ARCADIA, Calif. – Firing Line is all set for next Sunday's Sunland Derby at Sunland Park after working five furlongs in 59.80 seconds Sunday morning at Santa Anita, a drill in which he could not have been going easier under exercise rider Paul Eddery.
"We've always liked him. He's a class horse," said Eddery, the former jockey and brother of ex-jockey Pat. "He's a very good work horse. We're very happy with him."
Trainer Steve Asmussen reported champion Untapable was "doing fine" Sunday morning at Oaklawn Park, following a runner-up effort in her season debut the day prior.
The 4-year-old filly, making her first start since winning the Breeders' Cup Distaff on Oct. 31, failed to overhaul the front-running Gold Medal Dancer in the stretch of the Grade 2 Azeri Stakes on Saturday, finishing second by a half-length while racing over a wet track for the first time.
Lord Nelson, fourth last week in the San Felipe Stakes, will come back on just 15 days’ rest to compete March 22 in the Grade 3, $800,000 Sunland Derby at Sunland Park, Baffert said Saturday morning. Martin Garcia will ride.
Firing Line, second to unbeaten Dortmund in the Robert Lewis and Los Alamitos Futurity in his last two starts, will be the Sunland Derby favorite. He has been pointed to that race since the Lewis.
ARCADIA, Calif. – Texas Red, the winner of the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile, worked an easy half-mile in 51.40 seconds on Saturday morning at Santa Anita in his first drill since returning to training after suffering from an abscess in his right front foot a little more than a month ago.
Keith Desormeaux, who trains and co-owns Texas Red, had said he wasn’t looking for anything fancy, being as this was the first work back, but Desormeaux did say he ideally would have liked to have “gone about a second faster.”
I Spent It, the winner of last year’s Grade 2 Saratoga Special who has not raced since finishing sixth in the Champagne Stakes in October, has been entered in a conditioned allowance Wednesday at Oaklawn. The one-mile race is for 3-year-olds and up. Trainer Tony Dutrow has given the mount to Ricardo Santana Jr.
Emerald Downs is implementing a bonus program for shippers at its upcoming meet, which begins April 18 and runs through Sept. 27.
Under the Emerald Downs Ship and Run incentive program, horses whose most recent start was outside the state and have not previously raced at Emerald Downs will earn a $400 bonus for running at the Seattle-area track.
HOT SPRINGS, Ark. – Ingrid Mason’s first attempt at a training career was stopped cold by a hurricane that dismantled her stable. Her second go-round has been highlighted by Sarah Sis, who is developing into a Kentucky Oaks candidate at this Oaklawn Park meet.
Sarah Sis won the Grade 3, $150,000 Honeybee on March 7, one start after missing by a head to champion Take Charge Brandi in the $100,000 Martha Washington on Jan. 31. The next stop could be the Grade 3, $400,000 Fantasy at Oaklawn on April 4.
HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. – The Rainbow 6 jackpot was emptied for a seven-figure score Thursday when a customer betting through the TwinSpires hub in Portland, Ore., won $1,079,444.
The winning ticket cost $336 (or 1,680 combinations at 20 cents apiece), according to the Gulfstream mutuels department. The Twitter feed for TwinSpires reported that the winner actually bet two tickets, with the other costing $440, and nearly $270,000 in federal taxes were withheld.
The winning numbers were 7-4-7-3-1-1, with their respective odds being 5-2, 6-5, 5-2, 19-1, 25-1, and 2-1.
HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. – Trainer Todd Pletcher said Friday that Constitution will be sent to WinStar Farm to “freshen up” a bit after being taken out of consideration for the Dubai World Cup due to a minor shin injury discovered after a routine workout last weekend at Palm Beach Downs.
“Obviously, it’s a disappointment we couldn’t go to Dubai; we were looking forward to the opportunity,” said Pletcher. “But you don’t want to travel across the world unless he’s perfect.”
