EMPRESSUM OVERCOMES A ROUGH START AND SHOW DETERMINATION TO WIN REMINGTON PARK DERBY
OKLAHOMA CITY, OK – April 18, 2021 – Top Oklahoma-bred 3-year-olds battled over 400 yards in the $355,800 Remington Park Derbyon Saturday night. The restricted Grade 2 race was taken with an outstanding effort by Empressum.
Owned by the Guthrie, Okla. Partnership of Jeff Jones and Steve Holt, Empressum had to overcome a poor start, contact from rivals on both sides and then move between those same rivals to contend before getting victory.
“He showed a tremendous amount of heart and determination after what happened out of the gate,” noted winning trainer Heath Taylor. “Rodrigo (Vallejo, jockey) told me he had to split horses in tight to pass those two (Candy Blood, No. 1 and B Cause Im a Hero, No. 3). That tells you something about our horse right there.”
A gelding by Apollitical Jess from the First Down Dash mare Crazy Down Corona, Empressum was fifth just before the halfway point of the derby. Vallejo continued to hand-ride his mount into a slight opening before going to work once they found more room. HR Princess Jess led out of the gate but could not sustain that effort for the entire measure. Candy Blood, who made early contact with Empressum, was very game but didn’t have enough late to hold off the winner.
Empressum crossed the finish line a neck better than Candy Blood, the beaten 6-5 wagering favorite. HR Princess Jess settled for third, another neck back. Empressum handled the 400 yards in :19.625 to earn a speed index of 92. The remaining order of finish included Apollitical Bird (4th), B Cause Im a Hero (5th), A Pollitical Gal (6th), Apollitical Gold (7th), Everlong (8th) and MH Apollitical Spy (9th).
Overlooked at 16-1 odds, Empressum paid $34 to win, $11 to place and $6.40 to show. He won his sixth career race from nine attempts. The first-place derby check of $142,320 moves his lifetime bankroll to $213,478.
This was the first Remington Park Derby win for owners Jones and Holt, also for jockey Vallejo. Empressum provided the second win in the race for Taylor who saddled First Carolina to victory in 2007.
Now a winner of two consecutive races, Empressum may not be finished with what has turned out to be a solid spring at Remington Park, according to Taylor.
“There are some stakes at the end of the meet we might run him in here but he’s also paid into some Texas races too. We’ll let the horse tell us what to do after we see how he came out of this.”
Remington Park racing continues on Sunday, April 18, with the first of 11 events at 6pm-Central.
•••••
Tracked by more than 165,000 fans on Facebook and 10,400 Twitter followers, Remington Park has provided more than $260 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 $1 million Heritage Place Futurity on May 29. Visit remingtonpark.com for more information.
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🚨Attn Horsemen: The OQHRA Board of Directors Elections are coming up this Fall. Make sure you renew your OQHRA membership by September 1st in order to Vote ☑️!
Please help us congratulate Troy! He is such an important part of all of our success at Fair Meadows! Be sure to tell him Thank You when you see him! ... ’Expand’See Less
Congratulations Troy!!! Thank you for all you have done for all of us. A special thanks for a special longtime friendship that I truly treasure.😊
Troy is the absolute BEST!! Congratulations my friend!
Congratulations Troy !!
Congrats
He deserves it.
Troy’s Awesome, congratulations and thank you for always taking such care of us🏇🏻🏇🏻
Way to go Troy !!!!!
Looking good troy. I miss those days.
He is one of the best people you will ever meet in the race horse business
Congratulations Troy! One of the nicest people I ever had the privilege to work with.
Congratulations Troy. You always do a great job
My man Troy i can remember FMT in the beginning and Troy would always be the 1st one you saw either pulling in of a morning to work or at night to race, Troy always had the chaos organized in the haul in barn. Jim and Nina got the best one possible with Troy, one amazing man!
The Stephens family!
Jim,Barb and Kevin
Congratulations! Track would be lost with out you, you are awesome.
Congrats Troy!!!
You are the man, Troy
Congratulations
Congrats!!!
Never ran anything in OKLA., but CONGRATULATIONS TROY!!! Ppl like you are gold on ANY TRACK.
