LOS ALAMITOS, Calif. – One Dashing Eagle became the first Quarter Horse to win three seven-figure races in the same year with an easy win in Sunday’s $1,118,000 Golden State Million Futurity at Los Alamitos.
Earlier this year, One Dashing Eagle won the Ed Burke Million Futurity at Los Alamitos and the All American Futurity at Ruidoso Downs.
ARCADIA, Calif. - Rhythm of Light won her third race in as many countries this year in Sunday’s $150,000 Goldikova Stakes at Santa Anita, the showcase race on the final day of the track’s autumn meeting.
Sent off favored, Rhythm of Light benefited from a perfect ride from jockey Garrett Gomez, closing from sixth in a field of seven with a wide move and winning the Grade 2 race over a mile on turf by 1 1/2 lengths.
Rhythm of Light ($6.80) was timed in 1:33.42.
ETOBICOKE, Ontario — Atlantic Hurricane, last year’s Canadian champion female sprinter, won the $155,500 Ontario Fashion Stakes for the second year in a row at Woodbine on Sunday.
With Luis Contreras aboard, Atlantic Hurricane bided her time near the rear of the eight-horse field on the backstretch, as Mo Jo Queen set rapid fractions in the six-furlong dash.
Violence, who was among Todd Pletcher’s 21 juvenile maiden winners at Saratoga, rallied four wide on the turn, drifted in while forging to the lead in the stretch, and survived an inquiry in Sunday’s 38th running of the Grade 2, $200,000 Nashua Stakes at Aqueduct.
Violence, a $600,000 colt by Medaglia d’Oro, raced in mid-pack early as his $1.3 million stablemate Darwin set the pace under pressure from Really Sharp and Vegas No Show through fractions of 22.88 and 45.45 seconds.
My Happy Face, who was nipped in the Frizette after a race-long battle with Dreaming of Julia, was involved in a second straight alley fight in Sunday’s Tempted Stakes at Aqueduct, and prevailed by a hard-fought neck over second choice Cue the Moon.
My Happy Face ($2.60) was the prohibitive favorite with Ramon Dominguez in a four-filly renewal of the Grade 3 Tempted, but was hounded every step of the way by Cue the Moon through fast fractions of 22.48 and 44.87 seconds.
Deniro won the first stakes of his career in Saturday’s $929,040 Los Alamito Super Derby at Los Alamitos, earning an automatic berth to the $750,000 Champion of Champions against older horses on Dec. 15.
Ridden by Adrian Loza, Deniro ($9.60) ran 400 yards in 19.40 seconds, finishing a neck in front of Hez Our Secret. Check My Thoughts was third in the field of nine. Flame N Flash, the 6-5 favorite, was bumped shortly after the start, failed to recover, and finished sixth.
Deniro had a smooth trip in the Super Derby, breaking well from post 6.
Trainer Forrest Kaelin made a good call by opting to travel to West Virginia rather than stay at home in Kentucky.
Kaelin scratched his 5-year-old Good Lord from Friday’s Grade 3, $100,000 Ack Ack at Churchill Downs in order to shoot for a $130,000 purse in Saturday night’s Mountaineer Mile at Mountaineer Racetrack. Good Lord ($5) justified the decision by drawing clear from pacesetter Mega Rush in deep stretch to win by 3 3/4 lengths.
ARCADIA, Calif. - How did you celebrate your 27th birthday?
Jockey Brian Hernandez Jr. celebrated his on Saturday winning the richest race in North America, guiding Fort Larned to a front-running victory over Mucho Macho Man in the $5 million Breeders' Cup Classic at Santa Anita.
It was his only mount on the day and his first-ever mount at Santa Anita.
"This is the greatest birthday present ever," Hernandez said shortly after he got off Fort Larned.
ARCADIA, Calif. – Mucho Macho Man may have finished second to Fort Larned in Saturday’s Breeders’ Cup Classic, but he was still a winner in the minds of trainer Kathy Ritvo and jockey Mike Smith.
“Honesty, he [Mucho Macho Man] won, I just didn’t finish first, if that’s possible,” said Smith, who fell a half-length short of sweeping the two main events at the 2012 Breeders’ Cup. Smith won the Ladies’ Classic aboard Royal Delta the previous afternoon.
