Quarter Horse distance specialist Gone to the Mountain smashed the world record with a powerful win in last Sunday's Grade 3, $57,600 Red Cell New Mexico Challenge. Racing as the 1-2 favorite, Gone to the Mountain shot to the front early in the 870-yard event and was in total control en route to a seven-length win, stopping the timer in 43.02 seconds.

ARCADIA, Calif. - Trainer Greg Gilchrist never expected that Arden Park could sneak his way into the Triple Crown picture this spring. The colt started his career in January, too late for that discussion to take place.

Instead, Arden Park will stay in California this spring, attempting to extend his unbeaten streak. He won his first two starts, both at Golden Gate Fields earlier this year, and will make his stakes debut in Saturday's $100,000 La Puente Stakes at Santa Anita.

"There really isn't much else for him," Gilchrist said.

LEXINGTON, Ky. - If any horse other than the odds-on Evita Argentina was going to win the Grade 2 Beaumont Stakes on Wednesday at Keeneland, it figured to be Selva in front-running style.

Right thought, wrong particulars. War Kill, with red-hot Julien Leparoux aboard, outfought Selva in a nearly race-long duel, while Evita Argentina labored home fourth in a field of six 3-year-old fillies.

ETOBICOKE, Ontario - Trainer Malcolm Pierce, in the midst of his annual stopover at Keeneland after racing at Fair Grounds this winter, wasn't on hand for the opening weekend here at Woodbine.

But Pierce's wife and assistant, Sally, was a more than able deputy as she sent out Mullins Beach and True Vindication to win the top two races on the program.

Mullins Beach became a stakes winner by capturing the $100,800 La Voyageuse, a five-furlong race for Ontario-foaled 3-year-old fillies.

LEXINGTON, Ky. - There have been quite a few one-sided runnings of the Blue Grass Stakes in its distinguished history. Over the last 30 years, Spectacular Bid, Alydar, Holy Bull, and Pulpit are some of the odds-on winners to use the Blue Grass as little more than a dress rehearsal for the Kentucky Derby.

HOT SPRINGS, Ark. - The rematch is on.

Win Willy and Old Fashioned will break side by side on Saturday at Oaklawn Park when they meet in the 73rd running of the Grade 2, $1 million Arkansas Derby. The pair finished one-two last month at Oaklawn Park in the Grade 2 Rebel, with Win Willy upsetting Old Fashioned by 2 1/4 lengths at 56-1.

Post positions for the 1 1/8-mile race were drawn on Wednesday, with Old Fashioned getting gate 8 in the field of 10, and Win Willy set to break right beside him, in post 9.

OZONE PARK, N.Y. - Quality Road enhanced his chances of making it to the Kentucky Derby by galloping 1 3/8 miles over Belmont Park's training track Wednesday morning after having a new patch applied to the quarter crack on his right hind foot.

It was just the third time Quality Road was able to gallop since he won the Grade 1 Florida Derby at Gulfstream Park on March 28, a race from which Quality Road emerged with the quarter crack, according to trainer Jimmy Jerkens.

LEXINGTON, Ky. - Hold Me Back was assigned post 10 as the 3-1 morning-line favorite among a field of 11 3-year-olds entered Wednesday at Keeneland for the 85th running of the Grade 1, $750,000 Blue Grass Stakes on Saturday.

Theregoesjojo, the second choice at 7-2 on the morning line, was assigned post 3, while Charitable Man, the 4-1 third choice, will start from post 9 in the 1 1/8-mile Polytrack race.

The Blue Grass, the ninth of 10 Saturday races, will be televised live by TVG and on tape delay by ESPN2. Scheduled post is 5:15 p.m. Eastern.

OPELOUSAS, La. - Wednesday's opening night program will usher in a new age at Evangeline Downs: the age of turf racing.

The long-awaited grass course will be added to a track that has bucked industry trends in both business and number of runners in recent years. Total handle has increased each season since Evangeline moved to its new location, 20 miles north of its former site, in 2005. The track also says it has led the nation in number of starters per race for the last two years.

HOT SPRINGS, Ark. - Ziegfeld, who was the runner-up in the $100,000 Rushaway Stakes last month at Turfway Park, will make his next start in the Grade 2, $1 million Arkansas Derby, trainer Dale Romans said Tuesday. The horse was to van to Oaklawn Park from his Churchill Downs base on Wednesday.