Some say records are meant to be broken.
But in order for them to be broken, first they need to be tied.
That's what is on the line June 3 at Churchill Downs when Bango seeks to match the record for most wins at the track by winning the six-furlong Aristides Stakes.
The local hero's nine wins at Churchill Downs are only surpassed by Ready's Rocket, who won 10 times under the twin spires, with the last being his final of 74 starts in 2012. One difference is none of Ready's Rockets' 10 wins came in stakes competition. Bango has five such triumphs, including the last two Aristides.
Last time out, the Greg Foley trainee Bango posted a five-length victory on the dirt at Churchill in the St. Matthews Overnight Stakes.
"His record really speaks for itself," Foley said. "He loves it at Churchill maybe just as much as I do. We've had our sights set on the record and it would be a really special accomplishment for all of us."
Getting that tying win won't come easy, not with competitors such as Sibelius in the field of five.
By Not This Time , Sibelius has finished top-three in eight of his last nine starts, topped by a win in the Dubai Golden Shaheen (G1) at Meydan Racecourse. That race included another Aristides competitor Gunite , who finished third.
However, the Aristides provides a rematch between Bango and Sibelius, who dueled in the Bet on Sunshine Stakes at Churchill last year. On that occasion, Bango overtook Sibelius in late stretch to win by three-quarters of a length.
"Our owners Fred and Debbie Schwartz bred and own this horse," Foley said of Bango. "I actually raced this horse's mother (Josaka). It's always special when you have a horse from the Schwartz's breeding program. He's a testament to their dedication to this sport."
The other two competitors are Strava and Tejano Twist.
Meanwhile, the 1 1/8-mile, $225,000 Audubon Stakes is headlined by the son of Constitution , Webslinger, whose career earnings ($723,800) are greater than that of the rest of the field in the turf race combined ($558,112).
Out of the Hard Spun mare Arana, the 3-year-old gelding trained by Mark Casse has hit the board in all four of his 2023 starts, going 2-1-1. His last time out, Webslinger turned 20-1 odds into a victory in the American Turf Stakes (G2T).
One of his challengers Saturday, Scoobie Quando, ran a distant 11th in the American Turf. The son of Uncle Mo is trying to get back on track since moving into graded stakes company. The 3-year-old started his career with a trio of first- and second-place finishes. But then the Ben Colebrook trainee was 17 lengths back in the Blue Grass Stakes (G1) prior to the American Turf.
Another American Turf competitor looking to turn things around is Desert Duke. The son of Kitten's Joy had back-to-back wins before finishing 13th in the American Turf.
Rounding out the field are J.P. Race, Lazarus, Mendelssohns March, and Sharar.
Churchill Downs, Saturday, June 3, 2023, Race 7Entries: Audubon S.
PP Horse Jockey Wgt Trainer M/L 1 1Lazarus (KY) Walter A. Rodriguez 118 Waylon Cundiff 30/1 2 2Mendelssohns March (KY) Brian Joseph Hernandez, Jr. 118 Kenneth G. McPeek 9/2 3 3Scoobie Quando (KY) Luan Machado 118 Ben Colebrook 8/1 4 4J. P. Race (KY) Joshua Morales 118 Cirilo Gorostieta 20/1 5 5Desert Duke (KY) Mitchell Murrill 118 Chris A. Hartman 5/1 6 6Sharar (KY) Luis Saez 118 Todd A. Pletcher 9/5 7 7Webslinger (KY) Javier Castellano 120 Mark E. Casse 8/5
Churchill Downs, Saturday, June 3, 2023, Race 6Entries: Aristides S.
PP Horse Jockey Wgt Trainer M/L 1 1Sibelius (KY) Junior Alvarado 123 Jeremiah O'Dwyer 5/2 2 2Tejano Twist (KY) Chris Landeros 120 Chris A. Hartman 5/1 3 3Gunite (KY) Tyler Gaffalione 120 Steven M. Asmussen 9/5 4 4Bango (KY) John R. Velazquez 120 Gregory D. Foley 2/1 5 5Strava (KY) Luis Saez 118 Dallas Stewart 5/1
