Blog

Jul 08, 2023

Best Actor, King Ottoman meet again in W.Va. Governor’s Stakes

Aug 3, 2023 LEADING THE PACK — Best Actor (outside) runs second to Actuator down the stretch in the 2022 Indiana Derby. - Coady Photography CHESTER — Best Actor, highly regarded last year as a

Aug 3, 2023

LEADING THE PACK — Best Actor (outside) runs second to Actuator down the stretch in the 2022 Indiana Derby. - Coady Photography

CHESTER — Best Actor, highly regarded last year as a 3-year-old, will stretch out for his second start of 2023 in the Grade III $200,000 West Virginia Governor’s Stakes at Mountaineer Casino, Racetrack and Resort Sunday.

The 1 1/16-mile Governor’s Stakes for 3-year-olds and up has a probable post time of 7:40 p.m. and will be followed by the Grade III $500,000 West Virginia Derby at about 8:15 p.m. First post time for the Sunday program is 5 p.m.

Best Actor, owned by Gary and Mary West and trained by Brad Cox, won three of six races in 2022 including the Grade III Smarty Jones Stakes at Parx Racing. The 4-year-old colt by Flatter finished a close second in the Grade III Indiana Derby and ended his season in late September with a distant third-place finish in the Grade III Oklahoma Derby.

Rattle N Roll, who won the Oklahoma Derby, has won three graded stakes this year and is considered among the top older horses in the United States.

Best Actor, who drew post position 12 with Kendrick Carmouche to ride, returned to the races on June 30 at Ellis Park in western Kentucky and finished second in a seven-furlong allowance event. He clearly has shown a preference for racing longer distances for Cox, who has won the Governor’s Stakes three times, including last year with Fulsome.

Another 4-year-old, King Ottoman, won the Texas Derby last year and finished his season with a second in the Oklahoma Derby more than nine lengths ahead of Best Actor. In between those races was a trip to Mountaineer, where the Steve Asmussen trainee checked in fifth in the West Virginia Derby.

Owned by Three Chimneys Farm and to be ridden by Cristian Torres from post position 10, King Ottoman, a son of Curlin, won his 2023 debut at Oaklawn Park in Arkansas and finished second twice at Churchill Downs in Kentucky. The Governor’s Stakes will mark his first stakes attempt of this year.

Trainer Saffie Joseph Jr., who won last year’s West Virginia Derby with Skippylongstocking, has entered the Chilean-bred O’Connor, who was a close second when last seen April 1 in the Grade III Ghostzapper Stakes at Gulfstream Park in Florida. Owned by Ode, Fernando Vine and Michael and Jules Iavarone, the 6-year-old horse by Boboman has won 10 of 22 starts and is a Group I winner in Chile.

Tyler Connor, one of the top riders in the Mid-Atlantic region, is named to ride from post position 2.

The West Virginia Derby program includes seven allowance races, with four of them scheduled for the turf course. Five of them carry a purse of $35,000.

Today's breaking news and more in your inbox

CLEVELAND (AP) — Jakeem Grant Sr.’s inspiring comeback with the Browns came to an abrupt, painful ...

DUBLIN (AP) — The Irish economy is getting a boost from the Notre Dame football game in Dublin. The Pittsburgh ...

Bears take 4 of 5 matches in season-opening tourneyNEW MANCHESTER — The Oak Glen volleyball team won four of ...

WEIRTON — The Weir girls’ soccer team put its struggles to score goals behind it against John Marshall.After ...