OLDSMAR, Fla. - Revved Up, who had a breakout season in 2005 when he earned more than $500,000, is expected to make his 2006 debut at Tampa Bay Downs on Saturday in the $75,000 Chris Thomas Memorial Handicap at nine furlongs on turf.
The race, named for the late local media personality who owned horses and syndicated racing partnerships, is for older horses. Also on the card is the Lightning City Stakes at five furlongs on the turf. The Tampa Bay Downs season concludes Sunday.
EAST BOSTON, Mass. - The return of live racing to Suffolk Downs always boosts morale, but the return of the Grade 2, $300,000 Massachusetts Handicap to the stakes schedule gives everybody here something to look forward to after another disappointing winter for the struggling New England racing industry.
Ben's Reflection will return from a seven-month layoff when he starts as the 123-pound highweight against nine other Ohio-bred rivals in the $50,000 Babst/Palacios Memorial Handicap at Beulah Park.
Ben's Reflection last started on Oct. 1, when he rallied to score a four-length win in the Best of Ohio Sprint. Ben's Reflection easily has the best credentials of any starter in the six-furlong Babst/Palacios, and the concern over the layoff is mitigated by trainer Mike Nance's 36-percent win rate during the past year with starters returning from over a six-month layoff.
PHOENIX - Muir Beach moved back to dirt for last month's Cactus Flower Handicap and reestablished herself at the top of the filly and mare pecking order at Turf Paradise. Saturday, she returns to turf in the $40,000 Desert Sky Handicap at Turf Paradise. The mile race lured a field of eight.
There's little doubt Muir Beach is better on the dirt, as 11 of her 13 victories have come on the main track. But aside from her two victories, she has also finished second five times on turf.
LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Many racing fans will awaken Friday and be ecstatic that it's Day.
Meanwhile, the connections of the Oaks favorite, Balance, will simply be glad it's another day.
Balance didn't fare too well when she finished third as the heavy favorite in her last race, the Ashland Stakes at Keeneland, and trainer David Hofmans is eager to see the two-time Grade 1 winner rebound with a more representative effort in the Oaks, the Grade 1 filly classic that will be run before an expected crowd of 100,000-plus at Churchill Downs.
LOUISVILLE, Ky. - The $400,000 Woodford Reserve Turf Classic, featuring a field that includes five Grade 1 winners, should prove a fitting lead-in to the afternoon's main event on Saturday's 12-race Kentucky Derby program at Churchill Downs.
The Grade 1 Woodford Reserve anchors an undercard that includes four other graded stakes - the Grade 1, $250,000 Humana Distaff Handicap; Grade 2, $200,000 Churchill Downs Handicap; Grade 3, $100,000 La Troienne Stakes, and Grade 3, $100,000 Churchill Distaff Turf Mile.
Wild Desert makes his first start of the year in Friday's $100,000 Alysheba Stakes at Churchill Downs.
Two horses whose connections wanted to run them in the Kentucky Derby were entered in the $100,000 Crown Royal American Turf on Friday at Churchill Downs, and so was another one whose trainer would have loved to be in the Kentucky Derby with any qualified horse.
LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Officially, Oonagh Maccool was a 2 1/2-length winner of the Rampart Handicap at Gulfstream Park March 25, running approximately .40 of a second faster than Sweet Symphony, the runner-up.
Those that watched the race, including Gulfstream announcer Vic Stauffer, saw it differently. After blowing the start and getting boxed in traffic for much of the race, Oonagh Maccool entered the stretch, and as Stauffer announced, "If she wins she's a half an hour the best."
ELMONT, N.Y. - When is a home run not a home run? When it's a Grand Slam.
It's early in the game, but judging from indifferent handle on the inaugural Grand Slam wager on opening day at Belmont Park, few bettors, particularly offtrack, used the New York Racing Association's new wager to meet the monthly minimum of $2,000 needed to qualify for the new reward/rebate program.
GRAND PRAIRIE, Texas - Trainer Bret Calhoun's stable is kicking into high gear at Lone Star Park. He won three races here last Friday night, including the allowance feature with Kalyrra, who after a seven-length win is now a top candidate for the $75,000 Lone Star Oaks on July 1.
Calhoun returned a day later and won Saturday's first race. He ranks third in the local standings with 11 wins and is tied for seventh in the national trainer standings with 59 wins in 2006. Calhoun has 50 horses based at Lone Star.
