Breeders’ Cup Juvenile winner Classic Empire, named the champion 2-year-old male Saturday night at the Eclipse Awards dinner, is set to make his first start as a 3-year-old in the Grade 2, $350,000 Holy Bull Stakes at Gulfstream on Feb. 4 according to his trainer, Mark Casse.
Classic Empire worked five furlongs from the gate in 1:00.75 Saturday morning, his third work at Palm Meadows this month. He is scheduled to work again next weekend.
“As long as everything’s good he’s a go,” Casse said.
Shaman Ghost didn’t get a chance to run against Arrogate and California Chrome in the Breeders’ Cup Classic after running a slight temperature just before the race, but he’s set to meet them Saturday in the $12 million Pegasus World Cup at Gulfstream after working a half-mile in 47.60 seconds at Palm Meadows on Sunday.
“He went nice, especially for going by himself,” said his trainer, Jimmy Jerkens. “Usually you have to ride him a lot.”
BOYNTON BEACH, Fla. – Fresh off a second straight Eclipse Award as champion female turf horse Saturday night, Tepin on Sunday morning was preparing for her 2017 campaign with a half-mile grass workout at Palm Meadows in 47.80 seconds that left trainer Mark Casse believing the Grade 3, $150,000 Endeavour Stakes at Tampa Bay Downs on Feb. 11 is within reach for her first start of the year.
ARCADIA, Calif. - Finest City, the champion female sprinter of 2016 and the winner of Saturday’s $200,000 Santa Monica Stakes at Santa Anita, may appear in one of several stakes for fillies and mares in the next few months.
Trainer Ian Kruljac said Sunday that he is considering two-turn races on dirt and turf for Finest City, who won the Santa Monica Stakes at seven furlongs in her first start since a victory in the Breeders’ Cup Filly and Mare Sprint here last November.
ARCADIA, Calif. - Santa Anita canceled its eight-race Sunday program in anticipation of a day of heavy rain and wind, track senior vice-president Joe Morris said.
The decision was made shortly before 8 a.m., more than four hours before first post time of 12:30 p.m. This is the second time this month Santa Anita has lost a racing program to weather. The Jan. 12 card was canceled because of a torrential downpour early that morning.
Morris said weather forecasts indicated that rain would begin at midday Sunday and continue until evening.
ARCADIA, Calif.- For three consecutive weekends this month, Arrogate has worked prior to the first race at Santa Anita. With each workout, trainer Bob Baffert has expressed confidence Arrogate is on schedule for the $12 million Pegasus World Cup at Gulfstream Park on Jan. 28.
After Arrogate worked six furlongs in 1:12.13 at Santa Anita late Saturday morning, Baffert said the world-class 4-year-old colt is prepared for the world’s richest race. Recent wet weather in Southern California that has forced changes in Arrogate’s daily training schedule will not be an excuse.
HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. – With the richest, and last, race of California Chrome’s career a week away in the $12 million Pegasus World Cup here at Gulfstream Park, trainer Art Sherman and his son and assistant, Alan, were so focused on that goal that the fact California Chrome recorded the final workout of his career on Saturday morning didn’t fully hit them.
Though Alan Sherman said he thought a bit about it Friday night -- “It is weird,” he said – the upcoming week had him energized.
“We could win two Eclipse Awards and a $12 million race in a week,” he said.
Perry Ouzts, the 62-year-old jockey who ranks 11th all time among North American jockeys with 6,715 career victories, was fortunate to escape with no more than body soreness after being unseated from his mount, Toston, a little more than a quarter-mile into Thursday’s sixth race at Turfway Park.
The incident occurred entering the turn of the six-furlong race when Toston unexpectedly propped, sending Ouzts tumbling over his mount. With Toston last at the time, there were no trailing horses to trample the rider.
Boyd Gaming announced Thursday that it has completed $45 million in expansion and improvement projects at Delta Downs. The expansion is led by a 167-room hotel tower and a restaurant that overlooks the track.
Boyd is the parent company of the Vinton, La., racetrack, hotel, and casino.
Texas Chrome, the winner of last year’s Grade 3 Super Derby at Louisiana Downs and the Grade 3 Oklahoma Derby at Remington Park, will be honored as the Texas Thoroughbred Association’s horse of the year during a June 24 banquet, the organization announced. The event will be held at Lone Star Park near Dallas.
