Gutierrez to Ride 5 Friday

[TJ]

Mario will be listed to ride 5 horses this Friday at Belmont Park. He will be riding one for Doug O'Neill in the GR II Brooklyn Handicap contested over the mile and one half distance of the Belmont Stakes. He also rides one for Wesley Ward and three for trainer Mark Hennig.....one of those three are MTO so that horse may not get in.
It's a funny thing, the State isn't putting this horse of O'Neill's in a special detention barn for the GR II Brooklyn Handicap? So the Belmont Stakes detention barn has nothing to do with the fact they are after O'Neill.....it's just an inconsiderate grandstanding play by our new State run oversight committee now in charge of the NYRA and racing in NY. TJ

[Entry Blank]

Mario will be listed to ride 5 horses this Friday at Belmont Park. He will be riding one for Doug O'Neill in the GR II Brooklyn Handicap contested over the mile and one half distance of the Belmont Stakes. He also rides one for Wesley Ward and three for trainer Mark Hennig.....one of those three are MTO so that horse may not get in.
It's a funny thing, the State isn't putting this horse of O'Neill's in a special detention barn for the GR II Brooklyn Handicap? So the Belmont Stakes detention barn has nothing to do with the fact they are after O'Neill.....it's just an inconsiderate grandstanding play by our new State run oversight committee now in charge of the NYRA and racing in NY. TJ

Belmont and the state of New York are protecting themselves in the event of IHA winning the TC, they dont want there to be a bad test and given Dougies track record, I dont blame them.

[TJ]

Mario will be listed to ride 5 horses this Friday at Belmont Park. He will be riding one for Doug O'Neill in the GR II Brooklyn Handicap contested over the mile and one half distance of the Belmont Stakes. He also rides one for Wesley Ward and three for trainer Mark Hennig.....one of those three are MTO so that horse may not get in.
It's a funny thing, the State isn't putting this horse of O'Neill's in a special detention barn for the GR II Brooklyn Handicap? So the Belmont Stakes detention barn has nothing to do with the fact they are after O'Neill.....it's just an inconsiderate grandstanding play by our new State run oversight committee now in charge of the NYRA and racing in NY. TJ

Belmont and the state of New York are protecting themselves in the event of IHA winning the TC, they dont want there to be a bad test and given Dougies track record, I dont blame them.

Hi EB,
Then be consistent....don't single out the Belmont Stakes....either you have a detention barn for all NY racing or you don't. If it is they really want to protect themselves from O'Neill, then why allow him to run in the Brooklyn without going to the detention barn...it's nothing more than NY politician's thinking they know what they are doing...when they don't. The mayor of NY City wants to ban 7-11 'Big Gulps" from being sold in the state....he says no drinks can be sold containing 16 oz. or more because he doesn't want people to have that much sugar?? TJ

[Whirlaway]

Gotta have the perfect ride . . .

I think the trainer is making all the right moves - textbook, maybe a 3fl blowout before the race, maybe not, I'm no trainer. From what I've read the horse is doin' fine, has taken to the track and is full of energy. Dodged a bullet in that loose horse and the nasal strip thing, maybe . . . maybe not, that one would be hard to measure.

My concern is with the young jockey. I read at the earlier Bloodhorse article he was 4 for 35 at Hollywood Park, not a particularly sparkling percentage - maybe poor mounts, maybe unable to adjust to the new surface, maybe distracted by all the hype, maybe a combination of both or some, or maybe he has lost his timing. I understand he took the week off to go visit his people in Hastings and was to be in NY Wednesday to take a lap around Big Sandy with "The Mig" on the 6th or the 7th. From the latest article he won't be arriving until Friday, a day before the race, haven't read anything new on whether or not he is gonna do that lap and get some advice from "The Mig."

Why go to Hasting before the Belmont? Why not be at Belmont when the horse arrived, be on him for the morning jogs and why not do some race ridin' a couple of weeks leading up to the Belmont, get a comfort zone and a real feel for the track?

I'll be keepin' a close eye on Mario . . .

[bdw0617]

Kent D rode at belmont for 2 decades and it did not stop him from blowing 2 triple crowns, 5 races isn't going to do anything

[TJ]

Gutierrez begins galloping tomorrow at Belmont Park. A few gallops and a few races is all this sharp rider needs to know the lay of the land. He came out of obscurity to Churchill Downs and rode one of the best races I ever saw a rider put up from an extreme outside post. Then moved on to Pimlico and ran down what looked like a runaway winner in Bodemeister. The kid has more poise and polish than most of the top name rider's in America today. He just doesn't panic and has patience beyond his years. If he gets beat, and they will be trying to get him beat....it won't be his fault. It just means that IHA wasn't up to the task. O'Neill will take the blame for that, not Mario....O'Neill opted to do something no other trainer ever did...gallop IHA into the Belmont without a timed workout. Granted this horse gallops very strong and almost reaches near breeze times through the lane...but this could also prove to dull him when he runs?? This remains to be seen. No one know's for sure what their horse is going to do running a two turn mile and a half.....journeyman riders get lost running into those big sweeping turns. Don't think they won't try to mess with Mario...the way Bailey did in helping Smarty Jones get beat. Riders chirping and hooting and hollering to get Smarty Jones rank and on the muscle before crunch time. Here's a little video with O'Neill concerning the move to the detention barn. He wanted to move over I'll Have Another on Monday and they they didn't have the barn ready for them. Today O'Neill won't be able to move him as they are having a Belmont luncheon and O'Neill wants to be there when I'll Have Another moves....so he will move over Wednesday after training. They are using a convenient but busy barn (it's actually Billy Badgett's barn, Billy has been evicted til after the Belmont:>)....the horse path is constantly in motion in front of this barn (probably why O'Neill decided not to move the anxious Lava Man over with him?)....but it is a convenient walk right through the tunnel into the Belmont Park paddock. TJ

http://www.nyra.com/belmont/stories/Notes06052012.shtml

[Whirlaway]

