Racing! Assael Espinoza gets 10-day suspension for role in accident

Hello, my name is John Cherwa and welcome back to our horse racing newsletter as we get ready for another week of racing at Del Mar.

Actually, the big story from the short time we’ve been away is a steward’s ruling whereby apprentice Assael Espinoza was handed a 10-day suspension for his part in an accident where one horse was killed and two jockeys were injured.

The ruling came down Sunday, a day after his horse, Aussie Fox, drifted in front of Irish Spring causing them to clip heels and sending Irish Spring to the ground with fatal injuries. Bitter Ring Down also went down when he couldn’t avoid Irish Spring. Jockeys Geovanni Franco and Corey Nakatani were both unseated and taken away by ambulance.

Franco was released from the hospital that evening, while Nakatani was held overnight for observation and released on Sunday. Franco has resumed riding, while Nakatani’s return date is uncertain. He is not listed on any horses through Friday.

The stewards placed Aussie Fox, who finished third, last in the race.

“Assael knows what he did was a horrible mistake,” Espinoza’s agent, Brian Beach, told Bill Center of the San Diego Union-Tribune. “The message has been received. Assael feels responsible. He feels horrible about the whole thing … the injuries to the other jockeys, the loss of Irish Spring.”

Espinoza went to the hospital on Saturday night and again on Sunday morning. He also spoke to Richard Baltas, the trainer of Irish Spring.

The suspension is scheduled to take place Aug. 12, 15-19 and 22-25. As is always the case, he can ride in specially designated races, which are usually stakes races.

He has until today to appeal the decision. Beach told Center that if they do appeal it wouldn’t be the findings only the length of the suspension.

Stewards rulings

In addition to that ruling, there were a couple of others. Here’s our weekly rundown of actions by the Del Mar stewards.

--Jockey Mario Gutierrez was fined $50 on Wednesday for being late to a film review with the stewards.

--Exercise rider Luis Hernandez is now eligible for relicensing. He lost his license for failure to appear at a hearing in 2014 at Santa Anita to discuss alleged drug use. He must agree to testing.

--Jockey Israel Ocampo was fined $100 for late reporting of weight during the fifth race on Friday. His mount, Mongolian Humor, finished sixth.

Where’s McKinzie?

One of the questions I get asked frequently is when is McKinzie going to race. Well, I still don’t know, but I do know he’s getting closer. He had his second work on Monday, going four furlongs in 48.80 seconds. It was the 13^th fastest time among 65 horses going that distance. His first work back was last Wednesday when he went three furlongs in 37.60 seconds. That was the 13^th of 20 works that day at that distance.

Trainer Bob Baffert has a couple of options if he chooses to keep McKinzie out West. There is the $100,000 Shared Belief Stakes on Aug. 25 and the $250,000 Del Mar Derby on Sept. 2. Both races are restricted to 3-year-olds. Or he could find an allowance race if he wants to take it slow. Either way, McKinzie is probably the best 3-year-old in Baffert’s barn now that the other guy is gone.

Del Mar preview

Wednesday’s card might be the weakest of the meeting, but that’s with a pretty high bar. Many tracks would love a card like this. There are eight races starting at 2 p.m. There are three turf races but the rail is set at 30 feet, so the fields are smaller.

The feature is likely the seventh, a one-mile allowance/optional claimer for horses 3 and up. It carries a purse of $62,000. The favorite is River Echo at 5-2 for trainer Peter Miller and jockey Tyler Baze. He is three for 20 lifetime but hasn’t won in his last 11 starts after two wins in a row.

The second favorite is Kidmon at 3-1 for John Sadler and Flavien Prat. He is running only his fifth race and has won once.

Here are the field sizes, in order: 6, 7, 8 (1 also eligible), 10, 8, 10 (2 AE), 6, 11.

Bob Ike’s DMR pick of the day

SEVENTH RACE No. 2 Kidmon (3-1)

Although he was disappointing in his most recent start, there are reasons to believe the John Sadler trainee will run much better today: he didn't break alertly from the rail last time, tries going a route of ground for the first time (bred to run long), is tactical enough to be on or near the lead, has trained steadily since his last and switches to leading rider Flavien Prat.

Sunday’s result: Del Mar May was all out to be second in the Sorrento Stakes but posed no threat to the easy winner.

Bob Ike is a Partner/VP of Horsebills.com (here's a video) and the proprietor of BobIkePicks.com (full-card picks, 3 Best Plays and betting strategy).

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Now, the star of the show, Wednesday’s entries.