INGLEWOOD, Calif. (July 9, 2008) - Santa Anita Derby champion Colonel John, who finished a disappointing sixth while making his most recent start in the Kentucky Derby, heads a field of six in Saturday's $350,000-added Swaps Stakes at Hollywood Park.
Colonel John, trained by Eoin Harty for WinStar Farm, will be reunited with the country's leading money-winning jockey in Garrett Gomez, who has returned from the East to ride the final week at the Spring/Summer Meet before heading to Del Mar.
Gomez, whose mounts have made more than $10.3 million in 2008, rode Colonel John when he finished second in his career debut last summer at Del Mar and again three starts back when he won the Sham Stakes at Santa Anita. He replaces Corey Nakatani.
Colonel John, a winner of four of seven starts for earnings of $825,300, has made all his starts on synthetic surfaces with the exception of the Kentucky Derby. He won the Real Quiet Stakes here last fall before finishing second behind Into Mischief in the CashCall Futurity.
The Grade II Swaps, to be contested at 1 1/8 miles, will also feature Two Step Salsa, the star 3-year-old at the Spring/Summer Meet to date, and 2007 Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf winner Nownownow, whose last outing came in the Irish 2000 Guineas at The Curragh. The field for the 35th running of the Swaps will line up as follows from the rail out:
Tres Borrachos, with Tyler Baze up, will carry 112 pounds; Two Step Salsa, Martin Pedroza, 118; Nownownow, Julien Leparoux, 120; Colonel John, Garrett Gomez, 122; Madeo, Mike Smith, 112, and Trevor's Clever, Joseph Talamo, 112.
Two Step Salsa finished second in the Harry Henson Memorial Stakes on turf before moving to Cushion Track to win the Lazaro S. Barrera Memorial Stakes and the Affirmed Handicap in his first race around two turns.
The Julio Canani-trained colt is unbeaten on synthetic surfaces and has a four-for-five record overall for earnings of $203,900. His sire, Petionville, finished third in the 1995 Swaps, which was won by Kentucky Derby winner Thunder Gulch with eventual two-Time Breeders' Cup Mile winner Da Hoss finishing second.
Nownownow, winner of the Turf last fall on a yielding course at Monmouth Park, finished fifth in the Irish 2000 Guineas on May 24. A winner of two of seven starts with three seconds, he has made $660,784, but seeks his first win on a surface other than turf.
Madeo, owned by Jerry and Ann Moss, will be making his fifth start overall and his third at the meet in the Swaps. The John Shirreffs-trained colt won an allowance race April 30 before finishing second to Trevor's Clever as the odds-on favorite in the Alydar at nine furlongs on May 24. His connections won the race with Tiago in 2007.
Tres Borrachos, trained by part-owner Beau Greely, has flirted with some of the nation's leading 3-year-olds. He finished third in the El Camino Real Derby, third in the Arkansas Derby, ninth in the Preakness, and second here behind Two Step Salsa in the Affirmed.
The Swaps will run as the eighth race on Saturday's nine-race card at Hollywood Park. First post is at 1:20 p.m.
