Category: EMERALD DOWNS

UNMACHABLE TAKES A SEATTLE SLEW THRILLER

AUBURN, Wash. (August 6, 2020) – Unmachable collared Gold Crusher in the final strides for a half-length victory Thursday in the $40,000 Seattle Slew Stakes for 3-year-old colts and geldings at Emerald Downs.

Earlier on the card, heavily favored Daffodil Sweet remained unbeaten with a dominating victory in the $40,000 Coca-Cola Stakes for 3-year-old fillies.

In the Seattle Slew, Unmachable passed the entire field in the stretch for the second stakes victory of his young career.

Ridden by Javier Matias at 120 lbs, Unmachable ran 6 ½ furlongs in 1:15.84 and paid $5.60 as the betting choice. Jack McCartney is the winning trainer for owner Tawnja Elison of Eagle, Idaho.

A Washington-bred by Macho Uno, Unmachable is 2-1-2 in five lifetime starts with earnings of $71,065, including $22,000 for Thursday’s victory. The gelding debuted last September with a victory in the Washington Cup Juvenile, followed by a second in the Gottstein Futurity. He traveled to Phoenix and finished third in a stakes late last year and was third while making his 2020 debut in an allowance test here last month.

Unmachable settled about 10 lengths off the pace as Tig and Vroysky dueled through fractions of :22.14 and :44.52, gathered momentum into the lane and surged in the final furlong to tag Gold Crusher in the shadow of the wire.

Gold Crusher, ridden by Eddie Martinez at 121 lbs, powered past Tig into the lane and appeared home free for the victory, but Unmachable’s late rally was too much to withstand.

Muncey, with Jennifer Whitaker riding, closed ground to finish third, while Wilson to Lockett, Tig, Mosquito Fleet and Vroysky rounded out the order of finish.

The $40,000 Muckleshoot Derby at 1 1/16 miles is next for 3-year-olds, tentatively scheduled for September 5.

DAFFODIL SWEET DOMINATES COCA-COLA STAKES

Undefeated and still unchallenged, Daffodil Sweet powered to a six-length victory over For You Only in the $40,000 Coca-Cola Stakes for 3-year-old fillies.

With Juan Gutierrez riding at 121 lbs, Daffodil Sweet covered 6 ½ furlongs in 1:16.86 and paid $2.80, $2.40 and $2.10. Chris Stenslie is the winning trainer for owners Jody Peetz of Issaquah and Steve Shimizu of Bellevue.

It was the third consecutive dominating performance and first stakes victory for Daffodil Sweet, who joins Omache Kid as three-time winners at the meeting.

Breaking from the No. 1 post-position, Daffodil Sweet gradually gained command into the turn, opened a commanding lead into the stretch and rolled home as much the best. She set fractions of :22.42, :4515 and 1:10.12.

Daffodil Sweet has three victories in 37 days, all at different distances. She debuted July 2 with an 8 ¾ length victory at 5 ½ furlongs, followed by a 7 ¾-length allowance score at six furlongs on July 23, and capped by Wednesday’s six-length triumph in the Coca-Cola.

A California-bred by Ministers Wildcat, Daffodil Sweet earned $22,240 to boost her career total to $42,590.

For You Only, longest price on the board at 20 to 1, held second and paid $9.40 and $3.60, and Windy Point finished third and paid $2.60. Pearl Dragon and On Purpose rounded out the order of finish.

Gutierrez, who celebrated his 51st birthday Thursday, is No. 3 all-time with 65 stakes wins at Emerald Downs. Stenslie is tied with Terry Gillihan for No. 13 all-time with 16 stakes wins apiece.

The $40,000 Washington Oaks at 1 1/16 miles is next for 3-year-old fillies tentatively scheduled for September 6.

Total mutuel handle was $2,099,778 on the 11-race program.

