Racing at Hollywood Park : Brother Should Get an Assist for Stevens’ Victory in Landaluce

Jeff Franklin, who recently became Gary Stevens’ agent, met Stevens and trainer Wayne Lukas Saturday as they walked away from the track after the running of the $109,000 Landaluce Stakes at Hollywood Park.

“I’ll give my quarter (25% of Stevens’ share) to you two,” Franklin said.

Last Wednesday, with Stevens having the choice of riding Over All or Blue Jean Baby for Lukas in the Landaluce, the jockey and Franklin were leaning toward Blue Jean Baby. Stevens had ridden Over All to victory last month in the first race of her career, but he had also seen Blue Jean Baby run a much faster 5 1/2 furlongs for Chris McCarron in her debut two weeks later.

Lukas recommended that Stevens take Over All. “If I’m going to coach you, let me do the handicapping,” the trainer said. “You ride ‘em, but I live with ‘em.”

Stevens correctly opted for Over All, and after his 2-year-old filly accelerated near the eighth pole and went on to a 2 1/2-length win over Blue Jean Baby, the rider said that most of the credit belonged to his older brother, Scott.

If Franklin really wants to give up his agent’s cut of Gary Stevens’ 10% share of Over All’s purse, Scott Stevens probably wouldn’t mind being in on the action.

Once the leading rider in Boise, Ida., while Gary was just starting out, Scott Stevens has found good horses hard to come by in Southern California and has only 2 wins in 89 mounts this season at Hollywood Park.

But at least, Scott deserves an assist for his brother picking Over All.

“This filly is a lot more mature than the other one,” said Scott, who rode Over All to her second-place finish in the Debutante at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Ky., on June 20. “She’s a complete professional now, so much so that she acts like an older horse. I just thought she’d be a fitter filly for this race after she ran that three-quarters in Kentucky.”

Over All’s $66,250 win wasn’t official until after a stewards’ inquiry, which involved an incident near the eighth pole, when the winner, on the outside, went by Tomorrow’s Child and made her run at the leader, Blue Jean Baby, who was running next to the fence.

Pat Valenzuela, riding Tomorrow’s Child, stood up in the irons when Over All came over after passing his filly. Tomorrow’s Child, second choice in the betting behind the Over All-Blue Jean Baby entry, finished third, three lengths behind the winner.

Valenzuela and Gary Stevens had scuffled in the jockeys’ room Friday after a race, an outburst that cost them $100 apiece in fines from the stewards, but there was no disagreement Saturday. Valenzuela, shaking hands with Stevens after they watched the television reruns, later said:

“I would have beaten Blue Jean Baby (for second), but there was no way I was going to beat the winner. She ran by me too quick.”

Stevens was saying the same thing. “I couldn’t see how I could have impeded anybody,” he said. “My filly just blew to the front. She shyed some when she saw the grandstand, but then I hit her left-handed and she responded.”

Running six furlongs in 1:10 3/5, Over All and her entrymate paid $6, $5 and $3.40. Tomorrow’s Child’s show price was $4.40.

Gene Klein owns both Over All and Blue Jean Baby and added $21,750 to his coffers for the second money. Both of the fillies are daughters of Mr. Prospector, Over All out of Full Tigress and costing $850,000 at auction, and Blue Jean Baby, out of Jones Time Machine, selling for $750,000.

“I told someone that there’s nothing to this game,” Lukas said. “Just spend $1.5 million and look what it gets you.

“Over All had that extra race, and with 2-year-olds at this time of the year, that means a lot.”

Angel Cordero came in from New York, content to ride the filly Stevens didn’t pick. “My filly (Blue Jean Baby) ran good, it’s just that the winner was more experienced,” Cordero said.

Over All got clobbered leaving the gate, but still settled into third place, behind Blue Jean Baby and Tomorrow’s Child. The rest of the 12-horse field was never in the race.

At the top of the stretch, Blue Jean Baby was trying to fight off Tomorrow’s Child when Over All made her big move.

O’Dawn, a third Lukas starter in the race, finished fifth. Her rider was Scott Stevens, whose share of that part of the purse was $187.50. Not much of a reward for a guy who put his brother on the winner.

Horse Racing Notes

Gary Stevens also rode Delicate Vine to victory in the Landaluce last year. . . . Wayne Lukas has won the Landaluce and its forerunner, the Hollywood Lassie, four times. Landaluce herself won the Lassie for Lukas in 1982 and the name of the race was changed after her death from a virus later that year. . . . Chris McCarron was in Detroit Saturday, riding Waquoit to a 7 1/2-length win in the Michigan Mile Handicap. That was the largest winning margin in the 39-year history of the race. McCarron had never seen Waquoit until he rode him to victory in the Massachusetts Handicap and now he’s 2 for 2 on the 4-year-old. . . . Lost Code, winning his seventh straight, took Saturday’s Arlington Classic by more than two lengths over Gem Master, with Avies Copy finishing third. . . . Bill Shoemaker, who won the Hollywood Oaks last year with Hidden Light, doesn’t have a mount in today’s running of the stake and is taking the day off to be in Santa Barbara, where his wife, Cindy, is riding in show competition. . . . Marje Everett, chief executive officer at Hollywood Park, suffered a broken wrist while playing in the track’s softball league. . . . Another Valentine, who has the same parents as Fran’s Valentine, made her fourth start, all as a 3-year-old, and won her first race Saturday. . . . Jockey Alex Solis has been ill and has missed riding for the last two days. . . . Saturday’s attendance was 32,378.