WHO'S HOT
Chantal Sutherland was the riding star of the week of June 9-13, when she won aboard 10 of 24 mounts (41.7 percent). She ranks third in the jockey standings at the meet, behind Patrick Husbands and Eurico Da Silva.
Trainer Ross Armata had a very productive week, winning with 3 of his 5 starters, which included two tallies with 2-year-olds. Other hot trainers included Paul Buttigieg (2 for 5) and Roger Attfield (3 for 11).
WHO'S NOT
GET SERIOUS WASN'T KIDDING
The Grade 3 Monmouth Stakes seemed like a perfect spot to take a shot against the speedy Presious Passion. He was making his first start since Dubai, which has resulted in a "bounce" for many horses. The race was at 1 1/8 miles, which is a little shorter than he wants to go. Trainer Mary Hartmann has bigger things in mind for him this summer, such as the Grade 1 United Nations. Finally, Get Serious, a speed-type just like Presious Passion, was on the rail.
WHO'S HOT
Zenyatta finally got beat, or so it appeared with one furlong remaining June 13 in the Grade 1 Vanity Handicap. St Trinians had kicked away from Zenyatta, a 6-year-old mare carrying 129 pounds to her rival's 120. Then Zenyatta turned on the jets. She smoked the final eighth in about 11.50 seconds, collared St Trinians late, and was pulling away at the wire. The margin was a half length; it was Zenyatta's third consecutive Vanity win and 17th victory without a loss.
WHO'S HOT
Jockeys Calvin Borel and Corey Lanerie had the most wins last week at Churchill Downs, with Borel, who tops the standings, going 7 for 22 and Lanerie going 6 for 23.
Lanerie also had six seconds and three thirds, meaning he was in the exacta 52 percent of the time and in the trifecta 65 percent of the time.
Corey Nakatani also made the most of limited opportunities, going 3 for 7.
WHO'S HOT
The 40 Percent Club
Heading into June's third week, the only members of this elite group among the meet's top dozen trainers were Rudy Rodriguez and Steve Asmussen, with identical 10-for-25 records (40 percent); and Alan Goldberg, who was 7 for 17 (41 percent).
HURON TOWNSHIP, Mich. - Robert Gorham, who won the training title in Pinnacle Race Course's 2008 inaugural meet and again last year, won three races Sunday to tie with James Jackson in this year's race. Gorham won consecutive races starting with Tropic Rose ($4.40) in the second race. Pauliano Pkwy ($7.40) and Motion Me On ($12.80) followed.
"I have 48 stalls at the track, including a few supplemental stalls next to the barn and they're all full," Gorham said during a break between surgeries at his Kalamazoo veterinary clinic. "All told, we have about 64 head in training."
OCEANPORT, N.J. − Heading into the Monmouth Stakes last weekend, trainer John Forbes had not considered Get Serious a candidate for the United Nations, Monmouth Park's Grade 1 turf stakes July 3.
The U.N. was still not in Forbes's plans Saturday night, hours after Get Serious pulled off the 7-1 upset over a field that included Presious Passion, a two-time U.N. winner.
By Sunday morning, however, the U.N. started to creep into the conversation.
BOSSIER CITY, La. - How about this for a week's worth of work in the saddle? A .667 winning percentage spread over two tracks; a couple of feature race victories, including a stakes; plus every non-winning mount finished in the money. Not bad for a rider who many consider on the verge of "semi-retirement."
MIAMI - Big Drama returned from a more than nine-month layoff to win last Saturday's Ponche Handicap in impressive fashion. But it was the performance the previous afternoon of the old-timer Lord Robyn that may have had David Fawkes smiling the most when he reflected on the weekend after training hours at Calder on Monday.
