VANCOUVER, British Columbia - Solid favorites won both of the stakes races that were held at Hastings last weekend.
What R the Odds paid $5 for her win over Dandy Dora in the $51,066 Emerald Downs Stakes for 3-year-old fillies on Sunday. Breaking alertly with leading rider Fernado Perez aboard, What R the Odds stalked Dandy Dora for the first half-mile, and then took control of the race going around the second turn. Final time for the 6 1/2 furlongs was 1:17.81.
The Quarter Horse Snowbound Superstar ($3) won his 14th consecutive race Sunday when he edged Gone to the Mountain by a neck in the $37,620 Red Cell Distance Challenge at Remington Park. Both horses were perfect at the 870-yard distance of the race heading into the stakes. Also on the card, Illegal Memories ($4.40) dominated by a length in the Grade 1, $104,760 Oklahoma Challenge Championship at 440-yards. The winners of both stakes earned berths to the rich Challenge Championship program at Los Alamitos in October.
Distinguish ($4.40) fought for a half-length win over Marq French in the $50,000 Route 66 Stakes at Will Rogers Downs on Saturday. The six-furlong stakes was one of two rescheduled stakes on the card after heavy rains forced the cancellation of racing at the Claremore, Okla., track on May 2. In the $50,000 Wilma Mankiller for fillies and mares at st six furlongs, Miranda Diane ($4) drew out o a six-length win. Both horses were favorites on Saturday.
By Brad Free
INGLEWOOD, Calif. - Witty is versatile, and Carlsbad was not. That was the difference Sunday at Hollywood Park, where Witty stayed unbeaten after three starts with a perfect-trip victory over previously undefeated Carlsbad in the Grade 3 Railbird Stakes for 3-year-old fillies.
The seven-furlong race was the first graded stakes for Witty ($4.80), whose willingness to rate behind a suicidal pace led to the 1 1/2-length victory over Carlsbad. Will O Way finished a head back in third. The final time was a respectable 1:21.74.
LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Churchill Downs officials intend to ask the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission on Tuesday to allow the track to reduce the racing schedule at its current spring meet from five to four days per week as a result of chronic short fields resulting from an insufficient number of entries.
Churchill will ask the commission at its regularly scheduled meeting in Lexington for permission to drop Wednesdays from the schedule, leaving a Thursday-through-Sunday race week through the end of the meet, July 5. The change could become effective as early as May 20.
Turf Paradise felt the pinch of a troubled economy like most other tracks as the Phoenix facility saw some handle declines at its recently concluded meet.
According to track figures, overall handle on Turf Paradise races fell 12.3 percent from the 2007-08 stand - $205,054,318 this meet compared to $233,906,130 last year. The 154-day meet (originally set for 156 days with two cards lost to weather) saw a smaller decline in average daily handle of 8.9 percent, $1,331,522 this meet compared to $1,462,999.
ETOBICOKE, Ontario - Smart Surprise took the long way home en route to capturing the Grade 3, $158,600 Hendrie Stakes over Kentucky shipper Proud Heiress at Woodbine on Sunday.
Smart Surprise raced about four lengths off the lead in a four-wide position, as Bear Lahaina set fractions of 22.77 seconds and 44.53. Smart Surprise rallied wide in unison with Proud Heiress in the final furlong, and got home on top by neck, in a final time of 1:16.01. Authenicat finished another two lengths back in third in the nine-horse field of fillies and mares.
Lone Star Park near Dallas announced on Sunday that overnight purses would be cut 6 percent beginning May 22 due to a "downward trend" in handle figures at the meet that runs through July 26. The move will put purses, which are averaging $179,000 a day, at $169,000 a day, according to Drew Shubeck, president of Lone Star.
Great Love dueled on the turn before drawing clear in the stretch and then held off a late charge to win the $100,000 Tom Ridge at Presque Isle Downs on Saturday night.
Trained by John Robb, Great Love was kept just off the early pace before rallying at the half-mile pole to take the lead. Jockey Erick Rodriguez then asked Great Love for his best and he responded by drawing clear in midstretch. He was all out to hold off a hard-charging He Ain't Right to win by a half-length. Perfect Officer was another length back in third.
