Spieth Closing In On Career Milestone At Tampa Bay Downs

At the start of Saturday’s six-furlong first race at Tampa Bay Downs, 4-year-old Florida-bred filly Immortallove broke inward from the No. 2 post, pinned her ears, and attempted to take a bite out of the No. 1, Miss Easy.

Jockey Scott Spieth, who knows Immortallove can be aggressive around other horses, took immediate corrective action. 

“I cued her to move forward, and she spurted away from that other horse,” Spieth said. “She’s a very quick filly.”

Immortallove rolled to a on-length victory from Oscar Gaze, marking the second career triumph for the Endsley Oaks Farm-owned runner. It was winner No. 4,998 for Spieth, who is poised to become the 35th jockey in North American history to join the 5,000 club.

Barring a change in his schedule, he’ll go for 4,999 Wednesday in the Oldsmar Fla.'s track fourth race aboard 8-year-old gelding Where Paradise Lay.

Aldana Spieth, the trainer of Immortallove, said her husband is showing no signs of anxiety approaching the milestone, most recently achieved by Corey Lanerie on Oct. 18 at Keeneland.

“Maybe I have more (stress) than he does,” she said of her husband, laughing. “He’s not worrying. He knows he’s going to get there.”

There were some anxious moments for the couple on Feb. 5 when Spieth, who has stayed fit as a fiddle throughout his career, checked himself into Town and Country Hospital with flu-like symptoms. The diagnosis was dehydration, and he was hospitalized for two nights before returning to his wife's barn to assist with the operation of her 16-horse stable.

“He wants to be at that barn every day,” Aldana Spieth said. “He loves to get on his horses, so I knew he had to be feeling really bad.”

It didn’t take him long to get back to normal.

“I usually work six or seven horses a morning. Today I got on nine horses for her,” said Scott Spieth, 57. “I consider myself a very good horseman, not just a jockey, and I’m working to help build her business.”

The rider is looking forward to his next races on Aldana Spieth’s graded stakes-placed, multiple stakes-winning 4-year-old colt Dreaming of Kona and her 3-year-old filly Yellow Feathers, who broke her maiden at Tampa Bay Downs on Dec. 2 by 9½ lengths in the swift time of 1:10.18 for six furlongs. Both are owned by Aldana Spieth under her Aldana Gonzalez Racing LLC banner in partnership with Lisa Ballou and her brother Steve Ballou.

Although his opportunities to compete have decreased over the last few years, Scott Spieth has no plan of retiring upon reaching the 5,000-win milestone. 

“I feel great and I’m glad to be back in action,” he said. “I’ve always said either my mind or my body will tell me it’s time to retire, and fortunately right now it’s not an issue.”

The main issue, the couple reveal, is whose horse he will be on for No. 5,000.

“(Trainer) Gerry Bennett was telling Aldana the other day to get me two more wins so he could put me on my 5,000th, because I used to ride his horses for him in Detroit. He was razzing her pretty good,” Spieth said.

No matter who it comes for, or when, it’s even-money Spieth will be back at the barn the next morning before daybreak.