ELMONT, N.Y. – Revolutionary, who earned a career-best 106 Beyer Speed Figure in winning last Friday’s Grade 3 Pimlico Special by a neck, likely will make his next start in the Grade 1, $500,000 Stephen Foster Handicap at Churchill Downs on June 14, trainer Todd Pletcher said Monday.

Pletcher said the race’s Grade 1 status and its place on the calendar are the major factors in his favoring the Stephen Foster over the Grade 2 Suburban Handicap at Belmont on July 5. Pletcher likes the spacing from the Stephen Foster to the $1.5 million Whitney Handicap at Saratoga on Aug. 2.

ELMONT, N.Y. – Close Hatches, the Apple Blossom Handicap winner, worked five furlongs in 1:00.25 on Monday over the Belmont training track in preparation for her showdown with Beholder and Princess of Sylmar here in the Grade 1, $1 million Ogden Phipps Stakes on June 7.

Under Rodolphe Brisset, Close Hatches went her first three furlongs in 35.43 seconds and came home her final quarter in 24.82 without being asked. She galloped out six furlongs in 1:13.36 and seven furlongs in 1:29.81.

“She worked well, I was happy with her,” trainer Bill Mott said.

ELMONT, N.Y. – It is not unusual to see the names Chad Brown and Todd Pletcher atop the trainers’ standings at Belmont Park. It is, however, a bit of a surprise when the name Bruce Brown is listed right there with them.

Through the first 14 days – or almost one-third – of the Belmont meet, Bruce Brown was hanging with the big boys, having saddled seven winners from 14 starters. He was tied with Pletcher, and both of them are two wins behind Chad Brown.

BALTIMORE ─ Victor Espinoza will get a second chance to make history, and this time, he believes he’s better prepared for it.

In 2002, Espinoza was the rider of War Emblem, whom he guided to front-running victories in the Kentucky Derby and Preakness only to stumble and lose all chance in the Belmont Stakes, finishing eighth.

BALTIMORE – California Chrome took one easy lap around the Pimlico oval on a lovely Saturday morning as his connections put the finishing touches on preparations for the Preakness Stakes here later in the afternoon.

Gulfstream president and general manager Tim Ritvo said entries for the Memorial Day program on May 26 will be drawn four days in advance on Thursday to accommodate patrons wishing to play the Rainbow 6 on Memorial Day. May 26 has been designated by Gulfstream management as the mandatory payout for the Rainbow 6 pool, which has survived since Jan. 10. The jackpot exceeded $6 million when racing resumed here Friday.

AUBURN, Wash. – These are heady times for Monique Snowden, when her seemingly endless 14-hour workdays can finally turn into something more tangible. The 35-year-old trainer has never had a stakes winner, but she’ll have a serious contender Sunday when she sends out Disruption in the $50,000 Governor’s Handicap at Emerald Downs.

Photos taken at the Kentucky Derby show Denver Broncos wide receiver Wes Welker passing out $100 bills to fans after scoring big on the Derby at Churchill Downs. But did he or someone from his group win too much?

Churchill Downs said Friday that someone from his party received an overpayment in winnings of $14,898 from a betting-terminal malfunction combined with mutuel-clerk error, track spokesman Darren Rogers said.

HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. – Like many of the 19 horses in this year’s Kentucky Derby, Wildcat Red never really had the opportunity to run his best race on Derby Day. Now, trainer Jose Garoffalo is eager to get his star back to the track and is looking for him to have a big second half to his 3-year-old campaign.

ARCADIA, Calif. – Winning Prize will scratch from the Grade 3 American Stakes on Saturday, trainer Neil Drysdale said Friday. The winner of the Grade 1 Frank Kilroe Mile and the Grade 2 Arcadia in two recent starts, Winning Prize was the 8-5 morning-line favorite for the American.

“He hasn’t done well with the heat, which is very unusual for this time of year,” Drysdale said. “So, we’ll run in the next one.” The next one is the Grade 1 Shoemaker Mile on June 14.