Posts Tagged ‘jess jackson’

By Bradford Cummings
It’s a young person’s world. With the advent of computers and the web infusing every corner of our lives, every industry must strive to reach younger and younger audiences in order to stay relevant, much to the chagrin of the ever aging Thoroughbred industry. According to the superbly written and researched R2Collective, our demographics are trending in the opposite direction. A super majority of 91.7% of racing’s audience is 40 or older and 49.7% is over 55 while a whopping 0.3% is under 25. With the knowledge that most people make their lifetime purchasing decisions by the age of 30, these numbers are depressing, no matter how you look at them.

But enough of the bad news. After all, this is Good News Friday sponsored by Liberation Farm. Instead, we’d like to share a strong kernel of hope for the future of racing. Despite the downward trends we are currently seeing, there will always be an opportunity to recapture the imagination of our youth. Because even in the face of basketball, football, poker, baseball and other endeavors, we will always have one advantage on the rest of the competition. At the center of our industry, we have the opportunity to celebrate one of the most beautiful and elegant creatures known to man…the horse.

An eight-year-old giving up birthday presents is like Jess Jackson passing on a press conference but that’s exactly what Logan Resnick did this year. I had the distinct pleasure of speaking with Kimberlee Resnick, this selfless boy’s very proud mother.

A family from a northern suburb of Chicago, Northbrook, the Resnicks have a passion for racing. The majority of their stable are Thoroughbreds who run at Arlington Park and Oaklawn Park with a few Standardbreds featured at various parks around the country. As with many owners, racing is not the family business but instead a hobby. When asked if it was a money making opportunity, Kimberlee chuckled and simply answered, "No, like I said, it’s a hobby and a passion."

And they have effectively handed this excitement down to their young son Logan who absolutely delights in being around the horses, helping to take care of them and watching them run. "He was a year old when we started into it," said Mrs. Resnick in a familiar fast-talking Chicago dialect. "He developed the passion along with his dad."

"Like father, like son?"

"Yes, exactly."

So when they were planning Logan’s birthday party this year, they were discussing their options and a friend’s party came up that had left an impression on Logan. Apparently, his friend Rachel had asked her friends to make a donation to a local food pantry in lieu of gifts. When Kimberlee brought this up to him as an option, he showed some interest but had the natural questions one might suspect an eight-year-old would have about a potential birthday party without presents. More on that later.

Quickly, Logan decided to go with the charity idea. "When we asked, do you have any place you want to give money to, he said ‘The horse mommy, the horses that get hurt," said Resnick.

After some research, the Resnick’s landed on Thoroughbred Charities of America, an organization already covered in a previous Good News Friday article.

As of yesterday, the TCA has received 17 donations totaling $318. When his donations started to be received, the TCA noticed and sent Logan a care package as a thank you for his support. In the care package included a letter that thanked him for his support and indicated he was helping to save horses. "The money people are sending are actually helping the horses?" Logan asked. It’s then that it really sunk in the positive effect his generosity was having. One friend Jacob even got into his piggy bank and found $20 to give with his parents matching him dollar for dollar.

Is $318 going to turn the TCA upside down? Of course not, but that’s also not the point. It’s just so refreshing to hear the tale of a little boy who is so selfless that he would sacrifice a part of the biggest day of his year to help a cause he cares about so deeply. We should make it our mission to celebrate every Logan out there. After all, they are the ones who will one day grow up to help make our industry stronger.

Oh, and in case you were wondering, he still received gifts from his family. There are some things even the greatest of eight-year-olds can’t give up. This thirty-two-year-old completely understands.

Copyright © 2010, The Paulick Report

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By Ray Paulick
 What’s that old expression often repeated in the legal world: He who represents himself has a fool for a client? I think a similar statement can be said of some horse owners: He who makes decisions on where and when his horses should run has a fool for a trainer.

That phrase came to mind, not once, but twice this week when the owners of two of America’s highest-profile Thoroughbreds, Horse of the Year Rachel Alexandra and early Kentucky Derby favorite Eskendereya, made the type of decisions that are better left to their trainers. And the real trainers of these two horses, Steve Asmussen and Todd Pletcher, respectively, are anything but fools. Both are locks to someday be inducted into the National Museum of Racing Hall of Fame.

Jess Jackson struck first when he issued a press release Sunday declaring Rachel Alexandra out of the April 9 Apple Blossom Invitational at Oaklawn Park, less than 24 hours after she was defeated in the New Orleans Ladies at Fair Grounds.

“Yesterday’s race while a disappointment, helped us define Rachel Alexandra’s racing condition,” Jackson said. “While she is healthy, just as I had anticipated, she is not in top form. Therefore, I decided today she will not be going to the Oaklawn Invitational on April 9. Steve and I discussed this fully and we now regret we tried to accelerate her training in order meet the Apple Blossom schedule. We have a whole season before us to help define her greatness. She will tell us when her next race will be.”

