ARCADIA, Calif. – As the only Grade 1 winner entered in the Grade 3 American Stakes on Saturday at Santa Anita, comebacker King of Gosford commands respect. Glass half-full.
As the only entrant without a recent start, King of Gosford looks vulnerable when he returns Saturday following a seven-month layoff. Glass half-empty.
Among the 13 horses entered in the Elkhorn Stakes on Saturday at Keeneland, there are four 7-year-olds, five 6-year-olds, and two 5-year-olds. As one would imagine, this group includes the race’s most accomplished participants.
Grand Sonata, one of the 7-year-olds, has banked $2.63 million, while fellow 7-year-old Tawny Port has earned $2.17 million. Utah Beach, 6, won the 2025 Elkhorn, part of the $800,000 in purses he’s brought home. Desvio, a mere babe in arms at 5, won the Grade 2 Sycamore last fall, the autumn companion to the Elkhorn.
ETOBICOKE, Ontario – There will be a mandatory payout on opening day at Woodbine in the Power Pick 6, which has a carryover of $61,065. The jackpot wager, which was not paid out on the final day of the 2025 meet due to a mid-card cancellation, is a 20-cent base bet that should attract at least $250,000 in handle Saturday.
ETOBICOKE, Ontario – Woodbine kicks off its 2026 racing season Saturday, the first of 128 scheduled days of a meet that largely mirrors the 2025 season while including a major twist in the turf racing program.
Racing will be conducted on Saturdays and Sundays for the first three weeks of the meet before Fridays are added on May 8 and Thursdays on June 11. Closing day is Dec. 13.
The NBA Play‑In Tournament chaos rolls into Orlando, where the Magic and Charlotte Hornets meet in a true win‑or‑go‑home showdown for the Eastern Conference’s final playoff spot. Tip‑off is set for Friday at 7:30 p.m. ET, with the winner locking up the No. 8 seed and a first‑round date with the top‑seeded Detroit Pistons, while the loser’s season ends with a spot in the draft lottery instead of the postseason spotlight.
WHO’S HOT
There has been little to no change to the perspective field with no major defections. Renegade, the presumptive Derby favorite, was expected to return to the work tab on Thursday at Palm Beach Downs. It would be his first breeze since his victory in the Arkansas Derby on March 28.
HOT SPRINGS, Ark. – Journalism has made an impression in his local gallops since arriving from his Southern California base for a Saturday clash with reigning Horse of the Year Sovereignty in the Grade 2, $1.25 million Oaklawn Handicap – and trainer Michael McCarthy likes the transition last year’s Preakness winner has made from age 3 to 4.
The Oaklawn Handicap will be Journalism’s first start since finishing a good fourth in the Breeders’ Cup Classic on Nov. 1 at Del Mar.
HOT SPRINGS, Ark. – For the second year in a row, a reigning Horse of the Year will launch their season at Oaklawn Park.
Last meet, Thorpedo Anna captured the Grade 2 Azeri in her first start since being named the 2024 Horse of the Year.
This Saturday, Sovereignty, the 2025 Horse of the Year, is set to make his first start at 4 in the Grade 2, $1.25 million Oaklawn Handicap.
With more than 4,500 wins and five Eclipse Awards to his credit in a career that is still in its prime, jockey Irad Oritz Jr. has had more than his share of memorable moments. None of them, however, have come in the Kentucky Derby.
Nine times Ortiz has ridden the Derby without success. His best Derby result came with Improbable, the favorite in 2019, who was elevated from fifth to fourth following the disqualification of Maximum Security from first. However, Ortiz feels Mo Donegal, fifth behind longshot Rich Strike was, to date, his best chance.
