Mon, 02/24/2025 - 14:12

Martin may run My Mitole in Gotham on two weeks' rest

Adam Coglianese/NYRA

My Mitole has drawn the outside post in a field of 10 for the Grade 3, $300,000 Gotham Stakes on Saturday at Aqueduct.

After initially thinking a two-week turnaround might be too close back, the connections of My Mitole on Sunday entered their 3-year-old in Saturday’s Grade 3, $300,000 Gotham Stakes at Aqueduct.

My Mitole drew the outside post in the 10-horse Gotham, a one-turn mile race that offers its top five finishers qualifying points (50-25-15-10-5) toward the May 3 Kentucky Derby. As My Mitole is not yet nominated to the Triple Crown – he can still be for a $6,000 fee by March 31 – the Gotham may be more about being the best option for My Mitole at this stage.

Mon, 02/24/2025 - 13:46

Cox reveals next-out plans for Instant Replay, others

By Marcus Hersh

Coady Media

Brad Cox said Instant Replay will probably make his stakes debut in the Louisiana Derby.

The 3-year-old colt Instant Replay will probably make his stakes debut in the Louisiana Derby on March 22, trainer Brad Cox said.

Instant Replay, a Gary and Mary West homebred by Maximum Security, cleared the maiden ranks for a $100,000 claiming tag last fall before breaking through with a five-length first-level allowance victory Feb. 17 at Fair Grounds. Instant Replay covered 1 1/16 miles in 1:43.11 and earned a 92 Beyer Speed Figure, his best among five starts by 16 points. Instant Replay got an excellent setup closing into a strong pace while facing modest competition.

Mon, 02/24/2025 - 13:39

Simply Joking back in training

By Marcus Hersh

Amanda Hodges Weir/Hodges Photography

Simply Joking was scratched from the Rachel Alexandra after a blood test revealed a virus.

Simply Joking has resumed regular training after a mild illness forced her scratch from the Rachel Alexandra Stakes on Feb. 15.

Winner of the Letellier Stakes over six furlongs in her Dec. 21 career debut and the one mile 70-yard Silverbulletday in her second outing on Jan. 18, Simply Joking didn’t eat with her normal gusto on Feb. 13. Her trainer, Whit Beckman, ordered a blood test, which showed Simply Joking to be harboring what was presumed to be a virus, forcing her withdrawal from the Rachel Alexandra.

Mon, 02/24/2025 - 13:29

After breakout 2024, DeVaux poised to reach new peaks

By Marcus Hersh

Barbara D. Livingston

Cherie DeVaux’s horses have won 13 of the 26 maiden special weight races they’ve entered at the current Fair Grounds meet.

During 2024, Cherie DeVaux’s sixth full year as a trainer, she nearly doubled her stable earnings from 2023, going from $5 million and change to more than $10 million.

DeVaux is likely on track for an even better 2025. Daily Racing Form found nine Fair Grounds-based horses worth talking about in a Sunday telephone interview with DeVaux, and that doesn’t include the three she ran in Sunday stakes at Oaklawn, where Justique won the Carousel.

Mon, 02/24/2025 - 13:16

Nutella Fella headed for Dubai

By David Grening

Barbara D. Livingston

Nutella Fella scored an upset win in the Grade 1 Hopeful in 2023 and has made just three starts since.

Nutella Fella, who won the Pelican Stakes at Tampa earlier this month, received an invitation to the $2 million Dubai Golden Shaheen and will make his next start in that six-furlong race on April 5 at Meydan, trainer Gary Contessa said Monday.

Nutella Fella scored an upset win in the Grade 1 Hopeful at 70-1 odds in 2023 and has made just three starts since, as he’s been hindered by a hind ankle injury. The Pelican, which Nutella Fella won by a neck on Feb. 8, came after he finished second in an allowance race on Jan. 11.

Mon, 02/24/2025 - 13:11

Owen Almighty pointed to Tampa Bay Derby

By David Grening

Tom Keyser

Owen Almighty will make one more two-turn start before cutting back in the Pat Day Mile.

Though trainer Brian Lynch plans on cutting Owen Almighty back in distance this spring, he will give him one more race around two turns in the $400,000 Tampa Bay Derby on March 8.

Mon, 02/24/2025 - 11:38

Neat to make California debut in Kilroe Mile

By Steve Andersen

Chelsea Durand/NYRA

Last year, Neat started seven times at six different tracks, winning four stakes for 3-year-olds on turf.

ARCADIA, Calif. - What difference is a new racetrack for Neat, the 4-year-old colt expected to be the lone shipper in Saturday’s Grade 1 Frank Kilroe Mile on turf at Santa Anita?

Last year, Neat started seven times at six different tracks, winning four stakes for 3-year-olds on turf. The assignment on Saturday will be more difficult, as the $300,000 Kilroe will mark Neat’s career debut against older horses and his first start in a Grade 1.

Neat will be ready, trainer Rob Atras said on Sunday.

Sun, 02/23/2025 - 16:56

Straight No Chaser not done in Middle East; Dubai Golden Shaheen up next

By Steve Andersen

Jockey Club of Saudi Arabia / Mathea Kelley

Straight No Chaser will bring a three-race win streak into the Dubai Golden Shaheen at Meydan.

ARCADIA, Calif. – Fresh off a dominating win in Saturday’s Grade 2 Riyadh Dirt Sprint in Saudi Arabia, Straight No Chaser will be sent to Dubai this week in preparation for the Group 1 Golden Shaheen Sprint at Meydan Racecourse on April 5.

A trip to Meydan for the $2 million Golden Shaheen may suit Straight No Chaser more than the track in Saudi Arabia for the $2 million Riyadh Dirt Sprint, trainer Dan Blacker said in a phone interview on Sunday.

Blacker described the dirt surface in Saudi Arabia as a “deep track,” and expects a quicker surface at Meydan.

Sun, 02/23/2025 - 16:55

Kopion will miss Beholder Mile with illness

By Steve Andersen

Benoit Photo

Kopion, winner of the Grade 1 La Brea, will miss the Beholder Mile with an illness.

ARCADIA, Calif. – Kopion, the outstanding winner of two graded stakes for female sprinters at Santa Anita this winter, will miss an expected start in the Grade 1 Beholder Mile for fillies and mares on March 8 because of illness.

Trainer Richard Mandella said on Sunday that Kopion spiked a temperature of 102 degrees over the weekend. Kopion was scheduled to have a workout on Monday.

“It’s going around,” Mandella said of a barn area illness.

Sun, 02/23/2025 - 14:53

Solid field of eight drawn for Fountain of Youth showdown

By Mike Welsch

Barbara D. Livingston

Burnham Square was an impressive winner of the Holly Bull at Gulfstream last out.

HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. – Three of the top 14 3-year-olds on Daily Racing Form’s latest Derby Watch list, Burnham Square (third), Sovereignty (sixth), and River Thames (14th), are among the eight horses entered for Saturday’s $400,000 Fountain of Youth at Gulfstream Park.

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