TWO-TIME OKLAHOMA HORSE OF YEAR, WELDER, MADE HEAVY MORNING-LINE FAVORITE IN OKLAHOMA CLASSICS SPRINT
If you’re wondering if Welder had something taken out of him from his hard-fought win in the Remington Park Turf Sprint a couple of weeks ago, you might think again. The speedy gray is set to defend his title on Friday, Oct. 16, in the $130,000 Oklahoma Classics Sprint.
“Two days after that race, he was bucking and kicking and squealing, having fun,” said Teri Luneack, of Claremore, Okla., trainer of this two-time Oklahoma Horse of the Year. “We were hand walking him and he was barely controllable, feeling so good.”
Welder, a 7-year-old gelded son of The Visualiser, out of the Tiznow mare Dance Softly, is looking for his third win in a row in the Classics Sprint. Only two horses have won the race four times – Okie Ride (2011-12, 2015-16) and Highland Ice (1996-99). Medium Rare (2001-03) won the race three times.
Welder, the only horse in Remington Park history to be voted Horse of the Meeting in back-to-back years (2018-19), is owned by Ra-Max Farms (Clayton Rash) of Claremore, Okla. and is ridden regularly by jockey David Cabrera. Welder holds the track record for six furlongs on the dirt, the distance for the Sprint, when he covered that distance in 1:08.13 on Sept. 29 last year when he won the $150,000 David Vance Sprint..
Welder is also three wins away from tying the track record of 15 wins by a horse at Remington Park. If he could accomplish that, he would draw into a deadlock with Highland Ice and Elegant Exxactsy at 15 apiece. Welder, in his last effort, his first try on the grass, won the Remington Park Turf Sprint by a neck over Shannon C. The public’s favorite here also will be gunning for his 10th stakes win in a row at Remington. Welder currently holds the record with nine consecutive stakes wins. The last stakes race Welder lost at Remington Park was this Oklahoma Classics Sprint in 2017 when he ran second to Eurobond. He was not under Luneack’s tutelage at that time as she was serving as an assistant trainer to Chris Hartman in 2017. When Welder returned to her barn in 2018, the streak started.
Here’s a look at the field of seven for the Classics Sprint, from the rail out, with jockey, trainer and morning-line odds:
1) Euromantic: Alfredo Triana Jr., Victor Hanson, 15-1
2) Mesa Moon: Floyd Wethey Jr., Scott Young, 5-1
3) Welder: David Cabrera, Teri Luneack, 1-2
4) Fly to the Bank: Roberto Morales, James Helzer, 8-1
5) Daaher’s Success: Richard Eramia, C.R. Trout, 15-1
6) No Lak of Speed: Luis Quinonez, Jesse Oberlander, 8-1
7) Word to the Wise: Ramon Vazquez, Francisco Bravo, 15-1
Remington Park racing continues Saturday night with nine races underway at 7:07pm-Central.
Tracked by more than 164,000 fans on Facebook and 10,500 Twitter followers, Remington Park has provided more than $250 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 is open daily for casino gaming and simulcast horse racing. The 2020 Thoroughbred Season features the Oklahoma Classics on Friday, Oct. 16, a million-dollar night of stakes racing for top Oklahoma-breds. Visit remingtonpark.com for more information.
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