Ruben Fuentes © Benoit Photo

FUENTES KEEPS HIS CAREER PATH MOVING UPWARD HERE

The annual earnings numbers provided by Equibase for jockey Ruben Fuentes show a steadily upward trend: $179,087 in 2016, $739,102 in 2017, $1,571,604 last year and $2,170,054 approaching the two-thirds mark this year.

The Del Mar standings show Fuentes in sixth place with 14 wins, 12 seconds and nine third-place finishes from 105 mounts. Not a threat to challenge meet-leader Flavien Prat or defending champion Drayden Van Dyke – yet. But someone that horsemen and horse players are currently granting “up and comer” status as a rider who looks to have a promising future.

“I feel like I’ve worked hard the last two years to get where I am today,” Fuentes said Thursday morning. “It hasn’t been easy. There were a lot of times when I wasn’t getting opportunities, but I now see a different attitude from trainers toward me.

“They’re more comfortable with and confident in me. Which gives me more confidence in myself to keep moving forward. Something I’ve learned from other really good riders is that when you’re confident in yourself you don’t have any doubt at the moments when you have to decide what to do. You  just do it naturally. I think I’m at that point right now.”

At this point in the interview, veteran jockey Octavio Vergara came over to offer the unsolicited opinion: “This kid is going to be a star.”

Fuentes was born in Mexico City, one of three sons of jockey Miguel Fuentes. With their father, who would turn to training at the end of his riding career, as a driving force, all three boys are jockeys now. Ruben’s older brother, Miguel, Jr., rides in Mexico and younger brother Luis at Prarie Meadows in Iowa.

“Ever since I was 12 or 13 my father was always teaching us to gallop and breeze horses,” Fuentes said. “My mom didn’t like the idea, but myself and my brothers learned how to ride horses together. We had our own jockey school.”

His father would demonstrate techniques and then have the boys, in order of birth, attempt them. “And I was always the one who didn’t do as well as my brothers,” Ruben said with a laugh. 

Fuentes, who will turn 22 on Sunday, began riding in 2015 at Zia Park and branched out the next couple of years to Ruidoso Downs in New Mexico, riding quarter horses, and Turf Paradise in Arizona.

He came to Santa Anita as an apprentice in January of 2017 with agent Mike Ciani, whose main client Gary Stevens was out with hip replacement surgery, taking Fuentes’ book.

He notched his first Grade I victory in March in the Kilroe Mile aboard Ohio for Mike McCarthy and will be shooting for his fourth Del Mar stakes score  on Yuvetsi for John Sadler in Friday’s Tranquility Lake and Chief Cicatriz for Shawn Davis in Saturday’s Grade II $200,000 Pat O’Brien and Street Class for McCarthy in Sunday’s Shared Belief.

Fuentes notched his first Del Mar stakes victory aboard Naughty Tiger for trainer Eddie Freeman in the 2019 CTBA and took the Kathryn Crosby on the opening day of the 2018 fall meeting when Escape Clause was moved up via disqualification. In another disqualification situation, he was moved up to victory in the Graduation Stakes on August 2 when Big Returns, trained by Luis Mendez, was elevated from second.

CATALINA CRUISER MADE 4-5 MORNING LINE FAVORITE FOR PAT O’BRIEN

Defending race champion Catalina Cruiser was made the 4-5 favorite on oddsmaker Russ Hudak’s morning line for Saturday’s Grade II $200,000 Pat O’Brien Stakes.

The 34^th running of the 7-furlong sprint, named after one of the track’s founding fathers, is a “Win and You’re In” qualifier for the $1 million Breeders’ Cup Mile in November at Santa Anita.

Among the seven in the field is Seven Trumpets, a 4-year-old son of Morning Line owned by West Point Thoroughbreds and trained by Dale Romans. The colt, who arrived Monday from Kentucky, will be ridden by Hall of Famer Victor Espinoza.

“We’ve been riding some for West Point, so when I heard (Seven Trumpets) might be coming out I called Dale right away,” Espinoza’s agent, Brian Beach, said. “We all fear Catalina Cruiser, of course, but he’s a nice horse, doing well so we’ll give it a shot and see what happens.”

