Mabees Have Day Full of Maybe Not

Kentucky wasn’t the only place where things didn’t go well for owners John and Betty Mabee on Saturday.

Before they were unable to hit the board with General Challenge or Excellent Meeting in the Kentucky Derby, the Mabees’ Event Of The Year flopped at 3-10 in the $150,000 Mervyn LeRoy Handicap at Hollywood Park.

After bobbling at the start, Event Of The Year, who had never been worse than third in his previous eight starts, never got involved under jockey Laffit Pincay, Jr. and wound up fourth, beaten a little more than 10 lengths by runaway winner Budroyale.

Winning for the fifth time in 11 tries at Hollywood Park, Budroyale, the 7-1 third choice in the field of six, took over from pacesetter Klinsman on the far turn and drew away to win by eight lengths in 1:42 for the 1 1/16 miles.

Owned by Jeffrey Sengara and trained by Ted West, Budroyale has won five times and earned over $500,000 since being claimed for $50,000 early last year.

“[Budroyale] really is underrated, but as long as he keeps running like this, they can underrate him all they want,” winning jockey Garrett Gomez said. “I don’t want to show any disrespect for Event Of The Year, because he’s a nice horse, but Classic Cat is a very good horse and [Budroyale] really made Classic Cat work hard to beat him [twice] over at Santa Anita.”

Moore’s Flat, the longest shot in the LeRoy at 33-1, got up to beat Wild Wonder a neck for the place and, with Event Of The Year off the board, there were some wacky show payoffs. Budroyale paid $17.60 to win and $16.60 to show while Moore’s Flat paid $28.80 and Wild Wonder $13.20 to show.

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In the day’s other stakes race, Cliquot, the 8-5 favorite, wore down Red Sky’s in the final yards to win the $250,000 Snow Chief Stakes by a head in 1:50 1/5 for the 1 1/8 miles.

Providing jockey Emile Ramsammy with his biggest victory in monetary terms since he came to California a few years back, the 3-year-old Bertrando gelding also kept a hot streak going for owner Marshall Naify’s 505 Farms and trainer John Shirreffs. Naify and Shirreffs were 10 of 21 at Santa Anita and have won with their first three starters at the seven-day-old Hollywood Park meet.

This was the third win in five outings for Cliquot, who two races back beat Kentucky Derby winner Charismatic in the El Camino Real Derby at Bay Meadows.

Red Sky’s, who had his saddle slip forward in the stretch, finished three clear of 5-2 second choice Love That Red. Two other contenders, No Cal Bread and Sunday Stroll, were eliminated when they broke very slowly.

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Making his first start since finishing a distant ninth in the Breeders’ Cup Turf, Bonapartiste is the 9-5 favorite against five opponents in today’s $75,000 Fastness Handicap at Hollywood Park.

Trained by Ron McAnally for owner Fabien Ouaki Ecurie, the 5-year-old Kendor horse had a productive year in 1998, winning five of 10 and he was also second four times. His biggest victory came in the Del Mar Handicap and he was second in the American and Eddie Read Handicaps as well as the Oak Tree Turf Championship. Chris McCarron will again ride.

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Reraise, last year’s Breeders’ Cup Sprint and Eclipse champion, will be heavily favored against only three others in today’s $100,000 Oakland Handicap at Golden Gate Fields.

An easy winner of his first start of the year in the Count Fleet Sprint Handicap last month at Oaklawn Park, the 4-year-old Danzatore gelding will break from the rail against Early Pioneer, Mellow Fellow and Saylo.

Horse Racing Notes

The total mutuel handle of $24,544,891.70 was a Hollywood Park record for the spring-summer meet. The total attendance on-track and the various satellites was 61,747. . . . Hollywood Park’s post time will move to 1 p.m., starting Wednesday.