NOTES: After a payoff of over $32,000 in Wednesday’s $0.50 Pick 5, Thursday’s Pick 5 produced a payoff of $22,434.80. . .Jockey Alex Cruz and trainer Jose Navarro combined for two wins including the second victory of the season for 11-year-old gelding Doctor Bruce S. ($14.20). . .Cruz, Jake Samuels and Juan Gutierrez rode two winners each Thursday. . .Through 14 days of racing, Cruz and Gutierrez are tied for first with 21 wins apiece while Gary Wales is third with 20 wins . . .Jack McCartney also had two training wins Thursdays. . .Javier Matias is No. 5 all-time with 37 stakes wins at Emerald Downs, including two this year. . .Coulterberry ($13.70) prevailed in the $50,000 Lieutenant Governors’ Handicap at Hastings Racecourse. Winner of last year’s Muckleshoot Tribal Classic, the 7-year-old Finality gelding ran 6 ½ furlongs in 1:16.80 and is 11 for 26 lifetime. . .Early birthday wishes to former jockeys Russell Baze and Joe Steiner, who celebrate No. 62 and 56 respectively on Friday. . .Live racing resumes Wednesday, August 12 with first post 2:15 p.m. Next weeks’ action features the $40,000 Boeing Stakes for older fillies and mares and $40,000 Mt. Rainier Stakes for older horses, both at 6 ½ furlongs on Thursday, August 13.

Emerald Downs Daily Results and Activity

Results

Thursday, August 6

 

MIRROR IMAGE DELIVERS IN WEDNESDAY FEATURE

AUBURN, Wash. (August 5, 2020) – Mirror Image held off Omache Kid for a three-quarter-length victory in the $11,200 feature race for older horses Wednesday evening at Emerald Downs.

Ridden by Gary Wales, Mirror Image ran 6 ½ furlongs in 1:16.01 and paid $25.40 as sixth choice in a field of nine. Charles Essex is the winning trainer for owners Robert Rosenberg and Kerry Gunderson.

A 6-year-old California-bred by Southern Image, Mirror Image paid a quick dividend for his new owners who claimed the gelding for $8,000 at Golden Gate Fields on June 11. Mirror Image is 10 for 46 lifetime with earnings of $129,270.

Omache Kid, bidding for a fourth straight victory, rallied strongly through the lane to finish a clear second, and was followed by So Lucky, Far West, Bound to Go, Scout Patrol, Graycaster, Only the High Road and Cody’s Choice.

In the $0.50 Pick 5, which included a $54,763 carryover, tickets with all five winners paid $32,033.95. Wednesday’s pool was $258,682.

Winners in the $0.50 Pick 5 (races 7-11): Wild Wild Kingdom, $18.60; Brahms Forest $8.20; Stay in Grace, $6.60; Mirror Image, $25.40, Continue on Victor, $93.80. The latter is the highest $2 win payout of the season.

NOTES: The record $0.50 Pick 5 payout at Emerald Downs is $37,912.80 on September 8, 2019. . .Apprentice Joree Scriver broke through with her first Emerald Downs’ victory aboard Wild Wild Kingdom ($18.60) in Wednesday’s seventh race for trainer Shawna Whiteside. A native of Curlew, Washington, Scriver scored her maiden victory last year at Tillamook and rode five winners this summer at Grants Pass. Scriver nearly had a second victory but Honey Bay Bee missed by a head at odds of 32 to 1 in the sixth race. . .The winning time by Mirror Image in the feature race, 1:16.01, is the second fastest 6 ½ furlongs of the meeting. Port Lions ran a 1:15.92 on July 29. . .Juan Gutierrez, Javier Matias, Gary Wales and Cerapio Figueroa rode two winners each Wednesday. . .Gutierrez is 27 wins from tying Gallyn Mitchell’s all-time Emerald Downs’ record of 1,419 wins. . .Frank Lucarelli, Rigoberto Velasquez and Jorge Rosales each had two training wins. . .Live racing continues Thursday with the $40,000 Seattle Slew Stakes for 3-year-olds and $40,000 Coca-Cola Stakes for 3-year-old fillies. First post 5 p.m.
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Results

Wednesday, August 5

 