The field from the rail: Lieutenant Dan (Abel Cedillo, 20-1), Chief Cicatriz (Ruben Fuentes, 20-1), Jalen Journey (Norberto Arroyo, Jr., 5-1), Giant Expectations (Drayden Van Dyke, 7-2), Seven Trumpets  (Victor Espinoza, 15-1), American Anthem (Rafael Bejarano, 4-1) and Catalina Cruiser (Flavien Prat, 4-5).

FIELD OF SIX ENTERED IN SUNDAY’S SHARED BELIEF

Improbable will make his first start since competing in the first two legs of the Triple Crown series as part of a field of six entered Thursday for Sunday’s $100,000 Shared Belief Stakes.

A 3-year-old son of City Zip trained by Bob Baffert for WinStar Farm, China Horse Club International and Starlight Racing, Improbable parlayed runner-up finishes in the Rebel Stakes and Arkansas Derby at Oaklawn Park into a spot in the Kentucky Derby.

Ridden by Irad Ortiz, Jr., Improbable was elevated from fifth to fourth by the disqualification of Maximum Security in the Run for the Roses, then finished sixth as the favorite in the Preakness on May 18.

“We thought we’d bring him back, it’s been awhile,” Baffert said.

The draw for post positions was later Thursday. In alphabetical order the entrants are: Improbable (Drayden Van Dyke), King Jack (Mike Smith), Lieutenant Dan (Abel Cedillo), Seven Scents (Jorge Velez), Street Class (Ruben Fuentes) and Stubbins (Rafael Bejarano).

W.C. FIELDS SHOWED HE LIKED HORSE RACING AND DEL MAR

Sculptor Nina Kaiser, who has created such notable works as the statue of Zenyatta gracing the paddock at Santa Anita, and annually for Del Mar produces the handsome trophy for the Laffit Pincay, Jr. Award, passed on an interesting find recently.

She came across a copy of a book written by Ronald J. Fields – who was master comedian W.C. Fields’ grandson – entitled “W.C. Fields by Himself” and subtitled “His Intended Autobiography from His Personal Letters, Notes, Scripts, and Articles.”

Fields, who died in 1946, was known as one of America’s greatest comedians, keyed around his world-class timing, and he played and starred in dozens of films. He was a pal of Del Mar founder Bing Crosby and visited his seaside oval on more than one occasion.

In the book, his grandson published the following letter dated March 29, 1940 and addressed to W.A. Quigley, Del Mar’s first general manager:

Dear Mr. Quigley:

Seldom does one enjoy grandeur, comfort, ease and relaxation at one and the same time. That is the feeling one gets when he visits the Del Mar Turf Club, where the mountains meet the sea, where the gentry meets the stars and the stars meet the people and see the best damned horse-racing in the world.

Sincerely,

W.C. Fields

YU, LAWLOR ARE WEEKEND HANDICAPPING SEMINAR HEADLINERS

Broadcaster and TV host Michelle Yu and equine body language expert Greg Lawlor will provide the commentary and selections on the handicapping seminars of the penultimate weekend of the meeting Saturday and Sunday.

Yu will do the honors on Saturday while Lawlor will be the guest of regular Sunday host Frank Scatoni.

The seminars are held from 12:45-1:30 p.m. at the Seaside Terrace near the top of the stretch.

CLOSERS – Selected works from 106 officially timed Thursday morning: Paradise Woods (4f, :46.80), Catapult (5f, 1:00.80), Flor de la Mar 5f, 1:00.40), Eddie Forever (6f, 1:13.60), Eight Rings (6f, 1:13.60) …Stewards levied a five-day riding suspension on jockey Ruben Fuentes for careless riding aboard Spendaholic in the sixth race on August 18. The suspension is from August 28-September 1 but does not prohibit participation in designated races in California.

DEL MAR STATISTICS

Jockey Standings

(Current Through Wednesday, August 21, 2019 Inclusive)

Trainer Standings

(Current Through Wednesday, August 21, 2019 Inclusive)

Winning Favorites Report

(Current Through Wednesday, August 21, 2019 Inclusive)

Winning favorites -- 82 out of 211 -- 38.86%

Winning favorites on dirt -- 52 out of 125 -- 41.60%

Winning favorites on turf -- 30 out of 86 -- 34.88%

Winning odds-on favorites -- 21 out of 42 -- 50.00%

In-the-Money favorites -- 149 out of 211 -- 70.62%

In-the-Money odds-on favorites -- 36 out of 42 -- 85.71%