OZONE PARK, N.Y. – They have come from all across the country to chase the $100,000 purse of the inaugural Mizdirection Stakes for 3-year-old fillies at Aqueduct on Sunday.
Horses based in Southern California, South Florida, Pennsylvania, and Kentucky are here for the six-furlong turf sprint named for the Southern California-based mare who twice won the Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint and earned $1.7 million. Mizdirection finished fifth of six in the Grade 1 Just a Game, her lone start in New York.
ARCADIA, Calif. – California is in need of (older) California-bred stakes runners.
For the second time this year, Santa Anita has canceled a $100,000 stakes for statebreds because of insufficient entries. The Dream of Summer Stakes for fillies and mares at a mile was scheduled for Sunday, but did not draw an adequate field when entries were taken Thursday.
In 2017, the Dream of Summer Stakes drew a field of eight. Racing secretary Rick Hammerle said the Dream of Summer will not be rescheduled.
ARCADIA, Calif. – Abel Tasman, the champion 3-year-old filly of 2017, will have her 2018 debut in the Grade 1 La Troienne Stakes at Churchill Downs on May 4, trainer Bob Baffert confirmed Friday.
As far back as February, Baffert mentioned the $350,000 La Troienne Stakes at 1 1/16 miles for fillies and mares as a springtime goal for Abel Tasman, who has not raced since a second to Forever Unbridled in the Breeders’ Cup Distaff at Del Mar last November.
Trainer Jonathan Thomas, who sent out the highly regarded Catholic Boy to finish fourth behind Audible in the Florida Derby, will be in the spotlight at Tampa Bay Downs on Sunday when he saddles Arrogate’s younger half-sister, Osare, in the third race, a maiden special weight event carded at 1 1/16 miles on the turf.
HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. – Audible, working for the first time since his impressive victory in the Grade 1 Florida Derby 13 days earlier, breezed an easy half-mile in 48.74 seconds Friday morning at Palm Beach Downs. Audible was one of two of trainer Todd Pletcher’s four potential Kentucky Derby starters to work at the training center Friday along with Louisiana Derby winner Noble Indy.
Officials at Ellis Park and Kentucky Downs announced Friday that four turf stakes worth as much as $100,000 apiece will be run on a new Kentucky Downs Preview Day, Aug. 5, at Ellis in western Kentucky.
The purse for each race will be $75,000, with another $25,000 in bonuses available to registered Kentucky-breds. Funded by Kentucky Downs through its lucrative historical-racing machine business, the Preview races are designed as preps for the rich Kentucky Downs meet, which runs Sept. 1-13.
LEXINGTON, Ky. – With only three stakes left at the 16-day Keeneland spring meet following the big Jenny Wiley card here Saturday, allowance races will serve as the features on most remaining cards. That’s the case Sunday, when three allowances will anchor a nine-race program that starts at 1:05 p.m. Eastern.
LEXINGTON, Ky. – Don’t anybody worry about Calvin Borel. He’s just fine.
“Everything’s good, brother,” Borel said after breaking a drought by winning the fifth race Wednesday at Keeneland aboard 16-1 shot American Greatness. “I’m happy.”
Borel maintains an upbeat attitude despite a slide in his Hall of Fame riding career. His Wednesday upset came in his first mount since he took time off to visit with his older brother, former trainer Cecil Borel, in their native Louisiana, following a Fair Grounds meet during which the jockey went 6 for 117.
Jockey David Cohen on Saturday will attempt to close out what has been a very successful comeback meet with a win in the Grade 2, $750,000 Oaklawn Handicap. He will ride Inside Straight, who captured the race a year ago. Cohen has been working the horse for trainer Robertino Diodoro.
“He’s worked very good,” Cohen said. “He’s a very classy horse. I could see very easily why he won that race last year.”
Jockey Ricardo Santana Jr. is building an outstanding record at Oaklawn, where he will win a sixth consecutive riding title when the meet ends Saturday.
Santana hit a milestone of 1,000 Thoroughbred wins in North America on Thursday when he guided Westfest to victory in the sixth race at Oaklawn.
Santana is a native of Panama who won his first race in the United States in 2009 at Delaware Park. He had won more than 50 races in Panama before that, and was his country’s leading apprentice, said his agent, Ruben Munoz.
