LEXINGTON, Ky. – Proxy may or may not already have enough qualifying points to make the 20-horse cutoff for the May 1 Kentucky Derby, but forget that for a moment. A more immediate concern for trainer Mike Stidham is seeing whether the colt is good enough to win a Grade 3 race such as the $200,000 Lexington Stakes on Saturday at Keeneland.

“I can’t answer any questions about the Derby until we see how he runs in this spot,” Stidham said.

Jaxon Traveler, the 2020 champion Maryland-bred juvenile colt, emerged from his runner-up effort in the Gazebo Stakes at Oaklawn in good order and will point to the Bachelor on April 24 at Oaklawn followed by a run in the Grade 3 Chick Lang at Pimlico on Preakness Saturday.

Never headed in three starts at 2, Jaxon Traveler sat off a horse for the first time in the Gazebo. Although beaten by a head, his connections were pleased.

HOT SPRINGS, Ark. – Sol Kumin is a winner even when he gets beat. At least that’s been the case with his stable’s top two sprinters. Kumin and three of his partners are co-owners of both champion Whitmore and C Z Rocket, who will meet for the third time Saturday in the Grade 3, $500,000 Count Fleet Sprint Handicap at Oaklawn.

“We’re going to try to do the exacta one more time,” Kumin said.

Whitmore won the Breeders’ Cup Sprint over C Z Rocket in November and one start later C Z Rocket flipped the script and won the Hot Springs Stakes over Whitmore in March at Oaklawn.

LEXINGTON, Ky. – Keeneland plans to build six new barns at its Thoroughbred Center, a 245-acre year-round training facility just north of Lexington, in a reflection of the growing demand for long-term stabling in the state.

The six new barns will be constructed on the site of two existing concrete barns, which will be demolished, Keeneland said. The track said that the new barns will be “state-of-the-art,” and that the company also plans to make “improvements” to the center’s walking rings and its existing muck disposal and drainage areas.

Greatest Honour, one of the top contenders for the Kentucky Derby, is out of the race and will get 60 days off, trainer Shug McGaughey said Wednesday from Florida.

McGaughey said he wasn't satisfied with Greatest Honour exiting the Florida Derby and had him examined "the other day" in Kentucky by noted equine veterinarian Dr. Larry Bramlage. The decision was made to give him 60 days off, with the first 30 days turned out at the farm, where Greatest Honour is now.

HOT SPRINGS, Ark. - Get Her Number is the wild card in the Grade 1, $1 million Arkansas Derby on Saturday at Oaklawn Park - the kind of horse who could step up and run a big race in the year’s final major prep for the Kentucky Derby.  

The Arkansas Derby drew six horses Tuesday led by the undefeated Concert Tour. The mile and an eighth race anchors a 13-race program and will be supported by the Count Fleet Sprint Handicap, Oaklawn Mile, and Carousel Stakes.

Parx Racing outside of Philadelphia will run six graded stakes this year on its Sept. 25 card, including its two Grade 1 races, the $1 million Pennsylvania Derby and $1 million Cotillion Stakes, the track announced on Tuesday.

The blockbuster card will also include a listed stakes and two $100,000 stakes restricted to Pennsylvania-bred horses, the track said, making for a total of nine stakes on a card scheduled six weeks prior to the Breeders’ Cup. A number of the Sept. 25 races have served as prep races for Breeders’ Cup events in the past.

Kentucky Downs will have three $1 million races for the first time in its 31-year history when the turf-only track in south-central Kentucky runs its 2021 meet in September.

The Grade 3 Turf Sprint and Grade 3 WinStar Mint Million join the track’s longtime signature event, the Grade 2 Calumet Turf Cup, as seven-figure races. They’ll all be part of a 16-race, $10 million stakes schedule at a six-day meet that runs Sept. 5-12.

Sam Houston Race Park in Houston experienced a 28 percent increase in average daily handle on its races during the 43-date meet that closed Saturday night, the track announced Tuesday.

HOT SPRINGS, Ark. – Champion Monomoy Girl remains on target for the Grade 1, $1 million Apple Blossom Handicap on April 17 at Oaklawn Park following a Saturday workout at Fair Grounds, trainer Brad Cox said.

Cox said Monomoy Girl worked five-eighths in 59.40 seconds and galloped out six furlongs in 1:12.40. The work was not published as the Fair Grounds meet ended March 28.

Cox said Monomoy Girl arrived at Oaklawn on Sunday night and galloped at the track both Monday and Tuesday. She is scheduled to work Saturday at Oaklawn.