The key phrase in the above paragraph is “Therefore, I decided…”

Only a few hours earlier, the Fair Grounds media office sent out the following comments from Asmussen, a two-time Eclipse Award-winning trainer: “We don’t have any negative indications yet today. Like anything, you want to be 100% and if you’re not you go from there. We don’t have any negative this morning other than the loss and the hurt feelings of yesterday. Our main concern is how Rachel feels and her well-being and we’re very pleased with her today.”

Two days later, Ahmed Zayat made a decision to pull his Fasig-Tipton Fountain of Youth winner Eskendereya from an intended start in this Saturday’s Florida Derby and have Pletcher instead send him to Aqueduct for the Wood Memorial on April 3.

“The main issue is timing,” Zayat was quoted in Daily Racing Form as saying. “I’m not really comfortable off the six weeks (the gap between the Florida Derby and Kentucky Derby). If I’m genuine about the Kentucky Derby, I need to give the prep I want to make sure he peaks on the right day.”

Zayat, who has been sued by Fifth Third Bank over alleged delinquency on a $34-million loan and has put his racing stable in Chapter 11 bankruptcy, like Jackson has owned racehorses for only a few years. Apparently, he thinks he knows more about training a Thoroughbred than Pletcher, a four-time Eclipse Award winner.

Earlier in the week, Pletcher was quoted in the Miami Herald saying he thought six weeks between starts was just right for Eskendereya. “He won an allowance (at Gulfstream) six weeks out from the Fountain of Youth,” Pletcher said. “So, six weeks seems like good spacing for him.”

Cynics may be thinking Jackson and Zayat–two owners with immodestly sized egos—might be fibbing about their decisions. In the case of Jackson, the real reason to skip the Apple Blossom could be based more on the winning performance by unbeaten champion Zenyatta at Santa Anita the same afternoon Rachel Alexandra lost. He can’t be blamed for wanting no part of Zenyatta at Oaklawn, and for that I say he’s nobody’s fool.

Zayat’s reason could be entirely different. The beleaguered owner has been entertaining offers to sell all or part of Eskendereya to help satisfy his loan obligations, and it’s possible he wants to finalize a deal before the son of Giant’s Causeway makes his next start.

I hope that’s the case. If Zayat thinks he can train a horse better than Pletcher, he really is a fool.

Copyright © 2010, The Paulick Report

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By Ray Paulick
There are a lot of people sitting on pins and needles in Hot Springs, Ark., this afternoon, all waiting to see what happens at Santa Anita Park and Fair Grounds when two-time champion Zenyatta and Horse of the Year Rachel Alexandra make their 2010 debuts in anticipation of their long-awaited match-up, scjheduled to take place  in the $5-million Apple Blossom Invitational at Oaklawn Park on April 9.

From the hotel and motel owners, bar and restaurant operators, the folks who sell their front lawns for parking spaces to souvenir stand concessionaires and Oaklawn Park owner Charles Cella, everyone has the same question: Will they both show up?

Consensus seems to be in the 50/50 to 60/40 range that the Battle of the Amazons will take place, though anyone who’s been following Rachel Alexandra’s camp carefully in recent days wouldn’t be surprised to see Jess Jackson burst racing’s bubble and say his filly won’t come to Hot Springs.

Behind the scenes, there have been discussions for national television for the Apple Blossom, though the Paulick Report has learned that NBC Sports, which will have its camera and crew in place at Oaklawn Park for the April 10 Arkansas Derby, has passed on the opportunity.

If that’s the case, the best opportunity for the Apple Blossom will be on ESPN, which is currently scheduled to show the second round of the Masters golf tournament from 4-7 p.m. (Eastern Daylight Time) If the published reports of the last couple of days are true and Tiger Woods makes his comeback in the Masters, and has an afternoon tee time for the second round, a 7-8p.m. Eastern time slot would have a terrific lead-in audience.
 
Sunset in Hot Springs will be around 8:35 p.m. (Eastern Time), and track officials are planning to put the Apple Blossom very late on the card. Thus, it’s possible the race could go off at close to prime time in the East Coast and a reasonable time for a wide viewing audience in the Midwest. But many West Coast are more likely to be sitting in their car on a freeway at post time for the Apple Blossom.

A further indication of ESPN’s interest in the Apple Blossom could come later today when they may cut in to SportsCenter to show Rachel Alexandra’s and Zenyatta’s comeback races. Let’s all hope for a safe journey for both of racing’s superstars.

Today’s attendance at Oaklawn is probably in the vicinity of 25,000, and it’s not easy to navigate through the crowd lined up for beers, food and wagering inside the gr7andstand (not to mention the long line for the ladies room). I can’t imagine what this place will be like on April 9 if Zenyatta and Rachel Alexandra are here.

