For Immediate Release – Oklahoma City, OK, October 8, 2023 – The past two champions of the Oklahoma Classics Cup – That’s Something and Absaroka – have been nominated to this year’s edition of the biggest race on Friday, Oct. 20 at Remington Park.
The 31st edition of the Oklahoma Classics, contested every year since 1993, is an evening that honors the top Oklahoma-bred horses in training.
That’s Something and Absaroka are among 30 horses nominated to the $131,000 guaranteed Oklahoma Classics Cup for 3-year-olds-and-up, for Oklahoma-breds going 1-1/16th miles on the main track. That’s Something, a 6-year-old gelded son of Read the Footnotes, out of the Concern mare Cherokee Princess, was a gate-to-wire winner in the Classics Cup last year for owner-trainer Lynn Chleborad by 2-1/4 lengths at 5-2 odds under the guidance of veteran rider Luis Quinonez. He is the second all-time winningest jockey at Remington Park, trailing only Cliff Berry, who has distanced the field in this category. Chleborad also bred the horse.
That’s Something has raced 24 times in his career, winning six times, finishing second five more times and third once for earnings of $249,159. His last win came on Dec. 2 last year in allowance company at seven furlongs by 4-1/2 lengths at Remington Park. His past performances haven’t been as exemplary as last year’s in Oklahoma City. He has had two starts this meet, running third at six furlongs on the dirt, beaten 6-3/4 lengths, and at 7-1/2 furlongs on the turf, running fifth, losing by 6-3/4 lengths.
Absaroka, a 7-year-old gelded son of Flat Out, from the Brahms mare Wanton Song, won this race in 2021, exactly the way That’s Something did last year, going to the front and never looking back. He drew off by 4-1/4 lengths, making every pole a winning one. His try last year was a big disappointment as the gelding, owned by Seth Covey and J.R. Caldwell, ran up the track in eighth, beaten by 23-1/4 lengths by That’s Something. Caldwell also trains Absaroka, who won the 2021 edition for trainer C.R. Trout.
Absaroka was bred by Cowboy Stables. As poor as his race was last year, Absaroka has returned to form slightly in 2023. He has won four of his last seven starts, two of those coming at Will Rogers Downs in Claremore, Okla., and two at Fair Meadows in Tulsa, Okla.
Absaroka’s first win of the year came in a $5,000 claiming race at Will Rogers Downs on April 24. Covey and Caldwell claimed him for that tag on that day and have gotten more than their money back. One of Absaroka’s victories this year was in a $19,250 handicap at Fair Meadows. In his career, he has started 31 times, winning nine, getting five seconds and four thirds for $273,660 in his bankroll.
There are only two other horses nominated that have more money in their wallets than Absaroka. They are Number One Dude and Cowboy Mischief. All three top earners among the nominations are cross-nominated to other races that night. Number One Dude, the top earner at $465,700 and Cowboy Mischief at $341,250, along with That’s Something, have all been nominated for the $99,600 guaranteed Oklahoma City Turf Classic Handicap at 1-1/16th miles greensward as well.
Cowboy Mischief and Absaroka were also nominated to the $99,600 guaranteed Oklahoma Classics Sprint at six furlongs on the main track.
Number One Dude would likely vie for favoritism in the Oklahoma Classics Cup as the top earner after going off at 2-5 odds in the $50,000 Red Earth Stakes, going 7-1/2 furlongs on the grass on Sept. 22 here. The 5-year-old gelded son of American Lion, out of the Macho Uno mare Ebony Uno, has run first or second in 11 of 13 starts at Remington Park for $350,548 earned in Oklahoma City. His regular rider for owner Terry Westemeir of Broken Arrow, Okla., and trainer Scott Young, is jockey Leandro Goncalves. He won with Number One Dude on the grass in the Red Earth Stakes in 2022 and then finished as the runner-up in that race this year to turf monster Tap the Dot. He also raced on the main track this meet, finishing fourth in the $100,000 Governor’s Cup on opening night against open company Aug. 18, losing by 3-3/4 lengths at 1-1/8th miles. Number One Dude was bred by his owner.
Cowboy Mischief, a 7-year-old gray horse by Into Mischief, out of the Bob and John mare Lady Jensen, has been a bit off form as of late, but he was a stakes winner this summer at Fair Meadows, taking the $45,000 Route 66 Stakes under jockey Floyd Wethey, Jr. He rode for trainer Scott Young and owner Kelly Thiesing of Alva, Okla. He was 11 lengths back in the early going of that stakes race in Tulsa, going 6-1/2 furlongs, and he closed every bit of ground to win by a neck. Since then, however, he ran seventh and eighth at Remington Park on the turf in both starts, losing by 9-1/2 and 11-1/2 lengths in an allowance-optional $50,000 claiming race on Aug. 23 and in the Red Earth Stakes on Sept. 22.
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Remington Park racing continues Wednesday through Saturday, Oct. 11-14. The first post time nightly is 7:07 p.m. CDT.
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Remington Park has provided more than $331 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 3 Oklahoma Derby and the Grade 3 Remington Park Oaks on Sunday, Sept. 24, 2023. Remington Park presents simulcast racing daily and non-stop casino gaming. 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.
