ARCADIA, Calif. – Eight stakes winners from two states as well as Brazil and France are among the projected field of 10 fillies and mares for Monday’s $300,000 Gamely Stakes at Santa Anita.
The Grade 1 Gamely, run at 1 1/8 miles on turf, will have two shippers from the East Coast in Danza Cavallo and Hard Not to Like.
ELMONT, N.Y. – Liam’s Map, unraced since winning the Harlan’s Holiday last December, worked a solid half-mile in 48.63 seconds over the Belmont Park training track Friday in company with the graded stakes winner Blofeld.
It was the second work at Belmont for Liam’s Map, who had worked four previous times at Jimmy Crupi’s farm in Ocala, Fla.
“He’s pretty far along,” Pletcher said. “Jim put a couple of good works into him. We’re seeing the results of that here. He seems to be pretty fit from his couple of works.”
ARCADIA, Calif. – A Smart Strike filly purchased for $1.25 million at Monday’s Fasig-Tipton Midlantic sale of 2-year-olds in training in Timonium, Md., will be trained in Southern California by Simon Callaghan.
Callaghan said on Thursday that the filly is scheduled to arrive at his Santa Anita stable June 2. She will be owned by a partnership Callaghan declined to disclose.
The filly was purchased Monday by Ben McElroy as agent and was sent to a farm in Kentucky, Callaghan said.
ARLINGTON HEIGHTS, Ill. – Who in the Chicago racing scene before this past winter had heard of Vicente Gudiel, the apprentice rider who arrived at Hawthorne in December and won the riding title there at the winter-spring meet? No one, basically, and now it is happening again – another obscure rider landing on the Chicago circuit and quickly making his mark.
Belmont Park on Friday
Weather: Clear
Track: Fast
Temperature: 57
ELMONT, N.Y. – Only six of the 11 potential Belmont Stakes starters are currently stabled at Belmont Park. Four of those six worked for the June 6 race on Friday: trainer Todd Pletcher’s trio of Materiality, Carpe Diem, and Madefromlucky and Kiaran McLaughlin’s Frosted, the sneaky-good fourth-place finisher in the Kentucky Derby.
VANCOUVER, British Columbia – There has been a huge boost of positive energy coming out of the racing office at Hastings since Nichelle Milner finally arrived and took over as racing secretary two weeks ago.
Milner, who was the assistant racing secretary at Portland Meadows, was given the job a few months ago, but it took a while for her to obtain the necessary work permits to start her new position.
ETOBICOKE, Ontario – Trainer Norm McKnight has gotten off to a hot start through the first six weeks of the Woodbine meet, with 10 wins from 28 starters. McKnight entered Friday’s card one win behind Mark Casse for the lead in Woodbine’s trainer standings.
McKnight, 59, said he has been surprised by his quick start to the season and credited his staff, including son and assistant trainer Brad McKnight, for the stable’s success.
LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Kentucky Derby and Preakness winner American Pharoah was out for his first gallop since his seven-length romp at Pimlico when going through a routine bit of training Friday at Churchill Downs.
Among the first horses out onto a freshly harrowed racetrack at 8:31 a.m. Eastern, and with regular exercise rider Jorge Alvarez up, American Pharoah backtracked to the seven-furlong pole on the clubhouse turn before turning around and quickly getting into his gallop.
ARCADIA, Calif. – Stellar Wind, who rose to the top of the 3-year-old filly division before finishing fourth as the favorite in the Kentucky Oaks, will be considered for a turf campaign this summer, trainer John Sadler said. After back-to-back Grade 1 wins in California, including the Santa Anita Oaks, Stellar Wind had a tough trip in Kentucky.
ELMONT, N.Y. – Twilight Eclipse, who won the Grade 1 Man o’ War in his last start, will try for his second Grade 1 in the $1 million Manhattan on June 6, trainer Tom Albertrani confirmed Thursday.
Albertrani said the connections didn’t want to wait until the United Nations on July 5 at Monmouth, and with the Bowling Green being moved to Saratoga, there wasn’t another solid option for Twilight Eclipse.
“He’s come back really well out of that race, and it still gives you enough time to go to the U.N.,” Albertrani said of running in the Manhattan.
