Volcom, winner of five of his last six starts, should be favored to gain his first Grade 1 victory in the $129,400 El Primero Del Ano Derby for colts and geldings on Friday night at Los Alamitos.

ETOBICOKE, Ontario - Trainer George Newland has waited a long time for his first big break in the business.

At age 53, Newland's hour finally may have come. He has taken over as the trainer of Barbeau Ruckus, a multiple-stakes-winning 7-year-old who earned almost $968,709 in 32 starts for trainer Ross Armata.

Owner Thayalan Muthulingham and Armata ended their association over the winter and the owner approached Newland to take over his stock.

"I was so excited," said Newland. "I didn't even stop to think about it. Right off the bat, I said yes."

ETOBICOKE, Ontario - The popular Queen's Plate Fantasy Challenge is being contested for the seventh time this year, and is expected to draw around 2,000 entries from throughout North America.

Participants sign up for the contest at Woodbineentertainment.com/fantasy, where they must create a fantasy stable made up runners eligible to the $1 million Plate. Those who accumulate the most points leading up to and including the June 25 Plate win prizes, such as televisions and DVD players.

HOT SPRINGS, Ark. - For Bordonaro, six furlongs in 1:08 is standard fare. His last three wins have been clocked in that range, over three different tracks. Thursday, he can extend his win streak to four when he starts as the 122-pound highweight in the Grade 3, $150,000 Count Fleet Sprint Handicap at Oaklawn Park.

The six-furlong race continues the Racing Festival of the South, during which nine stakes worth a cumulative $2.8 million are run over the final week of the meet.

HOT SPRINGS, Ark. - Lawyer Ron has won his last five starts by 31 lengths, and by all accounts he seems to be improving as he heads into the most important race of his career on Saturday, the Grade 2, $1 million at Oaklawn Park.

The one to beat in the 1 1/8-mile race, Lawyer Ron has posted four straight two-turn stakes wins. In his final prep for the Arkansas Derby, he wowed a number of horsemen on Saturday by working five furlongs in a bullet 59 seconds and galloping out six furlongs in 1:10.91.

HOT SPRINGS, Ark. - Private Vow finished his major prep work for Saturday's Grade 2, $1 million on Tuesday morning, when he breezed a half-mile in 48.24 seconds at Oaklawn Park.

He is one of 13 probables for the Arkansas Derby, which has a gate limit of 14. The 1 1/8-mile race is part of the Racing Festival of the South, during which at least one stakes a day is run at Oaklawn over the final week of the meet, which ends Saturday.

LEXINGTON, Ky. - When the Kentucky Oaks picture became muddled in recent days, with Balance being soundly defeated by upstart Bushfire in the Ashland Stakes and Wild Fit dropping out because of illness, the wheels started turning for Dale Romans.

"I thought, 'Why not us?' " said Romans. "The Oaks is so wide open right now, it's unbelievable. If our filly runs big Thursday, sure, we'll look at running back in the Oaks."

LEXINGTON, Ky. - One of the most intriguing questions going into the Keeneland spring meet centered on how apprentice Julien Leparoux would fare against some of the world's top jockeys.

So far, so good.

Leparoux, shut out on the Friday opener, proceeded to win a total of five races on the next two cards, giving him an early lead in the jockey standings at the 15-day meet.

LEXINGTON, Ky. - Strong Contender did not have the best of trips when he came to Kentucky last month. His trainer, John T. Ward Jr., is hopeful things will go better Saturday.

Heck, if Strong Contender just gets in the starting gate for the Grade 1, $750,000 Blue Grass Stakes at Keeneland, that will be an improvement over the last time he came to this state.

When its Thoroughbred meet of 2005 opened last April, visions of the 2004 Breeders' Cup still danced in the Lone Star Park air. A year later, after a so-so season, and with no legislative assistance visible on the ontrack gaming front, Lone Star is trying to breathe fresh air into its program.

The track, which starts a 66-day meet Thursday night, sports a new general manager and a revamped main track, and it has ramped up and recalibrated its local marketing efforts.