ETOBICOKE, Ontario - Conquest Stables LLC, the nom du course of owners Ernie Semersky and Dory Newell, has upped its ante considerably in trainer Mark Casse’s stable of late.
And after watching Conquest Two Step win impressively in his debut at Churchill Downs last Friday and Conquest Whiplash defeat males here in Saturday’s $153,000 Victoria Stakes, it would appear that good times are in store for the new partnership.
Saratoga Race Course will officially celebrate its 150th anniversary on Saturday, Aug. 3, the track’s operator, the New York Racing Association, announced Monday during a press conference designed to drum up publicity for the summer meet that starts July 19.
The 150th-anniversary celebration will take place on the same day as the Whitney Handicap. Buddy Valastro, a celebrity chef who is known as the “Cake Boss,” will present a cake to mark the anniversary during the day’s races, and all fans will receive a commemorative poster with each paid admission.
ARLINGTON HEIGHTS, Ill. – A few weeks ago, Arlington bettors might have taken Warbird or Night Patrol to the bank in the featured sixth race Wednesday. The simple reason: Wayne Catalano trains those horses, and for most of May and early June, Catalano won with about one out of every two of his Arlington runners, of which there were plenty.
After going unhit Saturday and Sunday, a two-day, $248,140 pick-six carryover awaits bettors Wednesday at Belmont Park, with a nine-race card highlighted by the $100,000 Lion Cavern, an overnight stakes at 6 1/2 furlongs.
Six older sprinters entered the Lion Cavern, carded as race 8 and thus the next-to-last leg of a pick six that gets under way with race 4 at 2:38 p.m. Eastern.
ETOBICOKE, Ontario – Riding the River, winner of last year’s Grade 2 King Edward Stakes, showed the same determination at age 6 as he battled back to win the $204,800 turf stakes by a head here Sunday afternoon.
“You look at his workouts, you look at him in the morning – he’s as good as he’s ever been,” said Dave Cotey, who trains Riding the River and owns the gelding in partnership with Hugh Galbraith and Jim McNair.
ETOBICOKE, Ontario – Hobnobsnob won her comeback in an allowance race for Ontario-sired nonwinners of three, and now the two-time winner gets to compete at the same level in a longer grass event in Wednesday’s Woodbine feature.
Hobnobsnob graduated over a mile on the lawn last July, her only win from 10 starts in 2012. Following a six-month layoff, she prevailed June 1 in a front-end battle to win the aforementioned seven-furlong allowance by a neck.
Trainer Earl Barnett said he had no qualms about running Hobnobsnob out of her proper condition.
ETOBICOKE, Ontario – All horses from Barn 1 were back training with the general population over the weekend and are eligible to return to the races after registering second negative tests for the equine herpesvirus.
“Wednesday would be 14 days from the last transmission event,” said Adam Chambers, manager of veterinary services for the Ontario Racing Commission. “I’m hoping we can get everyone out of jail on Wednesday.”
Chambers said several horses from other locations have been segregated here in the old Standardbred barn.
Portales, the front-running winner of the 5 1/2-furlong prep for the Chantilly Stakes on June 7, will look to hold the fort when she faces six rivals in the Chantilly itself at Assiniboia Downs on Wednesday evening.
The Chantilly, a six-furlong race for 3-year-old fillies, offers a purse of $30,000.
CYPRESS, Calif. – Five Bar Cartel remained unbeaten after three starts with a nose victory in Sunday’s $1,111,000 Ed Burke Million Futurity at Los Alamitos.
The Burke is the first of three seven-figure futurities in the Los Alamitos Bonanza. The next race in the series is the Golden State Million in November. Five Bar Cartel’s next start will be in the trials for that race, according to trainer Danny Montes.
