ELMONT, N.Y. – Though she only won by a head, Aruna’s victory in a first-level allowance race on closing day at Saratoga impressed her trainer Graham Motion quite a bit.
With only one horse beaten at the top of the stretch, Aruna rallied to win the one-mile race in her first start in four months and first in North America. She ran a final quarter-mile in under 23 seconds to get the win over a course that had become extremely speed-favoring.
Wickedly Perfect, the winner of Friday’s Grade 1 Alcibiades Stakes at Keeneland, will miss the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies at Churchill Downs on Nov. 5 because of a bone chip in a knee, trainer Doug O’Neill said.
The diagnosis was made Saturday morning, O’Neill said. Wickedly Perfect would have been among the leading contenders for the BC Juvenile Fillies.
“She had a little heat in a left knee,” O’Neill said. “We did X-rays and she has a chip.”
VANCOUVER, British Columbia – Rich Coleman, the Minister of Housing and Social Development who is responsible for horse racing in British Columbia, said there would be government help forthcoming to the beleaguered horse racing industry.
Coleman didn’t give the exact number in terms of dollars but he did say it would be substantial. Currently, slot revenue to the horse racing industry comes from slots at Hastings and Fraser Downs, the local Standardbred track.
GROVE CITY, Ohio – Beulah Park begins a 52-day fall/winter meet under new ownership Tuesday. Penn Gaming purchased the track in the spring and the deal was finalized over the summer. Although most of the same personnel are in place, quite a bit has changed.
ETOBICOKE, Ontario – Trainer Ralph Biamonte should be front and center in Monday’s $125,000 Bull Page Stakes at Woodbine, when he runs Altius and Citius in the six-furlong sprint for Ontario-sired 2-year-olds.
Altius and Citius are both sons of leading Canadian freshman sire Old Forester, and they were both bred by Biamonte.
The speedy Altius was second in his five-furlong debut in June. He graduated over 5 1/2 furlongs, with the addition Lasix in another Ontario-sired maiden dash July 25.
INGLEWOOD, Calif. – Sidney’s Candy, a four-time graded stakes winner in California this year, was scratched from the Grade 2 Oak Tree Mile on Saturday at Hollywood Park because of a pending sale, trainer John Sadler said Saturday morning.
Sadler said the deal was expected to be finalized by Monday but declined to identify the potential buyer. Under terms being discussed for the potential sale, Sadler said he would continue to train Sidney’s Candy for the Breeders’ Cup Mile at Churchill Downs on Nov. 6.
Northlands Park will close its 2010 meet with a strong 10-race card headed by an excellent field in the $50,000 Harvest Gold Plate for 3-year-olds and up. The 1 1/16-mile feature attracted nine horses and appears to be a wide-open race.
Adding excitement to the closing-day festivities is the late move by jockey Shannon Beauregard. Through Friday, Beauregard was just four wins shy of Anthony Salgado in the standings.
VANCOUVER, British Columbia – The $100,000 Jack and Sadie Diamond futurities highlight the closing-day, nine-race card at Hastings on Monday. Adding class to the closing ceremonies is the return of Russell Baze, who will ride both races.
If indeed two heads are better than one, it stands to reason that three horses must be better than two.
So many fillies and mares were entered for Monday’s Rosenna Stakes at Delaware Park that the 1 1/16-mile turf race had to be split into two divisions, each worth $50,000 with a field of 11 runners.