HOUSTON, TX- The Houston Racing Festival will take place on Saturday, January 25 at Sam Houston Race Park with ten races, including five stakes. The marquee feature of the card is the 13th running of the Grade 3, $300,00 Houston Ladies Classic, with the final championship of the afternoon, the $200,000 John B. Connally Turf Cup.  Since 1995, it continues to attract top turf specialists in North America to Texas. The stakes is named in honor of the late Texas Governor John B. Connally, who was instrumental in the passage of pari-mutuel racing in Texas. He will never be forgotten as Sam Houston Race Park was the first Class 1 racetrack to open in the Lone Star State and the course has been acclaimed as one of the best in the country. This is a race that horsemen and horseplayers look forward to each year.

This year’s Connally Turf  Cup, which will run at a distance of one and ½ miles, drew a field of 12 led by Paradise Farms Corp.and David Staudacher’s Sugoi, Tabbed as the 5-2 morning line favorite, the 8-year-old  gelding sired by Karakontie (JPN) out of the Devil His Due mare Timeless Spirit, was bred in Kentucky by Normandy Farm. This will be his 32nd career start, and first trip to Sam Houston Race Park. Sugoi is trained by Mike Maker, who has won eight editions of the Connally Turf Cup, beginning with Papaw Bodie in 2012 and continuing over the next 12 years with Dynadrive emerging victorious last January.

“We have great respect for the Sam Houston turf course and feel Sugoi will do well,” said Maker. “He’s a very light horse and has shown that he can adapt to firm or soft turf. He ran in the Arlington Million last summer at Colonial Downs; that’s when I felt he would be pointed to Connally.”

Maker will have a full plate Saturday on Pegasus Day at Gulfstream, so his Florida-based riders were not in consideration for the Connally. With little hesitation, he selected Sam Houston Race Park’s three-time leading jockey Stewart Elliott to guide Sugoi. Elliott will turn 60 on March 1 and with over 5,700 career wins, continues to gain respect as one of the elite Thoroughbred jockeys in North America.

“It’s a good combination: two experienced veterans teaming up in a turf marathon,” quipped Maker. “I would like to see them forwardly placed and am always proud to add one more title in the Connally!”

Chris Block is another conditioner who has shipped in for the Connally Turf on many occasions. Team Block’s homebred Another Mystery won the 2022 edition in a thrilling dead heat with Fantasioso. Another Mystery, a 9-year old son of Temple City will return this year along with Out of Deductions, also bred, owned and trained by Team Block.
Block spoke about the experience of Another Mystery, (12 wins from 44 starts, $888,130) and the potential; of Out of Deductions, a 5-year-old gelding by Nyquist, who will be making just his 11tth start.

“Another Mystery was tailing off at the end of 2023,” explained Block. “My dad, brother and I were considering retiring him, but decided to geld him. He came back to form, so we chose to get him ready for the Connally. This is a horse who needs a good, strong rider and we feel David Cohen will fit him well. Out of Deductions’ second dam is from a family of graded stakes turf runners; his pedigree suggests he will fare well going three turns.”

Bret Calhoun, no stranger to capturing Texas-bred stakes, has never won the Connally, but will saddle Allied Racing Stable LLC’s Ole Crazy Bone, who fits the “Horse for the Course” angle with three wins over the Houston turf course. The 5-year-old Ghostzapper gelding won two grass races early last year here and followed that with a runner-up finish in the $250,000 Texas Turf Classic on June 29 at Lone Star Park.

“We gave him some time off and brought him back to Houston and he won a $50,000 turf optional claimer on January 3,” said Calhoun. “He loves making a closing run and while one and one-half miles is unchartered waters, we are excited about seeing him run on Saturday.”

Tom Amoss, who is also sending in Houston Philly for the Houston Ladies Classic, is looking forward to running Rock’n a Halo for owner Pocket Change Racehorses. The son of Catholic Boy competed in the Grade 2, $500,000 Secretariat last August at Colonial Downs and exits a victory over the Fair Grounds main track on January 11. 

