creating a rare conflict while stretching thin the ranks of racing officials, gate crews, and other personnel, but a number of top riders will be hustling back from Prairie Meadows after riding earlier in the day in the biggest races of the year at the Iowa track. At least four of those jockeys – Florent Geroux, Julien Leparoux, Miguel Mena, and Joe Rocco Jr. – will be returning on a charter flight in trying to fulfill their engagements on the night card at Churchill.

Perfect night for Tomlinson

Weather-wise, Thursday may have been ugly, but to trainer Mike Tomlinson, it was a beautiful night.

Tomlinson won with all three of his starters: Jersey Street ($13.40) in the second race, Scatnap ($10.40) in the fourth, and For Goodness Sake ($16) in the sixth. All three came for different owners.

“That was my first hat trick,” said Tomlinson, a trainer since 1991. “Those days are few and far between. You better enjoy them when they’re going on.”

Tomlinson, 62, said he intends to run his stable star, Barbados, in the $67,000 Kelly’s Landing on closing night. After that, he and his 30-horse stable are staying put at Churchill through the summer while cherry-picking spots at a variety of tracks.

“Have horse, will travel,” he said.

Veteran trainers honored

Churchill will host a private reception in The Mansion on the sixth floor following the Friday card in honor of 13 trainers and their families. All the trainers invited are at least 70 years old and have been stabled at Churchill for at least 25 years.

Kentucky Derby-winning trainers D. Wayne Lukas, Carl Nafzger, and Lynn Whiting were among those invited, along with longtime regulars such as Angel Montano, Jinks Fires, and Forrest Kaelin.

“We thought it’d be nice to thank them for their years of loyalty to Churchill Downs,” said Huffman.

◗ Fish Trappe Road is scheduled to breeze here Saturday in his first work since the colt finished second behind Tom’s Ready in the Woody Stephens Stakes on the June 11 Belmont Stakes undercard. Trainer Bret Calhoun is pointing Fish Trappe Road, a gray New York-bred, to the Grade 3, $500,000 Dwyer Stakes on July 9 at Belmont.

◗ About a dozen Churchill jockeys made their annual visit on Thursday to the Kosair Children’s Hospital in downtown Louisville.