Turf racing for Churchill at Ellis meet to begin June 15
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While Churchill Downs begins conducting the remainder of its spring-summer meet at Ellis Park this Saturday, turf racing at Ellis will not begin until June 15, according to a notice sent to horsemen. Thus, the $225,000 Mighty Beau Stakes for older turf sprinters, which was to have been run Saturday, has been moved to June 18. It will be run at 5 1/2 furlongs, a slight change from the original five furlongs, to accommodate the different course. Nominations were re-opened for the race, which originally closed May 27. Original nominees were rolled over into the new nominations, which closed Sunday.
Nominations also were re-opened and closed Sunday for another of the weekend’s scheduled stakes races, the Grade 3, $400,000 Matt Winn Stakes for 3-year-olds, which also has a change in distance from 1 1/16 miles to 1 1/8 miles. The Winn, which is expected to be headed by Kentucky Derby runner-up Two Phil’s, will share the Sunday card with the $175,000 Leslie’s Lady Overnight Stakes, for 3-year-old fillies, which remains at its original seven furlongs.
Saez plans to ride at Ellis
At the conclusion of racing in Louisville, Ky., for this spring, Luis Saez was a runaway leader in the local jockey standings. He plans to continue riding this meeting as it moves to Ellis Park.
Saez has ridden 33 winners, including graded stakes winners Red Carpet Ready and General Jim on the first weekend of May, through 23 cards of live racing, concluding Sunday. Tyler Gaffalione was his closest pursuer, with 23 winners.
Saez was on a hot streak with several multi-win days in the final few days of racing beneath the twin spires before the shift, riding three winners last Thursday, three on Saturday, and two on Sunday.
Kiaran McLaughlin, Saez’s agent, said that after riding the Belmont Stakes Racing Festival, Saez will return to ride the Churchill at Ellis meet, with the exception of riding a multi-stakes card on June 17 at Monmouth Park. He plans to ride at Saratoga this summer.
◗ Brad Cox leads local trainers with 13 wins at Churchill Downs this spring, to 11 each for Steve Asmussen and Dale Romans.
◗ Acclaimed Peruvian jockey Martin Chuan got his first win from his first mount back in the United States when he rode Secret Pocket to victory in a claiming race last Friday for Romans. Chuan has more than 1,600 wins in his career and has now ridden 12 winners from 70 starts in the United States, the majority of those coming for the Romans barn from 2018-19.
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