Balooga Bull appears to be back in business at Assiniboia Downs.
After winning just one of his first three starts this year as the odds-on choice on each occasion, Balooga Bull was freshened and returned from an absence of almost eight weeks to score impressively over 7 1/2 furlongs Aug. 30.
On Saturday, Balooga Bull will be looking to duplicate his success in the $50,000 Gold Cup, a 1 1/8-mile race in which he scored by 12 lengths last year to conclude a strong 3-year-old campaign.
Mentor Cane, a promising 3-year-old sprinter who finished second in the Grade 1 King’s Bishop Stakes on Aug. 24 at Saratoga, suffered a broken right hind leg during training Thursday morning at Belmont Park and had to be euthanized.
VANCOUVER, British Columbia – Graffiti Grace finished second to Kataliah when they met in a first-level allowance race on Aug. 17, but she could have the edge when they renew acquaintances in a similar race that will serve as Saturday’s feature at Hastings. The 6 1/2-furlong race for fillies and mares drew five horses and goes as the second race. Post time for the first of seven races is 1:50 p.m. Pacific.
ETOBICOKE, Ontario – Wise Dan was sent off at 1-2 when winning last year’s Woodbine Mile by 3 1/4 lengths for owner Morton Fink and trainer Charlie LoPresti.
On Sunday, Wise Dan has been pegged at 2-5 in track oddsmaker Ernie Perri’s morning line and will be seeking his ninth straight victory while looking to defend his title in the Grade 1, $1 million Woodbine Mile for 3-year-olds and up. The Woodbine Mile is a Breeders’ Cup Win and You’re In race, offering a fees-paid berth in the Breeders’ Cup Mile.
Kentucky Downs received permission Thursday from the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission to make up six races lost to a violent storm that occurred just after the fourth of 10 races was run Wednesday at the turf-only track in south-central Kentucky.
Three races will be added to each of the last two programs at the five-day meet, both of them Wednesdays (Sept. 18 and 25). The start time for the 13-race cards will be 12:35 p.m. Central, one hour earlier than what was originally scheduled.
POMONA, Calif. – Lightly raced Roundupthelute ran himself into Breeders’ Cup Juvenile consideration with a solid victory Wednesday evening in the $50,000 C.B. Afflerbaugh Stakes at the Los Angeles County Fair.
A 2-year-old colt sired by Midnight Lute, Roundupthelute ($4.80) and jockey Martin Garcia upset odds-on favorite Echo Zulu in the seven-furlong stakes, winning by two lengths in 1:24.97 for seven furlongs. Completing the order of finish after runner-up Echo Zulu was Brighton Star, Betting McCann Can and Mr Wild Kitty.
Jockey Ronnie Allen Jr. reached a personal milestone Wednesday evening by winning his 3,000th race aboard Ghost Flower ($6) in the second race at Presque Isle Downs.
Allen, 49, was excited after the race.
"It has been a long time coming,: he said. “I never thought I would reach 3,000 when I started. It is a good accomplishment for anybody.”
Ghost Flower is trained by Maria Bowersock, Allen’s fiancé.
Despite the fact that the only winning favorite in the sequence was first-time starter My Place, one bettor managed to successfully navigate through Wednesday’s pick 6, and thus became the first to hit the super-exotic wager at Belmont’s fall meet, collecting a cool $423,424.
After going un-hit opening weekend, there was a double carryover of $137,011 into Wednesday’s card.
The winning numbers were 7-6-7-5-4-5-10 for the sextet of Summerdale ($56), Chasing Moonlight ($11.80), My Place ($7), Princess Adelyn ($21.80), Cheyenne Nation ($14.40) and Ale ($10.40).
AUBURN, Wash. – Jeff Metz, seeking to capture the Emerald Downs training title in his first season here, will send out three starters Friday on Day 67 of the 75-day meeting, with his Barton Hill, a recent maiden winner at Portland Meadows, among the leading contenders in the featured sixth race for 3-year-olds. First post for the seven-race card is 6:45 p.m. Pacific.
POMONA, Calif. – Far from the big-league spotlight in early spring at Turf Paradise, trainer Molly Pearson was getting her 2-year-olds ready.
The group looked good, except for one. Miss Scatalicious looked exceptional.
“I had eight or nine babies, and she was outworking every one we had,” Pearson said.
By March, Miss Scatalicious already was working 35’s.
“I had her all paid up to the stakes in spring at Turf Paradise,” Pearson said. “But she was too nice to be running that early.”
