Jockey Gary Stevens Continues Winning Streak
Hall of Fame jockey Gary Stevens added five victories to his already impressive string of achievements this past weekend at Santa Anita. He started off on Saturday riding All for Us to victory in the Maiden Special Weight; followed by a win in the Grade One Zenyatta Stakes aboard Beholder;…
A href=”http://www.horseracing.com/blog/zenyatta-queen-of-the-racecourse/” title=”Zenyatta Queen of the Racecourse”>Zenyatta Stakes aboard Beholder; first place aboard Mucho Macho Man in the Grade One Awesome Again Stakes; and his final win of the day in the Unzip Me Stakes aboard Pontchatrain. On Sunday, Stevens rode Indy Point to victory in the Grade Two John Henry Turf Championship, bringing his graded stakes wins for the weekend to a total of three.
If his disappointing showing in the Arlington Million caused anyone to doubt his capabilities, Indy Point’s win by 1 ¼ lengths in the John Henry Turf Championship no doubt served as an affirmation that this horse has what it takes to beat the best – and he will likely be given the opportunity to do so at the $2 million Breeders’ Cup Turf at Santa Anita on November 2. The Richard Mandella-trained four-year-old colt defeated the eleven other competitors to complete the race in 1:57.47. He took the lead inside the sixteenth pole, holding it to the finish line. Sired by Indy King out of Bold Bluff, Indy Point has won multiple Group One events in Argentina.
After being retired from racing for some time, Gary Stevens staged a comeback earlier this year, and clearly the 50-year old jockey has not lost any of his skill. His first comeback victory was aboard the filly Branding at Santa Anita Racetrack on January 12, 2013, with his first graded stakes win being aboard Slim Shady in the 2013 San Marcos Stakes. He went on to win the 138th Preakness Stakes aboard Oxbow, and the Dixieland Stakes aboard Skyring. Fans will no doubt be keen to see how this award-winning jockey’s career will continue to unfold.
