Report: Mid-Atlantic Trainer Dale Capuano will retire Sunday

Leading mid-Atlantic trainer Dale Capuano will retire effective Sunday.

Capuano, 60, told Dan Illman of Daily Racing Form that his only current plan is to "start living," as training has taken up his whole life until retirement. He has trained horses since he was 18 years old, winning his first race on Feb. 21, 1981, at Bowie. He has won 3,661 races as of Monday, placing him 22nd all-time among North American trainers, with purses of $68,094,250.

Capuano is part of a deep Maryland racing family. His parents, Phil and Connie Capuano, bred horses at a farm in Upper Marlboro, Md. Phil Capuano also was a trainer. And Dale Capuano's younger brother Gary is a leading trainer on the mid-Atlantic circuit.

Capuano's top earner is Heros Reward, a horse he claimed for $20,000 with Rob Ry Farm and Jayne Marie Slysz in April 2006. He went on to win $1,294,448 in the hands of Capuano, including victories in the 2007 Nearctic (G2), the 2008 Highlander (G3) and the 2009 Shakertown (G3). Heros Reward raced until age 11 in 2013, showing stakes form all the way through age 10 when he finished second to Ben's Cat in the Maryland Million Turf Sprint. Other graded-stakes winners for Capuano include Prized Stamp, Miss Mischief, Greatsilverfleet and Wind Splitter.

A 31-time training title winner at major Maryland tracks, Capuano currently trains several top horses on the mid-Atlantic circuit. Two-year-old Johnyz From Albany won on debut at Laurel on Aug. 21, won the Maryland Million Nursery on Oct. 22, and most recently ran second to Post Time in the Maryland Juvenile on Dec. 3. Johnyz from Albany is a son of Monster Sleeping, whom Capuano trained to victory in the Maryland Million Ladies in 2013 and 2015.

Three-year-old Vance Scholars won the Bald Eagle Derby Aug. 6 at Laurel in his sophomore debut and has since earned stakes placings on turf and dirt against older foes. Four-year-old dirt sprinter Alwaysinahurry has three wins in nine starts this year, including a Nov. 25 triumph in the Howard and Sondra Bender Memorial at Laurel. Five-year-old Justwaveandsmile has won three of his eight starts this year, including the Ben's Cat stakes in July at Laurel.