IRAM DIEGO, KEVIN SCHOLL VOTED LIP CHIP JOCKEY and TRAINER OF THE WEEK AT REMINGTON PARK
Remington Park hosted a race card on Friday, Sept. 12 that included three turf stakes, all of them for Oklahoma-breds. Jockey Iram Diego won two of the three, the $50,000 Cliff Berry Turf Sprint and the $50,000 Red Earth Handicap. Trainer Kevin Scholl was almost as impressive and that is why the two were voted Lip Chip Jockey and Trainer of the Week.
If Scholl knows anything, it’s his two-time Horse of the Meeting the past two years – Miss Code West. The 4-year-old Oklahoma-bred filly was a disappointing second to Letta’s Legacy on the dirt in her season debut, but Scholl didn’t flinch. He knew how well his trainee had run in the $125,000 Chicken Fried Stakes at Lone Star Park in Grand Prairie, Texas on June 28, winning that open-company race on the grass at five furlongs by a half-length. So, Scholl put Miss Code West back on the turf on Sept. 12 and won the Bob Barry Memorial to win her 11th race in 15 tries lifetime and her second time greensward in three starts over that surface. Regular rider Floyd Wethey, Jr., was aboard Miss Code West for the score. Miss Code West is owned by Jeffry and Julie Puryear of Denton, Texas and was bred in Oklahoma by Bryan Hawk.
Diego has quickly become one of the top turf riders at Remington Park. He showed why when he won the Red Earth aboard Excaping the Blues, who won his fourth race in a row under Diego. The red-hot jockey said, “I guess I’m lucky.”
Lucky is winning one race. Diego had already won the Cliff Berry Turf Sprint with Dark Afternoon earlier on the card. It was the third year in a row this 5-year-old Oklahoma-bred gelding had won this stakes race. He has turned into quite the turf monster for trainer Alex Hartman, who has him in his barn this year for the first time. Dark Afternoon is owned by Black Hawk Stable (James Rogers of Elk City, Okla.), also the breeder.
Francisco Bravo trains Excaping the Blues, who is owned by the late Michael Grossman of Fredericksburg, Texas. Bravo, choking through his words, said his biggest regret was Grossman passing before this horse got good. He was bred by Eureka Thoroughbred Farm.
Remington Park racing continues Thursday through Saturday, Sept. 18-20, with the first race nightly at 6pm-Central.
Remington Park has provided more than $390 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 year-round simulcast racing and casino gaming. The 2025 Oklahoma Derby takes place Sunday, Sept. 28. The Thoroughbred Season continues through Dec. 20. 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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