OKLAHOMA CLASSICS RACES SET FOR OCTOBER 18 AT REMINGTON PARK

The 32nd Oklahoma Classics night is set for Friday, Oct. 18 at Remington Park. The 10-race program features the top Oklahoma-breds in divisional stakes action with total purses for the evening reaching $1,120,000.

The top event of the night, the $175,000 Oklahoma Classics Cup, presented by FanDuel TV, drew a field of seven, 3-year-olds and older, to go 1-1/16 miles. A ship-in Oklahoma-bred has been tabbed as the 2-1 morning-line favorite. Winters Lion arrives from Kentucky for owner Calumet Farm and trainer Joe Sharp, invading to attempt to steal some stakes thunder from those locally based.

Winters Lion will be ridden by David Cabrera in the Classics Cup. The 4-year-old colt comes into the race off a ninth-place finish in a conditional allowance event at Kentucky Downs on Sept. 7, over that undulating turf course, also at 1-1/16 miles. Winters Lion will face Oklahoma-breds in his home state for the first time in his career.

Winters Lion is by Accelerate and is from the Tactical Cat broodmare This Girl Rocks, was bred in Oklahoma by Center Hills Farm. Winters Lion has a career mare of 17 races, two wins, three seconds and another three finishes in third. He has not won a race since scoring in allowance company in October 2023 at Aqueduct in New York.

The richest Oklahoma-bred in action is Number One Dude, a 6-year-old owned and bred by Terry Westemeir of Broken Arrow, Okla. and trained by Scott Young. Number One Dude has earned $552,168 and is coming off a fifth-place stakes attempt in the Red Earth on Sept. 20, over the turf at 7-1/2 furlongs. Number One Dude has won nine of his 10 career races over the main track, so moving from the turf to dirt could benefit him. He finished second in the Classics Cup in 2023. His 10 career victories also are the most in this cup field.

Number One Dude is second in the morning-line at 5-2 odds.

Flat Hanby, the 7-2 third choice in the morning-line, comes into the Classics Cup and back against Oklahoma-breds after finishing fifth in open company, in the Grade 3, $400,000 Oklahoma Derby on Sept. 29. The derby ended a five-race winning streak for the 3-year-old, owned by JT Stables of Tontitown, Ark. and trained by Boyd Caster.

A new winner of the Oklahoma Classics Cup will be crowned as Ghost Hero, winner of last year’s race, is on the sideline this season.

The field, by program and post-position order, with jockey, trainer and morning-line odds for the Oklahoma Classics Cup:
Okie Smoke: Alfredo Triana, Jr., Juan Padilla, 8-1
C W Prize: Richard Eramia, Joe Offolter, 6-1
Soul Sacrifice: Jose Alvarez, Shawn Davis, 12-1
Flat Hanby: Floyd Wethey, Jr., Boyd Caster, 7-2
Winters Lion: David Cabrera, Joe Sharp, 2-1 (morning-line favorite)
Inca Empire: Isaac Castillo, Oscar Flores, 8-1
Number One Dude: Leandro Goncalves, Scott Young, 5-1

The Oklahoma Classics Cup is set for race nine of 10 on Oct. 18 at 10:30pm. The first race of the big state-bred night of racing is 6:30pm.

Remington Park racing continues tonight with the 30th race date of the season, underway at 6:30pm. All times are Central. The nine race program features three on the turf in race one, race five and race nine. Track is fast, turf is firm.

Remington Park has provided more than $363 Million to the State of Oklahoma general education fund since the opening of the casino in 2005. Located at the junction of Interstates 35 & 44, in the heart of the Oklahoma City Adventure District, Remington Park presents simulcast racing daily and non-stop casino gaming. The 2024 Thoroughbred Season continues through Dec. 13. The Oklahoma Classics Night of stakes racing for top Oklahoma-breds takes place on Friday, Oct. 18. Must be 18 or older to wager on horse racing or enter the casino gaming floor. Visit remingtonpark.com for more information.

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