ETOBICOKE, Ontario - Final Mesa toyed with her four rivals in Saturday's , winning the five-furlong dash for 2-year-old fillies by 7 3/4 lengths. She paid $2.70.
Final Mesa is owned and trained by Wesley Ward, who also won last Saturday's 2-year-old stakes at Woodbine, the Victoria, with Madman Diaries.
LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Here Comes Ben might well have earned a trip to Saratoga with a flashy victory Friday night at Churchill Downs in a race that moved his 2010 record to 3 for 3.
Trainer Charlie Lopresti said the tentative plan is to run Here Comes Ben in the Grade 1 Forego at Saratoga on Sept. 4. Ridden by Alex Solis, the 4-year-old colt launched a terrific run to nail Hamazing Destiny in the final yards of the $65,387 Kelly's Landing, an overnight stakes that anchored an 11-race card that drew an ontrack crowd of 26,330.
Zoeling put in a huge effort Friday evening to take the $75,000 Leemat at Presque Isle Downs. After being third early under Florent Geroux, the Favorite Trick gelding took over on the turn. Heavily favored Whistle Pig briefly led in the stretch, but the Doug Matthews trainee dug in to prevail by three-quarters of a length. Whistle Pig held off Anaan by a neck to be second. The running time of the six furlongs over the Tapeta surface was 1:10.24, and Zoeling returned $7 to win.
The track on Friday night at Prairie Meadows played fast, but Majesticperfection played faster. The 4-year-old Harlan's Holiday colt owned by Padua Stables and trained by Steve Asmussen won his stakes debut in a laugher, beating favored Atta Boy Roy by 4 3/4 lengths in the
while never really being asked in the stretch by jockey Shaun Bridgmohan. Time for the six furlongs? A track record 1:07.24, .61 faster than Coach Jimi Lee's old standard set in 2004.
ALTOONA, Iowa - Wynning Ride turned back defending champion Euphony to win the $100,000 stakes by a length Friday night at Prairie Meadows.
The Distaff and Saylorville were the supporting features on the first night of the Iowa Festival of Racing. The card was topped by the $125,000 Iowa Sprint. Subprime, whose connections chose to race elsewhere, and Patti's Regal Song, whom suffered a minor foot injury while preparing to ship, were scratched from the Distaff, leaving a field of four to go to post in the 1 1/16 contest for older females.
SHAKOPEE, Minn. - On June 26, 1985, Canterbury Downs became Minnesota's first parimutuel racetrack and opened its doors to a festive crowd of more than 15,000, many of whom had never been to the races before. On Saturday, Canterbury has another party planned, this time to mark its 25th birthday.
Indiana Downs racing secretary Butch Cook has announced a purse increase, beginning Tuesday.
"We have raised all purses, with $7,500 claimers through allowance races getting a 30 percent boost," Cook said. "The $5,000 claimers will get a 15 percent increase."
Maiden races will now be $42,000 and upper allowance purses will range from $58,000 to $60,000.
A combination of things led to the increases, according to Cook.
CINCINNATI, Ohio - Festive Girl will be making her turf debut when she faces seven other Ohio-accredited 3-year-old fillies in the $50,000 Cincinnatian at River Downs on Sunday. The Cincinnatian will be run at 1 1/16 miles over the turf.
Festive Girl won her 2010 debut April 17 over entry-level statebred allowance foes here. In her last out on May 21, she finished a well-beaten fourth in a statebred allowance. Trainer Doug Cowans thinks he knows what happened.
