Mon, 12/09/2013 - 13:48

Tampa Bay Downs: Cool Cowboy targets Pasco Stakes

SV Photography
Cool Cowboy and jockey Eduardo Perez were not seriously challenged in the stretch of the Inaugural.

OLDSMAR, Fla. – Dale Bennett’s instructions to jockey Eduardo Perez before Saturday’s $69,000 Inaugural Stakes were simple.

“I told him, ‘Just run ’em off their feet,’ ” Bennett said.

And that’s exactly what Perez did aboard Cool Cowboy, as they raced three wide to the turn of the six-furlong race head-and-head for the lead, then swept to the front, and the rest, as they say, was history. The speedy colt scored by 3 1/2 lengths for his third win from five career starts, but as his trainer pointed out Monday, he worked for it.

Mon, 12/09/2013 - 11:45

Woodbine: Jose Sea View makes case for Sovereign Award

Michael Burns
Jose Sea View and jockey Emma-Jayne Wilson win the Display Stakes by a neck Sunday.

ETOBICOKE, Ontario – Jose Sea View staked his claim for Canadian champion 2-year-old honors Sunday at Woodbine with a hard-fought win over Coltimus Prime in the $134,250 Display Stakes. Those two protagonists hooked up on the lead on the backstretch and then dueled throughout the lane before Jose Sea View prevailed by a neck in the 1 1/16-mile event.

Sun, 12/08/2013 - 16:05

Hollywood Park: Field for CashCall Futurity taking shape

Benoit & Associates
Tap It Rich, with Mike Smith aboard, wins his first start by 4 1/4 lengths Saturday.

INGLEWOOD, Calif. – The field for the $750,000 CashCall Futurity at Betfair Hollywood Park this Saturday grew over the weekend with the addition of the outsiders Brother Soldier, Electric Eddie, Karma King, and Sheikinator to the list of projected entrants.

Sheikinator, a maiden race winner at Churchill Downs on Nov. 16, would be a second runner in the Grade 1 CashCall Futurity for Kentucky-based trainer Ken McPeek. He plans to start Rankhasprivileges, who was third in the $1 million Delta Downs Jackpot in Louisiana on Nov. 23.

Sat, 12/07/2013 - 14:11

Gulfstream Park notes: Mucho Macho Man stretches legs in workout

Barbara D. Livingston
Breeders' Cup Classic winner Mucho Macho Man has returned to his Gulfstream Park base.

HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. – Each long journey begins with one small step. And so it was for Mucho Macho Man, who took the first tiny step toward defending his Breeders’ Cup Classic championship next fall at Santa Anita by working an easy three furlongs in 37.64 seconds Saturday at Gulfstream Park.

Sat, 12/07/2013 - 13:18

Hollywood Park: Bond Holder to run in CashCall Futurity

Shigeki Kikkawa
Bond Holder, winner of the FrontRunner Stakes, will make his next start in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile.

INGLEWOOD, Calif. – Bond Holder was set for a quiet end of the year after a fourth-place finish in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile at Santa Anita on Nov. 2.

Trainer Doug O’Neill and owners Paul and Zillah Reddam intended to rest Bond Holder until 2014, a plan that changed when the colt resumed workouts in late November. A series of sharp works has put Bond Holder on schedule for the $750,000 CashCall Futurity at Betfair Hollywood Park on Saturday.

For Paul Reddam, it’s a chance to win a race that his lending company sponsors.

Fri, 12/06/2013 - 14:51

Hollywood Park notes: Game On Dude pointing to San Antonio

Tom Keyser
Mike Smith won three Breeders' Cup races, but finished ninth aboard favored Game On Dude in the $5 million Classic.

INGLEWOOD, Calif. - Game On Dude, second in the Grade 1 Clark Handicap at Churchill Downs on Nov. 29 and California’s leading older horse this year, is likely to make his 2014 debut in the $300,000 San Antonio Stakes over 1 1/8 miles at Santa Anita on Feb. 8.

“That’s the most logical spot,” trainer Bob Baffert said on Friday.

Fri, 12/06/2013 - 14:42

Betfair Hollywood: DRF Plus handicapping report for December 7, 2013

Race 1

Vulnerable Favorite

WARREN’S JOE T. (#4, 8-5) has been stuck at the N2L level seven consecutive races. He has the highest figures and switches to the leading rider, but these restricted claiming races are generally won by droppers or recent maiden winners. Pass at low odds.-Brad Free

Fri, 12/06/2013 - 14:34

Hollywood Park: Rosario making his presence felt

Tom Keyser
Joel Rosario, sidelined since Aug. 23 with a broken foot, has three mounts on Friday's card at Belmont.

INGLEWOOD, Calif. – Red-hot jockey Joel Rosario won four races at Betfair Hollywood Park for the 11th time in his career on Thursday.

While Rosario is based on the East Coast on a year-round basis, he plans to spend enough time in California this month that he might crack the top 10 in the jockey standings, at least briefly, before the meeting ends on Dec. 22.