The love affair between Good and Lucky and the Fair Grounds main track goes back several years, but shows no sign of waning. Winning for the sixth time in 10 Fair Grounds starts, Good and Lucky captured the by 1 3/4 lengths on Sunday in New Orleans.
INGLEWOOD, Calif. - Lookin at Lucky clinched an Eclipse Award as champion 2-year-old male, set himself up to be one of the leading contenders for next year's Kentucky Derby, and gave trainer Bob Baffert his fourth win of the day, all with 2-year-olds, when he captured the on Saturday at Hollywood Park.
INGLEWOOD, Calif. - Tiz Chrome remained unbeaten after two starts with an impressive four-length win in Saturday's $53,500 Stuka Stakes at Hollywood Park.
Ridden by Garrett Gomez for trainer Bob Baffert, Tiz Chrome ($5) ran 6 1/2 furlongs in 1:14.56, stalking pacesetter Camp Victory for the first half-mile before pulling clear. Domonation closed from fifth to finish second, a neck in front of Shudacudawudya in the field of six.
Baffert said the $150,000 San Vicente Stakes over seven furlongs at Santa Anita on Feb. 15 would be Tiz Chrome's next goal.
Rapid Racer rebounded off a poor effort on dirt when forcing all the pace and emerging victorious Saturday in the at Turfway Park in Florence, Ky.
With John McKee aboard, Rapid Racer returned $15.80 after finishing 1 3/4 lengths clear of Henry's Posse in a field of 12 2-year-old fillies. Offlee Funny rallied late to be third, another 4 3/4 lengths back.
NEW ORLEANS - Star Guitar earned his third career Louisiana Champions Day victory, winning the by 7 3/4 lengths and improving his record to 11 for 14.
Jockey Curt Bourque settled Star Guitar in third behind early pacesetter Takin' the Bullet, then sent him forward at the turn. Star Guitar was never challenged in the stretch.
"I put him where I wanted him to be," said Bourque. "And then I was just the pilot."
Trainer Steve Asmussen said this week that War Echo would not be at her best for the on Saturday at Fair Grounds, but she was plenty good enough to win.
Victorious for the second time in a row after a poor comeback race following an injury layoff, War Echo squeezed through a narrow hole at the top of the stretch and went on to a 3 1/2-length victory in the inaugural edition of the $100,000 Daily Racing Form.
Song of Navarone, who has not lost a race at Sunland Park since 2006, could defend his title in the track's $50,000 Winsham Lad Handicap next month, said his trainer, Henry Dominguez. The one-mile race will be run Jan. 9.
Song of Navarone has compiled a nearly perfect record at Sunland, where he has won 5 of 6 starts, including the $600,000 WinStar Derby in 2007. His lone loss at the New Mexico track came by a neck, in the $136,000 Riley Allison Futurity on Dec. 31, 2006.
Through all the success that earned him induction into racing's Hall of Fame earlier this year, trainer Bob Baffert has one trophy missing from his collection - the Grade 1 Malibu Stakes, the opening day fixture of the Santa Anita winter-spring meeting.
Baffert was second in 1997 with Silver Charm and third in 2006 with Midnight Lute, so it's not as if he has not started good horses in the race.
This year, he is considering two 3-year-olds for Saturday's $300,000 Malibu - Misremembered and Mythical Power.
MIAMI - After weathering plenty of bumps in the road to begin December, it should be smooth sailing the rest of the way for racing secretary Mike Anifantis and his crew. Plenty of good racing is in the offing for the final two weeks of the Tropical at Calder session, which ends Jan. 2.
