Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
Double feature
Local fends off shipper
HOT SPRINGS — The first division of the Grade II Rebel Stakes at Oaklawn Park on Saturday virtually wrapped up a spot in the Kentucky Derby for a horse loaded with local connections.
Owned by Willis Horton of Marshall, ridden by longtime Oaklawn jockey Jon Court and trained by nine-time Oaklawn champion Steve Asmussen, a colt named Long Range Toddy improved on his previous success at Oaklawn with a late move to win the $750,000 division of the Rebel over a field of seven other 3-yearolds.
“He obviously stepped up today,” Asmussen said. “He’s just getting good at the right time.”
Long Range Toddy faced a field packed with juvenile-based credentials, led by Winstar Farms’ Improbable and Denise Barker’s Galilean, the two horses Long Range Toddy ran down as they neared the wire.
Fourth as the field turned for home behind Improbable, the 2-5 favorite trained by Bob Baffert; Galilean, the second-choice at 7-2; and Extra Hope, Long Range Toddy began to unwind under Court’s direction.
“Believe me, I was sweating bullets turning for home,” Court said. “But I had confidence in what I had seen and what I communicated with the Hortons and with Steve. It turned out to be a winning strategy.”
Long Range Toddy disposed of Extra Hope early. He passed Galilean with just under 100 yards left, then caught Improbable 30 yards from the wire.
“I knew I had my target run down, but getting by him was a bit of a concern of mine,” Court said. “I knew that horse would be full of punch at the end.”
“My horse ran well,” Improbable jockey Drayden Van Dyke said. “We just got beat.”
Improbable — ranked second on Horse Racing Nation’s Kentucky Derby media poll entering the race — seemed disheveled from the moment he reached the track. He remained fidgety through his warmup and as he entered the gate.
“He’s got to learn to relax a little bit more than that,” Van Dyke said. “I couldn’t even stay in the post parade with him, but he’s learning, and he’s still a really, really good horse.”
The Rebel was split into two races by Oaklawn officials to make room for shippers, particularly those from the West Coast burdened in their pursuit of Kentucky Derby qualifying points by Santa Anita Park’s closure, which led to the cancellation of the San Felipe Stakes, a Derby prep that was to offer 85 qualifying points
When the season began, the Rebel — as one race — offered a purse of $1 million and was designated to distribute 85 Derby qualifying points. After Santa Anita’s self-imposed suspension March 5 — which followed the deaths of 21 horses injured on its surface at the time — Oaklawn decided to raise the total purse of a split Rebel to $1.5 million, or $750,000 for each race. By Derby qualification rules, points for each race were reduced from 85 points to 63.75.
Combined with points from his win in the Springboard Mile at Remington Park on Dec. 16, and finishes of second and third, respectively, in Oaklawn’s Smarty Jones Stakes on Jan. 25 and Southwest Stakes on Feb. 19, Long Range Toddy now has 54 points, tied for second in the worldwide points race. No horse with 33 or more points has failed to make the Derby field since the points system began in 2013.
Horton said he knew from the start he wanted Court, who rode his colt Will Take Charge to a win in the 2013 Rebel.
“I’ve had good success with Jon, and he’s a good friend of mine,” Horton said. “I told Steve that all the horses I’ve owned by myself, I’ve had Jon Court on, and Steve was OK with it, and it turned out to be a good deal.”
“I’ve had a lot of success with the Hortons before, and I was able to find myself on the back of Long Range Toddy, and here we are in the winner’s circle,” Court said.
Court, 58, knows Derby opportunities don’t come often.
“That’s been a childhood dream,” Court said. “It’s nice that I’m still able to pursue it this late in my career.”
Asmussen said he appreciates the stature Long Range Toddy has garnered at Oaklawn Park.
“It’s a very special win for the Hortons here in Arkansas,” Asmussen said. “By this time, we’re all local, and there’s a lot for local fans to be proud of for a horse like Long Range Toddy.”