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July 28, 1998 By ED GOLDEN
WHEN MONEY’S AT STAKE, BET ON CHRIS McCARRON When money’s on the line, bet on Chris McCarron. It was no coincidence that McCarron won three races on the last Sunday of Hollywood Park’s meet. And it was no coincidence that all three were stakes races. McCarron’s mounts have won more money than any jockey in racing history, more than $250 million and counting. When McCarron has a stakes mount, even if it doesn’t look appealing on form, it would be wise to look again, because chances are it’s live. McCarron has won four national money titles, and even in the homestretch of his Hall of Fame career, the Massachusetts native still has what it takes to rank with riding’s elite -- keep your horse out of trouble and in a position to win the race. Of course, getting on the best horse doesn’t hurt, either, and that’s where McCarron and his longtime agent, Scott McClellen, are at their best. They do their homework, they communicate and they present themselves well. It’s a winning formula. "If Scotty’s got choices, he always asks me who I want to ride," said McCarron, who won 52 races at Hollywood Park to edge Corey Nakatani by two for the title. "Obviously, if you don’t have a choice, there’s no reason to ask me if I want to ride a particular horse. I might tell him I don’t want to ride a particular horse. "He might say, ‘I’ve got a chance to ride so-and-so for so-and-so.’ I might say, ‘I don’t want to ride that horse,’ for any number of reasons. But if he’s got two or three choices, for example, as with the Oceanside (on opening day at Del Mar), there were four horses I could have ridden, and the race always splits. If all four got into the same race, I’d only get to ride one. But it split, so I had the chance to ride two (one was a late scratch). This works as long as the clients are willing to wait and see which way it goes. Sometimes they don’t want to do that. They don’t want to play second fiddle. They’ll go ahead and get another rider. "Scotty always asks me my opinion, and I’ll either know right away or I’ll ask him who’s going to be in the race. If I have a choice of riding a one-way speed horse, a horse that has to be in front, I’ll ask him who else is going to be in there. If there’s a ton of speed in there, I might opt for the stalker or the closer. The bottom line is, we work together." But it’s more than money that drives McCarron. It’s motivation. He may not set out to win a riding title when a meet starts, but once he can taste it, his natural competitiveness, even at age 43, stirs him on. "It’s always fun to be in a position to go for a title," said McCarron, whose latest stakes win came in Saturday’s San Diego Handicap on Mud Route. "But the last several years, I really haven’t started out a meet by telling Scotty, ‘Look, I want to be the leading rider here.’ I start off the meet trying to ride as many good horses as I can and have a great meet. But when you get halfway through a meet and all of a sudden, your momentum is building and you’re in a position to win, my competitive juices start flowing and I can’t hold myself back from wanting to win it. It’s really a lot of fun to be involved." McCarron won only 52 races at Hollywood, a far cry from 1980 through 1984, when he dominated with 119, 98, 109, 86 and 100 wins, respectively. McCarron acknowledged that his winning total was low, "but that just shows how competitive the jockeys and trainers are," he said. A racing adage says, "I’d like to make book in the jocks’ room." It’s a slap at their handicapping ability, at least by pouring through past performances in the Daily Racing Form. McCarron seems he’s the exception. But no. "I’m not a very good handicapper once the Form comes out, as far as sitting there and saying who’s going to win a race," Chris admits. "But when it comes down to picking the better of two or three horses, I’ve been very successful." His record speaks for itself. GARVE -- Drew off to win with authority after 11-month layoff for Bill Mott, plenty left for repeat in turf route. GROUND EFFECT -- Son of Aloha Prospector opened at 2-1 for debut race, closed at 5-1 and ran too good to lose but was beaten a half-length. Next time. MOSCOW M D -- Consistent 9-year-old gelding loves seaside track as opening-day romp confirms. Repeat in sight, even against tougher. ROUNDABOUT ROCK -- Won debut by 15 lengths but at $32,000, obviously was underplaced by Randy Bradshaw, who lost the Texas-bred gelding to Julio Canani. Should repeat at higher level. TAMBOURINE MAN -- Turf specialist in top form and can continue winning ways. THE HOMESTRETCH: Bob Baffert on Silver Charm’s last-place finish, beaten 27 lengths as the 3-10 favorite in the San Diego Handicap: "We scoped him and found a little bit of blood, but not enough to really effect him. But then we did a rectal exam because Gary (Stevens) said he was weary in the back, and we found $150,000 worth of show tickets stuffed up his butt. Other than that, he’s fine." Seriously, Baffert said Silver Charm’s legs are fine, "but there’s something amiss with his motor. We’re going to stop on him and find out what’s happening. But the (Aug. 15) Pacific Classic is out." On whether Baffert will continue to ride Kent Desormeaux, who had not won a race through the first four days at Del Mar: "Yeah, he rides a horse for me this week. Believe me, not riding for me is not hurting him." . . . McCarron won the Hollywood riding crown, but on the bottom of the pile was Goncalino Almeida, who was winless in 60 rides. "You have to keep your priorities in order," said the 42-year-old native of Rio de Janeiro who has overcome several serious riding accidents. "My family is most important to me and their support has helped me get through this. I am not the only rider who experiences periods like this. It happens to others, so I have to put this meet behind me and look at Del Mar as a fresh start. I have no problem with support from my clients, it’s just that I didn’t have the (quality) horses. Most of the horses I had ridden before that were good either came up with injuries, were claimed or went to the farm, so I lost the chance to ride those back. In this business, you must keep going. You can’t let yourself get low." . . . Reader Richard Murray writes: "Concerning your pick of Coronado’s Quest as Horse of the Year. The trainer (Shug McGaughey) always finds an excuse not to run anywhere but New York. He has never won a race outside of New York and he always ducks top horses. The Breeders’ Cup is in Kentucky and my money says that Coronado’s Quest will be in New York on Nov. 7." Your points are well taken, but Shug has Coronado’s Quest over his heebie-jeebies and if CQ is as sharp for the BC Classic as he is now, and with a chance to win Horse of the Year honors, McGaughey will have him at Churchill Downs. P.S. Coronado’s Quest will beat Real Quiet and Victory Gallop in the Haskell Handicap . . . Laffit Pincay Jr., 202 wins shy of Bill Shoemaker’s record 8,833, suffered a broken collarbone in Saturday’s 10th race when his mount, Sid The Author, stumbled. The 51-year-old Hall of Fame rider will be out indefinitely.
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GOLDEN GLIMPSES #125
