Hollendorfer Mulling Options

[Wandering Eyes]

A week after he was banned from The Stronach Group tracks and a day after the New York Racing Association announced it would not take his entries, Hall of Fame trainer Jerry Hollendorfer continued to assess his options Sunday.

According to Hollendorfer, he hasn’t been given a specific reason by either The Stronach Group or NYRA as to why he’s no longer welcome to stable, enter, and run horses at their facilities in California and New York.

“They didn’t tell me anything,” Hollendorfer said. “They told me to vacate Golden Gate and Santa Anita in 72 hours, and then NYRA has intimated to my attorney that if I entered horses they would be scratched, eventually.”

TSG has not indicated when or if he might be allowed to return to their California facilities, he added.

“I have no rulings or suspensions against me,” he said, before explaining that the California Horse Racing Board (CHRB) similarly haven’t approached him since TSG told him to vacate Santa Anita and Golden Gate Fields earlier last week.

“I don’t have too much to say. We’re trying to get all the facts together and go from there,” he said.

Opening day of Del Mar’s summer meet is July 17. When asked whether Hollendorfer will be allowed to stable and enter his horses during the meet, a Del Mar spokesperson said Saturday,  “We have been in consultations with Jerry Hollendorfer and his attorney. We are still trying to work out an arrangement that would satisfy all parties, but we are not there yet.”

Hollendorfer’s New York string was made up of horses owned by Larry Best. Those horses have now been transferred to Don Chatlos.

When asked if his long-time assistant Dan Ward might assume a similar role at Del Mar to Chatlos’s in New York, Hollendorfer suggested the situation is complicated by a greater number of owners among his California string.

“The thing with NYRA is, I’m no longer involved with Larry Best’s horses. They have turned them over to Don Chatlos, and I will have no more contact with those horses,” he explained. “That’s all I had there.”

Hollendorfer prevaricated about the possibility of litigation.

“I can only tell you I have representation, but we’re gathering facts and looking at things and seeing what’s going on,” he said.

Despite the upheaval to his livelihood brought about during the last week, Hollendorfer appeared philosophical.

“How do I feel about things? I have to do the best that I can and go from there,” he said.

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