Claimbox: Claiming activity declines in January
Photo by Laurie Asseo.
by Frank Vespe
Mid-Atlantic claiming activity was down about 10 percent in January 2018 compared to the same month a year back, according to an analysis of Equibase statistics. That decline came following a year in which the number of claims rose to more than 2,300.
In all, January 2018 saw 146 horses change hands via mid-Atlantic claimboxes, with those horses worth a combined total of $1.48 million. Those numbers were down from 162 and $1.59 million — representing declines of 9.9 percent and 7.1 percent, respectively.
Three trainers claimed seven horses each to lead all trainers in claiming activity. They were Jamie Ness (7 claims for $77,500 total), Patricia Farro (7 for $70,000), and Kieron Magee (7 for $56,000). All three were among the five most active claiming trainers in the region in 2017, with Magee leading all trainers by claiming 97 horses last year, 15 more than any other trainer.
Ness’s claims were all for his own Jagger Inc. operation.
Laurel Park was the region’s busiest track in claiming activity. All told, 60 horses were claimed at the central Maryland track, up from 49 in January 2017. The value of those claims also rose, to $671,500, and the average claim value jumped from a bit over $9,700 to nearly $11,200 — a 15 percent increase in average that helped fuel an overall 41 percent jump in the value of horses claimed there.
Laurel just edged out Parx Racing for top honors. Parx saw its claiming activity fall by more than a quarter in January, with 58 horses claimed there — down from 79 a year ago. The average also fell, and the total value of claimed horses was down nearly 32 percent, to $569,000.
Penn National saw claiming activity grow. Twenty-one horses were claimed during January in Grantville, up from 16 a year ago. What’s more, with the average growing by over 21 percent, the track saw the value of claims rise by nearly 60 percent, to $190,000.
Charles Town, which in January lost three cards entirely and most of a fourth to weather- and track condition-related cancellations, saw claiming activity plunge. While in January 2017, there were 18 claims there, this January there were just seven.
Our Claimbox report covers claiming activity taking place at Laurel, Pimlico, and Timonium in Maryland; Charles Town Races in West Virginia; Delaware Park; Penn National and Parx Racing in Pennsylvania; and Monmouth Park and The Meadowlands in New Jersey. Of those, just Laurel, Charles Town, Penn National, and Parx were active in January.
CLAIMS BY TRAINER
RANK | TRAINER | CLAIMS | TOTAL VALUE | AVERAGE VALUE |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ness, Jamie | 7 | $77,500.00 | $11,071.43 |
| 2 | Farro, Patricia | 7 | $70,000.00 | $10,000.00 |
| 3 | Magee, Kieron | 7 | $56,000.00 | $8,000.00 |
| 4 | Taylor, Joseph | 6 | $75,000.00 | $12,500.00 |
| 5 | Lake, Scott A. | 6 | $70,000.00 | $11,666.67 |
| 6 | Demasi, Kathleen A. | 5 | $25,000.00 | $5,000.00 |
| 7 | Allen, III, A. Ferris | 4 | $48,500.00 | $12,125.00 |
| 8 | Serey, Jr., Mario | 4 | $45,500.00 | $11,375.00 |
| 9 | Kreiser, Timothy C. | 4 | $35,000.00 | $8,750.00 |
| 10 | Brooks, Gerald E. | 3 | $32,000.00 | $10,666.67 |
| 11 | Caruso, Nick Joseph | 3 | $25,000.00 | $8,333.33 |
| 12 | Maldonado, Jonathan | 3 | $25,000.00 | $8,333.33 |
| 13 | Dilodovico, Damon R. | 2 | $50,000.00 | $25,000.00 |
| 14 | McMahon, Demelza | 2 | $31,000.00 | $15,500.00 |
| 15 | Capuano, Dale | 2 | $30,000.00 | $15,000.00 |
| 16 | Cruz, Jesus | 2 | $30,000.00 | $15,000.00 |
