ARCADIA, Calif. – The Factor will be ridden by jockey Martin Garcia when the speedy colt makes his 3-year-old debut in Sunday’s $150,000 San Vicente Stakes, trainer Bob Baffert said late Monday.
Garcia will replace Rafael Bejarano, who was aboard The Factor for a 8 1/4-length victory in a six-furlong maiden race in track-record time of 1:06.98 at Santa Anita on Dec. 26, the colt’s most recent start.
ARCADIA, Calif. – Uh Oh Bango started at five racetracks in seven races during his 2- and 3-year-old campaigns in 2009 and 2010, traveling the nation with trainer Kory Owens.
His list of venues visited will grow again Thursday when he starts in an allowance race over six furlongs at Santa Anita. Judging from his career record and ability to run well on a variety of tracks, Uh Oh Bango will play an important role in his first start in 10 months.
ARCADIA, Calif. – Santa Anita is tentatively scheduled to eliminate racing on the first four Wednesdays of March and run three five-day weeks, on a Wednesday-through-Sunday basis, beginning March 30 through the end of the meeting on April 17, according to track president George Haines.
The plan is subject to further discussion among Santa Anita officials and the approval of the California Horse Racing Board, Haines emphasized.
“The question is what we will do in March,” Haines said. “We’re still talking. We have to talk to the racing board.”
Welcome to Under the Radar. Each week, I’ll select an up-and-coming Derby prospect for my stable of Radar Runners.
Neil Howard may be best known for his thoughtful and patient handling of young horses. Rarely will you see a Howard juvenile pop first-time out. In fact, according to DRF Formulator statistics, Howard is only 3 for 51 (6 percent, 0.85 return on investment) with debuting 2-year-olds over the past five years.
NEW ORLEANS – That’s more like it.
One month after a mere four horses contested the Lecomte Stakes, the first of Fair Grounds’ three route stakes for 3-year-olds, a far more competitive field of 10 was entered Monday in the Grade 2, $300,000 Risen Star Stakes, the local prelude to the Louisiana Derby and one of six stakes races on Saturday’s program.
KENTUCKY DERBY NEWS: Track all the 3-year-olds on the Triple Crown trail
OZONE PARK, N.Y. – A pair of three-win days last week established Bruce Brown as the hottest stable on the grounds, momentum the trainer hopes carries over to Wednesday’s program when he sends out four runners on Aqueduct’s nine-race card, including the promising 3-year-old New York-bred Dr Disco in the afternoon’s feature race.
Brown went 3 for 3 on Thursday and 3 for 4 on Sunday to move into a three-way tie for sixth in the trainer standings, with 13 wins from 69 starters.
OLDSMAR, Fla. – Silver Reunion – strong as a young horse – came out Saturday in the Grade 3, $125,000 Endeavour at Tampa Bay Downs and gave a strong signal to her connections and the fans that she’s a maturing filly with a bright future with her front-running victory in her first race since last August.
Silver Reunion had her rider, Ramon Dominguez, shaking his head as he left the winner’s circle after the Endeavour,
OZONE PARK, N.Y. – Brian Pedroza, the leading apprentice jockey at Aqueduct this winter, will take at least one week off after suffering from general soreness as a result of a spill Sunday at Aqueduct that included four horses and riders.
None of the other riders in the spill – Charlie Amaro, Nazario Alvarado, and Abel Lezcano – are expected to miss any time. Honor Ernesto, ridden by Amaro, suffered fatal injuries and had to be euthanized. The other three horses involved – Soft Parade, Trinity Warrior, and Rightuplynn’salley were not seriously hurt.
HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla.- Acting Happy began her 2010 campaign in a 1 1/8-mile maiden race at Gulfstream Park and ended it in the Breeders’ Cup Ladies’ Classic at Churchill Downs.
On Wednesday, Acting Happy will begin her 2011 season back at Gulfstream going 1 1/8 miles in a $55,000 second-level optional claiming and allowance race with her ultimate goal to make it back to the Ladies’ Classic at Churchill Downs again this fall.
HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla - A year ago about this time, trainer Chad Brown was thinking Florida Derby and even Kentucky Derby with a promising 3-year-old named Tiz the One. A son of Tiznow, Tiz the One opened his career here with two impressive victories, the second a one-mile entry level allowance win for which he earned a 101 Beyer Speed Figure. Unfortunately, a series of injuries has kept Tiz the One sidelined ever since.
