Ron Ellis : Derby History
Ellis, a Southern California native, was introduced to racing when he was 16, when he went to the races with his father and some friends who owned horses. He turned down a scholarship in automotive engineering and began his career in racing as a barn foreman at Mira Loma Farms, a position he held for over six years. He trained California-bred Love That Red to five stakes wins in 1999 and has trained the stakes winners Twice The Vice, Benchmark, Exotic Wood, Pharma and Pirate's Revenge. His only Derby starter has been Atswhatimtalknbout, fourth in 2003.
Victor Espinoza
: Derby History
A native of Mexico City, Victor Espinoza began riding professionally in 1993. He garnered his first win at Hippodromo de las America in Sept. 1993 and moved to Southern Calif. soon after. He was the leading apprentice rider at Bay Meadows (1993-94) and at Golden Gate Fields (1994); in 2000, he captured the Hollywood Park spring-summer riding title. His biggest stakes wins to date have been on War Emblem in 2002 Derby and Preakness (GI), Early Pioneer in the 2000 Hollywood Gold Cup (GI) and Spain in the 2000 Breeders' Cup Distaff (GI). He was the third leading jockey in 2004 in terms of money won, winning nearly $16 million.
Jay Em Ess Stable
Jay Em Ess Stable is a collaboration of the first names of Jan (mother, who passed away in April, 2002), Mace (father), and Samantha (daughter) Siegel. Mace co-founded (in 1964) and is the current chairman of Macerich company. Macerich acquires, manages, and owns over 80 regional shopping malls throughout the United States. He is currently a Director & the sice-President of the Thoroughbred Owners of California. The Siegels have raced thoroughbreds since 1965, initially running under Jan Siegel's name. They have about 50 horses of racing age are divided between New York, Kentucky, and Southern California.
Brice Ridgely (MD)
Brice Ridgely, along with his wife Mary Anne, own Spring Meadow Farm, located near Cooksville, Maryland. Mary Anne named the colt after her grandson, Declan. In 1997, they purchased Vee Vee Star, dam of Declan's Moon, as a yearling along with her dam Fabulous Vee. Ridgely sold Declan's Moon at Timonium as a yearling for $125,000. The Ridgelys have been in the breeding business for about 30 years.
DECLAN'S MOON has been declared off the Kentucky Derby trail as of March 11th. His trainer, Ron Ellis, stated that the gelding will be out of action approximately 60 days after xrays revealed a small bone chip in a knee of the 2004 champion two-year-old colt.
Declan's Moon comes from the second crop of Malibu Moon, who stands at Castleton Lyons Farm in Lexington, Kentucky. From the two seasons, his two-year-old starters have won at an impressive 35% clip. Besides Declan's Moon, he has sired two other stakes winners: Perfect Moon, who won the Hollywood Juvenile (GIII) here last fall; and Missacity Luke, winner of the Dr. Ernest Benner Stakes as a two-year-old. Malibu Moon raced only twice, breaking his maiden going five furlongs at Hollywoood, before being retired. Declan's Moon (Malibu Moon): Declan's Moon is out of the young mare Vee Vee Star, an eight-year-old daughter of Norquestor. Her only other foal to race is the four-year-old Major Melissa, who is winless in four starts. Vee Vee Star raced ten times, finishing with a 2-0-3 slate. Her biggest race was a third in Pimlico's Black Eyed Susan (GII). She is a half sister to minor stakes winner Sabovee and Of Eagles, stakes placed at two. While Secretariat appears in the fourth generation on the male side, interestingly, also on the female side of Declan's Moon's pedigree is the presence of Somethingroyal, dam of Secretariat, in the fourth generation. However, rather than Secretariat, it is his half-brother, Somethingfabulous, who passed on the regal bloodlines to our subject colt through his daughter Fabulous Vee and subsequently Vee Vee Star. Somethingfabulous had the ability to go a distance of ground, running third in the nine fulong Flamingo at Hialeah. Further back in tail female of Declan's Moon is Mrs. Vee Vee, a daughter of the Claiborne Farm homebred and raced Ridan, who was undefeated at two, winner of the Florida Derby, the Blue Grass Stakes, and beaten just a nose in both the Preakness and the Travers.
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