© Dustin Orona Photography/Remington Park
OKLAHOMA CITY – May 12, 2019 – After 22 trials were contested for the Grade 1 $1,1073,000 Heritage Place Futurity, Jay Number 7 put up the fastest time for the 10 finalists, stopping the clock for 350 yards in 17.362 seconds Saturday at Remington Park, winning his trial by an astounding 3-1/4 lengths.
The Heritage Place Futurity, the richest race of the Remington Park season, will headline the final program of the season on June 1.
James Flores, leading rider at Remington Park, burst from the gate first under Jay Number 7 and was an easy winner in the first of 11 trials on Saturday. The top five times from Saturday and the top five times from Friday night would qualify for the finals of the keystone race during this Quarter Horse/Paints/Appaloosa meet.
Jay Number 7 posted a qualifying time that was three-tenths of a second faster than Friday’s fastest qualifier Jesses Dashair, who went 17.392 seconds.
Jay Number 7 has been to the track for four official starts and won in three of those, not making it to the winner’s circle only in the $100,000 Remington Park Juvenile Stakes on April 20. This 2-year-old gelded Quarter Horse by Im A Fancy PYC, out of the My First Moon mare First Ginlark, is owned and bred in Oklahoma by Dustin Cox of Duncan, Okla., and trained by Sammy Valdivia.
Jay Number 7 broke his maiden at first asking at Remington Park when he won by a half-length at 250 yards on March 10. He followed that up with an even more impressive win in the mud during Remington Park Futurity trials on April 6, winning by 1-1/4 lengths, but not qualifying for the final. On April 20, Jay Number 7 was sent off as the 2-1 favorite in the Remington Park Juvenile Stakes, but could do no better than third, beaten a length by Relentless Gun. But as fate would have it, Relentless Gun could not qualify for the Heritage Place Futurity finals and Jay Number 7 was the fastest qualifier over two days.
Jay Number 7 earned a speed index of 94 on Saturday night and was sent off at 4-5 odds, paying $3.60 to win, $2.40 to place and $2.10 to show. Flores also qualified the fourth-fastest qualifier from Friday night, Pepper Ryan, from trainer Heath Taylor’s barn.
Leading trainer Eddie Willis qualified two horses Saturday for the finals in Jess B One and Jesse D.
- The following were the five fastest qualifiers from Saturday’s trials, conducted over a muddy track with a northerly tailwind ranging from 1-6mph:
- 1) Jay Number 7, 17.362 seconds, 94 Speed Index, trial one, trainer Sammy Valdivia, jockey James Flores.
- 2) Apollitical J Twin 1, 17.427, 92, trial two, Sammy Valdivia, Jose Vega.
*Heritage Place Sales Graduate* - 3) Jess B One, 17.549, 89, trial two, Eddie Willis, Jimmy Brooks.
- 4) Jesse D, 17.554, 89, trial 10, Eddie Willis, Jimmy Brooks.
- 5) Favorit Shake, 17.579, 88, trial eight, Jimmy Padgett II, Rodrigo Vallejo
*Heritage Place Sales Graduate*
- Joining the Saturday qualifiers from Friday night in the finals are:
- 1) Jesses Dashair, 17.392, 93, trial 10, Trey Wood, Ricky Ramirez.
*Heritage Place Sales Graduate* - 2) Uptowne Babe, 17.430, 92, trial 10, Pedro Hernandez-Pulido, Rolando Raudales.
- 3) Uncle D, 17.448, 92, trial six, Clinton Crawford, Ricky Ramirez.
*Heritage Place Sales Graduate* - 4) Pepper Ryan, 17.579, 88, trial seven, Heath Taylor, James Flores.
- 5) Hey Lookee Here, 17.605, 87, trial seven, Pedro Hernandez-Pulido, Armando Ramirez II.
*Heritage Place Sales Graduate*
Racing resumes Sunday with race one set for 1:30 p.m. on a 10-race card that includes trials for the $367,750 Heritage Place Derby final and two graded stakes races, the Grade 2, $88,442 Bank of America Remington Park Challenge and the Grade 3, $40,299 Remington Park Distance Challenge.
Remington Park is always open for casino gaming. Simulcast horse racing is offered daily. Admission, parking and valet parking are always free at Remington Park. Guests must be 18 or older in order to wager on horse racing or to enter the casino.
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Tracked by more than 154,000 fans on Facebook and more than 9,900 Twitter followers, Remington Park has provided more than $218 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 home to the Grade 1, $963,100 Heritage Place Futurity on Saturday, June 1. For more information, reservations and group bookings please call 405-424-1000, 866-456-9880 or visit remingtonpark.com.