Woodbine Jockey Colony's, Soufiane Saadi / Retired Woodbine Jockey and now Racing Steward Gunnar Lindberg / Hanover Raceway’s General Manager Scott Price

Ponies 24-7 The Radio Magazine

Larry and Ann are joined by the newest member of the Woodbine Jockey Colony, Soufiane Saadi, who arrives fresh from winning the 2024 Grade 1 Bahrain Gold Cup and discusses why he made the move to Woodbine and whether riding here where the horses race counterclockwise is a concern for him. He also talks about some of the places that he has ridden at and whether the Woodbine Tapeta surface will pose any challenges for him and mentions what he knew about Woodbine in general before he arrived. He also discusses his Woodbine debut this past Thursday. Retired Woodbine Jockey and now Racing Steward Gunnar Lindberg, who discusses his reaction when he found out that he was the winner of the prestigious Avelino Gomez award and why the award was extra special to him because he rode with Avelino Gomez. He also discusses how he became associated as the contract rider for the famed Sam Son Farms and talks about his Father, Herb who was also a successful rider and mentions some of the great Jockeys he had the opportunity to ride against. Gunnar also mentions what is a typical day in the life of a Racing Steward, Hanover Raceway’s General Manager Scott Price, who discusses todays Opening Day festivities to celebrate the 60th Anniversary of the harness track. Scott also discusses some of the other special race days taking place at Hanover Raceway this Summer. He also talks about growing up nearby and how this accounted for his interest in harness racing and discusses last season at Hanover, as that was his first in the role as General Manager for the track. In our feature, ‘In Case You Missed It’ A Look at The Way It Was in Horse Racing News, Larry discusses the stakes victory that local Jockey Kazushi Kimura had at Santa Anita this past Monday and talks about what happened in a recent race at Aqueduct that was run at the wrong distance. In our new regular feature, ‘Road Trip,’ Larry talks about todays Blame Stakes at Churchill Downs and mentions about some of the history behind the race itself and who he believes the race ‘goes through’ later today. He also provides his ‘Ponies Picks of the Day’ selections for several North American Racetracks today, later in the show.

Key Points:

• Soufiane talks first about why he made the decision to move his tack to Woodbine and whether it was a difficult decision. He also discusses some of the major stake’s races that he has won in his career, including the Grade 1 Bahrain Cup this past April. And mentions whether he was able to adjust to the Woodbine style of racing quickly and talks about what he knew about Woodbine, before arriving here. Soufiane also talks about whether he feels more comfortable riding a horse on the front end or a closer and what have been some of the adjustments he has had to make at Woodbine so far and whether he has felt comfortable riding on the Tapeta surface, including his first ride this past Thursday.

• Gunnar discusses how he felt when he found out that he was winner of the prestigious Avelino Gomez Award and why it was extra special for him as he rode against Avelino. He also mentions how he became a contract rider for the famous Sam Son Farms and how that arrangement came about and mentions some of their great horses that he was able to ride. Gunnar also mentions how he rode at many tracks in the United States and talks about some of the great riders that he had the opportunity to ride against and talks about his Father, who was also a top Jockey in his day, and some of the Hall of Fame riders he regularly raced against. Gunnar also talks about how he knew it was time to retire and why he ended up as a Racing Steward and what is a typical day in the life of a Racing Steward

• Scott discusses todays Opening Day at Hanover Raceway and some of the special festivities planned this afternoon to celebrate the track’s 60th Anniversary, including a special non-wagering mini-horse race. He also talks about the advertising and sponsorship support that the track continues to receive from the locals and mentions some of the other special days planned for Hanover over the Summer. Scott also talks about last season which was his first as General Manager and whether he feels more prepared for 2024 and talks about his background and how he became part of the horse racing industry. He also talks about how the Hanover track has always served as a learning ground for young harness drivers who then go out and make their mark on the bigger stage.