Lawn expert Kitodan who went from being declared twice last year to win Kentucky Downs‘ The $750,000 (G3T) duel, was selected as the National HBPA’s Declared Horse of the Year 2022.
West Kentucky coach Eric Foster, whose wife is Brooklyn’s Foster Family Racing and partners Doug Miller and Bill Wargel, said: “We’re just lucky that we were able to claim that kind of horse compared to the way we were. here a few years. The foal is now 4 years old after claiming it for $80,000 in May. “We are truly happy and humbled to own him and thank the National HBPA for this award. Winning the Claimed Horse of the Year came as a surprise, but we are honored and proud of ourselves. Proud of Kitodan. People like us, we can ‘Don’t go to the Keeneland sale, pick the things we want and hold our hands until we go home with them.”
Kitodan will be honored at an awards luncheon on Tuesday, March 7, as part of the annual National Knights Protection & Benevolence Conference March 6-10 at the Monteleone Hotel history in New Orleans’ French Quarter.
“The Kitodan exemplifies what we look for in the National HBPA Claimant Horse of the Year,” said Todd Mostoller, National HBPA Award Committee Chair. “He ran in five different races on grass, synthetics and dirt and showed that a racehorse with a good heart is better than a hefty price tag while going from three races to the finish line. ownership to be a graded bet winner We love these stories it gives hope to riders everywhere that you don’t have to buy six-seven-figure kids to get a good horse.”
Kitodan, a $9,000 item, made money for three of its owners’ sets by the age of 3. After placing a bet on Joker Racing at the age of 2, Kitodan was claimed by coach Mike Maker in early 2022 for $35,000 on behalf of Paradise Farms Corp owner. and David Staudacher, who lobbied for the Horse of the Year 2021 special reserve . Kitodan quickly wins another optional subsidy race at Churchill Downs before taking Race Park‘s Rushaway Stakes is 3 1/2 the length.
When Maker then ran Kitodan for $80,000 in an option claim race at Churchill DownsFoster was the only one who made the request.
(RL): Stewart and Eric Foster embrace after Kitodan’s victory in the Dueling Grounds Derby
The partners recouped their investment just three weeks later when Kitodan won Churchill’s Audubon Share at 40-1 odds. That was followed by a respectable fourth place in the off-court version of the American Derby and a close fifth place ahead of the older horses in the race. Ellis . Park‘s Henderson Turf Mile Stakes. the son of Entry point Kitodan clearly appreciates the 1 5/16 mile run of the Dueling Grounds Derby, which won by four distances 20-1 under Gerardo Corrales.
Miller, of Junction, Ill., said: “It’s one of those things you only dream of racing against a horse like this. Cooperation has given us the opportunity.”
It was the first classified bet win for the owner and by far the biggest purse.
Wargel, of Ridgway, Ill., 50 miles from Kentucky’s Ellis Park, says: “There are a lot of people who have a lot of money and investments in horses but never get this kind of horse. “Me and Doug, we were just old farm boys. Whether we never had another one or that horse never won another race, he made the dream come true. reality for us.”
Foster said that Kitodan’s winning Horse of the Year was an award for the team that included his partners who made it happen, along with the trainer’s staff and families, who helped the stables.
Foster said of his assistant coach: “We would never want to accept an award like this without thanking Juan Medina. “He not only looked after Kitodan but was also his regular exerciser. We are also grateful to Gerardo Corrales and his agent, Cliff Collier.”
Kitodan is resting at Foster’s ranch in Utica, Ky., near Owensboro, with the primary goal of the Kentucky Downs’ $1 million Kentucky Turf Cup (G2T) in September and hopefully a next trip Santa Anita . Park for Breeders’ Cup Turf (G1T), a race he missed last year because of a minor foot problem.
“He’s probably put on 100, 150 pounds,” Foster said. The break really helped him a lot. “We hope to start back with him by the end of February. We’d love to get back to the Kentucky Downs.”
This press release has been edited by BloodHorse Staff for content and style.
