Mon, 02/18/2019 - 15:10

Monomoy Girl has first work of year

Debra A. Roma
Monomoy Girl's last start was a win in the Breeders' Cup Distaff.

NEW ORLEANS – Monomoy Girl, champion 3-year-old filly of 2018, worked for the first time in 2019 when she breezed three furlongs in 37 seconds Sunday morning at Fair Grounds. Monomoy Girl picked up her pace in the homestretch after going at a two-minute-per-mile clip, and she breezed from the quarter pole past the wire and out to the seven-furlong marker, according to trainer Brad Cox.

“Really good,” Cox said.

Mon, 02/18/2019 - 14:50

Synchrony on track for Muniz Memorial

Lou Hodges Jr./Hodges Photography
Synchrony wins the Fair Grounds Handicap for the second year in a row last Saturday.

NEW ORLEANS – Trainer Mike Stidham believed Synchrony was going into Saturday’s Fair Grounds Handicap as well as in 2018, when he scored a breakout win in the race, and from all appearances Stidham was right.

Racing wide in the homestretch, over the worst part of the Fair Grounds grass course Saturday, Synchrony still stormed to a 1 1/4-length victory racing as the 121-pound highweight. He got a 100 Beyer Speed Figure, two points off his winning figure in the same race last year.

Mon, 02/18/2019 - 14:40

Silver Dust finally scores stakes victory

Amanda Hodges Weir/Hodges Photography
Silver Dust will be pointed toward the New Orleans Handicap after winning the Mineshaft Handicap last Saturday.

NEW ORLEANS – Back in early 2017 at Oaklawn Park, Silver Dust briefly threatened to break into Triple Crown candidacy. Two years, a trainer change, gelding, and a whole lot of schooling later, Silver Dust broke through with his first stakes win, capturing the Grade 3 Mineshaft Handicap on Saturday.

Five-year-old Silver Dust, owned by Tom Durant, has the pedigree of a stallion, but as trainer Bret Calhoun said, he’d never even have gotten to this point had he not been gelded last summer.

Mon, 02/18/2019 - 14:36

Serengeti Empress shows top form

Lou Hodges Jr./Hodges Photography
Serengeti Empress earned a career-best 91 Beyer for her Rachel Alexandra victory.

NEW ORLEANS – Tom Amoss sought transparency in the week leading to the Grade 2, $200,000 Rachel Alexandra Stakes. Serengeti Empress, Amoss’s and owner Joel Politi’s entry in the race, had only three published works since returning to Amoss’s barn in late December following a post-Breeders’ Cup break in Florida. Serengeti Empress, Amoss said, would be better next month in the Fair Grounds Oaks than she would be in the Rachel Alexandra.

Mon, 02/18/2019 - 14:10

Pletcher has Copper Town, Prince Lucky for Hal's Hope

Barbara D. Livingston
Copper Town is one of five Todd Pletcher-trained nominees for the Grade 3 Hal's Hope on Saturday.

HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. – There are 25 horses nominated to Saturday’s Grade 3 Hal’s Hope, and five are from trainer Todd Pletcher’s barn. On Sunday, Pletcher confirmed he plans to run two of the five, Copper Town and Prince Lucky, in the one-mile fixture for older horses.

Copper Town is coming off a seventh-place finish as the 3-2 favorite over a sloppy track in the Grade 3 Fred Hooper here, while Prince Lucky has not started since winning the Easy Goer last June at Belmont Park.

Mon, 02/18/2019 - 14:06

Romans sends longshot Admire in quest for Fountain of Youth repeat

Coady Photography
Admire will get his second shot at stakes competition in the Fountain of Youth on March 2.

HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. – Trainer Dale Romans caught a little lightning in a bottle when his 16-1 Promises Fulfilled upset the 2018 Fountain of Youth. He’ll defend that title here a week from Saturday with another longshot, the lightly raced Admire.

Admire has started just three times. He won his maiden at second asking going 1 1/8 miles over a sloppy track at Churchill Downs in his 2-year-old finale on Nov. 24. He opened his 3-year-old campaign by finishing fifth, beaten 5 1/2 lengths by Tax as an 18-1 outsider in the Grade 3 Withers earlier this month at Aqueduct.

Mon, 02/18/2019 - 13:50

Bravo to stick around for rest of meet

Barbara D. Livingston
Joe Bravo plans to be based at Oaklawn Park this winter for the meet that opens Jan. 25.

After riding at Fair Grounds and Oaklawn Park for most of the past three months, Joe Bravo has returned to his East Coast roots. The 47-year-old jockey guided Synchrony to victory Saturday in the Grade 3 Fair Grounds Handicap, then hopped a plane to ride five races Sunday at Gulfstream and six more Monday.

Mon, 02/18/2019 - 13:30

Sir Anthony royalty as far as trainer is concerned

Coglianese Photos
Sir Anthony, by Mineshaft, wins the Grade 3 Harlan's Holiday Stakes at Gulfstream Park.

HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. – Trainer Anthony Mitchell has yet to be knighted back in his native England, but Sir Anthony the horse lives and breathes nonetheless in Barn 18 at Gulfstream Park.

“A while back the owner said, ‘I’ve got an idea for this horse,’ ” an amused Mitchell recalled early this week on his Gulfstream shed row. “He said he wanted to name the horse after me, and I said, ‘Well, it better be good, then.’ ”

Mon, 02/18/2019 - 12:36

Belvoir Bay may come right back in Buena Vista Stakes

Barbara D. Livingston
Belvoir Bay wins the Wishing Well Stakes on Saturday.

ARCADIA, Calif. – Belvoir Bay may not be idle for long following her comfortable win in the Wishing Well Stakes last Saturday at Santa Anita.

Trainer Peter Miller said Sunday that Belvoir Bay could start in the Grade 2 Buena Vista Stakes at a mile on turf for fillies and mares this Saturday.

“It’s not out of the question to bring her back,” he said.

Miller emphasized that he will follow Belvoir Bay’s progress this week before deciding whether the 6-year-old mare will start.

Mon, 02/18/2019 - 12:30

Risky Proposition points to San Luis Rey Stakes

Benoit Photo
Risky Proposition, winning the Let It Ride Stakes at Del Mar in November, upset an optional-claiming race at Santa Anita on Sunday.

ARCADIA, Calif. –Risky Proposition, who was claimed twice in 2018, is bound for the Grade 2 San Luis Rey Stakes for turf marathoners on March 23 at Santa Anita after winning an allowance race with a $62,500 claiming option Sunday.

Risky Proposition closed from eighth in a field of 11 to win the one-mile turf race by a half-length for his second win in his last three starts. Prior to the race, trainer Bill Spawr said he was concerned the one-mile distance was too short for Risky Proposition, who closed well under jockey Joe Talamo to record an 11-1 upset.