HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. - Even without the winners of the three major sprint stakes already run at this meet, Saturday's Grade 2, $200,000 Richter Scale Breeders' Cup Sprint Championship came up an intriguing race.
Cajun Beat, winner of the Mr. Prospector on opening day; Shake You Down, the Sunshine Millions Sprint champion; and Alke, who upset Cajun Beat in the Deputy Minister, are headed elsewhere, but the Richter Scale still features Grade 1 winners Valid Video and Gygistar.
NEW ORLEANS - Why decry the short field in Saturday's Fair Grounds Oaks? In this case, six is enough.
The $300,000 Oaks marks the 2004 debut of , the two-three finishers in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies last October. And it is a mark of the race's quality that these two have no decided edge on the others.
Also entered are Shadow Cast and Quick Temper, one-two in the Grade 2 Silverbulletday Stakes here Feb. 14; Bending Strings, perhaps the top 3-year-old filly in northern California; and Steady Course, a Fair Grounds-based rising star in the division.
As spring nears and the temperature rises, many horses wintering in the South return to Kentucky and the quality of racing at Turfway Park rises.
That trend is apparent in Saturday's $50,000 Wintergreen Stakes, in which three of the 11 fillies and mares come off recent starts at either Fair Grounds or Gulfstream Park.
Playa Maya is one such runner.
A winner of two of four starts, she comes off a fast 4 1/2-length allowance triumph at Fair Grounds Jan. 23. Although that victory came on turf, she acts and runs like a better dirt horse, trainer David Carroll said.
OLDSMAR, Fla. - Burning Roma, fresh from a sparkling winning effort on the turf in the Tampa Bay Breeders' Cup, returns to the main track for Saturday's $65,000 Budweiser Challenger Stakes. The race pits two winners of the Tampa Bay Derby - Burning Roma and Region of Merit.
HOT SPRINGS, Ark. - All Electric has a good chance to turn the tables on Turn to Lass when she gets more distance, and possibly a fast track, in Saturday's $75,000 Honeybee Stakes at Oaklawn Park.
The 1 1/16-mile race for 3-year-old fillies is a stepping-stone to the Grade 2, $200,000 Fantasy on April 9.
All Electric finished second, three-quarters of a length behind Turn to Lass in the $50,000 Martha Washington on Feb. 16. The two fillies contested the pace on a wet track in the one-mile race, and in the stretch, All Electric was coming back on against Turn to Lass.
ALBANY, Calif. - The connections of the three 3-year-old fillies who will face House of Fortune in Saturday's $75,000-added California Oaks will have to cross their fingers and hope for the best. Because on paper, House of Fortune would win the 1 1/16-mile race every time.
A Cal-bred multiple stakes winner, House of Fortune has recorded five Beyers higher than any of her rivals. She's working well and comes off her highest-rated race.
Sling Shot last raced in a restricted stakes, but still looks like the choice against open company Saturday night in the $30,000 Texas Heritage for 3-year-olds at Sam Houston Race Park.
The one-mile race drew a competitive field of 12, including Goosey Moose, who has been working sharply; Foxtrot Oscar, who makes his two-turn debut following a runner-up finish in the $30,000 Bucharest; and the promising Hawkish.
GRAND ISLAND, Neb. - Leading trainer David Anderson sends out a a powerful three-pronged attack of Real Intrusion, Sandpit Dancer, and Sundayblummer for the $25,000-added Orphan Kist Handicap for Nebraska-bred fillies and mares.
Real Intrusion won this race a year ago while Sandpit Dancer captured the six-furlong Orphan Kist in 2002. Sundayblummer was a multiple stakes winner last year as a 3-year-old. The trio will race uncoupled in the wagering.
PHOENIX - Very Vegas and Cokes Melody have been the two best 3-year-old fillies at Turf Paradise. But Saturday's $40,000 Cactus Cup Handicap will give others a chance to play while the cats are away. The 6 1/2-furlong event, which has lured a field of seven, may give Fun'ngames Toknite a chance to take the spotlight. But it isn't going to be easy.