Commander benefitted from quick interior fractions of 22.0 and 45.20 seconds to win the $50,000, six-furlong Journal for 3-year-olds and up at Northlands Park on Saturday. Commander paid $15.30, partly because he was coming off a four-month layoff.
Commander was ridden by Jorge Espitia, who picked up the mount when Robert Skelly, who flew in from Hastings on Saturday morning, wasn’t allowed to ride by the stewards at Northlands because he didn’t have the proper health certificates.
ELMONT, N.Y. - The Mother Goose was more than a two-horse race after all.
Zo Impressive, a well-beaten second to Contested in the Grade 1 Acorn last month, rebounded with a gritty three-quarter-length victory over Disposablepleasure in Saturday’s Grade 1, $300,000 Mother Goose Stakes at Belmont Park.
It was 8 1/2 lengths back to Kentucky Oaks winner Believe You Can in third. Wildcat’s Smile, a 35-1 shot, was fourth while Contested, the 1-2 favorite, finished last after leading to the quarter pole.
OCEANPORT, N.J.- Dancing Solo scored another stakes win at Monmouth Park, beating Zultanite by 1 1/2 lengths on Saturday in the Grade 3, $103,000 Boiling Springs Stakes for 3-year-old fillies on the turf.
Trained by Todd Pletcher, Dancing Solo has run here twice this meet and posted solid wins both times. She captured the Little Silver Stakes, the Boiling Springs prep, by an identical 1 1/2 length margin on May 27.
This time the competition was tougher, but the outcome was the same.
MIAMI - It’s time for Where’s Sterling to start looking for greener and drier pastures.
Despite appearing not to handle the wet going well and getting hung wide throughout, Where’s Sterling asserted his class to register a 3 1/4-length victory over pacesetter Oligarch in Saturday’s $55,000 Mecke Stakes. Numb Lips finished third.
The Mecke was originally scheduled to be run at 1 1/8 miles on the grass but was moved to the same distance on a sloppy main track.
SHAKOPEE, Minn. - Heliskier, at odds of 1-20, ran away with the six-furlong $50,000 Victor S. Myers Stakes for Minnesota-bred 3- year-old colts and geldings at Canterbury Park on Saturday under a hand ride by Derek Bell. He won his first start of the year on June 10 over statebred allowance company.
“He ran too fast in his first one and we had a quick turnaround,” said trainer Mac Robertson. “So I told Derek to let him run but not push him too hard.”
LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Blueeyesintherein posted a 2 1/2-length victory Saturday afternoon at Churchill Downs in the $112,200 Debutante Stakes that proved to be highly popular – and not just because she was the even-money favorite in a field of 10 2-year-old fillies.
Desert Ransom, who owns one of the year’s best Beyer Figures assigned to a 2-year-old, backed the number up Saturday when he won his stakes debut in the $50,000 Minstrel at Louisiana Downs. Desert Ransom was a commanding 3 1/2- length winner over Themistocles, while it was another length and a half back in third to Prince Production.
The Minstrel was one of two turf stakes for 2-year-olds on the program, both designed as stepping-stones to a pair of six-furlong races on the Super Derby undercard Sept. 8.
ETOBICOKE, Ontario — Arlington shipper Hammers Terror outran favored Excaper and four other 3-year-olds to take the $103,600 Charlie Barley Stakes at Woodbine on Saturday.
Hammers Terror stalked the dueling leaders on the backstretch in the one-mile turf route, before moving into serious contention exiting the turn. He drew away in the final furlong to prevail by 3 3/4 lengths over Excaper, who came wide from farther back than usual to end up second in his first start in six months. Drago’s Best edged out Jomelo for third in the six-horse field.
Gleaming outran both of the logical favorites to upset Saturday’s $145,500 Sweet and Sassy Stakes at Delaware Park.
Ridden for the first time by Alex Cintron, the 5-year-old Gleaming ($14.60) stalked in third position in a field reduced to just four fillies and mares by the scratch of Afleet Lass. Bold Affair, the 4-5 favorite on the basis of her three straight stakes wins in Maryland, set the pace through a quarter-mile in 21.82 seconds and a half-mile in 44.43.
Sloane Ranger scored a pacesetting win at 9-1, holding off Golddigger’s Boy by a neck on Saturday, in the $150,000 Don LeVine Memorial Handicap at Parx Racing.
Frankie Pennington was aboard for trainer Martin Ciresa as the 6-year-old gelding, a homebred in Pennsylvania for Vicky Schowe, got his seventh win in 28 starts.
The key to the outcome was the opening quarter. The race unfolded with Sloane Ranger and Ponzi Scheme, winner of the Decathlon Stakes last month at Monmouth Park, both breaking alertly.
