Borel, Leparoux tie for leading jockey at Churchill fall
meet
Calvin Borel had twice seen Churchill Downs riding titles slip away by the
slimmest of
margins to Julien Leparoux, but the two-time Kentucky Derby (G1) winner turned the
tables in
the 2009 fall meet as he won four races on the meet’s final day to earn a
dramatic 27-27
tie for leading jockey with his French-born rival as the historic track
concluded the 21-day meet on Saturday.
While Borel and Leparoux shared the spotlight in their division, Steve
Asmussen
edged Dale Romans to collect his sixth leading trainer crown, and Ken and Sarah
Ramsey earned leading owner honors for a record 16th time beneath the Twin
Spires.
The fall meet drew to a close with its “Stars of Tomorrow II” program of 12
races exclusively for juveniles. Conducted under a sunny November
sky
with temperatures hovering near 70, the meet’s final day concluded on a
remarkable run
of moderate weather, during which only two turf races were lost to wet track
conditions.
“Churchill Downs was blessed with great weather for most of the fall meet,
but
our track’s team members are most thankful for the support of our fans who
enjoyed our
racing on-track, at simulcast centers and in their homes, and to the many
horsemen who
enthusiastically participated in our racing program throughout those 21 days,”
said Kevin
Flanery, who completed his first meet as president of Churchill Downs.
“These
are
challenging times for our track and Kentucky’s signature horse industry, but the
enthusiasm displayed by on-track patrons and horsemen during the meet proved
again
that Thoroughbred racing and Churchill Downs are very special parts of life in
this region
and our industry’s supporters want it to thrive and grow. We sincerely thank
everyone
who contributed in any way to the success of our fall meet, and we look forward
to April 24 and the start of Kentucky Derby Week and our 2010 spring meet.”
The 43-year-old Borel entered the meet’s final day facing a 27-23 deficit to
Leparoux, who missed the meet’s last two days for a journey to Tokyo to ride in
the
Japan Cup (Jpn-G1). The Louisiana-born veteran capped his memorable closing day burst
with a
front-running, stakes record victory aboard WinStar Farm’s SUPER SAVER (Maria’s
Mon) in the
83rd
running of the Kentucky Jockey Club S. (G2) that deadlocked Borel and Leparoux
with
only one race remaining in the meet. Borel had a chance to earn the title
outright in that
final race and briefly led in the stretch aboard longshot Outlaw Man (Forest
Wildcat), but
finished second
and his horse was ultimately disqualified to fourth because of an erratic
stretch run.
Leparoux, a 26-year-old native of Senlis, France, earned his third fall meet
title
and sixth overall crown as he completed his second sweep of spring and fall meet
championships in a calendar year at Churchill Downs. The shared title was
Borel’s third,
following an outright fall meet win in 1999 and a tie with Shaun Bridgmohan in
2006.
Bridgmohan finished third in the 2009 jockey race with 17 wins, while Leandro
Goncalves compiled 16 victories and Francisco Torres finished with 15.
French-born
Freddie Lenclud earned nine wins to earn honors as the meet’s leading apprentice
jockey.
Asmussen, the runaway win leader among U.S. trainers in 2009, held off eight-time titlist Dale Romans 17-16 to earn his third
fall meet leading trainer
title and his seventh overall. Like Leparoux, the 44-year-old Asmussen swept
Churchill Downs’
2009 spring and fall meet crowns, a feat he had earlier accomplished in 2004 and
2007.
Horses owned by the Ramseys earned nine victories during the meet to give the
Nicholasville, Kentucky, couple a record eighth fall meet leading owner title and
16th overall,
which is also a record. The Ramseys’ 2009 title allowed them snap a tie with the
late
John Franks for the most fall meet leading owner crowns.
WinStar Farm, L.T.B. Inc., Heiligbrodt Racing and Brereton C. Jones each
collected five wins and finished in a tie for the runner-up spot.
The meet’s most memorable race might have been Friday’s 135th running of the Clark
H. (G2) in which Adele Dilschneider and Claiborne
Farm’s BLAME (Arch) held off MISREMEMBERED (Candy Ride [Arg]), defending champion EINSTEIN
(Brz) (Spend a Buck) and GIANT OAK (Giant’s Causeway)
in a blanket finish in which the four horses were separated by less than a
length. Jockey
Jamie Theriot and trainer Al Stall Jr. secured their first victories in the
race that is as old
as the Kentucky Derby and Kentucky Oaks (G1).
Other fall meet equine stars included Jerry Romans’ SASSY IMAGE (Broken Vow), who swept
the
Golden Rod (G2) and Pocahontas (G3), the track’s top fall races for
two-year-old fillies, as well as Kathy and Bob Zollars and Mark Wagner’s THISKYHASNOLIMIT
(Sky Mesa), the Asmussen-trained winner of the Iroquois (G3). The four-year-old ACOMA
(Empire Maker) scored her fourth
stakes
victory at Churchill Downs when she rallied to win the Cardinal H. (G3) on turf,
MARY’S FOLLIES (More Than Ready) won the Mrs. Revere (G2) for three-year-old fillies on grass and Robert
Courtney’s
RAHYSTRADA (Rahy) scored the upset of the meet with a 56-1 shocker in River City
H. (G3).
John and Glen Sikrura’s Canadian invader SERENADING (A.P. Indy) won the 94th running of
the Falls City H. (G2) and give trainer Josie Carroll her first
stakes
victory at Churchill Downs. GET STORMY (Stormy Atlantic) scored a narrow victory in the
Commonwealth
Turf (G3) for sophomores, while MALIBU PRAYER (Malibu Moon) notched an upset win in the
Chilukki (G2) and Amerman Racing’s DEMARCATION (Gulch) surprised in the Ack Ack
H. (G3).