Gutierrez begins galloping tomorrow at Belmont Park. A few gallops and a few races is all this sharp rider needs to know the lay of the land. He came out of obscurity to Churchill Downs and rode one of the best races I ever saw a rider put up from an extreme outside post. Then moved on to Pimlico and ran down what looked like a runaway winner in Bodemeister. The kid has more poise and polish than most of the top name rider's in America today. He just doesn't panic and has patience beyond his years. If he gets beat, and they will be trying to get him beat....it won't be his fault. It just means that IHA wasn't up to the task. O'Neill will take the blame for that, not Mario....O'Neill opted to do something no other trainer ever did...gallop IHA into the Belmont without a timed workout. Granted this horse gallops very strong and almost reaches near breeze times through the lane...but this could also prove to dull him when he runs?? This remains to be seen. No one know's for sure what their horse is going to do running a two turn mile and a half.....journeyman riders get lost running into those big sweeping turns. Don't think they won't try to mess with Mario...the way Bailey did in helping Smarty Jones get beat. Riders chirping and hooting and hollering to get Smarty Jones rank and on the muscle before crunch time. Here's a little video with O'Neill concerning the move to the detention barn. He wanted to move over I'll Have Another on Monday and they they didn't have the barn ready for them. Today O'Neill won't be able to move him as they are having a Belmont luncheon and O'Neill wants to be there when I'll Have Another moves....so he will move over Wednesday after training. They are using a convenient but busy barn (it's actually Billy Badgett's barn, Billy has been evicted til after the Belmont:>)....the horse path is constantly in motion in front of this barn (probably why O'Neill decided not to move the anxious Lava Man over with him?)....but it is a convenient walk right through the tunnel into the Belmont Park paddock. TJ

http://www.nyra.com/belmont/stories/Notes06052012.shtml

I agree w/everything you've written especially, "The kid has more poise and polish than most of the top name riders in America today. He doesn't panic and has patience beyond his years." I'll add that I've read about "perfect rides" by the best jockeys, but don't think I've ever really seen one until I watched this kid. Of note was the SA Derby where he had Creative Cause fully measured and just toyed with him down the stretch using just enough whip to win by a nose. This kid has a special sense - knows how much energy the other horse has, how much energy his horse has and what it takes to reach the finish line first; has a different action w/the whip, kinda like the way Broadway Joe threw the football.

All that being said, I've seen the best of em' lose the Belmont because of jockey error. I'd liked to have seen him at Big Sandy when the horse arrived, jogged the horse and been race ridin' the past couple of weeks - couldn't hurt and would have reduced doubts about his familiarity with the track. And with respect to Mr. O'Neill and no workout for the horse before the race . . . I think he is making the right move. Now were this a horse we had some 50 years ago, I would say yes, work em' but with this modern hoss' bein' so fragile and lightly raced and such, I think this workout regimen fits the nature of the breed. I'm thinkin' O'Neill has got this modern hoss' three races in five week puzzle figured out.

Finally, I was watchin' Costas Tonight last niight and O'Neill was on the program. Costas asked him about the race shape and the trainer said the race seems to lack any real early speed and his horse has the speed . . . he'd like him to go out front, control the pace, extend his lead and go on to win it. However, he did say, it would be up to the jockey. I was takin' a look at the Track Bias Stats at the Ultimate PPs and saw there was a 73% speed bias for the meet with 36% wire to wire and a 100% speed bias for the week with 44% wire to wire. Maybe looks like the track Superintendent juiced the track and has it ready to go!

Lookin' forward to the Belmont Stakes!

[Joltman]

I have serious reservations about the jock. Yes BDW, KD had more opportunities than most to blow the Belmont and took advantage. I think this young man gets one shot to get it right, hence galloping and riding as many races there beforehand would seemingly have been wise.

Unless Secretariat is underneath you, going front puts more pressure on to get that speed just right, trying to go this rare distance. This horse can lay off and cruise, strike the front in mid stretch (not the TOP!) and hold of the closing Dullahan, if and only if he doesn't overextend early. His other main rival is Union Rags who will be very sharp. Maybe lay off Union Rags and hope that he's got the heart to go the distance while holding off Dullahan late.

The race is Mario's to lose. I hope he doesn't but if he does, he's certainly not the first. The guy I would talk to is Steve Cauthen who was also young when he pulled it off.

jm

[TJ]

Mario will have two mounts Saturday preceding the Belmont Stakes. That's a relief....you wouldn't want to see him ride the Belmont Stakes cold right out of the jock's room. TJ

[TJ]

The MTO did not draw in leaving Mario with 4 mounts on today's card. Of his 4 remaining mounts none look like a sure thing. One is a 2YO, one is a first time starter, another is a maiden with numerous chances and his mount in the Brooklyn doesn't look very promising. It looks like he has his best chance to win with the 2YO he rides for Ward...but there are some well bred firster's in that field? This seems to be a learning experience and a meet and greet in the jockey's room for the kid. I hope he wins a race today or tomorrow prior to the Belmont Stakes....it sure would relieve some stress anyway. TJ

[TJ]

Mario's first ride at Belmont was a decent performance...as expected the 6-5 first timer of Todd Pletcher's won the race...but it was head to head till the last 1/8th when JV welcomed Mario to Belmont Park and rode him very close against the rail causing Mario to yank up on his mount in finishing 2nd. The stewards saw no reason for a DQ, adding insult to the injury of I'll Have Another. TJ