Here’s who captured the jockey, owner and trainer titles at Keeneland’s Spring Meet
The 2022 Spring Meet at Keeneland came to an end Friday under difficult and tragic circumstances.
Prior to the final 10-race card of the meet, exercise rider Callie Witt died Friday morning after being thrown from a horse on Keeneland’s training track.
Keeneland observed a moment of silence prior to Friday’s races in Witt’s memory, but the full 10-race card went ahead as scheduled to close out the meet.
With racing now finished at Keeneland until the Fall Meet in October, here’s a look at what happened during the 2022 Spring Meet.
Spring Meet titles
Wesley Ward claimed the trainer’s title with 13 race wins, with Louisville’s Brad Cox coming in second with 11 race wins.
This marked Ward’s sixth Spring Meet title and his eighth title overall.
Tyler Gaffalione claimed the jockey’s title with 19 wins during the meet, with Irad Ortiz Jr. finishing second with 18.
This marked Gaffalione’s first Spring Meet title and his fifth title overall.
Stonestreet Stables was the owner with the most victories during the Spring Meet with five, including the Giant’s Causeway and TVG Limestone.
This marked the first title for Stonestreet.
All three of these titles came down to Friday’s final races.
Stakes race winners
Keeneland’s Spring Meet featured 19 stakes races that awarded a record $7.7 million, highlighted by a pair of key prep races on the Road to the Kentucky Derby, the Grade 1 Toyota Blue Grass Stakes and the Grade 3 Stonestreet Lexington Stakes.
The Blue Grass Stakes, which awarded 100 qualifying points toward qualifying for the Kentucky Derby to the winner, was won by Zandon.
The Lexington Stakes, which awarded 20 qualifying points toward the Derby to the winner, was won by Tawny Port.
Both horses are set to take part in Saturday’s Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs in Louisville.
Here are the winners (jockeys, trainers) from all 19 stakes races that took place during the Spring Meet.
Grade 1 stakes:
▪ $600,000 Central Bank Ashland: Nest (Irad Ortiz Jr., Todd Pletcher)
▪ $1 million Toyota Blue Grass: Zandon (Flavien Prat, Chad Brown)
▪ $500,000 Madison: Just One Time (Flavien Prat, Brad Cox)
▪ $600,000 Maker’s Mark Mile: Shirl’s Speight (Luis Saez, Roger Attfield)
▪ $500,000 Jenny Wiley: Regal Glory (Jose Ortiz, Chad Brown)
Grade 2 stakes:
▪ $400,000 Appalachian: Spendarella (Tyler Gaffalione, Graham Motion)
▪ $350,000 Shakertown: Golden Pal (Irad Ortiz Jr., Wesley Ward)
▪ 350,000 Elkhorn: Channel Maker (Luis Saez, Bill Mott)
Grade 3 stakes:
▪ $400,000 Kentucky Utilities Transylvania: Sy Dog (Irad Ortiz Jr., Graham Motion)
▪ $300,000 Commonwealth: Prevalence (Tyler Gaffalione, Brendan Walsh)
▪ $400,000 Beaumont: Matareya (Flavien Prat, Brad Cox)
▪ $400,000 Stonestreet Lexington: Tawny Port (Florent Geroux, Brad Cox)
▪ $300,000 Baird Doubledogdare: Malathaat (John Velazquez, Todd Pletcher)
▪ $300,000 Ben Ali: Scalding (Javier Castellano, Shug McGaughey)
▪ $300,000 Bewitch: War Like Goddess (Joel Rosario, Bill Mott)
Others:
▪ $400,000 Lafayette: Old Homestead (Thomas Pompell, Brett Brinkman)
▪ $200,000 Palisades: Slipstream (Joel Rosario, Christophe Clement)
▪ $200,000 TVG Limestone: Ruthin (GB) (John Velazquez, Wesley Ward)
▪ $200,000 Giant’s Causeway: Campanelle (Irad Ortiz, Jr., Wesley Ward)
Spring Meet records
On April 9, the day of the Toyota Blue Grass Stakes, Keeneland set a single-day wagering record.
The all-sources handle for the 11-race card on April 9 totaled $28,137,728, which exceeded the previous record of $25,809,200 set on the day of the Blue Grass Stakes in 2019.
The meet also featured the second-highest single-day handle in Keeneland history.
On April 16, the day of the Stonestreet Lexington Stakes, the all-sources handle for the 11-race card totaled $27,304,001, lagging only behind the April 9 handle.
For the entirety of the Spring Meet, the all-sources handle was more than $219 million, establishing an all-time wagering record at Keeneland. The average daily all-sources handle was more than $14.6 million.
This is the third consecutive season with a new record handle set at Keeneland.
The average daily purse during the Spring Meet was a record $1.147 million and there was an average of 9.1 starters per race.
This story was originally published April 30, 2022 at 7:28 AM.
