NYRA announced Sunday that Final Score (Not This Time) captured a $100,000 maiden special weight at Saratoga, giving trainer Todd Pletcher his eighth victory in top-level maiden races at the current meet.
The 2-year-old colt, owned by Mike Repole, won the 1 1/16-mile test on the Inner Turf course by 1 3/4 lengths under jockey Irad Ortiz Jr.
Among those celebrating in the winner’s circle was former NBA coach and player Avery Johnson, a longtime friend of Repole who has deep connections to horse racing despite not owning any thoroughbreds himself.
“We became friends, and our families have been close ever since then,” Johnson said of his relationship with Repole, which began in 2010 during Johnson’s coaching tenure with the Brooklyn Nets. “He has been very supportive of my two adult children.”
Final Score broke sharply and secured the early lead, setting comfortable fractions of 24.61, 50.88, and 1:16.61 before finishing in 1:45.48. The 9-5 favorite returned $5.60, $3.50, and $2.80, defeating runner-up Heeere’s Johnny (Oscar Performance) who went off as the 5-2 second choice.
The victory marked a successful turf debut for Final Score, who had previously finished second to stablemate Malus (Into Mischief) in a July 13 race that was moved from turf to the main track.
“He showed a little bit of speed going 5 1/2 (in the debut) and we anticipated going long he would be close,” said Hall of Fame trainer Pletcher. “You never know in these baby races. You may or may not have the lead. It worked out really nicely and he got a very comfortable pace up front.”
Repole purchased Final Score for $600,000 at the 2024 Fasig-Tipton Saratoga Select Yearling Sale.
Johnson, 60, who spent 16 years in the National Basketball Association as both a player and coach, maintains an active presence in racing circles. He has attended the Kentucky Derby for 15 consecutive years with his wife Cassandra and has served as a Breeders’ Cup Ambassador for a decade.
“Instead of throwing the football with my dad, we went to the horse races,” Johnson explained about his lifelong passion for the sport. “I have been going to the horse race tracks for 50 years. I know how to read a racing form, up and down. I have fun with it.”
The former NBA champion currently works as a basketball analyst for CBS Sports while also serving as CEO of Avery Capital, a commercial real estate private equity fund.
Johnson plans to remain in Saratoga for the next three weeks, where his routine includes early morning visits to the track.
“We are out early in the morning watching the horses work out,” Johnson said. “I get out with my coffee at 5 in the morning. I will go to Todd’s barn and hang out with him. The way people use golf for building relationships and building their business, I use horse racing.”