“This is a freshly-turned 4-year Kentucky-bred who will give up experience to some very nice older turf runners,” said Amoss. “There are plenty of unanswered questions, but we believe he is an emerging talent and
and want to see how he will handle the marathon distance.”

The John B. Connally Turf Cup will run as the tenth race on the Houston Racing Festival program, with an estimated post time of 5:30 pm (Central). The field, from the rail, with trainers,  riders and morning-line odds: 

1.         Rock’n a Halo (Edgar Morales) Tom Amoss; 15-1
2.         Johny’s Fireball (Manny Franco) Norm Casse; 9-2
3.         Another Mystery (David Cohen)  Chris Block; 8-1
4.         Tiburon (Elvin Gonzalez)  Dick Cappellucci; 30-1
5.         Out of Deductions (David Cabrera)) Chris Block; 20-1
6.         Wonderful Justice (GB) (Ben Curtis) Joe Sharp; 12-1
7.         City Man (Reylu Gutierrez) Rob Atras; 15-1
8.         Ole Crazy Bone (Jose Alvarez) Bret Calhoun; 8-1
9.         Verstappen (Dylan Cannon) Brendan Walsh; 7-2
10. Sugoi (Stewart Elliott) Mike Maker; 5-2 
11. Ocelot (DeShawn Parker) Abel Ramirez-Rodriguez; 20-1
12. From the Heart (Lindey Wade) Sarah Davidson; 30-1

“We are proud of our Houston Racing Festival, which continues to attract top connections and competitive fields,” said Bryan Pettigrew -Vice President and General Manager of Penn Entertainment’s Texas Racing Operations. “There will be plenty of entertainment on Saturday for our fans and horseplayers competing in the second annual  Houston Racing Festival National Horseplayers Championship (NHC) Contest.”

Houston Racing Festival News and Notes
Winter Weather Update
A winter snow covered Houston on Monday night. Training was canceled on Tuesday and will be delayed on Wednesday, but by live racing on Friday,  January 24, temperatures will warm to the mid-50’s and the forecast for Saturday’s Houston Racing Festival will warm up to the low 60’s.

Sam Houston Live Racing Signal Will be Live on Website on Saturday, January 25
Racing fans unable to come out to the races will have the opportunity to watch the entire Houston Racing Festival card streamed on shrp.com. 

Four Seats Up for Grabs in the National Horseplayers Championship (NHC) Contest 
The Houston Racing Festival National Horseplayers Championship will take place Saturday, January 25 at Sam Houston Race Park. Registration is open for the contest with a $1,500 Bankroll Live Money format on the January 25 Sam Houston card and Pegasus World Cup at Gulfstream Park. Four seats to the prestigious National Horseplayers Championship in Las Vegas will be awarded, with the winner’s choice to compete in the 2025 NHC Contest, or the 2026 final. For rules and additional information, click here.
 
Texas Style Hat Contest
Houston Racing Festival’s second annual Texas Style Hat Contest returns on Saturday, January 25th with a first-place prize of $500. The second-place prize will be a Winner’s Circle Restaurant certificate for four and third place will be a Winner’s Circle restaurant certificate for two.
 
Jockey Meet and Greet and Silent Auction Benefitting the PDJF
Meet the jockeys riding in the Houston Racing Festival in an autograph session at Noon. Fans can bid on silent auction collector’s items and much more! The event will benefit the Permanently Disabled Jockeys Fund (PDJF) which provides financial assistance to former jockeys who have suffered catastrophic on-track injuries.

About Sam Houston Race Park
Sam Houston Race Park is Houston’s premier racing and entertainment facility, located just 15 miles northwest of downtown Houston. Owned by Penn Entertainment Inc. (NASDAQ – PENN), the racetrack, which opened in 1994, offers a variety of attractions for businesses, group outings and families during racing and the off-season. The track is best known for its award-winning dining and features multiple areas for fans looking for casual to upscale dining options including its Winner’s Circle Restaurant, Jockey Club, Luxury Suites and Pavilion Centre. For more information or tickets to upcoming live racing, concerts and events, please visit www.shrp.com or follow on: Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, TikTok or YouTube.  

 
Photos:  Jack Coady Photography