ARCADIA, Calif. – The 3-year-old fillies Unique Bella and Paradise Woods may be seeing quite a lot of each other in coming months.
After finishing first and second in the Grade 1 La Brea Stakes at seven furlongs at Santa Anita on Tuesday, Unique Bella and Paradise Woods are likely to meet again in the Grade 2 Santa Maria Stakes at 1 1/16 miles on Feb. 10, their trainers said on Wednesday.
HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. – Trainer Dale Romans said he plans to unveil the first of his talented 3-year-olds of 2018 when he sends out the unbeaten Dak Attack in the one-mile Mucho Macho Man here Jan. 6. Dak Attack has not started since closing his 2-year-old campaign with an easy victory in the Ellis Park Juvenile on Aug. 20.
“We’ll run Dak Attack in the first one and then figure out what to do with the others,” Romans said.
HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. – Saturday’s card at Gulfstream includes five turf stakes, led by the two-mile H. Allen Jerkens, which lured a field of eight, topped by the Grade 1 Canadian International winner Bullards Alley; California invader Infobedad, runner-up in the Grade 2 Marathon at Del Mar on Breeders’ Cup weekend; and the Shug McGaughey-trained and ever-improving Gold Shield.
The six stakes on Christmastide Stakes Day at Laurel Park on Saturday have come up strong, especially the $100,000 Dave’s Friend, carded as race 8.
The six-furlong Dave’s Friend has drawn a field of 10, but Do Share, who won the Gravesend at Aqueduct last Saturday, will be scratched, according to trainer Linda Rice. That still leaves a salty field that includes Recruiting Ready, Afleet Willy, Favorite Tale, El Areeb, and Struth.
This has been a career year for Claudio Gonzalez, who enters the final weekend of the Laurel Park fall meet not only on the verge of winning the training title, but, more importantly, topping the 2017 standings in Maryland.
Each year, the Maryland Jockey Club recognizes the jockey and trainer with the most combined wins at the season’s three Laurel meets and Pimlico’s spring session. Kieron Magee has won the overall title the past three years, but trails Gonzalez 81-73 coming into the Friday card.
There is a $10,245 carryover in the late pick five at Laurel on Friday. There is also a Rainbow 6 carryover of $3,157.
In race 5, a $15,000 claiming race that begins the pick five, Mythos, Matador, and Stone, who is part of an Anthony Farrior-trained entry, figure strongly.
The late-running Heaven’s Door should get a good pace setup in race 6, a $5,000 claiming sprint. Races 7 and 9 are wide-open maiden-claiming races.
HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. – A three-other-than optional-claiming race is not often thought of as a prep for a $16 million event like the Pegasus World Cup. But that could be the case for the steadily improving Singing Bullet, a homebred who just happens to be owned by the man who conceived the Pegasus World Cup, Frank Stronach.
ARCADIA, Calif. – Santa Anita drew an ontrack crowd of 40,723 for Tuesday’s opening day of the winter-spring meeting and took in $17,279,161 in wagers from all sources, according to figures released by the track.
Last year, 46,514 attended opening day of the meeting on a Monday. The last time the meeting opened on a Tuesday, in 2006, 32,391 attended.
The 2016 opening day had an all-sources handle of $18,363,495, 6 percent more than on Tuesday. Handle Tuesday was 16 percent higher than the 2006 opening day all-sources handle of $14,940,501.
Jockey Mike Luzzi, a mainstay on the New York Racing Association circuit for more than two decades, will be moving his tack to Oaklawn Park this winter and start riding there when that meet opens on Jan. 12.
Luzzi, 48, was listed to ride one horse at Aqueduct on Thursday, but has already taken off that mount as he plans to start the drive from Long Island to Oaklawn that day and begin getting on horses over the weekend.
HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. – It might have been a surprise to most of the experts when Luis Saez unseated five-time reigning Gulfstream Park riding champion Javier Castellano to win the 2016-17 Championship meet jockey title. But it certainly will not come as a surprise to anyone if Saez repeats the feat this winter, especially with the defending champ having gotten off to a red-hot start with 24 victories over the first 14 days of the session.