The Oklahoma Quarter Horse Racing Association (OQHRA) has confirmed the detection of Olodaterol through pre-entry hair testing protocols required for participation at Oklahoma racetracks. Olodaterol is a long-acting beta2-adrenergic agonist, a class of bronchodilators that includes strictly prohibited substances such as clenbuterol, albuterol, and carmoterol.
Olodaterol is not an approved substance in racehorses, and its presence constitutes a violation of integrity standards. The positive findings were made as a condition of entry through OQHRA-managed hair testing, not by the regulatory body, and as such, horses testing positive were ruled ineligible for entry.
While reports of Olodaterol have surfaced in other states through hair samples, OQHRA is not currently aware of any confirmed positives in blood or urine samples. This reinforces the value of hair testing in identifying substances that may otherwise go undetected.
“This is a clear example of why hair testing matters,” said Krissy Bamberg, Executive Director of OQHRA. “Whether used pre-entry to prevent horses from competing, or post-race for official adjudication, hair testing provides a longer detection window and a clearer picture of the medications and substances a horse has been exposed to.”
OQHRA will continue to support and expand the use of hair testing as part of its integrity and welfare program. In addition, the association will continue to advocate for the Oklahoma Horse Racing Commission to adopt hair testing as a standard matrix within the state’s official biological testing program. This includes both post-race testing and out-of-competition testing.
“We strongly encourage the Commission to expand its use of hair testing,” said Bamberg. “It's a reliable, science-based tool that gives regulators the ability to detect long-term exposure to prohibited substances and strengthens our ability to ensure fairness and safety in the sport.”
OQHRA and our partner racetracks remain committed to identifying and deterring the use of new and emerging substances and protecting the integrity of racing in Oklahoma. ... ’Expand’See Less
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EMPRESSUM OVERCOMES A ROUGH START AND SHOW DETERMINATION TO WIN REMINGTON PARK DERBY
OKLAHOMA CITY, OK – April 18, 2021 – Top Oklahoma-bred 3-year-olds battled over 400 yards in the $355,800 Remington Park Derbyon Saturday night. The restricted Grade 2 race was taken with an outstanding effort by Empressum.
Owned by the Guthrie, Okla. Partnership of Jeff Jones and Steve Holt, Empressum had to overcome a poor start, contact from rivals on both sides and then move between those same rivals to contend before getting victory.
“He showed a tremendous amount of heart and determination after what happened out of the gate,” noted winning trainer Heath Taylor. “Rodrigo (Vallejo, jockey) told me he had to split horses in tight to pass those two (Candy Blood, No. 1 and B Cause Im a Hero, No. 3). That tells you something about our horse right there.”
A gelding by Apollitical Jess from the First Down Dash mare Crazy Down Corona, Empressum was fifth just before the halfway point of the derby. Vallejo continued to hand-ride his mount into a slight opening before going to work once they found more room. HR Princess Jess led out of the gate but could not sustain that effort for the entire measure. Candy Blood, who made early contact with Empressum, was very game but didn’t have enough late to hold off the winner.
Empressum crossed the finish line a neck better than Candy Blood, the beaten 6-5 wagering favorite. HR Princess Jess settled for third, another neck back. Empressum handled the 400 yards in :19.625 to earn a speed index of 92. The remaining order of finish included Apollitical Bird (4th), B Cause Im a Hero (5th), A Pollitical Gal (6th), Apollitical Gold (7th), Everlong (8th) and MH Apollitical Spy (9th).
Overlooked at 16-1 odds, Empressum paid $34 to win, $11 to place and $6.40 to show. He won his sixth career race from nine attempts. The first-place derby check of $142,320 moves his lifetime bankroll to $213,478.
This was the first Remington Park Derby win for owners Jones and Holt, also for jockey Vallejo. Empressum provided the second win in the race for Taylor who saddled First Carolina to victory in 2007.
Now a winner of two consecutive races, Empressum may not be finished with what has turned out to be a solid spring at Remington Park, according to Taylor.
“There are some stakes at the end of the meet we might run him in here but he’s also paid into some Texas races too. We’ll let the horse tell us what to do after we see how he came out of this.”
Remington Park racing continues on Sunday, April 18, with the first of 11 events at 6pm-Central.
•••••
Tracked by more than 165,000 fans on Facebook and 10,400 Twitter followers, Remington Park has provided more than $260 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 $1 million Heritage Place Futurity on May 29. Visit remingtonpark.com for more information.
