Silver State beats late 6-wide pack in Oaklawn Handicap,
Silver State takes fifth in row in Oaklawn ‘Cap
To Oaklawn racegoers, they have become linked as closely as Fred and Ginger, Rhett and Scarlett, Chang and Eng and any famous twosome one might name.
Like Rodgers and Hammerstein, Steve
Asmussen and Ricardo Santana Jr. compose beautiful music. Back in harness after a Martin-and-Lewis spat two years ago, the Hall of Fame trainer and his go-to jockey have condensed the 2021 Hot Springs racing season into a scrapbook of Saturday headlines, Asmussen gunning for his 11th Oaklawn title and Santana for his eighth.
Silver State, winning the 75th Oaklawn Handicap, gave new meaning to Triple Crown and Million Dollar Saturday. And what a birthday gift for Arkansas co-owner Willis Horton.
With his fifth consecutive victory, the 4-year-old Hard Spun colt completed a one-year sweep of three Oaklawn stakes for older males. Holding off Florida shipper Fearless by a half-length, Silver State added his first graded victory to triumphs Jan. 23 in the $150,000 Fifth Season and March 13 in the $500,000 Essex Handicap.
Another 4-year-old colt, Mystic Guide, won the Grade 3 Razorback Handicap Feb. 27 and subsequently the $12 million Dubai World Cup. That horse, trained by Mike Stidham, is one superstar not in the Asmussen barn (mighty Godolphin Stable owns Mystic Guide) or ridden by Santana.
For Asmussen and Santana, it was the second $1 million victory in as many weeks at Oaklawn, following that of 3-year-old Super Stock in the Arkansas Derby. Counting the Grade 3 Fantasy victory March 27 of 3-year-old filly Pauline’s Pearl, Asmussen and Santana have swept three major Saturday stakes with combined purse money of $2.6 million.
The stakes victory was the fifth of the season for Horton, a retired Marshall homebuilder who races Silver State with longtime Asmussen client Ron Winchell. Winchell raced and Asmussen trained Gun Runner, Horse of the Year at 4 in 2017 after running third in the Kentucky Derby.
Horton is owner-breeder of 3-year-old filly Will’s Secret, a Kentucky Oaks contender after winning the Martha Washington and Grade 3 Honeybee at Oaklawn. Trained by Dallas Stewart, Horton seeks his second Kentucky Oaks victory (Lemons Forever, 2006) April 30 at Churchill Downs.
“The Hortons owning half of this horse with Winchell and knowing how important Oaklawn is to them and how important the Hortons are to Oaklawn,” Asmussen said, “what a great birthday present for him today.”
The Oaklawn sweep, worth $990,000, makes Silver State a racing millionaire with a 10-6-2-1 record. Saturday’s win alone recouped the $450,000 Horton and Winchell paid for Silver State at the September 2018 Keeneland sale.
“He is a horse that the Hortons and Winchells purchased on Dr. (David) Lambert’s advice that has continued to develop and get better,” Asmussen said. “We’ve always loved his talent level. But for the five-race win streak and putting it all together against such a talented field today in a significant race, we’re extremely pleased with him.”
Compared with nose and neck victories earlier in the meet, Silver State won the Oaklawn by a deceptively comfortable margin, although it was anything but that.
Santana kept his horse in the second flight of horses down the backstretch, moving into contention on the far turn. He was fifth across the track when Silver State launched his winning surge in midstretch.
Breaking from the rail post and assigned 118 pounds, Silver State paid $11.40, $5 and $3.40. Lightly raced Fearless, packing 119 after a Grade 2 victory in the Feb. 27 Gulfstream Park Mile, ran second under Irad Ortiz Jr. at $4.20 and
$3.20. The Ghostzapper 5-year-old, trained by Todd Pletcher, duplicated his second in a May 2 allowance-optional claimer on the Arkansas Derby undercard last year.
Express Train, high-weighted at 122 after running second in the March 6 Grade 1 Santa Anita Handicap, was third and paid
$2.60. It was the first start outside California for the 4-year-old Union Rags colt, a $500,000 sales yearling trained by John Shirreffs of Zenyatta fame.
Owendale ran fourth and Warrior’s Charge, both trained by Brad Cox, placed sixth.
Warrior’s Charge, Oaklawn’s Grade 3 Razorback Handicap winner last year, led into the stretch after carving out fractions of 47.06 seconds for a half-mile and 1:11.67 for three quarters. The 5-year-old Munnings horse, second to By My Standards in the 2020 Oaklawn Handicap, seeking his first Grade 2 victory and fourth at Oaklawn, weakened and finished fifth.
Silver Prospector, Oaklawn’s Grade 3 Southwest winner last year for Asmussen and owners Ed and Susie Orr, ran sixth, followed by past Oaklawn stakes winners Guest Suite and Rated R Superstar.
Silver State was sidelined almost seven months last year after running in Fair Grounds’ three graded Triple Crown preps, posting a second and third before a Grade 2 Louisiana Derby seventh. He came to Oaklawn after two eye-opening wins in Kentucky, running down the game Hunka Burning Love in the Fifth Season and going wide against Rated R Superstar in the Essex. Equibase Co. termed Silver State’s effort “all out” in both local races, giving riswe that the horse might be short against tougher competition in the Oaklawn.
That was before Silver State’s breakthrough victory Saturday, fueling speculation that Asmussen might have another Curlin (2007) or Gun Runner — i.e., Horse of the Year — on his hands.
“This race is significant enough that he’ll get the future we were hoping for,” Asmussen said. “This proves it.”