FLORENCE, Ky. – Mike Maker and Wesley Ward have their better horses in Florida at this time of year, but they still cast major shadows at Turfway.
Maker and Ward figure as the leading trainers at the holiday meet, which runs through Dec. 31, not only because they have greater numbers at their disposal than most of their training brethren but also because they frequently drop horses in class, not worrying whether they lose them via the claim box.
FLORENCE, Ky. – Turfway Park officials are hoping that their marquee race by any other name will be just as sweet – because it’s getting yet another name change.
The $500,000 Jack Cincinnati Casino Spiral Stakes is the new name for the traditional Turfway showcase for 3-year-olds. Inaugurated in 1972, the Grade 3 race remains a key prep for the Kentucky Derby, with its 46th running on March 25, 2017, once again being worth 50 eligibility points to the winner.
Jockey Richard Eramia, who had four wins last Saturday night at Remington Park, will head to Fair Grounds after the Oklahoma City season closes Dec. 11, he said on Wednesday.
The move to Remington has been a circuit change for Eramia, who traditionally rides some at Delta Downs in the fall following the close of Louisiana Downs, and then shifts his tack full time to Fair Grounds.
OZONE PARK, N.Y. – My Impression, the half-length winner of the Winter Memories Stakes at Aqueduct on Nov. 25, is being considered for the Grade 1 American Oaks at Santa Anita on Dec. 31, trainer Shug McGaughey said Wednesday.
Apple Betty, beaten a nose against older fillies and mares in the Dowager Stakes at Keeneland in October, is also being considered for the American Oaks, McGaughey said.
Both fillies arrived Tuesday at McGaughey’s winter base of Payson Park in Indiantown, Fla., and he will evaluate their training before making a final decision.
OZONE PARK, N.Y. – Saturday’s Grade 3, $250,000 Go for Wand at Aqueduct is headlined by a trio of New York-bred fillies in search of their first open-company stakes victory.
Bar of Gold, Highway Star, and Wonder Gal were among the seven entered Wednesday for the one-turn-mile Go for Wand, which will be the final graded stakes of the year on this circuit.
Karl Broberg is making a push to pull a rare double before the calendar year closes. He has a strong chance to rank as North America’s leading owner and leading trainer in wins in 2016.
Broberg is already poised to take down his third North American training title with a 53-win advantage in the standings heading into Wednesday. The challenge will be for leading owner. Broberg, who is the majority owner of the stable End Zone Athletics, was tied with Michelle Helms atop the standings with 132 wins, according to Equibase.
Favorites could be formidable in a pair of one-mile Louisiana-bred maiden races for 2-year-olds on an allowance-less nine-race card Friday at Fair Grounds.
Set Hut was a strong second debuting at Delta Downs on Nov. 2 and probably will win race 5 with any sort of improvement. He is campaigned by Set Hut LLC, the province of the Delhomme family, whose most prominent member is former National Football League quarterback Jake Delhomme. Ida’s Warrior, another second-time starter, makes his Louisiana-bred debut for trainer Mark Casse and could prove the main competition.
Farrell, who won the Grade 2 Golden Rod Stakes in visually impressive fashion Saturday at Churchill Downs, will take the extreme southern route on her quest to make the 2017 Kentucky Oaks.
Trainer Wayne Catalano runs winter strings at Oaklawn Park and Fair Grounds and said Tuesday that Farrell is headed to New Orleans and will begin her 3-year-old campaign there next year.
“They’ve got a nice program for 3-year-old fillies,” Catalano said.
When the Breeders’ Cup was run at Santa Anita last month, jockey Drayden Van Dyke left on a two-day trip to Churchill Downs. He rode three winners there Nov. 4 and 5, taking advantage of the absence of several of Kentucky’s leading riders – who were at Santa Anita.
Van Dyke immediately returned to California and rode a winner on the final day of the Santa Anita autumn meeting, Nov. 6. In recent weeks, Van Dyke, 22, has stayed close to California and is in the midst of an outstanding autumn meeting at Del Mar.
HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. – Ken Ramsey has been the Claiming Crown’s biggest supporter over the past 10 years. And the well-known and gregarious owner-breeder will be putting both his horses and his money where his mouth is once again on Saturday when the Claiming Crown returns to Gulfstream Park for a fifth consecutive season as the focal point on opening day of the 2016-17 championship meeting.
