The Manitoba Jockey Club, in a decision released Monday afternoon, has won its case against the province of Manitoba and will not have its budget slashed for the 2013 meeting.
"We are very pleased to see that the court agreed with our argument," said Darren Dunn, chief executive officer of Assiniboia Downs. "There is more work to be done, but today is a good day for horse racing in Manitoba."
Trainer Todd Pletcher, who could do no better than third with his five runners in the Kentucky Derby, is expected to send out the duo of Abraham and Battier in Saturday’s Grade 2, $200,000 Peter Pan Stakes.
Abraham, a son of Distorted Humor, is coming off a fourth-place finish in the Grade 3 Illinois Derby. Prior to that, he finished third in the Sunland Derby.
Battier, a son of Tale of the Cat, is a recent addition to the Pletcher barn after being purchased privately by Eclipse Thoroughbreds.
Trainer Todd Pletcher won the 2007 Belmont Stakes with the filly Rags to Riches. He may try to do it again with Unlimited Budget and/or Dreaming of Julia, the third- and fourth-place finishers in last Friday’s Kentucky Oaks.
“They’re both intriguing fillies at the distance; both ownership groups mentioned the possibility of keeping an eye on it,” Pletcher said Sunday at Churchill Downs. “We’ll see how they ship and how they train and such.”
Both Dreaming of Julia and Unlimited Budget arrived back at Belmont on Sunday.
The New York-bred Hessonite overcame some traffic Saturday to win the Grade 3 Beaugay Stakes by three-quarters of a length over Peace Preserver.
The win was the first in a graded stakes for Hessonite, a daughter of Freud who is now 10 for 19. Hessonite has earned $803,310 for owners Philip DiLeo and William Punk Jr.
David Donk, the trainer of Hessonite, said he would likely point Hessonite for the Sheepshead Bay on May 25.
ELMONT, N.Y. – Before there was Orb, there was Norumbega.
A son of Tiznow, Norumbega won a 1 1/8-mile maiden race at Saratoga last Aug. 29, giving hope that trainer Shug McGaughey had a talented 2-year-old who could develop into a Kentucky Derby prospect in 2013.
But as quickly as Norumbega surfaced, he was gone, suffering fractures in both hind ankles coming out of that race. While he didn’t need surgery, he did need significant time off.
ELMONT, N.Y. – Yes, she was a Grade 1 winner running in a restricted stakes, but Dayatthespa’s victory in Sunday’s You Go West Girl Stakes at Belmont Park was impressive and significant.
In her first start since suffering a tendon injury in November’s Grade 1 Matriarch at Betfair Hollywood Park, Dayatthespa repelled a challenge from Kibosh at the quarter pole and drew clear to a four-length victory in the race restricted to New York-bred fillies and mares. She ran a mile in 1:33.52 over a firm turf course and earned a career-best Beyer Speed Figure of 95.
ARLINGTON HEIGHTS, Ill. – It was a good opening weekend at Arlington for trainer Jim DiVito, who won with three of the six horses he sent out, and DiVito has a good chance to start the second week of the meeting in similar style when he saddles Calmer Than You in the featured first race Wednesday.
Orb vanquished 18 horses in the Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs on Saturday, and as of Monday it looked like as many as seven of them would try again, and four newcomers were set to join the party, when the Triple Crown trail shifts to Pimlico for the Preakness Stakes on May 18.
LOUISVILLE, Ky. – With no perfect tickets sold Saturday for the $1 super high five wager on the Kentucky Derby, a carryover of $303,033 awaits Churchill Downs horseplayers Thursday following a four-day break in live racing.
The super high five will be held on the last of nine Thursday races. Entries for both the Thursday and Friday cards at Churchill were to be drawn Tuesday.
