OZONE PARK, N.Y. – Linda Rice had the Grade 2, $200,000 Distaff Handicap circled on her calendar for her New York-bred filly La Verdad for several months.
Rice hopes she has La Verdad primed to capture her first graded stakes victory in the six-furlong Distaff following a victory in the Broadway Stakes for New York-breds on March 29,
“Whether I used that race on the 29th was optional, but this is the race I’ve been pointing towards,” Rice said. “She’s coming into this race very well.”
ThistleDown opens a 122-day meet Friday with larger purses and larger fields. It is the second racing season that the North Randall, Ohio, track has operated as a racino.
Purses this year will start out averaging $105,000 a card, up from around $80,000 last year and $48,000 in 2012.
“The figures from this year and last do not include money added by the Ohio Thoroughbred Fund; the figure from 2012 does,” said Dave Basler, executive director of the Ohio Horsemen’s Benevolent and Protective Association.
Basler expects overnight purses to climb higher later in the year.
After claiming his third straight victory in the Grade 1 Santa Anita Handicap last month, Game On Dude will go for his second straight success in the Grade 2 Charles Town Classic on Saturday night, when he takes on six rivals in the $1.5 million race run at 1 1/8 miles around three turns.
LEXINGTON, Ky. – Although it almost surely will have no impact on the 140th Kentucky Derby, there still are 10 Derby qualifying points available to the winner of the Grade 3 Lexington Stakes on Saturday at Keeneland, where a field of 11 has been drawn for the 1 1/16-mile Polytrack race.
From the rail, this is the field for the Lexington, which goes as the ninth of 10 races:
LEXINGTON, Ky. – Even with the likelihood of a heavy favorite in Untapable, racing officials at Churchill Downs in Louisville are expecting a full gate of 14 3-year-old fillies for the 140th Kentucky Oaks on May 2.
At this early juncture, Churchill is listing at least 19 fillies as possible for the Grade 1, $1 million Oaks, with Untapable being the points leader under the same type of eligibility system in place for the Kentucky Derby.
HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. – Friday’s main event is a five-furlong optional-claiming dash on turf that drew a field of nine turf-sprint specialists led by Petey Cramer, At Large, and Oration. Other key contenders in the wide-open race include Zippin On By and Breitling Flyer.
HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. – Trainer Allen Jerkens doesn’t have a Kentucky Derby horse, but he does have a big rooting interest in the race: Wicked Strong, who is trained by Allen’s son Jimmy and rallied to beat Samraat and Social Inclusion in the Wood Memorial.
The Wood represented a big turnaround in form for Wicked Strong, who finished ninth in the Grade 2 Holy Bull and fourth in an optional-claiming race here in his two previous starts. Wicked Strong came from sixth place to win the Wood by 3 1/2 lengths over Samraat.
HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. – One of the horses pointing for the Sir Bear, a one-mile overnight stakes here on Kentucky Derby Day, is Little Daddy, who is unbeaten in two starts. Trainer Carlo Vaccarezza said Wednesday that if Little Daddy were to run well in that race, he’d strongly consider pointing him for the Belmont Stakes five weeks later.
Ricardo Gonzalez lost his best friend three weeks ago, but he’s rebounded nicely.
The 18-year-old rider from Mexico became a journeyman rider, losing his five-pound apprentice allowance after two wins March 23, his last day with the bug.
Losing the bug can be traumatic for riders, and Gonzalez didn’t record a victory his first week as a journeyman. Of course, he only had one mount his first day and two his third day while riding 12 horses that week, when he finished with one second and one third.
HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. – Wednesday was a good morning for Social Inclusion, who worked a sharp three furlongs here in 35.04 seconds over a muddy track. Social Inclusion also moved a step closer to earning a place in the Kentucky Derby field when it was announced that Florida Derby winner Constitution had been taken out of consideration for the race due to injury.
