Wed, 12/16/2015 - 15:28

Kid Cruz seeks to end string of seconds in Queens County

Tom Keyser
Kid Cruz comes into Saturday's Queens County following a career-best 102 Beyer Speed Figure.

Kid Cruz will try to end his severe case of seconditis in Saturday’s $100,000 Queens County Stakes at Aqueduct.

Kid Cruz, the winner of the Grade 3 Dwyer Stakes in 2014, has finished second in each of his last four races, including a half-length defeat to Page McKenney in the Swatara Stakes at Penn National on Nov. 25. That was his second start following time off for surgery to remove a bone chip from a knee, a procedure he also had done following his third-place finish in the 2014 Travers.

Wed, 12/16/2015 - 15:16

La Verdad might not be done yet

Barbara D. Livingston
Before beginning her career as a broodmare, La Verdad may race once more in the Grade 2 Barbara Fritchie on Feb. 13.

La Verdad, who finished last in the Fall Highweight, is still at Belmont Park and is in training, trainer Linda Rice said Wednesday. While La Verdad is to be bred in 2016, her connections have not ruled out another start, potentially in the Grade 2 Barbara Fritchie Stakes at Laurel Park on Feb. 13.

“She could run in the Barbara Fritchie and then go to the breeding shed,” said Rice, who trains La Verdad for Sheila Rosenblum. “I don’t know what we’re doing yet.”

Wed, 12/16/2015 - 15:10

Palace will run one final time in Gravesend

Adam Coglianese/NYRA
Before joining the stallon roster at Spendthrift Farm in Kentucky, the 6-year-old Palace will run in the Gravesend on Dec. 26.

OZONE PARK, N.Y. – Don’t shut the door on Palace just yet.

Though the 6-year-old New York-bred millionaire is still scheduled to join the stallion roster at Spendthrift Farm in Kentucky in 2016, the multiple Grade 1-winning Palace will make one more start in the $100,000 Gravesend Stakes at Aqueduct on Dec. 26.

Trainer Linda Rice said owner Anthony Miuccio “is able to race him till the end of the year, and he wants to run him there.”

Wed, 12/16/2015 - 14:18

Sutherland begins comeback aboard first-time starter

Michael Burns
Chantal Sutherland-Kruse sits in a tie for fifth in the Woodbine jockeys’ standings with five wins from 24 starts through the first three weeks of the meet.

Chantal Sutherland, who has not ridden since July 2014, is booked on one mount at Los Alamitos on Friday – the first-time starter Tribal Thunder in the sixth race.

Sutherland, 39, has been exercising horses at Los Alamitos and Santa Anita in recent months for a comeback. She plans a full-time return to riding at the Santa Anita winter-spring meeting that begins Dec. 26.

Sutherland has not ridden in Southern California since April 2014 and rode at Woodbine later that year. She is best known for winning the 2011 Santa Anita Handicap on Game On Dude.

 

Wed, 12/16/2015 - 14:18

Runhappy heads probables for Malibu

Barbara D. Livingston
Runhappy, shown training at Santa Anita on Dec. 5, is ready for the opening-day Malibu on Dec. 26.

Runhappy, the winner of the Breeders’ Cup Sprint at Keeneland on Oct. 31, is part of a solid group of out-of-state runners expected for the $300,000 Malibu Stakes at Santa Anita on Dec. 26.

The Grade 1 Malibu Stakes is run at seven furlongs for 3-year-olds and is the traditional opening-day feature of the track’s winter-spring meeting. The Dec. 26 program will include the $300,000 La Brea Stakes for 3-year-old fillies at seven furlongs.

Wed, 12/16/2015 - 14:10

Harty confident maiden Urlacher fits in Grade 1 Los Alamitos Futurity

CYPRESS, Calif. – Urlacher is expected to be the only maiden in Saturday’s $350,000 Los Alamitos Futurity, a status that is little more than a technicality to trainer Eoin Harty.

Urlacher, who must be supplemented to the Los Alamitos Futurity for $20,000, finished first in a maiden race at a mile at Del Mar on Nov. 15 but was disqualified and placed second for causing interference in the stretch.

“He knows what it’s like to win a race,” Harty said. “If he’d stayed up, people wouldn’t question why I’m running in this race.

Wed, 12/16/2015 - 13:42

Keen Ice goes out for slow breeze

Nikki Sherman
The first two early 2016 targets for Keen Ice will be the Donn Handicap in early February and the Dubai World Cup in March.

HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. – With the handicap division undergoing wholesale changes following the retirement of Honor Code, Liam’s Map, and Tonalist at the end of the season, there is plenty of room for horses like Keen Ice to position themselves near the top of the list in 2016.

Wed, 12/16/2015 - 13:24

Charles Town approved for 179 racing days in 2016

The West Virginia Racing Commission on Tuesday approved 179 racing days at Charles Town in 2016. The season will begin Jan. 7 and end Dec. 29. Racing will be held Thursday, Friday, and Saturday nights in January, February, July, and August. Wednesdays will be added during the other months.

The biggest cards of the meet will be Charles Town Classic Day on April 23, the Race for the Ribbon program on Sept. 17, and the West Virginia Breeders’ Classics on Oct. 8.

Wed, 12/16/2015 - 13:22

Meet winds down at Penn National

Penn National concludes its meet Saturday night. The Grantsville, Pa., track will begin its 2016 season Jan. 6.

Timothy Kreiser leads the trainers’ standings by a large margin. This will be his second consecutive title. Angel Rodriguez has clinched the riding crown.

Wed, 12/16/2015 - 13:20

Laurel: Rainbow 6 carryover nears $60,000

The Rainbow 6 at Laurel Park will have a carryover of $58,239 on Friday. The 10-cent bet was last hit Oct. 24 and has carried over on 22 straight cards.

The Rainbow 6 jackpot is only paid out when there is a single winning ticket. On days when there is more than one winner, 60 percent of the pool is paid out, and 40 percent of the pool is carried over.

Friday’s Rainbow 6 sequence on races 4-9 has 61 entrants and 59 betting interests.