5 p.m. … Oaklawn Park’s general manager, Eric Jackson, stopped by the press box and updated the Paulick Report on plans for the Apple Blossom. It looks pretty the certain the race will be run at 7:45 p.m. (Eastern) as the 11th and final race on the program. Jackson said. That makes a one-hour ESPN spot all the more likely following hte Masters from Augusta. While some will complain that racing needed to be on a broadcast network, the 7-8 p.m. timeslot on the networks belongs to local affiliates who fill the hour with trash like "Access Hollywood," "Entertainment Tonight" or with game shows like "Jeopardy" and "Wheel of Fortune." 

Jackson talked bluntly about the economics of offering a $5-million purse for the big race. "God bless Charles Cella,"  Jackson said. "From a sporting standpoint, this is one of the greatest gestures in the history of the sport. From a business standpoint, as I said to the racing commission, it’s the dumbest thing Oaklawn Park has ever done.

"We can’t make a dime," said Jackson, indicating the Friday of the "Racing Festival of the South" would have been a sellout with or without the two champions. "But that didn’t enter into Charlie’s thinking on this."

Prices will remain the same as usual at Oaklawn Park on Apple Blossom (hot tip–the Reuben sandwich for $6.50 is a steal), though private parking lot operators said they will charge as much as $50 a spot (up from $20 on Rebel Stakes Day). The infield will be open, and for the first time Oaklawn will have hospitality and corporate sponsor tents there–even though they don’t have any corporate sponsors yet. "We had a staff meeting when we first came up with this and someone said, ‘You want us to do in seven weeks what most people have a year to do?’" Jackson said. "I told them, ‘No, we actually have eight weeks now.’"

Handicapper Paul Skelton tried to convince Jackson the Apple Blossom day races will be stronger along with the following day’s Arkansas Derby because horsemen shipping in will sent other horses to fit the card. Jackson thought about it for a second and said, "Okay, maybe now we’ll only lose $4.7 million instead of five. That makes me feel a whole lot better."

So it all comes down to what Bill Murray’s character in "Caddyshack," Carl Spackler, got the time he caddied for the Dalai Lama and got stiffed on his tip. "I say, ‘Hey, Lama, hey, how about a little something, you know, for the effort, you know.’ And he says, ‘Oh, uh, there won’t be any money, but when you die, on your deathbed, you will receive total consiousness.’ So I got that goin’ for me, which is nice.

So will Charles Cella and Eric Jackson. Gunga galunga.

5:40 p.m. …  Well, if the Tampa Bay Derby is any indication of how this day is going to go, it could get a little strange. Odysseus, making his stakes debut after romping to a 15-length allowance/optional claiming win at Tampa Bay, surged to the lead right at the wire to edge Schoolyard Dreams by a nose in a weirdly contested race. Super Saver, the 3-2 favorite who set fractions of :23.52, :47.02, 1:11.74, and 1:37.42, was a close third for trainer Todd Pletcher.  Final time for the 1 1/16 miles was 1:44.37.

Rajiv Maragh had Odysseus in a perfect striking position throughout the Tampa Bay Derby but the Malibu Moon colt looked to be struggling at the top of the stretch, falling back to fourth or fifth position when Schoolyard Dreams moved to the lead. But as Schoolyard Dreams and Super Saver battled in the final sixteenth, Odysseus squeezed between them and had just enough to get up at the wire and win in a head-bobbing finish. Local hope Uptowncharlybrown had a rough trip from the rail, having to block and steady around the final turn before winding up fifth. Gleam of Hope was pinched back to last after the start but rallied into contention on the stretch turn before fading to fourth.

The winner races for Satish Sanan and family’s Padua Stables and was the 2-1 second choice in the wagering. The $250,000 OBS March 2-year-old purchase, bred in Kentucky by Haymarket Farm and Lakemont Stable, is trained by Tom Albertrani.

Tampa Bay Derby chart.

6 p.m. … Saw Airdrie Stud owner and former Kentucky Gov. Brereton Jones  earlier in the card and didn’t think much of it when he said he’d only been to Oaklawn Park three other times, and each  time he ended up winning a graded stakes race on the day. "Of course, I don’t really know if we belong in this field," Jones said about his filly No Such Word’s chances in the Grade 3 Honeybee Stakes. All I could think about as the Canadian Frontier 3-year-old filly pulled away from favorite Beautician and the rest of the Honeybee Stakes was "Thanks, Gov!" The filly is trained by Cindy Jones, whose husband, retired trainer Larry Jones, is one of the most recognizable hotwalkers in all of racing.

6:16 p.m. … The fillies are walking toward the starting gate for the New Orleans Ladies and I notice that Rachel Alexandra has taken about $975,000 of the $1 million in wagers in the show pool.

6:20 p.m. … It got awfully quiet at Oaklawn Park when Zardana pulled up alongside Rachel Alexandra  and then went right on by in the stretch run of the Ladies to win by three-quarters of a length. Trainer Steve Asmussen has been telling anyone who would listen that he’s concerned Rachel wasn’t quite fit enough, and guess what? He was right. 

