JESS GOOD WINE SETS STAKES RECORD TIME IN WINNING MR JET MOORE UNDER JOCKEY BRYAN CANDANOSA

by Richard Linihan

OKLAHOMA CITY, OK – March 7, 2024 – Graded stakes winner Hooked N Gone got the jump on odds-on favorite Jess Good Wine out of the gate Saturday night, but the latter of those two found extra gears after being bumped at the start and cruised home a winner in the $68,000 Mr Jet Moore Stakes at Remington Park.

The 4-year-old gelded son of Good Reason SA, out of the Mr Jess Perry mare Mr Perrys Wine, stopped the timer for 350 yards in a stakes record :17.273 for a 102 speed index. The race was run over a surface labeled good after a couple doses of heavy rain hit Remington Park prior to the first race of the night.

Previously, Slew of Success held the fastest Mr Jet Moore Stakes win in :17.316 in 2014. In fact, the top three finishers in Saturday night’s race all had faster times than Slew of Success. Third-place fast-closing Apollitical Payoff (10-1) was another nose behind Hooked N Gone. Hooked N Gone finished in :17.302 and Apollitical Payoff in :17.309. The track record for 350 yards was set by Hes Relentless on May 31, 2014, in :16.982.

Jess Good Wine won his fourth race in his last five starts and is only two necks from winning his seventh race in a row. He lost by a neck in the $479,000 Texas Classic Derby at Lone Star Park in Grand Prairie, Texas, last fall and by another neck in his All American Derby trial at Ruidoso Downs in New Mexico last summer. He has sandwiched five other wins around those two near misses.

With Bryan Candanosa in the saddle Saturday night, his regular rider, the 1-5 favorite squeeze past the fast-breaking Hooked N Gone to win by a head in this 350-yard race for trainer Oklahoma-breds, 3-years-old-and-up. It was the second win of the night for trainer Toby Keeton and Candanosa combined. Jess Good Wine earned $39,600 for owner Guns Up Racing of Lubbock, Texas, to improve his record to 15 starts, seven wins, five seconds and one third, earning a bankroll of $366,083. He was purchased for $35,000 in the 2021 Heritage Place Fall Mixed Sale and was bred in Oklahoma by Flag Ranch.

“He is an amazing horse to ride,” said Candanosa. “We got bumped a little at the beginning and after that he did it pretty much on his own. I just tried to stay out of his way. I had a lot of horse still left in the tank. It was pretty deep down on the inside (of the track).”

It was quite a battle to the wire as the winner edged Hooked N Gone, who has earned more than a half-million in his career. Jess Good Wine paid $2.60 to win, $2.10 to place and $2.10 to show across the board.

The managing partner of Guns Up Racing, Kevin Hogan, was beside himself over the victory.

“This horse had surgery as a 2-year-old and has been a monster ever since,” he said.

Keeton said Jess Good Wine would likely be pointed to the Dee Raper Sooner State Stakes on Saturday, April 27 for Oklahoma-breds racing 400 yards, and possibly on closing night, Saturday, June 1, in the Grade 1 Debbie Schauf Remington Park Invitational Championship.

Jess Good Wine was coming off a two-length win in the Hobbs American Derby at Zia Park in New Mexico at the 400-yard distance. He also won the All American Invitational at Rudioso Downs last year on Sept. 3 at 440 yards. Candanosa has ridden him in every race of the horse’s life except for his first two.

The rest of the finish of this stakes race was LS Jacks Back (10-1) in fourth, Deutsch (37-1) fifth, RGs Gold Wagon (17-1) sixth and One Fabulous Boy (24-1) seventh. Defours was a scratch from the race before the night began.

The victory was the first for all of the connections of Jess Good Wine in the Mr Jet Moore Stakes. The race, a restricted Grade 2 for Oklahoma-breds, 3 and older, is named for the 1972 American Quarter Horse Association World Champion who was also the victor of the very first Champion of Champions.

Remington Park racing continues Sunday with a 4 p.m. first post time.

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Remington Park has provided more than $345 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 Remington Park Futurity for Oklahoma-breds is featured on April 27. The 2024 American Quarter Horse, Paint and Appaloosa Season continues through June 1. starts its 50-date season. Parking and admission are always free. Must be 18 or older to wager on horse racing or enter the casino gaming floor. Visit remingtonpark.com for more information.