ELMONT, N.Y. - When Burning Roma won the Leonard Richards at Delaware Park two weeks ago, it didn't come as a surprise to most horseplayers. After all, Burning Roma had finished a rallying fourth to be beaten just two lengths in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile, and he had already won three other stakes races this year, thanks to shrewd, realistic placement by his connections.

INGLEWOOD, Calif. - Some bettors believe Lazy Slusan is a cinch in the Vanity Handicap on Saturday at Hollywood Park. They may be right.

Lazy Slusan's form suggests something unforeseen must occur for her to lose. She already has won the Grade 1 Santa Margarita and Grade 1 Milady this spring, and had a valid excuse for her only recent defeat. From post 10 in the Grade 1 Apple Blossom Handicap at Oaklawn Park, she raced wide throughout and lost by only five lengths. It was a winning effort, and winning is now Lazy Slusan's habit.

COLUMBIA, MD. - It's one of the oldest adages in racing: You can beat a race, but you can't beat the races. This is the counsel of patience, selectivity, and restraint. And it's certainly true that, if you want to be a long-term winner, you have to pass most races.

Take the second race at Belmont on June 22, for example. It looked like the very definition of an inscrutable, must-pass race. At least on the surface. Here are the recent Beyers for this $17,500 claimer at 1 1/16 miles:

* Distinctive Bid: 77-74-79-77-75-78-76-77

* Senor Gran: 79-78-77-73-76

LAS VEGAS - Like mother, like daughter. Ten years ago, Dance Smartly beat males in the Queen's Plate, Canada's most prestigious race for 3-year-olds, and last Sunday, her daughter Dancethruthedawn also defeated males to capture the Queen's Plate. Dancethruthedawn's victory is just the latest score for a female family that has meant as much to Canada as Grey Flight, Courtly Dee, Fall Aspen, Weekend Surprise, and other legendary broodmares have meant to the Unites States.

NEW YORK - Pace makes the race, except on turf.

Any horse sitting off the lead after a quarter in 25.95 seconds and a half in 49.78 would be toast in just about every race on dirt. But on turf, early fractions don't seem to matter anymore, and the latest example was provided by Astra in Sunday's Beverly Hills Handicap at Hollywood Park.

PHOENIX - If you would have said a week and a half ago that Tiger Woods would not win the U.S. Open, surely everyone would assume someone like David Duval, Phil Mickelson, or Sergio Garcia would have won.

Obviously, this year the tournament showed why you can't always go by what's on paper.

Most handicappers will feel confident that either Astra or Happyanunoit will be victorious in Sunday's Grade 1 Beverly Hills Handicap at Hollywood Park. On paper, these two seem to have every edge in the 1 1/4-mile turf event.

Fillies and mares take center stage this weekend with the biggest races from the East, West, and Midwest all featuring the distaff division.

The weekend's two Grade 1 events, the Hempstead Handicap at Belmont on the dirt, and the Beverly Hills Handicap at Hollywood on turf, could have roles in determining the top horses in both the female dirt and turf divisions. However, both races are rather difficult to bet, leaving the Grade 3 Locust Grove at Churchill Downs as this week's prime wagering opportunity for stakes race players.

ELMONT, N.Y. ? Under different circumstances, Beautiful Pleasure probably would have been retired at the end of her 5-year-old season. After all, she clinched an Eclipse Award by winning the 1999 Breeders' Cup Distaff at age 4, and last year won or placed in four Grade 1 stakes, along with a triumph in the Grade 2 Shuvee Handicap.

Beautiful Pleasure certainly has nothing left to prove. But she returns on Saturday, and will be looking to go back to back in the Hempstead Handicap for two reasons:

LEXINGTON, KY. - Many of the nation's best riders will compete in the All-Star Jockey Championship, a four-race riding competition, Friday night at Lone Star Park,.

There will be Eclipse Award-winning riders present, as well as Hall of Famers. There will be talented newcomers and sharp veterans who defy their age.

Despite their many differences, they share one thing in common: a history of winning. The 12 riders competing Friday - from Tyler Baze to Laffit Pincay Jr. - have combined to win more than 49,000 races and $1.2 billion in purses.

PHILADELPHIA - That the Churchill Downs surface on Kentucky Derby Day was cement-like is not news. What has happened to the horses who won that day should be no great shock either.

The evidence is overwhelming that just about every horse who really tried on that unforgiving surface paid for it.

Let's start with Love at Noon. She won the first race on Derby Day, running 6 1/2 furlongs in 1:14.43, easily breaking Bet on Sunshine's track record. She earned a 107 Beyer.