Marks Mine capped a stellar 2013 campaign with a front-running victory in an allowance sprint last Thursday, opening day of the Golden Gate Fields meeting, and is looking ahead to an even better 2014.
A 3-year-old filly of 2013, Marks Mine won two stakes sprinting against older this past year, when she had five wins, two seconds, and a third in 10 starts while earning $222,924. Ironically, in stakes limited to 3-year-olds she had a pair of seconds and a third.
ARCADIA, Calif. – Jockey Tyler Baze returns to riding from an alcohol-related suspension Wednesday with five mounts on an eight-race program.
Baze was suspended for four months in July after failing an alcohol field test in June at Betfair Hollywood Park. To gain reinstatement, Baze was ordered to attend a 60-day in-house rehabilitation program for alcoholism and undergo counseling with the Winners Foundation, which aids people in California horse racing with substance-abuse problems.
ARCADIA, Calif. – The Argentine import Safety Belt will not have an easy race for his American debut in an optional claimer over 1 1/16 miles at Santa Anita on Wednesday.
Safety Belt has been with trainer Ron McAnally since last summer, following an Argentine career that included two seconds and a third in Group 1 races in 2012 and 2013. A successful race Wednesday would lead to a stakes appearance at Santa Anita, possibly in the $300,000 San Antonio Stakes over 1 1/8 miles on Feb. 8.
ARCADIA, Calif. – Shared Belief, a leading candidate for the Eclipse Award as the outstanding 2-year-old of 2013, had his first workout on dirt at Santa Anita on Saturday and could race on the surface as early as next month, trainer Jerry Hollendorfer said.
Shared Belief was timed in 1:02.20 for five furlongs, his second workout since winning the $750,000 CashCall Futurity at Betfair Hollywood Park on Dec. 14.
ARCADIA, Calif. – The pick six paid $4,306 at Santa Anita on Friday, a day when bettors poured nearly $1 million into the pool.
The pick six began with a carryover of $118,415 from Thursday’s opening day. Bettors added $929,679 to the pool Friday.
The winners of Friday’s pick six races were Cool Samurai ($5.80), Macias ($14.40), Velvet Mesquite ($7.60), Chitu ($3.40), Kathleen Rose ($3), and Papa’s Paisley ($9.80).
The last four winners were favored.
HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. - P.J. Campo, recently appointed vice president of racing at Gulfstream Park, said he plans to put up a 1 1/2-mile open allowance race for fillies and mares on turf for Thursday. The conditions of the race will mirror those of the Grade 3 La Prevoyante, which was scheduled to be run at Calder last Saturday, but canceled due to lack of entries.
ARCADIA, Calif. – Shakin It Up will be pointed to sprints in coming months after winning the biggest race of his career in Thursday’s $301,500 Malibu Stakes at Santa Anita.
“I think we’ll keep him at one turn,” trainer Bob Baffert said Friday. “I think he could probably get a mile.”
The stakes schedule for sprinters in coming months of the Santa Anita winter-spring meeting includes the $200,000 Palos Verdes Stakes over six furlongs Feb. 2 and the $250,000 San Carlos Stakes over seven furlongs March 8.
CYPRESS, Calif. – Jose De La Torre, one of the nation’s leading Quarter Horse trainers, said he has been told by Los Alamitos officials that he must vacate the track’s backstretch by Tuesday. Two of his horses tested positive for clenbuterol in post-race tests at Los Alamitos in September and October.
De La Torre won two major stakes at Los Alamitos in December – the $750,000 Champion of Champions with Last to Fire on Dec. 14, and the $1,989,525 Los Alamitos Two Million Futurity with Foose Cash Sr. on Dec. 15.
NEW ORLEANS – Golden Soul arrived at Fair Grounds last week without fanfare.
Who knows how he would have been greeted if he had run a length faster in the Kentucky Derby?
“Orb ran the race of his life to beat us, and [Golden Soul] ran the race of his life,” said Dallas Stewart, who trains Golden Soul. “We’re very proud of our horse.”
At Turfway Park, the holiday meet ends Tuesday and will be followed the next afternoon with opening day of the three-month winter-spring meet. Through Jan. 5, there will be just one dark day since racing resumed Thursday following the short Christmas break, and that is the coming Thursday (Jan. 2).
