LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Wise Dan, the reigning two-time Horse of the Year, could return to racing at Saratoga if things continue to go well for the 7-year-old gelding as he recovers from emergency colic surgery.
Trainer Charlie LoPresti said Wednesday he would consider the Aug. 9 Fourstardave Handicap as a return spot for Wise Dan but “might be more inclined” to take a more conservative route and wait for the Aug. 30 Bernard Baruch Handicap.
ARCADIA, Calif. – Joe Talamo has been in this situation before.
Last July, Talamo approached the final week of the Hollywood Park spring-summer meeting with a four-win lead in the jockeys’ standings. He was winless in the final four days and was caught by Rafael Bejarano and Edwin Maldonado, who finished in a tie for first. Talamo was third, missing by one win.
There are two weeks left in the Santa Anita spring-summer meeting. Going into Thursday’s program, Talamo has 34 wins, good for a 10-win lead over Tyler Baze and a 12-win advantage over apprentice Drayden Van Dyke.
Opelousas, La. – Entries were drawn Tuesday for Saturday’s Evangeline Turf Sprint Day, the most ambitious program ever in the 49-year history of Evangeline Downs. The $300,000 namesake headliner will be joined by the $100,000 Evangeline Mile for 3-year-olds and up; the $100,000 Opelousas for fillies and mares at 1 1/16 miles on turf; the $70,000 Lafayette for Louisiana-bred 3-year-olds at seven furlongs; and the $70,000 Acadiana for Louisiana-bred 3-year-old fillies at seven furlongs.
Thursday marks the start of a new era in Northern California racing, as Oak Tree at Pleasanton becomes a reality with the first day of racing at the Alameda County Fair.
The Oak Tree Racing Association, the not-for-profit group that has provided high-quality racing and millions of dollars of support to the industry – “horsemen helping horsemen” is its motto – as well as the local community, arrives at the oldest one-mile racetrack in America. The group has been looking for a home since Santa Anita ended ties with Oak Tree following the 2009 meet.
LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Jockey Rosie Napravnik, who sustained what doctors have described as a “mild separation” near her shoulder joint in a training accident here Sunday, said Monday through her Facebook account that she is experiencing “mostly minimal pain ... along with maximum frustration of being sidelined.”
Napravnik, 26, is expected to be out four to six weeks, meaning an early return could have her ready for the opening of Saratoga on July 18. Among the mounts she will miss in the interim is Untapable in the June 28 Mother Goose at Belmont.
LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Conquest Titan was diagnosed with a displaced chip in his left knee following a distant sixth-place finish Saturday night in the Matt Winn Stakes at Churchill Downs and was scheduled to undergo surgery this week in Ocala, Fla., trainer Mark Casse said Tuesday.
“We were dumbfounded that he didn’t run any better because he’d trained so well into the race, so this injury explains it,” Casse said. “It’s not all that significant, so hopefully we can have him back healthy and racing at Gulfstream this winter.”
LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Commanding Curve will be pointed to the Travers Stakes while perhaps dipping back into the allowance ranks after the colt emerged from his disappointing performance in the Belmont Stakes in good shape.
The runner-up in the May 3 Kentucky Derby at 37-1, Commanding Curve finished ninth of 11 in his only subsequent start, the June 7 Belmont.
MIAMI – Calder’s rich Summit of Speed, a series of sprint stakes that includes the prestigious Princess Rooney and Smile Sprint handicaps, has been canceled this season due to the pending dates agreement between Calder and Gulfstream Park. The Summit of Speed was scheduled for July 5.
ELMONT, N.Y. – Trainer Linda Rice won five races over the weekend at Belmont Park – including three on Sunday – putting the finishing touches on an incredible 10-day run in which she won 9 of 16 races.
From June 6 through Sunday, Rice had nine winners and three seconds from the 20 horses whom she started in 16 races. The streak included wins in the Grade 2 True North with Palace and the $150,000 Easy Goer with Kid Cruz.
ELMONT, N.Y. – After failing to fill for Sunday, the $100,000 Tremont Stakes for 2-year-olds went with five and will be run Friday.
Helping the race fill were two first-time starters: Jamaalaree, a filly by Congaree entered by Wesley Ward, and King Rontos, a son of Unbridled’s Song entered by Rudy Rodriguez. Last weekend, Fashion Alert, a first-time starter trained by Todd Pletcher, won the $100,000 Astoria Stakes for 2-year-old fillies.
