Oaklawn Park report

— Lukas aiming for two

Will Take Charge isn’t the only horse Hall of Fame trainer D. Wayne Lukas plans to start in the $300,000 Grade III Southwest Stakes on Feb. 18 at Oaklawn Park.

Lukas said he’s also pointing Channel Isle for the 1 1/16-mile race for 3-yearolds.

A son of grass champion English Channel, Channel Isle has won two of his past three starts.

He earned a 75 Beyer speed figure for a three quarter length victory in his 3-year-old debut, a Jan. 26 entry-level allowance race at a mile. Channel Isle broke his maiden at 1 1/8 miles Nov.

24 at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Ky.

Sandwiched around those victories was a 12thplace finish in the $300,000 Springboard Mile Stakes on Dec. 9 at Remington Park in Oklahoma City.

The Springboard Mile produced the 1-2 finishers in the $150,000 Smarty Jones Stakes on Jan. 21 at Oaklawn.

Springboard runner-up Will Take Charge edged Texas Bling by a neck to win the Smarty Jones.

Will Take Charge, owned by Willis Horton of Marshall, and Texas Bling are scheduled to meet again in the Southwest, which has been lengthened from a mile to 1 1/16 miles this year.

Texas Bling beat Will Take Charge by 1 3/4 lengths to win the Springboard Mile.

Another fatality

Courtyard Social collapsed and died shortly after the finish of Thursday’s fourth race, a maiden-allowance sprint for Arkansas-bred fillies.

An Oaklawn official said the 4-year-old daughter of Powers court died of cardiac arrest after finishing 12th and last.

Jockey Carlos Gonzalez was unhurt in the incident, which occurred on the first turn near the 7-furlong pole.

Courtyard Social was making her third career start and first since Nov. 3 at Mountaineer in West Virginia.

She raced for Arkansas based Martin Brothers Inc. (Joe and Bill Martin) and trainer Joe Martin.

Courtyard Social is at least the third horse to die on the track of heart related problems in the last week of training or racing at Oaklawn. Jaimes Gold collapsed after finishing ninth in Saturday’s third race. L B Twenty collapsed just after completing a 5-furlong workout Saturday.

Both of those incidents also occurred on the first turn.

Still on hold

Jockey Calvin Borel remains sidelined after being diagnosed with a broken wrist Jan. 8, three days before the meeting began.

Borel’s agent, Jerry Hissam of Hot Springs, said the jockey hopes to ride next week.

Borel needs one victory to become the 26th rider in North American history with 5,000.

Oaklawn and the city of Hot Springs still plan to distribute commemorative trading cards when Borel reaches the career riding milestone. The cards will be free to anyone at Oaklawn on the day Borel wins his 5,000th race.

Borel hasn’t had a mount since Dec. 28. He was named on five horses opening day, only hours before it was determined his wrist was broken.

Borel was Oaklawn’s leading rider in 1995 and 2001.Boustierre update

Hall of Fame trainer D.

Wayne Lukas said there has been no significant change in the condition of Boustierre, the unbeaten 3-year-old Empire Maker filly who was involved in a Jan. 26 training accident.

Lukas said Boustierre remains in her stall, unable to move, after being badly bruised in a collision with a pony ridden by outrider John Garges.

“It’s going to be a long process,” Lukas said. “She’s not out of the woods yet.”

Boustierre won her Jan. 18 career debut, at 1 1/16 miles, after unleashing a powerful late rally.

Lukas said Joel Cano, the exercise rider aboard Boustierre, is out of the hospital after undergoing surgery for a broken ankle.

Garges suffered a broken arm in the accident, said David Longinotti, Oaklawn’s assistant general manager for racing.

Garges was tracking a loose horse the wrong way (clockwise) along the rail when the accident occurred near the quarter pole, moments after the track opened for training, Longinotti said.

Willy, again?

Trainer Mac Robertson said Win Willy could make one more start before the meeting ends April 13.

Win Willy inched closer to $1 million in career earnings with a third-place finish in Saturday’s $100,000 Essex Handicap for older horses.

“He ran hard and he came back good,” Robertson said.

“Maybe we’ll run him one more time here. Maybe we won’t.”

Robertson said Win Willy would be a candidate for the $150,000 Grade III Razorback Handicap on March 9 or the $500,000 Grade II Oaklawn Handicap on April 13.

Win Willy won the Oaklawn Handicap in 2011.

He was beaten 1 1/4 lengths in the Essex after falling far behind early.

“Looked like at the quarter pole, he was going to get there,” Robertson said.

“He just hung a little.”

Win Willy has won 10 of 29 career starts and has earned $977,887.

He ran third in his only other start this year, the $75,000 Fifth Season Stakes on Jan. 11. He will be based at Delaware Park after the Oaklawn meeting ends.

Mama knows best

Unbeaten 3-year-old filly Awesome Mama worked a half-mile in :49.80 on Thursday morning for trainer Shannon Ritter.

Awesome Mama, who is by Awesome Again, earned a 72 Beyer speed figure for a 2-length Jan. 27 entry-level allowance victory sprinting.

