ARCADIA, Calif.- If it’s Thursday, there must be a pick six carryover at Santa Anita.

For the second consecutive week, the jackpot bet begins on Thursday with a six-figure head start. No one hit the pick six on Sunday, resulting in a carryover of $115,862 for Thursday. The carryover was announced after Sunday’s eighth race, with one race remaining in the day.

Thursday, the pick six covers the typical third through eighth races on an eight-race program. For a race meeting that has struggled badly to attract full fields, Thursday’s card is more attractive.

HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. -  Honor Code is off the Kentucky Derby trail and will be sidelined indefinitely after being diagnosed with a slight tear in his right hind upper suspensory, trainer Shug McGaughey said  Sunday.

Scott Blasi, the long-time assistant to trainer Steve Asmussen, has been fired in the wake of a controversy in which both men are accused by an animal rights group of mistreating horses.

“Scott Blasi has been relieved of his responsibilities,” Asmussen wrote in a text message Saturday afternoon.

“I have been informed that I have been let go,” Blasi confirmed in a text message. “I understand and respect that decision.”

Blasi had been based this winter at Fair Grounds, where, through Friday, Asmussen was the leading trainer with 57 wins.

With so much attention (and rightly so) going to the two Bafferts (MIDNIGHT HAWK, CHITU) and two Pletchers (COMMISSIONER, GLOBAL STRIKE), the up-and-coming BOURBONIZE may fall through the cracks on the board and be a most generous number. It also doesn’t figure to hurt that none of the ‘big’ guys in here will have a home field advantage, and from a pace scenario things may shake out well for BOURBONIZE.

With a plethora of negativity swirling around him, trainer Steve Asmussen got some good news Saturday when it was revealed that his top 3-year-olds for the Kentucky Derby and Kentucky Oaks will remain in his care.

David Fiske, the racing manager for owner Ron Winchell, confirmed on Saturday that Asmussen would continue to train Tapiture and Untapable, leading contenders for the Derby and Oaks, respectively.

ARCADIA, Calif. - The pick six paid $2,409 to 582 ticketholders at Santa Anita on Friday after a two-day carryover of $551,927 prompted bettors to wager $1,591,204 in new money into the pool.

The winners of the pick six races were Provenance ($8.40), L T Reckless ($11.40), Bettys Bambino ($4), Road Ready ($6), Mambo Man ($7.20) and Charbroiled ($3.60).

Bettys Bambino, Road Ready, and Charbroiled were favored. Provenance and Mambo Man were the second betting choices in their races. L T Reckless was the fourth choice.

After months of discussion, the California Horse Racing Board finalized the racing schedule for the Northern California fair circuit in July and August of 2015 at its monthly meeting on Friday, giving Cal-Expo in Sacramento and the Sonoma County Fair in Santa Rosa consecutive three-week meetings.

Cal-Expo was awarded dates from the week of July 9 through July 26, followed by Santa Rosa from the week of July 29 through Aug. 16. In addition, the Humboldt County Fair in Ferndale will race from Aug. 19-30, while Golden Gate Fields will begin its late summer meeting on Aug. 21.

Excelsior Stakes (Aqueduct, Race 8) by Mike Beer

LONG RIVER (#1, 2-5) and entry mate ROMANSH (#1A) have been installed as the odds-on morning line favorites for the Grade 3 Excelsior, and it’s hard to argue with that reading of the race. Long River appears to be the more fancied half of the coupling, as he enters the Excelsior on a three race winning streak and with a solid new Beyer top of 107 for his convincing Evening Attire win over PERCUSSION (#4, 6-1), who will take another shot at him here.

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The fallout over accusations of and pending investigations into mistreatment of horses by trainer Steve Asmussen began Friday, when the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame effectively removed Asmussen from the ballot for consideration to be elected into the institution.