When Chicago-based trainer Chris Block sent out Sweet Luca to a 13-1 upset Monday in the Kentucky Downs Turf Dash, it kept his record perfect in this unusual respect: All five of his Kentucky Downs stakes winners have been Illinois-breds ineligible for the rich Kentucky Thoroughbred Development Fund bonuses.
Block’s prior winners were Fort Prado, 2009 Turf Dash; Never Retreat, 2010 Ladies Turf; Ioya Bigtime, 2012 Kentucky Cup Turf; and Suntracer, 2014 Kentucky Turf Cup.
The Pennsylvania Derby didn’t get its big horse, American Pharoah, but in recent years that has been the exception rather than the rule. The same holds true for the Grade 1 Cotillion.
Last year, California Chrome made his first start following the Belmont Stakes in the Pennsylvania Derby. He finished sixth behind the front-running Bayern, the eventual Breeders’ Cup Classic winner. At year’s end, California Chrome was voted Horse of the Year and champion 3-year-old male.
LOUISVILLE, Ky. – With their final prep races for the Breeders’ Cup two weeks away, Midwest Thoroughbred stars Work All Week and The Pizza Man are scheduled for serious workouts at Churchill Downs this weekend.
Trainer Roger Brueggemann said reigning champion sprinter Work All Week will work Friday, while The Pizza Man, the winner of the Arlington Million in his last start, will work Saturday.
“They’ll breeze one more time before they run, but these will be the quicker works,” said Brueggemann.
Frosted and Upstart will compete in the $1 million Pennsylvania Derby on Saturday just three weeks after racing in the Travers, a demanding 1 1/4-mile race if there ever was one.
The quick turnaround cost Sam Elliott, the director of racing at Parx, the horse he had been courting for three months, American Pharoah. Although owner Ahmed Zayat and trainer Bob Baffert would have each received at least a $200,000 participation bonus on top of any purse money earned, another cross-country commute just was not in the cards after his second-place finish to Keen Ice.
One last batch of inflated purses will be up for grabs Saturday at Kentucky Downs, where a five-day meet ends with four stakes on a 13-race card at the turf-only track in south-central Kentucky.
The stakes are worth a potential total of $950,000, including bonuses from the Kentucky Thoroughbred Development Fund, while three allowances (purse minimum, $125,000) and three $120,000 maiden special weight races also are on a program that starts at 12:05 p.m. Central, 90 minutes earlier than customary.
Untapable, the 2014 Breeders’ Cup Distaff winner and champion 3-year-old filly, will prep for the 2015 Distaff by running in the Grade 1 Spinster Stakes on Oct. 4 at Keeneland.
Trainer Steve Asmussen confirmed Tuesday that Untapable will prep for the Distaff by racing for the first time at Keeneland, where the Breeders’ Cup will be held for the first time on Oct. 30-31. Untapable is based at Churchill Downs. She worked five furlongs Monday morning in 1:02.
BOSSIER CITY, La. – Uncle Brennie has run himself right into the Breeders’ Cup.
A strong performance Saturday in the $75,000 Sunday Silence Stakes at Louisiana Downs has led to the horse being pointed for the Grade 1, $1 million BC Juvenile Turf, said trainer Brad Cox. The one-mile race will be run Oct. 30 at Keeneland.
LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Colby Hernandez, who ranks third among jockeys in North America this year with 240 wins, was scheduled to see an orthopedic specialist Monday to determine how much time he will need to heal from a collarbone injury suffered Saturday.
Hernandez was aboard Raofthesun when the colt fell shortly past the wire after the 11th race.
The Pennsylvania Derby and Cotillion Stakes, a pair of $1 million races that will be run Saturday at Parx Racing, each drew large, competitive fields when entries were taken Monday.
There are three other stakes on the Saturday card: the Grade 3, $300,000 Gallant Bob, a six-furlong sprint for 3-year-olds; the $150,000 Bayern – named for last year’s Pennsylvania Derby winner – for 3-year-olds and up at 1 1/16 miles; and the $100,000 Alphabet Soup for Pennsylvania-breds at 1 1/16 miles on turf.
ELMONT, N.Y. – Bar of Gold, second to Cavorting in both the Grade 1 Test and Grade 2 Prioress stakes at Saratoga, will make her next start in the Grade 2, $250,000 Raven Run Stakes for 3-year-old fillies Oct. 18 at Keeneland, trainer John Kimmel said.
Though she is a New York-bred and would be tough in a race such as the $150,000 Iroquois Stakes on Oct. 24, Kimmel said the seven-furlong Raven Run gives his filly a chance to become a graded stakes winner.