EMERALD DOWNS RACING THIS WEEK

WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 5
2:15 p.m. (11 races)
$54,763 Carryover $0.50 Pick 5

THURSDAY, AUGUST 6
5 p.m. (11 races)
$40,000 Coca-Cola Stakes, 3YOF, 6 ½ F
$40,000 Seattle Slew Stakes, 3YO, 6 ½ F

$54,763 IN WEDNESDAY $0.50 PICK 5
A lucrative one-day $0.50 Pick 5 carryover—$54,763—is up for grabs Wednesday in races 7 thru 11. The sequence features 47 horses or 9.4 a race with fields of 10, 9, 8, 9 and 11 runners.

WEEK 7 FEATURES 22 RACES OVER TWO DAYS
Total entries for Week 7 are 183 horses in 22 races or 8.3 a race. The season total is 933 horses over 12 days (121 races) or 7.7 a race.

WEEK 7 STAKES RACES:

$40,000 COCA-COLA STAKES, 3YO FILLIES, 6 ½ F (THURSDAY, AUG 6, RACE 2, 5:27 PM): Daffodil Sweet has won her two starts by a combined 16 1/2 lengths with Beyers of 72 and 74 for trainer Chris Stenslie and owners Jody Peetz and Steve Shimizu. In a dominating allowance performance two weeks ago, Daffodil Sweet powered through the stretch looking very much like a filly who will get an additional half-furlong with no issues. There is some other speed in the race, however, most notably being Windy Point, last year’s state champion juvenile filly who turned in a big performance in her 2020 debut a month ago. Windy Point was a stakes winner at this distance last year and is 3-2-0 in five career sprints. Juan Gutierrez, who has ridden Windy Point in all six of her races, opts to stick with Daffodil Sweet. Pearl Dragon is a new shooter with a string of sharp sprints this year at Golden Gate. She has shown an ability to rate slightly off the pace and did break her maiden on dirt last year at Churchill Downs.

$40,000 SEATTLE SLEW STAKES, 3YO, 6 ½ F (THURSDAY, AUG 6, RACE 9, 8:44 PM): The same connections that delivered a knockout with Time for Gold in the Angie C Stakes last week have another big chance here with Gold Crusher, also sired by Harbor the Gold and the younger brother of the exceptionally quick Papa’s Golden Boy. After being claimed for $25,000 out of his maiden victory here last year, Gold Crusher ventured to Golden Gate where he recently earned a big figure while scoring at 35 to 1 in a starter allowance at five furlongs on turf. He has enough speed to get position from the rail and the No. 1 post, while  0 for 8 this year at 6 1/2 furlongs, is winning at a 17 percent clip (57 for 344) the last five years. Muncey and Unmachable won stakes as juveniles and finished second and third last month vs. older horses. Tig and Vroysky both showed big speed in recent maiden wins and figure to slug it out on the front end. Wilson to Lockett steps up in class but is sharp and should be rolling late.

Final Entries

Thursday, August 6

Race#	Race Type	Purse
Race 1	Claiming – $8,000	$8,600
Race 2	Coca-Cola S.	$40,000
Race 3	Maiden Claiming – $5,000	$6,400
Race 4	Maiden Claiming – $8,000	$7,800
Race 5	Maiden Special Weight	$18,500
Race 6	Claiming – $5,000	$8,800
Race 7	Starter Optional Claiming – $7,500	$9,500
Race 8	Claiming – $2,500	$6,100
Race 9	Seattle Slew S.	$40,000
Race 10	Claiming – $3,500	$6,800
Race 11	Claiming – $2,500	$6,400

Early Entries Thursday, August 6 Race# Race Type Purse Race 1 Claiming – $8,000 $8,600 Race 2 Coca-Cola S. $40,000 Race 3 Maiden Claiming – $5,000 $6,400 Race 4 Maiden Claiming – $8,000 $7,800 Race 5 Maiden Special Weight $18,500 Race 6 Claiming – $5,000 $8,800 Race 7 Starter Optional Claiming – $7,500 $9,500 Race 8 Claiming – $2,500 $6,100 Race 9 Seattle Slew S. $40,000 Race 10 Claiming – $3,500 $6,800 Race 11 Claiming – $2,500 $6,400

