Barn Notes
Trujillo Begins Return Today Defending Calder Title
Jockey Elvis Trujillo was the runaway winner of the Calder Meet title last year with 160 victories and will begin his championship defense with three mounts on Friday’s program, riding for the first time since suffering a broken wrist in a spill on Feb. 23 at Gulfstream Park.
“He’s been galloping in the morning for about two weeks,” said agent Cliff Collier. “He’ll get started slowly and build up as we go along. He’s feeling good.” Trujillo’s first mount will be aboard Motivato in the fifth race for trainer Marty Wolfson.
A 24-year-old native of Panama, Trujillo first came to Calder in 2005 and worked his way onto the national scene last year with his first ever meet title at Calder and becoming the regular rider of the top sprint mare Maryfield.
Trained by Doug O’Neill, Maryfield finished fourth in the $500,000 Princess Rooney Handicap (G1) on ‘Summit of Speed’ day in July with Trujillo aboard for the first time, and was retained on the 6-year-old daughter of Elusive Quality as she went on to complete an Eclipse Award campaign winning the Ballerina Handicap (G1) at Saratoga and the first running of the $1 million Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Sprint at Monmouth Park in October.
Trujillo finished second in the standings at the Tropical Meet late last year behind veteran Manoel Cruz (104-92), who had finished second to Trujillo during the Calder Meet, and the two will likely continue that rivalry here this summer. Trujillo was doing very well at Gulfstream before his spill with 30 victories after 42 days before the mid-point of the meet.
Trujillo is named on two horses Saturday, including Carl Mikkelsen’s 5-year-old mare Private Betty in the $300,000 Mairzy Doates Handicap for trainer Steve Dwoskin, and has five mounts Sunday, including Lucille Geranis’ 5-year-old mare Cat Can Do in the $36,000 Emergency Nurse overnight stakes for trainer Ralph Ziadie.
Cruz came out of the gate fast on opening day here Monday posting three winners on the nine-race card.
Moon Catcher Stretches Out in Emergency Nurse Overnight Sunday
Trainer Christophe Clement sends out contenders in all four stakes worth $1.15 million on the inaugural ‘Turf Million’ program Saturday at Calder, and will have at least one more runner here before the last contingent of the stable ships to New York for the summer from his Payson Park winter quarters. Marsha Naify’s 4-year-old filly Moon Catcher is entered in Sunday’s $36,000 Emergency Nurse overnight stakes.
Jockey Manoel Cruz will be aboard Moon Catcher in the 1 1/16 miles test as she stretches out from a sixth-place finish behind winter filly and mare sprint star Sugar Swirl in the seven-furlong Shirley Jones Handicap (G2) at Gulfstream Park on Mar. 29. That race marked her first start for Clement and first since winning the Maryland Millions Oaks at Laurel Park in mid-October for trainer Tim Ritchey.
A Maryland-bred daughter of Malibu Moon, Moon Catcher should move forward to a distance of ground from the Shirley Jones as she showed her best last year in two-turn events, winning the Susan’s Girl Breeders’ Cup and Delaware Oaks (G2) at Delaware Park over the summer. She turned in a respectable effort finishing fourth in the Alabama Stakes (G1) at Saratoga behind Lady Joanne.
Moon Catcher’s most dangerous rivals in Sunday’s field of 10 may be N T S Stable’s 5-year-old mare Annabill with Junior Alvarado aboard for trainer Milt Wolfson and Lucille Geranis’ 5-year-old mare Cat Can Do to be ridden by Elvis Trujillo for trainer Ralph Ziadie.
Annabill won three straight stakes here last year, highlighted by her game half-length victory over Bayou’s Lassie in the $200,000 Elmer Heubeck Distaff on Florida Million Day on Nov. 11. Wolfson claimed the daughter of Outflanker for his family’s N T S Stable for $25,000 as a 3-year-old in August of 2006 and she has posted most of her $437,000 earnings since then. She finished fifth last out in the Turf Distaff at Tampa Bay Downs on Apr. 5.
Cat Can Do has shown a fondness for the Calder track with a 17-6-3-3 record over the track, including victories in the Nancy’s Glitter Handicap and Sambacarioca overnight during the summer before checking in fifth behind Annabill in the Elmer Heubeck. A Florida homebred daughter of Adcat, Cat Can Do finished a game second last out behind Peach Flambe at Gulfstream last Sunday.
Completing the field for the Emergency Nurse are Four Horsemen Racing Stable’s Spirited Seacat, J D Farms’ Pretoria Light, Edmund Gann’s Eclisse, Beverly Green’s Casa Mimaty, Victoria Farm’s Speeding Fever, Roland Powell’s Saffronista and Jerome Cohen and Michael Sherman’s Silkily.
