Favorite Tale has been working lights out at Parx since his third-place finish in the Grade 1 Alfred G. Vanderbilt Handicap at Saratoga on Aug. 1, but trainer Lupe Preciado has been in search of a race that will serve as a bridge to the Breeders’ Cup Sprint at Keeneland.
It appears he has found his spot in the fifth race on Saturday at Parx.
Work All Week took a somewhat unorthodox route while preparing for last year’s Breeders’ Cup, carefully picking his spots while barnstorming the country before ultimately earning a division championship with his half-length victory over Secret Circle in the Sprint.
Classy Class is scheduled to arrive at Remington Park from Maryland on Friday for the Grade 3, $400,000 Oklahoma Derby, trainer Kiaran McLaughlin said Wednesday. Classy Class will start as one of the top contenders in the Oklahoma Derby, which will be showcased on a special Sunday afternoon card.
ELMONT, N.Y. – Trainers Chad Brown and Todd Pletcher will each send out a pair of juveniles in the Grade 3, $200,000 Pilgrim Stakes, a stepping-stone to the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf.
Brown sends out Eidmilaad, a debut winner at Saratoga, and Ray’s the Bar, a debut winner at Ascot who will be making his first start in the U.S.
Pletcher sends out Azar, the upset winner of the With Anticipation Stakes at Saratoga, and Dissident, who was third to Eidmilaad in an Aug. 30 maiden race.
ELMONT, N.Y. – Classic Point, away from the races since March, when she won the Grade 2 Inside Information Stakes, returns in Saturday’s Grade 2, $300,000 Gallant Bloom Handicap seeking her fourth consecutive victory.
Trainer Jimmy Jerkens said Classic Point had some issues with tying up internally when she returned from Florida this winter, but she appears to be in good shape now.
“She’s the heaviest I’ve ever seen her,” said Jerkens, who credited his assistant Steve Moyer with getting the filly “pointed in the right direction.”
ELMONT, N.Y. – Rock Fall looks to be a solid favorite in Saturday’s Grade 1, $400,000 Vosburgh Stakes at six furlongs. He has won six straight races, including the Alfred G. Vanderbilt by a nose over The Big Beast.
But trainer David Jacobson isn’t conceding anything to Rock Fall. Jacobson will send out Salutos Amigos and Stallwalkin’ Dude in the Vosburgh, which awards the winner a fees-paid berth in the Breeders’ Cup Sprint at Keeneland on Oct. 31.
“Put it this way: If Salutos Amigos shows up with his ‘A’ game, it’s going to be a good race,” Jacobson said.
ELMONT, N.Y. – Hot Stones, the dominant 9 1/4-length winner of the Saratoga Dew Stakes for New York-breds at Saratoga, will take on Grade 1 winners Wedding Toast and Curalina in Saturday’s Grade 1, $400,000 Beldame Stakes.
Hot Stones tried Grade 1 company last year and finished last in the Grade 1 Ballerina at Saratoga. She wrenched an ankle in that race and, after two losses to begin her season, has won her last two impressively.
“I’ll take the blame for her two defeats this year,” trainer Bruce Levine said. “She just wasn’t as fit as I thought she was.”
ELMONT, N.Y. – In the Grade 1 Manhattan, it was Slumber over Big Blue Kitten. In the Grade 1 United Nations, it was Big Blue Kitten over Slumber. In the Grade 1 Arlington Million, it was a near miss for Big Blue Kitten and annihilation for Slumber.
On Saturday, Big Blue Kitten and Slumber will be in the starting gate together for the fourth consecutive time when they face the surging Red Rifle, the consistent Twilight Eclipse, and four others in the Grade 1, $600,000 Joe Hirsch Turf Classic at Belmont Park.
For many of the elite grass runners preparing for the Breeders’ Cup Filly and Mare Turf at Keeneland on Oct. 31, this weekend is a time for workouts leading to their final prep races next week. But not all of the top prospects are staying in the barn during the afternoon.
Undrafted and jockey Frankie Dettori will be partnered for the Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint, trainer Wesley Ward said. The Grade 1, $1 million race will be run Oct. 31 at Keeneland.
Dettori guided Undrafted to a half-length win in the Group 1 Diamond Jubilee Stakes on June 20 at Ascot. Undrafted has started once since that six-furlong race, finishing second in the $300,000 More Than Ready Mile on Sept. 5 at Kentucky Downs. Ward said the horse’s next out will come in the Breeders’ Cup.
“He’s going to train into it,” said Ward.
