ETOBICOKE, Ontario Marina Ballerina has been pointed toward Saturdays $150,000 Royal North Stakes since she arrived at Woodbine, and she looks like the one to catch in the six-furlong turf event for fillies and mares.
Marina Ballerina has started three times since joining trainer Sam DiPasquales barn in March. She flashed brief speed before fading to eighth in the April 20 Whimsical Stakes, but she showed more stamina when sixth in another Grade 3 stakes on Polytrack May 11, the Hendrie.
SANTA ROSA, Calif. Although the race lacks the headliner name it had in recent years, when it carried a $100,000 purse, Saturdays field for the $50,000 Joseph Grace Handicap is a good one for the betting public.
There is plenty of depth in the field, which includes last years second- and third-place finishers, Eager Pharisien and Saratogas Magic. All seven runners in the 1 1/16-mile turf race for 3-year-olds and up are based in Northern California.
EDMONTON, Alberta Arkhill seeks his third straight stakes score as the 123-pound highweight in a field of nine 3-year-olds contesting Saturdays Count Lathum, which is the final Northlands Park stakes prep for the Aug. 23 Canadian Derby here.
The 1 1/16-mile Count Lathum offers a $75,000 purse and drew plenty of interest from Hastings connections, with Malcolm Beveridge saddling the entry of Saratoga Avenue and Valdero, and Terry Jordan shipping in speedster Tigerheat.
AURORA, Colo. Aspen Mist and Cowboy Joe, running as an uncoupled entry for trainer Kenneth Gleason, figure to dominate the action in the $20,000 CTBA Stallion Stakes at Arapahoe Park on Saturday. The seven-furlong test for 3-year-old colts and geldings is for runners conceived by a nominated stallion standing in Colorado in 2005. Seven entered the affair, including three maiden runners.
VANCOUVER, British Columbia Beginning Saturday, overnight purses at Hastings will increase by about 10 percent. The increase is not across the board, however. Management at Hastings is hoping to spur the local breeding industry and attract better horses by putting more money toward allowance and high-end claiming races.
DEL MAR, Calif.-An upset win by Dusty Trail ($50.60) in Wednesday's sixth race led to a carryover of $138,349 for Thursday's pick six at Del Mar. First post Thursday is 2 p.m. Pacific, with the first pick six race, the third, going off at 3:04.
There are not many horses for bettors to consider in Thursday's pick six, which covers the third through eighth races. No race has more than nine entrants, and there are only six horses in the fourth race.
DEL MAR, Calif. - Lava Man's racing career has ended.
Wednesday, co-owner Steve Kenly said that concern over Lava Man's ankles has led to the decision to retire the seven-time Grade 1 winner, who earned $5,268,706 in a 46-race career that included 17 wins.
DEL MAR, Calif. - Zappa earned an automatic berth to the $500,000 Breeders Cup Marathon at the Oak Tree at Santa Anita meeting on Oct. 25 with his win in Wednesdays $150,000 Cougar II Handicap at Del Mar.
First, co-owner Gary Barber has a more lucrative goal on his mind - the $1 million Pacific Classic on Aug. 24.
Barber said Zappa would be considered for that race after the 6-year-old gelding led throughout the Cougar II Handicap, which was run at 1 1/2 miles on the synthetic main track.
The $55,000 Lincoln Handicap at Ruidoso Downs, in which Peppers Pride was to shoot for her 17th consecutive win, has not been rescheduled for this weekend as originally planned because the track is still recovering from seven inches of rainfall that forced it to cancel its entire card last Sunday.
A track spokesman said it is yet to be determined whether the Lincoln will be rescheduled.
Bruce Levine, the leading trainer at Monmouth Park, faces a 15-day suspension, a $500 fine, and loss of purse money for an overage of the anti-inflammatory phenylbutazone.
Levine and his attorney, Dennis Drazin, the president of the New Jersey Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association, were present at a hearing conducted Wednesday morning by the Monmouth stewards.
Drazin said the stewards' ruling will be appealed to the New Jersey Racing Commission, as soon as it is officially issued.
