Greengrassofyoming Earns Some ‘Respect’ in Remington Green

Earlier this week, trainer Mike Tomlinson described his turf contender Greengrassofyoming as “one of those ‘Rodney Dangerfields that don’t get a lot of respect,” while calling him “one of the most underrated horses I’ve ever trained.”

Sunday at Remington Park, Kentucky-bred 4-year-old son of Quest proved himself a worthy competitor. Greengrassofyoming flew down the middle of the lane to upset the favored Gentleman’s Kitten in the $100,000 Remington Green Stakes on the Oklahoma Derby undercard on Sunday. 

Under the services of jockey Brian Hernandez Jr., Greengrassofyoming settled mid-pack on the inside following a pace set by last year’s Oklahoma Derby winner, Broadway Empire. The gelding found enough room on the inside to improve his position and switched to the outside to charge down the stretch. Greengrassofyoming easily passed Gentleman’s Kitten and kicked clear to win by 1-1/4 lengths. 

“He traveled like a winner the whole race,” Hernandez said after the race. “We had a great trip on the outside of horses. I just kind of stayed out of his way and when I called on him, he ran home for me. He showed today that he’s capable of this type of effort.” 

Sent to the gate as the fourth wagering choice at 8-1 odds, Greengrassofyoming paid $19.20 to win, $5.80 to place and $3.20 for the show. Gentleman’s Kitten, the beaten 3-2 wagering favorite, paid $3.80 to place and $2.40 to show. Shining Copper was third, returning $2.80 to show. Broadway Empire finished in fourth place. 

The final time for 1-1/8 miles on the turf was 1:46.63. 

Owned by Patricia’s Hope LLC of Barrington, Ill., the gelding came into the Green off a fourth-place finish in an off-turf stakes race at Mountaineer in West Virginia on Aug. 2. He had posted only four wins from 24 lifetime starts. 

“This horse has always had the talent, but he hasn’t been a lucky horse,” Tomlinson said. “From here on, we’ll keep trying. He’s improved with age and hopefully we’ll be able to pick up some more big races.” 

This was the first stakes win at Remington Park for Tomlinson, a native of Mustang, Okla., since moving his training operation to Kentucky full time in the mid-1990s. 

“It feels fantastic. This is ‘old home’ week,” Tomlinson said. “We’re with a lot of old friends, so it’s been a real experience. It was fantastic to see old friends and get to win and let them share it with us.” 

Greengrassofyoming was bred in Kentucky by Stone Farm and is our of the Dehere mare Flick. The Green is his fifth career win and was worth $60,000 to run his total bankroll to $240,494. 

Meanwhile, Mico Margarita benefitted from a hot pace and a smooth trip to reel in the tiring Heitai to win the $150,000 Guaranteed Remington Park Sprint Cup in a final time of 1:09.26 for the six furlongs. 

Heitai blistered an opening quarter-mile fraction of :21.26 seconds and a half-mile of :43.50 seconds but the five-length lead he held throughout the race wilted away in the final furlong. Mico Margarita got up to win in the final yards by three-quarters of a length. Heitai held second with Ghost Is Clear another 3-1/2 lengths back in third. 

Owned by J. Kirk Robison of El Paso, Texas and trained by Steve Asmussen, Mico Margarita was ridden with confidence by Rosie Napravnik. He is a 4-year-old colt sired by Run Away And Hide from the Mineshaft mare Wide Range and was bred in Kentucky by Ron Kirk & Greg McDonald. 

Mico Margarita paid $4.80 to win, $2.60 to place and $2.10 to show and was the 7-5 favorite while coupled in the wagering with Wine Police, last year’s winner of the Remington Park Sprint Cup. Heitai was the 2-1 second-choice in the wagering and paid $4.00 to place and $3.20 to show. Ghost Is Clear was last in the early running, over 17 lengths from the leader after a half-mile was run before coming on late to finish third and pay $2.80 to show. 

Mico Margarita won his sixth race from 20 starts and earned $90,000 to run his overall total to $480,251.