Wed, 08/28/2024 - 13:50

Rebel Red to make first start since losing an eye

Barbara D. Livingston

Rebel Red wins a first-level allowance in mid-July. Since the race, he lost an eye in a stall accident. He is scheduled to run Sunday in the Bernard Baruch.

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – When Rebel Red runs in the $150,000 Bernard Baruch Stakes on Sunday he will be making his first start since losing his left eye in a stall accident.

There have been some horses who have run well in their careers with just one eye, such as Pollard’s Vision, Patch, and Un Ojo.

“Horses that I know of always ran without an eye and they adjusted to it,” trainer Cherie DeVaux said. “This is a little bit different because he had run with full vision in both eyes. This is a significant change.

Wed, 08/28/2024 - 13:50

DeVaux hoping to end meet in same manner she started it

By David Grening

Barbara D. Livingston

According to Cherie DeVaux, Pyrenees has been a much more willing competitior this season at age 4. He runs in Sunday’s Jockey Club Gold Cup.

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – If the last week of the meet could go as well as the first week did, trainer Cherie DeVaux could see her Saratoga summer go from good to great.

DeVaux won with four of her first 10 starters during opening week, but has gone winless with 18 runners since. However, DeVaux had six seconds and four thirds from those 18 starters, including runner-up finishes in the Grade 2 Shuvee (Shotgun Hottie), Grade 1 Fourstardave (More Than Looks ), and Grade 2 Lake Placid (She Looks Pretty). Vahva finished third in last Saturday’s Grade 1 Ballerina.

Tue, 08/27/2024 - 19:48

Hernandez confident Adare Manor can beat boys, get Pacific Classic distance

By Steve Andersen

Benoit Photo

Adare Manor makes her first start against the boys and at 1 1/4 miles in the Pacific Classic.

In 11 starts since early 2023, the brilliant mare Adare Manor has been ridden only by Juan Hernandez.

Through that span, Hernandez, the leading rider in Southern California, has guided Adare Manor to eight wins in 11 starts, including three Grade 1 victories at Del Mar and Oaklawn Park.

The success has left Hernandez confident Adare Manor can handle two challenges for the first time in Saturday’s Grade 1 Pacific Classic at Del Mar – facing males and racing at 1 1/4 miles.

Tue, 08/27/2024 - 17:32

Horseshoe Indianapolis cancels Wednesday card due to heat warning

By Matt Hegarty

Horseshoe Indianapolis in Shelbyville, Ind., has canceled a 10-race card scheduled to be run on Wednesday, citing high temperatures throughout the Midwest.

In a statement, the track said the decision to cancel was made in consultation with horsemen representing both Thoroughbred and Quarter Horses and that the cancellation was a “joint decision among all groups.”

The heat index is forecast to exceed 105 degrees on Wednesday afternoon, which the track said was “an unsafe category.” The card’s first race had a post time of 2:10 p.m. Eastern.

Tue, 08/27/2024 - 14:13

Adare Manor entered to take on boys in Pacific Classic

By Steve Andersen

Benoit Photo

Adare Manor will face males for the first time in Saturday's Grade 1 Pacific Classic.

Adare Manor, the leading older female in California, will race against males for the first time in her career in Saturday’s Grade 1 Pacific Classic at Del Mar.

Trainer Bob Baffert, who has won the $1 million Pacific Classic a record seven times, said Tuesday morning that he plans to run Adare Manor and Reincarnate.

Adare Manor will be ridden by Juan Hernandez, while Kazushi Kimura has the mount on Reincarnate, Baffert said.

Tue, 08/27/2024 - 13:43

Kempton fails out-of-competition test, not entered in All American Futurity

By Steve Andersen

Kempton, winner of the $1.08 million Heritage Place Futurity on June 1 at Remington Park, was not entered in Monday’s $3 million All American Futurity at The Downs at Albuquerque after failing a recent out-of-competition test, according to Izzy Trejo, executive director of the New Mexico State Racing Commission.

Kempton, unbeaten in four starts, was rated as a leading contender for Quarter Horse racing’s richest race on the strength of wins in the Heritage Place Futurity and a time trial for the All American Futurity on Aug. 10.

Tue, 08/27/2024 - 10:17

Hernandez fined, suspended for Thorpedo Anna ride

By David Grening

Barbara D. Livingston

Brian Hernandez Jr. rides Thorpedo Anna (No. 1) to a second-place finish in the Travers Stakes.

Jockey Brian Hernandez Jr. was fined $1,250 and will serve a one-day suspension issued by the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority for using his crop more than six times on Thorpedo Anna in last Saturday’s Grade 1, $1.25 million Travers Stakes at Saratoga.

Hernandez used his whip seven times, according to a ruling issued by HISA and signed by Victor Escobar, the New York Racing Association steward. Rules instituted by HISA in 2023 limit to six the number of times a jockey may strike a horse with a crop.

Hernandez will serve his suspension on Labor Day.

Mon, 08/26/2024 - 13:50

Bigger purses attract European runners for this year

By Marcus Hersh

Coady Photography

Kentucky Downs kicks off their seven-day meet Thursday, with a total of $37 million in purses.

It’s raining money in little Franklin, Ky., population 10,000, situated not especially close to anything.

Thanks to a casino, the Mint Gaming Hall, humming away on the property, the astronomical purses Kentucky Downs offered the last several years somehow have grown even higher for 2024. The track intends to pay out roughly $37 million during a seven-day meeting that begins Thursday.

Mon, 08/26/2024 - 13:40

Rispoli, Maldonado leaving town for rich Kentucky Downs races

By Steve Andersen

Benoit Photo

Jockey Umberto Rispoli will join fellow jockey Edwin Maldonado for a trip to Kentucky Downs this weekend.

DEL MAR, Calif. – Umberto Rispoli and Edwin Maldonado, two of the top six riders at the Del Mar summer meeting, will miss Saturday’s blockbuster program at Del Mar to ride at Kentucky Downs.

The Del Mar program on Saturday is the richest of the meeting, with five stakes, including the Grade 1 Pacific Classic, a $1 million race at 1 1/4 miles that is a key prep for the $7 million Breeders’ Cup Classic at Del Mar on Nov. 2.

Mon, 08/26/2024 - 13:40

Bran expected to make start in Del Mar Mile

By Steve Andersen

Barbara D. Livingston

Bran is expected to make his next start in the Del Mar Mile.

DEL MAR, Calif. – At this time of year in recent seasons, Bran, the 6-year-old gelding trained by John Sadler, would have been on a plane for a stakes appearance at Kentucky Downs or being prepared for a turf sprint.

This summer, Bran is thriving in one-mile races, leaving him a contender for Saturday’s Grade 2 Del Mar Mile on turf.

It may be a temporary assignment. A lucrative turf sprint next month is another possibility, Sadler said over the weekend.

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