Zardana, coming off a fourth-place finish in the Santa Maria Handicap for John Shirreffs–YES, THAT JOHN SHIRREFFS, also the trainer of Zenyatta–is a Grade 2 winner of the Bayakoa Handicap at Hollywood Park who was ridden to perfection by David Flores. Zardana settled into third position  while Fighter Wing set fractions of :23.84, :47.22 and 1:12.86 for six furlongs.  Calvin Borel had Rachel Alexandra second early, racing wide around the first turn and then just off the leader down the backstretch while appearing a bit eager. She moved to the front before hitting the far turn, but was quickly under attack from Zardana, who had all the momentum entering the stretch. Rachel Alexandra fought back, feeling the sting of Borel’s whip four times from the left hand four times from the right, but then the rider wrapped up on the filly when defeat was certain.

The winner, a Brazilian-bred daughter of Crimson Tide was winning for the eighth time in 19 starts. She is owned by Arnold Zetcher. Zardana paid $21 to win on a $2 mutuel. Unforgotten was a distant third, followed by Fighter Wing and Clear Sailing.

Here’s the New Orleans Ladies Chart.

6:45 p.m. … Zenyatta did her job, winning the Santa Margarita with yet another dramatic stretch run. More in a few minutes, but let me just say that Mike Smith did one hell of a job negotiating through traffic at the top of the stretch, then swinging ooff the fence and winning comfortably without ever going to the whip.

6:52 p.m. … Champion Lookin At Lucky just got up to win the Rebel, defeating Noble’s Promise by a nose, with Dublin third. That wasn’t what I would call a comfortable win, and I’m not thinking Lookin At Lucky looks like a horse who has another three-sixteenths of a mile in him.

6:55 p.m. … Planning to escape the press box for a while and catch the post-Rebel press conference. Back in a little bit. Need to catch my breath. Too many exciting races in too short a time.

7:30 p.m. … Horses in the paddock for the day’s final 3-year-old prep,. the San Felipe at Santa Anita.

7:35 p.m. … I asked one of Lookin At Lucky’s co-owners, Mike Pegram (pictured, left), if he thought after today’s narrow win in the Rebel if he thought the Smart Strike colt could get a mile and a quarter for the Kentucky Derby, and he had a quick response. "Mickey Mantle never knew he could hit a curveball till they threw him one. This horse is an athlete."

Trainer Bob Baffert said jockey Robby Albarado aboard Noble’s Promise put Looking At Lucky in a box near the half-mile pole and said jockey Garrett Gomez told him he got bounced around a little near that point of the race. Watching the head-on replay as the horses were pulling up when Gomez could be seen saying something to Albarado. "Look, he’s telling him something," Baffert said, "He’s saying, ‘You sonofabitch!’"

Dublin ran a solid third behind the top pair after moving toward the lead at the top of the stretch.

7:50 p.m. … Like taking candy from a baby. That’s how easy the win by Sidney’s Candy was in the San Felipe. Under jockey Joe Talamo, the John Sadler-trained colt cruised through soft fractions of :24.39 for the opening quarter mile, :48.55, 1:13.53 and 1:36.26 en route to a final clocking for the 1 1/16 miles of 1:42.30. Interactif chased early and late, finishing second, beaten about a length, with American Lion third after taking back off the early pace while wearing blinkers for the first time. Sidney’s Candy was coming off an easy win in the seven-furlong San Vicente Stakes, so this was the Candy Ride colt’s first try around two turns.Sadler’s other entrant, Dave in Dixie, a stretchrunner, never fired.

8:00 p.m. … I am still in absolute awe of Zenyatta and the manner in which she won the Santa Margarita, spotting from 11 to 15 pounds to her rivals and coming off a four-month layoff. Today’s win was "only" by 1 1/4 lengths, and the filly that finished second, a 51-1 shot named Dance to My Turn, is obviously not a world beater. But when Smith was caught in traffic at the top of the stretch more than a few people watching the telecast around me said ‘She’s gonna lose.’ But just as in the Breeders’ Cup Classic, Smith found room along the inside (he’s not Five-Wide Mike any more), then guided her into the clear to make a breathtaking run to the lead in a matter of strides.

I don’t want to get in the 2009 Horse of the Year debate, but those who continue to put Zenyatta down mystify me. What more could they possibly want her to do? 15-for-15 is pretty darned good.

Here’s the Santa Margarita chart.

8:25 p.m. … Media relations director and race caller Terry Wallace stopped by for a chat and you could feel a great sense of disappoint about the Apple Blossom from him—not that the race or the day will be any less exciting for racing fans (with or without Rachel Alexandra, since Zenyatta is scheduled to come here either way). "If both fillies were to come here off a win, this would have really given the sport something it needed,"  Wallace said. "It will still be a big day, but this really took the starch out of the sails." He agreed that it would be like a prize fighter losing his warm-up bout before a championship boxing match against an opponent he’d never faced. Racing people understand that prep races are meant to get horses ready for something bigger down the road, but the general sports fan or non-racing media person might not. The New Orleans Ladies should be viewed with the same significance as a spring training game for Major League Baseball or a pre-season game in the NFL.

