Xtra Heat. Photo by Laurie Asseo.
The National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame announced its finalists today (here), and among them are several with mid-Atlantic connections.
The list includes four jockeys, four horses, and two trainers.
Most prominent those with regional connections is Xtra Heat, the Maryland-based runner who won 25 stakes in her career and earned more than $2.3 million. Trained by John Salzman, Sr., and owned by him and Ken Taylor, Xtra Heat, a $5,000 purchase at the Fasig-Tipton May sale, debuted against maiden claimers. After overcoming a slow break to post a narrow victory, she ran her next 34 starts — the entire rest of her career — in stakes company. She won 11 graded events, including the Grade 1 Prioress and two runnings of the Grade 2 Barbara Fritchie. She ran second in the 2001 Breeders’ Cup Sprint against the boys, beaten less than a length after setting wicked fractions, and third in that year’s Grade 1 DeFrancis Dash. She also finished third in the 2002 Dubai Golden Shaheen (Group 1)…
Two of Curlin‘s most important victories came on mid-Atlantic tracks. The big chestnut son of Smart Strike posted a head victory in the 2007 Preakness Stakes at Pimlico, narrowly besting Kentucky Derby winner Street Sense. Later that year, he secured the first of his two consecutive Horse of the Year honors with a flashy four-length win the Grade 1 Breeders’ Cup Classic, run that year at Monmouth Park. Overall, he won 11 of 16 career starts and a record-setting haul of more than $10.5 million…
Ashado made two starts in the mid-Atlantic. The champion three year-old filly of 2004 and champion older mare of 2005, the daughter of Saint Ballado made the trip to Bensalem to take the 2004 Grade 2 Cotillion at then-Philadelphia Park, winning comfortably at 1-5. After a disappointing start to her 2005 campaign, she made the trip to Baltimore to run in the Grade 3 Pimlico Breeders’ Cup Distaff; there, at 3-10 odds, she lost a clear lead in the stretch and finished second to local star Silmaril. From there, though, she went on to win three Grade 1 events in the year and take top older mare honors. She won 12 of 21 career starts and nearly $4 million…
Kona Gold‘s lone try in the mid-Atlantic was a fourth-place finish as the lukewarm favorite in the 2001 Frank J. DeFrancis Dash at Laurel Park. He finished a neck behind Xtra Heat and four lengths behind the winner, Delaware Township. The Eclipse champion sprinter of 2000, the son of Java Gold won 14 of 30 career starts, including the 2000 Breeders’ Cup Sprint, and nearly $2.3 million…
Four riders are among the finalists: Chris Antley, Garrett Gomez, Craig Perret and Alex Solis…
Notably, Solis piloted Kona Gold to his biggest victory, in the Breeders’ Cup Sprint. He also won the Preakness, with Snow Chief..
Among the biggest victories for Antley, who died of an overdose in 2000 at age 34, were his pair aboard Charismatic in the 1999 Kentucky Derby and Preakness. The horse broke his leg late in the running of the Belmont — finishing third to Lemon Drop Kid — and Antley was widely credited with saving him, as he jumped off the horse immediately after the wire and held his leg off the ground…
Gomez has won more than 3,700 races, while Perret won over 4,400, including the Grade 1 Haskell at Monmouth…
The trainer finalists include Steve Asmussen and Gary Jones. Asmussen trained Curlin to his successive Horse of the Year season and ran up a third straight championship year with Rachel Alexandra in 2009. Jones won 102 graded events in his 20-plus year career…
King Leatherbury, the octogenarian trainer whose 6,421 career victories place him fourth on the all-time list, once again was snubbed by the committee and did not make the final cut. Leatherbury also ranks in the top 20 of trainers in career earnings. His top horses include current star — and three-time Maryland-bred champion — Ben’s Cat and Grade 1 winner Taking Risks — a horse Leatherbury claimed for $20,000. He led the nation in wins in 1977 and 1978, two of the four consecutive years he won more than 300 races…
The results of the final Hall of Fame voting will be announced on April 25, with the induction ceremony to take place August 8 in Saratoga.
