ARCADIA, Calif. – Leading jockey Rafael Bejarano will begin a three-day suspension Sunday for causing interference in a race on March 20.
Bejarano’s suspension includes racing on April 7-8. Bejarano has one mount Sunday in the $100,000 Tokyo City Cup on Big John B. Bejarano can ride the Grade 3 Tokyo City Cup because the race is graded and exempt from routine suspensions.
ARCADIA, Calif. – The longshots Trinitas Soldier and Kay Kay are under consideration for, respectively, the $1 million Santa Anita Derby and $400,000 Santa Anita Oaks on April 9, according to racing officials.
Trinitas Soldier was second in a $75,000 claimer for maidens March 20. Trainer Jorge Periban said on Friday that a decision on whether to take a chance in the Grade 1 Santa Anita Derby at 1 1/8 miles will be made in consultation with owner Zephyr Racing.
ARCADIA, Calif. – Beholder, the three-time champion, moved closer to her 2016 debut in early May with a five-furlong breeze in 1:00 at Santa Anita on Friday.
Ridden by Gary Stevens, Beholder began behind a stablemate, and the pair caught two runners from another stable in early stretch who had started several lengths in front. The quartet ran through the stretch together, but Beholder was the only one of the four to have her work recognized as “breezing,” meaning it was done very easily.
ARCADIA, Calif. – Swipe, unraced since finishing second to Nyquist in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile last October, is likely to have his 3-year-old debut in the $150,000 Lexington Stakes at Keeneland on April 16.
The Grade 3 Lexington Stakes is run at 1 1/16 miles, a distance that trainer Keith Desormeaux said holds more appeal than the 1 1/8-mile major stakes for 3-year-olds.
“It’s not as tough as some of the Grade 1 races at a mile and an eighth,” Desormeaux said on Thursday. “This is more sensible.”
HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. – The two-turn experiment now over, Awesome Banner will concentrate on sprinting for the remainder of the year, trainer Stanley Gold said this week. Awesome Banner finished far back in both the Fountain of Youth and Tampa Bay Derby after opening his career with three one-sided sprint victories, including a five-length triumph in the Grade 2 Swale.
Awesome Banner is being pointed for one of the Summit of Speed races at Gulfstream on July 2, Gold said.
The first 2-year-old races of the year in Kentucky are scheduled for next Friday and next Sunday at Keeneland, and the usual suspects are geared up for big showings. Trainer Wesley Ward has become the perennial fan favorite in this category, but word on the street is that Steve Asmussen and Mark Casse also will have an impact on the ever-popular 4 1/2-furlong races.
“We’re loaded for bear,” said Ward. “It’s an exciting time.”
The Grade 1 Blue Grass Stakes is usually the highlight every spring at Keeneland, but there’s a race threatening to overshadow it when the 16-day meet opens next weekend.
The Grade 1 Ashland Stakes is shaping up with one of its best renewals, with Cathryn Sophia, Rachel’s Valentina, and Carina Mia among the 3-year-old fillies expected for the 1 1/16-mile race, according to Tiffany Bourque, the new stakes coordinator at the Lexington, Ky., track.
ARCADIA, Calif. – Paddy’s Day, a finalist for 2015 Arabian-bred Horse of the Year, will be favored to win for the 13th time in his 17-race career in Saturday’s $100,000 Sheikha Fatima Bint Mubarak Darley Award Stakes at Santa Anita.
The Darley Award Stakes is financed by the Sheikh Mansoor Racing Festival of Abu Dhabi, which is hosting the Darley Awards to honor the Arabian champions of 2015 in Hollywood on Friday evening.
The Darley Award Stakes is run at 1 1/16 miles and drew a field of 11, including Jewell AA, a 4-year-old filly who has won three stakes.
ARCADIA, Calif. – Blue Tone has not raced in more than nine months, which is of little concern to trainer Bob Hess Jr. in advance of Saturday’s $75,000 Santana Mile at Santa Anita.
“I think he’s better than ever and 100 percent,” Hess said. “We have no excuse going in if we’re not good enough.”
Blue Tone won the 2015 Santana Mile, his only victory in six starts last year. Blue Tone has not raced since finishing sixth in the Grade 1 Triple Bend Stakes for sprinters here last June. Last summer, Hess decided Blue Tone needed a rest.
