HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. - Javier Castellano rode Candy Box to an easy first-level allowance victory here earlier in the meet. He also has been the regular jockey for the fast but inconsistent Song of the Saints, aboard whom he won a pair of races during the spring of 2005.

Unfortunately for Castellano, Candy Box and Song of the Saints wound up in the same second-level allowance race at Gulfstream Park on Friday. So Castellano gave up the mount on Candy Box, which went to John Velazquez, and honored the call his agent already had given trainer Rusty Arnold for Song of the Saints.

HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. - Splendid Blended, whose short but brilliant career seemingly had ended last summer in California, will attempt a comeback beginning Saturday in the 6 1/2-furlong Hurricane Bertie Stakes at Gulfstream Park.

Trainer Neil Drysdale announced Splendid Blended's retirement in early August after he was unhappy with the way the filly returned from a seven-furlong workout at Del Mar. He said Splendid Blended had an upper suspensory problem from which he expected she would recover, but questioned whether she could make it back to the races.

OZONE PARK, N.Y. - Owner Ernie Paragallo, as he is wont to do, has altered plans with his top 3-year-old prospects Achilles of Troy and Scanlon's Song.

Achilles of Troy, convincing winner of the Count Fleet and Whirlaway stakes, will not ship to Florida as originally planned but instead will stay in New York and be pointed to the Grade 3, $200,000 Gotham here on March 18. After that, he would presumably target the Wood Memorial, run on Aqueduct's main track on April 8.

OZONE PARK, N.Y. - For the first time in three meetings in their budding New York-bred rivalry, Gold and Roses got the better of Carminooch when he was a perfect-trip winner of last month's Mellow Roll Stakes.

When Gold and Roses and Carminooch meet again in Friday's $60,000 Ave's Flag Stakes for statebreds, there are few things that may play in Carminooch's favor. The Ave's Flag, run at 1 1/16 miles, drew a field of eight.

ALBANY, Calif. - Point Determined, one of trainer Bob Baffert's Kentucky Derby hopefuls, will use a one-mile, $80,000 optional claimer at Golden Gate Fields on Friday as a potential stepping-stone to bigger things.

Though Point Determined seems to tower above his four competitors, the race could be an important one in his development.

Penn National Gaming Inc., the owner of Penn National Racecourse in Pennsylvania, Charles Town Races in West Virginia, and a number of casino properties, had net income of $120.9 million in 2005, up 69.1 percent compared to net income of $71.5 million in 2004, according to financial statements released by the company Wednesday.

It could've happened at the Fair Grounds meet at Louisiana Downs, it could've happened at Oaklawn Park, but as it turns out, the Grade 1 winner Happy Ticket will launch her 2006 season on Saturday night at cozy Evangeline Downs.

was cross-entered in two of the six Louisiana-bred stakes races scheduled for Louisiana Premier Night, but trainer Andy Leggio said he planned to choose the one-mile Distaff over the six-furlong Matron.

"This should be pretty big for [Evangeline]," Leggio said. "I think everyone in Louisiana who has a horse wants to come see her run."

Proven Cure, winning a turf stakes at Sam Houston last April, won his 2006 debut last month at age 12.

When jockey Tony McNeil returned to race riding in September following a nine-year layoff, it was at the behest of Cash Asmussen, the former champion jockey who years ago became close friends with McNeil when the two were riding in New York.

Robert Cappellucci apparently has a good eye for the claiming game. Slightly more than a month ago, he claimed Innocent Appeal for $12,500 at Sunland Park, taking her from top trainer Steve Asmussen. Not only was Cappellucci's confidence rewarded as his new acquisition won at 17-1 in last Saturday's El Paso Times Handicap, but the filly she beat, the heavily favored Shimmering Sunset, is trained by Asmussen.

As the saying goes, "pace makes the race," and that was certainly the case in last Saturday's $75,000 Turf Paradise Derby. No one could have been happier than the connections of the victorious Keagan.

"It was a wicked pace and we benefited from it," said trainer and part-owner Eric Kruljac, who credited jockey Scott Stevens with riding a perfect race.