The only problem with that philosophy is that Jess Jackson wants to win them all, and now that Rachel has lost carrying his silks I’m afraid he will back out of the Apple Blossom,. even though veteran horsemen I spoke with after the New Orleans Ladies thought it was an excellent prep race for Rachel Alexandra.

8:45 p.m. … Bouncing around yet again, I want to revisit the Rebel Stakes. Lookin At Lucky really had a rough trip, according to the Equibase footnotes: "Lookin At Lucky, bothered start, settled off the pace and on the inside, jumped across Noble’s Promise heels when that one came out just outside the half-mile marker, quickly recovered, advanced four wide into contention turning for home, set down, late bid, gained the nod in a game effort."

"There was a lot of race riding going on. They put him in a spot," said Baffert, who said he got exactly what he wanted out of the Rebel, whether Lookin At Lucky had gotten up to win or not. "This was kind of a Kentucky Derby experience he got." Baffert hasn’t been to Oaklawn Park for over a decade, but said he really liked the dirt surface of the main track, saying it’s as close to Churchill Downs in its composition as any track he’s seen. He even told the track superintendent he’d like to take him back to California with him. (Of course, I have to wonder how many days Baffert would be here before he started complaining about the track surface, something he’s known to do just about anywhere he’s been stabled.)

He said "anything’s possible" regarding the next start for Lookin At Lucky, though indicated the Wood Memorial or the Arkansas Derby would be the most likely spots. He compared Looklin at Lucky to the first of his three Kentucky Derby winners, Silver Charm. "You know he’s gonna give you everything he’s got," Baffert said.  Speaking of Silver Charm, it was when he was considering what to do with Bob and Beverly Lewis’  horse after scratching out of the Santa Anita Handicap that he said, "We could either go the Oaklawn Park for the Oaklawn Handicap or Dubai for  the Dubai World Cup (which Silver Charm won), but it’s a lot easier to get to Dubai." The private jet owned by one of Lookin At Lucky’s owners made Baffert’s trip to Hot Springs a little easier this time around.

Here’s the chart for the Rebel Stakes.

Here’s the chart for the San Felipe.

9:20 p.m. … Oaklawn Park is becoming one of my favorite racetracks in the country. It’s all about horse racing, and the management and staff seem to always put on a good show. Today’s attendance turned out to be 36,298. Yes, a lot of them came in hopes of winning the pickup truck and boat/trailer given away, but find me another track that packs ‘em in like this on the weekends. From Arkansas billionaires to farmers in bib overalls they love their horse racing here in Hot Springs and the whole region that Oaklawn Park draws from.

Come April 9, the day of hte Apple Blossom Invitational, this place will be jumping again, whether or not Rachel Alexandra shows up.If she is here, she’ll be a lot fitter and better prepared filly than she was today in the New Orleans. And if she isn’t here, racing fans will be treated to what I think is the greatest female Thoroughbred in my lifetime. It will be a day to remember…. no matter what.

That’s it from Oaklawn Park.

Today, the Paulick Report received a puzzling email from PETA claiming that the upcoming Apple Blossom featuring Rachel Alexandra and Zenyatta would be a ‘grueling match race’. They went on to compare the April 9th race to the infamous breakdowns of Ruffian and Go For Wand.

It appears that someone needs a dictionary or at least a cursory knowledge of what a match race actually is. Of course, the Apple Blossom will have a much larger field than the two super fillies and not once was the idea of a match race even discussed. It makes one think of the Happy Days episode when The Fonz jumped a shark, causing the hit show to lose credibility overnight. On second thought, that’s implying that PETA had any credibility to lose.

- Bradford Cummings

This morning, PETA fired off letters to Jerry Moss and Jess Jackson imploring them not to enter their fillies—Zenyatta and Rachel Alexandra, respectively—in what is essentially a grueling "match race" scheduled for April 9 during the Apple Blossom Invitational at Oaklawn Park in Hot Springs, Ark. In the letters, PETA points out that in an industry that causes the deaths of more than 1,000 thoroughbreds on the tracks every year, match races and other extreme duels have proved to be particularly deadly for famous fillies, including Ruffian and Go For Wand, who were both fatally injured on the track.

"Forcing horses to race to the point at which their bodies can’t handle the stress is cruel enough, but pitting Zenyatta and Rachel Alexandra against each other in a race that could easily claim one—or even both—of their lives takes that cruelty to new heights," says PETA Vice President Kathy Guillermo. "These two fillies have bestowed enough fame and prestige on their owners to last a lifetime, and their ‘reward’ shouldn’t be to have to run the toughest race of their lives."

PETA’s letter to Jerry Moss follows. PETA’s similar letter to Jess Jackson is available upon request.

