MIAMI - A year ago Paradise Dancer was among the leading members of the local sprint handicap division, held in high enough regard by his connections to get a starting berth in the 2005 Smile Sprint Handicap. Now 6, Paradise Dancer may have lost a few steps since that time, but is still good enough to be considered the horse to beat in Monday's $30,000 feature, to be decided at 6 1/2 furlongs under third-level optional claiming and allowance conditions.

After earning a four-month vacation by winning the Grade 3 Mac Diarmida at Gulfstream Park on Jan. 29, Hotstufanthensome goes back to work Monday afternoon for the start of an ambitious summer schedule.

A 6-year-old gelding, Hotstufanthensome heads a field of nine older horses in the Battlefield, one of two $60,000 stakes on a special all-turf card at The Meadowlands.

Weatherstorm, last year's champion juvenile in Michigan, heads a full field of 10 3-year-old colts and geldings in the 41st running of the $50,000 Lansing Stakes on Monday at Great Lakes Downs. The six-furlong race is the first of the season for the Michigan-bred males, all of whom will carry 122 pounds.

On Saturday at Arlington Park, Come on Chas won the Mac Diarmida Stakes - or what was left of it.

Carded for 1 1/2 miles on turf, the Mac Diarmida was moved to the main track after heavy overnight rain, and what had been a 10-horse field scratched down to a meager three. So, at a win price of $8.40, Come on Chas qualified as a longshot.

Barbeau Ruckus ($10.40) captured the $125,000 Steady Growth Stakes for the third time in the last four years Saturday at Woodbine, upsetting the 2-5 favorite, Arch Hall, in the process.

Barbeau Ruckus pressed front-running Moonshine Justice through slow fractions in the 1 1/16-mile race for Ontario-sired runners. Arch Hall made a four-wide bid on the far turn and hit at the top of the stretch, but then hung in the final sixteenth.

For a horse who has primarily been pointed to turf races for more than a year, Smart Growth always manages to run big when he gets the chance to run on Delaware Park's main track.

Making only his second start on dirt since October, Smart Growth ($16.80) rallied up the rail under Mario Pino to collar pacesetter Cherokee's Boy in deep stretch to score a half-length victory in Saturday's $100,000 Brandywine Stakes.

Trickle of Gold had run half-mile splits in 44-and-change in her last two starts, and had no problem winning both races. So when she was allowed to get away with extremely soft fractions of 23.47 seconds for the first-quarter mile and 46.69 for a half, Saturday's $75,000 Skipat Stakes at Pimlico was all but over.

Having little problem clearing six overmatched fillies and mares, Trickle of Gold ($2.60) opened up through the stretch under Alex Beitia and cruised home seven lengths in front of Spirited Game for her third straight victory.

ELMONT, N.Y. - After two late runs fell short in Grade 1 company, Cacique changed tactics and his luck as he won a thrilling edition of the $400,000 at Belmont Park.

ELMONT, N.Y. - A hot pace and several looming threats all could have conspired to defeat Bushfire on Saturday in the $250,000 at Belmont Park, but she tenaciously turned back Hello Liberty and Last Romance to win the Grade 1 race for 3-year-old fillies on the Belmont Stakes undercard.

Bushfire ($11.20), under jockey Alex Solis, prevailed by a neck over Hello Liberty, with Last Romance another 1 3/4 lengths back in third. Adieu, the 9-5 favorite, was fourth and was followed, in order, by Ermine, She's Excellent, and Teammate.

ELMONT, N.Y. - An outside post, a dry track, and a stellar ride by Edgar Prado helped Songster gain a measure of revenge on Too Much Bling in Saturday's $250,000 at Belmont Park.

Two months ago, Too Much Bling posted a nine-length victory over Songster in the Grade 3 Bay Shore, run over a sloppy Aqueduct main track. Too Much Bling hadn't run since, while Songster won the Grade 3 Hirsch Jacobs at Pimlico on Preakness Day.