Roi Normand Wins Sunset Handicap on Closing Day at Hollywood Park

A French-raced horse who has bounced from track to track since he arrived in the United States came bounding from behind Monday to win the $282,500 Sunset Handicap by 1 lengths as Hollywood Park closed its 50th season.

Roi Normand, Kentucky-bred but French-raced until this past March, has never run at the same American track two straight races. But his return to Hollywood Park after a stop at Golden Gate Fields was worth $170,000 to his owner, Edmund Gann of San Diego, after Roi Normand emerged from a clutter of horses in the last sixteenth of a mile.

Monday’s runner-up was French-bred. Putting, who finished about 3 lengths ahead of Roi Normand while running second in the Golden Gate Handicap on June 18, was second in the Sunset, 2 1/2 lengths ahead of Circus Prince. With no clear-cut favorite in the betting for the 11-horse race, Baba Karam went off the 4-1 choice and finished eighth after being third at the top of the stretch.

Political Ambition, winner of the Hollywood Invitational on May 30, was also in contention heading for home, but wound up sixth.

“He got tired,” said Neil Drysdale, Political Ambition’s trainer. “He hadn’t run in two months, and he also had trouble with a bruised foot during that time.”

Roi Normand, running 1 1/2 miles on turf in 2:24 3/5 for jockey Fernando Toro, paid $15.80, $8.40 and $5.40. Putting paid $8.20 and $6.20, and Circus Prince $7.60.

Monday’s crowd was 21,073, which is the lowest ever at Hollywood Park for a closing day. A footnote needs to be added because there is off-track betting at eight sites, where 6,426 bet on the telecast of Hollywood’s races Monday.

Before Roi Normand, Bobby Frankel, winner of more than 500 races and 9 Hollywood Park training titles, hadn’t won a stake race in Inglewood all season.

Frankel blamed himself after Roi Normand finished fifth, beaten by only a neck, in the Hollywood Invitational.

“He wasn’t right that day, he was a short horse (a horse lacking conditioning),” Frankel said. “I had been out of town, and I lost track of his breezing (workout) schedule. I messed up, but I trained him harder for this race and he was dead fit today.”

Roi Normand, carrying 114 pounds, 6 fewer than the top-weighted Political Ambition and Rivlia, was in sixth place early, with Knights Legend setting slow fractions. Toro was clear until they hit the turn, but then he needed some help, because Roi Normand was surrounded by horses.

“I was just waiting to get lucky and find some room, and it finally happened,” Toro said. “I was following Gary Stevens (on Putting), because that was the horse I thought I had to beat.”

Frankel never saw Roi Normand run in Europe, where he won 2 of 8 starts, but a friend recommended the horse. After a personal inspection, the trainer bought him for Gann. Frankel wouldn’t say what the price was, but he said that Roi Normand had given his new owner a profit before the Sunset.

Roi Normand’s U.S. career began with a victory in an allowance race at Santa Anita in late March, followed by a fifth-place finish at Aqueduct. The Exclusive Native-Luth de Saron 5-year-old won a minor stake at Louisiana Downs, then ran fifth in the Hollywood Invitational and was fourth at Golden Gate, where the turf was softer than it was Monday.

Stevens thought that Putting ran a winning race.

“He ran too good to get beat,” the jockey said. “I don’t think this is his favorite place to run. He hasn’t had any fast works here, he acts like he just tolerates it. It’s a little bit firm for him. He ran his race today and the other horse just ran a little better.”

Frankel has ambitious plans for Roi Normand. He may fly him to New York this week to run in the $200,000 Sword Dancer at Belmont Park on Saturday, and also on the schedule is the Arlington Million at Woodbine on Aug. 20. Another day, another race track. That’s how life’s been for Roi Normand since he came home to America.

Horse Racing Notes

On-track, Hollywood Park averaged 20,686 fans a day, which was a 5.5% decrease from last year. But counting attendance at eight off-track locations, attendance averaged 27,504, an increase of 25.7% from 1987, when off-track betting wasn’t available . . . The on-track handle averaged $4.8 million, a decrease of less than 1%, but with off-track betting added, the daily average was $6.1 million, highest in track history.

The $60,000 Oceanside, the opening-day stake at Del Mar Wednesday, drew a field of 12 3-year-olds, including Success Express, who with $835,359 has earned almost twice as much as his 11 opponents. Success Express won’t be favored, however, because he’s had eight winless starts since winning the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile at Hollywood Park last November. The one-mile Oceanside will be his second grass race, coming after a third-place finish at Hollywood Park on July 10 . . . The Oceanside field, starting at the rail, consists of Bold Citadel, Bag of Magic, Lucky Street, Success Express, Ship of Fools, Silver Circus, Perfecting, Malo Malo, Prove Splendid, Old Exclusive, Crown Pleasure and Free Throw. . . . Dream Team, winner of last year’s Oak Leaf at Santa Anita and third-place finisher in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies, made her first start of the year Monday at Hollywood and ran last.

Trainer Julio Canani’s 22nd victory of the meeting was Lot’s Curiosity, a $20,000 claim on June 25. Lot’s Curiosity, 2 for 9 this year before Canani bought him, has won at $30,000 and $40,000 in his last two starts. . . . Precisionist is expected to run Saturday in the 7-furlong Pat O’Brien Handicap at Del Mar. . . . Kentucky Derby winner Winning Colors, who has been galloping at Belmont Park, won’t run at Saratoga and is expected to run in the fall when Belmont reopens. . . . Lady Lister and Bald La, 2-year-old fillies owned by Earl Scheib, ran 1-2 in Monday’s sixth race. . . . Craig Lewis saddled his 25th winner Monday and won the Hollywood training title by two wins over Charlie Whittingham.