FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: David Zenner
(847) 385-7535
LA TIA, MOMENT IN DIXIE TOP ARLINGTON MATRON
ARLINGTON HEIGHTS, Ill. (May 21, 2014) – Hernandez Racing Club’s La Tia and Phillips Racing Partnership’s Moment in Dixie top a field of eight distaffers entered in Saturday’s Grade III $150,000 Arlington Matron at a mile and an eighth over the main track. Tha Matron shares top billing on the 11-race card with the Grade III $150,000 Hanshin Cup at a mile on the main track and the Grade III $150,000 Arlington Classic – the first leg of the Mid-America Triple – for 3-year-old turf horses.
The Armando De La Cerda-trained La Tia has an affinity for the Arlington International Racecourse Polytrack. As a 3-year-old, the daughter of City Place won the Grade III Arlington Oaks over the same distance as Saturday’s Matron and she also won the one-mile Purple Violet over the course that same summer. The 5-year-old mare returned from a six-month layoff to run second in a tough allowance race over a mile and a sixteenth here May 11. E. T. Baird picks up the mount on La Tia Saturday.
Moment in Dixie, a James Toner-trained daughter of Dixieland Band, was runner-up in the Grade III Doubledogdare at Keeneland last time out. The 5-year-old mare has been competitive at this level and will be ridden Saturday by Julien Leparoux.
Among those slated to face the top two is Kenneth and Sarah Ramsey’s Awesome Flower. The 5-year-old daughter of Flower Alley was a five-time winner last year including a pair of $100,000 stakes races – the Lady Canterbury on dirt and the Listed HBPA on Presque Isle’s synthetic surface. Florent Geroux will ride the Mike Maker-trained mare.
G. Watt Humphrey’s Frivolous has had some success on Polytrack, winning an allowance race at Keeneland last time out and finishing second in last year’s Arlington Oaks. Trained by Victoria Oliver, the 4-year-old Empire Maker filly will be ridden by James Graham.
Completing the field for the Matron (with jockey listed) are: Lothenbach Stables’ Ambusher (Leandro Goncalves); James Greene and Hurstland Farms’ Heart of Destiny (Rosemary Homeister Jr.); The Farm on 4 LLC, Brent Gasaway and Michael Stidham’s I Dazzle (Sheldon Russell); and E. A. Cox Jr.’s Naples Gold (Channing Hill).
Arlington International Racecourse – the Chicago area’s premier Thoroughbred racetrack located in Arlington Heights, Ill. – will run an 89-day meet in 2014 from Friday, May 2 through Sunday, Sept. 28. Arlington International Racecourse, whose parent company is Churchill Downs Incorporated (Nasdaq: CHDN), also operates 11 off-track, simulcast-wagering facilities in Arlington Heights, Aurora, Chicago, East Moline, Waukegan, Villa Park, Rockford, South Elgin, Hodgkins, McHenry and Orland Hills. Arlington International Racecourse is a proud member of America’s Best Racing. Information on Arlington International Racecourse and Trackside OTB can be found online at www.arlingtonpark.com, on Facebook at www.facebook.com/arlingtonpark and www.facebook.com/tracksideotb, and on Twitter at @Arlington_Park for the latest happenings, @arlingtonracing for the latest racing news and @tracksideotb for all things pertaining to off-track wagering. -END-
David Zenner│Senior Manager of Communications
Arlington International Racecourse
2200 W. Euclid Ave. Arlington Heights IL 60006-0007
P 847.385.7535│C: 847.371.1670 | F: 847.870.6727│E: David.Zenner@arlingtonpark.com
Twitter: @dave_zenner, @arlingtonracing
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