Leading Oaklawn jockeys work weekend races

Several jockeys who raced at Oaklawn Park during its 2018 live racing season will be featured in races this weekend, including in the Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Ky.

Ricardo Santana Jr. on Combatant, Luis Saez on Grade 1 $1 million Arkansas Derby and Grade 2 $900,000 Rebel Stakes winner Magnum Moon, Drayden Van Dyke on Instilled Regard, Kent J. Desormeaux on My Boy Jack and Florent Geroux on on Noble Indy are among riders scheduled for the Kentucky Derby.

Santana, Oaklawn’s leading rider the last six years, is named on Bee Jersey Sunday at Lone Star Park at Grand Prairie in Texas. Bee Jersey, who won the fastest mile race of the 2018 Oaklawn meeting, is the 9-5 program favorite for the Grade 3 $200,000 Steve Sexton Mile Stakes.

Bee Jersey, who races for breeder/owner Charles Fipke and Hall of Fame trainer Steve Asmussen, will be making his American stakes debut after winning two allowance races this year by a combined 13 ¾ front-running lengths.

Bee Jersey ran a mile in 1:36.58 to win his 4-year-old debut by six lengths Jan. 20 at Oaklawn, then was a 7 ¾-length winner April 14 at Keeneland. Bee Jersey made his first four career starts in the United Arab Emirates and drew post 6 in the projected seven-horse field.

Also entered are Oaklawn-raced Futile,

8-1 on the morning line; Shotgun Kowboy,

10-1; and South Beach, 12-1. Probable post time for the Steve Sexton Mile Stakes is 7:06 p.m.

Last year’s winner, Mor Spirit, was coming off a victory in Oaklawn’s $250,000 Essex Handicap.

Luis Quinonez, Oaklawn’s leading rider in 2007, was scheduled to resume riding Friday at Lone Star. Quinonez suffered a back injury in an April 7 gate accident at Oaklawn, where he won nine races in 2018.

Among the jockey’s scheduled mounts this weekend is Shotgun Kowboy.

Jareth Loveberry, who won 11 races this year at Oaklawn, including the $125,000 Dixie Belle Stakes, said he planned to resume riding at the Canterbury Park meeting that began Friday. The rider missed the final five days of the Oaklawn meeting when he injured his left arm in a gate accident during training hours April 8.

Loveberry said in a text message that he suffered a “crack” in his elbow, but could have ridden last week, “if I can deal with the pain.”

Loveberry said he got on horses earlier this week at Oaklawn. He won 74 races to win the riding title last year at Canterbury.

Wynn Time is the 2-5 program favorite for the

$50,000 Paul Bunyan Stakes at 6 furlongs today at Canterbury. Wynn Time ran second in Oaklawn’s

$125,000 Hot Springs Stakes March 10 and third in the Grade 3 $400,000 Count Fleet Sprint Handicap on April 14.