Jockey Fernando De La Cruz notches second Indiana Grand riding title

Fernando De La Cruz has been a force the entire 2016 racing season. The native of Peru led the standings for nearly all of the 120-day race meet and eventually, pulled away from the field, 48 wins ahead of his next closest opponent en route to his second title at Indiana Grand.

De La Cruz won the title at Indiana Grand in 2014. During that season, he earned 130 wins. De La Cruz reached that tally Friday, Oct. 28 as part of his four-win afternoon, bringing his tally heading into the final night of racing to 131 wins. The mark is the second largest in the history of the track behind Malcolm Franklin’s record of 158 wins during the 2013 racing season.

“Fernando (De La Cruz) has had a very impressive year,” said Jon Schuster, vice president and general manager of racing. “We appreciate the class you bring to our racing program and congratulate you for your success this year.”

De La Cruz was joined by many of his family members in the winner’s circle. Schuster and Kevin Greely, director of racing, made the winner’s circle presentation.

De La Cruz was the leading jockey at Hoosier Park for their final Thoroughbred meet in 2012. He also maintains a spot among the track’s top 10 jockeys at Tampa Bay Downs each winter. De La Cruz has earned several stakes wins in 2016, including $100,000 Brickyard Stakes aboard Bucchero. He and his family have been in the United States since 2009 and since that time, he has maintained a position among Indiana’s top 10 riders each season.

“I’m very happy right now,” said De La Cruz. “I want to thank my family because they support me and keep me working hard. I also want to thank my agent (Don Cespedes) for his hard work and to all the owners and trainers who gave me the opportunity to ride, especially trainers Brad Cox and Marvin Johnson.”

Amoss, Moss win honors as top 2016 trainer and owner

Tom Amoss pulled in his fifth leading trainer title in six years and his primary owner, Maggi Moss, also recorded her second leading owner title for the 120-day racing meet at Indiana Grand Racing & Casino Saturday, Oct. 29. Amoss completed the 2016 season with 41 wins and purses in excess of $850,000 while horses owned by Moss won 33 races, accumulating purse earnings of more than $600,000.

A native of New Orleans, Amoss rewrote the record books in 2013. He set new records for most wins in one season by a trainer (81) and most purse money earned by a trainer ($1,548,715). His success goes way beyond Indiana as he maintains several strings of horses all across the United States during the year and recorded his first Triple Crown top three finish when his horse, Mylute, finished third in the 2013 Preakness.

Amoss, who could not be in attendance, sent the following statement regarding his 2016 racing season at Indiana Grand, “I wish I could be at Indiana Grand to accept this prestigious honor on behalf of my staff, owners and most importantly, the athletes. Unfortunately, my contractual obligations with TVG do not make that possible, but I want to thank Rod Ratcliff and his staff for showing the rest of the nation how to run a racetrack. Racing comes first at Indiana Grand and we are proud to be a part of it. Most importantly, I want to thank the best racing fans in the world. You guys make racing fun for all of us. We will see you next spring. Thank you.”

Shane Jolivette, longtime assistant trainer for Amoss, accepted the award on behalf of Amoss and Moss from Jon Schuster, vice president and general manager of racing as well as Kevin Greely, director of racing.

Amoss has more than 3,300 career wins and celebrated his 3,000th win at Indiana Grand in 2014. A lot of those wins have been for owner Maggi Moss, an attorney from the Des Moines, Iowa area.

Moss earned her second leading owner title at Indiana Grand in 2016. The multiple Graded Stakes winning owner has been among the nation’s top 25 Thoroughbred owners by wins and earnings since 2009. She made her first trip to Indiana Grand this past July to watch her standout, Pilot House, compete in the Grade II $500,000-added Indiana Derby.

“Having raced at tracks throughout the U.S., Indiana Grand is one of my favorites,” said Moss. “It’s management and personnel there truly care. It’s a gem of a racetrack and after a sabbatical in 2015, it was so great to be back and be leading owner.”

 
Carmalley Chrome top horse of the 2016 meet

Unraced at two, Carmalley Chrome proved to Trainer Mike Nance and Owner Tom Roche she was worth the wait. The three-year-old Cat Dreams filly earned five wins during the season to top the standings as the leading Thoroughbred for 2016.

Carmalley Chrome started off her career with two wins before finishing third in her first stakes attempt in the $100,000 Swifty Sired. The flashy chestnut sophomore then returned to score wins in the $75,000 ITOBA Filly Stakes and the $150,000 First Lady Stakes. One more stakes win would be added to her credentials with a win in the $100,000 Merrillville Stakes, taking on older horses in several of her stakes races during the year. In all, Carmalley Chrome completed the 2016 racing season with five wins in 10 starts and purse earnings in excess of $255,000.

“I’m a huge fan (of Carmalley Chrome),” said Nance. “She has had a great year.”

Tom Roche, who is a new owner for Nance, added, “We can’t wait to see what she does next year. She surpassed everything we had hoped for. I walked out in the field and there were 20 yearlings there and I pointed to her and said ‘that’s the one.’ I couldn’t be happier with her. She will get some time off now to just be a horse for a while and we will work on her for next spring.”

Nance and Roche were presented with a blanket courtesy of the Indiana Horsemen’s Benevolent and Protective Association (HBPA). Kevin Greely, director of racing, and Jon Schuster, vice president and general manager of racing, made the winner’s circle presentation following her start in the $150,000 Frances Slocum Stakes where she once again tackled older fillies and mares.

Racing dates for 2017 will be approved and announced soon by the Indiana Horse Racing Commission.

 
Source: Indiana Grand