Wed, 12/16/2015 - 14:18

Sutherland begins comeback aboard first-time starter

Michael Burns
Chantal Sutherland-Kruse sits in a tie for fifth in the Woodbine jockeys’ standings with five wins from 24 starts through the first three weeks of the meet.

Chantal Sutherland, who has not ridden since July 2014, is booked on one mount at Los Alamitos on Friday – the first-time starter Tribal Thunder in the sixth race.

Sutherland, 39, has been exercising horses at Los Alamitos and Santa Anita in recent months for a comeback. She plans a full-time return to riding at the Santa Anita winter-spring meeting that begins Dec. 26.

Sutherland has not ridden in Southern California since April 2014 and rode at Woodbine later that year. She is best known for winning the 2011 Santa Anita Handicap on Game On Dude.

 

Wed, 12/16/2015 - 14:18

Runhappy heads probables for Malibu

Barbara D. Livingston
Runhappy, shown training at Santa Anita on Dec. 5, is ready for the opening-day Malibu on Dec. 26.

Runhappy, the winner of the Breeders’ Cup Sprint at Keeneland on Oct. 31, is part of a solid group of out-of-state runners expected for the $300,000 Malibu Stakes at Santa Anita on Dec. 26.

The Grade 1 Malibu Stakes is run at seven furlongs for 3-year-olds and is the traditional opening-day feature of the track’s winter-spring meeting. The Dec. 26 program will include the $300,000 La Brea Stakes for 3-year-old fillies at seven furlongs.

Wed, 12/16/2015 - 14:10

Harty confident maiden Urlacher fits in Grade 1 Los Alamitos Futurity

CYPRESS, Calif. – Urlacher is expected to be the only maiden in Saturday’s $350,000 Los Alamitos Futurity, a status that is little more than a technicality to trainer Eoin Harty.

Urlacher, who must be supplemented to the Los Alamitos Futurity for $20,000, finished first in a maiden race at a mile at Del Mar on Nov. 15 but was disqualified and placed second for causing interference in the stretch.

“He knows what it’s like to win a race,” Harty said. “If he’d stayed up, people wouldn’t question why I’m running in this race.

Wed, 12/16/2015 - 13:42

Keen Ice goes out for slow breeze

Nikki Sherman
The first two early 2016 targets for Keen Ice will be the Donn Handicap in early February and the Dubai World Cup in March.

HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. – With the handicap division undergoing wholesale changes following the retirement of Honor Code, Liam’s Map, and Tonalist at the end of the season, there is plenty of room for horses like Keen Ice to position themselves near the top of the list in 2016.

Wed, 12/16/2015 - 13:24

Charles Town approved for 179 racing days in 2016

The West Virginia Racing Commission on Tuesday approved 179 racing days at Charles Town in 2016. The season will begin Jan. 7 and end Dec. 29. Racing will be held Thursday, Friday, and Saturday nights in January, February, July, and August. Wednesdays will be added during the other months.

The biggest cards of the meet will be Charles Town Classic Day on April 23, the Race for the Ribbon program on Sept. 17, and the West Virginia Breeders’ Classics on Oct. 8.

Wed, 12/16/2015 - 13:22

Meet winds down at Penn National

Penn National concludes its meet Saturday night. The Grantsville, Pa., track will begin its 2016 season Jan. 6.

Timothy Kreiser leads the trainers’ standings by a large margin. This will be his second consecutive title. Angel Rodriguez has clinched the riding crown.

Wed, 12/16/2015 - 13:20

Laurel: Rainbow 6 carryover nears $60,000

The Rainbow 6 at Laurel Park will have a carryover of $58,239 on Friday. The 10-cent bet was last hit Oct. 24 and has carried over on 22 straight cards.

The Rainbow 6 jackpot is only paid out when there is a single winning ticket. On days when there is more than one winner, 60 percent of the pool is paid out, and 40 percent of the pool is carried over.

Friday’s Rainbow 6 sequence on races 4-9 has 61 entrants and 59 betting interests.

Wed, 12/16/2015 - 12:48

Mid-Atlantic: Parx officials mull ways to strengthen program

Nikki Sherman
Ramon Preciado is on the verge of winning his second straight Parx training title.

It has been a year of change at Parx Racing, which concludes its 2015 season Tuesday and will not reopen until Feb. 13.

The seven-week break is the result of a June agreement between Parx management and the Pennsylvania Thoroughbred Horsemen’s Association that created a 32-day fall festival centered around Parx’s two $1 million races, the Grade 2 Pennsylvania Derby and the Grade 1 Cotillion. Overnight purses were doubled during the festival – which ultimately was cut short due to an equine herpesvirus quarantine – and racing dates were reduced to keep the purse fund solvent.

Wed, 12/16/2015 - 10:10

Uncle Jerry training sharply for Harty

OLDSMAR, Fla. – Trainer Eoin Harty will be well represented in the two stakes for juveniles at Tampa Bay Downs on Saturday, but one of the 2-year-olds who is training best for him, Uncle Jerry, will stay in the barn for now.

Uncle Jerry, a son of Uncle Mo, will be kept in two-turn races and likely will start in a first-level allowance before possibly aiming for the Triple Crown prep races. On Monday, Uncle Jerry breezed a half-mile in 48.40 seconds, the second-fastest of 29 works at the distance here.

Mon, 12/14/2015 - 15:32

Ride On Curlin, Eagle head Tenacious Stakes

Coady Photography
Ride On Curlin comes into Saturday's Tenacious Stakes trying to return to his early-2014 form.

NEW ORLEANS – With the recently implemented week-distant draw system in place, the six stakes to be run this Saturday at Fair Grounds were assembled last Saturday. Some of the races are decent, but with purses of just $50,000 and $60,000, the stakes offer about the same money as a maiden race over the inner dirt track at Aqueduct right now, which puts a low ceiling on their quality.