Tiago Pereira, who sustained facial injuries in a one-horse spill at Del Mar on July 19, is aiming for a comeback at the Santa Anita autumn meeting that starts on Sept. 27.

Pereira’s agent, Craig Stephen, said on Thursday that the veteran rider hopes to receive doctor’s clearance next week to resume riding.

“Once he gets clear, he should be able to breeze horses,” Stephen said. “Hopefully, he’ll be ready at the beginning of Santa Anita. I’ve got a couple of stakes for him to ride. I would like him to be on them.”

Stronghold, winner of the Grade 1 Santa Anita Derby in 2024 and a close second in the Grade 2 Pat O’Brien Stakes at Del Mar in August, will not race again this year, trainer Phil D’Amato said on Friday.

“You won’t see him until next year,” he said. “He’s not had time off at the farm since I’ve had him as a 2-year-old. He’ll get 60 days.”

The Illinois Racing Board on Thursday approved 63 live racing dates in 2026 at Hawthorne Race Course in the Chicago area and 57 days of live racing at Fairmount Park in Collinsville.

The dates for the tracks largely overlap, but Hawthorne and Fairmount will run on different days of the week for most of their meets. Hawthorne will begin its meet on March 29 and run through Nov. 1 with live racing on Thursdays and Sundays, while Fairmount will begin its meet on April 14, running on Tuesdays and Saturdays through Oct. 27. 

The South African-bred mare Gimme a Nother won the first stakes of her American career in the Grade 2 John C. Mabee Stakes at Del Mar on Sept. 6 and will not race again until the Breeders’ Cup Filly and Mare Turf at the same venue on Nov. 1.

Trainer Graham Motion said on Thursday that Gimme a Nother should benefit from an eight-week gap between races.

“I will not run her in between,” he said. “She ran really well fresh this time.”

The Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority has issued a 10-year suspension to a Midwest-based trainer after he acknowledged the possession of two electrical devices that could be used to stimulate horses, according to a ruling posted on HISA’s website. 

Isidro Castro, who has 22 lifetime wins from 333 starts since taking out his trainer’s license in 2020, “admitted responsibility” to possessing the devices during a hearing with stewards at Fairmount Park in Collinsville, Ill., on Sept. 3, according to the ruling.  

Om N Joy, unbeaten in five starts at Del Mar and Santa Anita since March, including four stakes, may race outside of California for the first time in the Grade 2 Raven Run Stakes for 3-year-olds fillies at Keeneland on Oct. 18.

Trainer Aggie Ordonez said on Wednesday that Om N Joy has been nominated to the Grade 2 Zenyatta Stakes for fillies and mares at 1 1/16 miles at Santa Anita on Sept. 28, but that the $400,000 Raven Run Stakes has greater appeal.

The Zenyatta “looks awful tough,” she said. “It seems to make sense to stick with the 3-year-olds fillies.”

The Cary Grant Stakes, run for California-bred sprinters each November at Del Mar, has been renamed The Chosen Vron Stakes, the track announced on Wednesday.

The Chosen Vron, a two-time Grade 1 winner and the California-bred Horse of the Year in 2023 and 2024, was retired in March after winning 19 of 24 starts and earning $1,709,678. The Chosen Vron, a 7-year-old gelding, raced for the partnership of John Sondereker, Robert Fetkin, Richard Thornburgh, and trainer Eric Kruljac.

A weekend workout by Dr. Venkman will determine whether the 5-year-old gelding will race before the Breeders’ Cup at Del Mar on Nov. 1.

Trainer Mark Glatt said on Wednesday that Dr. Venkman may start in the Grade 2 Santa Anita Sprint Championship at six furlongs on Sept. 28. Dr. Venkman earned a fees-paid berth to the Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile with a win in his last race, the Grade 2 Pat O’Brien Stakes at seven furlongs at Del Mar on Aug. 23. The BC Sprint at six furlongs is another option, Glatt said.