Two rugged West Virginia-breds, each of whom has won 23 times at Hollywood Casino at Charles Town Races, will square off again to spice up the undercard for the April 18 Charles Town Classic (gr. II) program.
The special Saturday afternoon program includes the $150,000 Sugar Maple Stakes presented by CANTER Mid-Atlantic for fillies and mares and the $100,000 Robert Hilton Memorial Stakes for 3-year-olds. Both of those stakes will be run at seven furlongs around two turns on the three-quarter-mile track.
The $50,000 Confucius Say Stakes, named for a West Virginia-bred gelding who won 19 races and earned more than $1 million, attracted Mark Russell's Russell Road and Michael Furr's Lucy's Bob Boy, both 23-time winners at Charles Town. The stakes is for state-bred runners, 3-year-olds and up, at seven furlongs.
Russell Road, a 9-year-old Wheaton gelding, makes his first start of the year. In his final start of 2014 he upset Lucy's Bob Boy in the $500,000 West Virginia Breeders' Classic at Charles Town to win for the 28th time in 53 starts and push his earnings above the $1.9 million mark.
Russell Road, trained by James W. Casey, has been posting strong works at Charles Town in preparation for his 2015 debut. Owner Russell last October said the popular gelding would return to the races this year if his training indicated he remains in top form.
Lucy's Bob Boy, trained by Sandra Dono, a 6-year-old Flatter gelding, has 23 wins in 35 career starts for earnings in excess of $900,00. He has two wins in three starts this year, including a victory last time out in an open allowance race at Charles Town.
Earlier on the card, the $50,000 Original Gold Stakes for state-bred fillies and mares at seven furlongs features the 8-year-old Windsor Castle mare Down Town Allen, who has won 24 races at Charles Town and 25 overall in 41 starts. A winner of her past eight starts dating back to August 2013, she will make her first start of 2015 for John A. Casey, who bred, owns, and trains the mare.
The Sugar Maple attracted a field of eight, including last year's winner, Flattering Bea, who won an overnight handicap at Charles Town in March in preparation for the race. Owned by James Arrison and trained by Crystal Pickett, the 5-year-old Flatter mare has done her best work locally, with five wins in seven starts.
"She can be anywhere she has to be in a race," Pickett said. "Last year, on the big night, you wanted to be laying close (to the pace). A lot of times she has found herself way off the pace because she has gotten pinched at the start. She's very tactical. She's very athletic."
Jose Montano, who guided her to victory in March, has a return call aboard Flattering Bea from post 7 at 118 pounds, the weight all starters will carry in the Sugar Maple.
Nine were entered in the Robert Hilton Memorial. Among them is Klaravich Stables and William Lawrence's Control Stake (by Discreetly Mine) who was last seen winning the Big Drama Stakes at Delta Downs Racetrack & Casino for trainer Tom Amoss, who seeks his third consecutive victory in the race. Rise Up won last year and Free World in 2013.
"His form is similar to Rise Up," Amoss said. "They're fast sprinters, and he has speed. Those are the types of horses I like to bring to Charles Town, so we'll see how he does. He has done well on the bull ring surfaces like Delta Downs, and his form will transfer to the Charles Town configuration."
Cornelio Velasquez is named to ride Control Stake, the 123-pound highweight, from post 3
Hollywood Casino At Charles Town Races, Saturday, April 18, 2015, Race 6Entries: Confucius Say S.
PP Horse Jockey Wgt Trainer M/L 1 1Waves and Tides (WV) Luis A. Batista 123 Jeff C. Runco - 2 2Russell Road (WV) Jose Montano 123 James W. Casey - 3 3Little Big Sime (WV) Katie Crews 123 Joseph P. Stehr - 4 4Lucy's Bob Boy (WV) Travis L. Dunkelberger 123 Sandra A. Dono - 5 5In the Fairway (WV) Arnaldo Bocachica 123 Jeff C. Runco - 6 6Allegheny Jack (WV) J. D. Acosta 123 Ollie L. Figgins, III -
Hollywood Casino At Charles Town Races, Saturday, April 18, 2015, Race 11Entries: Sugar Maple S. presented by CANTER Mid-Atlantic
PP Horse Jockey Wgt Trainer M/L 1 1Nesso (FL) Fernando De La Cruz 118 Sandino R. Hernandez, Jr. - 2 2Found (VA) Christian J. Olmo 118 Carla L. Morgan - 3 3Cecileabration (FL) Christian Hiraldo 118 James H. Starkey - 4 4Dallas Cowgirl (KY) Oscar Flores 118 Flint W. Stites - 5 5Printasticat (MD) J. D. Acosta 118 Claudio A. Gonzalez - 6 6Frivolity (KY) Cornelio H. Velasquez 118 David Jacobson - 7 7Flattering Bea (KY) Jose Montano 118 Crystal G. Pickett - 8 8Taketheodds (KY) Mike E. Smith 118 Ian R. Wilkes -
Hollywood Casino At Charles Town Races, Saturday, April 18, 2015, Race 10Entries: Robert Hilton Memorial S.
PP Horse Jockey Wgt Trainer M/L 1 1Charitable Annuity (WV) Antonio Lopez 118 James W. Casey - 2 2Estimated Prophet (KY) Oscar Flores 118 Sandra A. Dono - 3 3Control Stake (FL) Cornelio H. Velasquez 123 Thomas M. Amoss - 4 4One More Time (WV) Erik Ramirez 118 John A. Casey - 5 5Arkaybee (PA) Jose Montano 118 Ronney W. Brown - 6 6To the Victor (KY) Joel Rosario 118 Michael Dilger - 7 7Noteworthy Peach (MD) Horacio Karamanos 120 Gary Capuano - 8 8Attempt to Dream (KY) Christian Hiraldo 118 Angel Gonzalez - 9 9Governmentshutdown (KY) Travis L. Dunkelberger 118 John J. Robb -
