ED BURKE PRE RACE ARTICLES

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Coronas All Around In Ed Burke Million Futurity Final



Corona Cartel sired four trials winners in
the Ed Burke Million trials with a total of 5 in the final.

LOS ALAMITOS RACE COURSE, CYPRESS, CA—Carters Cartel will look to become the eighth horse to sweep the Kindergarten Futurity and Ed Burke Million Futurity when he headlines a field of 10 in Saturday's $1,130,000 Ed Burke final at Los Alamitos.
More importantly, Carters Cartel will try to become the only horse eligible to win this year's $1 million Los Alamitos Cash Bonanza, as the Ed Burke serve as the opening leg of the track's version of the Triple Crown. The winner of the 350-yard Ed Burke can claim the cash prize if futurity victories in the Golden State Million in November and Los Alamitos Two Million follow.

Jaime Gomez, who has established a reputation as the king of the two-year-olds, will saddle Carters Cartel for 2006 Champion Owners Double Bar S Ranch LLC. Gomez has won Gomez has saddled nine winners in the last 14 futurities at Los Alamitos. That doesn't include the training he did with Corona Cartel back in 1996 when he trained the now superstar stallion to victories in the Kindergarten and Los Alamitos Million Futurity.

Corona Cartel is the sire of half of the field in this year's Ed Burke, including fastest qualifier Carters Cartel. He is also the sire of Ed Allred and T.J. Simers' Kiddy Up and Abigail Kawananakoa's Wicked Royal Cartel, a pair of youngster that have combined to go a perfect five for five this season.

"Carter Cartel is doing wonderful coming into this race," Gomez said. "I really like our post position number five. He won from that same spot in the Kindergarten trials and he should like again in the Ed Burke."

Miss Kittys Bar Bet will break from post seven in the Ed Burke, as she looks to avenge her third place finish to Carters Cartel in the Kindergarten. The Sum Fun To Bet filly surprised a lot of observers by posting the fastest qualifying time to the Kindergarten but she proved that was no fluke by posting the second fastest qualifying time to the Ed Burke. Miss Kittys Bar Bet will break from post seven.

Breaking between Carters Cartel and Miss Kittys Bar Bet will be Ed Allred's Freaky, who ran sixth in the Kindergarten.

"I like his post position," said trainer Scott Willoughby. "If those two horse break quickly then Freaky should get a clean start and he should be right there with them."

The aforementioned Kiddy Up has an entire hospital rooting for him, as the first $50,000 that he earns will benefit the Mattel Children's Hospital at UCLA. Trained by John Bassett, Kiddy Up will go over the 50K mark if he finishes sixth or better in the Ed Burke. He'll start from post one. "I really like his post position," said assistant trainer Joe Bassett. "We won the Los Alamitos Two Million with Blues Girl Too from that same post and I think Kiddy Up can do the same."

Champion jockey G.R. Carter, who qualified Keilani Farms' Tailgunner Tom and Eye For Corona for trainer Mike Joiner, has opted for the Corona Cartel colt Tailgunner Tom. The only maiden in the field, Tailgunner Tom finished impressively in the trials but he did finish behind Kiddy Up two races ago. The winner of the Ed Burke Million will earn $457,000. Second place is worth $185,300.

The Next Higher Fire

Dutch Masters III's Higher Fire was all the rage in 2005, as the eventual champion filly was a half-length away from becoming the first 2-year-old to sweep Los Alamitos' three million dollar futurities.

Fast-forward to 2007 and Miss Kittys Bar Bet is now the hot filly on the grounds and interestingly her career so far has several similarities to Higher Fire's first few starts. Both Higher Fire and Miss Kittys Bar Bet won their Kindergarten Futurity trials before their slow starts equaled to third place finishes in the Kindergarten final. Undeterred by the result, both fillies returned to sizzle in the trials to the Ed Burke Million finale, as they each posted outstanding clockings while they each raced in the opening Ed Burke trial of the night. J.R. Ramirez piloted Higher Fire to victory in the Ed Burke and he'll look to do the same when rides the Sum Fun To Bet filly on Saturday. Even their dams have something in common, as they changed ownership prior to the start of their daughters' 2-year-old campaigns.

