New York-bred Brigand, one of two Bob Baffert-trained horses currently on the grounds, worked five furlongs in a sharp 58.66 seconds Monday over the Belmont main track. Javier Castellano was aboard for the move in which Belmont clockers caught his first quarter in 22.83 and his last three-eighths in 35.83.
ELMONT, N.Y. – Kentucky Oaks winner Believe You Can is ready to return to the races in Saturday’s Mother Goose at Belmont Park. Unfortunately, Kentucky Oaks runner-up Broadway’s Alibi is not.
A scheduled rematch between the two – separated by three-quarters of a length in the Oaks – will not take place in Saturday’s Grade 1, $300,000 Mother Goose as trainer Todd Pletcher has sent Broadway’s Alibi to the Rood and Riddle Equine Hospital in Lexington, Ky., for a physical examination.
Ravalo returns to action Wednesday evening when taking on a field of older sprinters in the $100,000 Karl Boyes Memorial at Presque Isle Downs.
The venerable Don Barr trainee has not raced since January, when he finished last in an overnight stakes at Aqueduct. Prior to that race, he won the $200,000 Six Bits Handicap at Penn National, a race that took a lot out of him, according to Barr.
“It was what I call a gut-wrencher, it took a lot out of him, out of all of us. “ Barr said.
ETOBICOKE, Ontario – It has been a frustrating spring for the Mike DePaulo barn.
So, there was palpable sense if relief last Sunday after Pender Harbour captured the $125,000 Steady Growth Stakes under his regular rider, Luis Contreras.
“It’s nice to get him back,” said DePaulo, who trains Pender Harbour for Alberta-based owners Denny Andrews, Sandra Lazaruk, and Bob and Roberta Giffin.
“He certainly needed his first race. He was fat. He’s still far from skinny.”
ELMONT, N.Y. – It’s supposed to get steamy here on Wednesday with temperatures soaring into the 90s for the nine-race program at Belmont Park, which begins with a pick six carryover of $26,657.
Perhaps the only thing hotter than the temperature is trainer Christophe Clement’s barn, which has won 5 of the last 8 races it has participated in at Belmont. Clement has moved into a second-place tie with Rudy Rodriguez in the Belmont standings with 14 victories, five behind Richard Dutrow Jr.
ETOBICOKE, Ontario – Strait of Dover and Classic Bryce both worked five furlongs over the main track here Monday morning in their final major tune-ups for the $1 million Queen’s Plate on Sunday at Woodbine.
The probable field for the 1 1/4-mile Queen’s Plate swelled to 15 on Monday morning with the news that Washington Dash, a maiden who is trained by Darrin Miller, would be shipping in from Churchill Downs.
Strait of Dover, trained by Danny Vella, breezed in 1:00.40 and galloped out six furlongs in 1:14.40 with his regular rider Justin Stein in the irons.
ETOBICOKE, Ontario – Stakes-placed horses River Lemon and Thundering Waters will take center stage Wednesday night at Woodbine in the third race, a $40,000 conditioned claimer scheduled for nine furlongs on the grass.
River Lemon went to the sidelines for 8 1/2 months after finishing a close third in last year’s Toronto Cup Stakes. He checked in fifth after a troubled break when he came off the shelf March 31 at Gulfstream, but a subsequent performance there in another allowance was forgettable.
Noosa Beach made it to the starting gate Sunday at Emerald Downs, but no farther. Set to start as the odds-on favorite in the $50,000 Budweiser Handicap, the reigning Washington horse of the year injured himself after rearing in the gate and was withdrawn by order of the presiding veterinarian. That opened the door for Winning Machine to capture the one-mile Budweiser, his second consecutive stakes victory.
Alisal could be ready for a peak performance in his third start of the year, and he probably needs only to repeat his very good second behind Minutesandtouches in a second-level allowance race June 6 to win Wednesday’s feature at Northlands Park. The conditions of the race are the same, but the quality of the eight-horse field Wednesday doesn’t appear as strong as the June 6 race. Plus, with his tactical speed, Alisal should get a nice trip from just off what figures to be a moderate pace in the six-and-one-half furlong sprint for 3-year-olds and up.
