ELMONT, N.Y. - Trainer Robert Ribaudo plans to give Bribon, winner of the Shadwell Metropolitan Handicap, a summer vacation - that is, if the 6-year-old gelding will allow it.
Despite running a hard race in defeating Smooth Air by a half-length in Monday's Grade 1, $600,000 Met Mile at Belmont Park, Bribon acted Tuesday morning as if he were ready to do it all over again - and soon.
Philadelphia Park-based jockey Kendrick Carmouche, riding for high-profile trainers Christophe Clement and Todd Pletcher, swept both $75,000 stakes on Monday night's holiday program at Mountaineer Racetrack.
Saving ground the entire way, Carmouche guided the Clement-trained filly Lindelaan ($4.80) from fourth place to a half-length victory over defending champion Beautiful Venue in the Decoration Day Handicap for fillies and mares.
Beautiful Venue held off Si Si Mon Amie by a head for second in a mile race timed in 1:34.48 on firm turf.
ALBANY, Calif. - Autism Awareness pulled off another major upset in a graded stakes, winning a four-way photo in Monday's Grade 3, $150,000 Berkeley Stakes at Golden Gate Fields.
Autism Awareness paid $62.80 on Monday and had scored a $126 upset in the Grade 3 El Camino Real Derby at Bay Meadows last year.
ARLINGTON HEIGHTS, Ill. - Jockeys Inez Karlsson and Uriel Lopez went down in a spill in Arlington's seventh race Monday, but both escaped serious injury. Lopez walked away from the accident, while Karlsson was released from Northwest Community Hospital in Arlington Heights after a thorough examination late Monday afternoon revealed nothing amiss, said her agent, Penny Ffitch-Heyes.
Karlsson was riding Parade Summer Girl when the horse broke down suddenly before the eighth pole in a race for conditioned $5,000 claimers. Lopez, aboard trailing Courtwright, then went over Karlsson.
INGLEWOOD, Calif. - Thorn Song needed a career-best performance to win the second Grade 1 race of his career in Monday's $320,500 Shoemaker Mile at Hollywood Park.
That was trainer Dale Romans's assessment moments after the Grade 1 turf race.
"That's the best race he's ever run," Romans said by phone from his base in Kentucky. "This is what we've been looking for him to do this year."
GRAND PRAIRIE, Texas - It's a Bird had won two major stakes earlier this year by widening lengths. But it was his hard-fought victory over Jonesboro in the Grade 3, $400,000 Lone Star Park Handicap on Monday that might have been his best performance yet.
"He impressed me today with what he did," said Marty Wolfson, who trains It's a Bird for Edmund Gann.
ELMONT, N.Y. - Bribon picked the most opportune time to record back-to-back wins.
In what was considered a wide-open renewal of the Grade 1, $600,000 Shadwell Metropolitan Handicap, Bribon, the 3-1 favorite, outfinished second choice Smooth Air, also at 3-1, by a half-length Monday at Belmont Park. It was another length back to Driven by Success, who held third by a nose over My Pal Charlie.
GRAND PRAIRIE, Texas - Wasted Tears shattered the Lone Star Park course record for a mile on turf on Monday, when she was prominent throughout to win the Grade 3, $200,000 Ouija Board Distaff Handicap in a blazing time of 1:32.81.
The previous mark of 1:33.56 was set in 1997 by Kiraday during the inaugural meet.
The Ouija Board was one of six stakes worth a cumulative $1.1 million on the annual Lone Star Million Day program.
