ARCADIA, Calif. – Trainers Bob Baffert and John Sadler may have two runners each in Saturday’s Grade 2 San Carlos Stakes for sprinters at Santa Anita.
But neither trains the most intriguing horse in the expected field – Touching Rainbows, who will have his stakes debut after having won four consecutive races, all optional claimers, in the last year. Touching Rainbows is trained by Phil D’Amato.
The $250,000 San Carlos Stakes is at seven furlongs.
ARCADIA, Calif. – This could be a very interesting summer for Red Baron’s Barn and Rancho Temescal.
The Red Baron’s Barn of Jed Cohen, and Rancho Temescal, directed by his son, Tim, own River Boyne, who won his second stakes in the $98,000 Rainbow Stakes for 3-year-olds on turf on Saturday at Santa Anita. They also own the four-time stakes winner Sharp Samurai, who won an allowance race with a $75,000 claiming option in his first start of 2018 on Sunday.
ETOBICOKE, Ontario – After his seventh-place finish in the $125,000 Plate Trial Stakes at Woodbine on June 9, Queenston Stakes winner Silent Sting is no longer under consideration for the $1 million Queen’s Plate on June 30. Silent Sting trailed the field throughout the Plate Trial and will now be getting a break on the farm, trainer Sid Attard said.
“He’s been going all winter and last year,” Attard said. “It looks like maybe he’s a bit tired, so we’re going to give him a break. He’s doing good. He’s okay.”
ETOBICOKE, Ontario – Mr Havercamp returned from a six-month layoff to win the $125,000 Steady Growth Stakes by 4 3/4 lengths over Where’s the Widget on Saturday at Woodbine. He was wide throughout the race over 1 1/16 miles on Tapeta, but came home strongly under jockey Eurico Da Silva.
“He’s such a good horse,” trainer Catherine Day Phillips said. “Eurico said he had so much horse. He said at the half-mile pole everyone was riding and he was sitting there cruising. He thought he would stay out of everyone’s way and go wide.”
ETOBICOKE, Ontario – Pink Lloyd extended his Woodbine stakes winning streak to 11 with a three-length victory in the Achievement Stakes in his most recent start on June 3, and will now be pointed to the $100,000 Shepperton Stakes at Woodbine on July 8.
The Shepperton will be run over 6 1/2-furlongs on Woodbine’s Tapeta for Ontario-sired 3-year-olds and upward.
ARCADIA, Calif. – The only thing that can stop Justify these days is Southern California traffic.
On Sunday, Triple Crown winner Justify was flown from Kentucky to California and then vanned from Ontario International Airport to trainer Bob Baffert’s stable at Santa Anita. The early-afternoon trip from the Ontario airport to the stables was delayed briefly while the motorcade accompanying the horse van negotiated its way past a traffic accident despite police sirens blaring.
ARCADIA, Calif. – The 4-year-old Anonymity returned from a layoff of more than eight months to win an allowance race with a $40,000 claiming option at Santa Anita on Saturday, leaving trainer Richard Mandella optimistic that the filly can be a stakes runner this year.
Ridden by leading jockey Flavien Prat, Anonymity disputed the pace for the first half-mile before pulling clear to win by 4 1/4 lengths as the 1-2 favorite. Anonymity ran six furlongs in 1:10.17, earning a Beyer Speed Figure of 93.
ARCADIA, Calif. – After success on the synthetic surface at Golden Gate Fields and dirt at Santa Anita, the undefeated stakes winner Ollie’s Candy is scheduled to start on turf for the first time at Del Mar next month.
Ollie’s Candy won her stakes debut in the Grade 2 Summertime Oaks at 1 1/16 miles at Santa Anita on Saturday. Trainer William Morey said on Sunday she is likely to run in the Grade 2 San Clemente Stakes for 3-year-old fillies at a mile on turf July 21.
Changes in surfaces or distances do not seem to affect Ollie’s Candy.
Penn National-based Dana Whitney scored his 4,000th career victory in the second race Friday evening when he guided Vicksburg Bluffs to a front-running 1 1/2-length victory in a $9,000 claiming race.
Whitney, 48, has been a top five rider at Penn National ever since he shifted his base of operations 250 miles to the east from Mountaineer Park in 2009. He has topped the Penn National standings three times – 2014, 2011, and 2010. John Trulock has been Whitney's agent since he made the move at Penn National.
ARLINGTON HEIGHTS, Ill. – Devileye and Puntsville, Illinois-bred stakes winners on the June 2 card at Arlington, could ship to Canterbury Park for their next start, trainer Michele Boyce said.
Devileye is possible for the $50,000 Dark Star Cup over 6 1/2 furlongs on dirt, while Puntsville could run in the $50,000 Hoist Her Flag over six furlongs on dirt, a race she won last summer. Both races are next Saturday. Devileye and Puntsville are half-siblings.
