SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. -- Trainer Wesley Ward’s original thought after watching Kimari rally to a half-length victory, despite a bit of a slow start, over Frank’s Rockette in the Grade 2 Honorable Miss here last week was to put her on a path that would lead to the Breeders’ Cup Filly and Mare Sprint at Keeneland on Nov. 5. 

But after assessing the situation a bit further, Ward may have more ambitious plans on Breeders’ Cup weekend for the daughter of Munnings, who far and away earned a career-best Beyer Speed Figure of 105 for her performance in the six-furlong Honorable Miss.

Kentucky Downs officials announced Tuesday that three more stakes at its upcoming meet will offer purses of as much as $1 million if a Grade 1 or Group 1 winner is a starter in those races.

Three races at the seven-day meet next month at the turf-only track in south-central Kentucky already are worth $1 million, including substantial bonuses from the Kentucky Thoroughbred Development Fund.

In a surprise move, jockey Jose Ortiz has parted ways with his longtime agent Jimmy Riccio Jr. and has hired Steve Rushing to be his new agent effective Aug. 14, Ortiz said Tuesday. Rushing also represents Ortiz’s brother, Irad Ortiz Jr.

Jose Ortiz and Riccio were together for 9 1/2 years and in 2017 Ortiz won the Eclipse Award as North America’s outstanding jockey. This year, Ortiz currently ranks fourth nationally in earnings with $13,632,382 and ninth in wins with 135, including the Preakness stakes on Early Voting.

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – The imposing presence of Matareya will keep the starting lineup for the Grade 1 Test to a minimum, although it has not deterred the connections of the Santa Anita-based Elm Drive from sending their filly east to take on the Acorn winner in the prestigious seven-furlong fixture for 3-year-old fillies here Saturday.

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – Bleecker Street, among the leaders of the filly and mare turf division, is sidelined indefinitely with a physical issue, trainer Chad Brown said Monday.

Brown said Bleecker Street did not come out of her third-place finish in the Grade 1 Diana well and has been sent to Kentucky to be evaluated.

“She’s going to be out of training for the time being,” Brown said.

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – Corniche, last year’s champion 2-year-old colt, may have had an excuse for his last-place finish in his 3-year-old debut in Sunday’s Grade 2 Amsterdam Stakes at Saratoga.

Trainer Todd Pletcher said Monday morning that Corniche shed the frog on his right front foot. The frog, triangular in shape, is the bottom part of the foot and acts like a shock absorber.

Santa Anita has scheduled 93 stakes worth $16.3 million for its 2022-2023 winter-spring meeting, which runs from Dec. 26 to June 19, a slight decline from a stakes program worth $16.47 million in 2021-2022.

Purses for all stakes will be worth at least $100,000, an increase of $25,000 to $30,000 for nine restricted and overnight stakes. The purses of eight stakes have been reduced, notably the Grade 1 Santa Anita Handicap, which will be worth $500,000. The race was worth $650,000 in March, and in recent years had values ranging from $600,000 in 2019 and 2020 to $400,000 in 2021.

DEL MAR, Calif. – Shedaresthedevil is scheduled to return to the scene of one of her biggest career victories when she defends her title on Saturday in the Grade 1, $400,000 Clement Hirsch Stakes at Del Mar, a Win and You’re In toward the Breeders’ Cup Distaff and the most important of four stakes to be run here this weekend.

The Charlie Appleby-trained pair of Nations Pride and With The Moonlight worked six furlongs together over the Oklahoma turf course Sunday morning in preparation for upcoming stakes engagements next weekend for 3-year-old turf horses at Saratoga.

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. - Olympiad tuned up for his toughest assignment of the year in next Saturday’s Grade 1, $1 million Whitney Stakes, by working a half-mile in 47.73 seconds Sunday morning over the Oklahoma training track.

Under exercise rider Neil Poznansky, Olympiad went in splits of 12.38 seconds and 24.14 and galloped out a solid five furlongs in 1:00.93, and six in 1:15.23.

Trainer Bill Mott said he was looking for a little slower time, but wasn’t upset with the way the work was done considering Poznansky didn’t ask him for anything.