THE PLAYER WINS GR. III MINESHAFT HANDICAP IN FIRST START WITH BLINKERS

By Ryan Martin —-

2/17/2018. – Calvin Borel pilots The Player to victory in the 33rd running of the Grade III Mineshaft Handicap at Fair Grounds. Hodges Photography / Lou Hodges, Jr.

NEW ORLEANS (February 17, 2018) – A simple equipment change made all the difference for The Player who wore blinkers for the first time when scoring his second graded stakes victory in Saturday’s Gr. III Mineshaft Handicap.

Owned by Carl Hurt in partnership with trainer William “Buff” Bradley, the 5-year-old son of Street Hero set the early pace in opening fractions of 24.27, 47.98 and 1:12.13. First Premio tracked 1 ½ lengths behind The Player in second with Thirstforlife in third. Coming around the far turn, The Player began to open up on the Mineshaft Handicap field and drew off to win the race by 4 ¼ lengths in a time of 1:42.29. Thirstforlife got second and Scuba came from well off the pace to complete the trifecta.

The Gr. III Mineshaft Handicap was The Player’s first victory since winning the Gr. II Fayette Stakes at Keeneland on Oct 28. He entered the Mineshaft Handicap off of a fourth place finish in the Louisiana Stakes on Jan. 13.

“He ran at Keeneland and did it impressive but he kind of just lost interest,” Borel said. “The works were there every morning and I just couldn’t understand it. He’s so much better than these horses. It was very disappointing and he just wasn’t focused, so me and the boss talked and I worked him and he was a totally different horse. He got focused like he’s supposed to be.”

Bradley also was pleased with the horse’s effort.

“Going down the backside, Calvin had that nice hold on him and he was just so relaxed and running easily,” Bradley said. “He said ‘He needs to know when those horses are coming to him’ and said that he was quite a bit more focused today and I think just watching I thought that the horses were going to come to him but Calvin never even asked until the eighth pole. When Calvin was looking around at the quarter pole I said, ‘They’re not going to catch them today’.”

If all goes well, The Player could return to action in the Gr. II $400,000 New Orleans Handicap on Mar. 24.

“That’s probably where we’ll be pointing him,” Bradley said.

The Player returned $4.20, $2.80 and $2.20 from his Mineshaft Handicap win with Thirstforlife returning $7 and $4.20. Scuba brought back $2.60.

The Player earned $90,000 from the Gr. III Mineshaft Handicap which enhanced his career earnings to $452,485. It was his fifth career victory in 13 lifetime starts.

Rounding out the order of finish were First Premio, Rich Daddy, Team Colors and No Distortion.

Morning line 8-5 favorite Cedartown was scratched from the race.

“I wasn’t happy with the way that he was doing coming out of the last breeze and we wanted him to be one hundred percent,” said trainer Mike Stidham.

2/17/2018. – Holding Gold with John Velazquez aboard pulls away to capture the 3rd running of the Colonel Power Overnight Stakes at Fair Grounds. Hodges Photography / Amanda Hodges Weir

Earlier on the day, Live Oak Plantation’s Holding Gold started his year off in style with a victory in the $50,000 Colonel Power Stakes. The 5-year-old son of Lonhro (Aus.) overcame a slow start and wide run around the turn to win in his first start since last year’s Gr. I Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint, where he finished seventh beaten only 1 ¾ lengths.

Breaking from post five, Holding Gold sat a half-length off the pace under Hall of Fame jockey John Velazquez. Meanwhile, eventual runner-up Will Call crossed over from his outside post and established the early lead through opening fractions of 22.80, 46.44 and 57.68. Velazquez guided Holding Gold outside when leaving the backstretch and made a swooping move around the turn with enough to get past the pacesetter to take the Colonel Power Overnight Stakes. He won by a half-length in front of Will Call, with stable mate Flashaway another 1¼ lengths behind in third. Holding Gold finished the Colonel Power in a time of 1:03.60 for trainer Mark Casse.

“He actually broke better than I thought he would,” Velazquez said. “I was trying to follow Robby (Albarado aboard Commend) and then that horse got in between us. When that horse got between us, I got carried out. I thought I better keep my horse going forward and not behind horses that aren’t going to take me anywhere. It took me a little bit, but once I got to the eighth-pole, I said ‘okay I’m getting there’.”

Casse was anxious to get another 5½ furlong race under the horse’s belt.

“That’s why we’re here, the five-and-a-half-furlong distance,” Casse said. “I think (trainer) Brad (Cox’s) horse (Will Call) that he beat is a pretty good horse. I know my other horse Flashaway is a good horse too. He’s just taken a little while. He had an injury and it’s the first time we’ve been able to get him into some kind of pattern.”

Sent off as the 4-5 favorite, Holding Gold returned $3.60, $2.40, $2.10. Will Call paid $2.80, $2.40 to place and Flashaway paid $5.60 to show.

“Lots of things didn’t go right and he was still able to win,” Casse said. “I think Johnny decided in the end to just go around.”

Holding Gold rewarded returned $3.60, $2.40 and $2.10 while Will Call brought back $2.80 $2.40 to place. Flashaway returned $5.60 to show.

The Colonel Power brought Holding Gold’s earnings up to $402,095. He earned $29,760 from the race which was his fifth victory in 15 starts in his career. His only other stakes win took place in the Gr. III Shakertown Stakes at Keeneland last spring.

Kisstheatbabygoodby, Line Judge, Commend, Balandeen, Partly Mocha and Eden’s Grey Kitten completed the order of finish.

About Fair Grounds Race Course & Slots
Fair Grounds Race Course & Slots, the nation’s third-oldest racetrack, has been in operation since 1872. Located in New Orleans, LA, Fair Grounds is owned by Churchill Downs Incorporated (NASDAQ Global Select Market: CHDN); it also operates a slot-machine gaming facility and 11 off-track betting parlors throughout southeast Louisiana. The 146th Thoroughbred Racing Season – highlighted by the 105thrunning of the Louisiana Derby – will run from November 18, 2017 through March 31, 2018. More information can be found online at www.FairGroundsRaceCourse.com.

Photos Courtesy of Hodges Photography