SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. - It’s not often a trainer wins a Grade 2 stakes at Saratoga but people walk away talking more about the maiden that trainer won with earlier on the card.
On Saturday, at Saratoga, trainer Chad Brown won the Grade 2, $400,000 Ballston Spa Stakes with Viadera, but an hour earlier, the four-time Eclipse Award-winning trainer unleashed a good-looking 2-year-old colt in Jack Christopher.
SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. - After Letruska continued her dominance of the filly and mare handicap division with her popular and extremely game half-length triumph over Bonny South in Saturday’s Grade 1 Personal Ensign, the question that begged to be asked trainer Fausto Gutierrez the following morning was whether there's a temptation to start thinking about potential Horse of the Year honors and to point his filly to the Breeders’ Cup Classic, rather than the Distaff, this fall at Del Mar.
Gutierrez wasted little time giving his answer.
DEL MAR, Calif. - Pappacap, the winner of the Grade 2 Best Pal Stakes on Aug. 7, will be part of a small field in the Grade 1 Del Mar Futurity on Sept. 6, closing day of the track’s summer meeting.
As of Sunday, a field of five was expected for the $300,000 Del Mar Futurity at seven furlongs, including Best Pal runner-up Finneus and the recent maiden-race winners American Xperiment, Murray and Pinehurst.
DEL MAR, Calif. - A year ago, Ginobili was a recently gelded 3-year-old mired in a lengthy losing streak.
This summer, Ginobili is a stakes winner with a looming start in the Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile at Del Mar on Nov. 6, courtesy of a sharp win in Saturday’s Grade 2 Pat O’Brien Stakes at seven furlongs.
Several factors have led to the improved form, according to trainer Richard Baltas. He cited an operation for an undisclosed ailment, a wintertime rest, and the addition of blinkers.
DEL MAR, Calif. - The purses of 11 non-Breeders’ Cup stakes will be higher than in past years at the 15-day Del Mar autumn meeting from Nov. 3-28, the track announced Sunday.
The Breeders’ Cup races will be held on Nov. 5-6, the second time the track has hosted the series. Del Mar conducted the Breeders’ Cup series in 2017.
There are 14 Breeders’ Cup races – five on Nov. 5, and nine on Nov. 6, ranging in value from $1 million to $6 million.
SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. - Having done virtually all he can in the 3-year-old division, Essential Quality will now be aimed at the $6 million Breeders’ Cup Classic, in which he will take on older horses for the first time and make his bid for Horse of the Year.
SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – After a 36-year riding career, Chris DeCarlo has retired from the saddle and taken a full-time position with the New York Racing Association.
DeCarlo will work in the racing office in the morning and will be a placing judge in the afternoon.
DeCarlo, 52, received his stewards’ accreditation last year. He needed to work 30 days at a track before he could begin seeking employment as a steward. He began working in the NYRA racing office at Aqueduct in February and planned to go back to riding in the spring.
SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – Jockeys Eric Cancel and Jose Lezcano were each slapped with three-day careless riding suspensions as the result of rides on Wednesday’s card.
Cancel was given his penalty for his ride on Saratoga Chrome in race 6, which resulted in the horse being disqualified from first and placed third.
Lezcano was sanctioned for his ride on Alba’s Star in Wednesday’s 10th race, which resulted in that mare being disqualified from second to fifth.
Cancel took his days Saturday, Sunday, and Wednesday.
SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – War Like Goddess, dominant winner of the Grade 2 Glens Falls here on Aug. 7, worked five furlongs in 1:02.09 Friday morning over the Oklahoma turf course in preparation for next Saturday’s Grade 1, $600,000 Flower Bowl Stakes at Saratoga.
Able to work inside the orange traffic cones, referred to as dogs, during a time for stakes horses to breeze, War Like Goddess went in splits of 13.30 seconds, 25.66, 38.19, and got her last quarter in 23.90 seconds. She galloped out in 1:14.84 and seven furlongs in 1:28.12.
SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – Knicks Go, winner of the Grade 1 Whitney here Aug. 7, returned to the work tab Friday morning, breezing a half-mile in 49.15 seconds over the Oklahoma training track.
Daily Racing Form clocker Donald Harris caught Knicks Go in splits of 12 and 36.20, and had him galloping out in 1:01.71.
“As good a move as I’ve ever seen from him,” trainer Brad Cox said. “He’s really doing well. He’s really bounced out of the Whitney in great shape.”
