Thoroughbred Racing Association of Oklahoma (TRAO)

2 days ago

For Immediate Release
Friday, November 7, 2025
by Richard Linihan

C W PRIZE ADDS ANOTHER BLACK TYPE WIN TO HIS RESUME, WINNING SILVER GOBLIN HANDICAP AT REMINGTON PARK

OKLAHOMA CITY – C W Prize broke out of his two-race slump Friday night under jockey Richard Eramia and wound up in the winner’s circle of the $50,000 Silver Goblin Handicap for 3-year-olds and older, Oklahoma-breds, sprinting 6-1/2 furlongs at Remington Park.

C W Prize, a 5-year-old gelded son of Code West, out of the Pure Prize mare M B Prize, was on a roll, starting in 2024, running first or second in five stakes in a row. After that, however, when he returned to Remington Park, he ran two consecutive dull races, following a layoff from May 5 to Aug. 23. Owner Bryan Hawk of Shawnee, Okla., and Oklahoma Horse Racing Hall of Fame trainer Joe Offolter tried him on the grass in his return in an allowance race and he finished fourth. Returning him to the dirt in the Oklahoma Classics Sprint on Oct. 17, he was a disappointing sixth, after a nearly two-month lapse between races. He had been laid off again before that last race.

“He missed a couple of races this year, so he wasn’t just right,” said Offolter. “But the last time Richard (Eramia) worked him in the morning, he gave me a wink and said, ‘I think he’s back.’”

The public never gave up on the bay gelding. He was sent off Friday as the 2-1 betting favorite and Eramia pushed all the right buttons to win by a full length over Missin Hollywood (9-2). The runner-up was another length ahead of third-place finisher Salt Creek Kid (13-1).

It was the second year in a row that Offolter won the Silver Goblin. He took home the trophy last year with Breakable Code, also owned by Hawk, thus giving the owner his second straight win in the series.

“(Tonight), my horse stumbled a little bit,” said Eramia, “and they were going awfully quick in front of me, so 6-1/2 was really good. By the eighth-pole, I knew we had it.”

The horse’s stumble did nothing to calm his owner’s beating heart.

“He really makes me nervous some days,” said Hawk. “I’ve raised him since he was this high to me (Hawk pointed to his waist). If he loves me, I’ll love him and that’s the relationship we have.”

C W Prize broke sixth in the field of eight and dropped back to seventh after the stumble, three lengths behind the leader, Missin Hollywood at the half-mile pole. C W Prize finally collared that competitor with a strong drive in deep stretch. He had cut into early fractions set by pace-setter Connors Outlaw (5-2) of :21.73 for the first quarter-mile and Missin Hollywood’s half-mile of :44.40 and three-quarters of a mile in 1:10.20. The winning time for C W Prize was 1:17.07 on the fast track. He paid $6.60 to win, $3.20 to place and $2.60 to show.

“This was a big effort tonight,” said Offolter. “He won the Jeffrey Hawk last year, so we may go that route again.”

The rest of the order of finish after the first three was Code Nate (5-1) fourth, Tzedakah (18-1) fifth, Connors Outlaw sixth, Ghost Hero (12-1) seventh and Flat Hanby (7-1) eighth.

The race is named for the soon-to-be-inducted Oklahoma Horse Racing Hall of Famer Silver Goblin. The Oklahoma-bred began his career at Remington Park in 1993 and concluded in 1999 for owner Al Horton and trainer Kenny Smith, winning multiple stakes events locally. Ridden by regular jockey Dale Cordova, Silver Goblin was a multiple graded stakes winner away from Remington and once ran second to the legendary Cigar in the 1995 Oaklawn Handicap. ... See MoreSee Less

Thoroughbred Racing Association of Oklahoma (TRAO)

2 days ago

ROYALAMERICAN RUNS HIS BLACK TYPE-WINNING STREAK TO TWO IN ROW WITH IN DON McNEILL STAKES


For Immediate Release
Friday, November 7, 2025
by Richard Linihan

OKLAHOMA CITY – Royalamerican is proving to be a versatile 2-year-old Oklahoma-bred gelding, winning his first stakes sprinting at Remington Park in October. Then, on Friday night, extended that black-type streak to two in a row, this one at one mile in the $50,000 Don McNeill Stakes.

The race is named for the late Oklahoma Horse Racing Hall of Fame owner and breeder, who had such legendary horses in his stable as Clever Trevor, the first Remington Park Derby winner (now the Oklahoma Derby), Caleb’s Posse (the Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile winner) and Mr Ross (winner of three consecutive Oklahoma Classics Cup races while also winning stakes at Oaklawn Park in Hot Springs, Ark., - The Essex and The Razorback before racing second in the Oaklawn Handicap).

Royalamerican is beginning to look like a horse that might have been in McNeill’s barn. The gelding by Upstart, out of the Creative Cause mare Scat for the Cause, is owned and trained and was bred by C.R. Trout of Edmond, Okla.

“He’s a nice horse,” Trout said. “I’ve liked this colt since he was born. He has always been easy on himself. I knew he would like the distance. I always thought six furlongs or 6-1/2 was a little short for him.”

