OAKLAWN: ZAINO BOYZ LEADS FRIDAY’S RAINBOW STAKES

By Jennifer Hoyt —-

ZAINO BOYZ LEADS FRIDAY’S RAINBOW STAKES

HOT SPRINGS, AR (Thursday, April 16, 2020) – The accomplished Zaino Boyz is the 8-5 program favorite for the $100,000 Rainbow Stakes for Arkansas-bred 3-year-olds Friday at Oaklawn.

Probable post time for the Rainbow, the ninth of 10 races, is 5:09 p.m. (Central). First post Friday is 1:05 p.m. The 6-furlong Rainbow has drawn a field of 10.

Zaino Boyz will be making his first start for trainer Chris Hartman after previously being based in south Florida with trainer Bobby Dibona. Zaino Boyz has never faced Arkansas-breds, or raced outside Florida, but his seven-race career includes a victory in the $100,000 Inaugural Stakes Dec. 7 at Tampa Bay Downs and an allowance victory March 14 at Gulfstream Park in his last start. The speedy Zaino Boys has led at every point of call in three career victories and posted two consecutive bullet workouts at Gulfstream Park before arriving earlier this week.

“He looks really good on paper,” said Hartman, adding Zaino Boyz was flown Monday to Arkansas. “The horse came in in great shape. The horse looks good, and so far he’s done everything right. I would assume the horse is going to be really tough.”

Zaino Boyz is scheduled to break from post 10 under Joe Talamo, who was Oaklawn’s leading rider after Saturday, Day 46 of the scheduled 57-day season.

Hartman is the fourth trainer of record for Zaino Boyz, who is owned by Florida-based Zaino Ventures, Inc. (Gregory and Susanne Zaino). A son of Daaher, Zaino Boyz was purchased for $19,000 as a yearling from the Ocala Breeders’ Sales’ October sale.

Hartman said Gregory Zaino wanted to run in the Rainbow and a mutual friend, bloodstock agent Mike Recio, helped steer the colt to Oaklawn and its leading trainer in 2015.

“He’s the one who sort of came up with the idea, since he’s a 3-year-old and this was $100,000,” Hartman said. “Seemed like the spot for the horse to be in. That’s how the connection came about. He’s the man that connected the dots.”

Other top contenders figure to be Temp Fate (7-2) for trainer Carl Deville and owner Jerry Caroom of Hot Springs, who won the 2018 Rainbow with Hoonani Road. Tempt Fate was a 6 ¼-length first-off-the-claim state-bred maiden special weights winner April 3 in his last start.

Captain Don (4-1) was a sharp state-bred maiden special weights winner Feb. 9 for Don Von Hemel of Hot Springs, Oaklawn’s leading trainer in 1981, and owner Dash Goff of Fayetteville, Ark. Goff’s father, Gene, bred and owned Nodouble, the country’s champion older horse in 1969 and 1970 and the leading Arkansas-bred money winner in history ($846,749).

The Rainbow Stakes field from the rail out: Hamazing Wisdom, Luis Quinonez to ride, 122 pounds, 15-1 on the morning line; Captain Don, Walter De La Cruz, 122, 4-1; Chicken Hawk, Richard Eramia, 115, 15-1; Implicator, Miguel Mena, 115, 12-1; Jimmie T, Brian Hernandez Jr., 115, 15-1; Tempt Fate, Corey Lanerie, 122, 7-2; Man in the Can, Joel Rosario, 119, 8-1; Ten Buds, Fernando De La Cruz, 119, 15-1; Piece of Work, David Cohen, 119, 20-1; and Zaino Boyz, Joe Talamo, 122, 8-5.