Daily Racing Form National Digital Edition
Fires to base barn year-round at Arkansas training center
HOT SPRINGS, Ark. – Trainer Jinks Fires will be making a notable circuit change after the Oaklawn Park meet ends in May.
Fires said Thursday that he plans to remain in Arkansas and will base at a Hot Springs training center rather than set up his usual division at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Ky. He’s been a Churchill regular every year since 1961.
“I’m going to stay home and ship and run different places, like Texas, Oklahoma, and Louisiana, and occasionally go back to Kentucky,” said Fires, 80. “I’ve been running up and down the road for 60 years. It will be a different deal. We’ll do it this year and see how it works out.”
Fires and his wife, Penny, have maintained a home in Hot Springs for more than 40 years. He said Penny recently told him she is not as comfortable driving by herself as she had been in years past.
“I told her I would stay home,” Fires said. “Hot Springs is our home.”
Fires said that outside of this region and Kentucky, he also could ship horses for races in Illinois and Indiana. And, by basing year-round in the South, it might even afford Fires and Penny the opportunity to jet over to Florida.
“We’ve got a home in the Keys that we’ve seen four times in 12 years,” Fires said. “Hopefully this year we’ll get a chance to run down there a couple of times.”
Fires has had a number of notable stakes winners, including Archarcharch, who won the Grade 1 Arkansas Derby in 2011. Fires in 2017 saddled Colonelsdarktemper to victory in the Grade 3 West Virginia Derby. He’s also won two recent runnings of the Smarty Jones at Oaklawn, in 2019 with Gray Attempt and 2016 with Discreetness.
Fires also trained multiple Grade 3 winner Spotsgone, and has one of the horse’s daughters, Very Spicy, entered in the 10th race Sunday at Oaklawn.
Robertson strikes again
Trainer Mac Robertson has had some significant Rebel Days at Oaklawn. His latest came March 13, when he saddled Carlos L. to a 47-1 upset in the $150,000 Temperence Hill Stakes. Robertson won the main event in 2009, when Win Willy captured the Rebel at 56-1.
“It’s been a good day for me a couple of times,” Robertson said. “Anytime you win a race it’s [great]. When they win big, it’s got a little more oomph.”
Carlos L. set the pace in the 1 1/2-mile Temperence Hill and held on in track-record time of 2:29.87. The marathon trip suited the horse, said Robertson, who trains Carlos L. for Good Friends II.
“They bought him from Panama and he actually was winning those types of races,” said Robertson.
Carlos L., 5, was a Group 1 winner over 1 5/16 miles at Presidente Remon in Panama in May 2019.
“He’s doing well,” Robertson said Tuesday. “He ran awfully hard. We’ll look for something in 30 days or so. I hope to run him back here at Oaklawn.”
◗ The fifth race Sunday has a Hall of Fame vibe with Calvin Borel named to ride the horse Jack Van Berg. Trainer Nick Zito will counter with Kickin’ Kirby.
◗ Oaklawn plans to open its infield on Sundays beginning this weekend. The track also will continue to open the infield on Saturdays.
◗ Oaklawn’s new hotel is scheduled to open in April, said track president Lou Cella.