For Immediate Release: Tuesday, August 25, 2015 215.639.9000 ext. 3290 or 3329 Contact: Keith Jones, Announcer – Philadelphia Park @ kjones@parxracing.com
PARX OPENS FALL FESTIVAL SATURDAY G3 Smarty Jones Featured
After a two week break from the racing schedule to complete construction on a new paddock, Parx Racing will return to action this Saturday, August 29th and kick off its Fall Festival. The Fall Festival will run through October 20th and feature an increased purse structure with average daily purses at $500,000. During the Festival, the track will run its most important races of the year including the G2 $1 million Pennsylvania Derby and G1 $1 Cotillion Stakes, both set for Saturday, September 19th.
Upon returning this Saturday, the featured race is the G3 $300,000 Smarty Jones Stakes for three year-olds at one mile and seventy yards, the track’s prep race for the PA Derby. Topping the eight horse field is Lael Stable’s Divining Rod. The Tapit colt has been tremendously consistent for trainer Arnaud Delacour, winning the G3 Lexington at Keeneland back in April before finishing third behind American Pharoah in the G1 Preakness. He’s had two starts since the Preakness, running third in a blanket finish in the $500K Ohio Derby and then third again in his most recent start July 18th in the G2 Indiana Derby. Alex Cintron has been named to ride. He’ll open as the 9-5 morning line favorite.
The second choice at 3-1 is Live Oak Plantation’s Super Colossal. The War Front colt racing out of the Ed Plesa barn had a terrific two year-old season winning both the Tyro and Sapling Stakes at Monmouth Park before opening his three year-old campaign with a win on the grass at Gulfstream in the Texas Glitter back in February. His most recent outings include a second in the Long Branch at Monmouth and a second in the G2 West Virginia Derby, finishing just behind Madefromlucky, on August 1st. To date, the only race in which he finished worse than second in eight career starts was a seventh last fall in the Breeders Cup Juvenile. Paco Lopez comes in for the ride.
Bluegrass Singer (Marcus Vitali), Island Town (Ian Wilkes) and Tekton (Tony Dutrow) will also all get support. Bluegrass Singer has won two stakes this year, the Mucho Macho Man at Gulfstream in early January and the Parx Derby in his local debut here on May 2nd. Island Town is a graded winner having won the G3 Matt Winn in mid-June at Churchill Downs, while Tekton has been close in his first two stakes appearances, losing by only a head in the G3 Pegasus at Monmouth in June and a second in the Curlin Stakes at Saratoga last time out July 31st.