Dear Mr. Moss,

I am writing on behalf of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) and our 2 million members and supporters to urge you not to enter Zenyatta in the Apple Blossom Invitational. This race is being touted as a duel between Zenyatta and Rachel Alexandra. History shows that these types of match races are dangerous to fillies. As I’m sure you remember, Ruffian suffered a catastrophic breakdown in her match race with Foolish Pleasure and was euthanized. Go For Wand, in a race that was essentially a match race with Hall of Fame filly Bayakoa, fractured her leg at the Breeders’ Cup Distaff. The tragic deaths of these great fillies in front of national audiences sent shockwaves throughout the industry and the country.

Zenyatta and Rachel Alexandra have already secured their places in racing history as champion fillies. They have nothing to prove. Pitting these competitive fillies against each other would be risking their lives just for spectacle. Why jeopardize their safety by forcing them into the toughest race of their careers, pushing them to their limits and beyond? And the risks are compounded by the fact that the race is scheduled in April—too early in the season to subject these fillies to such intense physical demands.

More than 1,000 thoroughbred horses break down and are subsequently euthanized on tracks in the U.S. every year. May I have your assurance that you won’t risk adding Zenyatta to this statistic?

Sincerely,

Kathy Guillermo
Vice President

PRESS RELEASE

Horse of the Year Rachel Alexandra will make her 4-year-old debut in the March 13 New Orleans Ladies, assuming she continues to progress as expected, owner Jess Jackson of Stonestreet Stables confirmed Thursday. The $200,000 New Orleans Ladies is for fillies and mares at 1 1/16 miles on the main track.
 
“That is our intended goal,” Jackson said by phone Thursday evening. “I believe she’s on schedule and she’ll get the prep race before she goes on to Oaklawn. There are other tracks that have offered to have us go, but right now we’d rather stay here.”
 
Oaklawn Park in Hot Springs, Ark., announced earlier Thursday that the date of the Grade I Apple Blossom had been moved back to Friday, April 9, in order to give Rachel Alexandra and champion older female Zenyatta sufficient time to each get one start before meeting for the first time in what Oaklawn is billing as the “Race for the Ages.” The new date of the Apple Blossom places it 27 days after the New Orleans Ladies.
 
“We’re obviously thrilled by the news that Rachel Alexandra, already a legend based on her accomplishments last year, intends to make her 2010 debut at Fair Grounds,” said Fair Grounds Vice President and General Manager Eric Halstrom. “We are already working to make sure March 13 will be a special day befitting of racing royalty.”
 
Jackson expressed his hope that the New Orleans Ladies would attract a solid field of competitors despite the imposing proposition for the others of having to face one of the top female racehorses in history.
 
“I’d really like to have more than just nominal competition in the race,” Jackson said. “Assuming it’s a fair race I don’t expect Rachel to have any trouble but at the same time, regardless of whether they’re superstars or not, it embellishes the track’s reputation and Rachel’s reputation to have the best possible competition.”
 
Record rainfall in December and more high levels of precipitation in January repeatedly forced two-time Eclipse Award-winning trainer Steve Asmussen to adjust Rachel Alexandra’s schedule. More recently, however, she has posted official workouts on consecutive weekends, including a half-mile breeze Saturday in :50 3/5.
 
“It’s not anyone’s fault, but with the rain and the track conditions it’s been a serious setback to Rachel’s routine,” Jackson said. “When you’re training a horse it’s an animal that needs to have a regular routine and Steve’s been hard-pressed to keep her going given the weather. When we do get her to the track it’s well maintained, but she’s behind schedule and that means we’re compressed to try to get everything done and keep her on schedule leading up to works and preparing her for a major competition at Oaklawn.”
 
Fair Grounds officials added the New Orleans Ladies to the stakes schedule last fall in hopes that a scenario such as this would play out. Now it appears Fair Grounds will get its wish—to showcase the champion filly in front of New Orleans’ faithful race fans.
 
“It’s always fun to visit New Orleans, one of the top cities in the United States,” Jackson said. “My wife loves it. You have great food. The rebound has been phenomenal as far as sports are concerned so maybe that will help lead to a full recovery.”
 
Rachel Alexandra established herself as one of the all-time great fillies last year with historic wins in the Grade I Kentucky Oaks and Grade I Preakness Stakes, as well as six other stakes races, including the Grade II Fair Grounds Oaks. She defeated older males twice, in the Grade I Haskell Invitational and the Grade I Woodward.

By Ray Paulick
The good news on this Friday is that Oaklawn Park owner Charles Cella appears to have pulled it off, getting commitments from the owners of 2009 Horse of the Year Rachel Alexandra and undefeated two-time champion Zenyatta to contest the Apple Blossom Invitational, which is being moved from April 3 to April 9 at the Hot Springs, Ark., track and will carry a $5 million purse if both compete.

But that’s just one race, and it is hoped the two champion distaffers will face each other a number of times before the year is over. How can racing, an often dysfunctional industry, pull off this even bigger challenge?

I have a proposed solution to this challenge, whether the Apple Blossom dream match comes to fruition or not.

