HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. - Trainer Todd Pletcher expects Aristocratic Lady to improve off her 2006 debut. That figures to be bad news for the eight rivals the 4-year-old filly will face going 1 1/16 miles on the turf in Wednesday's $35,000 allowance feature at Gulfstream Park.
OZONE PARK, N.Y. - After losing two top contenders last week, the $200,000 Gotham Stakes on March 18 picked up a major player on Monday when trainer Todd Pletcher said he would send the undefeated Keyed Entry to New York for the Grade 2 race. The Gotham, run at 1 1/16 miles on Aqueduct's inner track, serves as a prep for the $750,000 Wood Memorial on April 8.
ALBANY, Calif. - Cause to Believe, northern California's leading Kentucky Derby candidate, has not been nominated to the Triple Crown. But if Cause to Believe wins the $100,000 California Derby at Golden Gate Fields on Saturday, trainer Jerry Hollendorfer plans to make him a supplementary nominee.
Spun Sugar, idle since finishing second behind Sweet Symphony in the Grade 1 Alabama on Aug. 20, made a successful return at Gulfstream Park on Monday, drawing off to a 4 1/2-length victory against an overmatched field of third-level optional claiming and allowance rivals.
The victory was the first for Spun Sugar, a 4-year-old homebred daughter of Awesome Again, since she captured Pimlico's Grade 2 Black-Eyed Susan last May. She was also second and third behind Smuggler in the Grade 1 Mother Goose and Coaching Club American Oaks last year.
Solid racing, aggressive marketing, an attractive giveaway item, and gorgeous weather were cited by Santa Anita officials as the reasons for the blockbuster day the track had Saturday, when 49,089 admissions were sold and overall handle reached $24,238,239.
Jockey Sunny Ho, hospitalized since last Wednesday with a head injury after a spill at Golden Gate Fields, continues to show improvement but has developed pneumonia, according to Golden Gate's track physician, Dr. David Seftel. Seftel said that Ho remained in the intensive care unit of Highland Hospital in Oakland, Calif.
HOT SPRINGS, Ark. - Happy Ticket was preparing to van out of her Louisiana Downs base shortly after training hours on Monday, headed for Oaklawn Park and a Saturday showdown with Round Pond in the Grade 3, $175,000 Azeri Breeders' Cup.
The 1 1/16-mile race for fillies and mares is one of two important stakes this weekend. The Grade 3, $150,000 Razorback Breeders' Cup Handicap will be held on Sunday. The races are preps, respectively, for the Grade 1, $500,000 Apple Blossom and the Grade 2, $500,000 Oaklawn Handicap, both here on April 8.
The $125,000 Alberta Derby, a 1 1/16-mile race for 3-year-olds, is the richest on a slate of 14 stakes races scheduled for the 2006 Stampede Park meeting in Calgary, Alberta.
The Penny Ridge, a 1 1/16-mile race for 3-year-old fillies, is the second-richest stakes on the menu at $75,000, a $25,000 increase from last year.
The only other change on the stakes schedule involves the Duchess of York and the Herald Gold Plate, both of which are listed at $50,000 but will offer bonus money of up to $20,000 to Alberta-breds finishing in the top three.
Corazondelcampeon ($5.40), so promising last summer in Southern California before being knocked out by an ailment and then seemingly unable to get back to his good form, bounced back in a big way with a 2 1/4-length victory in Turf Paradise's $40,000 Palo Verde Handicap for 3-year-old sprinters. Rattlesnake Joe finished third as the 4-5 favorite.
Dismissed at 46-1, Tasha Sangue took over the lead from pacesetter Preach It going into the stretch and went on to a 2 1/4-length victory in the $60,000 Wayward Lass Stakes.
Under Carlos Montalvo, Tasha Sangue ($95), trained by Walter Rosas-Canessa, covered the 1 1/16 miles over a fast track in 1:45.61.
Preach It held on to finish second. She was three lengths ahead of favored Pitanga.
