Bio for Chocolate Candy
Profile by Byron King
Earnings: $592,500
Strengths: Jockey Garrett Gomez. The Eclipse Award-winning jockey the past two years, he climbs aboard - a move that will excite handicappers who place an emphasis on riders. Gomez is familiar with the colt, having ridden him to victory in the Real Quiet Stakes at Hollywood Park last fall.
Though never a serious factor in the Derby, Chocolate Candy did manage a fifth-place finish in the slop - outrunning a number of more heralded runners. He was also at a disadvantage in the race, not having ever raced over a dirt track. Now with that experience behind him, he is eligible to move forward. Based at Belmont since shortly after the May 2 Kentucky Derby, he should be fresh.
Weaknesses: He has yet to run a Beyer Speed Figure better than a 95, which he posted in running second in the Santa Anita Derby. And his lone dirt figure, which came in a sloppy Kentucky Derby, was merely an 85. Also, being a late runner, he could be victimized in what will likely be a slow-paced Belmont.
Strategy: When successful, he typically races between three to 5 1/2 lengths off the early leader, depending on how hot the pace. Look for him to sit closer than in the Derby when he was 10 lengths behind midway through the race.
Value: He was surprisingly backed down to 10-1 in the Kentucky Derby, despite never having run on dirt. Yet despite fewer entrants in the Belmont than in the 19-horse Derby, he could be about that price again in the Belmont.
CRAIG FAMILY TRUST
Sid and Jenny Craig made their fortune through the Jenny Craig weight-loss company; Sid lost his battle with cancer last July. They were married in 1979, and owned horses together for about 20 years. Among their top horses were Exchange, Alpride, Different, Tossofthecoin, Brave Act, Victory Stripes, Bienvenido and Golden Arches.
JERRY HOLLENDORFER
Born June 18, 1949 in Akron, Ohio, Hollendorfer is the most successful trainer ever in Northern California. Since he started training in 1979, he has won more than 5,000 races, placing him third among active trainers behind Hall of Famer Jack Van Berg and Maryland-based King T. Leatherbury. New York racing fans will remember him as the trainer of Lite Light, whose rivalry with champion Meadow Star brought excitement to Belmont Park in 1991. His wife, Janet, is also his assistant. Hollendorfer finished 10th in the Belmont in 2000 with Globalize.
GARRETT GOMEZ
Gomez won his second straight Eclipse award in 2008 and led the nation in earnings, just $10,609 shy of Jerry Bailey’s 2003 record. The son of a jockey, Louie Gomez, Gomez began riding in 1988 at Santa Fe Downs, where he had his first winner, Furlong Circle. Chocolate Candy will be Gomez’ fourth starter in the Belmont, with his best outing a fourth-place finish aboard Hard Spun in 2007.