SHAKOPEE, MN – When trainer Tina Rodriguez-Guzman pulled into Canterbury Park late Sunday night after fourteen hours on the road, the last place she envisioned herself the following weekend was in the winners’ circle after the $75,000 Dark Star Cup.
“It was a long ride coming up from Texas,” said Rodriguez-Guzman. “We laid over at Remington Park and then it was another fourteen hours until we got here.”
Rodriguez-Guzman and her daughter, Tatyana, 16, hauled up four horses from Texas, one of them Plot Twist, who ended up being the longest shot on the board in the Dark Star.
In seven career starts, Plot Twist only missed the board once and the trainer took the rap.
“I hauled him in too close to the race,” she said. This time, Plot Twist had time to settle in and when it came time to run, he didn’t disappoint.
There was plenty of early pace in the race with the rambunctious-in-the-paddock He’s So Zazzy helping to set quick fractions of 22 flat and 44.47 while Plot Twist settled near the back of the pack. By mid stretch in the 6 1/2 furlong race Erik McNeil had him in full flight and caught He’s So Zazzy ($6.20) late to win at 36-1 ($75.20) in 1:10.63.
“We’ve really wanted to stretch this horse out a little bit,” said Rodriguez-Guzman. “In Texas we didn’t have the opportunity. You can run at five furlongs, six or you go to a mile and I don’t like going straight to a mile so the 6 1/2 was perfect.”
Rodriguez-Guzman, Tatyana and owner Raymond Gross Jr. were all smiles as Rodriguez-Guzman claimed her first stakes victory.
“We’ve never entered a stakes race before,” Rodriguez-Guzman said. Now she’s undefeated in them.
Nebraskan Diamond Joe finished third ($6.60).
The Northbound Pride Oaks was a contentious affair with three scratches leaving the field of six tightly bunched for most of the wagering until the late money separated Mac Robertson’s late running Princess Erindelle from the field as the 8/5 favorite.
In the early stages of the mile affair on the turf, Frozen Hannah threatened to run away with race, cutting the early fractions and opening up a 3 1/2 length lead at the top of the stretch under Chris Rosier. At that point Inconclusive had begun her run at the leaders, picking off Blame Us and Trick City to move into second and getting the jump on Princess Erindelle.
Denny Velazquez had Inconclusive storming through the lane where she caught Frozen Hannah and held off the late charging favorite to win the race in 1:39.41. She paid $11.00 to win. Princess Erindelle ($2.80) was a neck back in second and Frozen Hannah ($2.20) was third.
Trainer Richie Scherer, in from Chicago for the race, was thrilled that the filly was bale to get her first win and gave the credit to Velazquez.
“Denny gave her a great ride,” Scherer said. “She’s been falling too far back in her other races and we wanted to make sure she was closer.
“There have been a few races where I thought she was the best in the race but we were too far back, or too wide, or something,” Scherer continued. “This time Denny had her in the right spot and she was able to show what she can do.”
Inclusive is owned by Minnesota natives Carolyn Friedberg and Jeff Larson.
