Dylan Davis, looking to capitalize on his career-best performance in 2024, will move his tack to Gulfstream Park beginning Jan. 1, he and his agent said Sunday.
Davis said trainer Mark Casse initially brought up the idea of Davis going to Florida to ride the winter meet at Gulfstream and, after discussing it with his agent, Mike Migliore, Davis said the decision was made to do it.
Johannes, a game second to More Than Looks in the Breeders’ Cup Mile at Del Mar on Nov. 2 in his only loss this year, is scheduled to have his first start of 2025 in the Grade 1 Pegasus World Cup Turf at Gulfstream Park on Jan. 25.
Trainer Tim Yakteen said on Wednesday that it was unclear whether Johannes would have a prep race in the interim, with the Grade 2 San Gabriel Stakes at 1 1/8 miles on turf at Santa Anita on Dec. 26 as a possibility.
“That would be the logical spot if we did run,” Yakteen said of the San Gabriel.
OZONE PARK, N.Y. - Trainer Wesley Ward won the Grade 1 Test in 2022 with Chi Town Lady - coincidentally, that mare is entered in an allowance race at Aqueduct on Friday. In Shoot It True, Ward hopes he’ll have an opportunity to win the Test again in 2025.
OZONE PARK, N.Y. - The Grade 1 winner Book’em Danno is back in New York and will aim for the Grade 2, $500,000 Cigar Mile at Aqueduct, a race that could serve as an audition for the $20 million Saudi Cup in Riyadh in February 2025.
The Maryland racing circuit will include 114 days of live racing at Laurel Park and six days of live racing at Pimlico next year under a schedule approved on Friday by the new state agency that operates the tracks.
The 120-date schedule, which was approved by the board of the Maryland Thoroughbred Racetrack Operating Authority, is a significant decline from 2023, when the tracks ran 160 live race dates combined. Seven days of live racing are also scheduled at Timonium racetrack at the end of August and on Sept. 1.
The New York State Gaming Commission and the Hall of Fame trainer Steve Asmussen have reached an agreement that will require Asmussen to hire an independent monitor who will seek to ensure that his stable is in compliance with all federal and state labor laws for the next two years.
Deterministic, winner of Saturday’s Grade 3 Hill Prince Stakes at Aqueduct, will not be considered for the Pegasus at Gulfstream Park on Jan. 25 as he will get a break before returning at age 4, trainer Christophe Clement said Sunday.
Deterministic has been in training for most of the year without a break, having started breezing in mid-January for his 3-year-old debut, which came in the Grade 3 Gotham in March, a dirt race he won. Deterministic made his last five starts of the year on turf, winning the Virginia Derby and Hill Prince.
OZONE PARK, N.Y. - Coming off a Saturday in which he had two wins and two seconds in stakes between New York and Kentucky, trainer Shug McGaughey will now turn his attention to South Florida for the winter.
Integration, winner of Saturday’s Grade 2, $300,000 Red Smith Stakes at Aqueduct, and Battle of Normandy, winner of the Grade 3, $300,000 River City Stakes at Churchill Downs, could both wind up in the $1 million Pegasus World Cup Turf at Gulfstream Park on Jan. 25, McGaughey said Sunday.
ETOBICOKE, Ontario - Woodbine canceled Sunday’s card as a precautionary measure over concerns about the safety of the synthetic Tapeta surface following a spat of injuries on Saturday.
The last two races on Saturday's card, including the Autumn Stakes, were not run.
Woodbine management made the decision after consulting with the Horsemen’s Benevolent and Protective Association of Ontario, the Jockeys' Guild, and the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario. Woodbine is performing track maintenance and plans to meet with Tapeta consultants.
Mister Omaha, who has won his last three starts by a combined margin of more than 14 lengths, is being considered for the $300,000 Springboard Mile on Dec. 13 at Remington Park, trainer Joe Offolter said Saturday.
Mister Omaha won his second straight stakes in the track’s Don McNeill for 2-year-olds Friday night. It was his first start around two turns as he won by five lengths after breaking last of all. One start prior, Mister Omaha set the pace and prevailed in the Oklahoma Classics Juvenile at six furlongs at Remington.
