OKLAHOMA CLASSICS HORSES GETTING FINAL WORKS LEADING UP TO BIG NIGHT FRIDAY, OCT. 18

Several horses entered in the Oklahoma Classics races scheduled for Friday, Oct. 18, came to the track on Friday, Oct. 11 and Saturday, Oct. 12 for their final official workouts before that big night.

Stakes winners Eakly and Soul Sacrifice checked in with workouts and also an up-and-coming filly, Xyngin Spitfire, also worked Friday. Others working Saturday morning were C W Prize who will compete in the Classics Cup and Dark Afternoon who goes in the Classics Sprint.

All of these working horses have been entered on Oklahoma Classics Night, an evening reserved for the top Oklahoma-bred horses in training. They will compete in multiple stakes races that night, vying for purses estimated to top $1 million.

All three horses on Friday morning worked five furlongs. Eakly, trained by Oklahoma Horse Racing Hall of Famer Donnie Von Hemel, the second winningest trainer in Remington Park history, became a stakes winner on Oklahoma Classics Night of 2023. The 4-year-old gelding by Caleb’s Posse, out of the Lonhro (AUS) mare Vian, won the $100,000 OKC Turf Classic in wire-to-wire fashion at 1-1/16th miles on the grass. Richard Eramia was aboard for the victory for owner Cheyenne Stable. Eakly was bred by Candy Meadows.

Eakly worked 1:00.84, handily Friday over a fast track, just slightly off the bullet work time of Sonic Posse at 1:00.65. This year, Von Hemel has entered Eakly once again in the $130,000 OKC Turf Classic Handicap. The defending champion has drawn the outside post in a seven-horse field in the final race of the night – the 10th which will go off at approximately 11:02 p.m. Eramia has been named to ride.

Eakly’s record going into that race is 15 starts, three wins, five seconds and three thirds with a bankroll of $177,866.

Soul Sacrifice, a stakes winner here last year in the Jim Thorpe Stakes for trainer Shawn Davis and owner Casner Racing, worked a solid 1:01.25, handily, on Friday morning. Jockey Jose Alvarez rode him to that black-type win over a muddy track on Dec. 15, 2023. That win was at the one-mile distance. He has been entered on Classics Night this year in the big race – the $175,000 Oklahoma Classics Cup. He faces some bears as a 12-1 longshot. The race features local multiple stakes winners in Number One Dude and Flat Hanby, and also the shipper Winters Lion (2-1 morning line favorite). That horse, trained by Joe Sharp, has earned $229,744 in his career despite never winning a stakes race. He is multiple stakes placed and has faced some tough company, breaking his maiden at Oaklawn Park in Hot Springs in December 2022 and an allowance race at Belmont at Aqueduct’s meet Oct. 6, 2023. He is 2-for-17 in his career.

Xyngin Spitfire worked a sharp 1:00.72, handily over the track Friday and has been entered in the Oklahoma Classics Distaff Sprint, drawing the inside rail post position for trainer Boyd “Jobie” Caster and jockey Rene Diaz.

The 3-year-old Oklahoma-bred filly by The Visualiser, out of the Ready’s Image mare Ready Get Set Go, has been sharp this race meet at Remington Park. She was produced by the same sire who was the dad of Remington Park’s all-time winningest horse – Welder, who had 16 trips to the winner’s circle here.

Both of Xyngin Spitfire’s wins came in Oklahoma City for Caster. She broke her maiden here last year on Nov. 1, 2023, with Remington Park’s all-time second winningest jockey in history, Luis Quinonez. Caster switched it up this year and gave a leg up to Rene Diaz on Aug. 23 for the filly’s first trip over the Remington main track. She won by a full length against allowance Oklahoma-bred fillies and mares at 20-1 odds. If that weren’t enough, Xyngin Spitfire raced next in the $30,000 Oklahoma Stallion Handicap on Sept. 6 and finished second to multiple stakes winner and Remington Park 2023 Horse of the Meet – Miss Code West. Xyngin Spitfire was beaten 5-1/4 lengths in the Stallion stakes, but she was 17-1/4 lengths ahead of the third-place finisher in there.

She currently sits at six starts, two wins, one second and one third for $51,084 in earnings for owners Tom and Pauline Goff. She is a home-bred for the Goffs.

Saturday morning, C W Prize, poised for the Classics Cup, worked four furlongs in 50.31, in a breeze, over a fast track. Current leading owner in the Remington Park season, Bryan Hawk of Shawnee, Okla. and local Hall of Fame trainer Joe Offolter will have Eramia ride C W Prize. The 4-year-old Code West gelding has won six of 12 career starts and compiled $155,226 in earnings.

Another four-furlong work came from Good Swimmer who will go in the Turf Classic. Owned by Richard Chandler of Dallas and trained by Mindy Willis, Good Swimmer went :52.43 handily. The 6-year-old gelding by Excaper will have Alfredo Triana, Jr. up in the turf event.

The sprint will have a field of eight, including Dark Afternoon, winner of the Remington Park Turf Sprint against Oklahoma-breds on Sept. 20 here. The 4-year-old Black Bear gelding went five furlongs Saturday morning in 1:02.61 handily. Dark Afternoon has six wins from 15 attempts and earnings of $177.671.

Hernandez Gaining on 1,000 Wins
Jockey Harry Hernandez continues to excel at Remington Park and is now moving closer to a career milestone.

Through racing of Friday, Oct. 11, Hernandez has 992 victories since arriving in the United States from his native Puerto Rico in 2015.

Hernandez has been named to ride six times on Saturday night at Remington Park with Projection (5-2 morning-line favorite) in race one, Courageous Cappen (5-1) in race two, Courtney Fay (9-2) in race three, Belleria Baby (3-1) in race four, Daring Reason (9-2) in race six and Bad Sneakers (5-2 morning-line favorite) in race eight.

Remington Park racing continues Saturday, Oct. 12 with nine race-program. Races one, four and nine will be over the turf. The track is fast, the turf is firm. The first race is 6:30pm. All times are Central.

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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