ETOBICOKE, Ontario – Reconnect came from the clouds at odds of 70-1 under rider Omar Moreno to give trainer Ashlee Brnjas her first stakes victory here in the Sept. 10 La Prevoyante.

On Sunday, Brnjas will be hoping that lightning can strike twice when she sends out Reconnect, who is a daughter of Niigon, for the $150,000 Carotene Stakes.

The Carotene is scheduled for 1 1/8 miles on the grass and is restricted to Ontario foals, a step up from the Ontario-sired conditions of the La Prevoyante, which was run over one mile on the same surface.

ETOBICOKE, Ontario – Don Cavallo and Stately Victor, who both competed in the Grade 1 Pacific Classic, head a tiny five-horse field in Sunday’s Grade 3, $150,000 Durham Cup Stakes at Woodbine.

Don Cavallo ran the race of his life here two starts ago in the Grade 3 Dominion Day Stakes. He pressed the early pace in the 1 1/4-mile fixture, and then opened up a big lead on the far turn before coasting home on top by nearly four lengths, earning a Beyer Speed Figure of 98.

Only six challengers are willing to face defending champion Ben’s Cat in the $100,000 Turf Sprint at 5 1/2 furlongs (race 2, part of the 11-race Maryland Million program Saturday at Laurel Park. The 5-year-old Ben’s Cat is 3 for 3 on Laurel’s turf course and 4 for 5 lifetime sprinting on grass, but must spot his rivals nine to 12 pounds as the 123-pound highweight.

ELMONT, N.Y. – On Monday morning, after watching Royal Delta put in her final workout for Saturday’s Grade 1, $350,000 Beldame Invitational, trainer Bill Mott was asked if he felt his 3-year-old filly was up to taking on Havre de Grace, the leading older filly and mare in training.

“She’s very good right now,’’ Mott said of Royal Delta. “We might give her a challenge.’’

Though Mott never uttered these words, it sure seemed like he was saying, “Bring her on.’’

ELMONT, N.Y. – Major League Baseball’s Fall Classic begins Oct. 19, but the march to it began Friday night with the divisional playoffs, including one series at Yankee Stadium. Nineteen miles away at Belmont Park, preparations for Thoroughbred racing’s version of the World Series – the Breeders’ Cup Championships on Nov. 4-5 at Churchill Downs – are set to take place on a Super Saturday program that may actually live up to the billing.

ELMONT, N.Y. – Though his résumé this year is lacking a quality victory and he is running in the only stakes on the card that is not a Grade 1, Uncle Mo still remains the most compelling equine figure on Belmont Park’s Super Saturday program.

With a strong performance in the Grade 2, $200,000 Kelso Stakes, Uncle Mo makes himself a focal point of the Breeders’ Cup Classic on Nov. 5 at Churchill Downs. A poor performance could mean the end of the line for a horse who in 2010 generated one of the strongest 2-year-old campaigns in recent memory.

STICKNEY, Ill. – Grape vines bearing fruit climb nearly every fence surrounding the vast Arlington Park property. In turf races there, the horses disappear behind what the track announcer often calls “the little woods,” a reference to the Longchamp course in Paris.

ARCADIA, Calif. – While the focus of the Grade 1, $250,000 Lady’s Secret Stakes on Saturday at Santa Anita rightly focuses on the match between champion Blind Luck and Eastern invader Ask the Moon, trainer John Sadler is hoping he can sneak up on those two with Zazu, who twice in her career has pulled off mild upsets against marquee runners.