Arguably the two most visually impressive winners at the meeting thus far, City Twister and D’honorable One will be out to prove who’s the better 3-year-old on Sunday in the $50,000 Auburn Handicap for sophomore colts and geldings running 6½ furlongs.
The Auburn Handicap is the division’s only sprint stakes and first stop en route to the $65,000 Emerald Derby on Aug. 12.
A Washington-bred by He’s Tops, City Twister relished in his return to Emerald Downs last month, demolishing a $25,000 claiming race by 8¾ lengths. Remarkably, that victory came after breaking away from the unfavorable No. 1 post-position and steadying at the half-mile pole. Now, City Twister draws the No. 8 post, which trainer Dan Markle said he prefers.
“The outside post is the prime spot,” Markle said. “Going 6½ furlongs, that’s the post you want to have.”
City Twister will be assigned the task of reigning in D’honorable One, who is likely to be favored come post time. A Florida-bred by D’wildcat, D’honorable One has never finished worse than third in five career starts, including a third-place effort in the 2011 Premio Esmeralda Stakes. Since then, the Blaine Wright trainee has snapped off two sharp victories, most recently a 6¼-length romp in an April 29 allowance race.
The Auburn Handicap is Race 9 on a 10-race card. Post time is approximately 6:09 p.m.
The field: Havanna Red, Leonel Camacho-Flores, 115 pounds; Johnski, William Antongeorgi, 117; Brady’s Kat, Javier Matias, 118; D’honorable One, Leslie Mawing, 122; Makors Finale, Gallyn Mitchell, 120; Brudda Clyde, Jorge Rosales, 117; First Last Chance, Juan Gutierrez, 117; City Twister, Deborah Hoonan, 118.
Antongeorgi finds his stride
Emerald Downs is only seven weeks into its 17th season, yet many intriguing stories have surfaced, including the emergence of jockey William Antongeorgi.
A new addition to the 2012 rider’s colony, Antongeorgi has already inserted himself into the conversation as a contender for Leading Jockey honors. In 105 starts, Antongeorgi has 20 wins, just four shy of current standings’ leader Juan Gutierrez, and as the season has progressed, so has Antongeorgi. In fact, the 25-year-old Long Island native finished last week as the only rider with six wins and was selected The Gift Horse Jockey of the Week. Antongeorgi, whose season goal is to capture the riding crown, said he expects his results to only get better.
“Now that I’m riding horses back a second and third time, I’m starting to learn the horses a little better,” he said.
Riding for top trainers such as Jim Penney and Frank Lucarelli has given Antongeorgi an opportunity to ride some quality horses. He’s already ridden last year’s Top-3-Year-Old Jebrica to a second-place finish in the Governor’s Handicap and will ride 3-year-old contender Johnski on Sunday in the Auburn Handicap.
Before coming to Emerald Downs, Antongeorgi had ridden at several different tracks, including Golden Gate, where he peaked during the 2008-09 meeting, riding 88 winners and finishing third in the jockey standings.
Rainier Missile aims for third straight
Even with the Auburn Handicap headlining the 10-race lineup, it’s difficult to look past the undercard on Sunday, starting with the sixth race – a $32,000/$25,000 claiming race for older horses sprinting six furlongs.
Coming off consecutive victories, Rainier Missile will look to join Go With Gusto and Allison Ridge as the only three-time winners at the meet. The 4-year-old by Golden Missile has shown an affinity for Emerald Downs, finishing first or second in 9-of-14 races. Trainer Dave Bennett said Rainier Missile has been training great, but this upcoming race might be his toughest yet.
“He’s a real fast horse, but he drew the inside post, so he might have to use up some of that speed early in the race,” Bennett said. “He’s run hard every race, but there are some other nice horses in there.”
One logical challenger is Rainier Ice, who could help make for a fascinating race call for track announcer Robert Geller, if both Rainier Ice and Rainier Missile contend in the final furlong. Rainer Ice, making his first start since finishing seventh the 2011 Seattle Slew Handicap, has won 3-of-6 career starts and nearly had a fourth in the 2011 Pepsi Cola Handicap, where he finished first but was disqualified and placed fourth for interference in the stretch.
Notes
Week 7 honors: Jockey – William Antongeorgi (21-6-3-5); trainer – Tim McCanna (12-6-2-1); owner – Sue & Tim Spooner (2-2-0-0); groom – Rafael Melendes (Roy Lumm). … Friday’s feature race – a $10,000 claiming race for fillies and mares – has eight runners with a combined Emerald Downs’ record of 31 wins in 89 starts. Led by Seattle Game (7-for-15) and Champali Lace (6-for-10), the field maintains a 34.8 winning percentage at Emerald Downs. …
The Emerald Qualifying Tournament returns on Sunday, and will take place on the track’s fourth floor. The top five finishers will represent “Team Emerald” in the 14th annual Daily Racing Form/NTRA National Handicapping Championship, presented by Sovereign Stable and Treasure Island Las Vegas. Entries cost $100 apiece, and the track will be accepting tourney signups until 1:30 p.m. Sunday.