There’s a lot at stake for Gomez as fall meet begins

The Hollywood Park fall meet that opens today will serve as more than just a way to fill the gap on the Southern California racing calendar between the close of Oak Tree and the start of the winter meet at Santa Anita the day after Christmas.

For one thing, the California Horse Racing Board has announced that an eight-month experiment beginning today will allow Internet wagering on all advance deposit wagering providers in the state.

For another, the meet provides Garrett Gomez and his compatriots another stage to show just how strong the Southern California jockey colony has become.

Gomez comes into this meet, where he will defend his riding title, as the nation’s leading jockey with purse earnings of $21.2 million this year. He has 69 stakes wins, one shy of the record set by Jerry Bailey in 2003. Gomez can tie Bailey’s record today on 3-1 morning-line favorite Karazi in the $65,000-added War Chant Stakes.

The nonexclusive ADW wagering agreement is something CHRB Chairman Richard Shapiro and other commissioners have been urging the industry to do. Shapiro sees it as a way to “grow our business.”

Previously, those who wagered on Hollywood Park races at home were limited to TVG.com and YouBet.com. Now their options include Xpress.com and TwinSpires.com.

Television coverage by TVG and HRTV will continue to be exclusive. TVG has exclusive deals with Hollywood Park and the Oak Tree Racing Assn., which conducts its meet at Santa Anita. HRTV has the winter meet at Santa Anita exclusively.

TVG announced Tuesday that it has entered into a new agreement with Hollywood Park to maintain those exclusive television rights.

As for the exclusive Internet wagering deals that were in place, Jack Liebau, president of Hollywood Park and Bay Meadows, said everyone recognized the inconvenience and called the beginning of today’s experiment “a new dawn for ADW wagering in California.”

Added Liebau: “The new model provides for a larger revenue stream to tracks and horsemen.”

CHRB vice chairman John Harris said: “I feel ADW is the great hope of horse racing, and some of the things we’ve accomplished in this go-round should enhance it. We have barely scratched the surface of our customer base.

“Horse racing is the only legal sports wager in most states. Wagering on the Internet on a regular basis by sports lovers all over the world can dramatically improve the economics of horse racing. I like this avenue for revenue growth much better than slots.”

The eight-month experiment runs though next year’s spring-summer meet at Hollywood Park, which ends July 13.

As for this fall meet, the spotlight is on Gomez as he closes in on Bailey’s record and an Eclipse Award. And it is also on a number of other jockeys.

Tyler Baze is coming off a riding title at Oak Tree, where Victor Espinoza was the runner-up. Michael Baze and Joe Talamo finished 1-2 at the earlier Hollywood Park and Del Mar meets.

Hall of Fame rider Mike Smith, the always popular Alex Solis, plus David Flores, Corey Nakatani, Richard Migliore and Aaron Gryder are among those who make up an impressive jockey field for this meet.

Also, Rafael Bejarano, fifth in the nation with purse earnings of $14 million, is due at Hollywood Park from Kentucky on Nov. 21.

Also expected to arrive at the Inglewood track around that time is Julien Leparoux, the Eclipse Award winner as the nation’s top apprentice last year.

And Patrick Valenzuela, 45, who began riding last weekend at Zia Park in New Mexico, is tying up loose ends with hopes of riding in this meet.

Valenzuela hadn’t ridden since suffering three broken ribs when he was kicked by a horse in the paddock area at Hollywood Park nearly a year ago.

But most of the attention, at least initially, will be focused on Gomez, who earlier this year spent a good deal of time riding in the East.

Although he’ll be gone Nov. 24 to ride Breeders’ Cup winner Midnight Lute in the Cigar Mile at New York’s Aqueduct, he said he thinks he’ll ride enough at the Hollywood Park meet to be in contention to defend his title.

Ingrid Fermin, executive director of the CHRB, has submitted her resignation, the board announced.

She will step down Jan. 7, which marks her three-year anniversary in the position.

Fermin said in a letter to the board that she was resigning because the position was going to require her to relocate from her home in Del Mar to Sacramento.

larry.stewart@latimes.com

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(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX)

Hollywood Park

Dates: Today-Dec. 22 (32 days).

Post times: 12:30 p.m. with the following exceptions: 7:05 p.m. (Friday and Nov. 16), 11 a.m. (Nov. 22).

Significant races: $400,000 Citation Handicap (Nov. 23), $500,000 Matriarch (Nov. 25), $500,000 Hollywood Derby (Nov. 25), $250,000 Hollywood Turf Cup (Dec. 8), $250,000 Hollywood Starlet (Dec. 15) and $750,000 Cashcall Futurity (Dec. 22).

Leading trainer (2006 meet): Doug O’Neill (24 wins).

Leading jockey (2006 meet): Garrett Gomez (35 wins).

-- Bob Mieszerski