Remember when Barack Obama was campaigning for president and promising to deliver on health care reform, in part by avoiding backroom deals and pledging transparency? He said the negotiations for legislation could be televised on CSPAN. Well, we’re 13 months into Obama’s presidency, and that promise was broken. It was business as usual in the nation’s capital as legislators, lobbyists and the Obama administration went back and forth on health care, winding up with separate bills in the House and Senate that are unlikely to be reconciled with enough support to be voted into law. He should have stuck to his promise.

Jess Jackson, the majority owner of Rachel Alexandra, has been an advocate for transparency in many aspects of Thoroughbred racing in the few years he has been active as an owner. But Jackson, in a press release issued on Wednesday night in which he said Rachel Alexandra would not compete in the Apple Blossom on its original date of April 3, admitted that he had been secretly working behind the scenes with the National Thoroughbred Racing Association to come up with a series of races between his filly and Zenyatta. Those talks were taking place without consulting with Jerry and Ann Moss, the owners of Zenyatta, trainer John Sherriffs or his wife Dottie Ingordo, the racing manager for the Mosses.

Jackson, according to sources, has been pushing for three races, with purses ranging from $3 million to $5 million for each race. I thought Jackson was keeping Rachel Alexandra in training for the benefit of the sport, not for the good of his bank account. In my opinion, this is not the way to get a deal done that’s in the best interests of the industry.

So here’s the proposal.

Instead of backroom deals, let’s negotiate this racing series in the light of day. More specifically, on racing’s version of CSPAN—either TVG or HRTV. The two racing networks can bid for the right to televise the negotiations. Of course, we’d want the races to be televised on more widely distributed networks.

We’ll need a tough facilitator with some experience in racing, and I’ve got the perfect candidate: Tom Meeker, the former CEO of Churchill Downs. Meeker is a former U.S. Marine lieutenant colonel who did three tours of duty in the Vietnamese conflict. He’s a no-nonsense leader who speaks his mind. Meeker has just returned from Haiti, where he assisted in logistics for a surgical team sent into the earthquake ravaged nation by Thoroughbred owner and breeder Earle Mack, a philanthropist, businessman and former U.S. Ambassador to Finland for President George W. Bush. Come to think of it, if Meeker can’t serve as facilitator, perhaps Mack could. The lives he helped save in Haiti would call him a miracle worker.

Racetracks and associations interested in luring Rachel Alexandra and Zenyatta would be required to put together detailed written proposals for a race that include the two champions, along with their plans to promote it. Each proposal would be accompanied by a non-refundable deposit of $50,000.

The money from the rights to televise the negotiations, along with those non-refundable deposits from tracks would all go to a racing charity chosen by the connections of the horse that does best in the head-to-head matchups. (Update: this proposal is not for match races of just two horses,)

The facilitator would lay out all the proposals to Jackson and the Mosses and their respective advisers (limit of three, please). He would then put on a pair of brass knuckles, lock the doors, and not let anyone out of the room until an agreement is reached on where and when they will try to meet—all while the cameras were rolling.

Racing has a rare opportunity to make something very special happen in 2010. Please, let’s not allow this one to slip through our hands.

Copyright © 2010, The Paulick Report

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PRESS RELEASE

Following conversations with Jess Jackson and Jerry Moss, the Grade I $5,000,000 Apple Blossom Invitational is back on, Oaklawn President Charles J. Cella announced Thursday. The race, which was increased to a total purse of $5,000,000 provided both Rachel Alexandra and Zenyatta start, will now be held Friday, April 9, the day before the Grade I $1,000,000 Arkansas Derby, Oaklawn’s traditional closing day.
 
“The most important day in Arkansas sports history has now become the most important two days in Arkansas sports history,” Cella said. “This is truly a race for the ages.”
 
Cella reported that he began discussions Wednesday night with both Jackson and Zenyatta owner Jerry Moss, immediately upon hearing that the original date of April 3 was not feasible, and that those discussions continued Thursday morning.
 
“I understand the concerns of all competitors in needing a prep race and properly preparing for a race of this magnitude, especially in light of the weather we’ve been experiencing recently around the country,” Cella said. “Both parties want this to happen when their champions are at their absolute peak. This date makes that possible.”

UPDATES

Statement by Jess Jackson on Apple Blossom Invitational

“We are delighted that the race is on for April 9 and want to
especially thank Charles Cella and Oaklawn for moving the date.”

Statement by Jerry Moss on Apple Blossom Invitational

"Charlie Cella is a great guy and worked very hard to make this race happen and we are thrilled that it is going to work out. We were planning to go, we wanted to support him and are really pleased to have a chance to run over a good racetrack."

By Ray Paulick
Jess Jackson could have waited until Friday night at 9 o’clock or so to send out a press release anouncing his regrets for not pointing Rachel Alexandra to the April 3 Apple Blossom at Oaklawn Park. Oaklawn owner Charles Cella had proposed increasing the Apple Blossom’s purse to $5 million if Jackson’s 2009 Horse of the Year and the unbeaten two-time champion mare Zenyatta were both in the starting lineup for the race.

