ETOBICOKE, Ontario – Trainer Norm McKnight has gotten off to a hot start through the first six weeks of the Woodbine meet, with 10 wins from 28 starters. McKnight entered Friday’s card one win behind Mark Casse for the lead in Woodbine’s trainer standings.
McKnight, 59, said he has been surprised by his quick start to the season and credited his staff, including son and assistant trainer Brad McKnight, for the stable’s success.
LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Kentucky Derby and Preakness winner American Pharoah was out for his first gallop since his seven-length romp at Pimlico when going through a routine bit of training Friday at Churchill Downs.
Among the first horses out onto a freshly harrowed racetrack at 8:31 a.m. Eastern, and with regular exercise rider Jorge Alvarez up, American Pharoah backtracked to the seven-furlong pole on the clubhouse turn before turning around and quickly getting into his gallop.
ARCADIA, Calif. – Stellar Wind, who rose to the top of the 3-year-old filly division before finishing fourth as the favorite in the Kentucky Oaks, will be considered for a turf campaign this summer, trainer John Sadler said. After back-to-back Grade 1 wins in California, including the Santa Anita Oaks, Stellar Wind had a tough trip in Kentucky.
ELMONT, N.Y. – Twilight Eclipse, who won the Grade 1 Man o’ War in his last start, will try for his second Grade 1 in the $1 million Manhattan on June 6, trainer Tom Albertrani confirmed Thursday.
Albertrani said the connections didn’t want to wait until the United Nations on July 5 at Monmouth, and with the Bowling Green being moved to Saratoga, there wasn’t another solid option for Twilight Eclipse.
“He’s come back really well out of that race, and it still gives you enough time to go to the U.N.,” Albertrani said of running in the Manhattan.
ELMONT, N.Y. – Trainer Cal Lynch is seriously considering running his stakes-winning 3-year-old filly Danzatrice in the Grade 1 Acorn Stakes on the Belmont Stakes undercard June 6.
How serious?
On Thursday, he vanned Danzatrice and stablemate Surfing U S A from Parx in Bensalem, Pa., to Belmont to have Danzatrice work over the main track. After watching Danzatrice breeze a mile in 1:48, Lynch said she most likely will run in the Acorn.
ELMONT, N.Y. – Wicked Strong, looking to regain his Grade 1 form from a year ago, worked a sharp five furlongs Thursday over the Belmont Park main track in preparation for the Grade 1, $1.25 million Metropolitan Handicap here June 6.
Working after the renovation break under Kelvin Pahal, Wicked Strong went five furlongs from the half-mile pole in 1:00.42 and galloped out six furlongs in 1:13.42. He went off in splits of 12.81 seconds, 24.49, and 48.31. He wore blinkers, equipment he has worn in his last five races but in which he only sometimes works.
ARCADIA, Calif. – Big John B, the winner of the Grade 2 Del Mar Handicap last August but last of eight in the Grade 3 Last Tycoon Stakes on April 25, will skip Sunday’s $200,000 Charles Whittingham Stakes at Santa Anita.
Trainer Phil D’Amato said he would prefer to run Big John B on the firmest turf course possible and is tentatively planning for a start in the $150,000 San Juan Capistrano Stakes at about 1 3/4 miles on turf June 28. D’Amato said he was discouraged by the final times on the turf course last weekend after approximately an inch of rain fell March 14-15.
ARCADIA, Calif. – Beholder, the two-time champion who missed a scheduled start in the $300,000 Vanity Stakes on May 9 because of illness, worked five furlongs in 1:01 on Thursday.
The workout was the first for Beholder since a half-mile breeze May 5.
“She wanted to do a lot more than that,” trainer Richard Mandella said.
Beholder was found to have an elevated temperature in the days before the Vanity, leading to her withdrawal from that race. The illness proved to be minor, Mandella said.
Retired Hall of Fame jockey Randy Romero said Wednesday from a Lafayette, La., hospital that doctors have not been able to confirm whether his stomach tumor is cancerous, but they intend to perform surgery as soon as possible for a definitive diagnosis.
Romero, 57, saw specialists Tuesday at the Ochsner Clinic in New Orleans before returning to the area where he is living in Erath, La., but he had to be readmitted to Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital in Lafayette because his blood pressure dropped dangerously low.
LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Majestic Harbor achieved the rare feat of winning back-to-back off-the-turf allowances within the same month, doing so as the lone main-track-only designee in short fields at Keeneland on April 4 and at Churchill Downs on opening night, April 25.
