Eskendereya Wins The Wood Memorial at Aqueduct April 3
Zayat Stables’ horse betting favorite Eskendereya, one of the leading Kentucky Derby horses, won the $750,000 Wood Memorial by 9 3/4 lengths over Jackson Bend on Saturday at Aqueduct April 3.
Trained by Todd Pletcher and ridden by jockey John Velazquez, Eskendereya covered 1 1/8 miles in 1:49.97 and paid $3, $2.30 and $2.10. Jackson Bend, under jockey Calvin Borel, placed second and returned $3.90 and $2.60. Awesome Act with jockey Julien Leparoux aboard came in third and paid $2.20 to show.
Eskendereya earned his fourth win in 6 starts and $450,000 in the Wood Memorial to lift his graded stakes earnings to $600,000, which easily qualifies him for the Kentucky Derby field.
“Obviously, Eskendereya proved himself as a monster,” said runner-up Jackson Bend’s trainer Nick Zito, who conditioned two Kentucky Derby winners. “For Jackson Bend, you cannot give him enough credit. We’re going to take him to Kentucky and see what happens. No one can say that this horse doesn’t belong there. Nobody.”
Wood Memorial winning race horse trainer Todd Pletcher, who has yet to produce a Kentucky Derby winner but could have as many as eight Kentucky Derby starters this year.
“The further he goes, the stronger he gets,” said Todd Pletcher. “He’s a horse that has natural stamina. It would be big to win the Derby. We’ll try to make that happen.”
Other horses that raced in Aqueduct Racetrack‘s Wood Memorial in order of finish: Schoolyard Dreams, Carnivore and Most Happy Fella.
Tags: Awesome Act, Carnivore, Eskendereya, Jackson Bend, Most Happy Fella, Schoolyard Dreams
"Eskendereya Wins The Wood Memorial at Aqueduct April 3" was posted on 3 April 2010 11:25 PM under Horse Racing News, Horse Racing Results & Payouts, Horses, Kentucky Derby, Race Tracks, Stakes Races, Triple Crown
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