ELMONT, N.Y. - That trainer Christophe Clement won Saturday's at Belmont Park was not a surprise. That he won it with Winchester and not Gio Ponti was.
While Gio Ponti, the 6-5 favorite, ran a remarkable race having to weave through traffic, Winchester, under Cornelio Velasquez, had a clear run on the outside and stormed down the center of Belmont Park's inner turf course to run down Gio Ponti in the final strides to win the $400,000 Manhattan by one-half length.
INGLEWOOD, Calif. - Cost of Freedom's win in an optional claimer at Hollywood Park on May 6 left trainer John Sadler thinking that the race was the best of the 7-year-old gelding's career. He may want to reassess that ranking after Saturday's .
Bopolene put in a strong late run to win the $50,000 Oakley for Virginia-bred or -sired fillies and mares at Colonial Downs on Saturday.
Bopolene ($20.60) defeated the 16-1 Shaunna by 2 1/2 lengths, with pacesetter Argent Affair another half-length back in third. Bopolene covered the 5 1/2 furlongs on turf in 1:02.73 under Julian Pimentel. A Bop mare, she is owned and trained by Donna Lockard.
No Such Word outgamed Havre de Grace in the $75,000 Go for Wand at Delaware Park on Saturday.
The Go for Wand, a 1 1/16-mile race for 3-year-old fillies, turned into a two-filly race down the stretch. Havre de Grace took a short lead under Jeremy Rose, but No Such Word and Terry Thompson pulled even in early stretch and the two battled to the wire. No Such Word, the 3-5 favorite, edged Havre de Grace, sent off at 9-5, by a neck in 1:46.11. Hot Trip finished third in the five-horse field, another six lengths farther back.
ELMONT, N.Y. - Who says you can't teach old horses new tricks? Don't tell it to Bribon, an erstwhile miler who looped the field to win the six-furlong, going away.
Last of eight into the far turn, as his stablemate Checklist slugged it out with Formidable through fractions of 22.29 and 45.60 seconds, Bribon swung widest while gathering a head of steam near the quarter pole, and finished with a flourish to win the Grade 2 sprint by 1 1/2 lengths under Garrett Gomez.
ELMONT, N.Y. - In his first mount ever at Belmont Park, jockey Martin Garcia - who three weeks ago made a name for himself on a national scale when he rode Lookin At Lucky to victory in the Preakness Stakes - guided Champagne d'Oro to a 39-1 upset in the on Saturday.
ETOBICOKE, Ontario - Simply Splendid ($15.80) gamely held off a charging Miss Keller to take the at Woodbine on Saturday.
Chantal Sutherland rode Simply Splendid, who stalked front-running Points of Grace through moderate fractions in the one-mile turf event for fillies and mares.
Simply Splendid hit the front early in the stretch and then repelled a late bid from Miss Keller before scoring by a half-length, in a time of 1:34.23, over a course labeled good. Favored Rainbow View finished third in a field reduced to six with the scratch of Missit.
Monmouth Park's sixth race on Saturday was run as a no-contest after it was discovered that a tote malfunction would fail to lock wagering once the race began, the track said in a release.
Monmouth ran the race after the horses had been on the track for almost a half-hour.
"As always our primary concern is for the jockeys and the horses," said Bob Kulina, vice president and general manager at Monmouth Park. "To that end, we moved ahead and ran the race rather than have them on the track any longer."
ELMONT, N.Y. - Christmas came early for D' Funnybone on Saturday at steamy Belmont Park, with a gift-wrapped win in the for 3-year-old sprinters.
D' Funnybone, under Edgar Prado, sat back in third as Eightyfiveinafifty and Discreetly Mine tore through torrid fractions for the seven-furlong race, both hellbent on the lead. Discreetly Mine ended up winning the battle, but he lost the war. D' Funnybone easily cruised past the spent leaders and rolled to a 3 1/4-length victory over Discreetly Mine in the first of six stakes races run here Saturday.
ELMONT, N.Y. - Proviso's development into a top-flight turf mare continued Saturday at Belmont Park as the 5-year-old made the lead just outside the eighth pole, then turned back a stretch challenge from Phola to win the by a half-length.
Phola, last and wide until the quarter pole, rallied for second, a neck in front of My Princess Jess. Cherokee Queen, Fantasia and Speak Easy Gal completed the field.
