Courtney Ryan Eyes Win Tally

By T.D. Thornton 
By tradition, the honor of winningest horse of the year in North America almost always defaults to the Thoroughbred who has bankrolled the most purse money, and that title is usually locked up upon the  running of the Breeders’ Cup.
But the race for most victories nearly always comes down to a battle between tenacious claimers or overachieving starter-allowance stalwarts, and that title often goes right down to the final two weeks of December. 

So far in 2014, Handsup Moneydown (Sharp Humor), a Parx-based 5-year-old gelding, leads the continent with 11 victories. 

But Courtney Ryan (With Distinction), a 5-year-old mare with 10 wins, is taking dead aim on the top spot. 
On Friday, Courtney Ryan will attempt to draw even with 11 wins as the 2-to-1 morning line favorite in the third race at Gulfstream Park, a one-mile starter/optional claimer. 

At this late point in the season, Handsup Moneydown does not appear to have a say in the final outcome. He has not raced since Sept. 20, and has not had a published workout since Oct. 13. Owner/trainer Ramon Preciado could not be reached to comment on Thursday before deadline for this story. 

Given the resiliency of her stable star and the outcome of Friday’s race, trainer Tamara Levy said it is not out of the question that Courtney Ryan might even race one more time before the end of 2014 to try to either exclusively secure or tie for top honors. 

“She’s just made very gritty and very tough. She’s just got a huge heart,” Levy said. “She’s fierce, let me tell you. Sometimes she’s a little moody, a little grouchy, but she has earned the right do things the way she wants to do them. So we just try to point her in the right direction and keep her safe and happy.” 
Courtney Ryan is owned by Levy’s husband Ron, who races as IAB Stables. The couple claimed the mare for $6,250 at Calder Race Course in July 2012. She won six races in 2013, and before this March was even finished, Courtney Ryan had scored in five more. 

“We weren’t even paying attention that she was one of the winningest horses in the country,” Levy said. 
“Somebody pointed it out to us, and we were like, ‘Wow, we could really achieve this, so let’s just pray that she stays healthy, and we’ll keep sending her over and see what happens.’” 

Between April and November, Courtney Ryan won five more times. “She’s already the winningest filly in 2014,” Levy said. “Now we just have to go out there and beat [Handsup Moneydown].” 

Courtney Ryan threw in an uncharacteristic clunker in her last start, an eleventh-place finish in the Glass Slipper Stakes on the Claiming Crown card at Gulfstream Dec. 6. 

“We’re still kind of scratching our heads about that,” Levy said. “She cleared the field and got good position. But then [jockey Abdiel Jaen] just kind of took a hold of her and galloped her out. We did complete diagnostics on her and we couldn’t find anything.” 

Levy put Courtney Ryan on the farm for a few days, but the mare indicated she wanted to resume training. When the Gulfstream racing office tweaked the conditions for Friday’s starter race to get it to fill, Levy said, “I want it, I’m going for it.” 

Some trainers might argue that training the winningest horse in terms of victories is more difficult than training the highest purse-earner. 

“I definitely think so,” Levy said. “You have to lead them over every two or three weeks. You have to keep them healthy and sound, and you can’t use a lot of medications because the races are spaced so close together. A lot of [the top purse earners] will never win in their lifetimes as many horses as Courtney has won this year. Winning 11 races in a year, nobody ever plans that. That’s just a great horse and a lot of luck.”