VANCOUVER, British Columbia – The classy 9-year-old Seminole Brave is obviously a step or two slower than when he won the $50,000 George Royal Stakes in 2009. Nonetheless, he was quick enough to win a $15,000 claiming race going six furlongs two weeks ago, and he should be tough to handle when he runs back for the same price at Hastings on Saturday.

A versatile Florida-bred, Seminole Brave will have to navigate an extra sixteenth of a mile in the 6 1/2-furlong sprint. It won’t be a problem, however − six of his eight career wins came at the distance.

ETOBICOKE, Ontario – Star Shoot Stakes winner Rootham Triple E’s returns on short rest Saturday at Woodbine in the $150,000 Fury Stakes, a seven-furlong test for Ontario-bred 3-year-old fillies.

The Fury, which is a stepping-stone toward the June 9 Woodbine Oaks, also has reigning Canadian champion 2-year-old filly Spring in the Air and stakes winner Aunt Els among its 10-horse field.

On paper, there was a massive gap between Perfect Officer, who barely missed winning the second Grade 3 stakes of his career less than three weeks ago, and Jersey Blue Giant, a New Jersey-bred who was winless on turf and badly beaten by $20,000 claimers in his two most recent starts. On Atlantic City Race Course’s turf course, however, the two sprinters reached the finish line nearly on even terms.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. – In 1882, Jesse James was killed, false teeth and the electric iron were patented, Tchaikovsky’s “1812 Overture” opened in Moscow, and Apollo won the Kentucky Derby without having raced at age 2.

A lot has happened in the 130 years since, especially in regards to dental care. But no horse since Apollo has been able to win the Derby without racing as a 2-year-old, something Verrazano will be trying to accomplish on Saturday in the 139th Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Florida Derby winner Orb drew post 16 and was pegged as the 7-2 morning-line favorite as the field for the 139th Kentucky Derby was finalized Wednesday evening at Churchill Downs.

Calder Race Course and the group representing Florida’s horsemen failed Wednesday to reach agreement on a new contract or an extension of an existing contract by a self-imposed deadline, leading to an immediate 20 percent cut in purses and the blackout of the track’s races at out-of-state sites.

ARLINGTON HEIGHTS, Ill. – There were 93 horses entered Tuesday for Friday’s 10-race card that starts Arlington’s 89-day 2013 racing season. And that alone is reason for at least modest celebration.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Don’t count trainer Shug McGaughey among those excited to see defending Horse of the Year Wise Dan take on Point of Entry in Saturday’s Grade 1, $500,000 Woodford Reserve at Churchill Downs.

“I could care less about Wise Dan,” McGaughey, the trainer of Point of Entry, said Wednesday morning.

[2013 KENTUCKY DERBY: Get PPs, contender profiles, live updates]

LOUISVILLE, Ky. – All those 1’s might look great on paper, but how can they possibly add up? Indeed, the extraordinary amount of speed signed on in the Kentucky Oaks makes the filly classic a fascinating exercise in handicapping Friday at Churchill Downs.

Beholder, the defending champion in what is now the 3-year-old filly division, is one of a handful in the 139th Oaks with speed aplenty, and her role seems particularly critical in determining how the 1 1/8-mile race plays out.

In the midst of a year filled with career-defining accomplishments, University of Louisville men’s basketball coach Rick Pitino is prepared to extend his remarkable spring in Kentucky Derby 139, in which he has a live contender in Santa Anita Derby winner Goldencents.

Pitino, who first became enamored with racing during the 1990s when he was the head coach of Kentucky, owns 5 percent of Goldencents, who looked sharp in his morning gallop over Churchill Downs’s main track Wednesday morning.