The most notable difference is that Hector Jaime Hernandez trains Miss Kittys Bar Bet for owner Dr. Steve Burns. Jaime Gomez trained Higher Fire.


Breeding Lines Of Ed Burke Finalists Courtesy of Track Magazine

KIDDY UP, c. (Corona Cartel--Miss Racy Vike, by Racin Free). One of four embryo transfer foals. Half-brother to RG2 SW Miss Racy Eyes $133,000, G1 SPW Vikes Iota $104,000, RG2 SPW The Bluetailfly $83,000, G3 SPW Sixavike $68,000, G2 SPW Dashin Belladona $49,000, etc. Dam is $264,000 G1 SW and sister to G1 SW Racin Vike $229,000 and G1 SW Racin Deal $179,000. $160,000 Los Alamitos Equine yearling.

MAGIC SHOW CZECH, c. (Corona Czech--Pure Magic TB, by Magical Mile). $3,100 earner is half-brother to G3 SW Pure Rhythm $92,000 and SW Pure Red Hot $51,000. Family includes SW Noted $180,000, SW Ludicrous $93,000, SW Wild Tom $67,000, SW Avenue Of Gold $520,000, etc.

TAILGUNNER TOM, c. (Corona Cartel--Dash Free, by Victory Dash). Dam is $219,000 G3 SW and half-sister to SW Ms Easy Truxton $13,000 (dam of SPW Genuine Smarts $52,000), G1 SPW Bay Leader $16,000, and to dams of G1 SW Fightin Jane $195,000 and SPW Power Edge $47,000. 2nd dam is SPW Bobbi Big Wheel $62,000. $110,000 TQHA yearling.

TRES SPICE, f. (Tres Six--Sporty Spice, by First Down Dash). Dam is a half-sister to World Champion Merganser $1.4 Million, SW A Dash Of Ginger $39,000 (dam of Coup De Main $163,000), etc.

CARTERS CARTEL, c. (Corona Cartel--Jumping Tac Flash). $159,000 earner is half-brother to 2006 multiple G1 winner Tac It Like A Man $394,000, SW (stakes winner) Flash First $352,000, MSW Imjumpn $56,000 (dam of RG3 SW Jumpn $188,000 and G1 SPW Jumpn Chic $150,000), G1 SPW A Tac First $89,000, etc. Dam is $147,000 Champion G2 SW and sister to Champion Splash Bac.

FREAKY, g. (TR Dasher--Chickasecret, by Raise A Secret). 1st foal of $6,000 winning sister to SPW Secretly Seymour $86,000 and half-sister to Lassen County $105,000.

MISS KITTYS BAR BET, f. (Sum Fun To Bet--Fames Easy, by Dash To Fame). Half-sister to G1 SPW Dont Dink With Me $164,000, SPW Doreme Fasolasi Win $103,000 and RG1 SPW Ynot Bar 136,000 and 2006 multiple G1 finalist The One I Am $73,000. 2nd dam is G1 SW Mighty Easy Pass $279,000. Sire is $27,000 MSPW out of World Champion Down With Debt.

WICKED ROYAL CARTEL, f. (Corona Cartel--Wicked Winner, by Runaway Winner)..Dam is $138,000 G2 SW. 2nd dam is G1 SW Wicked Willa $121,000 and sister to G1 SW Wicked Dash $354,000, G1 SW Wicked Wind $118,000, SW Strictly Wicked $112,000 and to dam of G3 SW Heza Wicked Man $173,000. Family includes SW Viking Anne.

SHEZ SNOW QUICK, f. (This Snow Is Royal--Shez Real Quick, by Royal Quick Dash). 1st foal of $3,500 winner who is a half-sister to G1 West Texas Sun Country F. placed and G1 All American F. finalist Victory Blast $109,000, etc.

