Photo: Sue Kawczynski / Eclipse Sportswire
Saratoga Springs, New York
With six wins in 22 starts, Ray Handal is on pace for his best Saratoga race since opening his stable nearly 10 years ago, and he couldn’t imagine a bigger stage to showcase his skills and those of his staff.
“Everyone wants to win races here and run the horses at full speed,” he said. “If you’re lucky and get the races you want to be in, everything seems to be going as perfectly as it can be.”
Handal said a key to success in the demanding 40-day race that runs through Labor Day is doing everything possible to make sure the horses are properly placed. “We run the horses where they can be competitive,” he said. “We try not to waste any effort, especially up here.”
Handal has been allocated 27 stalls at Saratoga and all are filled. He has another 15 horses at Belmont Park. He hopes his success this summer will encourage his current clients to buy horses and entice new owners to get involved.
“Winning here sets you up for the whole year,” he said. “You get everyone’s attention and that leads to bigger and better things the rest of the year.”
Handal discussed some of the horses that have either contributed to his success or have the potential to help him during a Barn Tour for Nation of horse racing.
Gemstone Mint Ten. He is a 4-year-old gelding out of Laoban who is coming off a win at Saratoga on July 27. He won by 2 1/2 lengths at 1 1/16 miles on turf with Luis Saez in the saddle, improving his record to 11-2-3-0 and his purse to $150,750.
Hard par. He continues to chase his first win. In seven starts, the 3-year-old Hard Spun colt has finished second once and finished third a couple of times. When he finished third in a Maiden Special Weight race on July 26, he had such a rough road that jockey Katie Davis filed an appeal, which was denied. “He’s run in the meet before,” Handal said. “He had a lot of trouble on the first turn. He took off his heels. He ran pretty bravely, so we’re giving him another chance (at Saratoga). We expect him to run another solid race for himself.”
He has everything. This three-year-old gelding from Laoban is still chasing his first win after seven starts, but he already has three second-place finishes. He has competed twice in maiden events at the meet in special weights, finishing fourth on July 20 and fifth on August 15. “He’s run a lot,” said Handal. “He’s had a bit of bad luck. He’s run into a few buzzsaws.”
The Salvadorenina. The 3-year-old bay Oscar Performance mare has potential, finishing second twice in three starts. She turned in her worst performance to date, finishing fifth in a Maiden Special Weight Company race over 1 1/16 miles on turf on July 14. She looks to be in good form in her next start. She will run 5 1/2 furlongs on grass in the 10th race on Aug. 22. La Salvadorena and jockey Dylan Davis will start from post 6 in a field of 10. “She kind of told us she doesn’t want to run two laps, so we’re going to cut her back to five and a half (furlongs). Maybe put some blinkers on her. She’s done really well.”
More than grace. The Adelphi Racing Club spent $180,000 to acquire this two-year-old mare by More Than Ready. She had to be patient. She is due to race again at Belmont Park in September. “She got sick and I didn’t like what she was doing, so I sent her to a farm to recover. I think she’s going to do well. I think she’s going to be a good fall and winter horse.”
Prince James. This is a hard-working 7-year-old gelding by Tiznow, owned by Pavilion Racing. He ran in a $10,000 seven-furlong race at Saratoga on July 31 and returned a record of 11-1, improving his record to 41-7-9-6 and increasing his earnings to $319,845. He has two wins in six starts this season.
Union Dolly. The 5-year-old Constitution mare was victorious in her first start since Dec. 21 at Fair Grounds. A July 20 allowance finish in a 5 1/2 furlongs event raised her mark to 16-4-3-1 with a starting purse of $191,029.
Valtellina. The debut of this two-year-old mare by the top-class sire Complexity is eagerly awaited after a small setback. “We are really excited about her. We thought she would run really well. She was in the running, she got sick, we canceled her. But she is due to run at the end of the month.”
