Smarty Jones is likely to run again, but trainer John Servis on Tuesday conceded there's a possibility the winner of the Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes may not.

Smarty Jones on Monday was declared out of the Sept. 6 Pennsylvania Derby because of a bruise to his left front hoof. Servis, in a national teleconference on Tuesday, detailed the extent of the injury, and said Smarty Jones was still being pointed for the Breeders' Cup Classic on Oct. 30 at Lone Star Park, but said the calendar and the hovering presence of stud duty were factors to be weighed.

A Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association board member, Dell Hancock, updated the Kentucky Horse Racing Authority on Monday about the planned "supertesting" protocol for American graded stakes. The protocol, which would create standardized increased drug testing on graded stakes, had been set to begin July 1 but was delayed because not all jurisdictions were ready to implement the testing regimen. Hancock said the American Graded Stakes Committee would meet in mid-August to set a new start date. The state racing authority voted to consider the protocol at its Aug. 16 meeting.

The Kentucky Horse Racing Authority does not appear much closer to hiring an executive director.

Bowman's Band, a multiple stakes winner with earnings of more than $1.1 million, will be retired at the end of the 2004 racing season and stand at the Maryland Stallion Station's new facility, scheduled to open in December. The stud fee has yet to be determined. . . . Seven-year-old Exciting Story, Canada's champion 2-year-old in 1999 and most recently a stallion at Lane's End Texas, was euthanized earlier this month as the result of a "degenerating joint condition," the farm announced Monday. . . .

DEL MAR, Calif. - A dispute over whether Santa Anita will conclude its upcoming winter-spring meeting on April 17 or 24, 2005, was not resolved at Friday's dates committee meeting of the California Horse Racing Board but is expected to be addressed by the full board next month.

The dates committee will report its recommendations in August to the full board, which will finalize the racing dates for 2005.

The Idaho Racing Commission has ordered an audit of Lariat Productions, the leaseholder of Les Bois Park, according to a report in the Idaho Statesman. The commission's interest was said to center on money owed to the track's horsemen's fund and other racetracks whose signals Les Bois carries.

Another owner joins the cry over sale ethics

Thoroughbred owners, both current and prospective, should be applauding the recent efforts of Satish Sanan as he calls attention to the issue of ethics (or lack thereof) in the Thoroughbred sales industry. Owners need to be assured about the physical soundness of the horses they may be purchasing. Moreover, they need to be confident that the process of acquiring a Thoroughbred racing prospect is devoid of price-fixing, back-room payments, and outright larceny.

AUBURN, Wash. - Ross McLeod is new to owning horses, but he certainly seems to be going about it in the right way.

McLeod is the chief executive officer of Great Canadian Gaming Corp., the parent company of Hastings racetrack in Vancouver, and he understands good business principles. When he decided to begin buying quality horses to race in the Northwest, McLeod hired top trainer Steve Bryant, gave him an adequate budget, and turned him loose.

DEL MAR, Calif. - A proposed rule change that would significantly increase the weight that horses carry in California Thoroughbred races was debated before the California Horse Racing Board on Thursday. The changes are intended to address longstanding health concerns among jockeys, who ride at far below their natural weight.

Officials from the Jockeys' Guild are asking for passage of the change next month. But racing officials who spoke at the meeting asked for a delay in order to discuss with officials from other states implementing the rule nationwide.

Patricia Cooksey, the second-leading female rider of all time, was voted the winner of the Mike Venezia Memorial Award, the New York Racing Association announced Thursday.

The Venezia Award, named in honor of the jockey who was killed in a spill at Belmont Park in 1988, honors riders "who exemplify extraordinary sportsmanship and citizenship." The award is voted on by fans, turf writers, and jockeys.