ETOBICOKE, Ontario - Woodbine Entertainment announced Tuesday that Jim Lawson will be stepping down from his role as chief executive officer this fall.
Lawson, who has been CEO since 2015, said he wants to spend more time with his family and believes it’s time to hand the reins to the next leader.
Wild On Ice emerged from his first work since his Sunland Park Derby victory in good order and is now being pointed for the Kentucky Derby, trainer Joel Marr said Tuesday. Wild On Ice arrived at Churchill Downs on Sunday.
“We’re in Kentucky,” Marr said. “We trained yesterday and today and so far everything is going smoothly.”
Wild On Ice worked last Friday at Sunland Park, going a half-mile by himself in 49.40 seconds. The horse’s regular rider, Ken Tohill, was aboard for the move, said Marr.
OZONE PARK, N.Y. – Congruent, winner of the John Battaglia Memorial earlier this year at Turfway Park, has been transferred from Antonio Sano to Chad Brown by his owners.
Brown said he has no immediate plans for Congruent, who has raced on all three surfaces – dirt, turf, and synthetic. He won the off-the-turf Laurel Futurity last fall at Laurel Park. He raced three times on turf, with a third-place finish in the Pulpit Stakes at Gulfstream Park in December his best finish on that surface. Most recently, he finished sixth in the Jeff Ruby Steaks on the Tapeta at Turfway.
OZONE PARK, N.Y. – Following his fourth-place finish in Saturday’s Grade 2 Wood Memorial, Arctic Arrogance is basically out of the Kentucky Derby picture. His 36 qualifying points leave him 27th on the list, needing seven defections to get into the field.
Trainer Linda Rice said she will likely back Arctic Arrogance up in distance anyway, which opens up several different options. One could be the Pat Day Mile at Churchill Downs on the May 6 Kentucky Derby undercard.
OZONE PARK, N.Y. – Plans for Doppelganger are fluid after the 4-year-old colt pulled off a 17-1 upset in Saturday’s Grade 1 Carter Handicap at Aqueduct.
The win, which came by 1 1/4 lengths over heavily favored Repo Rocks, was the third straight for the son of Into Mischief, all since coming to Maryland-based trainer Brittany Russell. His wins have come from seven furlongs to 1 1/16 miles, which leaves open the possibility of stretching him back out in distance at some point, according Tom Ryan, managing partner of SF Racing, which owns the colt in partnership.
LEXINGTON, Ky. – Corona Bolt, who remained unbeaten around one turn with a win in the $400,000 Lafayette Stakes for 3-year-old sprinters on opening day at Keeneland, will likely make his next start on the undercard of a Triple Crown race.
The potential spots for the Stonestreet Farm colorbearer would be the Grade 2, $500,000 Pat Day Mile on the Kentucky Derby undercard May 6, or the Grade 1, $400,000 Woody Stephens Stakes at seven furlongs on the Belmont Stakes undercard June 10.
LEXINGTON, Ky. – European import Hurricane Dream will be headed back to stakes company after a 4 1/2-length victory in a $140,000 turf race Friday at Keeneland that was an allowance race in name only.
“I thought it was not that different from a Grade 3, you know?” said Graham Motion, who trains the gelding for Team Valor, et al.
Jockey Juan Hernandez and trainer Phil D’Amato led their respective standings through Sunday for the Santa Anita winter-spring meeting.
Hernandez, 31, has ridden 63 winners, well clear of runner-up Flavien Prat with 31. Hernandez has 13 stakes wins, compared to 11 for Prat.
D’Amato, 47, has won 32 races, five more than Bob Baffert, who has won 12 stakes to lead in that category, one more than D’Amato.
