Luzzi Gets Clearance to Resume Career

Longtime New York-based jockey Mike Luzzi has been given the OK by doctors to return to riding, although the journeyman said he has not set a specific date to get back into the starting gate. The Eclipse Award winner for outstanding apprentice rider in 1989, Luzzi was sidelined after suffering a broken leg and pelvis in a paddock accident at Aqueduct in November. 

"I feel great," said Luzzi. "I'm in no big rush but I'm ready. I've been breezing horses; I've been out of the gate. It feels like nothing ever happened, but it's been a long haul. I was bed-ridden for four months. I didn't think I'd be able to ride again. Pretty much as soon as I was out of bed - maybe a couple weeks - I got the itch back and I've been working on it ever since."

Luzzi has been busy over the last few months, balancing his own preparations in the saddle with those of his 18-year-old son Lane, an aspiring rider.

"In the meantime, my son's learning to be a jockey, so I've been keeping my eye on him too," Luzzi said. "So I'm also doing that; it's kind of double-duty."

Luzzi, who received the 2015 George Woolf Memorial Jockey Award, has won 3,420 races with mounts earning more than $108 million over a career that began in 1988.

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When trainer Adam Rice gave his sister, Taylor Rice, a leg up on Don't Be So Salty in Sunday's sixth race, his first-ever starter at the Spa, he was just hoping to hit the board. Instead, he found himself in the winner's circle.

Don't Be So Salty, a son of Tiz Wonderful, broke well and settled in mid-pack under Rice as a blistering early pace unfolded in front of him. As the field of 2-year-old turf sprinters rounded the turn, Don't Be So Salty hugged the rail, still a few lengths off the hot pace, but found himself in a precarious position in upper stretch as a wall of horses materialized in front of him.

In a matter of strides, a hole opened to his outside, and Rice guided him into the clear. Given only light encouragement, the bay gelding took off after the front-runners and swept by in the final sixteenth to prevail by a length and give Taylor Rice her first win of the meet.

"It was a dream come true," said Adam Rice. "It's still pretty surreal; I'm just excited that it worked out. I was just hoping to send a horse to Saratoga and not get embarrassed; he ran his eyeballs out."

A Saratoga debut was not always in the cards for Don't Be So Salty. Initially, Rice intended to debut his precocious trainee at Keeneland, but a minor injury forced him to delay his unveiling. After being given some time to recuperate, Don't Be So Salty resumed working at Rice's home base of Presque Isle Downs in Pennsylvania. It was there he turned in a series of strong works that separated him from the rest of Rice's stock, and the trainer was forced to aim higher than a local debut.

"I've run a bunch of good 2-year-olds and he was pretty good by comparison," said Rice. "He'd been getting better and better, had great class and character, so I wanted to take a shot."

On July 25, Don't Be So Salty turned in a breeze over the Saratoga main track, overseen by his aunt, trainer Linda Rice, that proved pivotal to his first start.

"My aunt has been right there beside me. I come to her a lot, and after he worked at Saratoga I asked her for advice. She told me to trust my instincts," said Rice.

Adam Rice's instincts paid off in spades, as he is also the owner of Don't Be So Salty. The owner/trainer says his phone has been ringing off the hook over the past 24 hours with prospective buyers, but for now, he is content to savor the victory.

"I don't have a next spot in mind for him. To be honest, I never even thought beyond this race. I'm over the moon," said Rice.

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Ninety North Racing Stable's Thieves Guild earned her first black type victory inSunday's $100,000 Caress, which could earn her another stakes assignment later this month.

Trainer Jimmy Toner said Monday morning that he'll look at the $100,000 Smart N Fancy for fillies and mares 3-and-up on August 30, run at the same 5 ½ furlongs on the grass as the Caress.

"We'll just wait and see. There's one at the end of the month if I want to run her back. We've just got to plot out a course for her," Toner said. "We'll make sure we give her enough chance to bounce out of this one before we look for anything else."

Making just her second start off a 14 ½-month layoff due to assorted ailments, Thieves Guild stalked Runway Ready before taking over at the top of the stretch and holding off multiple stakes winner Free as a Bird to win the Caress by 1 ¼ lengths under Jose Lezcano.

"The speed didn't develop the way I thought it would, but Jose knew she had speed. We didn't use it the first time we ran back but he knew when he wanted it, it was there, and he used it," Toner said. "She came back good. She ate up good last night and is nice and clean this morning. We'll see what happens from here."

The final time for the Caress was 1:00.82, just .23 off the course record of 1:00.59 set by Fiddlers Patriot in 2010. Thieves Guild now has three victories from five starts, and the $60,000 winner's share nearly doubled her career earnings to $141,200.

"She ran huge. The time was just incredible, a tick off the track record," Toner said. "We're really excited about the way she ran. She really stepped up. She beat a nice filly, the way she was able to hold her off. It was a good race."

Source: NYRA Communications