Maryland Jockey Club

Claudio Gonzalez and Jevian Toledo both enjoyed career highs as they defended their titles as the Maryland Jockey Club's leading trainer and jockey, respectively, in 2022. Gonzalez, a 46-year-old cancer survivor from Chile, finished with 74 wins at Laurel Park and Pimlico Race Course to edge Brittany Russell and Jamie Ness, who tied for second with 73 wins apiece. It marked the sixth consecutive year that Gonzalez has led the Maryland standings, averaging 101 wins per season. He captured Laurel's winter stand to open 2022, his 19th individual meet title...

Winter Storm Elliott is expected to bring gusty winds, arctic cold and threats of flash freezing to the Mid-Atlantic over the weekend. To prepare, the Maryland Jockey Club has postponed its Dec. 26 Christmastide Stakes Day program. "Due to the weather conditions expected throughout the weekend, we decided to cancel our Monday program early and accommodate our fans as well as the horsemen and horsewomen who will be participating in this exceptional day of racing," said Mike Rogers, Acting President of the Maryland Jockey Club. The entire 11-race slate will...

As part of the Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance (TAA)'s month-long Holiday Giving Campaign, Mike Rogers has pledged to match all donations up to $500 made to the TAA Dec. 10. The campaign commenced Nov. 29 and is scheduled to conclude New Year's Eve. Those wishing to support the TAA, its 81 accredited organizations, and thousands of retired Thoroughbreds can donate through the TAA's website or text DONATE to 56651. During the Holiday Giving Campaign, TAA is also offering donors the benefit of sending digital holiday cards to colleagues, friends, and loved...

For the third year, 300 riders from the Mid-Atlantic region and beyond walked, trotted, and cantered their horses across Pimlico Oct. 31 with proceeds to benefit the Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance (TAA). In total, the 2022 Canter for the Cause raised over $20,000 for the TAA--a nonprofit which provides accreditation and grants to Thoroughbred aftercare organizations dedicated to the retraining, retiring, and rehoming of off-track Thoroughbreds. Sponsored by the Maryland Jockey Club, this annual event also gives riders the opportunity to take their horses through the starting gate and get their...

Laurel Park will swap out three Thursday racing dates for Mondays in November. The request was unanimously approved by a voice vote at the Oct. 4 Maryland Racing Commission meeting. Mike Rogers, the president of the racing division for the Maryland Jockey Club's Pimlico Race Course and Laurel Park, told commissioners that the Maryland Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association was in favor of the switch. "It's kind of an experiment. We see that handle is a little bit low on the Thursdays, so we're going to see if we can get a...

A team representing the Maryland Jockey Club will participate in the Real Rider Cup Friday, Sept. 16, at Fair Hill. The Fair Hill leg of the 2022 Real Rider Cup continues the tradition of the charity show jumping event that supports Fair Hill Thoroughbred Show, New Vocations Racehorse Adoption Program and the Retired Racehorse Project. The MJC will be represented by host/analyst Kali Francois, marketing and events manager Brittlan Wall and trainer Jacqueline Savoye. "I couldn't be more excited to be part of this amazing event and Team Maryland Jockey...

In the last race on the final day of Laurel Park's 2022 summer meet, trainer Rudy Sanchez-Salomon edged Claudio Gonzalez by one win, 19-18, to earn his first career training title, breaking their weekend tie. "It's been a great meet," Sanchez-Salomon said. "Everything has been great for us. We've been very blessed. I thank God and thank my help and thank everybody." Jevian Toledo and Horacio Karamanos finished tied for leading jockey honors with 31 wins apiece. They also shared Laurel's summer meet title in 2020.

Eclipse Award-winning sprinters Star de Naskra and Smoke Glacken are the newest inductees to the Maryland Thoroughbred Hall of Fame after a vote by a committee of Maryland racing industry members coordinated by the Maryland Horse Breeders Association and Maryland Racing Media Association. This year's inductees will be celebrated during a ceremony between races at Timonium Saturday, Sept. 3. The newest honorees, with biographies, photos, videos and complete race records, will be showcased on-line at www.mdthoroughbredhalloffame.com. "With the Maryland Thoroughbred Hall of Fame inductees each year we are able to...

After pushing back their usual 12:40 p.m. post time to 1:50 p.m. due to heat, a severe thunderstorm forced the Maryland Jockey Club to cancel Laurel Park's live Friday program following the seventh race, with just two races remaining on the card. Racing will resume Saturday at 12:40 p.m. with a 10-race card.

With temperatures set to reach the high nineties this weekend in the Mid-Atlantic region, a number of tracks have announced adjusted schedules, but Monmouth Park officials remain confident that the Saturday card featuring the GI Haskell S. will go off as planned. "First and foremost, we are concerned about the safety of the horses and jockeys and want to make sure we do the right thing," said Dennis Drazin, who heads the management team at the Jersey Shore track. "But we've been on top of it all week and right...

With high temperatures and humidity in the forecast, and in the best interests of its horses, horsemen and fans, the Maryland Jockey Club has pushed back post time for the live 10-race program at Laurel Park Saturday, July 23. The first race, a 5 1/2 furlong claiming sprint for maiden 3, 4, and 5-year-old fillies scheduled on the All Along turf course, will go off at 1:50 p.m. rather than the usual 12:40 p.m. starting time during the 37-day summer meet. The National Weather Service forecast calls for abundant sunshine...

Due to excessive heat forecast for the Mid-Atlantic region, and with an abundance of caution for its horses, horsemen and fans, the Maryland Jockey Club will not host live racing at Laurel Sunday, July 24. Temperatures are expected to reach the mid-90s through the weekend with near-record highs approaching 98 degrees forecast for Sunday, according to the National Weather Service. Races that were in the condition book and all extras for Sunday will now be used for an additional live program Thursday, July 28. Entries will be taken Saturday, July...