LOS ALAMITOS LEADERS
Thoroughbred meet, through Sunday
Jockeys / Wins
Edwin Maldonado / 3Kyle Frey / 3Antonio Fresu / 3Kazushi Kimura / 3(Four tied) / 2
Trainers / Wins
Doug O’Neill / 3Tim Yakteen / 2(Twenty tied) / 1
UPCOMING STAKES
LOS ALAMITOS
Saturday
• $100,000 Los Alamitos Derby, 3-year-olds, 1 1/8 miles
DOWN THE STRETCH
• Bob Baffert has three of the five horses in Saturday’s Los Alamitos Derby, with Nevada Beach (Juan Hernandez riding), Tiz Secure (Drayden Van Dyke) and Varney (Hector Berrios) trying to give the trainer his ninth consecutive win and 15th overall in the race known as the Swaps Stakes in its Hollywood Park days. They face Doug O’Neill’s Rank (Kazushi Kimura) and Antonio Garcia’s It’s a Factor (Antonio Ayuso). The quintet is 0 for 6 in previous tries at the stakes level.
• Seven of the top 20 horses in the National Thoroughbred Racing Association rankings run in two stakes at Churchill Downs on Saturday. The Grade II Fleur de Lis for fillies and mares could be pivotal for defending Horse of the Year Thorpedo Anna (Brian Hernandez Jr.) after her clunker in the La Troienne. The Grade I Stephen Foster matches 3-year-old champion Sierra Leone (Flavien Prat), 2024 Kentucky Derby king Mystik Dan (Brian Hernandez Jr.), stretching-out Mindframe (Irad Ortiz Jr.), Dubai World Cup upsetter Hit Show (Florent Geroux), Hollywood Gold Cup winner Skippylongstocking (Jose Ortiz), improved First Mission (Luis Saez) and formerly D. Wayne Lukas-trained long shot Ashcroft (Julien Leparoux). The winners earn spots in the Breeders’ Cup Distaff and Classic at Del Mar on Nov. 1.
• Also at Churchill on Saturday, California sprinters Dr. Venkman (Antonio Fresu) and Roll On Big Joe (Leparoux) lead the competition for favorite Booth (Erik Asmussen) in the Grade III Kelly’s Landing.
• O’Neill was suspended seven days (July 6-12) and fined $2,500 by stewards at Los Alamitos for not filing the veterinary exams required by the California Horse Racing Board before a horse resumes training following a more than 90-day layoff from racing. The horse, the 3-year-old colt Ivan The Great, with one win in five starts, died after suffering a humeral fracture in a workout April 20 at Santa Anita. O’Neill, a two-time Kentucky Derby-winning trainer whose 3,003 wins in North America are 24th all-time, addressed the violation on X. “I take full responsibility for this and I have since implemented a system to avoid these oversights going forward. I respect the CHRB’s decision and I’ll continue to work on always putting our horses first.”
• Van Dyke was suspended two days (July 4-5) and fined $5,200 by Los Al stewards after the jockey dropped his appeal of a ruling that he overused the whip in riding Soul of an Angel to a $41.60 upset in the Breeders’ Cup Filly and Mare Sprint at Del Mar last Nov. 2. Van Dyke struck the mare seven times, one over the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority’s limit.
• Double Grade I futurity winner Lethal Cowboy 123 was crowned Horse of the Year and champion 2-year-old gelding as the Pacific Coast Quarter Horse Racing Association recognized California’s best of the breed for 2024 last Sunday afternoon at Los Alamitos. Cruz Mendez was named jockey of the year, Eddie Willis trainer of the year.
• Project Leader and Just a Little Luck, named best of 2024 in the 1,000-yard divisions at the PCQHRA event, took to the Los Al track that night and got to work on repeating. Eight-year-old Project Leader (who paid $7.20) and jockey Francisco Ramirez held on to win the 1,000 Yard Summer Final in 52.338 seconds. Five-year-old Just a Little Luck ($4) and Edgar Payeras dominated the equivalent race for fillies and mares in 52.000 (hand-timed).
— Kevin Modesti
