Gulfstream West: Million’s Preview Day

By David Joseph —-

Art G’ All Heart for Start in Saturday’s Millions Classic Preview

Mr. Jordan Seeks 4th Win in Sunshine Millions Classic Prep in a Row

MIAMI GARDENS, FL – Winning would do the heart good for a trainer who underwent triple-bypass surgery less than three weeks ago.

Monarch Stables’ Art G Is Back will be looking to get back to his winning ways in Saturday’s $75,000 Millions Classic Preview at Gulfstream Park West and give trainer Ron Spatz a boost on the road to recovery.

Not that Spatz has been training from the sidelines since undergoing the heart procedure.

“I’m at work. I’ve been going to work all week. I’ll be there Saturday,” the veteran South Florida trainer said.

The 1 1/16-mile Millions Classic Preview for Florida-bred 3-year-olds and up, an early prep for the $200,000 Sunshine Millions Classic at Gulfstream Park Jan. 18, is one of nine stakes worth $675,000 in purses on Saturday’s Sunshine Million Preview card.

Art G Is Back, like his trainer, has shown a lot of heart during his career, becoming a multiple-stakes winner while showing high levels of talent and versatility on dirt, slop and turf. The 3-year-old throwback, who has finished in the money in nine of 12 starts, is coming off a subpar showing on turf in the Sept. 21 Bear’s Den Stakes at Gulfstream after winning back-to-back dirt starts in his two prior starts. The son of Exchange Rate finished seventh after lagging far off the pace in the 7 ½-furlong race for 3-year-olds.

“I wasn’t happy with his trip. He was 100 miles out of it and got beat five lengths,” Spatz said.

Prior to the disappointing effort, Art G Is Back defeated older rivals while prevailing by 13 ¾ lengths in an off-the-turf allowance and scoring gamely in the $100,000 Benny the Bull stakes for Florida-breds.

“I think he’s a little better on dirt,” Spatz said. “I think his best distance is seven furlongs or a mile. He has been two turns once at a mile and a sixteenth at Gulfstream when he was younger. He led all the way and got beat in the last two jumps. It wasn’t a bad race. He’s an older horse now. He should be OK with that distance.

“We’re going to try this and see if he deserves to go in the Sunshine Millions Classic,” he added. “We’re also experimenting with the [Gulfstream Park West] surface. He’s never been on it. We’ll see.”

Art G Is Back, who is a nose and a neck away from being a multiple-stakes winner on turf as well as dirt, will be ridden for the first time Saturday by Edgard Zayas.

David Melin, Leon Ellman and Laurie Plesa’s Mr. Jordan is coming off a pair of uncharacteristic off-the-board finishes at Gulfstream Park but will return to Gulfstream Park West Saturday, when the 7-year-old gelding will seek his fourth straight victory in the Millions Preview Classic.

Mr. Jordan has won all five of his starts at Gulfstream Park West, all in stakes races. The gray veteran campaigner has gone winless in seven starts since capturing last year’s Classic Preview by 11 ½ lengths. The Eddie Plesa Jr.-trained gelding, who has earned more than $850,000 in purses during his 41-race career, will be ridden by Paco Lopez.

Arindel’s Richard the Great, who finished second behind Mr. Jordan in last year’s Classic Preview, came off a 13-month layoff to register a dominating front-running 8 ¾-length victory in a $35,000 claiming race at Gulfstream Park Sept. 12.

“He’s a very nice horse, a great horse to be around. He had a little problem with his ankle,” trainer Juan Alvarado said. “The way that he’s training and the way that he came back from almost a year off, he’ll be tough in that race. He’ll be 1-2-3 in that race.”

Rajiv Maragh has the mount aboard the 7-year-old stakes-winning son of Distorted Humor.

Equine Authority’s Red Crescent, who finished fourth in last year’s Classic Preview, prepped for Saturday’s renewal with a 6 ½-length victory in an Oct. 3 optional claiming allowance at Gulfstream Park West. Trainer John Vinson has named Samy Camacho to ride the 5-year-old son of Overdriven.

Mar Racing Stable’s Hy Riverside, who finished well behind Red Crescent Oct. 3, brings a resume with multiple stakes victories, including a triumph in the 2017 Sunshine Millions Classic, into Saturday’s Classic Preview. Jeffrey Sanchez has the mount aboard the 7-year-old gelded son of Macho Uno, who captured the Big Red Stakes three starts back.

He Hate Me Brings Hough Back to Familiar Turf in Sprint Preview

Among Nine Stakes Worth $675,000 in Purses Saturday, Nov. 9

MIAMI GARDENS, FL – Sagamore Farm’s stakes-winning homebred He Hate Me, beaten as the favorite in his graded debut seven weeks ago, will face state-bred company for the first time as he brings trainer Stanley Hough back to Gulfstream Park West for Saturday’s $75,000 Sprint Preview.

The six-furlong Sprint Preview for Florida-bred 3-year-olds and up is among nine stakes worth $675,000 in purses on an 11-race Sunshine Millions Preview program that serves as a prep for the Sunshine Millions Day program Jan. 18, 2020 during Gulfstream Park’s Championship Meet.

First race post time is noon.

