NORTH RANDALL, Ohio - Blazing Bling broke sharply, was taken in hand and allowed to settle by jockey Deshawn Parker, regained command before the turn, and then widened the balance of the trip to an eventual 9 3/4-length win in Friday's 45th running of the $50,000, six furlong, Miss Ohio Stakes at Thistledown.
Rachel Lynn B C, who set the pace for a little over a quarter-mile but then could not keep up with the winner, finished second, 5 1/4 lengths ahead of Autumn Fling in third.
Jockey Richard Eramia, a five-time title winner in his native Uruguay, won his 1,000th race in North America on Friday at Louisiana Downs in Bossier City, La. Eramia reached the milestone in the sixth race, when he guided Platinum Song to a seven-length win in an allowance for 2-year-old fillies. She paid $4.
DEL MAR, Calif. - Jockey Mario Gutierrez, who rode I’ll Have Another to wins in the Santa Anita Derby, Kentucky Derby, and Preakness Stakes earlier this year, rides at Del Mar for the first time since July 28 on Sunday.
Gutierrez, who has ridden sparingly in recent weeks, has two mounts on horses owned by Paul Reddam, who raced I’ll Have Another. Gutierrez rides the 2-year-old first-time starter Hume in a maiden race and Miss Mittagong in the $85,000 Adoration Stakes.
DEL MAR, Calif. - Jockey Martin Garcia won the 1,000th race of his career in Thursday’s second race on Bubba Fizz, and then won two more races for his best day of the meeting.
Through Thursday, Garcia ranked fourth in the jockey standings with 20 wins at the meeting, trailing leader Rafael Bejarano by 27 wins. The meeting ends on Wednesday.
Garcia, 27, has one stakes win at the current meeting, My Best Brother in a division of the Oceanside Stakes on opening day, July 18. He is back aboard My Best Brother in Sunday’s $300,000 Del Mar Derby over 1 1/8 miles on turf.
AUBURN, Wash. – Some of the story lines on a Sunday afternoon at Emerald Downs:
◗ For the first and only time during the 81-day meeting, Quarter Horses will be front and center in the $54,000 Bank of America Emerald Championship Challenge at 440 yards. Emerald Downs introduced Quarter Horse racing in 2011, but has staged just two prior races this summer, a pair of qualifying heats for Sunday’s final.
AUBURN, Wash. – Jebrica was a hot horse going into the Grade 3 Longacres Mile on Aug. 19 at Emerald Downs, but the combination of an outside post position, a sluggish start and a wide trip relegated the 2011 Emerald Derby champion to an eighth-place finish. Jebrica came out of the race in good order and will get a chance to get back into the win column in what should be a much easier test, the $40,000 Muckleshoot Tribal Classic on Sept. 9.
Mildly Offensive, making her first start since being transferred to trainer Todd Pletcher’s barn earlier this summer, withstood a torrid pace duel and a late try from Kid Kate to post a well-deserved half-length victory in Friday’s $100,000 Big Bambu Stakes at Saratoga.
Dancinginherdreams rallied belatedly to finish third.
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SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – Trainer Todd Pletcher suffered the first significant setback among his 2-year-old army when Palace Malice sustained bucked shins, which will cause him to miss the major races in the fall.
After trainer Vladimir Cerin won the CTT and TOC Handicap with Let’s Go Cheyenne on Aug. 24, he said he had one more objective before the end of the meeting – win Sunday’s $85,000 Adoration Stakes with Briecat.
“If she wins, that would make my meet,” Cerin said at the time. “I really like that mare.”
SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – While Stonestreet Stable would seem to hold a strong hand in Sunday’s Grade 1, $300,000 Spinaway regardless of whether it runs Teen Pauline, Dreaming of Julia, or both, there are others to consider in the seven-furlong race who should offer greater value.
