Jockey Nik Juarez made the first stakes win of his career a big one, guiding Valid to a win in the Grade 3 Iselin at Monmouth Park.
With Parx Racing having astronomical purses for its upcoming Fall Festival, some regional tracks have warned their horsemen to stay home.
The Page McKenney show rolled on in this weekend’s mid-Atlantic stakes action.
“It’s nice to work with horses instead of humans,” says 20yo Liam Benson, who will balance training Tyro winner Expected Ruler with attending fall classes.
West Virginia-breds were the stars of the mid-Atlantic stakes show this weekend, and not just at Charles Town.
Expected Ruler, a 47-1 outsider making his racing debut, shocked Monmouth Park’s Tyro Stakes on Sunday with a two-length victory.
Jockey Trevor McCarthy was sent to a nearby hospital for tests after his mount reared back and hit him in the head Sunday at Monmouth.
Monmouth Park hosted the roster of mid-Atlantic stakes this weekend, including four graded events (among them the Grade 1 Haskell).
The champ was in the house on Haskell day at Monmouth. But his wasn’t the only story to be found, as a journeyman jock, a veteran trainer, and others attest.
Triple Crown champ American Pharoah gave a record Monmouth Park crowd what it came for by romping to victory in the Grade 1 Haskell Invitational.