Trainer Kelly Breen could have taken his filly Srumdiddlyumptious to run for a $75,000 purse at Delaware Park, but she would have had to stretch out around two turns instead of sprinting. Breen got to stay at home and run Srumdiddlyumptious on the main track when Friday’s heavy rain caused Monmouth Park to switch Saturday’s $61,200 Fort Monmouth from turf to dirt.
ARLINGTON HEIGHTS, Ill. - Jockey James Graham has averaged 1.7 turf stakes winners per Arlington meet since he began riding here in 2004. Saturday, Graham got two on the same card, piloting Keep Up to victory in the $66,400 Swoon's Son and Grandma's Rules one race later in the $66,700 Gaily Gaily.
LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Miz Ida came with a rush after wheeling out into the middle of the turf course to resume her winning ways Saturday in the 37th running of the Grade 3, $109,100 Mint Julep Handicap at Churchill Downs.
With Shaun Bridgmohan aboard, Miz Ida was ahead of just one opponent after turning for home in the 1 1/16-mile race, but after she picked off Daisy Devine in the final 70 yards, she was a winner for the sixth time in her last 9 starts, finishing in 1:42.37 over firm going.
Kendrick Carmouche wanted no part of the inside portion of Parx Racing’s main track on Saturday. So even though he broke from the rail with Lighthouse Bay in the $75,000 Jostle Stakes and his 3-year-old filly got away last, Carmouche sacrificed precious ground to steer his mount way to the outside, where he sensed what was the best part of the racing strip.
Capella Dancer, making her first start since November, rallied from fourth in the stretch and made up a 3 1/2-length deficit in the final furlong to win the $50,000 Susan B. Anthony Stakes for New York-bred fillies and mares Saturday at Finger Lakes.
ETOBICOKE, Ontario – Sisterly Love easily notched her first stakes win in front-running style Saturday at Woodbine in the $133,000 Trillium.
Sisterly Love ($7) set moderate fractions of 24.88 seconds and 49.07 in the 1 1/16-mile route for fillies and mares. After three-quarters in 1:12.90, she kicked away in the stretch to score by 8 1/2 lengths, in a quick 1:43 under Eurico Da Silva.
Reconnect rallied to finish second over another longshot, Sarah Her Highness. Favored Inglorious faded badly in the lane to trail the seven-horse field.
ELMONT, N. Y. – With a wild charge on the outside, Forty Tales got up to win the Grade 2, $400,000 Woody Stephens Stakes for 3-year-olds Saturday at Belmont Park on the Belmont Stakes undercard.
Forty Tales, next to last in the 11-horse field down the backstretch and on the far turn, angled out in the stretch while gaining, and persevered to best one unlucky opponent and a couple of other tired ones, to score by three-quarters of a length. He paid $19.80.
The gray mare Bryan’s Jewel clearly didn’t mind that Saturday’s $79,500 John Rooney Memorial Stakes was moved from turf to the main track at Delaware Park. Although she won a turf stakes at Delaware last season, five of the seven lifetime victories Bryan’s Jewel has recorded have come on dirt.
Caviar N Champagne made it look easy drawing off to win the $50,000 Michael G. Mackey Memorial at Thistledown on Saturday.
Trained by Jeff Radosevich and ridden by Scott Spieth, Caviar N Champagne was seventh early in the field of 12 Ohio-bred fillies and mares. Spieth angled the 4-year-old filly five wide into the stretch and she drew off to win by 5 1/4 lengths. The venerable Pay the Man rallied for second, a length and a quarter in front of Startin Something.
ELMONT, N.Y. - John Velazquez knew Stephanie's Kitten was handling the yielding Widener turf course at Belmont Park very well in Saturday's Grade 1 Just A Game Stakes. It was just a matter of whether he would be able to find some running room when the appropriate time came.
With a quarter-mile left to run, the pacesetting Mizdirection drifted out a path or two and Velazquez shot Stephanie's Kitten on through the opening, then outfinished Better Lucky to win the $500,000 Just A Game by a half-length.
