With the Monmouth Park season in the books, Thoroughbred racing will shift to northern New Jersey on Thursday evening for a 13-card all-turf run that will continue through Breeders’ Cup Saturday, Oct. 31.
With the Meadowlands main track set up for harness racing, the meet will once again be at the mercy of Mother Nature. Last year, six of 14 scheduled programs were canceled due to wet conditions.
ETOBICOKE, Ontario – Interpol doubled up in the Grade 1 Northern Dancer Turf on Sept. 13 at Woodbine and will now point to the Grade 1, $1 million Canadian International on Oct. 18, trainer Sid Attard said.
The Ontario-bred has won his last two starts, taking the Grade 2 Sky Classic Stakes and the Northern Dancer Turf under Emma-Jayne Wilson. Attard said Interpol has come out of the Northern Dancer Turf in good order and likely will resume breezing a couple of weeks out from the Canadian International.
ETOBICOKE, Ontario – Apprentice jockey Brandon Duchaine moved his tack east from Alberta this month and recorded his first Woodbine start in the Sunday finale aboard One Way Talk.
“It was awesome,” Duchaine said. “It was amazing to be on a nice, big track with top riders.”
OKLAHOMA CITY – Oklahoma Derby winner Shotgun Kowboy could spend the winter at Santa Anita. C.R. Trout, who bred, owns, and trains the horse, said Monday he is considering taking four or five horses to Southern California, depending on how the remainder of the Remington Park meet goes for Shotgun Kowboy and the stakes-winning 2-year-old Bring It On Dude.
ARCADIA, Calif. – Songbird’s elegant 4 1/2-length win Saturday in the $300,000 Chandelier Stakes at Santa Anita has left trainer Jerry Hollendorfer anxious for the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies at Keeneland on Oct. 31.
Songbird figures to be favored in the BC Juvenile Fillies on the basis of her unbeaten record in three starts, which includes two Grade 1 wins – the Del Mar Debutante at seven furlongs Sept. 5 and the Chandelier Stakes.
ELMONT, N.Y. – Honor Code had a solid, albeit eventful final workout Sunday morning in preparation for a start next Saturday in the Grade 2, $400,000 Kelso Handicap at Belmont Park.
Honor Code went five furlongs in 1:00.82 while chasing a pair of Graham Motion-trained horses that broke off eight to 10 lengths ahead of him.
As has been the case several times, Honor Code refused to go when jockey Javier Castellano wanted him to gallop toward the pole and begin his work. The horse was doing his best Michael Jackson moon-walking impression back to the six-furlong pole.
ELMONT, N.Y. – After Big Blue Kitten finished fourth in last year’s Joe Hirsch Turf Classic, his connections didn’t feel good enough about going on to the Breeders’ Cup, especially against Main Sequence, the Joe Hirsch winner who had clearly defined himself as the division’s best.
This year, after he set a course record winning Saturday’s Joe Hirsch at Belmont Park, it could be argued Big Blue Kitten is North America’s top male turf horse heading into next month’s $3 million BC Turf at Keeneland, a race that he will participate in.
ARCADIA, Calif. – After what essentially was a paid workout Saturday in the Zenyatta Stakes, Beholder was in excellent condition Sunday morning here at Santa Anita, according to trainer Richard Mandella, who said he was in the process of formulating a plan for preparing Beholder for the Breeders’ Cup Classic on Oct. 31 at Keeneland.
“She does need some schooling, so as of now, I’m thinking of getting there nine or 10 days out and doing a little breeze back there,” Mandella said.
ARCADIA, Calif. – Bayern, winner of the 2014 Breeders' Cup Classic, was announced as retired Saturday night by owner Kaleem Shah. He had finished third Saturday afternoon as the favorite in the Awesome Again, which marked his fifth straight loss since the BC Classic.
"Bayern has given my family memories of a lifetime, and I am grateful for that," said Shah.
Bayern won 6 of 10 starts at age 3, including the Haskell and the Woody Stephens prior to the BC Classic. He was one of the finalists last year for Eclipse Awards as both Horse of the Year and champion 3-year-old male.
ARCADIA, Calif. – Triple Crown winner American Pharoah worked five furlongs in 1:00 Sunday morning at Santa Anita, his second work since returning to serious training following his loss last month in the Travers Stakes at Saratoga.
American Pharoah came out after the first of the morning's renovation breaks with regular work rider Martin Garcia aboard. He broke off at the half-mile pole and got to the wire in 47.80 seconds before going out to the seven-furlong pole in 1:00.
