STAKES TO CLOSE OUT THE SHRP THOROUGHBRED MEET
As stated in their press release, the 2018 Sam Houston Race Park Thoroughbred racing season will conclude on Saturday, March 17. The evening will feature the running of the $65,000 Jim’s Orbit and $65,000 Two Altazano divisions of the Clarence Scharbauer Jr. Texas Stallion Stakes.
Douglas Scharbauer’s homebred Howboutthiscowgirl ( My Golden Song – Nothinbettertodo) is the 4-5 favorite in the 6-horse field for the Two Altazano. After winning the Darby’s Daughter division of the Stallion Stakes at Retama last November, she finished 2nd in the $50,000 Bara Lass Stakes here on January 28th. She is trained by Bret Calhoun, who won last year’s Two Altazano with Archer City.
Shes Our Fastest (Oratory – Dawali), owned by Mark Norman and Norman Stables Inc., captured the $50,000 Evangeline Princess on September 2 and ran second to Howboutthiscowgirl in the Stallion Stakes. Bred by Eureka Thoroughbred Farm and trained by Paul Duhon, she has odds of 5-2.
Current leading Sam Houston conditioner Steve Asmussen has entered Little Prowless, a filly by Littleexpectations, out of Prowess Seneca, who is owned by his dad, Keith, in partnership with Erv Woolsey. She won her debut here on February 24 by a solid three-length margin and has odds of 9-2.
Completing the field are Shes a Texan (Grasshopper – Crema d’Oro); Outamoway Girls (Angliana – Stilled); and Miss Bettylee (Grasshopper – Crepe Myrtle).
The Two Altazano will run as the seventh race on Saturday night with an approximate post time of 8:48 pm.
A field of eight colts and geldings will run six furlongs in the $65,000 Jim’s Orbit which is carded as race nine with a 9:44 post time.
The 8-5 favorite is W.S. Farish’s homebred Direct Dial (Too Much Bling – Fast Find). He was the even-money favorite in the Groovy here on January 28, finishing second to Swift Shock. He followed that with a third-place finish in the $125,000 Gazebo Stakes at Oaklawn Park on February 24. Trained by Steve Asmussen, Direct Dial is the top money earner in the field with $119,320 bankrolled in six lifetime starts.
Galactica (Uncle Abbie – Castelli’s Ace), co-owned by Carl Moore Management and Brad Grady, made his debut last June at Lone Star Park, winning two of his three starts, including the $106,000 Texas Thoroughbred Association Futurity on July 22. Bred by Stan Huntsinger, the gelding sold for $52,000 in the 2017 Texas 2-Year-Old Sale. He is trained by Bret Calhoun.
Calhoun also trains Douglas Scharbauer’s homebred Swift Shock (My Golden Song – Langfuhr), who lit up the toteboard with odds of 44-1 in the $50,000 Groovy Stakes. The morning line places him at 6-1 here on January 28.
Rounding out the field are Sillis (Early Flyer – Royal Soup); Redatory (Oratory – My Silver Song); Toledo Pache (Littleexpectations – Trifolium); Justas Loud (Oratory – Sexy Librarian); and Rock Pache (Littleexpectations – Tiffany Royal).
The leading trainer, jockey and owner awards will also be presented. Steve Asmussen, has all but wrapped up the trainer title, which will be his tenth at the northwest Houston racetrack. Jockey Lindey Wade leads Iram Diego by 14 wins heading into the final two days of the season. This will be the second title for the 27-year-old rider, who finished in a tie with Quincy Hamilton in 2011. Leading owner honors will go down to the wire as Steve Asmussen and End Zone Athletics, Inc. are just two wins apart heading into Friday and Saturday’s action.
RICHARDSON GAMBLE WITH MUCHO MACHO MAN COLT PAYS OFF
As reported in Blood-Horse, Texas-based Lane Richardson’s Richardson Bloodstock made a major pinhooking score at the Ocala Breeders’ Sales March 2-year-olds in training sale, selling a Mucho Macho Man colt for $575,000 to OXO Equine.
The colt consigned as Hip 282, from the female family of two-time Canadian Horse of the Year and U.S. champion Chief Bearhart, among other top-class stakes winners, was bred in Indiana by Robert Losey. He was purchased for $170,000 by Michael Neatherlin from Select Sales at the Keeneland September yearling sale after bringing $12,000 as a short yearling when he sold at the 2017 Keeneland January sale.
Neatherlin, who signed for the colt at Keeneland, is Richardson’s father and has a string of 25 horses at Sam Houston racetrack.
This is the fourth year that Lane Richardson has sold under his own banner, after previously assisting his father, and his first consignment included multiple graded stakes winner Airoforce. A son of Colonel John, Airoforce was a $20,000 yearling purchase by Neatherlin who went on to bring $350,000 at the 2015 OBS April 2-year-olds in training sale. Airoforce won the Kentucky Jockey Club Stakes (G2) and Dixiana Bourbon Stakes (G3T), and his three seconds in graded company included the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf (G1T).
NOTES: Congrats to Karl Broberg, who won his seventh consecutive leading trainer crown at Delta Downs. The title of leading owner went to End Zone Athletics, Inc. for the sixth time in the last seven years. ..Check out the March 10 edition of the Blood-Horse for a nice article on Carl Moore…Our condolences to the family of trainer Tom Howard, best known for developing multiple stakes winner Ivan Fallunovalot, who died from complications of cancer March 10 at his home in Hot Springs…There was a total of 14 horses presented at last weekend’s Roses to Ribbons event at Sam Houston Race Park, with 4 horses sold that day.