HANDICAPPING

Mr. Longshot turns $28 into $23,000
So what else is new?

Les “Longshot” Buzzell Makes Super Bowl Sunday extra-special

Ho-hum! Les “Longshot” Buzzell was at it again on--appropriately--Super Bowl Sunday. The day will be memorable for the railway-signals company owner, not just because the Bucs crushed the favoured Chiefs, but because he nailed the early pick-5s at both Gulfstream and Tampa without hardly touching his bankroll.

• He spent $28.80 to bag $23,000 at Tampa. His wheel was 2 X 3 X 2 X 2 X 2. His horses paid $9.60, $12.40, $21.60, $9.80 and $41.60. See that program here.
• He spent $86.40 to pocket $4,175 at Gulfstream. His wheel was 3 X 4 X 2 X 2 X 2. His horses paid $4.40, $5.20, $3.40, $32.20 and $55. See that program here.

See his HPI transaction tickets here. Les must have been a heavy baby with the nibs of lucky horseshoes beginning to develop in his body. There ought to be an Eclipse Award (U.S.) or a Sovereign Award (Canada) for someone who does what he does -- consistently.

ESCAPE CLAUSE WATCH

The face of a winner? Escape Clause’s son six days after birth (Noriko Takahashi photo )

Will Escape Clause's foal take after his MB mother . . .
. . . and/or his record-breaking Japanese father?

Tokyo Racecourse where Escape Clause’s sire won the 2015 Japanese Derby in record time

Thanks to Noriko Takahashi at the vast Northern Farm in Japan, we have our first picture above of Escape Clause’s son who was born on Jan. 30. “I love Canada,” she said, explaining she learned English after visiting Vancouver. So I think we can expect her to pay special attention to the development of the Manitoba mare’s foal.

An obvious name for the colt would be Duraclause which combines mom’s name with the sire’s name, Duramente, who made headlines in Japan by running the fastest-ever Japanese Derby in 2015 at the beautiful Tokyo Racecourse. They don’t normally name horses until they reach 2, however.

There are 10 race tracks in Japan with some of the richest purses in the world. Next Sunday, in fact, one of four prep races for the Kentucky Derby will be held in Japan -- the Hyacinth Stakes at Tokyo Racecourse that has room for 223,000 fans. The Hyacinth winner receives 30 Derby qualifying points.

Wouldn’t it be special if a colt with a Manitoba mother could earn a berth in the Kentucky Derby by way of a race held in Japan? I know -- way too early -- but one can dream.

ROAD TO THE KENTUCKY DERBY

Will Senor Buscador do what he did in the Springboard Mile?

All eyes on Senor Buscador in Risen Star prep race
Will he duplicate his jaw-dropping last-to-first Springboard Mile feat?

Here comes a race many of us have been looking forward to. It’s the Risen Star Kentucky Derby prep race at Fair Grounds Saturday that features the return of Senor Buscador who turned heads at Remington Park in December when he swept from last to first in the Springboard Mile prep race. His Equibase speed was 107, the second-highest of prep race winners. (Highest was Life Is Good with 112 in the Sham Stakes.)

Senor Buscador’s connections: Jockey Louis Quinonez, trainer Todd Fincher

If you bet Senor Buscador in the Kentucky Derby Future Wager pool at juicy odds of 34-1, you’re particularly interested in seeing how he runs in the 1 1/8-mile Risen Star that gives the winner a vaunted 50 qualifying points for Derby entry.

Senor Buscador has been training well. In his most recent 4-furlong workout at Sam Houston he was third-fastest of 24 horses and reportedly galloped out well. He is trained by Todd Fincher (six wins in 24 starts at Sam Houston) and ridden by Luis Quinonez (who was fifth in jockey standings at Remington last year). Fincher has scored one graded stakes victory in his 20-year career: Runaway Ghost in the 2018 Sunland Derby.

The main competition in the field of 12 is likely to come from two Steven Asmussen trainees: Midnight Bourbon, winner of the Lecomte prep race at Fair Grounds (98 E speed) and Jackie’s Warrior, winner of two Grade 1 stakes last year (top E figure 105).

As a deep closer, Senor Buscador will need an honest early pace. The Risen Star will be the last race on the 12-race Fair Grounds card. ESSENTIAL QUALITY SHARES SAME ODDS AS LIFE IS GOOD IN FUTURE POOL: Tomorrow through Sunday is your next chance to bet a horse you think will win the Kentucky Derby. Essential Quality and Life Is Good are the 8-1 morning line individual horses in this wagering pool. See all horses here. (Senor Buscador at 30-1 and The Great One at 20-1 look like great plays.)

ONE OTHER PREP RACE GOES SATURDAY: The El Camino Real prep race goes Saturday on the Tapeta track at Golden Gates Fields. NOTE THAT THE SOUTHWEST STAKES AT OAKLAWN MONDAY WILL NOT GO because racing is cancelled in the wake of a severe weather forecast.

QUOTE OF THE WEEK: “I really like his mentality, the way he just enjoys running,” -- Todd Fincher, trainer of Senor Buscador who swept by his rivals, last to first, in the Springboard Mile and is racing Saturday in the Risen Star Kentucky Derby prep race.

THE WEEK THAT WAS
A FAVOURITE COMPANION FADES INTO OBLIVION: Shortly after 11 a.m. Tuesday morning, while I was working on this column, there was a kind of kerfuffle and a strange voice and sounds on the radio station I was listening to. Then music started up with occasional announcements between songs stating “something brand new is coming 9 a.m. Friday.” And thusly ended the format of a station I had listened to first thing in the morning and last thing at night for years--and that Assiniboia Downs sponsored for an hour each day and carried hundreds of interviews with CEO Darren Dunn--TSN 1290 sports radio.

It was gone -- just like that. To be replaced, apparently, by stand-up comedy programming. “The reality of the quickly evolving broadcast media landscape in Canada have made this change unavoidable,” said a Bell Canada statement posted on the internet. The company also dropped sports radio in Vancouver and Hamilton. This is going to take a long time to get over. It feels like the death of a friend.

BETTING RECORD AT TAMPA ON SUPER BOWL EVE: Did it help that the Super Bowl was in town at Tampa? Wagering on the 12-race card at Tampa Bay Downs Saturday was $13.2 million, a record for Festival Preview Day in which the Sam F. Davis prep race for the Kentucky Derby was held. The betting total was $2.1 million more than last year’s Preview Day and was the third highest for any day ever.

HARNESS TRAINING RESUMES AT MOHAWK BUT NO RACE DAYS SET YET: As Ontario carefully begins opening up its province to more activity in the face of COVID-19, standardbreds at Mohawk have been given the go-ahead to begin training again but uncertainty still surrounds the beginning of racing. Racing hasn’t been conducted at the Campbellville track since December.

TRAVYFOOTBALL RECAP

Everything was different -- yet the same.
(Look at who was MVP!)