Delahoussaye Will Be On Hand For Eddie D Stakes
Looking happy and healthy, 64-year-old Eddie Delahoussaye was a welcome visitor from his native Louisiana at Clockers’ Corner Thursday morning in advance of presenting a trophy to the winning connections of a race named in his honor Saturday, the Grade III, $100,000 Eddie D. Stakes for three-year-olds and up at about 6 ½ furlongs on turf.
"Everything’s good,” said the popular Hall of Fame jockey, who retired in 2002. “We recently built a house in Lafayette and moved in three weeks ago. I was born in New Iberia, and Lafayette is about 25 miles south of there.
“Building the house was a nightmare. It took 10 ½ months; it required a lot of patience.
“But other than that, everything’s good. I can’t complain. We’re adjusting very well. I haven’t been doing too much otherwise, although Paddy Gallagher has a couple of horses here for me and some partners. We’re trying to keep things going in that regard.
“It’s good to be back and see everybody. I’ll tell you, Louisiana is good, but driving here again, you realize that California is just beautiful.”
Inducted into racing’s Hall of Fame in 1993, Delahoussaye began his career in 1967 and won 6,384 races from 39,213 rides, 16.30 percent. He is one of only four jockeys to win consecutive runnings of the Kentucky Derby, having done so with Gato del Sol in 1982 and Sunny’s Halo in 1983.
A winner of the inaugural Breeders’ Cup Distaff with Princess Rooney at Hollywood Park in 1984, Delahoussaye won seven Breeders’ Cup races overall, including the 1992 Classic with A.P. Indy, who “Eddie D.” has consistently rated as the best horse he ever rode.
Delahoussaye led all North American jockeys with 384 wins in 1978 and was presented with Santa Anita’s prestigious George Woolf Memorial Jockey Award in 1981.
The Eddie D.: Jimmy Bouncer, Mario Gutierrez, 4-1; Majestic City, Rafael Bejarano, 6-1; Midnight Storm, Tyler Baze, 7-2; Mr. Sexy, Drayden Van Dyke, 20-1; Quick and Silver, Brice Blanc, 30-1; No Silent, Gary Stevens, 5-1; Toowindytohaulrox, Tiago Pereira, 5-1; Maltes, Martin Pedroza, 20-1; Chips All In, Alonso Quinonez,
5-1; Safety Belt, Felipe Valdez, 12-1; and Melatonin, Martin Garcia, 15-1.
FINISH LINES: Broadcast Analyst and top handicapper Jeff Siegel lists American Pharoah, Beholder and Honor Code as his top three picks among his Elite 8 in the Breeders’ Cup rankings. All Siegel’s rankings are updated when news breaks and appear at jsiegelracing.blogspot.com . . . Big Macher, winner of the Grade I Bing Crosby Stakes last July and smashing 4 ¾-length winner of the restricted Pirates Bounty Sept. on 7, passed on Saturday’s Grade I Santa Anita Sprint Championship. “He’ll train up to the Breeders’ Cup Sprint (Oct. 31 at Keeneland),” trainer Richard Baltas said of the 5-year-old California-bred gelding. “He runs well fresh.” . . . Tom Quigley’s guests this weekend in the East Paddock Gardens at 11:50 a.m. will be Santa Anita Simulcast host Millie Ball, Saturday, and Jeff Siegel Sunday . . . Hall of Fame jockey Kent Desormeaux had the highest win percentage, 19, of any member of the main jockey colony at the recent Del Mar meet. He had 21 wins from 108 mounts, with $1,147,144 in purse earnings . . . Tomorrow is Photography Day at Santa Anita. Photographers can receive special photo credentials that include Clubhouse Admission, hot breakfast, a Seabiscuit backstretch tour, a track program, and enjoy a panel conducted by trainers and jockeys. A $10 discount is available by using promo code HORSE2015 online only. Advance tickets are available at www.santaanita.com/events.
Source: Santa Anita Park