Poor Cigar.

A week after Curlin broke his earnings record, his mark for consecutive wins is in jeopardy. Peppers Pride will be a strong favorite to win her 17th consecutive race Saturday at Zia Park in Hobbs, N.M., and if she does she will set a modern standard for a North American-based Thoroughbred.

She now shares the record of 16 with Cigar, Citation, Hallowed Dreams, and Mister Frisky. Her trainer, Joel Marr, said he vividly remembers Cigar's bid for a 17th win back in 1996 in the Grade 1 Pacific Classic.

BOSSIER CITY, La. - If there is safety in numbers, Louisiana Downs must be one of the most secure racing venues in the land these days.

Taking full advantage of its position on the calendar as the only one of the state's four racetracks currently conducting a meeting, the track has gotten overwhelming response from horsemen at the entry box lately. Friday's 10-race program alone drew 172 entries, counting also-eligibles and horses excluded from races that overfilled.

ETOBICOKE, Ontario - Heading into the weekend, trainer Mark Casse does not have a definitive Breeders' Cup candidate in his barn here at Woodbine.

But by the time the stakes action wraps up here and at Keeneland late Sunday afternoon, Casse's Breeders' Cup could runneth over with a handful of prospects.

PHOENIX – Turf Paradise kicks offs its 53rd season Friday with a new voice, new eyes, and a heavy heart.

The 156-day 2008-09 season commences without regular track announcer Luke Kruytbosch and without longtime track photographer Jack Coady Sr., both of whom died this summer.

STICKNEY, Ill. - Trainer Mike Reavis strongly believed that after a troubled final season of dirt racing in 2006, Arlington Park needed to install the all-weather racing surface the track now employs.

"We like the Polytrack for a lot of reasons," Reavis said Wednesday morning at Hawthorne.

Horses are more likely to stay in off-the-turf races. Cancellations during the Arlington Polytrack era have been nonexistent.

But Reavis moved his large string to Hawthorne from Arlington as soon as the dirt track was open for training here in September.

ELMONT, N.Y. - In a span of 96 minutes on Sept. 14, trainer Tom Albertrani won a pair of juvenile filly maiden races at Belmont Park. Visually, it was hard to separate how good Royal Ballade and Gemswick Park looked. Time-wise and speed-figure wise, there appears to be a world of difference between the two.

Jeff Radosevich, the only horseman to win both riding and training titles in Thistledown history, is closing in on yet another milestone.

Radosevich, well on his way to his third consecutive season as Thistledown's leading trainer, was just eight winners short of his 1,000th career victory through Tuesday.

A 46-year-old native of Joliet, Ill., Radosevich rode for 16 years before retiring in 1993 to begin training. He was the winningest rider here in 1988.

After moving to within one win of a significant milestone when his 3-year-old filly Red Hot Jazz romped by 6 1/2 lengths in Monday's eighth race at Philadelphia Park, trainer Steve Klesaris's push to record his 1,000th career victory was temporarily placed on hold when he didn't enter any horses Tuesday, Wednesday, or Thursday.

But based on how hot Klesaris has been lately, especially at Philly Park, it shouldn't be long before he gets to celebrate win No. 1,000.

To win Saturday's Grade 2, $500,000 Indiana Derby, Pyro will have to defeat an unbeaten rival and another who is 7 for 8 lifetime. A field of 12 was entered for the Indiana Derby on Wednesday, with Pyro, the expected favorite, on the far outside.

Power Game, trained by Shug McGaughey, has yet to be tested in three tries, and Tin Cup Chalice earned a $250,000 bonus for sweeping the Big Apple Triple series against New York-breds.

ALBANY, Calif. - Days later, the feeling of euphoria remains at Aggie Ordonez's Golden Gate Fields barn.

Delightful Kiss, trained by her father, Pete Anderson, showed he was ready for his Breeders' Cup assignment, unleashing a strong kick to win the Grade 3 All American Stakes on Saturday. But the day was made even more special when Ordonez sent out Surely Temple for a $14 upset in the day's final race, giving her family a father-daughter double.