When the connections of Pretty Mischievous elected to run her in the Grade 1 Test Stakes last month at Saratoga, it was with the idea of finding out if the 3-year-old filly could be as effective sprinting as she had shown to be routing.
Officially, Pretty Mischievous won the seven-furlong Test, but only after Maple Leaf Mel, on her way to a dominant victory, fell just yards from the wire with a catastrophic injury. Pretty Mischievous crossed the wire first, a head over Clearly Unhinged.
Weather permitting, Roses for Debra, unbeaten from four starts on turf, will tackle males on Saturday at Parx Racing in the Grade 3, $250,000 Turf Monster Stakes at five furlongs.
As of Thursday morning, the National Weather Service had forecasted an 87 percent chance of heavy rain for Saturday, and that greatly concerns trainer Christophe Clement.
“I’m not comfortable,” Clement said. “The weather looks like a complete nightmare.”
Damon’s Mound and Ryvit renew their rivalry in Saturday’s Grade 2, $400,000 Gallant Bob Stakes for 3-year-olds racing six furlongs at Parx.
Damon’s Mound won the first two starts of his career last summer, including the Grade 2 Saratoga Special. After faltering to sixth going two turns in the Grade 3 Iroquois, trainer Michelle Lovell gave the Girvin colt a break.
“It took him a bit to get him right back to where we wanted him,” Lovell said. “He ran a good second to a nice horse, Tumbarumba, in a [second-level allowance at Churchill on June 4]. “
HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. – Big and Classy will try to bounce back from a rare setback when going postward as the solid favorite in Saturday’s main event at Gulfstream Park, a $65,000 overnight handicap that drew a familiar field of seven to go seven furlongs over the main track.
Five months after they debuted in the same maiden race at Keeneland, Saudi Crown and Magic Tap will both be in search of their first stakes win when they meet again in Saturday’s Grade 1, $1 million Pennsylvania Derby at Parx Racing.
The Pennsylvania Derby, run at 1 1/8 miles, is the last Grade 1 route race restricted to 3-year-olds run this year. Still, it only drew two graded winners – Reincarnate and Il Miracolo – in a field of 11.
Translated from Spanish to English, the word “ganadora” means “winner.” Capitalized, it means the same at Los Alamitos Race Course.
Horse-for-course filly Ganadora seeks her second Los Alamitos stakes victory Saturday in the Dark Mirage, a mile race she won by eight lengths last year. Since then, little has changed. Ganadora remains stuck on three wins. After Saturday, her career win total should be quatro.
OZONE PARK, N.Y. – On the surface, it would appear trainer Chad Brown entered Gerrymander in Saturday’s Grade 3, $150,000 Noble Damsel in the event the one-mile race is rained off the turf and run on the main track.
While Brown will certainly run Gerrymander on the dirt, which, given the forecast, is very possible, he did enter her to run on turf. Should the race remain on turf, Brown also has proven grass horses Gina Romantica and Fluffy Socks in the field.
During the early months of 2022, trainer William “Doug” Cowans had his eye on a Not This Time gelding.
“I had watched him all winter at Turfway. I just liked the horse, so I took a shot on him,” Cowans said earlier this year.
Cowans claimed Next for $62,500 out of a ninth-place effort in a seven-furlong race at Keeneland.
“I was not always thinking distance,” Cowans admitted. “After I got the horse, in his breezes I noticed he had a lot of stamina after the breeze.”
In any other barn, it would seem a logical choice for Gunite to be pointed to the Breeders’ Cup Sprint on Nov. 4 at Santa Anita. When the same connections also have the freakishly talented filly Echo Zulu in the barn, it becomes a bit more complicated.
“I am the biggest Gunite fan there is,” said Steve Asmussen, who trains Gunite and Echo Zulo for Ron Winchell. “We’ve worked Echo Zulu and Gunite against each other enough to know which one is quicker.”
ETOBICOKE, Ontario – Born to Boogie has performed like the consummate in-and-outer during her five-race career and is due to fire her best shot in Saturday’s Woodbine feature for fillies and mares, if the pattern continues.
A 3-year-old trained by Sylvain Pion, Born to Boogie faded after chasing the pace when debuting as a 90-1 outsider in a Dec. 9 maiden special on the Tapeta. This year, she made all four of her starts here on the main turf.
