Up With the Birds, the winner of the Grade 2 Nijinsky Stakes in July at Woodbine and five other stakes in his career, will face the most difficult test of his career in Sunday’s $4.4 million Japan Cup at Tokyo Racecourse.

Trained by Malcolm Pierce for Sam-Son Farm, Up With the Birds is the only North American-based runner in a field of 18 in the Japan Cup, which is run over 1 1/2 miles on turf. Up With the Birds will be ridden by the Woodbine-based Eurico Rosa Da Silva.

OLDSMAR, Fla. – Tampa Bay Downs, which has become one of the more popular betting venues in the country for horseplayers during the winter months, with full fields and competitive racing, kicks off its 2014-15 meeting Saturday with its earliest opening date in recent memory.

The track, located just outside the city limits of Tampa, will present a 10-race program, with first post set for 12:22 p.m. Eastern.

DEL MAR, Calif. – With his wins over Del Mar’s Polytrack during the summer, Blue Tone looked like a horse who was headed for graded stakes company. He disappointed in his most recent start, when racing on dirt at Santa Anita, but back on Polytrack, he seeks that elusive first graded stakes win Saturday in the Grade 3, $200,000 Native Diver Handicap for older horses.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Last fall, when Churchill Downs tried a future wager pool in late November for the first time, only one of the 23 separately listed horses eventually made it to the 2014 Kentucky Derby: Ride On Curlin, who ran seventh at 17-1. The “all others” option returned an all-time low of $3.60 for a $2 win bet.

Based on those results, along with a combined handle of just $273,174, it was neither an artistic nor financial success.

But whom did it hurt? And why not try it again?

The Stronach Group on Wednesday announced two major personnel changes at the Maryland Jockey Club and in broad terms discussed a number of initiatives it plans to implement at Pimlico Race Course and Laurel Park.

Tom Chuckas, president and chief executive of the Maryland Jockey Club since 2008, has resigned his position, effective this coming Sunday. Tim Ritvo, chief operating officer of the Stronach Group’s racing division, said, “We are negotiating with Tom to do some political work for us.”

The Indiana Horse Racing Commission is seeking to suspend a trainer for three years after post-race tests on five horses who raced this summer at Indiana Grand tested positive for a concentration of a painkiller that was indicative of the drug being administered on race day, according to a complaint prepared by the commission.

California Chrome was feeling so sharp Tuesday at Del Mar that instead of a scheduled jog, trainer Art Sherman had him gallop.

“He was getting up on his hind legs,” Sherman said. “I had to do something with him.”

California Chrome worked on turf Sunday and walked the shed row Monday, his normal day-after routine. He is scheduled to have an open gallop on turf early Thursday morning. The Hollywood Derby on Saturday will be California Chrome’s first race on grass.

Fun run on Turkey Day

At noon Tuesday, Penn National canceled its Wednesday night card and rescheduled it for Saturday in advance of a winter storm that is expected to drop four to eight inches of snow over western Pennsylvania.

The Wednesday card is the second-biggest of the year at Penn National and includes the $200,000 Fabulous Strike, a six-furlong handicap that Ben’s Cat will be trying to win for the third year in a row; the $100,000 Swatara, a 1 1/16-mile race for 3-year-olds and up; and the $75,000 Blue Mountain Juvenile Fillies, a six-furlong sprint for Pennsylvania-bred 2-year-old fillies.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. – The mutuel field is an overwhelming morning-line favorite in the first pool of the 2015 Kentucky Derby Future Wager, which is set to open Friday.

Churchill Downs on Tuesday released the names of the 23 separately listed entrants for Pool 1, which opens Friday at noon Eastern. The field, the 24th or “all others” option, is pegged as the 3-5 favorite, followed by American Pharoah at 12-1, Texas Red at 15-1, and the rest at 20-1 or higher. Todd Pletcher has five of the 23 named, and Bob Baffert has four.

The first pool closes Sunday at 6 p.m. Eastern.

Main Sequence, the winner of the Breeders’ Cup Turf at Santa Anita on Nov. 1, began light training for a winter campaign on Monday, trainer Graham Motion said.

Main Sequence was walked under tack at Motion’s base in Maryland, the gelding’s first exercise since the BC Turf.

“He was getting pretty fresh, so it was time to do something,” Motion said. “I think he put on a bit of condition.”