Wed, 06/13/2012 - 12:12

Churchill Downs notes: Nates Mineshaft gets another shot in Stephen Foster Handicap

Amanda Weir/Hodges Photography
Nates Mineshaft will be allowed to use his speed in the Grade 1 Stephen Foster.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. – The temptation was to think Nates Mineshaft was only effective at Fair Grounds, a horse whose meteoric rise from obscure claimer to multiple graded stakes winner coincided with racing over the same racetrack.

After four spectacular wins at Fair Grounds, including a New Orleans Handicap romp in which he earned a gaudy 113 Beyer Speed Figure, Nates Mineshaft thudded back to Earth when shipping north to Churchill Downs for the Alysheba on the May 4 Kentucky Oaks undercard and getting beat 20 lengths by Successful Dan.

Tue, 06/12/2012 - 17:31

Golden Gate Fields: Summer Hit headed south

Summer Hit is heading to trainer Jerry Hollendorfer’s Southern California barn after winning Saturday’s $100,000 Silky Sullivan by a neck over multiple stakes winner Stoney Fleece at Golden Gate Fields.

Summer Hit, a Betrando gelding, has 4 wins in 6 starts plus a second and a a third-place finish against older in the Gray Memo at Hollywood Park. He has earned $100,347.

Tue, 06/12/2012 - 17:17

Hollywood Park: Italian filly coming for American Oaks

Benoit & Associates
My Gi Gi (right) defeats Lady of Shamrock in the Honeymoon Handicap. They are expected to meet again in the American Oaks.

INGLEWOOD, N.Y. - Angegreen, second in the Group 2 Italian Oaks at San Siro Racecourse on May 26, will make her American debut in the $350,000 American Oaks on July 14, according to the Team Valor International partnership.

Co-owned with Robert Lapenta, Angegreen is an Italian-bred filly by Ekraar. Trained by John Hammond, Angegreen has won three races, and made her stakes debut in the Italian Oaks over 1 3/8 miles on turf where she was beaten 1 1/2 lengths by Cherry Collect.

The Italian Oaks was Angegreen’s first start for Team Valor and LaPenta.

Tue, 06/12/2012 - 17:08

Belmont Stakes television rating up 12 percent

The final rating for the race portion of the Belmont Stakes broadcast on NBC on Saturday was a 4.8 with an 11 share, according to the network. The rating was up 12 percent compared to a 4.3 rating for the race portion of last year’s broadcast, and the share this year was up 10 percent compared to last year’s broadcast.

Tue, 06/12/2012 - 16:14

Calder: 1 1/2-year layoff can’t stop Field Commission in Ponche

Coady Photography
In his first race since November 2010, Field Commission wins the Ponche.

MIAMI – Field Commission turned out to be the unlikeliest of heroes on Saturday’s Festival of the Sun preview card.

The 7-year-old Field Commission had not started since November 2010 and had never run on dirt in his 28-race career prior to going postward among the outsiders at 18-1 in Saturday’s $75,000 Ponche Handicap. But the Canadian-bred son of Service Stripe not only proved a convincing winner of the Ponche, which serves as a prep for the Grade 2 Smile Sprint Handicap on July 7, he also established a new stakes record in the process.

Tue, 06/12/2012 - 16:11

Hollywood Park notes: Creative Cause won't start until Del Mar meet

Benoit & Associates
Creative Cause, with Rafael Bejarano riding, wins the Best Pal at Del Mar.

INGLEWOOD, Calif. – Creative Cause, third in the Preakness Stakes in his last start on May 19, is in the midst of a vacation likely to last until Del Mar later this summer, trainer Mike Harrington said.

“I’m still going easy with him,” he said. “I’ll give him a little R and R.”

Owned by Heinz Steinmann, Creative Cause won the Grade 2 San Felipe Stakes against Bodemeister at Santa Anita in March and was later second, by a nose, to I’ll Have Another in the Santa Anita Derby.

Creative Cause was fifth in the Kentucky Derby.

Tue, 06/12/2012 - 15:44

Golden Gate Fields notes: Smarty Corn makes her own luck

Smarty Corn, a 4-year-old Smarty Jones filly trained by Bob Hess Sr., scored her third straight wire-to-wire victory Sunday in her return from a seven-week freshener, winning a $62,500 optional claimer at the second allowance condition. Because she ran for the claiming price, she’s eligible to come back in that spot.

Hess was pleased with the effort, but said the filly had a “perfect trip.”

Tue, 06/12/2012 - 15:41

Lone Star Park: Pish closing in on Lone Star title

GRAND PRAIRIE, Texas – Danny Pish has won 15 training titles in Texas, but none at Lone Star Park near Dallas, and that is something he hopes will change this meet. Pish moved within one win of the lead in the standings last weekend, and now trails only Bret Calhoun, the defending champ, heading into Thursday night’s races at Lone Star.

Tue, 06/12/2012 - 15:09

Hollywood Park: Danderek to test limits of his speed in marathon

Shigeki Kikkawa
Danderek will stretch out to 1 1/2 miles in an optional claimer Thursday at Hollywood Park.

INGLEWOOD, Calif. – Danderek is not supposed to run this far, and few expected Porfido would last this long.

But the idea that Danderek is questionable at 1 1/2 miles, or Porfido less reliable at age 10, might need revision after the race 7 feature Thursday at Betfair Hollywood Park.

The veterans are leading contenders in the first-level optional claimer, a turf marathon with 13 entrants. Danderek is the controlling speed, and former Group 1 winner Porfido is the proven class. Their attributes are as clear as their potential limitations.

Tue, 06/12/2012 - 14:56

Belmont: Tested veterans going a mile on turf

ELMONT, N.Y. – A pair of quality allowance/optional claiming races spice up Thursday’s program at Belmont Park.

Among seven turf-meant older males in race 3, scheduled for a mile on the Widener course, are Abilio and Pocket Cowboys, veteran New York-breds who were off the board in the recent Kingston Stakes – a race Pocket Cowboys won last year for Scott Schwartz.

The Linda Rice-trained Abilio never made the lead in the Kingston. Before that, however, he went wire to wire and earned a career-best Beyer Speed Figure in his seasonal debut at Aqueduct.