Weaver picks Great West Turf Sprint to get Governor Sam back on track

Governor Sam’s recent stint in the Mid-Atlantic region ended with a puzzling defeat at Colonial Downs last month, but trainer George Weaver said he expects him to recover well in the $250,000 Great West Turf Sprint on Sunday at Remington Park.

After winning the $100,000 Get Serious at Monmouth Park and coming up a neck short behind the graded stakes winner My Boy Prince in the $150,000 Van Clief at Colonial, the 4-year-old gelding went off as the 6-5 favorite in the $150,000 Da Hoss. He led at the top of the stretch before fading to fourth.

“He performed below our expectations over at Colonial, but we don’t really know why,” Weaver said. “But the horse bounced back and he acts like he’s feeling good. We like the [five-furlong] trip for him. We think it’s a good spot.”

Among the local contenders in the field of eight, the 9-year-old gelding Jackman’s Ride is the strongest contender and also appears to be the likely pacesetter for J.R. Caldwell. In last year’s edition of the Great West, he led every step of the way and scored a 13-1 upset.

Remington Park Oaks

Rileytole is still in the process of finding herself as a 3-year-old, but trainer Steve Asmussen hopes a test around two turns will lead to improvement in the $200,000 Remington Park Oaks on Sunday.

“It’s a chance to run her around two turns again,” Asmussen said. “Five runners, good purse. The filly has trained well over the track, so we’ll see what we can do.”

In two starts this year, Rileytole has not managed to finish better than sixth, finishing well back in the $135,000 Southern Hospitality Overnight at Oaklawn in April and a Churchill Downs allowance in June. She has not run farther than 6 1/2 furlongs this year and will stretch out to 1 1/16 miles off a three-month layoff.

Bank Shot, the 8-5 morning-line favorite in the field of five 3-year-old fillies, will ship from California for trainer Ryan Hanson with plenty of classy recent tries. She most recently finished third in the Grade 3 Torrey Pines at Del Mar.

Clever Trevor

Asmussen has a horse in nearly every stakes race at Remington on Sunday, but he expressed more confidence in Grand Yaupon than any other. The juvenile colt exits tougher stakes company in Kentucky with a strong chance in the $150,000 Clever Trevor Stakes.

“I think it’s an excellent spot for a horse that’s already shown a good level of talent,” Asmussen said. “I would be surprised if he got beat.”

Grand Yaupon will switch back to dirt and add blinkers after shipping last month for the $750,000 Juvenile Sprint at Kentucky Downs, where he finished eighth. He previously ran on dirt in the $250,000 Ellis Park Juvenile and finished second behind next-out graded stakes winner Salahudin.

Iamkirk, a second-time starter trained by Robertino Diodoro, could be Grand Yaupon’s likeliest challenger in the field of seven juveniles. He will tackle 6 1/2 furlongs after crushing a deep maiden special weight field at Remington by seven lengths last month.

David M. Vance

Heavenville, a new track record holder at Remington, will go for his first stakes victory against a slew of shipping rivals in the $100,000 David M. Vance Stakes.

All but one horse in the field of seven are coming out of allowance company, but none of them were quite as sharp as the J.R. Caldwell trainee earlier this month. The 4-year-old colt won a 6 1/2-furlong allowance on Sept. 3 in 1:13.81, breaking a record that had stood since 1997. He earned a 99 Beyer Speed Figure.

The local speedster will be joined by the Kentucky-based contenders Ridgewood Runner and Taylor’s Version, as well as the New York-bred stakes winner Yo Banana Boy.

Ricks Memorial

In the $75,000 Ricks Memorial Stakes, a 1 1/16-mile turf race for fillies and mares, Long Ago will benefit from significant class relief in search of her first stakes victory for trainer Billy Morey.

In two starts this summer, the European-bred 6-year-old finished second in the Grade 3 Matchmaker at Monmouth Park before stepping up to finish a distant seventh in the Grade 2 Ballston Spa at Saratoga. Morey will remove blinkers after adding them for the race in New York.

Trainer Kenny McPeek said Unmerited Favor will scratch.

◗ Trainer Todd Fincher said he expects Sorcha to take a step forward on her home track in the $50,000 Scissortail Stakes, a 6 1/2-furlong sprint for juvenile fillies. A debut winner at Lone Star in June, the Maxfield filly returned from a layoff in early September and ran a game second in a first-level allowance at Remington.

◗ Gigante, the winner of the $75,000 Remington Green Stakes in 2025, is entered in a small but tough field of five in this year’s edition. The Asmussen trainee finished sixth in the Grade 2 Charles Town Classic last month and will switch back to turf for the 1 1/8-mile race on Sunday.