Joining Uncle Mo on the flight from south Florida were several of his stablemates, including Gulfstream Oaks winner R Heat Lightning, who will train for a few weeks at Belmont before moving on to Louisville, where she will likely start as the favorite for the $500,000 Kentucky Oaks on May 6.

Trainer Todd Pletcher said that Hector Ramos, the same exercise rider who gets on Uncle Mo, also gets on R Heat Lightning and he wanted to keep that continuity. Pletcher also said he wanted R Heat Lightning to be with him.

The New York-bred Ava K. steps out of New York-bred company and will take on six 3-year-old fillies in the Grade 3, $150,000 Comely Stakes at one mile Saturday at Aqueduct.

Ava K., trained by Mike Hushion, won her debut by 10 1/4 lengths on Jan. 9 and a New York-bred first-level allowance by 2 1/2 lengths in February – both at six furlongs – before stretching out to a mile and 70 yards while winning the Proud Puppy Stakes on March 11.

Ramon Dominguez will ride Ava K. from post 5.

Sheikh Mohammed’s Godolphin Stable doesn’t usually begin to run horses in New York until the Belmont meet. This year, Godolphin will start a little early when Buffum returns from Dubai to run in Saturday's Grade 3, $200,000 Bay Shore Stakes for 3-year-olds at seven furlongs.

Churchill Downs will offer a bet on the four night racing cards of its upcoming spring meet that will require bettors to pick the winners of 10 races in a row, company officials said Wednesday.

HOT SPRINGS, Ark. – The post Fudgesicle drew for the eighth race Friday at Oaklawn Park might put him in a position to roll out some new pace tactics. After racing on the lead from inside posts, he gets a gate that could give his rider options. Fudgesicle drew post 8 for the entry-level allowance sprint for 3- and 4-year-olds. Among his rivals in the nine-horse field is the Triple Crown nominee Skylord.

HOT SPRINGS, Ark. – Elite Alex and J P’s Gusto are horses with natural speed, but you would not have known it watching their last starts. Both raced farther off the pace than usual and as a result will add blinkers for the Arkansas Derby. Elite Alex worked in the equipment Wednesday morning at Oaklawn, when he covered six furlongs from the gate in a bullet 1:11.60.

OZONE PARK, N.Y. – An eclectic field of 12 was entered for Saturday’s Grade 1, $250,000 Carter Handicap at Aqueduct, including Be Bullish, who would be making his third start in nine days if he were to actually start in the seven-furlong race.

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Watch Me Go winning the Tampa Bay Derby. Video of Saturday's Illinois Derby will be shown live on DRF.com

STICKNEY, Ill. – Those four horses as of last weekend considered probable entrants in the Illinois Derby at Hawthorne Racecourse? They multiplied. When Saturday’s Grade 3, $300,000 race was drawn Wednesday, 12 names were called.

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OZONE PARK, N.Y. – The hard part may be over for Uncle Mo as far as Saturday’s $1 million Wood Memorial is concerned.

He got here.

LEXINGTON, Ky. – Sports fans in the Bluegrass are still grieving the defeat of their beloved Kentucky Wildcats in the NCAA basketball semifinals, so the timing couldn’t be better. Here comes Keeneland, where a spring afternoon of racing provides the perfect salve for pretty much any wound.

Indeed, going hoops to hooves should turn this town around in a hurry.

“You can always just sense the excitement building for Keeneland,” racing secretary Ben Huffman said. “There aren’t many better places to come spend a day and forget about the real world.”