Breeders’ Cup produces a Hollywood drama in Runhappy’s saga
There is no doubt in my mind that a Hollywood movie will be made about a winner of a Breeders’ Cup race Saturday at Keeneland. The script is writing itself as we speak.
The horse I’m talking about is not American Pharoah. It is Runhappy. He won the Breeders’ Cup Sprint in track record time and is the likely champion sprinter.
Space prevents me from going through a full timeline of the horse. But believe me, Runhappy is a heartwarming success despite all of the human drama.
The script will have larger-than-life characters. The eccentric owner, Jim McIngvale. The jealous racing manager, Laura Wohlers. And the heroine would be the trainer, 32-year-old Maria Borell.
The soap opera began the morning after winning the Sprint. Wohlers told Borell to send Runhappy to the track to gallop and get lactic acid out of the horse’s system.
Lactic acid? In a Scientific American report, “contrary to popular opinion, lactic acid buildup is not responsible for muscle soreness felt in the days following strenuous exercise.” It said the body “clears the lactate” on its own with a few days of rest.
Borell wrote on her Facebook page that there was some heat in an ankle, too. When she refused, Wohlers fired her.
Now I don’t know if Borell is a great trainer, or even a good one. But what she did with Runhappy, winning all five starts for her, including the Grade 1 King’s Bishop, Grade 3 Phoenix and the Grade 1 Sprint, is the stuff of fairy tales.
The Grade 1 wins were the first ever for McIngvale in 20 years of owning racehorses. You would think he’d be over the moon.
Borell has asked to be paid 10 percent of the winner’s purses, which is the industry norm. Wohlers and McIngvale have refused, claiming she was a private trainer and would be paid a smaller “agreed upon” amount.
McIngvale has a poor history with trainers. According to a Blood-Horse story, he has hired and fired 33 trainers in 20 years. If the count is wrong, it is because it may be higher.
Wohlers will resume training of Runhappy. She was the trainer in the horse’s first two starts, a maiden win at Turfway Park and a ninth-place finish in the LeComte at the Fair Grounds.
Highly respected clocker Bruno de Julio, on his Twitter account, wrote that Runhappy was “entered and ran with a fractured tibia” in the LeComte. Not exactly a ringing endorsement.
We should be proud of Runhappy for another reason. The horse won all five races without Lasix. He is a poster boy for a sport trying to rid itself of race-day drugs.
Borell has now retained legal counsel.
McIngvale should settle this out of court, and fast. It would make good business sense and cut his losses in the court of public opinion. Since there was no signed contract, any lawyer will point to the industry standard, 10 percent, as a normal rate.
And if Borell wins, she could see a judge’s ruling for triple damages plus all of her legal fees. Runhappy still has my vote for an Eclipse Award. He has earned it. It would lead to an incredibly awkward acceptance speech by McIngvale and Wohlers. This before a live audience of the finest people involved in the horse racing industry.
Richard Eng’s horse racing column is published Friday in the Las Vegas Review-Journal. He can be reached at rich_eng@hotmail.com. Follow him on Twitter: @richeng4propick