CINCINNATI, Ohio - No Garlic led from start to finish to win the $50,000 Hoover at River Downs on Saturday.
Jockey Dean Sarvis hustled the 2-year-old Ohio-bred colt away from the gate in the 5 1/2-furlong Hoover and never looked back. When Sarvis asked for run in the upper stretch, No Garlic responded, drawing off to win by 3 1/4 lengths.
Rockwell Torrey chased the winner throughout to finish second, a half-length in front of Ranger Bob in third.
It wasn't easy, but Blind Luck just managed to get the job done as the heavy favorite in Saturday's Grade 2, $250,000 .
Coming from last down the backstretch and racing over a sloppy track for the first time in her 12-race career, Blind Luck ($2.60) won a head bob at the wire with locally based Havre de Grace to earn the sixth graded stakes victory of her career.
NORTH RANDALL, Ohio - Bold Captain finished with a burst of speed along the rail to gain a 1 1/2-length win over odds-on favorite Catlaunch and light up the tote board with a $65.80 mutuel in the 3lst running of the $50,000 George Lewis Memorial at Thistledown on Saturday afternoon.
Allsarott finished third in the field of 10 Ohio-bred 3-year-olds and up.
Bold Captain, a 4-year-old gelded son of Bold Truth, is owned by Pyrite Stable, trained by Miguel Feliciano, and was ridden by Luis Gonzalez. He covered the mile and an eighth n 1:53.06 over a fast track.
Elusive Gift justified his role as the odds-on favorite by cruising to a 4 1/4-length victory in Saturday's $50,000 Punch Line Stakes for Virginia-breds at Colonial Downs.
A 5-year-old gelding based at Delaware Park with trainer Tony Dutrow, Elusive Gift ($2.60) is now 2 for 2 in turf sprint stakes at Colonial's meet. He provided jockey Horatio Karamanos with his fourth winner of the card.
ETOBICOKE, Ontario - Barracks Road held off 2-5 favorite Somme in the stretch to notch her first stakes victory Saturday at Woodbine in the 37th running of the $150,000 .
With Corey Fraser aboard, Barracks Road ($8.40) vied up front with longshot Amiable Grace through a slow opening quarter in 24.47 seconds in the one-mile turf race for Ontario-bred 3-year-old fillies.
Four horses who have combined for nine stakes victories and four placings in graded events provide more than a touch of class to Monday's featured ninth race at Delaware Park.
The six-furlong sprint is open to horses who have not won $28,000 in an allowance or stakes this year or $65,000 claimers. None of the seven horses is entered for the optional claiming price.
FORT ERIE, Ontario - Chris Griffith has been climbing aboard Thoroughbreds at Fort Erie for more than 20 years and the laid-back rider is nearing career win number 1,400.
Griffith, 40, had 1,377 wins entering Sunday's card. He has won the Fort Erie riding title three times and is currently second in the standings with 22 wins, 10 behind leading rider Krista Carignan.
The soft-spoken, relaxed, and reliable Griffith is happy with the results.
MIAMI - Nicky Boy, a maiden 3-year-old filly who had been cross-entered by her owner, Chadda Solange, in the Grade 1 Princess Rooney Handicap and Grade 3 Azalea on Saturday's Summit of Speed program at Calder, was scratched from both races Saturday morning.
According to track officials, Nicky Boy did not have all the proper paperwork completed on her health certificate to allow her to ship in and race in Florida. Nicky Boy has been stabled in New Mexico with her trainer Jesse Maldonado. She arrived at Calder on Friday.
ELMONT, N.Y. - Horsemen anger over the security barns at New York Racing Association tracks has reached a point where a possible boycott of entries during the final days of Belmont Park meet is a possibility.
"There has been some discussion of that," said Rick Violette, president of the New York Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association. "But that is putting the cart before the horse. That is certainly the last thing that horsemen want to do."
Double Shuffle came up aces in Friday night's $30,000 Wheat City at Assiniboia Downs, rallying between horses in midstretch and kicking clear for a one-length victory under Vicky Baze.
Vindgari closed from last in the field of seven to finish second in the Wheat City, a one-mile race for 3-year-olds and upward.
Precursor, the odds-on choice who was making his first local start, showed the way to midstretch before weakening to finish another 2 1/4 lengths back in third.
