Longacres Mile winner Wasserman has been turned out at Coal Creek Farm in Enumclaw and won’t race again this season.
Owner/trainer Howard Belvoir said his prize 6-year-old is sound, but added the gelding has earned a vacation. According to Belvoir, Wasserman will return to Emerald Downs in February when training begins for the 2009 season.
Wasserman qualified for the $1-million Breeders Cup Dirt Mile at Santa Anita next month, but it would have cost $90,000 in supplemental nomination fees to make the gelding eligible to start.
Wasserman finished one of the most remarkable seasons in state history with five wins in eight starts and $245,478 in purses. Ridden regularly by Jennifer Whitaker the Washington-bred by Cahill Road won a record-tying four stakes races—all in photo finishes—and ran the fastest time at a record four different distances. He figures to need a wheelbarrow to cart away the various divisional honors when they’re awarded this weekend.
Now the all-time leading earner at Emerald Downs with $422,412, Wasserman won, in order, the FSN Handicap, Governor’s Handicap, Longacres Mile (Grade III) and Muckleshoot Tribal Classic.
Assessment, the fourth-place finisher in the Longacres Mile and also a Belvoir trainee, is entered in Saturday’s $200,000 All American Handicap (Grade III) at Golden Gate Fields. Tropic Storm, third as the 13-10 favorite in The Mile, was scratched from Wednesday’s $100,000 Morvich Handicap (Grade III) on opening day of Oak Tree at Santa Anita.
Jockeys’ race headed to wire
In one of the biggest upsets of the season, Seth Martinez and Ricky Frazier were a combined zero-for-17 on Sunday, and Martinez maintained his 112-018 lead over the two time defending champion. Four days — Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday — are left in the 91-day meeting, and both jockeys figure to have heavy workloads over the final 36 races. Thursday, for example, Martinez is named to ride seven horses and Frazier six on the eight-race card.
According to steward Doug Moore, Martinez has appealed a two-day suspension scheduled to be served this Thursday and Friday, and thus will be able to ride uninterrupted through Sunday. Martinez could, however, lose one victory pending the result of a stewards’ ruling regarding a winner he rode for trainer Mike Chambers earlier in the season.
Notes
Saturday’s program includes the fifth and final hundred-grander of the season—the $100,000 Gottstein Futurity for 2-year-olds at 1 1/16 miles. Stakes winning colts Gallant Son and Noosa Beach and fillies Ladyledue and Carrie Cat are among the juveniles expected to run. … Sunday’s Getaway Day program features the fourth running of the Stanislaw Ashbaugh Claiming Challenge. … While Martinez and Frazier were blanked Sunday, Juan Gutierrez rode four winners and strengthened his hold on fifth place with 77 wins. Gutierrez, who ranks second in stakes wins with six, also rode four winners on June 15. Sixteen times this season a jockey has ridden at least four winners on one card. … It’s a long shot, but Gallyn Mitchell could become the record fourth rider with 100 wins at the meeting. Mitchell, who leads in win percentage at 21.7, needs 11 victories in the final four days to join Martinez, Frazier and Kevin Radke (100) at the century mark.
