Plus Que Parfait, winner of the Group 2 UAE Derby and the ninth-place finisher in the Kentucky Derby, will return to the turf for next Saturday’s Grade 1, $1 million Belmont Derby Invitational, trainer Brendan Walsh confirmed Friday.

Plus Que Parfait has not run on the grass since he finished third over it in his career debut as a 2-year-old. Plus Que Parfait, who has not raced since the Kentucky Derby, has worked twice over the turf at Churchill and Walsh has been pleased with what he’s seen. The Belmont Derby is run at 1 1/4 miles.

Beginning with the Saratoga meet, which opens July 11, the New York Racing Association will charge a 1.5 percent fee on all claims, with that money going to Thoroughbred aftercare.

In addition, the existing owner’s contribution to the Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance (TAA) of $5 per starter at a NYRA track will increase to $10.

GRAND PRAIRIE, Texas – Moro Said Ready became trainer J.R. Caldwell’s fourth 2-year-old winner of the Lone Star Park meet last Sunday when he won his maiden in the $65,000 Staunch Avenger division of the Texas Stallion Stakes.

The Staunch Avenger was the first 2-year-old stakes of the meet for colts and geldings. Caldwell’s other juvenile winners have come in maiden special weight races, starting with Midknightwar on May 25. Caldwell also won with Tap and Spin on May 27 and Tick Tack Mo on June 13.

GRAND PRAIRIE, Texas – Lone Star Park puts on a strong card Sunday, with four of the nine races on the program allowances or optional-claiming races. There also are two maiden special weight sprints.

CYPRESS, Calif. – Schrodinger, a 2-year-old first-time starter who runs in Sunday’s fifth race at Los Alamitos, is keeping top jockey Flavien Prat on the go this weekend.

Prat was booked to ride at Woodbine on Saturday. Schrodinger is one of two mounts for Prat on Sunday’s nine-race program at Los Alamitos.

Purchased for $550,000 at the Ocala Breeders’ Sales 2-year-olds in training auction in March, Schrodinger will start in a maiden special weight amidst high expectations from owner Kaleem Shah and trainer Simon Callaghan.

Average all-sources handle rose at the six-month Santa Anita meeting that ended June 23, according to statistics provided by the California Horse Racing Board.

Average handle, including from ontrack, satellite, and account-wagering sources, was $11,670,777, a gain of 3.6 percent compared to $11,255,944 at the 2017-18 meeting.

Roy H, the champion sprinter the last two years, will resume training after missing a scheduled start in the Group 1 Golden Shaheen Sprint in Dubai in March because of a foot ailment.

Trainer Peter Miller said Friday that Roy H is likely to have a single prep before the Breeders’ Cup Sprint at Santa Anita on Nov. 2, a race he won at Del Mar in 2017 and at Churchill Downs last year. Miller said he is targeting the Grade 1 Santa Anita Sprint Championship in early October.

Seeking the Soul, winner of the June 15 Stephen Foster at Churchill Downs, will be pointed to the Pacific Classic at Del Mar while staying put at Churchill for the summer, trainer Dallas Stewart said this week. The Grade 1 race is set for Aug. 17.

Seeking the Soul, bred and owned by Charles Fipke, also had been considered for the Grade 1 Whitney on Aug. 3 at Saratoga, but Stewart will be using the same strategy he used to great success the last time he won a major event for Fipke at Del Mar.

No one embodies the spirit of Ellis Park more than John Hancock, who’s been a backstretch fixture at the western Kentucky since early childhood. Through the years, the 60-year-old Hancock has become well known for his work with 2-year-olds, and with Ellis starting its 29-day summer meet Sunday, he’s been fielding inquiries left and right as to how he expects his babies to fare in front of the home crowd.

“I’ve got three or four first-timers that can really run,” said Hancock. “People better be on the lookout.”

HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. – The potential for a Rainbow 6 pool exceeding $15 million with a mandatory payout scheduled on Sunday went by the wayside after one lucky player had the only winning Rainbow 6 ticket worth $3,151,249 Thursday at Gulfstream Park.

A victory by I Turn a Night Up, a son of Artie Schiller making his turf debut for trainer Happy Alter in the finale, completed the winning combination. I Turn a Night Up was the only horse among the 10 starters in the ninth race alive for the entire Rainbow 6 jackpot.