HOT SPRINGS, Ark. – Jackie’s Warrior established himself as an elite member of his division last year and on Saturday he’ll be looking to pick up where he left off when he launches his 3-year-old season against champion Essential Quality in the Grade 3, $750,000 Southwest Stakes at Oaklawn Park.
“He’s an awfully nice horse that we’re very fortunate to get the chance to run,” said Steve Asmussen, who trains Jackie’s Warrior.
Santa Anita is planning a mandatory payout of the 20-cent Rainbow pick six on March 6, a program that includes four graded stakes, track officials said Wednesday.
The Rainbow pick six has a carryover of $424,910 for Friday’s program.
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Hall of Fame jockey Victor Espinoza has had a quiet start to 2021. Through Sunday, Espinoza had won with 2 of 16 mounts, and took an opportunity earlier this month for a vacation to Del Mar.
“I was just resting, hanging on the beach at Del Mar,” Espinoza said. “I needed a little break.
“I was recharging my energy. Sometimes we need that.”
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Drayden Van Dyke, the leading rider at the two meetings at Del Mar in 2018 and a mainstay in Southern California since the beginning of his career in 2013, is moving to Kentucky this spring.
Retired Hall of Fame jockey Gary Stevens, who recently began representing Van Dyke, said Van Dyke will ride at Santa Anita through March and ride the spring meeting at Keeneland, which runs from April 2-23, and the spring-summer meeting at Churchill Downs, which goes from April 24 to June 26.
Idol, second and third in Grade 2 stakes at Santa Anita in recent months, will be ridden by Joel Rosario for the first time in the Grade 1 Santa Anita Handicap on March 6.
Trainer Richard Baltas confirmed the change Wednesday.
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“We’re happy to get him on the horse,” Baltas said. “In the big races, the big jockeys show up.”
HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. – Before saddling Prime Factor for the Fountain of Youth, trainer Todd Pletcher will have a busy Saturday with some of his other stakes runners.
One of his top hopes is Fearless in the Grade 2 Gulfstream Park Mile, which Pletcher has won a record five times. Fearless, last seen finishing sixth behind Tom’s d’Etat in the Stephen Foster last summer at Churchill Downs, will be returning from an eight-month layoff when he faces the heavily favored Performer.
Lucky Stride “looked good” after her victory in last Saturday’s Nellie Morse at Laurel Park, according to trainer Michael Trombetta, and will probably head to New York.
“Nothing’s stamped in stone, but I think she’s been included in the invitations for the Heavenly Prize,” he said. “But that’s [only] two weeks and it’s probably too soon. The one that comes back on April 10, the Top Flight Invitational, might be a much better option.”
Trombetta credited the mare’s toughness as one of her best attributes.
Street Lute emerged from her Wide Country victory at Laurel Park in “great” shape, according to trainer John Robb, and might be headed out of town.
“There’s really nothing else here,” said Robb. “That’s why I stayed because they had this string of races that I didn’t want to miss. But now I’m going to have to think of either stretching her out or going somewhere else. There’s nothing else here until August.”
Less than 24 hours after Justin Nixon saddled Edward Seltzer and Beverly Anderson’s homebred Hibiscus Punch to upset last Saturday’s Grade 3 Runhappy Barbara Fritchie Stakes at Laurel Park, he grabbed the opening race at Laurel with the Seltzer-owned Lucre.
This has been a consistent theme. Going into Thursday, Nixon had prevailed with his last three starters and is clipping along at an 8-for-15 rate since Nov. 15.
