ARLINGTON HEIGHTS, Ill. - Let us all hail Perfect Drift, who puts a sudden halt to talk of the fragility of the modern Thoroughbred. Saturday at Arlington Park, he seeks not his first, not his second, but his third victory in the Grade 2, $300,000 Washington Park Handicap, a race he won last year and in 2003.
Skip to main content
Create Your DRF Account
New to DRF?
Everything you could possibly
need in one place
need in one place
Register
Don't have an account?
Register Here
DRF Past Performances
Can it be called a successful opening week at Del Mar even without cashing a ticket? Yes, absolutely it can.
A recap of the Week 1 wagers:
July 19: Get Funky missed in a three-way photo in race 6; longshot Pearls O'Plenty ran poorly in race 7.
July 20: All three plays ran poorly; a bad day.
July 21: Sunshine Ridge finished second at 6-1 in race 5; longshot Smart n'Quiet finished fourth at 23-1 in race 7.
July 22: Boy Toy ran poorly in race 1; Adance romped in race 7, but even-money was too short and she was "no play."
It came down to the last day and the final bet of the meet, but when Key Event came charging from off the pace to win at 5-2 back on Labor Day 2005, it meant that our ship had finally come in. Yes, after 36 days and $1,070 in total wagers in this internet endeavor, Key Event's winning payoff pushed our total returns into the black at $1,097 -- a $27 profit.
Hopefully, our profits this season will be a little better than 75 cents per racing day.
And away we go ...
There are stakes-quality horses all over the opening-day card at Saratoga in some wide-open allowance races, but the two actual stakes races appear to be among the most straightforward events on the program. My unexciting strategy in multirace wagers involving the two stakes is going to be to focus on the favorites.
OCEANPORT, N.J. - Presious Passion has been steadily closing the gap in each of his last two starts.
If that pattern continues Thursday at Monmouth Park, the 3-year-old Presious Passion should be highly competitive in the featured optional claimer on the turf for second-level allowance runners or horses carrying a $35,000 tag. The race carries a purse of $40,000.
CHICAGO - It could be as few as six for the Washington Park Handicap, or as many as nine, but put a circle around Second of June's name - he's on his way.
Saturday's $300,000 Washington Park, Chicago's most important main-track route race of the season, will be much more a Midwest than a national affair, but the race still has a solid backbone, anchored by Perfect Drift, who won the race last year and in 2003.
DEL MAR, Calif. - Bordonaro has won four straight races to rank as the nation's leading sprinter. Carthage has won five straight races, including a victory over last year's champion sprinter, Lost in the Fog. Both are in top form right now as they prepare for the Grade 1, $300,000 Bing Crosby Handicap on Sunday at Del Mar, but trainer Ted West believes he has a chance to upset them with Premium Saltine, who scored an overpowering victory in his West Coast debut on June 14 at Hollywood Park.
SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. - Trainer Patrick Biancone has called an audible regarding two of his top female turf horses, opting to run Lady of Venice in Saturday's Grade 1, $500,000 Diana Stakes at Saratoga while sending Gorella to the Grade 1 Beverly D. at Arlington on Aug. 12.
High Strike Zone went over the $500,000 mark in earnings last Saturday at Louisiana Downs, winning the $75,000 Ark-La-Tex Handicap for the second straight year. His next target is the $150,000 Evangeline Mile at his Evangeline Downs base on Aug. 12, according to his trainer, Amos Laborde.
High Strike Zone pushed his earnings to $539,760 with a front-running win in the Ark-La-Tex. He set a quick pace and went on to a clear win the 1 1/16-mile race, earning a Beyer Speed Figure of 96.