By John Scheinman
Special to The Washington Post
Sunday, March 23, 2008

On his way to Gulfstream Park yesterday during a torrid rainstorm to saddle a horse in the featured stakes race, trainer Richard Dutrow Jr. received word track management had canceled the remainder of the race card. With no work to do, Dutrow headed over to the nearby restaurant of a friend who shows the national racing channels on TV.

Dutrow had supplemented a sprinter named Double Or Nothing from his New York division into the $80,000 Private Terms Stakes at Laurel Park for $600, and settled in to watch the former maiden claimer do battle with most of the best 3-year-olds in Maryland.

As has happened so many times during the Laurel Park winter meet, the New York invader took home the money as Double Or Nothing drove past tiring leaders in the stretch and held off a late surge by 53-1 long shot Regal Solo to win by a half-length.

Vanderkaay lacked room much of the race then closed fast for third as the winner ran the one-turn mile in 1 minute 38.66 seconds. Favored Cave's Valley placed fourth.

"I can talk a big game right now, but I had no idea going into the race," said Dutrow, reached in Florida. "I wanted to stretch him out [in distance] before, and the only time we did wasn't fair. He was on the outside at Aqueduct, which is not a good place to be, and dueling on the lead.

"We just entered him [in the Private Terms] and looked at it. I didn't even tell the owner."

The only people connected to Double Or Nothing that showed up in the winner's circle were jockey Abel Castellano, who picked up the mount the morning of the race, and Dove Houghton, a Laurel-based trainer who saddles Dutrow's runners when he ships into town.

Double Or Nothing "came down yesterday and had a gallop across the track and everything's been perfect," Houghton said.

Asked what instructions Dutrow gave her for the race, Houghton laughed and said, "Same as he always does: 'Take care of things.' "

In his first 11 outings, Double Or Nothing had never started in a stakes race before yesterday.

When the gate opened, 54-1 long shot Cap' N Jack took a short lead, stalked by Apple Special with Double Or Nothing close up in third. After a fast second quarter-mile in 23.55 seconds, Apple Special came under the whip and Double Or Nothing took over.

In the stretch, Double Or Nothing began to drift out and labor with a wall of horses in pursuit. Regal Solo and Vanderkaay closed the gap but not in time.

The victory marked the eighth time in 14 stakes races during the winter meet that a New York trainer had won.

"Nobody gave me instructions," said Castellano, who had been named to ride another New York entrant, Mint Lane, but picked up the winning mount when that horse was scratched. "I went to the paddock and saw a nice, big, good-looking horse."

Racing Notes: Jockey Sheldon Russell was taken to the University of Maryland Shock Trauma Center in Baltimore after his mount, Positive Note, broke down on the backstretch during the fifth race. The horse, a 3-year-old filly trained by Tim Tullock, was euthanized on the track. No report on Russell's condition was available.

One race later, jockey Oliver Castillo was thrown from his mount, Fourthirteen, moments after taking the lead in deep stretch. The hind end of the horse, a 7-year-old gelding, appeared to momentarily lock up, causing him to falter. Both jockey and horse were not badly injured.

Assistant starter Jeff Dzbynski suffered minor injuries when 3-year-old filly Punchintina flipped in the starting gate before the second race . . .

Adriano, who finished ninth after a troubled trip last month in the Fountain of Youth Stakes, rebounded with a powerful performance, dominating 11 other 3-year-olds to win the Grade II $500,000 Lanes End at Turfway Park.

Ridden by jockey Edgar Prado, Adriano, trained by Graham Motion, ran the 1 1/8 -mile race in 1:50.20 seconds.