Silver Prospector Leads Asmussen's Smarty Jones Quartet

Trainer Steve Asmussen has left his stamp on Oaklawn Park's Kentucky Derby trail. The Hall of Fame trainer has won the Arkansas Derby (G1) three times, the Rebel Stakes (G2) four times, and the Southwest Stakes (G3) twice, with Derby prep winners including Curlin , Creator, and Tapiture . However, a Smarty Jones Stakes win is still missing from his résumé at Oaklawn, where he has won 10 training titles.

The $150,000 Smarty Jones highlights a nine-race card Jan. 24, opening day at the Hot Springs, Ark., track. Asmussen trainees make up four of the nine entries in the 3-year-old feature, topped by Kentucky Jockey Club Stakes (G2) winner Silver Prospector. 

Named for the 2004 Kentucky Derby (G1) and Preakness Stakes (G1) winner, the Smarty Jones awards points toward a spot in the May 2 Kentucky Derby Presented by Woodford Reserve on a 10-4-2-1 scale to the first four finishers. The one-mile event has been run since 2008.

Ed and Susie Orr's Silver Prospector cuts back half a furlong after the Nov. 30 Kentucky Jockey Club at Churchill Downs, where he made a long drive in the slop to win by three-quarters of a length. The Declaration of War colt retains jockey Ricardo Santana Jr., who has been aboard for all six starts. Silver Prospector was also third in the one-mile Street Sense Stakes at Churchill after dueling on the pace.

Asmussen also entered Calumet Farm homebred Jungle Runner, the winner of the Clever Trevor Stakes at Remington Park; Mike McCarty's Gold Street, who won the Sugar Bowl Stakes at Fair Grounds Race Course & Slots; and Grandview Equine, Cheyenne Stables, and LNJ Foxwoods' Shoplifted, who won the Remington Springboard Mile Stakes and finished second in the Runhappy Hopeful Stakes (G1) at Saratoga Race Course.

Trainer Peter Miller will send out Rockingham Ranch's Nucky. The Ghostzapper  colt came out of the maiden claiming ranks to upset the Del Mar Futurity (G1) at 35-1 but has finished off the board in two starts since.

Lynn's Map and Three Technique make the step up to stakes company off wins in allowance optional claiming races. Lynn's Map defeated Mr. Monomoy, who came back to finish third in the Lecomte Stakes (G3), by a head going one mile and 70 yards at Fair Grounds. Three Technique was a 4 1/2-length winner at Aqueduct Racetrack following a 5 1/2-length maiden win at Saratoga.

Maiden winner Lykan and Shared Sense, twice second in maiden special weights, round out the field.

Last year's Smarty Jones winner, Gray Attempt, is entered on Friday's undercard in a six-furlong allowance optional claiming event that goes off one race before the Smarty Jones. Multiple graded stakes-placed horses Nero and Petrov are also entered. The 2017 Lecomte winner, Guest Suite, is on the also-eligible list and cross-entered in the $100,000 Fifth Season Stakes Jan. 25.

Oaklawn split the Fifth Season, for 4-year-olds and up going a mile, into two $100,000 races due to a large number of entries. The track made history last year when it split the $1 million Rebel Stakes into two $750,000 divisions.

"We are thrilled to be able to start the 2020 season with a bang by splitting a stakes race so early in the meet," Oaklawn president Louis Cella said. "We are honored to have so many older horses wanting to compete and look forward to a great day of racing."

The Fifth Season drew two eight-horse fields. In addition to Guest Suite, the first split drew Snapper Sinclair and 2018 Fifth Season winner Sonneteer. Bravazo and Pioneer Spirit are among a competitive second split.

"With our initial races filling up so quickly, we are confident that we have an amazing season ahead," Oaklawn general manager Wayne Smith said. "We recently completed an unprecedented completion of six new barns in addition to a multitude of improvements, enhancements, and refurbishments in the grandstand, which the fans will love. We are kicking off 'a new level of racing' with everything we'll be offering this year, and the full fields right off the bat show that the horsemen and the racing industry as a whole are as excited as we are about being at Oaklawn."

Entries: Smarty Jones S.

Oaklawn Park, Friday, January 24, 2020, Race 8

• STK
• 1m
• Dirt
• $150,000
• 3 yo
• 3:52 PM (local)

PP	Horse	Jockey	Wgt	Trainer	M/L
1	1Lykan (KY)	Terry J. Thompson	115	Ingrid Mason	20/1
2	2Silver Prospector (KY)	Ricardo Santana, Jr.	119	Steven M. Asmussen	5/2
3	3Shared Sense (KY)	Florent Geroux	115	Brad H. Cox	12/1
4	4Nucky (KY)	Joseph Talamo	119	Peter Miller	10/1
5	5Jungle Runner (KY)	Ramon A. Vazquez	119	Steven M. Asmussen	20/1
6	6Gold Street (KY)	Martin Garcia	119	Steven M. Asmussen	5/1
7	7Shoplifted (KY)	Tyler Gaffalione	119	Steven M. Asmussen	3/1
8	8Lynn's Map (KY)	Miguel Mena	117	Mark E. Casse	6/1
9	9Three Technique (KY)	Irad Ortiz, Jr.	119	Jeremiah C. Englehart	9/2