Monmouth Park Barn Notes for Friday, May 12, 2017

By John Heims —-

RAINBOW HEIR GOES FOR BACK-TO-BACK WOLF HILL WINS

Saturday’s Opening Day feature, the $60,000 Wolf Hill Stakes, has drawn an overflowing field of 14, including New Jersey-bred Rainbow Heir, who will look to defend his title after crushing his rivals in last year’s rendition by nearly eight lengths.

The Wolf Hill is set to go five furlongs on turf, but with the strong potential of showers tomorrow, a surface switch to the main track, just like last year, might be in order.

“He’ll go either way,” said Jason Servis, who trains Rainbow Heir for New Farm. “He’s versatile that way. He can run on anything.”

A truer statement could not have been uttered. Rainbow Heir has won on turf, dirt, wet and dry. He enters Saturday’s stakes off a turf sprint at Keeneland in the Shakertown (G2), where he finished 7th.

“That wasn’t his day,” Servis said. “They got away with a slow first quarter for turf sprinters (:22) and after that there wasn’t any catching up. But he’s been training good up here and should put in a nice effort Saturday.”

From 25 lifetime starts, Rainbow Heir sports a record of 10-3-3, good for earnings of $526,945. More than half of that has come at Monmouth Park alone, where he’s won six of 11 starts.
On Saturday, Rainbow Heir will break from post four with Trevor McCarthy back aboard. The pair are pegged as the 2/1 morning line favorite. The Wolf Hill Stakes goes as race 10 on the 11-race program, which gets underway at 12:50 p.m.

MONMOUTH PARK SCHEDULE TO GO MAY 13 – SEPT. 10

The first of 50 days of live Thoroughbred racing at Monmouth Park this year commences on Saturday, May 13, as the Jersey Shore racetrack gears up for its 72nd season of sport.

Through June 4, live racing will be Saturdays and Sundays with the addition of a special Monday card on Memorial Day. After which Fridays through Sundays will prevail starting June 9 and going through closing day. Another holiday card will be offered on Labor Day, Sept. 4.

First post daily will be 12:50 p.m., with the exception of July 30 – Haskell Day when post time is set for noon.

In addition, New Jersey transit’s North Jersey Coast Line will stop daily at the racetrack for both north and southbound trains every racing day.

General admission to the track is $5 (seniors $3). Clubhouse admission is $7 (seniors $4). General parking is $5, with valet offered at $10.
For more information visit www.monmouthpark.com, or call 732-222-5100.