ARCADIA, Calif. – The first dirt stakes of the season for California 3-year-old fillies always begins in predictable fashion, which bodes well for odds-on Explora in the $100,000 Santa Ynez Stakes on Saturday at Santa Anita.

If she runs as expected in her first start since finishing second in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies, Explora is likely to extend the streak of favorites in the seven-furlong Santa Ynez. Favorites have won seven in a row, six at odds-on. Explora, the class of the field with the highest figures, fits right in.

Sunland Park in New Mexico, which is under new ownership, opens a 55-date meet Friday. The season runs through April 5.

The Sunland Derby will share a card with the $250,000 Sunland Park Oaks on Feb. 15. There are a number of other stakes on the card, which will be worth a meet-high $1.1 million.

Sunland features races for both Thoroughbreds and Quarter Horses.

Corrina Corrina, who is the all-time leading earner among New Mexico-bred Thoroughbreds, is scheduled to run Sunday in the $80,000 New Mexico State Racing Commission Stakes.

Express Kid, who picked up 10 points toward the Kentucky Derby with his win in the $300,000 Springboard Mile last month at Remington Park, will likely advance to another points race, according to trainer Wade Rarick.

Express Kid is now based at Turf Paradise after his win at Remington, and a race that Rarick is targeting for the horse is the $500,000 Sunland Park Derby on Feb. 15. It also distributes points for the Kentucky Derby.

Rarick wants to give Express Kid another shot at a points race to see if he might duplicate his upset win in the Springboard.

Sam Houston Race Park opens a 41-date meet Friday night with its Houston Racing Festival card right around the corner. The Grade 3, $300,000 Houston Ladies Classic and the $200,000 John B. Connally Turf Cup will again anchor the meet’s richest day when the races are renewed Jan. 24.

Sam Houston races through April 4. The track will race on a Friday-through-Sunday schedule, with a 6:30 p.m. Central post on Fridays and a 1 p.m. post on Saturdays and Sundays.

Lucille Ball won her career debut by 5 1/4 lengths at Aqueduct on Nov. 8, 2024 and hasn’t been seen in the afternoon since. Friday, 14 months after that dazzling debut, Lucille Ball returns to the races in a first-level allowance race that serves as the feature on Friday’s eight-race Aqueduct card.

Regarding the layoff, trainer Chris Englehart, you got some ’splainin’ to do.

“She needed surgery on her knee, had to do it twice,” Englehart explained. “She has her issues but she’s training real good.”

HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. – Theoretically, Friday’s $86,000 allowance feature for 3-year-olds at Gulfstream Park is supposed to be a softer spot than the $175,000 Mucho Macho Man Stakes carded here the following day.

In reality, that might not be the case, with promising youngsters such as Nearly, Confessional, and Mob all signed on to go seven furlongs in Friday’s main event, which could produce a potential starter or two for the Grade 3 Holy Bull Stakes later this month.

ARCADIA, Calif. – Given that more rain is expected this week, uncertainty swirls around the Friday card at Santa Anita that includes two races scheduled for turf. Maybe they will stay on turf, maybe not.

But on dirt, there is a sure thing Friday. Sure thing, as in certain underlay. Whether she wins or loses, race 1 starter Miss Watermelon could be the most heavily favored runner on the card.

The families of the late D. Wayne Lukas and Steve Asmussen have been close for more than 60 years, so it would be fitting if the Asmussen trainee Tap Into This were to win the inaugural The Coach, a $135,000 overnight stakes honoring Lukas on Friday at Oaklawn Park.

Lukas died in June at the age of 89 after a Hall of Fame career in racing. He was a part of Asmussen’s life from the start, as Lukas was introduced to the future fellow Hall of Famer when Asmussen was just an infant.