Penn National-based Pollard’s Boy, whose previous two victories came against open company, relished the class drop to score a daylight victory in Saturday’s $74,750 Pennsylvania Nursery for statebred 2-year-old colts and geldings at Parx Racing.
Three weeks after breaking one modern-day United States record, the remarkable 5-year-old gelding Rapid Redux is targeting another in Tuesday’s sixth race at Laurel Park.
As a follow-up to his 20th consecutive win last month at Mountaineer Racetrack, Rapid Redux will attempt to tie the modern-day U.S. record for victories in a calendar year, currently shared by Triple Crown winner Citation (1948) and Hall of Famer Roseben (1905) at 19.
Tap for Luck and Heather, a pair of 3-year-old fillies with two stakes placings apiece on their r é sum é s, meet for the first time in Monday’s featured eighth race at Parx, a second-level optional $25,000 claimer for fillies and mares going six furlongs.
The Todd Pletcher-trained Tap for Luck began her career in August 2010 by winning her maiden at Saratoga with a 90 Beyer Speed Figure. Two starts later, she was runner-up in the Grade 3 Tempted at Aqueduct and followed up by finishing a distant third of five in the Grade 2 Demoiselle.
HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. - Brendan Walsh will have to wait another day to launch his training career. Walsh, a native of Cork, Ireland, was hoping to send out his first starter, the Grade 2 winner Santiva, in Saturday’s ninth race, but he was unable to draw in off the also-eligible list.
Walsh worked as an exercise rider and assistant to Eddie Kenneally, who trained Santiva earlier in his career. Santiva has not run since finishing eighth in the Belmont. He was entered to run on the grass for only the second time in his career on Saturday.
HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. - Jockeys Paco Lopez and Joe Bravo were forced to take off all their mounts Saturday and Sunday after being involved in a frightening spill here Friday. Both Lopez and Bravo were scheduled to ride in Saturday’s Grade 3 Sugar Swirl, with Lopez on Catch a Thief and Bravo aboard Roman Treasure.
INGLEWOOD, Calif. – Ramon Dominguez, who leads the nation’s riders with more than $19.4 million in earnings this year, will ride Majestic City in Saturday’s $750,000 CashCall Futurity at Hollywood Park.
The Grade 1 CashCall Futurity will be the first time that Dominguez has ridden Majestic City, a winner of 3 of 6 starts and $245,570. Trainer Peter Miller finalized the assignment on Friday.
“I said, ‘Who’s the leading rider in the country?’ ” Miller said. “I’ll try to get him. He’s a great rider.
HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. – Naming a stakes at Gulfstream Park for Harlan’s Holiday was a long time coming considering he won both the 2002 Florida Derby and 2003 Donn Handicap at this track during a racing career that ended with more than $3.6 million in the bank. But one would think Harlan’s Holiday himself was running here Saturday, the way the racing office is scrambling just to fill the event.
HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. - Redeemed, easy winner of the Grade 3 Discovery Handicap on Nov. 19, showed he’s still maintaining his good form when he worked a very easy five furlongs in 1:01.46 at Gulfstream Park on Friday. Redeemed posted fractions of 25.32 and 37.32 seconds before galloping out six furlongs in 1:14.47.
Redeemed is one of three horses trainer Richard Dutrow Jr. has nominated to Saturday’s inaugural running of the $60,000 Harlan’s Holiday overnight stakes, along with stablemates Boys At Tosconova and Trickmeister.
HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. - Among the more notable 2-year-olds who will be hoping to embark on the Kentucky Derby trail here at Gulfstream Park this winter is Breeders’ Cup Juvenile runner-up Union Rags. Trainer Michael Matz said Union Rags has been taking it easy on the Skara Glen Stables farm in Wellington, Fla., where he was scheduled to be ridden under tack for the first time since the Breeders’ Cup on Friday.
As fast as trainer Al Stall came blazing out of the gate opening week at Fair Grounds, he entered Friday’s races in New Orleans only tied atop the trainer standings, Mike Stidham having caught up with a couple of winners on Thursday’s card. One was Hammers Terror, a 2-year-old colt who earned a spot in the Jan. 26 Lecomte Stakes with a 2 3/4-length victory in a first-level allowance race.
Hammers Terror had won his maiden on Polytrack at Keeneland and never had raced two turns, so he cleared two hurdles – dirt and routes – in the same race Thursday.
