Triple Crown contender American Pharoah will soon have his own trading card courtesy of Visit Hot Springs, which will be distributed at Oaklawn Park on June 6 during the Belmont Stakes simulcast.
The Bob Baffert-trained thoroughbred won the $1 million Arkansas Derby before a crowd of more than 67,000 on April 11, which came one start after his win in the track's $750,000 Rebel Stakes on March 14. Zayat Stables' star runner then went on to win the Kentucky Derby on May 2 and the Preakness Stakes on May 16, the first two jewels in the Triple Crown. A win at Belmont Park would make him the first Triple Crown winner since Affirmed in 1978.
"We've celebrated great things to have come out of Oaklawn with these trading cards, most recently Calvin Borel and before him Zenyatta, and Smarty Jones in 2004 when he won the first two legs of the Triple Crown," said Steve Arrison, CEO of Visit Hot Springs. "We're printing 25,000 through Arkansas Graphics in Little Rock, and we'll distribute some to Oaklawn and any left over will be available here through our office."
Visit Hot Springs produces trading cards to commemorate milestone events that have a direct connection to Hot Springs. A series featuring former President Clinton, whose boyhood home was Hot Springs, was the first in the Hot Springs trading cards that were born out of the idea that residents and visitors carry the message of Hot Springs across the globe.
In 2013, jockey Calvin Borel's 5,000th career victory at Oaklawn during the 2013 live race meet was commemorated after nearly a two-month delay due to a wrist injury early in the meet. Borel recorded this milestone victory on March 7, 2013, aboard 3-year-old gelding Hezunusal for trainer and former jockey David Whited, and was reported in The Sentinel-Record as feeling joy in winning No. 5,000 at Oaklawn where he had previously recorded his 3,000th and 4,000th victories.
Much like the Smarty Jones trading cards, the American Pharoah cards feature a photograph of the contender on the front with information about Oaklawn and Hot Springs on the back.
"Even if he doesn't win, what a great thing to win both legs," Arrison said. "It's just a chance to remind people that the best of the best in horse racing come through Hot Springs National Park, Arkansas.
"If he does it, it only proves that the road to the Triple Crown runs right through Oaklawn Park."
A limited number of the cards will be mailed, while supplies last, to those who send a self-addressed, stamped envelope to: American Pharoah Card, Visit Hot Springs, 134 Convention Blvd., Hot Springs, AR, 71901.
Local on 05/24/2015