DEL MAR, Calif. - Trainer Bob Baffert always has been far more a fan of dirt racing than synthetic, but this summer, he has not been enamored with the track at Saratoga, and that's one reason why The Factor, his wickedly fast 3-year-old, is remaining at Del Mar for the Grade 1, $250,000 Pat O'Brien Stakes on Polytrack on Sunday.

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. -  Saturday’s seven-furlong King’s Bishop lost one potential starter when The Factor was withdrawn from the race, but gained another after trainer Angel Penna Jr. confirmed Monday that his 3-year-old Cool Blue Red Hot would start in the Grade 1 fixture.

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – As many as 10 horses could be entered Wednesday when post positions are assigned for Saturday’s $1 million Travers Stakes at Saratoga. Only one of those 10 has a proven affinity for Saratoga’s main track.

TRAVERS STAKES: Updates from Saratoga, workout reports, and more »

DEL MAR, Calif. – Jockey Tyler Baze must meet Wednesday with Del Mar’s stewards, who said he likely would have to pass tests for drugs and alcohol before being allowed to ride again after failing a breathalyzer test on Friday.

Baze, 28, was off his mounts Friday, Saturday, and Sunday after failing the breathalyzer test, which was ordered by the track physician and stewards because of concerns over his behavior earlier Friday during a film session, according to Scott Chaney, one of Del Mar’s three stewards along with Kim Sawyer and Tom Ward.

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – Lovely Lil overcame a sluggish beginning to dominate the $75,000 Union Avenue Stakes for New York-bred fillies and mares Monday at Saratoga.

Lovely Lil, who was last after the break, advanced to striking position leaving the backstretch before readily overtaking Nicole’s Miss El near midstretch and cruising to a 1 3/4-length victory in the six-furlong Union Avenue. Jockey Ramon Dominguez had Lovely Lil geared down and in hand through the final 70 yards of Monday’s main event.

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – Going into Sunday’s Grade 2 Lake Placid Stakes at Saratoga, trainer Shug McGaughey knew his filly, Hungry Island, was going to run her best race. What he was less sure about was whether it was going to be good enough to beat the heavily favored Winter Memories.

DEL MAR, Calif. – With three straight wins, the last two in Grade 1 races, Acclamation has developed into the premier older turf horse on the West Coast, but a strong workout on the main track Monday morning at Del Mar convinced his connections to move him to Polytrack for the meet’s richest race, the Grade 1, $1 million Pacific Classic on Sunday.

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – There is a $100,000 bonus offered to the connections of a horse who can sweep the three legs of the Big Apple Triple for New York-bred 3-year-olds. Unfortunately for trainer Gary Contessa, there is not a bonus given if a trainer sweeps the series with multiple horses.

DEL MAR, Calif. – The Del Mar turf was the wrong place for a front-runner the first four weeks of summer – only 4 of 39 grass routes were won by the pacesetter.

But the course profile began changing last week (Aug. 17-21), when 3 of 11 turf routes were won in wire-to-wire fashion. The shift comes at the right time for Red Sun, a consistent front-runner who returns Wednesday in the $85,000 Harry Brubaker Stakes.

Four people have been arrested by the South Florida Violent Crimes Task Force in connection with the fatal shooting of a Brinks security guard at Calder Racecourse and Casino on Sunday afternoon, the FBI announced Monday.

The unidentified victim was shot around 5 p.m. during an attempted robbery outside the track’s casino. The guard was airlifted to the Ryder Trauma Unit at Jackson Memorial Hospital in Miami, where he later died. Sunday’s racing program at Calder was nearing completion at the time of the incident.