Tue, 09/04/2012 - 15:12

Del Mar: Yellow Ribbon win opens new avenues for Halo Dolly

Shigeki Kikkawa
Halo Dolly could tackle Grade 1 company in the Rodeo Drive or go back to facing California-breds in the California Cup Distaff.

DEL MAR, Calif. – After Halo Dolly was defeated in the Osunitas Stakes the first weekend of the meet here at Del Mar, trainer Jerry Hollendorfer let it be known to jockey Joe Talamo and his agent, Scotty McClellan, that he was none too pleased with the ride. But Hollendorfer kept Talamo on the filly, and that proved beneficial, because Halo Dolly won two stakes in subsequent weeks, including a breakthrough victory on Monday in the Grade 2 Yellow Ribbon Handicap.

Tue, 09/04/2012 - 14:59

Arlington Park notes: Marketing Mix heads west for Rodeo Drive Stakes

Barbara D. Livingston
Marketing Mix will make her next start in the Grade 1 Rodeo Drive Stakes on Sept. 29 at Santa Anita

ARLINGTON HEIGHTS, Ill. – Twice Marketing Mix has raced in Grade 1 competition, and twice she has run well without winning. Last fall at Keeneland, it was a fine runner-up finish behind the Irish invader Together in the Queen Elizabeth II Challenge Cup, and last month at Arlington it was a head loss to the English shipper I’m A Dreamer in the Beverly D. Clearly, Marketing Mix is good enough to put a win at the highest level on her résumé , and her connections have now sent her west in an effort to accomplish that goal.

Tue, 09/04/2012 - 13:14

Ellis Park shows gains in handle and attendance for recent meet

Ellis Park ended its 29-day summer meet Monday with a nearly 13 percent increase in daily all-sources wagering over corresponding 2011 figures while showing a modest gain in ontrack business.

Tue, 09/04/2012 - 13:04

Delta Downs: Bryan Schultz named track superintendent

Bryan Schultz, 43, has been named the new track superintendent for Delta Downs in Vinton, La. The track opens its Thoroughbred meet on Oct. 19.

Schultz is a former assistant track superintendent for Lone Star Park near Dallas. He also worked in track maintenance at the shuttered Trinity Meadows near Ft. Worth, Texas.

Tue, 09/04/2012 - 12:59

Turfway Park opens 16-day fall meet on Thursday night

Turfway Park opens a 16-day fall meet Thursday evening amid perhaps the most trying of circumstances in the 53-year history of the northern Kentucky track, with no stakes on the schedule and a worsening plight in the fight for gambling dollars.

With its closest neighboring state, Ohio, ready to join Indiana in bringing casinos to the competitive landscape, Turfway is in a bare-bones survival mode. After reviving its once-proud Kentucky Cup series last fall following a one-year hiatus, Turfway officials announced last month that no stakes at all will be run this fall.

Mon, 09/03/2012 - 21:55

Del Mar: Hollendorfer horses run one-two in Yellow Ribbon

DEL MAR, Calif. – The meet didn’t start off very well for trainer Jerry Hollendorfer, but he’s finishing with a flourish. On Monday at Del Mar, Hollendorfer ran one-two in the Grade 2, $250,000 Yellow Ribbon Handicap for older female turf horses, as Halo Dolly earned her first graded stakes win at the expense of stablemate City to City.

Mon, 09/03/2012 - 21:29

Hastings: Herbie D. dominates Derby Bar and Grill Express

Four-Footed Fotos
Herbie D. scores as the heavy favorite in the Derby Bar and Grill Express.

VANCOUVER, British Columbia – Herbie D. was sent off as a prohibitive favorite in the $50,000 Derby Bar and Grill Express at Hastings on Monday and he didn’t disappoint as he cruised to an easy 2 3/4-length win over Stormy Canuck. He paid $2.60 for his dominating win in the six-furlong race for 3-year-olds and up.

Mon, 09/03/2012 - 20:35

Ruidoso: All American Futurity showcases One Dashing Eagle's talent

One Dashing Eagle scores by three-quarters of a length in the $2.4 million All American Futurity.

One Dashing Eagle regained his status as the nation’s top-ranked 2-year-old Quarter Horse on Monday, when he rolled to a three-quarter length win over Sudden Thoughts in the Grade 1, $2.4 million All American Futurity at Ruidoso Downs. Pj Chick in Black, who had supplanted One Dashing Eagle off a stellar trial effort, finished a troubled sixth as the 3-5 favorite. 

The All American is the richest race offered for Quarter Horses, and it closed out the meet at Ruidoso. The New Mexico track on Monday drew a record crowd of 24,106.

Mon, 09/03/2012 - 19:25

Ellis Park: Final Count take off-the-turf Cliff Guilliams

Final Count went first-to-last Monday to register a 4 1/4-length triumph in the $50,000 Cliff Guilliams Memorial, the closing-day feature of the 29-day Ellis Park meet in Henderson, Ky.

With jockey Corey Lanerie biding his time early, Final Count finished with a flourish, returning $7.20 as third choice in a field reduced to just six starters after the race was moved from the main track to the turf, with the distance revised from 1 1/16 miles to a mile. The winning time was 1:37.46 over a muddy track.

Mon, 09/03/2012 - 19:04

Saratoga: 2012 meet posts strong gains in overall handle

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. - Due largely to more races and a summer of spectacular weather, the 2012 Saratoga meet posted significant increases in overall handle while showing modest gains in ontrack business.

 Total average daily handle for the 40-day meet was $14,708,799, up 9 percent from the 2011 daily average of $13,493,636. Last year, Saratoga conducted only 39 cards, canceling the Aug. 28 card - the day after the Travers - due to Tropical Storm Irene.