Total betting up, ontrack handle dips

CYPRESS, Calif. – The 12-day Los Angeles County Fair meeting at Los Alamitos ended on Sunday with a sharp decrease in ontrack handle and an increase in all-sources handle of approximately 5 percent compared to last year’s corresponding meeting, according to track officials.

According to track vicepresident Jack Liebau, ontrack handle fell approximately 10 percent from last year’s meet, while in-state handle via simulcast and account wagering rose 2 percent. Out-of-state handle from simulcasting and account wagering increased more than 8 percent, he said.

Average field size fell from 6.93 runners per race at the 2017 county fair meeting to 6.84 runners this year. There were 103 races this year, one more than last year.

Apprentice jockey Heriberto Figueroa led all riders with 15 wins, two more than fellow apprentice Assael Espinoza, who was second. At the track’s July meeting, Figueroa and Espinoza, both 18, finished in a tie for the riding title. The two riders are leading contenders for the Eclipse Award as the nation’s outstanding apprentice jockey of 2018.

Peter Miller and Bob Baffert tied for the training title, each winning six races. Baffert won the Los Alamitos Special with Dabster, a candidate for the Grade 2 Marathon Stakes at Churchill Downs on Nov. 2.

Miller led the trainer standings at the Del Mar summer meeting, which ended earlier this month. Baffert has won or tied for seven training titles since daytime Thoroughbred racing resumed at Los Alamitos in 2014 following the closure of Hollywood Park the preceding year.

Los Alamitos will have a two-week winter meeting from Dec. 6-16 that will include two Grade 1 races for 2-year-olds worth $300,000 – the Los Alamitos Futurity and the Starlet for fillies – on Dec. 8.