| 17 | Velazquez, Alfredo | 2 | $28,500.00 | $14,250.00 |
| 18 | Gonzalez, Claudio A. | 2 | $27,000.00 | $13,500.00 |
| 19 | Cox, Kenneth M. | 2 | $26,000.00 | $13,000.00 |
| 20 | Moore, Michael M. | 2 | $25,000.00 | $12,500.00 |
| 21 | Souder, Donald E. | 2 | $24,000.00 | $12,000.00 |
| 22 | Lynch, Cathal A. | 2 | $20,000.00 | $10,000.00 |
| 23 | Martin, Sandee D. | 2 | $18,000.00 | $9,000.00 |
| 24 | Graci, Kimberly A | 2 | $17,500.00 | $8,750.00 |
| 25 | Soto, Carlos | 2 | $17,500.00 | $8,750.00 |
| 26 | Mancilla, Carlos A. | 2 | $15,000.00 | $7,500.00 |
| 27 | Pradenas, Sergio H. | 2 | $15,000.00 | $7,500.00 |
| 28 | Velazquez, Daniel | 2 | $15,000.00 | $7,500.00 |
| 29 | Wilhelm-Saldana, Jennie | 2 | $15,000.00 | $7,500.00 |
| 30 | Wyner, Harold | 2 | $15,000.00 | $7,500.00 |
| 31 | Vazquez, Juan C. | 2 | $12,500.00 | $6,250.00 |
| 32 | Plummer, Bobby Lee | 1 | $25,000.00 | $25,000.00 |
| 33 | Schoenthal, Phil | 1 | $25,000.00 | $25,000.00 |
| 34 | Trombetta, Michael J. | 1 | $25,000.00 | $25,000.00 |
| 35 | Vera, Miguel | 1 | $25,000.00 | $25,000.00 |
| 36 | Farrior, Anthony | 1 | $16,000.00 | $16,000.00 |
| 37 | Leaf, Jr., Robert | 1 | $16,000.00 | $16,000.00 |
| 38 | O'Dwyer, Jeremiah | 1 | $16,000.00 | $16,000.00 |
| 39 | Gaudet, Lacey | 1 | $15,000.00 | $15,000.00 |
| 40 | Stickler, Jr., Lester J. | 1 | $15,000.00 | $15,000.00 |
| 41 | Kantarmaci, Mertkan | 1 | $12,500.00 | $12,500.00 |
| 42 | Martin, Silvio L. | 1 | $12,500.00 | $12,500.00 |
| 43 | McClellan, Erin C. | 1 | $12,500.00 | $12,500.00 |
| 44 | Runco, Jeff C. | 1 | $12,500.00 | $12,500.00 |
| 45 | Serey, Juan | 1 | $12,500.00 | $12,500.00 |
| 46 | Leatherbury, King T. | 1 | $10,000.00 | $10,000.00 |
| 47 | Potts, Wayne | 1 | $10,000.00 | $10,000.00 |
| 48 | Robb, John J. | 1 | $10,000.00 | $10,000.00 |
| 49 | Schiano-Dicola, Raimondo | 1 | $10,000.00 | $10,000.00 |
| 50 | Fields, Kevin J. | 1 | $8,000.00 | $8,000.00 |
| 51 | Lingenfelter, Thomas H. | 1 | $8,000.00 | $8,000.00 |
| 52 | Worton, Dorothy Elisabeth | 1 | $8,000.00 | $8,000.00 |
| 53 | Calderon, Luis | 1 | $7,500.00 | $7,500.00 |
| 54 | Dandy, Ronald J. | 1 | $7,500.00 | $7,500.00 |
| 55 | Hawthorne, Bobbi Anne | 1 | $7,500.00 | $7,500.00 |
| 56 | Merryman, Ann W. | 1 | $7,500.00 | $7,500.00 |
| 57 | Taylor, Robert J. | 1 | $7,500.00 | $7,500.00 |
| 58 | Vega, Richard | 1 | $7,500.00 | $7,500.00 |
| 59 | Woodhouse, Martin | 1 | $7,500.00 | $7,500.00 |
| 60 | Rideoutt II, Anthony M. | 1 | $6,250.00 | $6,250.00 |
| 61 | Beattie, Cody | 1 | $5,000.00 | $5,000.00 |
| 62 | Cartagena, Keisy | 1 | $5,000.00 | $5,000.00 |
| 63 | Dunn, John J. | 1 | $5,000.00 | $5,000.00 |
| 64 | Figgins, III, Ollie L. | 1 | $5,000.00 | $5,000.00 |
| 65 | Keller, Christopher M. | 1 | $5,000.00 | $5,000.00 |
| 66 | Kravets, Bruce M. | 1 | $5,000.00 | $5,000.00 |
| 67 | Lockhart, Alan J. | 1 | $5,000.00 | $5,000.00 |
| 68 | McCaslin, John S. | 1 | $5,000.00 | $5,000.00 |
| 69 | McMahon, Hugh I. | 1 | $5,000.00 | $5,000.00 |
| 70 | Mick, Stephen R. | 1 | $5,000.00 | $5,000.00 |
| 71 | Milosevic, Milan | 1 | $5,000.00 | $5,000.00 |
| 72 | Nations, Keith | 1 | $5,000.00 | $5,000.00 |
| 73 | Nechamkin, II, Leo S. | 1 | $5,000.00 | $5,000.00 |
| 74 | Pankewicz, Donald | 1 | $5,000.00 | $5,000.00 |
| 75 | Ramirez, Jose A. | 1 | $5,000.00 | $5,000.00 |
| 76 | Salazar, Marco P. | 1 | $5,000.00 | $5,000.00 |
| 77 | Sells, Rachel | 1 | $5,000.00 | $5,000.00 |
| 78 | Shanley, Mark A. | 1 | $5,000.00 | $5,000.00 |
| 79 | Houghton, Dove P. | 1 | $4,500.00 | $4,500.00 |
| 80 | Kirlew, Lenworth G. | 1 | $4,500.00 | $4,500.00 |