That’s what the president of Toyota did—schedule a press conference for 9 p.m. on a Friday night–to respond to mounting public outrage over safety problems with cars produced by the world’s leading automotive manufacturer. Spin doctors always advise their clients to put bad news out late on a Friday to get the lowest possible publicity and media coverage.

But not Jess Jackson. He had the courage to send out a press release at the end of the business day on a Wednesday, when most racetracks East of the Mississippi were closed due to blizzard conditions. His press release was very clever, too, utilizing an old-fashioned smokescreen—a grand proposal for a three-race series between the two distaffers—to obscure the fact Rachel Alexandra would skip the Apple Blossom. To make matters worse, he made trainer Steve Asmussen the fall guy who had to deliver the bad news: ““Out of respect for the level of competition and the importance of this race, I have told Mr. Jackson it was not in the best interest of the horse to race on April 3,” Asmussen was quoted as saying in the press release. “Getting to this level of fitness after a six-month layoff takes time.  If all goes according to schedule, and we do not have any further weather delays, the earliest we could have a prep race would be the middle of March. It is then not fair to Rachel to ask her to race again three weeks later.”

I could be wrong, but I think that’s the most Jackson has allowed Asmussen to say since the California winemaker bought Rachel Alexandra after her victory in the Kentucky Oaks last spring.

But the confusing part of the release was Jackson’s statement that the proposed racing series between Rachel Alexandra and Zenyatta has been “in the works for several weeks.” If that’s the case, why did Jackson indicate even the slightest bit of interest when Cella proposed the Apple Blossom purse increase?

Also, why is Jackson suddenly relying on the National Thoroughbred Racing Association to put something together? The NTRA owns no racetracks, has no authority over tracks, stakes schedules or race conditions, and doesn’t even have any juice left with television networks.

If anything, Jackson should be asking the Breeders’ Cup—not the NTRA–for assistance in putting the series together and promoting it, since racing fans hope the two fillies will remain sound throughout 2010 and eventually go head-to-head in either the Breeders’ Cup Classic or Ladies’ Classic this fall at Churchill Downs. A series of races betweem the two leading up to the Breeders’ Cup would be in that organization’s best interests, and the Breeders’ Cup does have stronger ties to ESPN for broadcast opportunities.
 
Finally, if the proposal by Jackson was genuine, why on earth were Jerry and Ann Moss not even mentioned in the press release. As Zenyatta’s owners, I think they might want to have some say in this proposed series.

Sorry, Jess, but I’m calling your bluff.

Copyright © 2010, The Paulick Report

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Today, Jess Jackson released the following press release proposing a three race series between Rachel and Zenyatta. This proposal comes on the heels of Rachel’s connections informing Oaklawn Park that they are unable to commit Rachel to the Apple Blossom.

Read the release below and let us know what you think.

The owners of Horse of the Year, Rachel Alexandra, today called for a  racing  series between now and November in which the two phenomenal female race horses will meet.

“The fans have spoken. The media has spoken. Everyone wants to see Rachel race against Zenyatta - including me,” said Rachel Alexandra co-owner Jess Jackson.  “In fact, I want it to happen several times this year. We have been in discussions with Alex Waldrop, President and CEO of National Thoroughbred Racing Association, with the hope of coordinate training schedules, racing schedules, purses and all ancillary factors, so that we can all agree upon three dates and three venues for what will be a racing series to rival the Triple Crown.”

The proposal, in the works for several weeks, comes as Rachel Alexandra’s connections informed Oaklawn Park race track that she would not compete on April 3rd, the announced date of the Apple Blossom Invitational.  “Out of respect for the level of competition and the importance of this race, I have told Mr. Jackson it was not in the best interest of the horse to race on April 3.  Getting to this level of fitness after a six-month layoff takes time.  If all goes according to schedule, and we do not have any further weather delays, the earliest we could have a prep race would be the middle of March. It is then not fair to Rachel to ask her to race again three weeks later,” said 2010 Trainer of the Year, Steve Asmussen.

The track had offered a $5-million purse if Rachel Alexandra and Zenyatta met on that day.  Rachel’s connections had requested a week delay in order to have Rachel race at Oaklawn Park against Zenyatta but track officials told Jackson today that would not be possible.

“Hopefully, these discussions will take place at earliest possible time so that we can announce something that will give the fans a season to remember,” Jackson added.

Rachel Alexandra, the reigning 2010 Horse of the Year, became the first filly to win the Preakness since 1924, beating a field of world-class males, including Kentucky Derby winner Mine That Bird. She went undefeated throughout the 2009 campaign, defeating world-class colts three times.

Statement by Jess Jackson on Apple Blossom Invitational:

 “As you have heard me say many times before, a number of factors must be considered when deciding where to race a horse — the number one factor being the condition of the horse.  Rachel will tell us when she is ready to start her 2010 campaign and we humans must agree she is in top form. 

My family and I would love to see her run at Oaklawn Park.  If she is in top form and it fits in our schedule, we will be there. Rachel, as you know, likes the track having won twice there last year. ”