Mon, 11/02/2009 - 00:00

Godolphin to enter two in Classic

Barbara D. Livingston
Girolamo, training Sunday at Santa Anita, will enter the BC Classic along with Godolphin stablemate Regal Ransom.

ARCADIA, Calif. - Godolphin Racing's Regal Ransom and Girolamo will both be entered to run in Saturday's $5 million Breeders' Cup Classic at Santa Anita and not the $1 million Dirt Mile, it was announced Monday. Godolphin will still be represented in the Dirt Mile by Pyro and Midshipman.

According to Rick Mettee, the North American-based assistant for Godolphin, both Regal Ransom and Girolamo trained satisfactorily over Santa Anita's Pro-Ride surface to warrant taking a shot in the $5 million race.

Mon, 11/02/2009 - 00:00

No Sprint for Kodiak Kowboy

ARCADIA, Calif. - Kodiak Kowboy, winner of the Grade 1 Vosburgh in his last start, has been taken out of consideration for the Breeders' Cup Sprint. The decision came just hours after Kodiak Kowboy had worked a slow half-mile in 52.54 at Santa Anita on Monday.

Kodiak Kowboy was scoped following his workout on Monday and was discovered to have some mucus in his lungs, said Tom Ludt, general manager of the Vinery, which owns Kodiak Kowboy in partnership with Tom Porter's Fox Hill Farm.

Mon, 11/02/2009 - 00:00

Nine hours of TV coverage for Cup

Television coverage of the two-day Breeders' Cup championship event from Santa Anita in Arcadia, Calif., will total nine hours and include live broadcasts of all 14 races, with 3 1/2 hours on Friday and another 5 1/2 hours on Saturday, the Breeders' Cup announced Monday.

All of the Friday coverage will be on ESPN2, with the broadcast running from 3:30 to 7 p.m. (all times Eastern). On Saturday, the first two hours (1:30-3:30) will be shown on ABC, with the remaining block (3:30-7) on ESPN.

Mon, 11/02/2009 - 00:00

Allicansayis Wow out with torn suspensory

A torn suspensory has knocked Allicansayis Wow out of the Breeders' Cup Filly and Mare Sprint, and reduced the seven-furlong race to a likely field of nine.

Allicansayis Wow worked a half-mile Sunday in a quick 47.20 seconds, but drifted out on the gallop-out, which she typically does not do. She cooled out fine after the work, according to trainer Patrick Biancone, but in retrospect he said he believes the past-work drift signaled something amiss.

"Now I know why," Biancone said.

Mon, 11/02/2009 - 00:00

Clocker: Negligee impressive over Pro-Ride

Barbara D. Livingston
Negligee, with Simon Harris up, went four furlongs in 47.12 seconds Sunday in her first serious work over the Pro-Ride surface in preparation for the Juvenile Fillies.

ARCADIA, Calif. - It was mayhem in the morning at Santa Anita on Sunday, especially after the renovation break and when the turf course finally opened for business a couple of hours later. Turning back the clocks early Sunday morning meant an extra hour of daylight during training hours although Godolphin still managed to keep railbirds in the dark for Regal Ransom's workout at 5:20 a.m. The Pro-Ride main track was fast, and the turf course was firm with dogs out 25 feet. The temperature was 58 degrees.

WORK OF THE DAY

Mon, 11/02/2009 - 00:00

Another road trip for Ice and Summer Bird

ARCADIA, Calif. - Tim Ice, the trainer of Summer Bird, has been on the road with his horse for months, traveling from Kentucky to New York to New Jersey, back to New York, and then on to California for next Saturday's $5 million Breeders' Cup Classic at Santa Anita's Oak Tree meeting. He also has 33 horses training at Louisiana Downs and has entrusted their care to his assistant, Casey Clark.

Mon, 11/02/2009 - 00:00

Talented Karelian begins to move up

ARCADIA, Calif. - Karelian has had just four starts in the last two years, a spotty record that has made aiming for races such as Saturday's $2 million Breeders Cup Mile at Santa Anita seem like a far-fetched plan.

That changed on Oct. 10 when Karelian finished second at 10-1 in the Grade 1 Shadwell Turf Mile at Keeneland, his first start in nearly 11 months. With his best showing in a Grade 1, a race such as the BC Mile became an objective for Green Lantern Stable and trainer Rusty Arnold.

Mon, 11/02/2009 - 00:00

Another chance for California Flag

ARCADIA, Calif. - When the $1 million Breeders' Cup Turf Sprint was run down the hill last year at Santa Anita, California Flag and Mr. Nightlinger went head-to-head through a half-mile in an absurd 41.81 seconds.

California Flag, ridden by Joe Talamo, eventually put away Mr. Nightlinger to win that battle - but lost the war, fading late to finish 10th in the 6 1/2-furlong race. "I think he might've looked up at the clock and said, 'What the heck?' I just ran too fast," said Brian Koriner, who trains California Flag for Hi Card Ranch.

Mon, 11/02/2009 - 00:00

Private works for Forever Together

ARCADIA, Calif. - Compared with most of the American-based runners for the Breeders' Cup, Forever Together has had somewhat private preparations in recent weeks.

The defending champion of the Filly and Mare Turf, Forever Together had an Oct. 25 workout on trainer Jonathan Sheppard's farm in Pennsylvania and a workout at Keeneland on Sunday. Neither received an official time, but Sheppard timed Forever Together in 1:00 on Sunday.

"She went off slowly, the first eighth in 13 seconds, and each eighth was faster than the previous one," Sheppard said.

Mon, 11/02/2009 - 00:00

Dave in Dixie to skip the Cup

ARCADIA, Calf. - Rather than start as a "live" longshot in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile, the promising colt Dave in Dixie will skip the Cup and freshen for a winter campaign.

"He's out," trainer John Sadler said Sunday. "I'm going to wait for winter and let him mature a little bit. I think he's really nice."