HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. – Under normal circumstances, an undefeated 3-year-old trained by Todd Pletcher heading into an important Kentucky Derby prep like Saturday’s Grade 2 Fountain of Youth would be attracting much of the attention in the days leading up to the race.
But such is not the case with Zulu, who is taking a backseat to the more-accomplished trio of Mohaymen, Awesome Banner, and Awesome Speed in the prerace chatter.
Doctors at Highland Hospital in Oakland, Calif., revised their initial diagnosis that jockey Kyle Frey had suffered fractures to his left leg and right arm after being unseated by his mount, Pure Comedy, in Saturday’s fifth race at Golden Gate Fields.
Frey underwent a CT scan following the original X-rays that suggested the fractures. The CT scan showed the 24-year-old Frey, who won the 2011 Eclipse Award as the nation’s outstanding apprentice rider, had suffered hematomas and crush injuries to the muscles covering his femur and humerus.
Los Alamitos has amended the date of the $100,000 Los Angeles Stakes for sprinters, moving the race forward by one day to April 16.
The April 16 program, the first Saturday of the 12-day meeting, will now have two stakes, including the $100,000 Bertrando Stakes for California-breds at a mile. Because of the change, there are no stakes scheduled for April 17.
The meeting runs from April 14 to May 1.
ARCADIA, Calif. - Apprentice jockey David Lopez is unlikely to ride until early March while recovering from the effects of a spill on Feb. 12.
Lopez, 21, has not ridden since he was unseated when his mount, the 3-2 favorite Icona, collided with an injured horse in the final race on Feb. 12. Lopez was named on horses each racing day from Feb. 13 through Sunday, but was taken off his mounts by his agent, J.R. Pegram.
Pegram said on Saturday that Lopez has a target of March 3 to resume riding.
“That’s probably a good guess,” Pegram said. “He’ll take it day-by-day.”
ARCADIA, Calif .- Fast Munny, the upset winner of a maiden race on Saturday that included Ziconic, the second foal out of 2010 Horse of the Year Zenyatta, is likely to have his next start around two turns in March, trainer Craig Dollase said on Sunday.
Ziconic will also race around two turns in March, against maidens, trainer John Shirreffs said.
NEW ORLEANS – It was a bunched finish at the Risen Star, and if you’re not totally certain who among the top finishers was the best horse in the race, tune in again March 26, when at least the top three home Saturday at Fair Grounds should be back for the $1 million Louisiana Derby
Gun Runner, first by a half-length over Forevamo, came out of the race “really well,” trainer Steve Asmussen said Sunday morning, and will be pointed for the Louisiana Derby.
ARCADIA, Calif. – Phil D’Amato, the leading trainer at the current Santa Anita winter-spring meeting, plans to have a small stable of runners in Kentucky this spring.
D’Amato said on Friday he will focus on the Keeneland spring meeting from April 8-29 and the first weeks of the Churchill Downs spring meeting from April 30 to July 2. D’Amato, 39, said he plans to have “10 to 12” runners in Kentucky and will finalize the roster after Keeneland publishes its condition book in the coming weeks.
Siding Spring, who ran fifth in the Grade 3, $500,000 Southwest last Monday at Oaklawn Park in his first start since the Breeders’ Cup, will be considered for the Rebel Stakes, said trainer Mark Casse. The Grade 2, $900,000 race will be run March 19.
Siding Spring broke from the No. 11 hole in the Southwest, set the pace, and finished 6 1/4 lengths behind the winner, Suddenbreakingnews. For the effort, Siding Spring earned a Beyer Speed Figure of 83.
