RJ HAVING FUN HAD TONS OF FUN WINNING JACK BROOKS STAKES IN A LAUGHER AT REMINGTON PARK

RJ Having Fun lived up to his 1-5 odds Saturday night, winning the $50,000 Jack Brooks Stakes by daylight under jockey Juan Pulido.

Pulido said RJ Having Fun spoke to him last year on July 16 at Ruidoso Downs in New Mexico and he didn’t listen, teaching the jockey a valuable lesson.

“I had a chance to ride him in the Rainbow Juvenile ($100,000 stakes) and I chose the wrong horse,” Pulido said with a laugh. He taught me that day that he was the one.”

On that day, RJ Having Fun won the Rainbow Juvenile at 7-1 odds, but he did it with jockey Alejandro Medina in the saddle while Pulido rode 7-5 favorite Heavenly Snow Eagle to a fifth-place finish in the race.

After winning the Grade 1, $169,000 Remington Park Derby at 400 yards by a half-length last time out on April 29, there was no doubt in Pulido’s mind that the horse was right when he tried to tell him. RJ Having Fun rewarded Pulido with a 2-1/2 length victory over a solid field of 3-year-old Oklahoma-bred American Quarter Horses in the Jack Brooks Stakes.

“That horse is amazing,” Pulido said. “He broke comfortably and I knew he could handle cutting back in distance (to 350 yards). He can do anything.”

The 3-year-old gray gelded son of PYC Fun N Fancy, out of the This Snow is Royal mare Snow Clouds, made it two stakes wins in a row at Remington Park, earning $28,200 for owner-trainer Toby Keeton from the purse. RJ Having Fun improved to 11 starts, six wins, four seconds and one third for a bankroll of $362,536. He was bred in Oklahoma by Rito Sosa and was purchased at the 2022 Heritage Place September Yearling Sale for $40,000, earning his keep.

The odds-on favorite, RJ Having Fun paid $2.60 to win, $2.10 to place and $2.10 to show across the board as dimes flowed to his backers like a flooded Oklahoma River after an all-David Payne weekend weather festival. It was the first win for all connections in this stakes series.

Backside Bobby (10-1) finished a distant second in the Jack Brooks, running three-quarters of a length ahead of third-place finisher Midnight Politics (16-1). Running time for RJ Having Fun was :17.472 for a speed-index of 95 over the fast track. No horse in the field was within 10 speed-index points of the winner. The rest of the finish after the top three was Lucky Luke (8-1) fourth, Cowboys R Myheros (31-1) fifth, Kams Relentless (25-1) sixth, Relentless Coronado (7-1) seventh and Charlenas FDD (41-1) eighth.

The Jack Brooks Stakes is named after the legendary trainer from Blanchard, Okla. who retired in 2007. Brooks led the Remington Park trainer standings three times in his career, adding that local accomplishment to his eight wins in the All American Futurity, the pinnacle for 2-year-old racing American Quarter Horses. Brooks, a multiple Hall of Famer, was on-hand to present the stakes trophy to the winning connections.

Remington Park racing continues Sunday with a first post time at 4 p.m. CDT.

Remington Park has provided more than $349 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 Remington Park 2024 American Quarter Horse, Paint and Appaloosa Season continues through June 1 with the biggest racing program of the season. The Champions Night boasts total purses in excess of $2,000,000, led by the $1,000,000 Heritage Place Futurity. Parking and admission are always free. 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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