She was a 4 1/2-length winner of her Dec. 8 career debut at Turfway Park in Kentucky.

Awesome Mama was under consideration for Saturday’s $75,000 Martha Washington Stakes, but Ritter decided to pass because it fell too quickly after the smallish filly’s last race.

“When she won, she ran real nicely at Turfway,” Ritter said. “But you’re not sure what you’ve got. But to me, it was pretty solid this fall at Turfway.”

Ritter said Awesome Mama could be a candidate for the $150,000 Grade III Honeybee Stakes on March 9.

Awesome Mama races for her breeder, WinStar Farm LLC.

Martha Washington

Multiple stakes winner Rose to Gold is among nine 3-year-old fillies entered in Saturday’s $75,000 Martha Washington Stakes at a mile.

Rose to Gold is scheduled to break from post 9 under Juan Leyva and carry 119 pounds.

Trained by Sal Santoro, Rose to Gold has won 3 of 4 career starts - all stakes - and earned $372,889.

In her last start, Rose to Gold won the $500,000 Grade III Delta Princess Stakes on Nov. 17 at Delta Downs in Louisiana.

She is unbeaten in three starts on dirt.

Also entered is American Sugar, a 7-length winner of the $60,000 Dixie Belle Stakes on Jan. 20.

Probable post time for the Martha Washington, the eighth of nine live races, is 4:38 p.m. Racing begins Saturday at 1 p.m.

Rulings

Jockey Belen Quinonez began serving a three-day suspension Thursday for a riding incident in Saturday’s third race.

Stewards cited Quinonez for allowing his mount, Jenny’s Touch, to drift in and impede the progress of Mystic Thunder in deep stretch, resulting in the disqualification of Jenny’s Touch from second to fourth.

It was the first race related disqualification of the meeting.

Stakes winner dies

Oaklawn stakes winner Chief of Affairs was euthanized after breaking down during a workout in August, said Jack Frost of Marianna, who owned and trained the 7-year-old gelding at the time of his death.

Frost said the accident occurred at Trackside Training facility in Louisville, Ky.

“Unfortunate,” Frost said.

“He was a class old horse. He did everything perfect. Not a problem.”

Frost claimed Chief of Affairs for $35,000 last February at Oaklawn.

Chief of Affairs made five starts for Frost, winning his final two career races, the last an allowance/optional claiming sprint Aug. 4 at Ellis Park in Kentucky.

Frost said Chief of Affairs was pointing for a minor overnight stakes race when he was fatally injured.

Chief of Affairs had a 9-5-6 record from 28 lifetime starts and earnings of $374,858.

In 2011 at Oaklawn, he equaled the stakes record in the $75,000 Hot Springs, covering 6 furlongs in 1:08.56.

Chief of Affairs narrowly missed Oaklawn’s 5 1/2-furlong track record in winning an allowance/optional claimer (1:02.91) in 2010.

Chief of Affairs spent most of his career with trainer Bret Calhoun and owners Wayne Sanders and Larry Hirsch.

Final furlong

Wine Glow, the first starter for famed Calumet Farm since June 17, 2011, ran ninth in Thursday’s seventh race. Calumet owner Brad Kelley’s horses, including recent stakes winners Oxbow and Optimizer, previously raced under the Bluegrass Hall LLC banner.

Kelley began leasing Calumet in 2012. ... Trainer Tommy Ives of Hot Springs saddled his first career winner in Thursday’s second race in Suave Affair Ives, formerly associated with the Arkansas division of the Arkansas HBPA, also owned the winner. ... Trainer Gary “Red Dog” Hartlage said he will fly to Florida to watch his multiple stakes winner, On Fire Baby, work Tuesday morning. On Fire Baby has breezed the last two weekends in preparation for her comeback race. She hasn’t started since May.

Day 15 at a glance

ATTENDANCE 3,445 ON-TRACK HANDLE $303,054.20 OFF-TRACK HANDLE $1,670,999.83 TOTAL HANDLE $1,974,054.03 CLASSIX CARRYOVER $1,914.31 THURSDAY’S STARS Trainer Chris Richard won two races to take the lead in the standings (9 for 21). Trainer Mac Robertson and jockey Seth Martinez teamed for two victories. Favored Jan’s Perfect Star, a 4-year-old Arkansas-bred filly, scored a front-running 12-length victory in her career debut. Trained by Al Cates of Sherwood, Jan’s Perfect Star ran 6 furlongs over a fast track in 1:10.61 and paid $6.80.

TODAY’S TIMES First post for the nine races is 1:30 p.m. Gates open at 11 a.m.

TODAY’S TELEVISION HRTV (full card), Oaklawn Today replays (8 p.m., Resort Cable Channel 5; 11 p.m., KARZ, Channel 42, Little Rock, 11 p.m.) TODAY’S RADIO Oaklawn Morning Line (8:45 a.m., KVRE-FM, 92.9, Hot Springs Village) PRICES Admission ($2); parking in Oaklawn lots ($2); reserved seats ($2.50 weekdays, $4.50 weekends); programs ($2). Daily Racing Form on track ($5, $6.50); tip sheets ($2-$5)

Sports, Pages 24 on 02/08/2013

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