HOT SPRINGS -- Gray skies and cold temperatures greeted fans Monday at Oaklawn Park, skies that would give way to midafternoon sunshine, but nothing was going to dampen hope and enthusiasm as Oaklawn completed its first weekend of racing with a fast track, mostly full races and the much-anticipated $150,000 Smarty Jones.
It was definitely a winning weekend.
Opening week was scratched a year ago because of snow and ice, 8,000 pounds of corn beef were donated instead of being sold for 50 cents to Oaklawn patrons and yet, the track went on to have one of its best meets because a true American champion, American Pharoah, began his 3-year-old campaign in Hot Springs.
Which was why an overflow field of of 14 3-year-old were entered for the Smarty Jones on Monday before three scratched for other races.
That left 11 Kentucky Derby prospects with a chance to earn much valued points for the Run for the Roses.
There will be more opportunities, but this was an early peek at what's on the track and if one of them is going to be the next American Pharoah.
American Pharoah won The Rebel Stakes and Arkansas Derby tuning up for the Triple Crown, which he won to end a 37-year drought.
His trainer, Bob Baffert, is a hall of famer and, at this point and time, is the world's top trainer.
Baffert's been running horses at Oaklawn off and on for years, more frequently in recent years. Since 2010, Baffert runners have won 4 Southwest Stakes, 5 Rebel Stakes and 2 Arkansas Derbies. Last year's success came with American Pharoah in the Rebel and Arkansas, and he returned Monday with his first entrant in the Smarty Jones, Toews On Ice, who led into the stretch before fading to sixth, beaten 8 1/2 lengths as the 3-to-5 favorite.
Toews On Ice is named after NHL great Jonathan Toews, captain of the Chicago Blackhawks. But Baffert hasn't shipped all the horses he intends to compete at Oaklawn. More are coming very soon and will meet some tough competition.
Most of the races during the first four days had full fields, or close to it, and that should continue to happen.
First, the purses at Oaklawn keep increasing, and that's why more trainers are turning to Oaklawn as their first meet of the new year.
Second, history has favored Oaklawn horses, especially those going on to Churchill Downs, because they come out of the meet sound and ready to run. Apparently, there are a lot of similarities in the Oaklawn and Churchill dirt tracks.
So the estimated crowd of 12,500, many off work to honor Martin Luther King Jr., had many wagering opportunities Monday as well as a chance to make a $2 donation to the track chaplaincy and to get an American Pharoah bobble head doll. That was a sure thing. A win-win.
When it comes to racing, there is seldom a sure thing, and Monday's odds-on favorite Towes On Ice fought hard but couldn't hold off Discreetness, the third favorite, or long sh0t Gordy Florida.
Toews On Ice took a lead entering the backstretch, but Gordy Florida wasn't about to allow him to get an easy lead, much less relax. But when most of the horses made their move going into the final turn, it looked, momentarily, like Toews On Ice was going to be good enough.
Discreetness, ridden by Jon Court, took advantage of a perfect trip behind the leaders. He moved up on the outside at the head of the stretch and went by the competition fairly easily.
Down the stretch, Gordy Florida, who will warrant some watching after his tough run through the entire mile, held off Synchrony, the second betting choice trained by longtime Oaklawn regular Donnie K. Von Hemel. Second-place finisher Gordy Florida turned out to be a huge overlay at 21-1.
It was a good race, and the racing season got through the first weekend without a known hitch.
Sports on 01/19/2016