Thu, 02/20/2014 - 15:45

Gulfstream Park: Both Pletcher fillies prime contenders in Davona Dale

[bc_video_id:316887:]HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. – Odds are trainer Todd Pletcher will be getting his picture taken following the conclusion of Saturday’s $200,000 Davona Dale Stakes at Gulfstream Park. But which 3-year-old filly will Pletcher be posing with in the winner’s circle after the Grade 2 stakes? Will it be the undefeated Onlyforyou or the multiple graded stakes winner Stopchargingmaria?

Thu, 02/20/2014 - 12:30

Kentucky court rules legality of instant racing still an open issue

LEXINGTON, Ky. – A lower court will need to determine whether Instant Racing machines are legal under Kentucky’s laws, the state’s Supreme Court said in a multi-faceted ruling released on Thursday.

Thu, 02/20/2014 - 12:16

Penn National cancels Thursday program

Winter-related track conditions caused Penn National Race Course to cancel Thursday night’s live racing program.

The track will remain open for simulcasting and will attempt to resume live racing Friday with first post time 6 p.m. Eastern.

Penn National has only been able to host one live racing card so far this month. After running on Feb.  1, the four live programs for the weeks of Feb.  5-8 and Feb. 12-15 were canceled due to a series of snow storms and below-freezing conditions.

Wed, 02/19/2014 - 14:33

Kentucky Derby: Who's hot, who's not for Feb. 19, 2014

Benoit & Associates
Kobe's Back, ridden by Joel Rosario, wins the Grade 2 San Vicente Stakes by 5 1/4 lengths Sunday.

WHO’S HOT

Wed, 02/19/2014 - 14:22

Kentucky Derby: McGaughey has two top prospects for repeat bid

Barbara D. Livingston
Trainer Shug McGaughey had Honor Code breeze three furlongs at Gulfstream Park on Feb. 12 as the horse prepares for his 2014 debut.

HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. – Two days after winning last year’s Kentucky Derby with Orb, trainer Shug McGaughey was pulling into the parking lot of the place where he gets his eyeglasses near his home on Long Island, N.Y., when the phone rang. It was his good friend, Hall of Fame football coach Bill Parcells.

“That’s just the bait,” Parcells, a two-time winner of the Super Bowl, told McGaughey.

McGaughey already knew it. Like the fish McGaughey likes to catch on his off days, he was hooked.

Wed, 02/19/2014 - 14:06

Fonner Park: Pick five jackpot added to exotic wagering menu

GRAND ISLAND, Neb. – Racing in February in Nebraska can be dicey at times, but the forecast for Friday’s season opener at Fonner Park is rosy this year as the track launches its 61st season of racing.

Some snow was forecast for Thursday morning, but Friday’s forecast is for the mid 40s with sunny skies as the 31-day meet gets under way. The weather has cooperated for the trainers leading up the meet, with several days of work tabs numbering more than 80 head. Last year’s opening day was lost as a snowstorm hit the area.

Wed, 02/19/2014 - 13:34

Santa Anita: Bejarano just wins, baby

Barbara D. Livingston
Rafael Bejarano ended Monday’s card with an 18-win lead in the Santa Anita jockeys’ standings.

ARCADIA, Calif. – Rafael Bejarano was in an awkward position after Monday’s program at Santa Anita. For the first time in 35 days of racing at the winter-spring meeting, Bejarano had gone two days without riding a winner.

“It was no good,” he said. “I thought I could win one or two, but I didn’t.”

The mini-slump, as it were, had little effect on the riders’ standings. Bejarano has been so dominant since the season began Dec. 26 that he ended Monday’s program with an 18-race lead in the standings with 48 victories. Joe Talamo is second with 30 wins.

Wed, 02/19/2014 - 12:15

Hawthorne: Winter-spring meet might have trouble filling cards amid harsh winter

Four-Footed Fotos
Hawthorne, which opens its meet Sunday, has reduced takeout on win, place, and show wagers to 12 percent.

STICKNEY, Ill. – The phrases “polar vortex” and “Thoroughbred racing” don’t mesh well, but it is into the midst of a historically brutal Chicago winter that Hawthorne’s 37-day winter-spring race meet begins Friday.

Wed, 02/19/2014 - 11:36

Penn National cancels Wednesday program

A morning-long ice and freezing rain storm in central Pennsylvania forced the cancellation of live racing at Penn National Race Course on Wednesday.

Penn National has only been able to host one live racing card so far this month. After running on Feb.  1, the four live programs for the weeks of Feb.  5-8 and Feb. 12-15 were canceled due to a series of snow storms and below-freezing conditions. 

Track officials are hopeful live racing can resume Thursday with first post time of 6 p.m. Eastern. Penn National will remain open for simulcasting Wednesday.

Tue, 02/18/2014 - 14:58

Mexikoma starts season in Gulfstream allowance

Barbara D. Livingston
Mexikoma hasn't raced since finishing sixth in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile.

BOYNTON BEACH, Fla. – The 3-year-old Mexikoma makes his return to the starting gate in an allowance race on Saturday’s Fountain of Youth card at Gulfstream Park. Last seen in November when he finished sixth in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile at Santa Anita, Mexikoma breezed a half-mile Tuesday morning at Palm Meadows in 49.05 seconds.