Final Entries Wednesday, August 5 Race# Race Type Purse Race 1 Claiming – $15,000 $11,500 Race 2 Claiming – $2,500 $6,400 Race 3 Waiver Claiming – $2,500 $6,100 Race 4 Claiming – $8,000 $8,600 Race 5 Maiden Claiming – $8,000 $7,800 Race 6 Maiden Claiming – $15,000 $11,000 Race 7 Claiming – $2,500 $6,400 Race 8 Starter Optional Claiming – $7,500 $9,500 Race 9 Claiming – $10,000 $11,200 Race 10 Claiming – $10,000 $11,200 Race 11 Maiden Claiming – $5,000 $6,400

Early Entries

Wednesday, August 5

Race#	Race Type	Purse
Race 1	Claiming – $15,000	$11,500
Race 2	Claiming – $2,500	$6,400
Race 3	Waiver Claiming – $2,500	$6,100
Race 4	Claiming – $8,000	$8,600
Race 5	Maiden Claiming – $8,000	$7,800
Race 6	Maiden Claiming – $15,000	$11,000
Race 7	Claiming – $2,500	$6,400
Race 8	Starter Optional Claiming – $7,500	$9,500
Race 9	Claiming – $10,000	$11,200
Race 10	Claiming – $10,000	$11,200
Race 11	Maiden Claiming – $5,000	$6,400

Final Entries

Thursday, July 30

Race#	Race Type	Purse
Race 1	Claiming – $10,000	$11,200
Race 2	Maiden Claiming – $5,000	$6,400
Race 3	Claiming – $3,500	$6,800
Race 4	Maiden Claiming – $25,000	$13,600
Race 5	Claiming – $2,500	$6,000
Race 6	Claiming – $20,000	$15,600
Race 7	Angie C. S.	$40,000
Race 8	Allowance	$18,500
Race 9	King County Express S.	$40,000
Race 10	Claiming – $5,000	$6,600

Early Entries Thursday, July 30 Race# Race Type Purse Race 1 Claiming – $10,000 $11,200 Race 2 Maiden Claiming – $5,000 $6,400 Race 3 Claiming – $3,500 $6,800 Race 4 Maiden Claiming – $25,000 $13,600 Race 5 Claiming – $2,500 $6,000 Race 6 Claiming – $20,000 $15,600 Race 7 Angie C. S. $40,000 Race 8 Allowance $18,500 Race 9 King County Express S. $40,000 Race 10 Claiming – $5,000 $6,600

Final Entries Wednesday, July 29 Race# Race Type Purse Race 1 Claiming – $2,500 $6,000 Race 2 Maiden Claiming – $8,000 $7,800 Race 3 Starter Optional Claiming – $15,000 $13,600 Race 4 Maiden Claiming – $25,000 $13,600 Race 5 Starter Optional Claiming – $7,500 $9,500 Race 6 Maiden Claiming – $25,000 $13,600 Race 7 Claiming – $2,500 $6,400 Race 8 Claiming – $15,000 $11,300 Race 9 Waiver Claiming – $20,000 $15,600 Race 10 Maiden Claiming – $5,000 $6,400

Early Entries

Wednesday, July 29

Race#	Race Type	Purse
Race 1	Claiming – $2,500	$6,000
Race 2	Maiden Claiming – $8,000	$7,800
Race 3	Starter Optional Claiming – $15,000	$13,600
Race 4	Maiden Claiming – $25,000	$13,600
Race 5	Starter Optional Claiming – $7,500	$9,500
Race 6	Maiden Claiming – $25,000	$13,600
Race 7	Claiming – $2,500	$6,400
Race 8	Claiming – $15,000	$11,300
Race 9	Waiver Claiming – $20,000	$15,600
Race 10	Maiden Claiming – $5,000	$6,400