Racing


Tough To Bee Wins Mr Master Bug Stakes At Remington Park
Tough To Be, under jockey Ricky Ramirez, winning the Mr Master Bug Stakes Sunday at Remington Park.

© Dusitn Orona Photography
Tough To Bee Wins Mr Master Bug Stakes At Remington Park

OKLAHOMA CITY, OK—APRIL 23, 2017—Overcoming a less than perfect beginning, Tough To Bee rallied to win the $61,800 Mr Master Bug Stakes on Sunday at Remington Park, fending off Bells Big Hero by a half-length.

Owned by Paragon Farms of Conroe, Texas, Tough To Bee won the Mr Master Bug Stakes, for Oklahoma-bred 3-year-olds, in 17.555 seconds for 350 yards over a fast track.

Trained by Trey Wood and ridden by Ricky Ramirez, Tough To Bee went to work after getting into full stride.

The winning connections Tough To Be accept the Mr Master Bug Stakes trophy Sunday afternoon.
© Dustin Orona Photography
"He was standing in there a little nervous but not bad," Ramirez noted. "He didn’t get away too sharp but he pulled through. I kept him busy with the big crowd, I didn’t want him to look around, so I stayed after him quite a bit and he finished strong."

Tough To Bee has already accumulated over a quarter-million dollars in his young career of just eight races, thanks to third-place runs last year at age two in the Ruidoso Downs Futurity in New Mexico and the Texas Classic Futurity at Lone Star Park in Grand Prairie, Texas, both affairs worth a million dollars.

"He’s showed a lot of class from day one. His biggest problem has been getting out of the gates," said Wood. "He never leaves really sharp, he’s a big long horse, but when he gets away decent he’s tough to beat."

Tough To Bee was the betting favorite at 4-5 odds, paying $3.80 to win, $2.60 to place and $2.20 to show. Bells Big Hero battled for second and paid $3.80 to place and $2.80 to show. B Double U was third, two lengths behind the winner, paying $4 to show.

Bred in Oklahoma by Jim and Marilyn Helzer, Tough To Bee is a gelding by Apollitical Jess from the Tres Seis mare Peppermint Seis. He won his third career race in the Mr Master Bug while making $34,680 to push his lifetime bankroll to $263,326.

Clinton Crawford saddled runner-up Bells Big Hero for owner Gregory Cullum. Terry Bell Estate bred the Valiant Hero gelding from the Big Time Favorite mare Jess Big Time. Ridden by jockey Agustin Silva earned $11,560 for the effort.

B Double U, a gelding by Pyc Paint Your Wagon, earned $6,358 for owner/breeder Gregory Cullum. Also trained by Clinton Crawford, B Double U is out of the Fishers Dash mare Sixes Fisher. Champion jockey G.R. Carter, Jr. had the riding assignment.

Bout Tree Fiddy, Carters Thunder, Mary Paintyourwagon, Bp Jess Fast , Jc Wild Rose and One Corona Episode.

The Mr Master Bug is named after the 1982 All American Futurity winner who was bred and owned by Marvin and Lela Barnes of Ada, Okla. Mr Master Bug earned American Quarter Horse Champion honors in three consecutive years from 1982-1984 and retired with more than $1.7 million in earnings.

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Tracked by over 122,000 fans on Facebook and 8,700 Twitter followers, Remington Park is the home of the $932,500 Remington Park Futurity, for Oklahoma-breds, on Saturday, April 22. Remington Park has provided over $167 Million to the State of Oklahoma general education fund since the opening of the casino in 2005. Open daily at 10:30am with free parking and admission, Oklahoma City’s only Racetrack & Casino is located at the junction of Interstates 35 & 44, in the heart of the Oklahoma City Adventure District. For more information, reservations and group bookings please call 405-424-1000, 866-456-9880 or visit remingtonpark.com.