BOYNTON BEACH, Fla. – Classic Empire, who missed a work when an abscess popped out the heel of his right front hoof days after his third-place finish in the Holy Bull at Gulfstream last month, is back galloping at Palm Meadows. Trainer Mark Casse said he is hoping to breeze Classic Empire “in the next few days,” but first wants the warm weather to dissipate.
“I just don’t think he likes the warmer weather,” Casse said Wednesday. “I think once he gets to Kentucky, he’ll blossom.”
BOYNTON BEACH, Fla. – The setbacks incurred by both Classic Empire and McCraken in recent weeks here in south Florida give them the opportunity for just one more prep for the May 6 Kentucky Derby, and as of Wednesday, there was a real possibility that both could wind up in the Blue Grass Stakes at Keeneland on April 8.
Charles Town has a reputation as fertile ground for apprentice riders. Trainers, eager for any advantage they can get in sprint races as short as 4 1/2 furlongs, are willing to give live mounts to inexperienced jockeys in exchange for getting five to seven pounds off their horses.
Many of those young jockeys have succeeded, most prominently Jose Montano, who won an Eclipse Award as leading apprentice rider in 2012.
HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. – Trainer Tony Dutrow said Wednesday that Mo Town was scheduled to arrive at his Payson Park base from Fair Grounds later in the day and that he is withholding any judgment on the colt’s disappointing performance in the Risen Star last weekend.
“I want to give everyone a detailed catch-up on Monday after I’ve spent some time with him over the weekend,” said Dutrow. “But there are no red flags. I left him there Sunday in New Orleans, and everything was fine.”
Finger Lakes racetrack and its horsemen have reached a one-year deal that will clear the way for a 145-day live race meet this year starting on April 22, officials for the two sides said on Tuesday, but uncertainty over the long-term future of the track continues to loom.
HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. – McCraken, the unbeaten colt who ranks as the favorite for the May 6 Kentucky Derby, will miss his next scheduled prep race, the March 11 Tampa Bay Derby, after sustaining what trainer Ian Wilkes described as a “very minor” injury to his left front ankle.
All was fine for McCraken following a Monday breeze at the Palm Meadows training center, but “we noticed he was a little off this morning,” Wilkes said Tuesday.
ARCADIA, Calif. – Arrogate worked like the superstar he has become on Monday at Santa Anita and will make his next start March 25 in the Grade 1, $10 million Dubai World Cup.
Midnight Storm also worked like a star Monday at Santa Anita. The presumptive favorite for the Grade 1, $750,000 Santa Anita Handicap on March 11, he may also run in Dubai, which would preclude a start in the Big Cap.
Racer pulled off arguably the biggest upset in Arkansas-bred racing in the last three years when he won the $100,000 Nodouble Stakes over Weast Hill on Saturday at Oaklawn Park. Weast Hill had won his prior seven local starts, a streak that began in 2015.
Now, the horses are headed for a rematch in the $100,000 Arkansas Breeders’ Stakes on April 8 at Oaklawn, their trainers said.
Racer took the Nodouble in wire-to-wire fashion, capitalizing on a sharp break under Jon Court and playing catch me if you can with Weast Hill.
HOT SPRINGS, Ark. – Dazzling Gem could be coming home soon.
The horse, who launched his career at Oaklawn Park last season with back-to-back wins, is being pointed to the track’s $250,000 Essex Handicap, trainer Brad Cox said Monday. The 1 1/16-mile race is March 18.
Dazzling Gem, who has been wintering at Fair Grounds, finished third, beaten a half-length, in the Grade 3, $125,000 Mineshaft Handicap last Saturday. For the effort, he earned a Beyer Speed Figure of 93.
“I thought he ran a winning race,” Cox said. “He ran really well.