Still, he won his first stakes at six furlongs on Oct. 17 at Remington Park in the Oklahoma Classics Juvenile. Stretching him out for the first time did nothing to upset the apple cart for Royalamerican. Jockey David Cabrera set him down well off the pace in sixth and seventh early on. He backed Royalamerican away from traffic with a half-mile left, moving him toward a clear path to the outside. That move paid off as Royalamerican swung four-wide off the second turn, moving from fourth to first by a head early in the stretch. He wound up winning by three-quarters of a length after catching the front-running Nucleus (16-1). The only thing Cabrera and Trout had to worry about was when Royalamerican began bearing in on Nucleus in deep stretch.

“He never tried to touch that other horse,” Cabrera said of Nucleus. “My horse was getting in a little, but not that much.”

The two of them proved to be the class of this bunch with Royalamerican winning by three-quarters of length at 1-5 odds and Nucleus finishing 8-1/2 more lengths ahead of third-place finisher Ztwentyeight (5-1).

Royalamerican finished the mile in 1:39.49 on the fast track after cutting into fractions of :23.63 for the first quarter-mile, :47.59 for the half-mile, and 1:12.72 for three-quarters of a mile before setting the seven furlongs mark of 1:25.92. He paid $2.60 to win, $2.10 to place and show.

Royalamerican earned $30,000 for the victory and improved to four starts, two wins and two seconds for a bankroll of $90,639. This was Trout’s second time in the winner’s circle for the Don McNeill as he won in 2016 with Hallelujah Hit.

“I really want to give credit to (assistant) Andy Gladd, who couldn’t be here because of health issues,” said Trout. “He’s the one who has told me what to do with this horse.”

Cabrera concurred.

“C.R. and Kassie (Gladd) all do a great job with this horse,” he said.

The rest of the order of finish past the top three was Docket (98-1) fourth, How About Bob (9-2) fifth, Title Talk (49-1) sixth, Sir Tristan (16-1) seventh and I Am What I Am (51-1) eighth. ... See MoreSee Less

Thoroughbred Racing Association of Oklahoma (TRAO)

2 days ago

For Immediate Release
Friday, November 7, 2025
by Richard Linihan

LANALUAH PULLS OFF MINOR UPSET IN SLIDE SHOW HANDICAP AS CYNDI LOPER EXPERIENCES FIRST LOSS

OKLAHOMA CITY – Leading rider Ramon Vazquez timed it perfectly and made his move with Lanaluah at the top of the stretch, pouncing on a tiring, undefeated Cyndi Loper for a minor upset in the $50,000 Slide Show Handicap on Friday at Remington Park.

This race is named for the great Oklahoma-bred filly Slide Show, who once won 11 races in a row at Remington Park in the 1990s, many times, defeating males in stakes competition. She is a member of the Oklahoma Horse Racing Hall of Fame at Remington Park.

After Cyndi Loper was a runaway winner in her first two starts, sprinting, the 2-year-old Oklahoma-bred filly by Atreides, out of the Maclean’s Music mare Spring Steen, was trying the one-mile distance for the first time. She was not able to carry her brilliant speed that far, tiring near the quarter-pole and watching Lanaluah pass her for the win.

“I just wanted to get out a little bit with my horse because we knew this was a nice filly we were chasing (Cyndi Loper),” said Vazquez.

Trainer Austin Gustafson bought Lanaluah at auction on behalf of her owners, including himself, Jerry Dixon and Don Ray Winter of Jones, Okla., for $45,000 in the Texas Thoroughbred Association 2-year-old in training sale in April of this year. She was bred in Oklahoma by Scott Pierce and Equine Futures.

“I was driving home when Scott Pierce called me and said I really needed to take a look at this filly,” said Gustafson. “So, I pulled up her workout on my phone while I was driving. That was probably illegal. I liked what I saw and Jerry Dixon is a big Beau Liam fan (Lanaluah’s sire). And we got it done.”

Lanaluah is from the Bernardini mare Stella Grace. Beau Liam won three of his four starts lifetime and ran second in the $300,000, Grade 3 Ack Stakes at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Ky. in 2021 at one mile. Bernardini was a classic distance horse, getting two turns easily, and those bloodlines shone through with Lanaluah on this night. Bernardini won the Preakness, Travers and Jockey Club Gold Cup, all Grade 1 events around two turns in 2006.

Lanaluah earned $30,000 for the win and improved her record to five starts, two wins and three seconds for a total bankroll of $151,660.

Lanaluah was sent off as the 7-5 second wagering favorite to the odds-on Cyndi Loper at 3-5. Lanaluah paid $4.80 to win, $2.20 to place and $2.10 to show. The final margin of victory was 1-1/4 lengths. Cyndi Loper was another 4-1/2 lengths in front of the third-place finisher Inca Code (10-1).

Lanaluah proved her worth and now has won nearly four times her purchase price.

“This is Don Ray’s first horse and if it were me, she would be his last,” said Gustafson. “She’s that good. I think we will give her a rest now and have her ready to come back next August.”

Lanaluah covered the mile distance in 1:40.37 over the fast main track. She cut into the interior fractions set by Cyndi Loper of :24.10 for the first quarter-mile, :48.84 for the half-mile, and 1:13.84 for three quarters of a mile. Lanaluah had taken over as she hit the seven-eighths mark in 1:26.71.

The rest of the order of finish for the Slide Show past the top three was Lil Miss Brisket (11-1) fourth, Easter Gift (26-1) fifth, Momacya (39-1) sixth and Miss Popularity (73-1) seventh.

Remington Park racing continues Saturday, Nov. 8 with the first race at 6pm-Central.

For Immediate Release
Friday, November 7, 2025
by Richard Linihan ... See MoreSee Less