Jeremey Day's analysis of the Wednesday 5/6 card at Northfield Park.
E L Love, hailing from a family of stakes-winners that includes full-brother Appomattox and half-brother E L Titan, improved to 4-for-4 in her career by winning a $35,750 division of Saturday’s Lady Suffolk for 3-year-old female trotters by 2-3/4 lengths over favorite Riley’s Dream in 1:58 at Freehold Raceway.
Tonalist, a convincing winner of the Grade 3 Westchester Stakes on Saturday at Belmont Park, and Honor Code, a disappointing fifth in the Grade 2 Alysheba Stakes on Friday at Churchill Downs, are both being pointed to the Grade 1, $1.25 million Metropolitan Handicap on Belmont Stakes Day, their connections said Monday.
Jockey Sheldon Russell, injured in a spill on the Pimlico turf course on April 25, was released from Sinai Hospital on Monday and is resting at home.
Palace Malice, last year’s Met Mile winner who was scratched from Saturday’s Westchester due to a foot issue, was back on the track Monday morning at Belmont Park and could have a workout Tuesday morning, trainer Todd Pletcher said.
El Kabeir, the three-time graded stakes winner who was scratched from Saturday’s Kentucky Derby due to a foot issue, will be freshened and pointed to a summer campaign, trainer John Terranova said Monday.
Trainer Mark Casse plans to invade New York full throttle later this summer. Perhaps he’ll get a line on how things will go when he brings horses to Belmont Park for two of Saturday’s four graded stakes.
Keeneland Racecourse has asked the state racing commission for permission to transfer its year-round simulcasting operations to the Red Mile harness track near downtown Lexington.
Just as in the Kentucky Derby, it looks like trainers Bob Baffert and Todd Pletcher will determine the complexion of the Preakness Stakes, though unlike the Derby, the Preakness is shaping up as having a field perhaps half the size of the Derby.