Ace English 2-year-old trainer Richard Hannon has his usual bevy of fleet juveniles this season, and he will try to win the Group 1 Prix Jean-Luc Lagardere on the Arc undercard on Sunday with Olympic Glory.
The Lagardere is a Win and You’re In event for the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf.
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Starspangledbanner, the winner of two Group 1 races in England in 2010, can win his first stakes of 2012 in a competitive running of the Group 1 Prix de la Foret at Longchamp on Sunday.
The seven-furlong Prix de la Foret, which drew 12 entrants, will be run as the first Thoroughbred race after the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe.
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ARCADIA, Calif. – Beholder won a six-furlong allowance race by 11 lengths in a quick 1:09 at Santa Anita on Thursday, leaving Hall of Fame trainer Richard Mandella with a choice of Breeders’ Cup races on Nov. 2 for the 2-year-old filly.
Mandella said Friday that Beholder is “50-50” for the $500,000 Juvenile Sprint over six furlongs or the $2 million Juvenile Fillies over 1 1/16 miles. The filly could be pre-entered in both races on Oct. 22, with a decision on a race necessary by Oct. 29, when entries are taken.
The 4-year-old filly Izzi Top has already earned a berth to the Breeders' Cup Filly and Mare Turf through her win in the Group 1 Pretty Polly Stakes in Ireland in July.
Sunday, she will be favored in a field of 14 in the Group 1 Prix de l’Opera for fillies and mares over 1 1/4 miles, a race that also offers an automatic berth to the BC Filly and Mare Turf.
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ARCADIA Calif. – Winding Way was not a lucky little lady in the city of Del Mar.
When the undefeated filly broke last from the rail as the favorite in the Grade 3 Rancho Bernardo, trainer Carla Gaines’s mood changed from glad to sadness.
“I was just hoping to hit the board,” she said.
Winding Way, a front-runner, faced a seemingly impossible task. Then she did what good horses do – overcome adversity. Last on the turn, she rallied to an improbable victory that established her as one of the top female sprinters in California after just three starts.
LEXINGTON, Ky. – As if Dale Romans doesn’t have enough good horses in his barn right now – think Dullahan, Shackleford, Little Mike, Silver Max, and a few more – the veteran trainer is looking to have some of his 2-year-olds start crashing those elite ranks.
One of his top hopes in that category is Craving Carats, a Street Sense colt who figures as one of the middling wagering choices in a wide-open 22nd running of the Grade 3, $150,000 Bourbon Stakes on Sunday at Keeneland.
The $100,000 Premiers and the Grade 3, $100,000 Ballerina at Hastings this Monday will take on a lot more significance than usual. As unlikely as it may seem, both races could end up being preps for Breeders’ Cup races.
Commander will take a shot in the Grade 2, $500,000 Breeders’ Cup Marathon if he wins the Premiers. The connections of Class Included are looking at the Grade 1, $2 million Breeders’ Cup Ladies’ Classic if she runs well in the Ballerina.
[bc_video_id:264567:]ELMONT, N.Y. – Todd Pletcher told his owners there could be days like this, when he has multiple runners in a race, meaning he could be a winner but his clients could still lose.
Saturday could be one of those days, as Pletcher sends out three – possibly only two – horses in the Grade 1, $400,000 Champagne Stakes at Belmont Park.
The Champagne is a Win and You’re In race for the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile to be run Nov. 3 at Santa Anita.
ELMONT, N.Y. –The scary part about how good Dreaming of Julia has been in her first two starts was what jockey John Velazquez said after she won the Meadow Star Stakes by 16 1/4 lengths at Belmont Park on Sept. 9.
“She just goes through the motions like nothing’s happening,” Velazquez said.
Saturday, Dreaming of Julia gets her sternest test to date when she faces six rivals in the Grade 1, $400,000 Frizette Stakes at Belmont Park.
VANCOUVER, British Columbia – If Commander wins the Grade 3, $100,000 Premiers as expected at Hastings on Monday, he will be heading to Santa Anita to run in the Grade 2, $500,000 Breeders’ Cup Marathon Nov. 3.
It is hard to say just how good Commander really is. He is going into the Premiers off five straight stakes wins, and in his last three races – which he won by a combined total of 24 lengths – he really hasn’t been asked to run.
