HORSE RACING

• Rail Trip out to defend Hollywood Gold Cup

  
  

  Inglewood, CA (Sports Network) - Rail Trip will take on six challengers on Saturday in defense of his title in the $500,000 Hollywood Gold Cup at Hollywood Park. The five-year-old gelding will carry highweight of 123 pounds in the 1 1/4-mile race.

  Owned by Jay Em Ess Stable, Rail Trip will be ridden by Rafael Bejarano for the third straight start and the pair will break from post six. Jose Valdivia, Jr. was aboard the gelding last year in winning the Gold Cup.

  Rail Trip, trained by Ron Ellis, is coming off victories this year in the Mervyn LeRoy Handicap and the Californian. No horse has swept those two races and the Gold Cup since Eleven Stitches in 1981.

  "The nice thing about him is that he's almost turned into a mile and a quarter horse," noted Ellis. "He knows where the running starts and he's really strong down the lane. This year he's bigger, stronger and heavier. He's matured a lot.

  He's a real versatile horse and that's going to come in handy at some point.

  "When he won the Gold Cup, he was at the end of a lot of races. This year, by purpose, we wanted to bring him in and point for the Breeders' Cup and have him ready for the second half of the year." Rail Trip is within a few dollars of becoming a millionaire. The five-year-old has won eight of 11 career starts and earned $967,790.

  A win on Saturday would make him just the third horse to claim the Gold Cup more than once.

  He would join Native Diver (1965-67) and Lava Man (2005-07), who each won the race three straight times.

  Last year's runner-up, Tres Borrachos will try to get the best of Rail Trip for the third straight race.

  The five-year-old gelding was fourth in the Mervyn LeRoy and seventh in the Californian.

  Trained by co-owner Beau Greely, Tres Borrachos will start from post six with Victor Espinoza again in the saddle.

  "He's got ability, he's been training well, there's nothing wrong with him and he's got a good record at Hollywood Park," said Greely.

  Winless since taking an allowance race at Hollywood in May of last year, the gelding has banked $602,682 while winning three of 26 lifetime starts.

  Here is the full field for the Gold Cup in post position order: Cigar Man, Joe Talamo; Compari, Mike Smith; Awesome Gem, David Flores; Richard's Kid, Martin Garcia; Tres Borrachos, Victor Espinoza; Rail Trip, Rafael Bejarano and Tap It Light, Tyler Baze.

  Post-time for the race is set for 7:35 p.m. (et).

  07/07 16:59:56 ET