Oaklawn: Atigun to shoot for Southwest
Atigun, winner of a first-level allowance in his 3-year-old debut, will be pointed to the Grade 3, $250,000 Southwest Stakes at Oaklawn Park on Feb. 20.
Mary RampelliniFeb 10, 2012
Atigun, winner of a first-level allowance in his 3-year-old debut, will be pointed to the Grade 3, $250,000 Southwest Stakes at Oaklawn Park on Feb. 20.
Princess Arabella is one of trainer Bob Baffert’s leading 3-year-old fillies, a point she is expected to emphasize in a $58,000 allowance race over seven furlongs at Santa Anita on Sunday.
I'm interested in a couple of lightly raced horses in Pool 1 of the Kentucky Derby Future Wager.
Countdown to the Crown returns for a seventh season as one of the most comprehensive handicapper’s scouting reports of the 3-year-old scene. Posted each Friday at DRF.com from Jan. 6 through the Belmont Stakes, Countdown keeps you apprised of the rising stars of the 3-year-old class.
Fed Biz, one of trainer Bob Baffert's most promising 3-year-olds this year, won his debut against winners in an optional claimer over a mile at Santa Anita on Thursday.
Trainer Jonathan Sheppard has been non-committal about Ever So Lucky’s status as a Kentucky Derby candidate. But if he does get to the Derby, Ever So Lucky will get there via a somewhat unconventional route after making his 3-year-old debut in Saturday’s seven-furlong Hutcheson Stakes at Gulfstream Park.
Trainer Todd Pletcher, who won the Kentucky Derby two years ago with Super Saver, has four of the 20 horses on the inaugural Derby Watch list for 2012.
Alpha, winner of the Grade 3 Withers as well as the Count Fleet Stakes here this winter, will "most likely" skip next month's Gotham Stakes and make his next start in the Grade 1, $1 million Wood Memorial here on April 7, trainer Kiaran McLaughlin said Wednesday.
A showdown between Algorithms and Union Rags in the Grade 2 Fountain of Youth Stakes at Gulfstream Park on Feb. 26 looms as the most exciting early season Derby prep so far. Exciting for just about everyone, that is, except jockey Javier Castellano and his agent who have such an embarrassment of riches among 3-year-olds at this stage that they must make a critical decision early in the process.
Pool 1 of the 2012 Derby Future Wager opens Friday at noon Eastern and closes Sunday at 6 p.m. Churchill Downs linemaker Mike Battaglia has listed the mutuel field as the 9-5 morning-line favorite, followed by Algorithms at 8-1.