HENDERSON, Ky. (AP) — Hall of Fame trainer Steve Asmussen tied the North American record for victories by a trainer Friday when Shanghai Dream won the sixth race at Ellis Park.
Asmussen equaled the mark of 9,445 set by the late Dale Baird during his 46-year career that ended when he was killed in a car crash in 2007 at age 72.
Asmussen has a good chance of breaking the record on Saturday, when he has 14 horses entered in 13 races at Saratoga, New Jersey’s Monmouth Park, Louisiana Downs, and Ellis Park.
The 55-year-old trainer took out his license in 1986 and won his first race that year at Ruidoso Downs in New Mexico. He previously worked as a jockey until he outgrew the profession.
Asmussen has trained three Horses of the Year — Curlin, filly Rachel Alexandra, and Gun Runner. He’s won the Preakness Stakes and Breeders’ Cup Classic twice and the Belmont Stakes. He is 0-for-23 in the Kentucky Derby.
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