Fri, 02/24/2017 - 14:00

Conquest Farenheit will stick to turf for Pasadena Stakes

Barbara D. Livingston
Conquest Farenheit will stretch out to a mile for the Pasadena on March 19.

ARCADIA, Calif. – Conquest Farenheit is staying on turf after winning the first stakes of his career in the $81,890 Baffle Stakes for 3-year-olds on the hillside course at Santa Anita last Monday.

Trainer Peter Miller said he plans to start Conquest Farenheit in the $75,000 Pasadena Stakes for 3-year-olds at a mile on turf March 19. There are no plans to try Conquest Farenheit in a Triple Crown prep.

“He came out of the race great,” Miller said. “It looks like we’ll go to the Pasadena and stretch him out for the mile.”

Fri, 02/24/2017 - 13:56

Stellar Wind breezes five furlongs in 1:01.80

Barbara D. Livingston
No race has yet been picked out for Stellar Wind's first start of 2017.

ARCADIA, Calif. – Stellar Wind, the champion 3-year-old filly of 2015, worked five furlongs in 1:01.80 at Santa Anita on Friday, moving closer to a scheduled return to racing this spring.

As of Friday, trainer John Sadler had not finalized a race for Stellar Wind’s first start since a fourth-place finish in the Breeders’ Cup Distaff here last November. Sadler described the Grade 1 Santa Margarita Stakes at Santa Anita on March 18 as “doubtful” for Stellar Wind. He said recent wet weather in Southern California has caused some disruption in Stellar Wind’s preparation.

Fri, 02/24/2017 - 13:56

Bejarano plans to resume riding Thursday

Benoit & Associates
Rafael Bejarano is nearly fully recovered from the knee injury he sustained on Feb. 11.

ARCADIA, Calif. – Jockey Rafael Bejarano is targeting a return to riding at Santa Anita on Thursday after sustaining a minor knee injury in a spill Feb. 11.

Bejarano bruised a bone in a one-horse spill on the turf course, according to his agent, Tora Yamaguchi.

Yamaguchi said Bejarano will resume riding on Thursday to coincide with the start of a new condition book, which details races to be run at Santa Anita from Thursday through March 19.

Fri, 02/24/2017 - 11:10

Three Rules has final Fountain of Youth workout

Barbara D. Livingston
Three Rules (right) finished second to Favorable Outcome in the Swale Stakes, the first start of his 3-year-old season.

HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. – Trainer Jose Pinchin called an audible Friday, moving Three Rules’s final Fountain of Youth work up a day. The runner-up in the Grade 2 Swale responded by going five furlongs in 59.06 seconds and galloping out six furlongs in 1:13.13 over a track that has been on the deep and tiring side of late.

Luis Saez was aboard for the work and will have the mount for the first time in the March 4 Fountain of Youth, replacing Cornelio Velasquez, who has ridden Three Rules in all seven of his starts.

Fri, 02/24/2017 - 11:06

Classic Empire, Tepin keeping options open

Barbara D. Livingston
Tepin's next race may be the Jenny Wiley Stakes at Keeneland on April 15.

HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. – Classic Empire and Tepin are tentatively scheduled to breeze at the Palm Meadows training center in Boynton Beach, Fla., sometime in the middle of the coming week, trainer Mark Casse said Friday.

“Except for one day this week when the track was really wet, they’ve both trained every day, and trained well,” Casse said. “We’re pleased with how they’re both doing.”

Fri, 02/24/2017 - 10:56

Twelve coworkers team up to hit Rainbow 6

HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. – A dozen guys at the track for a company outing Thursday accomplished what hard-core and professional handicappers had been unable to do for the previous eight days: They took down the entire Rainbow 6 jackpot to the tune of $324,179.

The 12 lucky players, who work for Jim Beam and Southern Wine and Spirits out of Deerfield, Ill., put up $20 apiece to play the winning ticket, which was put together by Art Friedman, a member of the group and a regular horseplayer who resides in Jacksonville, Fla.

Fri, 02/24/2017 - 10:46

Small field for Sunday's allowance feature

NEW ORLEANS – The feature on a nine-race Sunday card at Fair Grounds is race 7, a second-level turf-sprint allowance restricted to fillies and mares and also open to $40,000 claimers. There are just seven in the main body of the field, with Cced entered for the main track only.

Fri, 02/24/2017 - 10:40

Stall won't put blinkers on Forevamo – yet

Coady Photography
Forevamo will likely next race in another allowance, trainer Al Stall said.

NEW ORLEANS – Forevamo did everything right in his Feb. 17 comeback from a six-month layoff – except win.

Pressing the pace in a two-turn, second-level dirt allowance, Forevamo roared up to the lead at the top of the stretch, then waited on rivals and was nipped on the wire by Egyptian.

“Believe me, he wasn’t tired,” trainer Al Stall said Thursday. “He was kicking and squealing back at the barn an hour later. He almost dropped his rider this morning.”

Fri, 02/24/2017 - 10:30

Fish Trappe Road points to Hot Springs Stakes at Oaklawn

Barbara D. Livingston
Dwyer Stakes winner Fish Trappe Road is expected to make his 4-year-old debut in Oaklawn's Hot Spring Stakes.

NEW ORLEANS – Fish Trappe Road, who turned into one of the better 3-year-old dirt milers in the country last year, is nearing his 4-year-old debut, trainer Bret Calhoun said.

Last seen finishing third going 1 1/8 miles around two turns in the Oklahoma Derby on Sept. 25, Fish Trappe Road is working steadily at the Evangeline Downs Training Center. He posted a bullet five-furlong workout in 1:00.80 on Feb. 18 and is expected to race March 11 at Oaklawn Park in the $125,000 Hot Springs Stakes over six furlongs.

Thu, 02/23/2017 - 15:48

Hot City Girl pointing to Correction Stakes

Joe Labozzetta/NYRA
Owner Sheila Rosenblum must decide whether Hot City Girl should continue racing or become a broodmare after winning the Broadway under Manny Franco.

OZONE PARK, N.Y. – Hot City Girl, who won last Saturday’s Broadway Stakes, will get at least one more race and will point to the $125,000 Correction Stakes at Aqueduct on March 18, trainer Linda Rice said Thursday.

Rice said owner Sheila Rosenblum has not committed to racing Hot City Girl the entire year and is taking it one race at a time.