Trainer Todd Pletcher reported that Shanghai Bobby is sitting on ready for his first start of the year, scheduled to come in the Grade 3 Holy Bull a week from Saturday, after watching him work at Palm Meadows on Sunday.
Many who witnessed the 3-year-old debut of John Oxley’s Sky Mesa colt Dynamic Sky in Saturday’s $100,000 Pasco Stakes at Tampa Bay Downs came away with the feeling they may well have seen a horse with true Triple Crown potential.
The favored Zeewat overcame a poor start to win Saturday's $100,000 California Derby at Golden Gate Fields.
Dynamic Sky overcame some traffic problems in the stretch of the $100,000 Pasco Stakes for 3-year-olds to rally past his entrymate Sky Commander and stamp himself as one of the early favorites for the Grade 3 Sam Davis and Grade 2 Tampa Bay Derby with a most impressive victory.
Unlikely to find an allowance race, trainer Rick Violette will likely have to run recent maiden winner Clawback in a stakes at Aqueduct for his next start.
The field for the Grade 3 Holy Bull on Jan. 26 at Gulfstream Park gained another player Friday after Tulira Castle worked a strong six furlongs in 1:14.18 for trainer Jim DiVito.
Countdown to the Crown, one of the most comprehensive handicapper’s scouting reports of the 3-year-old scene, is posted each Friday at DRF.com from Jan. 4 through the Belmont Stakes.
Stakes winners Tour Guide and Avie’s Quality are among nine 3-year-olds under consideration for the Lecomte, the first two-turn stakes prep for the Louisiana Derby.
Trainer Chad Brown said it is unlikely his top Kentucky Derby prospect Normandy Invasion will run here this winter. Normandy Invasion was beaten a nose by Overanalyze in the Grade 2 Remsen to conclude a 2-year-old campaign that also included a 9 1/4-length maiden win. A son of Tapit, Normandy Invasion is owned by Rick Porter’s Fox Hill Farms.
Goldencents, the winner of the Grade 3 Sham Stakes on Jan. 5, is likely to make his next start in the $300,000 San Felipe Stakes over 1 1/16 miles on March 9, trainer Doug O’Neill said on Thursday.
