The Maryland Thoroughbred Horsemen’s Association has approved two new measures to temporarily adjust purse awards at Laurel Park.
The MTHA coordinated with The Maryland Jockey Club, which has representatives on the MTHA Purse Committee, to enact both adjustments, which are intended to better reward local horsemen and bolster field sizes.
Ultimate Love, the top turf juvenile in the Mid-Atlantic region last year, is back in training at Fair Hill and could soon make her 3-year-old debut for trainer Michael Trombetta.
The Florida-bred filly spent her winter break back home at Live Oak Plantation, but Trombetta always planned to bring her to Maryland ahead of the turf season up north.
“[Live Oak] was very happy to give her a couple months’ downtime,” Trombetta said. “They got her started and they said she was right back into things, like she hadn’t had much of a break or rest. They were very happy with her.”
When Quint’s Brew bounced back to win the $100,000 Not For Love Stakes at Laurel Park on March 7, Ned Allard thought he had earned a rest after firing on a short turnaround. When the Maryland-bred got back to the barn, however, he gave his trainer a different idea.
“I planned on giving him at least a month between races, but he came out of his last race a grizzly bear,” Allard said.
Florida-bred Nearly’s story is one full of nearlys.
Breeder Kris Gibbons nearly didn’t wind up with his dam, Ib Prospecting, persisting to acquire her after losing the shake for her multiple times at the claim box. And the mare nearly didn’t have a Not This Time colt, as her first season being bred to the stallion was unsuccessful. Gibbons persisted, and Ib Prospecting got in foal to the stallion just before his stud fee skyrocketed.
Chief Wallabee
Colt by Constitution – A La Lucie, by Medaglia d’Oro
Bred in Kentucky by Mike Ball and Katherine Ball
Chief Wallabee, who has made both of his starts at Gulfstream Park, will look to punch his ticket to the Kentucky Derby in Saturday’s Florida Derby. His sire, Constitution, won that race and showed a particular affinity for Gulfstream, a trait he has passed on to some of his runners.
Grade 1 winners Careless Jewel, Hard Not to Like, Joshua Tree, and Rahy’s Attorney, along with former Daily Racing Form writer/editor Bill Tallon, are among the 2026 finalists for induction into the Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame.
The high-strung Careless Jewel captured the 2009 Alabama at Saratoga by an emphatic 11 lengths, a race that sandwiched her Grade 2 scores in the Delaware Oaks and Cotillion. She was ridden throughout her career by Hall of Famer Robert Landry while based at Woodbine with Hall of Fame trainer Josie Carroll.
HOT SPRINGS, Ark. – Haulin Ice will be shipping in from South Florida for the $250,000 Matron on Friday at Oaklawn Park, but in many ways she is defending her home court.
In her last start, a victory, Haulin Ice became the first Arkansas-bred to hit $1 million in earnings. The milestone improved her record at Oaklawn to 7 for 9 with earnings of $695,300. In total, she has won 11 of her 20 starts.
ARCADIA, Calif. – A $58,869 pick six carryover mitigates the takeout Friday at Santa Anita, and after the late money arrives, track officials estimate the gross pool will exceed $400,000.
New money typically shows up late, after CAWs scan early wagers to identify inefficiencies, then flood the pool in the final minutes. It is not unusual for the total pick six pool to double in size from zero minutes to post, until the field breaks for the first leg.
Whether the show must go on – that’s debatable. But the show will go on and fields have been assembled for the Dubai World Cup meeting Saturday at Meydan Racecourse.
Post positions for the World Cup card’s Group 1 races weren’t yet drawn Monday, but entries with jockey assignments are, and nine horses went into the $12 million World Cup.
HOT SPRINGS, Ark. – There are white tents dotting the infield at Oaklawn Park. The work tabs are littered with stakes horses, and the weather is starting to break.
It all means one thing – it’s once again time for the Racing Festival of the South.
The collection of major stakes held over the final stretch of the meet each season begins on Thursday with the $200,000 Hot Springs. The one-mile race for 3-year-olds drew Triple Crown nominees Desert Gate, Bricklin, Strategic Risk, and Soldier N Diplomat.