Facebook Feed
🚨Attn Horsemen: The OQHRA Board of Directors Elections are coming up this Fall. Make sure you renew your OQHRA membership by September 1st in order to Vote ☑️!
Online OQHRA Membership form --> bit.ly/3E8BOFb ... ’Expand’See Less
2 hours ago
Comment on Facebook
Please help us congratulate Troy! He is such an important part of all of our success at Fair Meadows! Be sure to tell him Thank You when you see him! ... ’Expand’See Less
2 days ago
Comment on Facebook
Congratulations Troy!!! Thank you for all you have done for all of us. A special thanks for a special longtime friendship that I truly treasure.😊
Troy is the absolute BEST!! Congratulations my friend!
Congratulations Troy !!
Congrats
He deserves it.
Troy’s Awesome, congratulations and thank you for always taking such care of us🏇🏻🏇🏻
Way to go Troy !!!!!
Looking good troy. I miss those days.
He is one of the best people you will ever meet in the race horse business
Congratulations Troy! One of the nicest people I ever had the privilege to work with.
Congratulations Troy. You always do a great job
My man Troy i can remember FMT in the beginning and Troy would always be the 1st one you saw either pulling in of a morning to work or at night to race, Troy always had the chaos organized in the haul in barn. Jim and Nina got the best one possible with Troy, one amazing man! The Stephens family! Jim,Barb and Kevin
Congratulations! Track would be lost with out you, you are awesome.
Congrats Troy!!!
You are the man, Troy
Congratulations
Congrats!!!
Never ran anything in OKLA., but CONGRATULATIONS TROY!!! Ppl like you are gold on ANY TRACK.
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𝗗𝗶𝘀𝗰𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆 𝗼𝗳 𝗢𝗹𝗼𝗱𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗼𝗹 𝗶𝗻 𝗛𝗮𝗶𝗿 𝗧𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗥𝗲𝗶𝗻𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗰𝗲𝘀 𝗜𝗺𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝗣𝗿𝗲-𝗘𝗻𝘁𝗿𝘆 𝗥𝗲𝗾𝘂𝗶𝗿𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁
The Oklahoma Quarter Horse Racing Association (OQHRA) has confirmed the detection of Olodaterol through pre-entry hair testing protocols required for participation at Oklahoma racetracks. Olodaterol is a long-acting beta2-adrenergic agonist, a class of bronchodilators that includes strictly prohibited substances such as clenbuterol, albuterol, and carmoterol.
Olodaterol is not an approved substance in racehorses, and its presence constitutes a violation of integrity standards. The positive findings were made as a condition of entry through OQHRA-managed hair testing, not by the regulatory body, and as such, horses testing positive were ruled ineligible for entry.
While reports of Olodaterol have surfaced in other states through hair samples, OQHRA is not currently aware of any confirmed positives in blood or urine samples. This reinforces the value of hair testing in identifying substances that may otherwise go undetected.
“This is a clear example of why hair testing matters,” said Krissy Bamberg, Executive Director of OQHRA. “Whether used pre-entry to prevent horses from competing, or post-race for official adjudication, hair testing provides a longer detection window and a clearer picture of the medications and substances a horse has been exposed to.”
OQHRA will continue to support and expand the use of hair testing as part of its integrity and welfare program. In addition, the association will continue to advocate for the Oklahoma Horse Racing Commission to adopt hair testing as a standard matrix within the state’s official biological testing program. This includes both post-race testing and out-of-competition testing.
“We strongly encourage the Commission to expand its use of hair testing,” said Bamberg. “It's a reliable, science-based tool that gives regulators the ability to detect long-term exposure to prohibited substances and strengthens our ability to ensure fairness and safety in the sport.”
OQHRA and our partner racetracks remain committed to identifying and deterring the use of new and emerging substances and protecting the integrity of racing in Oklahoma. ... ’Expand’See Less
3 days ago
Comment on Facebook
Why don’t you just require hair testing in test barn of top 2 finishers. Wouldn’t that be a more accurate chance to catch abuse?
You don’t find it in blood and urine because hair testing is highly variable and substances can last for years after it’s been administered.
Felipe Martinez this what you Ben saying all along
The Louisiana Racing Commission STILL does not recognize the hair testing we owners have been paying for the last few years!
Guess you missed the news from LA??
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