Oaklawn Park to honor Triple Crown winner in new entrance

The Sentinel-Record/Richard Rasmussen ON THE MOVE: Horsemen travel to and from the track during morning training at Oaklawn Park on Tuesday. The 114th live meet is scheduled to kick off Friday with an early first post at 12:30 p.m.
The Sentinel-Record/Richard Rasmussen ON THE MOVE: Horsemen travel to and from the track during morning training at Oaklawn Park on Tuesday. The 114th live meet is scheduled to kick off Friday with an early first post at 12:30 p.m.

Oaklawn will unveil a new entrance this week showcasing a sculpture of Triple Crown winner American Pharoah, the winner of the 2015 Arkansas Derby.

American Pharoah was the first Triple Crown winner in 37 years. The unveiling will be held at 11 a.m. Thursday and is open to the public.

The life-size bronze statue was created by artist James Peniston, who is the son of a longtime friend of Charles Cella, the late president of Oaklawn Jockey Club.

"His father was one of dad's earliest friends, and when the idea for the project came up, dad called James out of the blue and asked if he had ever sculpted horses before," said Louis Cella, who succeeded his father as Oaklawn Jockey Club president.

According to Louis Cella, Hall of Fame Trainer Bob Baffert "was gracious enough to have us out and let James study and take photos" for the sculpture.

It wasn't until the final week of the 2017 live meet, he said, that Charles Cella got to see the finished sculpture. Guests will be greeted by the statue when entering the grandstand in 2018.

"We will have a spectacular new entrance here at Oaklawn that our patrons will love," he said.

Zayat Stables LLC's American Pharoah, trained by Baffert, began his 3-year-old season by winning the 2015 Rebel Stakes. He returned four weeks later to win the $1 million Arkansas Derby before capturing the Kentucky Derby, Preakness and Belmont Stakes. He retired at the end of 2015 after also winning the $6 million Breeders' Cup Classic.

"American Pharoah took a couple of detours on his way to the Triple Crown. But, running and winning twice at Oaklawn he found the stride, the resilience and the will to win that enabled him to power through the Derby, Preakness and Belmont," Baffert said in a news release.

Justin Zayat, son of owner Ahmed Zayat and racing manager of Zayat Stables, said they are "extremely honored" to have American Pharoah's achievement recognized in this way.

"Oaklawn has always been a track we love and have had great success at," Zayat said. "Winning the Rebel and Arkansas Derby was a great foundation for American Pharoah and it was after his Arkansas Derby that we knew we had something truly special."

The statue is not only a lasting tribute to American Pharoah, but also to Charles Cella.

"His vision for the track was to have the very best 3-year-olds come through Hot Springs on their way to the Triple Crown races," Louis Cella said. "His dream started coming true in 2004, the year Smarty Jones won the Rebel, Arkansas Derby, Kentucky Derby and Preakness, and came full circle when American Pharoah won the Triple Crown. We look forward to continuing my father's legacy by attracting the top horses for years to come."

Local on 01/10/2018

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