SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – Assateague, the winner of the Dr. James Penny Memorial at Parx last out, will miss Saturday’s Grade 2, $250,000 Ballston Spa Stakes due to a bout of colic, trainer Michael Matz said.

Matz said Assateague’s large colon got displaced, and she needed to undergo surgery to repair it.

“She’s back at the barn now, but she’s not going to be able to run Saturday,” Matz said.

Trainer Bill Mott said that Filimbi, the winner of the De La Rose Stakes on Aug. 2, will wheel back in three weeks and run in the Ballston Spa at 1 1/16 miles.

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – Competitive Edge, a very impressive debut winner here July 26, worked five furlongs in 1:00.13 on Tuesday as he continues preparations for the Grade 1, $350,000 Hopeful here Sept. 1.

Trainer Todd Pletcher had Competitive Edge start off behind stablemate Blame Jim – a debut winner July 19 – before having jockey John Velazquez tip him out wide and finish in the stretch. Competitive Edge started two lengths back and finished about a length in front. He galloped out six furlongs in 1:13.09 and seven furlongs in 1:27.87.

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – Graded stakes winners Grace Hall and My Wandy’s Girl, who were expected to run in Saturday’s Grade 1 Ballerina at Saratoga, will miss the race due to physical issues. The racing careers of both are also in question.

Grace Hall, the winner of the Grade 1 Spinaway here as a 2-year-old, injured a foot in a workout over the Oklahoma training track Aug. 11. According to trainer Bill Mott, Grace Hall was galloping out after the work when she shied from horses working on the Oklahoma turf course, which is slightly above the dirt course.

Back-to-back $39,000 allowance races anchor a 10-race card at Gulfstream Park, as another four-day week resumes Thursday at the south Florida track.

Carded as the eighth and ninth races, both carry a first-level restriction and a competitive look, with the eighth scheduled for five furlongs on turf and the ninth going as a one-turn mile on the main track.

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – Wise Dan, the reigning two-time Horse of the Year, will run in the Grade 2, $250,000 Bernard Baruch Handicap at Saratoga on Aug. 30, trainer Charlie LoPresti said Tuesday.

“It’s time to run him,” LoPresti said. “I brought him here to run.”

LoPresti said the only reason he wouldn’t run in the Bernard Baruch is if he thought Wise Dan would be conceding too much weight to a speed horse “that could just steal it and that we have to chase.”

“Unless something goes wrong, he is definitely going to be entered in the Bernard Baruch,” LoPresti said.

DEL MAR, Calif. – By late afternoon on June 28, Ron Beegle was well into what he thought was the finest day of his year.

Beegle was in Orlando to witness his 11-year-old twin daughters, Jolie and Hope, finish first and fifth in the all-around competition at a national gymnastics meet. Hours later at the hotel, Beegle found his way to the pool bar, hoping to watch his 6-year-old horse Majestic Harbor run in the $500,000 Gold Cup at Santa Anita.

The problem was that the bar’s TVs were dedicated to World Cup highlights.

DEL MAR, Calif. – Fed Biz loves the Polytrack at Del Mar. But trainer Bob Baffert would like to add a Grade 1 race to his résumé. And therein lays the dilemma with which Baffert will wrestle over the next few days.

DEL MAR, Calif. – Game On Dude ran one of the best races of his career when capturing last year’s Pacific Classic, and though he’s won just once in six starts since then, he is giving every indication that he will be a formidable presence when he defends his title Sunday in the 24th running of the Grade 1, $1 million Pacific Classic at Del Mar.

Game On Dude has had a strong series of works here this summer, and he completed his preparation with another eye-catching drill Monday, a five-furlong move in 59.60 seconds under Martin Garcia, who will ride him Sunday.

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – The New York Thoroughbred Horsemen’s Association announced that it will match donations for the Lustgarten Foundation, which funds research for pancreatic cancer, and for paralyzed jockey Michael Straight raised during autograph sessions at Saratoga earlier this month.

“It was inspiring to see how many trainers and jockeys took time out from dizzying schedules during the Saratoga meet to lend their support,” said NYTHA president Rick Violette Jr. “The fans were great too. It’s only natural that NYTHA would step up to do its part.” 

Quarter Horse jockey Raul Valenzuela was summarily suspended by the board of stewards at Ruidoso Downs on Saturday for alleged possession of an electrical device, according to Vince Mares, executive director of the New Mexico State Racing Commission.

Mares said Monday that Valenzuela could be subject to an additional hearing in coming days, pending an ongoing investigation. Valenzuela could face a lengthy suspension for the alleged possession. Mares said the investigation would determine whether Valenzuela would be allowed to keep his jockey’s license.