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Retama Park Presents Friday Stakes Doubleheader
Sam Houston 550 Stakes winner Leavinematthebar is the morning-line favorite in Friday's $40,000 Gary Baber Memorial Stakes at Retama Park.

© Coady Photography
Retama Park Presents Friday Stakes Doubleheader

BY MICHAEL CUSORTELLI

SELMA, TX–JUNE 23, 2024–Two stakes headline Friday's 11-race program at Retama Park near San Antonio.

Post time for the first race is set for 6:15 p.m. (CDT).

Friday's 550-yard, $40,000 Gary Baber Memorial Stakes has drawn a full field of 10 middle-distance specialists, led by morning-line favorite Leavinematthebar and Onthrocks. A 4-year-old son of Power Jam (TB) trained by Toby Keeton for owners Joye Leann Nalls and James Hrabovsky, Leavinematthebar was successful in his first career start at the 550 trip, as the homebred gelding scored a one-length victory in the 550-yard, $54,000 Sam Houston 550 Stakes (R) for Texas-breds at Sam Houston Race Park on June 15.

Leavinematthebar drew post 7 and will be ridden by Luis Vivanco.

Onthrocks races for Sarah Huskey from the barn of trainer Gilberto Gonzalez. A 5-year-old son of champion A Revenant, the gelding has six of 19 races -- including five of six at the 550-yard distance -- and he has earned $160,931. His two wins in two outs at Retama Park include last year's 550-yard, $45,000 Tower of the Americas Stakes.

Onthrocks drew post 10 and will be ridden by Jose R. Herbert.

Also, Friday's 350-yard, $40,000 Selma Stakes has drawn a full field of 10 distaffers. Trainer John Stinebaugh will send out the morning-line favorite, Sweet Emylou, a Grade 1-placed 4-year-old daughter of champion FDD Dynasty racing for Alfredo Casso and Christine Asmussen.

Sweet Emylou will be making her first start since November 18, when she scored a three-quarter length win in a 330-yard, $20,000 open-condition allowance dash at Lone Star Park. The mareis coming off of a sophomore campaign during which she banked $131,619 from eight races and ran second, a half of a length behind winner Ezee Monee, in the 440-yard, $478,000 Rainbow Oaks (G1) at Ruidoso Downs.

Sweet Emylou drew post 3 and will be ridden by Oscar Andrade Jr.

All Retama Park races can be seen at Q-Racing Video.com.