SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – Exactly 51 years to the day since The Babe was a baby, trainer Richard Dutrow Jr. celebrated his birthday by sending out four stars from his barn, including new arrival Rail Trip, for workouts Thursday morning at Saratoga.

Rail Trip’s work, his first since his shocking move to Dutrow following last month’s Hollywood Gold Cup, was the most keenly anticipated of the four, but the sprinter D’ Funnybone, older horse I Want Revenge, and 2-year-old Boys At Tosconova all had important drills for upcoming races.

DEL MAR, Calif. − She has won with turf sprinters and horses running 1 1/2 miles on the main track, and she has won at several distances in between. In fact, Carla Gaines is winning with nearly everything she starts this summer at Del Mar.

Through Wednesday, Gaines had five wins from her first eight starters at the meeting, including the Grade 3 Cougar II Handicap with Temple City on July 30. Temple City is considered a contender for the $1 million Pacific Classic on Aug. 28 or the $200,000 Del Mar Handicap on turf Aug. 29.

DEL MAR, Calif. – The only perception of a blemish on Zenyatta’s unbeaten record is the 2009 Clement Hirsch Stakes at Del Mar, a race she won by a head.

The performance has been on trainer John Shirreffs’s mind for months, in advance of Zenyatta’s scheduled appearance in the same race on Saturday, where she will attempt to win her 18th race.

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. − The complexion of the Grade 1, $250,000 Test Stakes on Saturday at Saratoga changed dramatically Thursday afternoon, when Franny Freud, the morning-line favorite, was removed from the race because of an injury.

John Terranova, the trainer of Franny Freud, said she had suffered a ligament injury to her left front ankle and would be retired.

Lucky Chucky, last season’s champion 2-year-old trotter, is the 5-2 favorite in the $1.5 million Hambletonian at the Meadowlands Racetrack on Saturday.

The Hambo will be carried live on NBC from 3 to 4 p.m. Scheduled post time for the race is 3:43 p.m.

A winner in 10 of 15 races, Lucky Chucky will leave from post 2 for a pair of harness Hall of Famers, driver John Campbell and trainer Chuck Sylvester.

Campbell has won the Hambletonian a record six times, while Sylvester has four wins – one victory shy of the mark shared by Bill Haughton, Stanley Dancer, and Ben White.

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – Neither rain nor a slight misstep midway through the race could keep Divine Fortune from his destiny on Thursday, as he wore down favored Slip Away and then held off stablemate Arcadius to take the Grade 2, $75,000 A.P. Smithwick Memorial Steeplechase Stakes to begin a soggy day at Saratoga.

OCEANPORT, N.J. – Tomica’s Spirit and Sopchoppy give trainer Tim Kelly two contenders Saturday in the $100,000 Colleen Stakes at Monmouth Park.

The Colleen is the prep for the meet’s last major event for 2-year-old fillies, the Sorority on Labor Day.

Kelly plans to run both in the Colleen, and the Daniel Ljoka-owned duo will be uncoupled in the wagering.

Of the two, Tomica’s Spirit has a slight experience edge, with three races to her credit, one more than Sopchoppy.

ALTOONA, Iowa – The seven Iowa-bred stakes that comprise Saturday’s Iowa Classics card mark the close of the Prairie Meadows Thoroughbred meet. The track will reopen with Quarter Horse racing on Aug. 13

The $85,000 Donna Reed for older fillies and mares at a mile and 70 yards is the most competitive race on the card. Leading trainer Lynn Chleborad will send out the triple threat of Passion Talk, Friend O the Devil, and Courtney J in the 12-horse field.

Friend O the Devil returns off a neck loss to LD’s Shes Special in a one-mile statebred allowance on July 19.

Six days after being at Monmouth Park to send out Lookin At Lucky to win the Grade 1 Haskell Invitational, trainer Bob Baffert will be staying home at Del Mar when his stable goes after another rich stakes for 3-year-olds back East.

Baffert will have Concord Point as the 8-5 morning-line favorite for the Grade 2, $750,000 West Virginia Derby, the annual showcase event at Mountaineer Racetrack in Chester, W.Va. Nine 3-year-olds are entered in the 1 1/8-mile race, with Exhi, Skipshot, and Thiskyhasnolimit being the top challengers to Concord Point.

ETOBICOKE, Ontario – Sharp Secretary has come a long way since she was a mere $1,100 yearling purchase, and she should be a player in Saturday’s $150,000 Duchess Stakes at Woodbine.

The seven-furlong Duchess has attracted a hodgepodge of 3-year-old fillies, including the shippers Derwin’s Star, Red Hot Buddha, Simply Spiteful, and Manx Miss.