One of North America's premier grass races produced a surprise winner Saturday, partly because someone other than Chad Brown is its trainer.
Jockey Paco Lopez, getting a late start to the Monmouth Park season after a 30-day suspension handed by Gulfstream Park stewards for careless riding, booted home 14-1 longshot Hunter O'Riley in the Grade 1 $300,000 United Nations in Oceanport, N.J. With six straight defeats since the Grade 2 Bowling Green at Saratoga in July 2017, Hunter O'Riley saved ground early before swung outside.
"Jimmy Toner (trainer) told whatever you want to do ... just don't stay on the rail and don't stay inside," said Lopez.
Getting what Toner called "a super ride by Paco," Hunter O'Riley got up by a neck over the Mike Maker-trained Zulu Alpha after 11 furlongs in 2:17.10 over good-rated turf. Todd Pletcher-trained Channel Cat was a half-length back in third as 9-5 favorite. The winner paid $30.20, $12.60 and $7.60.
"This horse has a tendency to take himself out of races," Toner said. "Paco saved ground all the way. ... (The winner) always makes a run but sometimes he leaves himself with too much to do. This race, he wasn't 15 or 20 lengths back. That was the key."
Equally surprising was the fifth- and sixth-place finishes, respectively, for Brown trainees Focus Group and Arrocha. The consecutive three-time Eclipse Award-winning trainer came off seven victories in three days June 6-8 at New York's Belmont Park. Brown's winners included Bricks and Mortar (Manhattan) and Rushing Fall (Just a Game Invitational) in Grade 1 turf races and 3-year-old filly Guarana, making her second lifetime start, in the Grade 1 Acorn, all on the Belmont Stakes undercard.
* Zulu Alpha, last seen finishing seventh to Channel Cat in Belmont's Grade 1 $700,000 Man o'War May 11, is owned by Little Rock horseman Michael Hui.
Hui owned and Maker trained recently retired multiple stakes-winning turfer Hogy. Now 10, Hogy had a 19-13-7 record from 55 starts and earned $1,339,782. The Offlee Wild gelding won a Grade 3 race at Kentucky Downs in his first start for Hui, who claimed Hogy for $80,000 off owner William Stiritz and trainer Scott Becker in August 2017.
"Old Hogy," Hui said, "could not be in better hands" after arriving June 14 at Old Friends thoroughbred retirement farm in Georgetown, Ky.
The Monticello native (pronounced "Hoy") scored his first Arkansas stakes victory in the inaugural $200,000 Oaklawn Mile May 3. Exulting was still in what Hui called "NYRA jail" after a $62,500 claim by Maker April 13 at Aqueduct when the 6-year-old Tapit gelding won by one length on the first May Friday card in Oaklawn history.
* Oaklawn-raced Math Wizard and Long Range Toddy, respectively, took the place and show spots in Saturday's Grade 3 $500,000 Ohio Derby at Thistledown. New York invader Math Wizard finished second to Laughing Fox in the inaugural $200,000 Oaklawn Invitational May 4 for trainer Saffie Joseph Jr. Long Range Toddy, a troubled 16th in the Grade 1 Kentucky Derby May 4, won the first division of Oaklawn's Grade 2 $750,000 Rebel March 18 against the previously unbeaten Bob Baffert-trained Improbable. Willis Horton of Marshall owns Long Range Toddy, trained by Hall of Famer Steve Asmussen and ridden Saturday, as in the Rebel, by veteran Jon Court.
Owendale, third in the May 18 Preakness for Oaklawn regular Brad Cox, won the Ohio Derby by a half-length with Florent Geroux up as odds-on favorite, paying $3.40, $2.20 and $2.10. The fast-rated nine furlongs took 1:50.88. In a six-horse field, Math Wizard was 9 1/4 lengths clear of Long Range Toddy with the fourth-place horse almost 14 lengths farther back.
Sports on 06/24/2019