Stellar Wind, the dominant 3-year-old filly in Southern California, worked six furlongs in 1:12.80 at Santa Anita on Friday in advance of the $1 million Kentucky Oaks at Churchill Downs on May 1.
Shared Belief, who was pulled up in the $1.5 million Charles Town Classic in West Virginia on April 18 and later found with a hip injury, has been returned to trainer Jerry Hollendorfer’s stable at Golden Gate Fields for a brief rest.
Sunday, Social Inclusion returns to Gulfstream Park – the site of his best performance – for an optional $62,500 claiming race at a mile which serves as his first out since July.
At a glance of recent races, Moulin de Mougin would seem difficult to endorse for Sunday’s $100,000 Wilshire Stakes at a mile on turf at Santa Anita.
Taking a stand in the Grade 3 Excelsior (race 8) in the pick four may give you a chance to spread in the other legs and find a price.
Puntrooskie will look to bring his encouraging south Florida form north of the border when he takes on nine rivals in Sunday’s $125,000 Jacques Cartier Stakes at Woodbine.
A little more than a week before Bolo’s scheduled start in the $2 million Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs on May 2, jockey Rafael Bejarano had a chance to exercise his mount for the first time. What he discovered was a colt with sharp acceleration who can be patient.
With rain in the forecast for early Saturday morning here at Churchill Downs, trainer Todd Pletcher worked four of his five prospects for the Kentucky Derby on Friday morning, and the performances in those workouts convinced Pletcher that Madefromlucky should indeed bypass the race, opening a spot for Keen Ice.
The Aqueduct spring meet concludes Sunday with three stakes for 3-year-olds, each to be contested at 6 1/2 furlongs for a $100,000 purse.
Bigger fields and better horses, two things all bettors crave, should be noticeable when ThistleDown launches its 91st season Monday.
