Fri, 01/22/2021 - 16:42

Saturday late pick five to start with $114,000 carryover

OZONE PARK, N.Y. - There will be a carryover of $114,873 in Saturday’s late pick five at Aqueduct.

The carryover was triggered when longshot My Amanjena ($34.60) upset Friday’s final race in the sequence. Other winners in Friday’s late pick five were Buyer’s Remorse ($9.90), Mr Phil ($27.20), Imperio D ($5.60), and Poncho Song ($24.20).

:: Want to get your Past Performances for free? Click to learn more.

Fri, 01/22/2021 - 15:50

Diodoro gearing up for title defense

Coady Photo

HOT SPRINGS, Ark. – Trainer Robertino Diodoro, who won his first Oaklawn title in 2020, is settled in for the new meet, which started Friday. He knows it will be a battle to defend his title in Hot Springs.

“It’s not going to be easy,” he said. “If I said it wasn’t on my mind or my team’s mind, I’d be lying. We’re all competitive. Again, it’s not going to be easy, but we’re going to try our best to have a good, solid meet. I think we’re light in a couple of spots, but at the same time we’re solid.”

Fri, 01/22/2021 - 15:36

Edgeway might return to site of fast debut win

Coady Photography
Edgeway, trained by John Sadler, earned a 94 Beyer in her debut win last February at Oaklawn.

HOT SPRINGS, Ark. – Edgeway, who was arguably the most impressive debut winner of the Oaklawn meet in 2020, could make an appearance at Oaklawn this season, said John Sadler, the Southern California-based trainer who has a division at Oaklawn.

Edgeway popped a Beyer Speed Figure of 94 when she won a maiden special weight sprint for 3-year-old fillies last February at Oaklawn. The daughter of Competitive Edge rolled by five lengths while covering six furlongs in 1:09.

Fri, 01/22/2021 - 15:20

Talamo tests positive for COVID-19

Barbara D. Livingston
Joe Talamo probably won't ride again until Feb. 5.

HOT SPRINGS, Ark. – Jockey Joe Talamo tested positive for COVID-19 on Friday morning, according to his agent, Jake Romans. Talamo was off his mounts for the opening-day card and likely won’t ride until Feb. 5, Romans said.

Romans said that Talamo has no symptoms and is feeling fine.

:: Start earning weekly cashback on your wagering today. Click to learn more.

Fri, 01/22/2021 - 15:16

New York Racing Association to race 202 days this year

OZONE PARK, N.Y. – The New York Racing Association has 202 racing dates scheduled for 2021 based on the schedule for the remaining meets it released on Friday.

Following 58 days of racing at Aqueduct from Jan. 1 through April 18, racing moves to Belmont Park on April 22 for a 48-day spring/summer meeting that runs to July 11. The 40-day Saratoga meet opens July 15 and runs through Sept. 6.

Fri, 01/22/2021 - 15:10

Pete's Play Call all set for Toboggan Stakes

Chelsea Durand/NYRA
Pete's Play Call paid $10.20 with the victory in the Gravesend at Aqueduct on Saturday.

OZONE PARK, N.Y. – Pete’s Play Call, the Gravesend Stakes winner, worked five furlongs in 1:01.58 over the Belmont Park training track Friday for an expected start in the Grade 3, $150,000 Toboggan Stakes next Saturday at Aqueduct.

“He went very, very good,” trainer Rudy Rodriguez said. “That’s what I was looking for – a nice, solid breeze. Now we just have to hope he comes back good, but he did what we expected him to do.”

:: Want to get your Past Performances for free? Click to learn more.

Fri, 01/22/2021 - 15:06

Capo Kane works for Withers Stakes

Janet Garaguso/NYRA
Capo Kane wins the Jerome on Jan. 1. He'll stretch out a furlong in the Withers on Feb. 6.

OZONE PARK, N.Y. – Capo Kane, the Jerome Stakes winner, returned to the work tab Wednesday at Parx, breezing five furlongs in 1:01.96 in preparation for an expected start in the Grade 3, $250,000 Withers Stakes at Aqueduct on Feb. 6.

The work was the fastest of seven moves at the distance that day.

:: Click to learn about our DRF's Free Past Performance program.

Trainer Harold Wyner said Capo Kane worked by himself and “came out of the work very well.”

Fri, 01/22/2021 - 14:06

Richard Rosales balances training horses and teaching fourth graders

Emily Shields
Tromador, shown in a photo from last January, gave trainer Richard Rosales his first win of the Santa Anita meet on Monday.

A typical day for Southern California trainer Richard Rosales has two beginnings.

In the 3 o’clock hour – that’s a.m. – Rosales and his wife, Elena, head to Los Alamitos to care for their small stable. By 8 a.m., Rosales is back home. Class is nearly in session.

For the next six hours, Rosales teaches 26 fourth-graders in the Los Angeles Unified School District. For nearly a year, the class has assembled via the internet because of the pandemic. Normally, Rosales would be in a classroom in Gardena, Calif.

Fri, 01/22/2021 - 14:06

With rain in forecast, Robert Lewis Stakes hopefuls work Friday

Benoit Photo
Spielberg (outside) wins the Los Alamitos Futurity. He will begin his 3-year-old season next Saturday in the Robert Lewis Stakes.

With significant rain in the forecast for the weekend, a number of horses with designs on major races next weekend got in drills on Friday morning at Santa Anita, included Spielberg, the Grade 2 Los Alamitos Futurity winner, who is scheduled to compete in the Grade 3, $100,000 Robert Lewis Stakes on Saturday, Jan. 30.

Spielberg worked five furlongs in company with Medina Spirit, with both receiving times of 1:01.20.

Fri, 01/22/2021 - 14:00

Idol looking for first stakes win in San Pasqual

Coady Photography
Idol wins a Nov. 8 allowance race at Churchill Downs for trainer Richard Baltas. A good run in the San Pasqual could send him to the Santa Anita Handicap.

Idol finished his 3-year-old season on Dec. 26 with a second-place finish by a half-length in his stakes debut in the Grade 2 San Antonio Stakes at 1 1/16 miles at Santa Anita.

The race served as the start of a winter campaign that could lead to a stakes win as quickly as next Saturday.

Idol is scheduled to start in the Grade 2 San Pasqual Stakes at 1 1/8 miles at Santa Anita on Jan. 30, a $200,000 race that is a key prep for the Grade 1 Santa Anita Handicap at 1 1/4 miles on March 6.

“I want to run him a mile and a quarter anyway,” trainer Richard Baltas said.