Oaklawn Park in Hot Springs, Ark., canceled Friday's nine-race card after sleet and freezing rain hit the area. Management made the announcement about 9:15 a.m. Central, with temperatures at the track dropping to 25 degrees.
"We're canceling due to winter weather conditions that hit quickly this morning," Oaklawn spokesman Terry Wallace said.
ARCADIA, Calif. - Pussycat Doll will defend her title in Sunday's $250,000 Santa Monica Handicap at Santa Anita. At least, that was the plan as of Thursday.
With widespread concern that wet weather would disrupt racing beyond the cancellation of Thursday's eight-race program, trainer Bob Baffert was hopeful that Pussycat Doll could run in the Grade 1 race at seven furlongs.
"I like the way she's training," he said. "The track condition will play a big part of it. It's out of our hands."
HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. - Bill Currin still believes he should have left south Florida last winter with a win photo from Gulfstream Park. But since he didn't, the California-based trainer has come back for another try.
A year ago, Currin shipped Stormello from Southern California and just missed winning the Fountain of Youth Stakes, dropping a nose decision to Scat Daddy.
"Every picture I see, I still won it," said Currin, who shipped Stormello back to finish fourth in the Florida Derby. "They just wouldn't let me have the picture."
OZONE PARK, N.Y. - There are not a lot of options at Aqueduct in the coming weeks for veteran stars Evening Attire and Naughty New Yorker. That suits the trainer Pat Kelly just fine as both horses get a mid-winter breather.
Naughty New Yorker has not run since winning the Alex M. Robb Handicap for New York-breds on Dec. 30. Naughty New Yorker did work five furlongs in 1:02.07 Wednesday at Belmont Park.
There is an overnight stakes for New York-breds on Sunday, but Kelly opted to pass.
Only 28 horses posted timed workouts on a gray Thursday in New Orleans that went from wet to wetter as the morning passed. But one could hardly have asked for more star power.
Not just working, but working as a team, Curlin, the 2007 Horse of the Year, and Pyro, a finalist for champion 2-year-old, got down, dirty, and much more serious than they had at any point so far this year. The pair hit the finish line together in a five-furlong breeze timed in 1:00.60, and were caught galloping out six furlongs in 1:13.80 by Scott Blasi, assistant to trainer Steve Asmussen.
Asiatic Boy returned to his winning ways at Nad Al Sheba on Thursday night, overcoming repeated trouble to win the Group 3, $200,000 Al Shindagha Sprint while serving notice that he will be a force to be reckoned with in the Dubai World Cup.
Off a step slowly, the Argentine-bred 5-year-old found himself behind a wall of horses along the stands' side rail at the halfway point of the straight six-furlong dash. Last save one in the 10-runner field but never very far behind the leaders, he was angled out by Johnny Murtagh, who finally found a gap and made for it.
Sam Houston Race Park drew a competitive field of six older horses for Saturday night's $100,000 Maxxam Gold Cup. Red Rock Creek and Reporting for Duty, who won the $106,000 Zia Park Derby last out, will start as an entry in the 1 1/8-mile race. Others in the field include multiple stakes winners Tap Dancing Mauk and Goosey Moose. Honest Man, who won an optional claimer in dominant fashion last out at Fair Grounds, will be making his stakes debut in the Maxxam.
HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. - Trainer Barclay Tagg has decided to delay Showing Up's return to the races and thus will not run him in Sunday's Grade 3, $125,000 Appleton Handicap here.
"I don't feel like I have him where I want him yet," Tagg said Wednesday morning. "I want to get a couple of more works in him. I wasn't pleased with his last couple of works."
ARCADIA, Calif. - Santa Anita officials were cautiously optimistic on Wednesday that several days of rain predicted through the weekend will not disrupt racing on the synthetic main track.
The track failed to properly drain earlier this month, leading to the cancellation of three days of racing from Jan. 5-7.
HOT SPRINGS, Ark. - The decision jockey Eddie Razo Jr. made to winter at Oaklawn Park last year keeps paying dividends.
He first teamed with eventual Breeders' Cup mount Miss Macy Sue here last year. And to start this year's meet, Razo won eight races in four days to take early command in the standings. His wins included Monday's $50,000 Smarty Jones Stakes with Liberty Bull.