Trainer Wayne Catalano hits 3000 wins

Trainer Wayne Catalano at the 2021 Breeders’ Cup Sprint with Aloha West

Wayne Catalano reaches 3,000 wins

Date: 7/23/2024

Trainer Wayne Catalano notched win number 3,000 with Alilnalot in the fourth race at Ellis Park on Sunday, July 21, a $30,000 maiden claimer for older horses sprinting 6 furlongs. He is the 39th trainer to reach that milestone, doing so just 3 days before his 68th birthday. Jockey Luan Machado sat back in 4th down the backstretch under Alilnalot, a son of Tapiture out of Forestry mare Lil Precious, then took over at the top of the stretch to win by 1 length in 1:11.26 aboard the 3-1 favorite.

Catalano said, “I’ve been waiting on this one a long time. I got to have my family here today and it means the world to me.”

Catalano (behind the little girl) at Ellis Park after winning his 3000th race.

The native of New Orleans started as a hot walker for trainer Jack Van Berg. Turning 18 he became a jockey, winning his first race on May 20, 1974 for Van Berg on Hellfire at Churchill Downs. After booting home 1,792 winners as a jockey, chronic knee injuries forced him to retire from the saddle and he switched to training, with his first win coming on August 11, 1983 with Dreaming of You at Arlington Park, the track he would call home for most of his career. He won 11 training titles at the now-closed Chicago area oval, winning 1,115 races there.

Dreaming of Anna wins the 2006 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies for Catalano.

He has not had any runners finish in the money in Triple Crown competition, but he does have 4 Breeders’ Cup winners, Aloha West in the 2021 Sprint, Stephanie’s Kitten in the 2011 Juvenile Fillies Turf, She Be Wild in the 2009 Juvenile Fillies, and Dreaming of Anna in the 2006 Juvenile Fillies.

Stephanie’s Kitten wins the 2011 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf for Catalano.

At time of writing (July 23, 2024) Catalano has a record of 3,000 wins, 2,194 seconds, and 1,917 thirds in 15,158 starts, with purse earnings of over $76 million. In stakes competition he has 114 wins (49 graded), 88 seconds, and 97 thirds in 726 starts, earning just over $19 million. He has multiple graded stakes winners with Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies (G1) winner Dreaming of Anna his best runner with over $2 million in earnings, followed closely by Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf (G1) and Just a Game (G1) winner Stephanie’s Kitten earning $1.6 million under his care (she later raced for Chad Brown) and Breeders’ Cup Sprint (G1) winner Aloha West with $1.5 million.

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