SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – Despite its hefty $1.25 million purse and the allure of a fees-paid berth in the $6 million Breeders’ Cup Classic in the fall, Saturday’s Grade 1 Whitney Stakes at Saratoga drew only a six-horse field.
Perhaps the presence of Frosted has something to do with that.
SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – The first three finishers from last month’s 1 1/16-mile Mother Goose at Belmont Park – Off the Tracks, Lewis Bay, and Lightstream – will meet again at seven furlongs in Saturday’s Grade 1 Test Stakes at Saratoga.
Making her fourth start, Lightstream suffered her first loss in the Grade 1 Mother Goose. She was beaten 4 1/2 lengths by Off the Tracks and a length by Lewis Bay. But trainer Brian Lynch is confident that Lightstream can turn the tables on both rivals while turning back in distance for the Test.
DEL MAR, Calif. – The maiden Champagne Room was supplemented to Saturday’s $200,000 Sorrento Stakes for 2-year-old fillies on Wednesday at a cost of $2,000. For trainer Peter Eurton, making the investment was an easy decision.
“She’s doing too good,” he said.
Champagne Room will be part of a small field in the Grade 2 Sorrento Stakes, which is run at 6 1/2 furlongs. The race is expected to be led by Miss Southern Miss, the runner-up in the Landaluce Stakes at Santa Anita on July 9.
DEL MAR, Calif. – Melatonin, the winner of the Santa Anita Handicap and Gold Cup at Santa Anita earlier this year, will miss the $1 million Pacific Classic at Del Mar on Aug. 20 because of a persistent illness, trainer David Hofmans said on Wednesday.
Hofmans expressed concern last weekend that Melatonin would not have sufficient time to be ready for the Pacific Classic.
Noteworthy Peach, the champion Maryland-bred 3-year-old male of 2015, bounced back from his first start following a five-month layoff to win an off-the-turf optional-claiming race at Laurel Park last Saturday. Noteworthy Peach had finished fifth on July 10.
A son of Read the Footnotes trained by Gary Capuano, Noteworthy Peach is now 5 for 12 in his career. Last year, he won the Jennings Handicap for statebreds and was second against open company in the Federico Tesio Stakes.
A lot of water has flown down the Ohio River since Ken McPeek won the Groupie Doll Stakes at Ellis Park for the first time.
McPeek won the 2002 running of what then was known as the Gardenia Stakes with a filly named Minister’s Baby. And just as he did 14 years ago, McPeek will be watching Saturday from his summer base, Saratoga, when Kathballu looks to give the 54-year-old trainer a record-tying third victory in the Grade 3, $100,000 Groupie Doll.
Trainer Jason Servis and owner-breeder Dennis Drazin ran out of time to get Sunny Ridge a prep race for the Grade 1 Haskell Invitational and were forced to go into the 1 1/8-mile race off a five-month layoff. As it turns out, Sunny Ridge’s third-place Haskell finish may set him up nicely for his next start.
Under a trouble-free ride by jockey Nik Juarez, Sunny Ridge raced behind the leaders on the far turn and then finished bravely to nail Nyquist for third in deep stretch of Sunday’s Haskell.
We’re All Set will go for his sixth victory in 10 starts since being claimed by trainer Peter Walder when the 5-year-old Florida-bred drops in for a $62,500 claiming tag in the Friday feature at Gulfstream Park in south Florida.
We’re All Set was 1 for 26 in his career when Walder claimed him for $25,000 for a three-man partnership in March 2015 at Gulfstream.
“He’s my favorite horse in the barn,” said Walder. “He has a huge heart and will to win, but more importantly, he won the day I got married [last Sept. 7]. That really got his roll started.”
DEL MAR, Calif. – Conquest Cobra, who could have been claimed for $40,000 in May, $50,000 in June, and $62,500 in July, won for the second straight time last Saturday, this time while using an allowance condition, and he’ll be headed for a stakes race next, trainer Vladimir Cerin said.
The options, Cerin said, are the Grade 2, $200,000 Pat O’Brien at seven furlongs Aug. 27 and the $75,000 Harry Brubaker at one mile Aug. 24. Conquest Cobra won on Saturday going seven furlongs but won going a mile in his prior start.
DEL MAR, Calif. – Victories by Chasing Aces and Big League in 2-year-old maiden races during the first weeks of the meet have put trainer Peter Miller in position to sweep the graded stakes for 2-year-old males at Del Mar.
Big League, a son of Speightstown, won his debut last Saturday by 3 1/4 lengths and will come right back in the Grade 2, $200,000 Best Pal Stakes on Aug. 13, Miller said.
“He won pretty easy,” Miller said. “The race didn’t appear to take anything out of him.”
