Just as the Ellis Park meet was set to start this weekend, disturbing news shook the Kentucky racing industry when officials at Turfway Park in Florence, Ky., announced Wednesday that the once-proud Kentucky Cup series is being scrapped because of financial considerations.
BOSSIER CITY, La. - Braulio Baeza will be forever linked to racing in New York, where he built a Hall of Fame career riding such horses as Buckpasser and Dr. Fager. But these days, he's far removed from the Aqueduct, Belmont, and Saratoga stages that were the site of so many of his biggest victories.
ARLINGTON HEIGHTS, Ill. - Tuscan Evening, the current leader of the North American female turf division, worked seven furlongs in 1:27.40 on Wednesday at Hollywood Park and remains on track to make her next start July 17 at Arlington in the Modesty Handicap, trainer Jerry Hollendorfer said Thursday.
"She'll likely blow out a little bit on Tuesday, and she ships on Wednesday," Hollendorfer said.
Jockey Eibar Coa rode his 4,000th career winner Friday aboard Maddy's Crowd in the ninth race at Monmouth Park.
Coa stayed in fifth early aboard Maddy's Crowd in the 1 1/16-mile turf race before launching a bid turning for home and running down the pacesetting Marquet Cat to win by a length. Trained by Tim Hills, Maddy's Crowd paid $7.40 and finished in 1:40.72.
The favored Stormy Mirage was bumped leaving the turn and would up third.
American Runaway not only established himself on Thursday as the favorite for the Grade 1, $625,000 Rainbow Futurity for Quarter Horses with his fastest qualifying run at Ruidoso Downs, he also figures to top the inaugural All American Future Wager, which will be offered from July 15-18.
Jockey Tad Leggett, who on July 2 underwent a nine-hour surgery for spinal injuries sustained in a spill at Fair Meadows, remains in the intensive care unit at St. John's in Tulsa, said his agent, Cynthia Smith. Leggett was injured on June 30, when thrown from his mount after the wire in a race. The horse subsequently fell on Leggett, and the jockey sustained a cervical, or upper, spine injury, and fractured a vertebra.
"The surgery went very well," Smith said. "It went as the doctors planned. But he's still in ICU. It's just going to take time."
Bubbler, who in the last six months has won stakes at Fair Grounds, Lone Star Park, and Sam Houston, has been retired, said her trainer, Bret Calhoun. She recently injured her hock while being freshened on a farm. Calhoun said plans are to offer Bubbler as a broodmare prospect in a November auction in Kentucky.
"She was a fun filly," said Calhoun, who trained Bubbler for Du-Zee Stables. "She was very, very consistent. She won going short, long, on dirt, turf. She was very talented."
ETOBICOKE, Ontario - Ice Bear, coming off a third-place finish in the Grade 2 King Edward, will be dropping in class here Sunday for the $100,000 Ontario Jockey Club Stakes.
The Ontario Jockey Club, an overnight stakes restricted to Ontario foals, required a field of at least five to be carded and made the cut with six entrants.
Ice Bear, a homebred 6-year-old gelding who races for owner George Strawbridge and is trained by Mac Benson, is cutting back from one mile to seven furlongs on the turf course.
Well Monied, the winner of the Grade 2 Honeymoon Handicap in 2009, has been retired, trainer Howard Zucker said on Friday. Zucker said the filly was injured during a gallop in June and will be offered at a breeding stock sale in November.
"We plan on going through the sale in November as a broodmare," Zucker said. "She got a little injury. The timing blew us out of the water for what we had in mind for the summer.
"If the market is bad, we'll hold on to her and breed her and sell her the next year. We don't have any thoughts of bringing her back."
VANCOUVER, British Columbia - It has been said that enthusiasm is an essential ingredient in professional success. If that is the case, Jodie Rawson should have a long and productive career as a trainer.
"I just love training horses," Rawson said. "It certainly wasn't on my list of careers when I was younger, but I'm glad it worked out this way."
