OPELOUSAS, La. – Relishing the off going, Brethren ($20.80) stalked the early pace before splashing home 3 1/4 lengths the best in Saturday night’s $125,000 Evangeline Mile Handicap.
Fellow longshot Arkansas Martini rallied from last to finish second, 1 1/4 lengths in front of even-money favorite and 118-pound highweight Sabercat. It Happened Again reported home fourth, followed by Smoke It Right and pacesetter Unitas. Sweetsouthernmoon was a late scratch.
ETOBICOKE, Ontario – Up With the Birds, coming off a second-place finish in the July 7 Queen’s Plate, breezed five furlongs in company on the turf training track here Sunday in preparation for the $500,000 Breeders’ Stakes.
The Breeders’ Stakes, a 1 1/2-mile turf race here next Sunday, is the final leg of the Triple Crown for Canadian-bred 3-year-olds.
Regular rider Eurico Rosa da Silva was aboard Up With the Birds, who worked in 1:01.40 while going head-to head outside of older stakes-winning stablemate Hotep.
ALTOONA, Iowa – Smack Smack kept his undefeated record intact by rallying for a 1 3/4-length win over a game Ethical in Saturday night's $60,000 Prairie Meadows Juvenile Mile.
Smack Smack, conditioned by Don Von Hemel, who was polishing off a 12-for-32 meet, relaxed early in his typical fashion, surged up when roused entering the far turn, and stayed on well while edging clear of the John Hall-trained Ethical.
Down Town Allen stalked the pace from the outside for six furlongs before rallying in the stretch to win the $51,250 Sadie Hawkins Stakes by one length at Charles Town on Saturday evening.
Bred, owned, and trained by John Casey, Down Town Allen won the Sadie Hawkins for the second year in a row. After stalking the pace to midstretch, the 6-year-old West Virginia-bred rallied to the lead under Matthew McGowan, reeling in the pacesetting Jax and Jill, who finished second under Gerald Almodovar. It was four lengths farther back to Autumn Affair in third.
Stopshoppingdebbie rallied for a three-length victory in Saturday night’s $63,375 Washington Oaks at Emerald Downs to remain undefeated in five career starts.
Stopshoppingdebbie, a daughter of Curlin, has won four stakes races in as many starts this year at Emerald Downs, with Rocco Bowen aboard each time for trainer Tom Wenzel. The filly, a homebred for Northwest Farms, won the Seattle, Irish Day, and Kent handicaps, worth $50,000 apiece, earlier in the meet. Saturday’s win boosted her earnings to $128,773.
SANTA ROSA, Calif. – The third time was the charm for Ain't No Other ($7) and just another disappointment for Starboardlights in the $66,350 Jess Jackson Owners’ Handicap at the Sonoma County Fair on Saturday.
Ain't No Other, co-favored with Ourwestcoastghost, won the five-furlong turf stakes in a course-record time of 56.47 seconds, defeating Starboardlights by a neck. The clocking beat Sweet Kendall Jo's old record of 56.76 set in 2006.
DEL MAR, Calif. – Go Go is back.
Jockey Garrett Gomez won the $151,000 La Jolla Handicap aboard Dice Flavor at Del Mar on Saturday, making a triumphant return to racing after undergoing treatment for alcoholism in late July.
Dice Flavor was Gomez’s second mount Saturday. He had not ridden since the closing day of the spring-summer meeting at Betfair Hollywood Park on July 14. Gomez was booked to ride July 17, Del Mar’s opening day, but took off his mounts that week while undergoing counseling.
SHAKOPEE, Minn. - Li’l Apollo’s sustained run from last place to the lead in the $75,000 Minnesota Derby for 3-year old Minnesota-bred males gave trainer Randy Pfeifer his first career stakes win and made the Shakopee oval feel a bit more like home.
“I’ve been doing this for 10, 15 years, and I spend one-third of my year here,” Pfeifer said. “I really like it here, and now it feels like home to me.”
OCEANPORT, N.J. - Seaneen Girl pulled away to a six-length win over Mr Hall’s Opus on Saturday in the Grade 3, $100,000 Monmouth Oaks for 3-year-old fillies.
Paco Lopez was aboard for his fourth win of the day as Seaneen Girl picked up her second graded win, having captured Grade 2 Golden Rod at Churchill Downs last November.
Seaneen Girl had several advantages heading into the Monmouth Oaks. For starters, she had a wealth of experience. This was her 13th start, easily the tops in the field, and it produced the third victory for the filly, trained by Bernie Flint.
