No. 32 was the “one” for Canadian trainer Ian Jewell.
Jewell saddled his first career Oaklawn winner in Friday’s fourth race when Chick Command broke his maiden by 1 ¼ front-running lengths under apprentice jockey Joseph Romero.
Chick Command ($15.80) represented the 32nd career Oaklawn starter for Jewell, who wintered for the first time in Hot Springs during the 2023-2024 meeting. Jewell was 0 for 24 last season at Oaklawn and 0 for seven in 2024-2025 before his breakthrough victory.
“I just felt like last year I left with some unfinished business because I got shut out last year,” Jewell said Saturday morning. “It was just nice to get that win.”
Chick Command is one of six horses Jewell has at Oaklawn. All are owned by WYN Racing Stables Corp. of Christopher and Tasha Ceraldi, who reside in Vancouver, British Columbia, a major Canadian city approximately 140 miles north of Seattle.
Chick Command, who was bred in British Columbia, made his first four career starts in stakes races for 2-year-olds last year at Hastings Racecourse in Vancouver. Hastings is Jewell’s home track.
In Chick Command’s American debut, and first start at Oaklawn, he finished sixth against $30,000 maiden claimers Dec. 29. Chick Command was also racing for a $30,000 claiming tag Friday.
Jewell said he was confident Chick Command would be competitive in his second Oaklawn sprint race.
“Training really well,” Jewell said. “I think he came up a little short last time. Hadn’t run in 2 ½ months, so really need the race. Yeah, very happy with the way he’s performed. I thought he was going to be pretty tough yesterday.”
Jewell’s 2023-2024 Oaklawn resume included three seconds and two thirds, all coming in the final two months of the meeting. Jewell said he has a better feel for Oaklawn this season.
“I navigated pretty good at the end of the meet last year and I came down this year with a different set of horses and horses I thought would compete a lot better here,” Jewell said.
Jewell has 11 career training victories, according to Equibase, racing’s official data gathering organization, the first coming Nov. 8, 1992, at Sandown Park in British Columbia.
Before relaunching his training career in 2022, Jewell spent more than a decade working under the late Glen Todd, an iconic British Columbian horseman, and, most recently, as an assistant to trainer Larry Grieve (Tasha Ceraldi’s uncle).
Jewell said he was steered to Oaklawn by trainer Mike Puhich, a Pacific Northwest native who wintered in recent years at Oaklawn. Puhich has also trained for WYN. Jewell calls Vancouver home, but said he now considers Oaklawn a second home.
“So far, so good,” Jewell said. “My wife and I love it here. I know my owners love it here.”