The passage of Memorial Day usually marks the unofficial start of summer, but at Evangeline Downs it also means the beginning of the 2-year-old season.
The meeting's highlight, the $150,000 D.S. "Shine" Young Futurity, is a month away on Louisiana Legends Night over the July Fourth weekend. The two divisions of the John Franks Memorial Stakes, worth $100,000 each, are slated for a month later, and then there is the traditional closing-day feature, the $100,000 Lafayette Stakes on Sept. 4.
With 29 more wins than his nearest competitor through Monday's card, Ralph Martinez is well on his way to securing another Fairmount Park training title. The race for second place, however, is a little tighter, with four trainers within four wins of each other. Tom Trione Jr., currently second with 22 victories, enjoyed a nice evening last Friday, saddling three consecutive winners, including Settler ($47.20) in the featured eighth race, a second-level allowance.
Johnie Bye Night not only prevented Top Shoter from winning the George Barker Handicap at Finger Lakes for the third straight year, he also erased his stablemate's name from the track's record book.
Johnie Bye Night's six-furlong time of 1:09.34 on Monday broke the stakes record of 1:09.49 set by Top Shoter a year ago. Top Shoter, after racing prominently for a half-mile, tired badly in the stretch to finish a distant third behind Johnie Bye Night and You Willgo Broke.
Jockey Federico Mata, recuperating from a racing accident this past winter at Tampa Bay Downs, visited Great Lakes Downs recently while preparing for his comeback.
The crowd-pleasing Mata, who won the Great Lakes riding title in 2000 and finished second several times, broke a leg in two spots when his mount went through the inside rail at Tampa.
Love This Trick ($61.60) rallied along the rail through the stretch and was up late to score a three-quarter-length upset victory over Mr Actor in Tuesday's $40,000 Governor's Stakes for Indiana-bred 3-year-olds at Indiana Downs.
Jockey Liz Morris guided Love This Trick to the victory in 1:31.60 for 7 1/2 furlongs over the turf course. Mr Actor, who took a clear lead past midstretch, settled for second, finishing three lengths clear of 2-5 favorite Father Art.
Following 11 days of racing at the Lincoln State Fair, fans have not had to look very far to find the winning jockeys. With 98 races contested at the meet, just seven riders have multiple wins, accounting for 96 percent of the races won.
Renzo Diaz, newly arrived from Fairmount Park this past weekend, was the quickest to break through and post a win as he scored an $86 upset in Sunday's first race aboard Temptors Prospect. The other three riders with single wins - John Conheeney, Terry McGee, and Megan Ludlow - have returned similar prices.
She's That Cat ran her local record at Mountaineer Race Track to 4 for 4 with a three-quarter-length victory in Tuesday night's $75,000 Ohio Valley Handicap.
A 4-year-old filly ridden by Dana Whitney for trainer Steve Flint, She's That Cat ($3.60) stalked pacesetter Shiny Dancer into the turn, edged clear to a short lead in upper stretch, and was hard-pressed to hold off a late rally from Fly Away Angel. Fast and Fluid was another length farther back in third.
The winning time for six furlongs was 1:11.13.
OCEANPORT, N.J. - John Velazquez, healing quicker than expected, is set to return. Scat Daddy, a first-timer ready to run, has been idling since Keeneland.
The wait ends for both Friday, when they team up in the third race at Monmouth Park, a five-furlong maiden special weight for 2-year-olds.
Velazquez, the Eclipse Award-winning jockey the last two years, has been sidelined since suffering a broken shoulder and a cracked rib in a spill at Keeneland on April 20. Initial projections had him out until July.
AUBURN, Wash. - Gold Rush Banker heads the feature race on the first Thursday card of the meeting, a $15,000 starter handicap at 6 1/2 furlongs which has drawn a field of six.
The track will continue to race on a Thursday-through-Sunday basis through the end of the meeting on Oct. 1.