Jump jockey Garner finds redemption
The Mean Queen, Garner win after unseating incident
To say that steeplechase jockey Thomas Garner wanted this one would be a gross understatement.
He had been waiting for Wednesday for the past three weeks. He had to win the Grade I, $150,000 Jonathan Sheppard (formerly known as the New York Turf Writers Cup).
Mission accomplished. The Mean Queen and Garner got to the winner's circle 21 days after an incident in another jump race that left Garner without a sure win and with a double dose of embarrassment.
The Mean Queen, the 4-5 favorite, won the 2 3⁄8 -mile Jonathan Sheppard over nine fences by 4 ¾ lengths.
On July 21, Garner and The Mean Queen were on their way to certain victory in the Jonathan Kiser Novice Stakes when the 5-year-old mare ducked in and unseated Garner. That day, Garner could not get off the track fast enough.
"I walked to the weighing station, got in the car and went straight home," Garner said. "I didn't want to speak to anyone. For that to happen, especially at a place like this, which I love, it was actually heartbreaking. There was no one more gutted or upset about that than me. I'm just glad I made it better (Wednesday)."
The Mean Queen was also part of a good story for trainer Keri Brion. She also trained the second-place finisher Baltimore Bucko
and French Light, who finished third. Brion worked 11 years for trainer Jonathan Sheppard, for whom the race was renamed this year. Sheppard, who won this race 15 times, retired earlier this year.
"I remember when they said that this race was going to be named after him," Brion said. "I was thinking, I hope I have just one (entrant). I hope I can win this 15 times."
The Mean Queen was timed in 4:40.14 over the yielding turf course and paid $3.60, $2.90 and $2.60.
Baltimore Bucko, the 9-2 second choice, and rider Richard Condon
finished a nose in front of French Light and Jamie Bargary.
The Mean Queen has now won five of seven career starts over the hurdles.
No word on Maxfield's next race
Trainer Brendan Walsh said he has no definite plan yet for Maxfield, who finished second to Knicks Go in the Whitney Stakes on Aug. 7.
"We will decide over the next few weeks," Walsh said by cellphone from Kentucky.
The goal for Maxfield, whose Whitney loss was just his second in nine
career starts, is the Breeders' Cup Classic at Del Mar in California on Nov. 6. How he gets there is what Walsh has to figure out.
He said the 4-year-old son of Street Sense would "probably" have one more race before the Classic. He said Maxfield would not run in the Jockey Club Gold Cup here on Labor Day weekend.
Walsh said he will return to Saratoga on Friday. He said Maxfield came out of the Whitney in good shape.
"I thought it was a good effort," he said. "He got beat by a very good horse.
When Knicks Go gets out on the lead like that, especially when he gets out on the lead like that, he is a very, very, very hard horse to beat. We got beat by, arguably, the best horse in the country."
The Bolton Landing
Chi Town Lady (5-1) recovered from a stumble at the start and went on to win the $120,000 Bolton Landing for 2-year-old fillies at 5 ½ furlongs on the Mellon turf.
Ridden by John Velazquez and trained by Wesley Ward, Chi Town Lady has won both her career starts. She won the Bolton Landing by 1 ¾ lengths. She ran the distance in 1:05.87 on the yielding course and paid $12.80, $7.50 and $5.60. Stablemate Poppy Flower, ridden by Jose Ortiz, finished second and Kneesnhips and Eric Cancel finished third.
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