By Brian DiDonato
OCEANPORT, New Jersey–While the racing spotlight will be on Monmouth Park this Sunday for the GI Betfair.com Haskell Invitational S., the oval's dominant leading trainer Jorge Navarro will be sending some of his stable stars out of town. The Panamanian native will be represented by a trio of runners in Saturday's GI Alfred G. Vanderbilt H. at Saratoga, and his top sophomore, GIII Pat Day Mile winner Sharp Azteca (Freud), will be shipping to Louisiana Downs Sunday.
Navarro, whose 33 wins at the current stand put him 13 clear of Todd Pletcher in second, is used to running more than one horse in the same race, and in fact ran 1-2-3 in the June 26 Mr. Prospector S. New Jersey-bred Chublicious (Hey Chub), two-for-two for the Navarro barn since being acquired privately, topped the trifecta and is among the conditioner's Vanderbilt entrants. Catalina Red (Munnings) belied 14-1 odds to take the GII Churchill Downs S. on GI Kentucky Derby day in his first try for Navarro May 7, and looks to bounce back off a fourth-place run in Belmont's GII True North S. June 10. Delta Bluesman (Wagon Limit), who crossed the wire first in each of his last four starts but was DQ'd three back for interference in Monmouth's May 14 Decathlon S., will run right back off a convincing on-the-pace tally in Gulfstream's GII Smile Sprint S. July 2.
“The reason we do it here is because it's my hometown and I like to help Monmouth Park,” Navarro explained when asked about running multiple horses in the same race. “I love the place and I'll do anything for them. Over there it's a Grade I–all three horses are doing good, feeling good, so why not? Let's take a chance. I think they fit.”
Navarro might even have a better sprinter in the barn than any of those he'll run on Saturday in the comebacking X Y Jet (Kantharos). The grey speedster completed a five-race win streak in the GIII Gulfstream Park Sprint Feb. 27, and was extremely game on the front end before settling for second by a neck in Meydan's G1 Dubai Golden Shaheen a month later. The 4-year-old gelding recently returned to Navarro's barn after spending some time at Taylor Made Farm to recover after undergoing surgery to remove a knee chip.
“He's doing excellent,” Navarro revealed. “He's training already, and he's going to have his first work in 18 days. We're going to try to get a prep for him, and then take him to the [GI] Breeders' Cup [Sprint] and then Dubai again. This is the best I've ever seen him.”
Navarro says he has seen the quality of his stock improve markedly this season, and credits the work he did last term with Private Zone (Macho Uno), who won three graded stakes including the GI Forego S. and finished a close second in the Breeders' Cup Sprint for him before being transferred to Brian Lynch.
“Private Zone opened the door for me,” said Navarro. “Over the years, I kept hearing, 'He's a claiming trainer'–there's no such thing as a claiming trainer. When you're a horseman, you're a horseman. I just needed that opportunity.”
The results of this year's Kentucky Derby undercard might have solidified Navarro's status as more than just a claiming trainer. Just a few races after Catalina Red's Churchill Downs upset, Sharp Azteca dueled and drew off to a 2 1/2-length score in the Pat Day Mile at 13-1.
“Losing close ones at the Breeders' Cup and in Dubai, I was like, 'Man, what the heck is this?'” Navarro recalled. “Then after that day I understood why–there were better plans for me. It was a great time.”
Originally under consideration for Monmouth's GIII Pegasus S. June 19 as a stepping stone for the Haskell, Sharp Azteca instead contested Belmont's GII Woody Stephens S. over seven panels June 11, and checked in a creditable fourth after chasing a hot pace. He'll make his two-turn debut in the Super Derby Prelude S. at Louisiana Downs next Saturday and then head to that venue's GIII Super Derby Sept. 10.
“There's no doubt he's a nice horse,” Navarro offered. “I just want to put him in the right spots. We missed all the big dances, so I want to put him on the right path instead of throwing him in with [Derby winner and Haskell entrant] Nyquist (Uncle Mo) and those types of horses. It's not that I'm running away from them, but I want to do right by the horse.”
Navarro, who moved with his family from Panama City in 1988 and learned to train from his stepfather Julian Canet, first brought horses to Monmouth from Florida in 2012. He was leading trainer there in 2013, 2014 and 2015, and appears extremely likely to take home another title in 2016.
“I had gotten 18 stalls at Delaware Park, I called my friend and told him I was heading there,” recalled Navarro of what first brought him to the Jersey Shore. “My friend said, 'No, come to New Jersey.' I said, 'Are you nuts? My horses have no chance there.' But that year I won some races and now here we are.”
While Navarro has done well, overall business at Monmouth Park in terms of field size and handle has been decidedly lackluster.
“It's a shame,” he said. “Slowly it's dying, and it's the most beautiful place I've been. I love New Jersey, my kids love New Jersey. Hopefully we get something going soon, because this is the best place to be in the summer.”
Navarro, who lives about a mile from Monmouth by the beach in the summer with his wife Jennifer, son Jorge (8) and daughter Miah (6), added, “I just like the surroundings. The people are nice. My family loves it here. We've got the best of both worlds with the summer here and winters in Florida–you can't beat it here in the summer. Plus the racetrack itself is beautiful. I've been to Saratoga and Churchill, but this is home for me.”
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