San Vicente next target for The Factor
The Factor, who set a six-furlong track record on Dec. 26, is being pointed for the $150,000 San Vicente Stakes over seven furlongs on Feb. 20, trainer Bob Baffert said on Thursday.
Steve AndersenJan 27, 2011
The Factor, who set a six-furlong track record on Dec. 26, is being pointed for the $150,000 San Vicente Stakes over seven furlongs on Feb. 20, trainer Bob Baffert said on Thursday.
An early top 20 list of Kentucky Derby contenders compiled by Mike Watchmaker, Daily Racing Form's national handicapper. The 2011 Kentucky Derby will be run May 7 at Churchill Downs.
The road to the Derby never has the same signposts from one year to the next. Be it purse earnings, the dates of key prep races, or track surfaces, those with Derby contenders always need to be cognizant of the latest changes – and this year, there are plenty.
The Jockey Club announced Thursday morning that Uncle Mo has been assigned 128 pounds atop the Experimental Free Handicap for colts and geldings of 2010, marking the highest impost in 13 years, while Awesome Feather has been named the 123-pound highweight in the filly division.
Another highly regarded 3-year-old nominated to but skipping the Holy Bull is Santiva, winner of the Grade 2 Kentucky Jockey Cup at Churchill Downs in his juvenile finale. Santiva is stabled at Palm Meadows this winter, where he’s just beginning to gear up for his 3-year-old season.
Trainer Rick Violette, who has an abundance of 3-year-old talent in his barn here this winter, had been considering both Leave of Absence and Rescind The Trade for Sunday’s Grade 3 Holy Bull. The decision became a moot point on Wednesday morning after Violette put Rescind the Trade on a van bound for snowy New York.
Boys At Tosconova, who was expected to start as the favorite in Sunday's Grade 3 Holy Bull Stakes, will not start, Gulfstream Park's racing secretary, Dan Bork, confirmed on Wednesday.
Tapizar, winner of the Grade 3 Sham Stakes in his stakes debut at Santa Anita on Jan. 15, will make his next start in the $250,000 Robert Lewis Stakes over 1 1/8 miles on Feb. 12, trainer Steve Asmussen said Wednesday.
Hawthorne Race Course received permission from the Illinois Racing Board on Tuesday to reduce the purse of the Grade 3 Illinois Derby from $500,000 to $250,000.
It’s possible the one-two finishers from Saturday’s Grade 3 Lecomte Stakes for 3-year-olds won’t be back to contest the Grade 2 Risen Star Stakes on Feb. 19 at Fair Grounds, but Lecomte last-place finisher Justin Phillip has been lightly penciled in for the race despite a disappointing performance Saturday.