Compari and Ventana, who won Grade 2 stakes on the Santa Anita Derby undercard, are bound for major stakes in May.
Compari, who extended his winning streak to six races in the $150,000 Arcadia Handicap, is being considered for the $250,000 Shoemaker Mile on May 31, a Grade 1 on turf, trainer Marty Jones said.
ARCADIA, Calif. - Trainer Mike Machowsky's dream of starting Caracortado in the Kentucky Derby more than likely ended with a fourth-place finish in Saturday's $750,000 Santa Anita Derby. The Preakness dream for Caracortado started with the same result.
Machowsky would like to run Caracortado in the Kentucky Deby, but admits that the gelding's $153,000 in career graded stakes earnings may not be sufficient to gain a place in the field.
If more than 20 horses enter the Kentucky Derby, eligibility is determined by graded stakes earnings. Caracortado is .
ARCADIA, Calif. - The Santa Anita stewards suspended jockey Victor Espinoza and fined jockey Garrett Gomez for their roles in an incident Saturday during the and an altercation after the race.
Lookin At Lucky, racing in third place with Gomez aboard, tried to come through inside of second-place Who's Up and Espinoza on the far turn of the 1 1/8-mile Santa Anita Derby, but had to be taken up and may have hit the rail. He re-rallied and finished third behind Sidney's Candy and Setsuko. Who's Up finished ninth.
ARCADIA, Calif. - Mona de Momma ran the best race of her career to win her first stakes in Sunday's at Santa Anita, giving trainer John Sadler his second feature race win of the weekend.
Saturday, the Sadler-trainer Sidney's Candy won the $750,000 Santa Anita Derby and is a candidate for the Kentucky Derby on May 1.
In the Grade 3 Las Flores, the 4-year-old Mona de Momma ran 6 1/2 furlongs in 1:14.50 under jockey Joel Rosario, outfinishing Free Flying Soul by a head. Alpha's Kitten, the 2-1 favorite, finished third, a half-length behind Free Flying Soul.
GRAND ISLAND, Neb. - Noble Bandit dueled on the lead throughout with favored Day Trippi and earned a 2 1/4-length win in Saturday's $10,700 Runza Stakes at Fonner Park. The victory avenged Noble Bandit's loss to Day Trippi earlier this year.
Noble Bandit and Day Trippi had the show to themselves in the six-furlong test for fillies and mares. Noble Bandit and rider Jordan Olesiak kept a head in front of Day Trippi through a duel that went to inside the sixteenth pole, then they edged away late, giving Noble Bandit her first stakes victory.
ARCADIA, Calif. - They were stumblin' and then rumblin' on Saturday at the , in which Sidney's Candy overcame a stumble at the start to lead from virtually start to finish, and a bumping incident on the far turn severely impacted favored Lookin At Lucky.
The bumping led to a brouhaha between Lookin At Lucky's rider, Garrett Gomez, and Victor Espinoza, who rode Who's Up, after the pair dismounted following the race and then again later in the jockeys' room.
HOT SPRINGS, Ark. - Duke of Mischief, who was a stakes winner last year at 3, looks he might be even better as an older horse. He won his second stakes in three starts this year on Saturday, when he cruised to a 2 1/2-length win over favorite and highweight Win Willy in the
The 1 1/8-mile feature continued the Racing Festival of the South, when at least one stakes a day is run over the final six cards of the meet. The series concludes with next Saturday's running of the Grade 1, $1 million Arkansas Derby.
STICKNEY, Ill. - The Lion finally roared.
American Lion was widely considered one of the most promising 3-year-olds as the calendar flipped to 2010, but lost luster when he finished third and fourth in his first two starts this year.
Third time was a charm.
Leading all the way under new pilot David Flores, American Lion shrugged off a serious stretch challenge from 6-5 favorite Yawanna Twist, and was drawing away as he posted a 2 3/4-length win in the on Saturday at Hawthorne Race Course.
