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Gary Contessa - the hard-working New York trainer at the top of his profession

By K.T. Donovan
First Published: 05 February 2010 - Issue Number: 15

Watch Gary Contessa in the winner’s circle and you feel you are watching a kid who sneaked into the Oscars and is giggling with delight to be where his movie heroes are, pretending to be one of them. This joyfulness he shares with his owners, the thrill of being in the winner’s circle at Saratoga or Belmont Park, even after being New York’s leading trainer for the last three years, sets Contessa apart in the jaded, often cynical world of New York racing.
Perhaps the infectious enthusiasm derives from the deep feeling of gratitude Contessa feels, as he never forgets how far he has come to ride at the top of the heap in the most prestigious racing jurisdiction in America.
“I was a kid growing up in a Cape Cod house on Long Island, poor, the son of a mailman and a mother who drove a school bus, and I’d see these guys at Belmont Park in suits and hats – Woody Stephens, and Mack Miller,” he recalls wistfully. “They always looked so sharp. To think that one day I could be one of them. I wanted to be a trainer and I never stopped. I cherish every moment of what I do now.”
Contessa has enjoyed fifteen individual meeting titles in New York, and his drive for the next one keeps him and his team going.
“Every title means a lot,” he admits. “It invigorates the help, and the owners. The only time you’ll hear a guy say it doesn’t matter is when he’s in a close fight for it.”
Most recently, Contessa led the 2009 Belmont Park spring meeting with 25 wins from 209 starts and $792,809, and he previously led the 2008-09 Aqueduct inner track meeting with 56 wins from 434 starts and $1,739,297, ahead in both earnings and wins. He finished seventh at his beloved Saratoga and seventh in the fall Belmont meeting, but is back making a strong showing at Aqueduct.
Contessa’s stats will reveal an inordinate number of starts compared to his colleagues. One thing you get with Contessa is a trainer who will run his horses. He grinds out those titles primarily with claiming horses, a game that requires constant turnover and attention to detail. But Contessa is working to build a reputation beyond being the king of the claimers.
“What I really like is training two-year-olds,” he says. “I’m very patient; I like breaking their bad habits. I have owners who like to claim. But now stakes are a part of it, too. I like seeing horses perform after I’ve taught them well. Claiming is tough – you have to watch horses, look at the numbers, but I enjoy every aspect of training.”
At the same time, he keeps the theme of buying low, improving the stock, and then selling it. And ever the advocate for New York racing, Contessa often buys New York-breds, explaining that “the...

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