The girls in the Pontalba Stakes and the boys in the Old Hickory went close to the same pace in their opening quarter-mile, and the leader in the two races at Fair Grounds hit the half-mile just .10 of a second apart. But from the half-mile home, it was the gelding Comedero that stood out. He finished strongly after setting the pace in the Old Hickory, turning in a fine six-furlong time of 1:10.13, almost a second faster than it took Right to Rule to win the Pontalba.

Serenading set dawdling fractions before holding off 2-5 favorite Ginger Brew to capture the $183,138 Maple Leaf Stakes at Woodbine on Saturday.

Serenading ($8.40) took the lead after an opening quarter in 27.52 seconds, and then proceeded to set slow fractions of 53.28 and 1:17.16 in the 1o1/4-mile route. Ginger Brew commenced a wide rally from third on the far turn, but Serenading maintained a clear lead throughout the stretch, and got home on top by 2 1/4 lengths in 2:06.19.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - In a reflection of the strength of the 3-year-old filly division, Malibu Prayer won Saturday's at Churchill Downs by a length in her first start versus older stakes females.

After running second behind the likes of Rachel Alexandra, Careless Jewel, and Just Jenda over the summer, Malibu Prayer took advantage of the opportunity to avoid those talented 3-year-old fillies - though she faced some quality older opponents in One Caroline, Swift Temper, and others in the Chilukki.

And the last shall be first.

Expansion, making his stakes debut after toiling in the allowance ranks all season, rallied wide off the final turn and ran past all six of his rivals to win Saturday's 50th running of the in his first start for trainer Chad Brown.

Expansion, who won two allowance races earlier this year, trailed the field after a mile in a dawdling 1:43.16, but unleashed an impressive burst of speed when set down by Channing Hill to win the 1 3/8-mile race going away by 1 1/4 lengths.

ARCADIA, Calif. - Seven months after he was sidelined by a bone chip in an ankle, Smart Bid won his first stakes in Saturday's $100,000 Damascus Stakes at Santa Anita, the first race on the Breeders' Cup program.

The style of the win suggests that Smart Bid will be a 4-year-old to follow at the upcoming Santa Anita winter-spring meeting. Trainer Graham Motion said the Damascus was a prep to the Grade 1 Malibu Stakes for 3-year-old sprinters here on Dec. 26.

"He's a pretty serious horse," Motion said.

ARCADIA, Calif. - The men in the announcers' stand at the Fasig-Tipton November sale on Tuesday will have a major update for Hip No. 36.

Tuscan Evening won her second graded stakes of 2009 in Friday's Grade 2, $200,000 Las Palmas Handicap at Santa Anita. She is scheduled to be flown to Kentucky on Sunday in advance of the sale, trainer Jerry Hollendorfer said.

Hollendorfer is hoping that Tuscan Evening makes a quick round-trip back to California and that owner William de Burgh opts to retain the 4-year-old filly.

Rule received first starting preference to next month's Grade 3, $750,000 Delta Jackpot for 2-year-olds after he won Delta Downs's prep for the race, the $175,000 Jean Lafitte, in track-record time Friday night. The race was one of six stakes on a card worth more than $900,000.

Rule ($8) established a new track record for a mile when he won the Jean Lafitte in 1:37.45. He set fractions of 22.89 seconds for the opening quarter, 46.93 for the half-mile, and 1:11.88 for six furlongs before romping home nine lengths in front of runner-up Grand Slam Andre.

ETOBICOKE, Ontario - Last year, trainer Mark Casse entered the maidens Active Duty and Gallant in the $250,000 Coronation Futurity. Active Duty won the 1 1/8-mile race for Canadian-bred 2-year-olds, with Gallant fourth in the field of six.

On Sunday, Casse will be back in the Coronation Futurity with one-time winner General Staff, a $25,000 Ocala 2-year-olds in training purchase who will be making his sixth career appearance.

LOUISVILE, Ky. - Jockey Freddie Lenclud plans to try to make it in the Big Apple this winter.

Lenclud, the leading apprentice rider at the Churchill Downs fall meet, said Wednesday that he would shift his tack to New York after the Churchill Downs meet concludes Nov. 28.

"I hope to go to Aqueduct when this meet ends," Lenclud said. "They run five days a week there to only three days at Turfway Park. New York in the winter is a good place for a bug rider."

In winning Friday's at Churchill Downs, Demarcation proved his class, as well as his versatility.

A dead-heat winner of last year's Grade 3 River City Handicap on turf at Churchill Downs, he moved to the dirt in the Ack Ack for the first time since February 2008, and the change in surface rejuvenated the 5-year-old Demarcation, who rallied from the back the pack at 10-1 to score a 1 1/2-length victory over 21-1 longshot Glamour Guy.

The win was his first of the year after not having finished better than third in six starts.