ARLINGTON HEIGHTS, Ill. – From Toronto to Cleveland to Chicago to San Diego it was weekend to remember for Arlington-based trainer Mike Stidham.

DEL MAR, Calif. – The potential pace and prospective lineup for the Grade 2, $200,000 San Diego Handicap on Saturday at Del Mar changed significantly Tuesday morning when the connections of Fury Kapcori, the likely pacesetter and potential favorite, decided to bypass the race.

In his absence, the Jerry Hollendorfer barn decided to run Summer Hit, a synthetic-track specialist. Rafael Bejarano, who was scheduled to ride Fury Kapcori, will ride Summer Hit.

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – My Miss Aurelia exited her third-place finish in Monday’s Shine Again Stakes none the worse for wear despite a pretty good bumping match nearing midstretch with runner-up Grace Hall, and she could make her next start later in the meet either in the Personal Ensign or Ballerina.

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – The opening weekend of the Saratoga session was a good one for trainer Bill Mott, and it was a disastrous trip away from being a great one when Grace Hall was narrowly defeated by Better Lucky after getting knocked sideways at midstretch in Monday’s Shine Again Stakes.

Gulfstream is trying to keep bettors interested in its Rainbow Six wager by seeding it with guaranteed money every time the jackpot is swept by one winner. Toward that end, a $50,000 pool guarantee will be in effect when another four-day race week commences Thursday. The pool was emptied Saturday when one winner cashed for $149,050.

The Thursday sequence runs from races 4 through 9. First post is 1:15 p.m. Eastern, with the fourth race, a second-level optional claimer that serves as the nominal feature, set for 2:49.

Trainer Bill Kaplan said his latest stable star, East Hall, either will stay home in south Florida to make his next start in the Aug. 30 Monarchos Stakes at Gulfstream Park or will be sent on the road again to try tougher competition in the Grade 2 Super Derby at Louisiana Downs a week later.

Kaplan was in good spirits when reached by phone Tuesday at Gulfstream, where East Hall was expected to return to training the following morning on the heels of the richest victory of his career last Saturday in the $300,000 Ohio Derby in suburban Cleveland.

DEL MAR, Calif. – Dance With Fate would easily fit in the rich stakes for 3-year-olds in New Jersey, New York, or West Virginia over the next two weekends. He would be well suited to run in the $150,000 La Jolla Handicap for 3-year-olds on turf at Del Mar on Aug. 9.

OCEANPORT, N.J. – Trainer Jose Garoffalo grabbed the gold ring last year when he bought Wildcat Red out of the Ocala Breeders’ Sales Co.’s June sale of 2-year-olds and horses of racing age for $30,000.

Wildcat Red has since won the Grade 2 Fountain of Youth and Grade 3 Hutcheson, just missed in the Florida Derby, and has earned $750,000. On Sunday, he will be among the top contenders in the Grade 1, $1 million Haskell Invitational at Monmouth Park.

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. - Ontrack business was up while overall handle was flat through the first four days of the 2014 Saratoga meet when compared to the same period last year.

Blessed by good weather and buoyed by the first giveaway day of the year on Sunday, total attendance through the first four days was 83,217, an 18.2 percent increase over last year’s figure of 70,390. There was no giveaway on the first Sunday of last year’s meet.

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – On Sunday, trainer Rick Violette revealed that Samraat, winner of the Withers and Gotham stakes at Aqueduct during the winter, would miss the remainder of his 3-year-old season due to a stress fracture in his right shin. The injury was detected a day after Samraat worked four furlongs at Saratoga in preparation for the Jim Dandy.

With Samraat out of the mix, it left, as of Monday, only four definite starters for the Jim Dandy: Tonalist, Wicked Strong, Ulanbator, and Legend. Kid Cruz, winner of the Dwyer Stakes, is possible.