It's been 23 years since the Claiming Crown was run in Pennsylvania at Philadelphia Park, later renamed Parx Racing. Still, the outcome of the headline event of the Claiming Crown Nov. 15 at Churchill Downs had a Keystone State feel to it.
Trainer Ben Dunn and jockey Melvis Gonzalez, both based at Parx, teamed to capture the $224,943 Claiming Crown Jewel with Double Your Money, who rallied through traffic to defeat Cadet Corps by 1 1/4 lengths.
Despite bringing a 4-6-1 record this year in 11 starts into Saturday's race, a mark that included a runner-up finish in the Greenwood Cup (G3) in September at Parx and a starter allowance win last month at Aqueduct Racetrack, Double Your Money surprised the betting public, paying $21.46 to win.
His win didn't shock his connections, who had faith in the 4-year-old Demarchelier gelding, sending him on the road for the opportunity in the Jewel. He produced, closing from midpack and surging between horses and then along the inside to outrun 13 rivals, timed in 1:50.89 for 1 1/8 miles on a fast track. A solid pace in the race, with fractions of :23.31, :47.07, and 1:11.82, set the stage for Double Your Money and other closers to be effective.
"I got so excited and nervous after the race that I got sick," said the 25-year-old Dunn, who co-owns the gelding with Chris Mancusi. "It means the world to me to run a horse here. This horse doesn't stop running."
Mancusi, a New Yorker, dropped his phone in the excitement of winning the race before recovering it.
"Once I saw him hit the finish line, I was running right to the winner's circle. What a race," he said.
Since moving into their stable following a $30,000 claim at Keeneland last fall by owner-trainer John O'Meara, Double Your Money has made $331,150 in 13 starts for his current connections, a bankroll that includes $5,000 in earnings from a race late last year at Parx.
Double Your Money was bred in Kentucky by BHMFR out of the Horse Chestnut mare Aesculus.
Cadet Corps finished second, a neck ahead of Welaka in third. Favored Navajo Warrior ran eighth.
The Claiming Crown, a partnership between the National Horsemen's Benevolent and Protective Association and the Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association, was established in 1999 as a showcase day for claiming horses—equine athletes that are the backbone of everyday racing across North America. Claiming Crown races vary in distance, turf, and conditions, and have differing eligibility criteria based on claiming levels.
The Jewel, the richest of the Claiming Crown's eight high-value starter allowance races, was restricted to horses who had raced for a claiming price of $35,000 or less in 2024-25
Saturday marked the third time in the last four years that Churchill hosted the event, which has moved across the country through the years, spending extended periods at Canterbury Park and Gulfstream Park. Besides these tracks and Philadelphia Park, Fair Grounds Race Course & Slots and Ellis Park have also hosted the event.
Ortiz Brothers COMBINE FOR FIVE WINS
- Jockey Irad Ortiz Jr. struck first with favored Concrete Glory ($3.76), who stubbornly repelled Wound Up to capture the $102,000 Ready's Rocket Express by a head. The 6-year-old gelded son of Bodemeister, trained by Saffie Joseph Jr., ran 6 furlongs in 1:09.89 under Irad Ortiz Jr.
- A race later, Ortiz would add another Claiming Crown win aboard Ashima ($6.78). A stakes winner against Florida-breds in January at Gulfstream Park, she outran Settling Storm to take the $157,286 Colonel John Early Klopp Memorial Tiara, the first of three Claiming Crown events on the grass. Sal Santoro trains the 4-year-old daughter of The Big Beast for Wallace Moore Jr. She sped 1 1/16 miles on firm turf in 1:43.08.
- Ortiz would score a third win on Koentopp Racing's Nation ($15.64), who romped over My Noble Night in the $136,925 Rapid Transit, blitzing seven furlongs on dirt in 1:22.01. Bob Hess Jr. trains the 5-year-old Constitution gelding, who improved to 4-for-9 in 2025.
- Irad's brother, Jose Ortiz, scored twice, striking first with Maryland shipper Next Girl ($8.24). She ran down pacesetting Sadie The Goat to score by a nose in the $103,967 Glass Slipper. Robert Bailes trains the winner for owner Wade Meadows of WWCD. The Divining Rod 4-year-old filly covered a mile in 1:36.10.
- Jose Ortiz's second win came on Shape Note ($19), who slipped up the inside to catch mid-stretch leader Final Verdict in the $165,228 Tom Metzen Memorial Canterbury, giving trainer Mike Maker a record-extending 23rd Claiming Crown win. Peter Proscia of Paradise Farms and David Staudacher campaign the 4-year-old Mendelssohn gelding, who dashed 5 1/2 furlongs on firm turf in 1:02.47.
Photo: Coady Media/Hunter Fridley Echo Lane wins the Claiming Crown Emerald at Churchill Downs
Saez Takes Two
- Jockey Luiz Saez collected the other two Claiming Crown victories, with the first coming aboard Jeanine Cumiskey's late-running Curlin's Malibu ($8.82). He edged a gritty Freedom Road by a neck in the $109,914 Kent Stirling Memorial Iron Horse. The Joe Sharp trainee ran 1 1/16 miles on dirt in 1:45.01.
- Saez closed out the card when Echo Lane ($6.90) repeated in the $182,866 Claiming Crown Emerald. Saez also rode that gelding to victory in the same race at Churchill Downs in 2024. Anthony Rogers owns and Rohan Crichton trains the 4-year-old son of Treasure Beach. Echo Lane ran 1 1/16 miles on turf in 1:42.49, slower than his 1:41.09 time in 2024.
