The new Evangeline Downs turf course, expected to be in use by late summer, will be named for David Yount, the former vice president and director of racing who died of cancer on April 2.

Yount, 56, was instrumental in overseeing the construction and move from the old Evangeline Downs to the current facility for its first season in 2005.

"David was the primary reason I am here today," said John McGary, Evangeline's track announcer and media relations director. "He worked tirelessly both at the old facility and the new one. He will be missed greatly."

AUBURN, Wash. - Pirates Deputy and Wild Cycle, who were stablemates and fierce rivals as 2-year-olds in 2006 at Emerald Downs, will resume those roles this season as older horses.

"We're planning on running both of them in the first stakes here on May 4," said trainer Aubrey Villyard, referring to the six-furlong Seattle Handicap. "I hate to run them against each other, but it worked out pretty well when they were 2-year-olds."

Fairmount Park outside St. Louis in Collinsville, Ill., opens for a 60-day meet Friday night, but no one is dancing in the streets over the upcoming season.

Fairmount Park has been struggling for years, and the landscape in 2008 looks more daunting than ever. The 60-day meet is all Fairmount thought racing in downstate Illinois could support, but that is a paltry number of dates for Fairmount, which raced 89 days in 2007, 90 days in 2006, and 110 days as recently as 2002.

LEXINGTON, Ky. - As the second half of the 16-day Keeneland spring meet got under way Wednesday, officials were hoping to reverse an unsettling business trend established during the first eight days of the meet.

Despite a marginal rise in ontrack attendance, the average ontrack handle was down 12 percent, while all-sources handle was down 17 percent.

STICKNEY, Ill. - Call him the Manitoba Marauder, or maybe the Winnipeg Whiz. Okay - pro wrestling nicknames might not be working, but it is not every day that a horse with racing experience at Assiniboia Downs has a good chance to win a graded stakes in the United States.

ETOBICOKE, Ontario - Trainer Danny Vella's barn was the hottest on the grounds here last weekend.

Vella, 52, won Saturday with first-time starter Daring Attraction and duplicated that feat Sunday with Bonded Messenger.

But the icing on the cake was Verdana Bold, a Kentucky-bred 3-year-old owned by Ed Seltzer who became a stakes winner in the $150,000 Star Shoot.

Verdana Bold had made her first four starts in Maryland before being shipped here to Vella less than a month ago.

ARCADIA, Calif. - From trainer Paulo Lobos's perspective, Immortelle should be starting in Saturday's $200,000 Santa Barbara Handicap at Santa Anita as the winner of the Santa Ana Handicap last month.

Lobo is still a little steamed that Immortelle was not promoted from second to first after she was bumped near the finish of the Santa Ana by race winner Costume. The two made contact in the final strides, and Immortelle was beaten only a neck in a thrilling finish.

OZONE PARK, N.Y. - With his chances to make the Kentucky Derby field virtually impossible, Giant Moon began preparing for a different stakes race Wednesday when he worked five furlongs in 1:00.10 over Belmont Park's main track.

It was Giant Moon's first breeze since he finished fourth, beaten two lengths, in the Grade 1, $750,000 Wood Memorial on April 5. Giant Moon, a New York-bred son of Giant's Causeway, worked in company with the 4-year-old New York-bred Hammock, who bested Giant Moon in the move as he was timed in 59.88 seconds, the fastest of the morning.

AUBURN, Wash. - Emerald Downs will open its 13th season Friday with an eight-race card headed by a stakes-quality field of six in the day's feature, a 5 1/2-furlong allowance test for older sprinters.

The 2008 meeting will stretch 91 days through Sept. 28, with first post set for 6 p.m. on weekdays and 2 p.m. on weekends and holidays.

SAN MATEO, Calif. – Trainer Gordon Wells isn’t sure just how good Watch Me Win is, but he knows she’s popular. He claimed her for $20,000 in her last start March 20 after trainer Billy Morey had claimed her for the same price in her previous start.

Watch Me Win will not be claimed Friday, when Wells runs her in a $25,000 optional claimer for fillies and mares at one mile, the fourth race Friday at Bay Meadows. She is one of the four runners in the field of seven running for the allowance condition.