There are plenty of juicy spots for 3-year-old males who don't rank among the leaders of their division, and one such race is Saturday's $600,000 West Virginia Derby at Mountaineer Race Track.
The rich pot has lured seven shippers, plus two local horses, to Mountaineer, which is in the small town of Chester, W. Va., for the 30th running of the Grade 3 West Virginia Derby.
Wiseman's Ferry is the likely favorite of the 1 1/8-mile race.
DEL MAR, Calif. - Reacting to strong business through the first two weeks of the meeting, Del Mar has raised overnight purses 5 percent, retroactive to the start of the meeting on July 24.
Strong ontrack business and the first year of advance deposit wagering, which allows betting through the telephone and internet, led to the purse increase.
Craig Fravel, Del Mar's executive vice-president, said the presence of seven days of racing after Labor Day prevented the track from going with a higher purse increase.
OCEANPORT, N.J. - The Meadowlands' 63-day meeting, which begins Sept. 2, will be highlighted by the Grade 2, $400,000 Meadowlands Cup on Oct. 4. A total of $1.5 million in purses will be offered over eight stakes races.
The Meadowlands meeting runs through Nov. 23. In a change from last year, The Meadowlands will race during the day Tuesdays, with first post 1:10 p.m. There also will be racing during the day on five Mondays (Sept. 2, Oct. 14, Nov. 4, Nov. 11, and Nov. 18) and on Thursday, Sept. 5. Post time is 7:30 p.m. on Wednesdays through Saturdays.
OCEANPORT, N.J. - With a return trip to the Breeders' Cup Classic in the plans, Grade 1 winner Include will return to the races after a 2 1/2-month layoff next Sunday in the Grade 2, $350,000 Iselin Handicap at Monmouth, trainer Bud Delp said Thursday.
ARLINGTON HEIGHTS, Ill. - Falcon Flight breezed to the satisfaction of trainer Donald Burke on Thursday at Del Mar and will be pre-entered Friday in the Arlington Million. Falcon Flight's inclusion brings the number of likely Million pre-entries to 13.
In his last start, Falcon Flight returned from a 10-month layoff and won the Arlington Handicap, only the second win of Burke's training career. The other came here last summer when Falcon Flight won the Stars and Stripes Handicap.
MIAMI - Calder's annual rite of summer, the $1.2 million Florida Stallion Series, starts on Saturday with the opening legs of the six-race series, the $75,000 Dr. Fager and Desert Vixen stakes. Both races will be decided at six furlongs.
The Dr. Fager drew a field of 10, led by the undefeated Trust N Luck who has won both his previous starts including an entry-level allowance race by three widening lengths.
A change in pace tactics could help Taylor's Queen turn the tables on Highhopesemilyluck, who has won her last four, in the $40,000 Dixie Miss Stakes at Louisiana Downs in Bossier City, La.
The field for the six-furlong race for 3-year-old fillies is completed by Dancing Dreams, Cielo Girl, Ante Nettie, and Excavatress.
Taylor's Queen dueled through fast fractions last out in the $40,000 Fantasia on July 7, only to be overtaken in the late stages by Highhopesemilyluck, who put in a powerful stretch bid.
NORTH RANDALL, Ohio - Dinkers Millennium cuts back to a sprint as he attempts to post back-to-back stakes victories in the $40,000 North Randall Stakes at Thistledown. A field of 11 has been entered in the six-furlong race for Ohio-bred 3-year-olds.
Dinkers Millennium, owned and bred by Robert Dinkleman, has displayed vast improvement over his 2-year-old form for trainer Joe Shuman. He has won 3 of his 4 starts this year, including the Horizon Stakes over the turf at River Downs last time out. Prior to that he was third in the nine-furlong Cleveland Gold Cup.