INGLEWOOD, Calif. - The father sang the national anthem before the races. The son won the first stakes of the afternoon. For Earl Baze, and his son, Tyler, Saturday was a memorable afternoon at Hollywood Park.
Tyler Baze guided Gotta Have Her ($4.20) to a come-from-behind win in the $150,000 for older fillies and mares. It was the 6-year-old mare's fifth stakes and Baze has been aboard for four of those victories.
The well-traveled Mr. Meso returned to Suffolk Downs to take the $50,000 Rise Jim Stakes for Massachusetts-breds over his former stablemate and fellow old-timer Ask Queenie Saturday at Suffolk Downs.
Mr. Meso has now won both his starts at age 10, including a $5,000 Delaware Park claiming race where trainer James MacFarlane claimed him in April with the hope of returning to his home state for his New England Stallion Station.
LOUISVILLE, Ky. - The same owner-trainer-jockey team that earned Horse of the Year honors two straight years with Curlin appears to have another extremely live prospect ready to make it to the national scene.
Kantharos, a 2-year-old colt by Lion Heart, ran off to his second straight easy triumph when crushing five other juveniles Saturday in the 109th running of the at Churchill Downs.
That's a Heckofacat, under a cool ride by Scott Spieth, scored a 2 1/4-length victory in Saturday s $75,000 Cleveland Gold Cup for 3-year-old Ohio-breds at Thistledown.
That s a Heckofacat ($4.80) overcame traffic problems going into the first turn, then angled three-wide to make the lead by a head after a half-mile in 47.34 seconds. After he gave up ground and dropped back to third, That s a Heckofacat made a three-wide move into the stretch to regain command inside the eighth pole and drew clear.
LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Danzon recouped a big chunk of her recent purchase price on Saturday, dealing Happiness Is and jockey Greta Kuntzweiler a wicked beat in the at Churchill Downs.
Danzon, claimed from her last start for $80,000 by owner Alfred Nuckols Jr., rallied farthest outside under Alex Solis to take the one-mile turf race by perhaps an inch in a five-horse photo finish. Happiness Is, a 48-1 shot, had desperately clung to the lead until the final stride, disappointing Kuntzweiler, who was seeking her first victory since returning from a layoff of nearly five years.
Alex s Vision became the latest stakes winner for the hot young sire Afleet Alex when he overcame a poor start to dominate Saturday s $75,000 Peppy Addy Stakes for 3-year-old Pennsylvania-breds at Philadelphia Park.
Afleet Alex, best known for winning the 2005 Preakness despite going to his knees when he was bumped in the stretch, has accounted for seven stakes winners with his first crop that are now 3-year-olds. Most prominently, Afleet Express won the Grade 3 Pegasus and Afleet Again captured the Grade 3 Withers this year. Last summer, Dublin took the Grade 1 Hopeful.
ETOBICOKE, Ontario - Essence Hit Man, Woodbine's leading 3-year-old sprinter, set a rapid pace and kept on going to capture Saturday's
Essence Hit Man ($2.80) set fractions of 21.86 and 44.17 in the six-furlong sprint, and was in front by about six lengths at the top of the stretch. Race for Gold began to close the gap at the eighth pole, but Essence Hit Man held on to score by a 1 3/4 lengths in 1:10.01. Doctor Jack was a distant third in the six-horse field of Ontario-breds.
SHAKOPEE, Minn. - Jockey Scott Stevens is in critical condition after suffering multiple injuries from a fall aboard Sombre in the sixth race at Canterbury Park on Friday night.
Stevens was airlifted by helicopter to North Memorial Hospital in Robbinsdale, Minn. He punctured both lungs and fractured multiple ribs and vertebrae. He also broke his collarbone on both sides. As of noon Central on Saturday, he had feeling and movement in all of his limbs, according to Jeff Maday, media relations manager at Canterbury.
AUBURN, Wash. -- The $250,000 Longacres Mile, Emerald Downs' richest race, is just seven weeks away, long enough to further separate the contenders from the pretenders, but probably not long enough for a locally based mystery horse to emerge. If an Emerald-based runner is to win this year's Mile, he'll likely come from a small group that includes Noosa Beach, Assessment, Winning Machine, Gallon, Posse Power, and Rooster City.