The Chandelier last Saturday at Santa Anita helped sort out the West Coast’s crop of 2-year-old fillies, with the first three finishers -- Secret Compass, She’s a Tiger, and Fascinating -- finishing more than 18 lengths clear of the rest of the field. The trio is scheduled to advance to the $2 million Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies, which will be run at Santa Anita on Nov. 2.
The close finish of Saturday’s Grade 1 Vosburgh at Belmont Park was pretty much a mirror image of the overall picture in the sprint division this season, with little separating the leading contenders for the Breeders’ Cup Sprint in the weeks leading up to the event.
The connections of He’s Had Enough, who came within a head of upsetting last year’s $2 million Breeders’ Cup Juvenile, will be back for another try this year with Bond Holder, who went into last Saturday’s FrontRunner Stakes at Santa Anita a maiden and came out a Grade 1 winner.
ELMONT, N.Y. - In Trouble, a good-looking 2 1/4-length winner of Sunday’s Grade 2 Futurity, will likely head back to New York for the Grade 2, $200,000 Nashua Stakes at Aqueduct on Nov. 3, trainer Tony Dutrow said Monday.
ELMONT, N.Y. - Owner Ed Stanco said Sunday that he is leaning toward stopping on Princess of Sylmar for 2013, but he is definitely planning on bringing her back for a 4-year-old campaign.
OKLAHOMA CITY – Oklahoma Derby winner Broadway Empire has a handful of options for his next start, ranging from the Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile to the Zia Park Derby, trainer Robertino Diodoro said Monday. The Oklahoma Derby, which was run Sunday at Remington Park, was the third straight stakes win for the horse, whose streak includes a victory in the Grade 3 Canadian Derby at Northlands Park.
Trainer Peter Miller said Monday that Reneesgotzip, arguably the top female sprinter on the West Coast, will not be pre-entered in the $1 million Breeders’ Cup Filly and Mare Sprint and will go against male rivals in the Sprint or Turf Sprint.
Also from California, trainer Bob Baffert said he likely will run both Book Review and Executiveprivilege on Saturday in the ungraded L.A. Woman Stakes, a 6 1/2-furlong race that also is expected to get another Filly-Mare Sprint hopeful, Teddy’s Promise.
ARCADIA, Calif. – The first four finishers from last year's Breeders’ Cup Classic plus the beaten favorite in that race all appear headed to a rematch in this year’s $5 million Classic on Nov. 2 at Santa Anita following victories by Fort Larned, Mucho Macho Man, and Ron the Greek in their final preps Saturday.
It was a case of win some lose some for Todd Pletcher over the weekend, as Graydar returned from six months on the sidelines to win Saturday’s Kelso Invitational at Belmont Park, while the announcement of Shanghai Bobby’s retirement came the very next day.
The Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf picked up a starter on Saturday – and maybe the race favorite – when Vorda won the Group 1, $291,007 Cheveley Park Stakes at Newmarket.
