With a third King Cotton victory today at Oaklawn Park, Ivan Fallunovalot can reel off a list of accomplishments almost as long as his name.
The 8-year-old gelding can become the third Texas-bred to reach $1 million in career earnings with the $75,000 winner's purse from the $125,000 sprint stake. According to the Texas Thoroughbred Association, 1987 sprint champion Groovy ($1,346,956) and Texas Chrome ($1,033,262) are the only Texas-bred millionaires.
According to the track's media guide, Ivan Fallunovalot also can become the fourth horse to win an Oaklawn stakes race three times. Arkansas-bred E J Harley, an Oaklawn maiden winner for trainer David Vance, captured the Hot Springs from 1998-2000 for Little Rock owner Wilbur Giles. Azeri won the first of three straight Apple Blossom handicaps in 2002 (she was Horse of the Year), repeating in 2003 for trainer Laura de Seroux and in 2004 for Hall of Famer Wayne Lukas. Arkansas-bred All About Allie, trained by David Whited, took the Downthedustyroad Breeders' in 2011-13 for the Sanders brothers of Little Rock and Marshall.
Overlooking the gelding's Texas heritage, Oaklawn fans regard Ivan Fallunovalot with affection, mostly because he's fattened their wallets. The son of the late Texas supersire Valid Expectations has five wins and four seconds in Hot Springs, winning the King Cotton in 2015 and 2016, and is practically unbeatable at Remington Park, where he has won the David M. Vance Stakes the last four years.
Bismarck horse owner Lewis Mathews Jr. couldn't have imagined all this when he claimed Ivan Fallunovalot for $25,000 at Oaklawn in March 2014. Under Tom Howard's training, the bay gelding has long since turned a profit for Mathews, sending his owner to Keeneland for the 2015 Breeders' Cup Sprint (Ivan finished ninth in a race won by Runhappy) and winning the 2016 Grade 3 DeFrancis Memorial Dash at Maryland's Laurel Park.
With $961,403 from 29 races (17 victories), Ivan returns to one of his favorite tracks and in a race with which he is identified.
"That's our big goal, to make him a millionaire in front of the home crowd," Mathews said. "That's what we've looked toward for a few months. That's our next goal with him."
Ivan got a look at some of his King Cotton rivals when he ran second to Wilbo in a Jan. 14 Oaklawn prep, going a grueling opening half in 44.44 seconds. That was his first start since winning the Vance Sept. 24, a prep that he did not get last year when fourth in Storm Advisory's King Cotton after battling a minor illness. A true bill on 8-year-old Ivan is possible today after his "bullet" half-mile work of 47.60 seconds Jan. 24, fastest of 53 working the distance that day.
Luis Quinonez keeps the mount on Ivan, whose King Cotton victories came with Hall of Famer Calvin Borel. The 8-5 program favorite from post two, Ivan could face early pace pressure from rail-drawn Guns Loaded, an impressive Oaklawn winner Jan. 20 after six furlongs in 1:10.22. Doug O'Neill, in his first Oaklawn season, switches to five-time local riding champion Ricardo Santana Jr. after using Edwin Maldonado in the prep.
Wilbo is back, though at 122 he picks up 4 pounds from the Jan. 14 race, spotting 3 pounds to Ivan and weight to all. With the same sire (Candy Ride) as Horse of the Year Gun Runner, 6-year-old Wilbo won an Ellis Park sprint stake last summer after placing second to the mighty Limousine Liberal in a Grade 3 event at Churchill Downs. David Cabrera, a double-digit winner in his first Oaklawn season, rides Wilbo for trainer Chris Hartman from post 3.
Completing the field are St. Joe Bay (115, Maldonado), Prime Engine (115, Gary Stevens), Royal Squeeze (115, David Cohen), Recount (115, Alex Canchari) and Apprehender (115, Alex Birzer), who dominated the King Cotton (winning in 2013 and 2014) before Ivan Fallunovalot exploded upon the scene.
Post time is 4:38 p.m. for the 68th King Cotton, race 8 on a nine-race card starting at 1:05 p.m.
Race 4 (2:38 p.m.), a $75,000 six-furlong affair for maiden 3-year-olds, includes unraced Triple Crown nominees Limation and Exclamation Point. Limation, by Alternation, is owned by Mike Langford, of Jonesboro, and trained by Steve Asmussen. Exclamation Point, owned by Steven and Brandi Nicholson, is a Concord Point colt whose dam, Sambuca Classica (by Cat Thief), produced 2016 male juvenile champion and 2017 Arkansas Derby winner Classic Empire.
Sports on 02/03/2018