Hall of Fame jockey Kent Desormeaux was removed from his final two mounts at Del Mar on Wednesday by track stewards after failing a Breathalyzer test midway through the program, steward Scott Chaney said on Thursday.
If Beholder had been a fighter she would have been Jake LaMotta, sometimes down but never out. She’s made more comebacks than Sinatra, had more second acts than Nixon. Just when you think you’ve seen the last of her, there she is again in the winner’s circle, mischievous and regal by turns, a fire-breathing Bambi on a mission.
After going back and forth between running and passing, trainer Steve Asmussen ultimately decided to run the champion Untapable in Sunday’s Grade 3, $200,000 Shuvee Handicap at Saratoga.
Mr. Big, a winning son of Dynaformer, will relocate to E.A. Ranches in Ramona, Calif., for the 2016 breeding season, where he will stand for a fee to be announced at a later date.
Following a $750,000 purse increase Wednesday, seven 3-year-olds signed up on Thursday to face Triple Crown winner American Pharoah in the Grade 1 Haskell Invitational at Monmouth Park.
Regardless of who eventually shows up in the starting gate for Saturday’s Grade 2, $600,000 Jim Dandy Stakes at Saratoga, Frosted and Texas Red are the two horses to beat in the 1 1/8-mile race, which serves as a prep for the $1.25 million Travers on Aug. 29.
After winning the two-mile Belmont Gold Cup in his last start, Saturday’s 1 3/8-mile Bowling Green should seem more like a sprint for Innovation Economy, who’ll be among the major players in a field of nine older horses in the Grade 2 turf fixture at Saratoga.
Three starts into his summer 2015 form cycle, Sweet Luca returns to Arlington looking for repeat in the $50,000 Addison Cammack Stakes, but faces a prevailing Polytrack bias that would work against his running style.
City of Weston will be returning to one of his preferred distances Saturday, when he takes on fellow Grade 3 winner Falling Sky in the $75,000 Trinniberg at Gulfstream Park. The race named for the champion sprinter of 2012 will be run over seven furlongs.
The Grade 2 West Virginia Derby is wide open, as are many of the races at Mountaineer Racetrack on Saturday.