Hough, 71, was leading trainer at the former Calder Race Course from 1976-80, registering a record 110 wins in 1977, and amassing 632 overall. He also won or shared Tropical at Calder titles from 1975-76 to 1979-80, and was inducted in the track’s Hall of Fame in 1996.

He Hate Me, winner of the 2017 Tremont Stakes in his second career race, will be Hough’s first starter over the Gulfstream West surface since Tiz Stormin on Dec. 30, 2006 at Calder. His last win at the track came with Hopes and Dreams on Dec. 10, 2006.

“We had a lot of success there. It was a special time,” Hough said. “I was reasonably young when I came there and we had a lot of good years. It was fun … and it was good to be young, too.”

Hough, a winner of 2,191 career races, retired from training in April 2012 and later signed on to be Sagamore’s racing manager in 2015. Hough returned to training in September 2018 after Sagamore restructured its operation, and he ran 16 horses at last winter’s Championship Meet at Gulfstream Park with six wins, three seconds and two thirds, led by Recruiting Ready’s triumph in the Gulfstream Sprint (G3).

He Hate Me ran twice at Gulfstream Park last winter, winning an optional claiming allowance in March. He has yet to race over the Gulfstream West surface, but turned in his first local work with a bullet five-furlong breeze in 1:00.15 Nov. 2 at Palm Meadows, Gulfstream’s satellite training facility in Palm Beach County. It was the fastest of 13 horses at the distance.

“He’s been down probably eight or 10 days now. He had a nice work the other day and he’s doing great,” Hough said. “We gave him a little time after his last race and he’s done well. We’re hoping for a cleaner trip this time.”

He Hate Me is coming off a third-place finish in the seven-furlong Frank J. De Francis Memorial Dash (G3) Sept. 21 at Laurel Park, where he was steadied past the three-sixteenths pole while making a four-wide move. He wound up beaten four lengths by Killybegs Captain.

“He had a little bit of trouble that cost him,” Hough said. “I don’t know whether it cost him the race, but it sure cost him momentum and everything. He was starting to run and kind of got knocked off stride but was able to gather himself somewhat and finish up. I think it hurt him, but he ran well. It was a tough race.”

He Hate Me owns four wins, three seconds and three thirds from 12 lifetime starts with $281,620 in purse earnings. He was second in the 2018 Pasco Stakes and 2019 Tale of the Cat Stakes, the latter Aug. 9 at Saratoga. He has been third or better in five of six tries at seven furlongs, two of them wins.

“He’s been very consistent for us. I think he’ll run a good race. I think the competition stacks up with what he’s been running against all year,” Hough said. “We’re looking forward to getting him back in a race and see how he does.”

Tracy Pinchin’s multiple stakes winner Jackson, winner of the 6 ½-furlong Juvenile Sprint Preview last fall in his only previous try at Gulfstream West, goes after his third stakes victory of the year in the Sprint. He captured the OBS Sophomore Stakes and FSS Silver Charm at Tampa Bay Downs in late spring.

“He’s doing great, very good,” trainer Jose Pinchin said. “He had a couple of stakes wins and he had a couple of seconds, so he’s had a pretty good year. I’m looking forward to the race.”

Jackson, a 3-year-old Kantharos colt, hasn’t won since the Silver Charm. In three subsequent tries, all Gulfstream Park stakes, he was third in the seven-furlong Thirsty Fish and Carry Back before a troubled run in the Sept. 21 Bear’s Den last out, contested on turf.

“He didn’t get a chance to run the last time. He got a bad break, he got bounced around and dropped back and it was a little bit far for him on the turf. He’s back on the dirt now,” Pinchin said. “He won the only time he ran [at Gulfstream West], so I guess that must mean something.”

Imaginary Stables and Glenn Ellis’ Royal Squeeze is entered to make his return, not having raced since finishing second by a neck to Art G is Back in the seven-furlong Benny the Bull Stakes Aug. 24 at Gulfstream. The 7-year-old Wildcat Heir gelding won four consecutive starts after being claimed for $25,000 in February, and was fourth by 2 ½ lengths in the six-furlong Smile Sprint (G3) June 29.

Front Loaded, Shoshone Brave, Soldollie and Travy Boy round out the field.

Gulfstream Park West is a Stronach Group company, North America’s leading Thoroughbred racetrack owner/operator. The Stronach Group racetracks include Santa Anita Park, Gulfstream Park & Casino, Golden Gate Fields, Laurel Park and Pimlico Race Course, home of the world-famous Preakness, and Rosecroft Raceway. The company owns and operates the Palm Meadows Training Center in Florida, and is one of North America’s top race horse breeders through its award-winning Adena Springs operation. The Stronach Group is one of the world’s largest suppliers of pari-mutuel wagering systems, technologies and services. Its companies include AmTote, a global leader in wagering technology; XpressBet, an Internet and telephone account wagering service; and Monarch Content Management, which acts as a simulcast purchase and sales agent of horseracing content for numerous North American racetracks and wagering outlets. The Stronach Group is also a leading producer of social media content for the horseracing industry. For more information contact David Joseph at david.joseph@gulfstreampark.com or call 954.457.6451.