EYE FOR CORONA, f. (Corona Cartel--Eye For The Sixes, by Mr Eye Opener). Dam is $63,000 G1 SPW and half-sister to G1 SW Sixes Royal $385,000, G3 SW Four Six Dash $78,000, and to dam of G2 SW Lady Six Meter $68,000. 2nd dam is G2 SW Tempered Glass $104,000 and sister to SW Six Under Glass $41,000. Family includes Champion Sixy Chick $751,000 and SW Sixarun $291,000. $90,000 Ruidoso yearling.

Remembering Ed Burke

The place the Ed Burke Million Futurity holds on the Los Alamitos racing calendar is fitting for the person the race is named after.

Los Alamitos Race Course traces its history back to informal match races on the Vessels Ranch in 1947. When owner Frank Vessels, Sr., decided to build a proper racetrack in 1951, he recruited Ed Burke to be its first racing secretary and general manager. Burke set the tone for the way Los Alamitos would be run. In the same way, the Ed Burke Million sets the tone for the rest of the 2-year-old racing season at Los Alamitos as the first leg of the $1 million Los Alamitos Cash Bonanza.

"As far as I've been told, he has a lot to do with it," said grandson Jim Burke, who will be in the winner's circle of Saturday's race along with other members of the Burke family. "He was fair. He would treat the guy with one horse the same as he would treat Blane Schvaneveldt. He was hard-nosed and not a guy who would be pushed around."

Burke's tenure at Los Alamitos, which lasted until the early 1970s, was the last on a westward journey of racetracks around the United States.

Born in Kansas, his first job was as a cook in the jockey's room at Thistledown in Ohio. He worked at Rillito Park in Arizona prior to coming to Los Alamitos. He also owned and trained Thoroughbreds that would run at Hollywood Park.

Ed Burke Juvenile On Tap Saturday

The inaugural $35,000 Ed Burke Juvenile will serve as the undercard to the main event. The race could be a springboard for future stardom at the highest level for these babies.

Benny Rosset's Stylish Jess Br missed qualifying for the Ed Burke Million finals by .01 seconds, the equivalent of a nose. The Paul Jones-trained filly won the tenth trial to the Ed Burke Million by ¾ lengths after being bumped at the start, but her time of 17.59 seconds for the 350 yards was just above the cut. She will now try to assert herself as the likely favorite in the Ed Burke Juvenile with regular rider Cody Jensen aboard.

Stylish Jess Br is the only runner in the Ed Burke Juvenile that won a trial to the Ed Burke Million, but some of the other entrants finished in the shadow of eventual finalists. Rancho Guzman Racing Team's Shez A Cartel took second as a 16-1 longshot in the trial won by fastest Ed Burke qualifier and Kindergarten Futurity winner Carters Cartel. Felix Gonzalez' El Galun was third in his trial to eventual finalists Tres Spice and Tailgunner Tom. J. Garvan Kelly's Nolan Riley rallied after drifting out early to be third behind eventual finalists Miss Kittys Bar Bet and Shez Snow Quick. Pat and Wait Fletcher's Ramblin On Down finished second behind Ed Burke Million finalist Wicked Royal Cartel.

Despite solid efforts, El Galun, Nolan Riley, and Ramblin On Down are still maidens looking for their first win. Five of the runners, more than half the field, are maidens. Others looking for their first victory are Robert Williams' Jay Tee El, who was second in an Ed Burke trial, and EG High Desert Farms' Dash Me With Rhythm, who was third in an Ed Burke trial.

One newcomer to the Ed Burke scene will be Rancho El Alacran's Mexican-bred Fighter On Fire. Trained by Adan Farias and ridden by Rodrigo Aceves, Figher On Fire qualified for the Kindergarten Futurity in his first career start but has not raced since finishing last in the finals. Another Ed Burke Juvenile runner that also ran in the Kindergarten Futurity will be Jaime Godinez' Perksandmiracles. Seventh in the Kindergarten, Perksandmiracles is coming off a third-place finish in the Ed Burke trials.

Courtesy of www.losalamitos.com