ARCADIA, Calif. – Almendares and King of Gosford, first and fourth in the Grade 3 American Stakes at Santa Anita last Saturday, will represent trainer Phil D’Amato in the Grade 1 Shoemaker Mile on turf on May 25.
D’Amato has won two of the last four runnings of the Shoemaker on turf, including last year with King of Gosford. He has won the race five times in his career since 2014.
Eliseo Ruiz has been suspended 30 days for his controversial ride aboard Bailout Billy at Parx Racing on March 31, in which the jockey is said to have “failed to give his best effort and failed to use proper diligence.”
Ruiz was riding the front-running 4-year-old filly in a first-level allowance and carried a two-length lead into the stretch, but he elected to not use his crop as several rivals began making up ground in the six-furlong sprint.
Horseshoe Indianapolis in Shelbyville will reduce the takeout on all of its daily double wagers to 15 percent starting with its race card on Tuesday, the track has announced.
Horseshoe offers rolling daily doubles throughout its cards. The previous takeout for most of the track’s daily doubles was 21.5 percent.
At the start of its meet this year on April 7, Horseshoe reduced the takeout on its final daily double, which has a $5 minimum bet, to 15 percent. Track officials said that the response to the wager led to the decision to reduce the takeout for all the doubles.
A federal bankruptcy judge in Illinois on Monday approved up to $20 million in debtor-in-possession financing for Hawthorne Racecourse. However, the judge scheduled a hearing for next Tuesday to set a date for when the track must be sold if it is to continue operating as a racetrack.
Churchill Downs plans to offer head-to-head matchups and odd vs. even wagering during its upcoming 44-day spring meet, including on the May 1 Kentucky Oaks and May 2 Kentucky Derby cards, the track said on Monday.
HOT SPRINGS, Ark. – Journalism has emerged from his third-place finish in the Grade 2, $1.25 million Oaklawn Handicap in excellent condition and will now get settled back into his routine at Santa Anita, trainer Michael McCarthy said.
The winner of last year’s Preakness was launching his season in Saturday’s blockbuster matchup that 2023 Breeders’ Cup Classic winner White Abarrio captured by two lengths over 2025 Horse of the Year Sovereignty. It was another 1 1/4 lengths back to Journalism, who earned a Beyer Speed Figure of 106.
Some eyebrows might have raised when Runaway Diva was assigned high weight of 123 pounds for Saturday’s $75,000 Mo Green overnight handicap. After all, the well-traveled mare was coming off an average-looking fourth-place finish in the Sandy Bottom Stakes five weeks ago at Colonial Downs and had won just once in her previous 11 starts dating back to September 2024.
At Santa Anita on Monday, Potente, the Santa Anita Derby runner-up trained by Bob Baffert, was credited with a six-furlong workout in 1:13.40. Baffert said he put the filly Cash Call - last year's Grade 3 Summer Oaks winner - in front of Potente to give the horse a target.
“I was very happy with his work. He galloped out strong,” Baffert said. “He’s doing very well right now, looks healthy.”
The NFL Draft begins Thursday night, and for weeks leading up to it, everyone is looking for tangible evidence of which player is the best fit for their team. The NFL Scouting Combine, held roughly two months out, plays a role in defining which college players move up or down the draft board.
The Kentucky Derby is May 2. A series of stakes races held globally over the course of several months help comprise the field for the race. Key workouts conducted in between those races and the Derby itself play a role in defining which horses move up or down handicappers’ boards.
ARCADIA, Calif. – A gracious Julien Leparoux was honored at Santa Anita on Sunday with the George Woolf Memorial Jockey Award, which recognizes a rider’s accomplishments and personal character.
Leparoux was joined in the brief ceremony by fellow riders, including past recipients Mike Smith and Patrick Valenzuela, as well as friends and family.
The Woolf Award, which can be won once, is determined by a national vote by jockeys.
