The Racing Biz has been tracking claiming activity in the mid-Atlantic region and reporting on it weekly for the last several months, in our Claimbox report. We continue that, along with our Midlantic Claiming 7 — the trainers who have been busiest over the prior 30 days, ending in this case on December 3.
It was the busiest week of mid-Atlantic claiming activity in nearly three months, but the top of our Midlantic Claiming 7 list of the region’s busiest claiming trainers in the last 30 days remained unchanged from last week.
For the second straight week, John Locke and Kieron Magee held down the top two spots on the Claiming 7, and for the second consecutive week, Locke’s 30-day total of horses claimed was three more than Magee’s. Locke has claimed 14 horses in the last 30 days, well clear of Magee’s 11. Jamie Ness was the only other trainer in double figures with 10 claims, though the total value of the horses Ness has claimed, $115,250, led all trainers.
Two trainers appear on the list who were not on it last week. Dale Capuano and Tim Kreiser, both with seven claims during the last 30 days, are in a three-way tie, by horses claimed, for seventh on the list. The value of Capuano’s claims, $93,500, was tops among the three, which also includes Ernest Haynes.
Scott Lake supplanted Jamie Ness as the trainer with the most horses claimed away from him. Lake has lost 12 via the claimbox in the last 30 days, with a combined value of $112,000, and Ness has lost 10 (value: $119,750). Locke, who lost only two horses in the 30-day period, has experienced the greatest net gain, having added a net of 12 horses during the period, with a net combined value of $94,000.
The list tracks horses claimed in Delaware, Maryland, New Jersey, Virginia and at Parx Racing and Penn National in Pennsylvania and at West Virginia’s Charles Town Races.
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Claiming activity was vigorous during the week ending December 2.
Overall, 74 horses were claimed in the region during the week with a combined value of $805,750. All those numbers were substantially higher than those a week ago: nearly 20 percent on the number of horses claimed, 24 percent on their average value, and as a result, more than 48 percent on gross value. The number of horses claimed was the highest in a week in nearly two months, and their value, the highest in nearly three.
After a couple of quiet weeks, Parx saw a resurgence in claiming activity, as 31 horses changed hands at the Bensalem track, tops in the region. Meanwhile, Laurel’s claims had the highest average value, at more than $12,400.
