Abel Castellano captured his first year-long riding title in Maryland in 2012.
Castellano, 29, finished the year with 132 victories, 11 more than 2011 champion Sheldon Russell, including 59 in the fall meet that ended Dec. 31 at Laurel Park. He also tied for first among locally based jockeys with eight stakes wins, including five aboard Bold Affair.
The totals include racing at Laurel and Pimlico, but not those at the short Maryland State Fair at Timonium meet.
Gulfstream Park plans to run head-to-head against crosstown Calder Race Course on weekends later this year as part of a plan to run year round at the Hallandale Beach, Fla., track, Gulfstream officials said Thursday.
The officials said that Gulfstream plans to finish its meet this year and then begin running on weekends the first week of July, provided state regulators approve a dates request filed by the track Dec. 31. The request covers the 12 months running from July 1, 2013, to June 30, 2014.
There are a handful of speed horses in Saturday night’s $100,000 Big Drama for 3-year-olds at Delta Downs, and if they mix it up, they could set the table for Mr. Bandini’s Band. He will be seeking his first stakes win in the seven-furlong race to be run around two turns and enters off a career effort.
OZONE PARK, N.Y. – In trying to split up his plethora of young horses, it was an easy decision for trainer Todd Pletcher to send Princess of Sylmar to Penn National, where she could meet softer company while earning added money for being a Pennsylvania-bred.
After winning a maiden race by 19 lengths in her second start, it was just as easy a decision for Pletcher to return Princess of Sylmar to New York to run for richer purses, even if it meant facing tougher competition.
OZONE PARK, N.Y. – As they proved last year with Alpha, owner Sheikh Mohammed al Maktoum and trainer Kiaran McLaughlin have no problem using the New York road to the Triple Crown for a promising 3-year-old.
So it comes as little surprise that duo will be represented by the royally bred Long River when New York’s road to the 2013 Triple Crown kicks off with Saturday’s Grade 2, $200,000 Jerome Stakes at Aqueduct.
PHOENIX – By virtue of her romping win in the Phoenix Stakes at Turf Paradise on Dec. 19, E Z Kitty could lay claim to the title as the best filly or mare on the grounds. She looks to dispel any doubts in Saturday’s $35,000 Kachina Handicap. The mile main-track event for fillies and mares drew a field of seven.
ARCADIA, Calif. – Ultimate Eagle had a diverse range of results in the early months of 2012 at Santa Anita. He won the Grade 2 Strub Stakes by 7 1/2 lengths Feb. 4, but was 10th as the 2-1 favorite in the Santa Anita Handicap on March 2.
The goal this winter is to avoid such variations.
A 5-year-old, Ultimate Eagle starts in the $150,000 San Pasqual Handicap at Santa Anita on Saturday, a race that trainer Mike Pender and owner B.J. Wright plan to use as a prep for the $750,000 Santa Anita Handicap on March 2.
Whatever gets you there . . .
Kelly Breen and his clients, George and Lori Hall, are thinking outside the box when it comes to possibly making the Kentucky Derby with one of their better 3-year-olds, a dark bay colt named Bye Bye Bernie. They may be taking the Turfway Park route.
“He’s shown he likes Polytrack, so if he runs well Saturday, he’ll stay there another four weeks and we’ll just play it race-by-race from there,” Breen said this week while en route to New York from his main winter base in south Florida. “Turfway has a nice progression of races through the winter.”
STICKNEY, Ill. – All-sources average daily handle at Hawthorne Race Course declined 7 percent from 2011 during a fall-winter meet that ended Dec. 30, but things could have been worse. This Hawthorne season will long be remembered for the equine herpesvirus outbreak that began infecting horses in mid-October and led to talk of halting the race meet in midseason.
