USA: America’s winningmost trainer Steve Asmussen reached a significant milestone on Saturday [Feb 18] when he saddled the 10,000th winner of his prolific Hall of Fame career.
Asmussen’s landmark victory came via Canada’s Customs under Ricardo Santana in the opener at Oaklawn Park, a $104,000 allowance sprint for fillies and mares; he moved onto 10,001 shortly afterwards with another winner at Sam Houston.
The 57-year-old’s total represents his career total worldwide, including Curlin’s two wins in Dubai in 2008, when the dual Horse of the Year won the Dubai World Cup at Nad Al Sheba.
He became the first trainer to reach 10,000 winners in North America when Bet He’s Ready won the fifth race on Monday’s card [Feb 20] at Oaklawn. The even-money favorite went wire-to-wire under Santana in a six-furlong maiden claimer.
According to Equibase figures, after a winless Sunday, Asmussen entered Monday’s programme on 9,999 victories in North America for prize-money earnings in excess of $405 million.
Asmussen became the all-time record holder in North American victories in August 2021 when he sent out his 9,446th winner in a race at Saratoga, thereby surpassing a mark established by the late Dale Baird.
However, he stands in second place on the world list according to the Pagina de Turf website; the world leader is Peruvian-based Juan Suarez Villarroel with 10,336.
Horses trained by Asmussen have won the Horse of the Year award on four occasions: Curlin (2007, 2008), Rachel Alexandra (2009) and Gun Runner (2017). He recorded his first career success aged 20 in July 1986 with the maiden Victory’s Halo at Ruidoso Downs; his first G1 winner was Dreams Gallore in the 1999 Mother Goose at Belmont.
In 2004, he set a single-season record for wins by a trainer with 555, surpassing the 496 achieved by Jack van Berg in 1976. He broke that record again in 2008 with 622 wins, then broke it again in 2009 with his personal-best score of a scarcely conceivable 650.
Inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2016, Asmussen eight Breeders' Cup wins to his name, plus three wins in Triple Crown races. He has won two Eclipse Awards as champion trainer and, with multiple barns at various tracks across the country, has led the way in races won 12 times; he has won 34 races in 2023.
Brad Cox also enjoyed a landmark victory on Saturday with the 2,000th success of his career when Comparative won the first race at Fair Grounds, where the trainer had four winners altogether.
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