Dynamic duo takes a swing

And now for their next trick at Ellis Park, trainer Brad Cox and jockey Shaun Bridgmohan will try to win the track’s annual showcase. They’ll team Sunday with Pinch Hit, one of the likely favorites for the Grade 3, $100,000 Groupie Doll, the lone graded race of the 30-day meet at the western Kentucky track.

Pinch Hit, a 4-year-old Klein family homebred, is one of about seven or eight fillies and mares expected to be entered Thursday for the one-mile Groupie Doll. Other top prospects include Champagne Problems, Jenda’s Agenda, Mines and Magic, and Pacific Pink.

Cox, who has won two of the last three runnings of the Groupie Doll with Call Pat (2015) and Tiger Moth (2017), said he is very happy with how Pinch Hit is approaching the Groupie Doll. The 4-year-old daughter of Harlan’s Holiday won the $100,000 Mari Hulman George on the July 15 Indiana Derby undercard in her most recent start and will be looking for her first graded win Sunday.

Pinch Hit breezed a half-mile in 47.60 seconds last Sunday at Churchill Downs.

“She’s training really well and has experience at Ellis,” Cox said early this week from Saratoga. “She turned in a bullet Sunday and is really on her game right now.”

However the Groupie Doll turns out, it’ll be difficult for Bridgmohan and Cox to top what they accomplished last Sunday at Ellis.

Bridgmohan joined a handful of other jockeys to win six races on an Ellis card, coming within one of the track record held by Willie Martinez, who won with seven of 10 mounts on July 6, 1993. Four of the Bridgmohan winners were trained by Cox, who has surged well ahead in the Ellis standings with 15 wins.

“You don’t often get on a roll like we’ve had at Ellis this summer,” Cox said. “When everything’s clicking, you need to try to capitalize.”

Into Friday, Bridgmohan is in a tie for leading jockey at the meet with apprentice Edgar Morales with 18 winners apiece.

The Groupie Doll, known as the Gardenia before being renamed to honor the two-time Eclipse Award-winning female sprinter, anchors a Sunday card that also includes the $75,000 Ellis Park Derby for 3-year-olds going a mile.

Jason Barkley ends skid

Finally, luck was on Jason Barkley’s side. The 29-yearold trainer ended a frustrating drought Sunday at Ellis when Bridgmohan guided Katie’s Reward to victory in a $16,000 claiming race over Jemrose, a late-running filly trained by Jeff Barkley, Jason’s father.

“If Jemrose doesn’t steady in the turn, Pops may have beat me,” Barkley said with a laugh.

Instead, Katie’s Reward produced the first win of the year for Barkley, who opened a public stable last fall after working closely with many top horses as an employee for Wesley Ward, Joe Sharp, and Larry Jones. Barkley had gone winless with his previous 50 starters, dating to last fall.

“I told one of my friends if I could handle that type of dry spell to start my career, I can probably handle a lot of the things to come,” Barkley said.

◗ A $43,000 allowance anchors an eight-race Friday card at Ellis. Full of Run, with Corey Lanerie riding for Steve Asmussen, is the morning-line favorite in a field of eight entered in race 6. First post daily at Ellis is 12:50 p.m. Central.