Comma to the Top, a three-time stakes winner this year, has been sidelined with a sore foot that will prevent him from starting in the Breeders’ Cup Sprint at Santa Anita in November, trainer Peter Miller said.
Trainer Doug O’Neill reversed a poor start to the Del Mar meeting with three wins on Wednesday’s eight-race program. Two of the wins were with 2-year-old fillies who could start in lucrative stakes in the final days of the meeting.
Capped by the $500,000 Fourstardave at Saratoga, featuring reigning Horse of the Year Wise Dan, the most prestigious races across the country Saturday are mostly on turf, with the Grade 2 La Jolla at Del Mar being another example.
There is a temptation to worry over Wise Dan’s 129-pound package in the Fourstardave, a weight last carried in a major U.S. handicap by Zenyatta in the 2010 Vanity. But since about 114 of those 129 pounds belong to John Velazquez, and Velazquez rides Wise Dan with a breezy confidence not seen since Bill Shoemaker scaled Swaps, the opposition might need to look elsewhere for a ray of hope.
Matt Rose's analysis of the Saturday 8/10 card at Yonkers Raceway.
Jeremey Day's analysis of the Saturday 8/10 card at Balmoral Park.
Summer of Fun has run too well to still be seeking her first stakes victory midway through her 3-year-old campaign, a situation trainer George Weaver hopes to rectify when he sends his multiple graded stakes-placed filly out against a talented and well-matched lineup in Saturday’s $100,000 Auntie Mame Stakes at Saratoga.
Greg Gangle's analysis of the Saturday 8/10 card at Mohawk Racetrack.
Proceeds from the auction benefit CANTER’s program to care for, evaluate, and retrain donated former racehorses as they prepare for new careers off the racetrack.
When Wise Dan runs in Saturday’s Grade 2, $500,000 Fourstardave Handicap at Saratoga, he comes in as the reigning Horse of the Year, riding a seven-race winning streak that began with his five-length win in this race last year, and at 129 pounds will be spotting his six rivals from 11 to 14 pounds.
