LOUISVILLE, Ky. - The pick six carryover for the Friday program at Churchill Downs soared to $701,585, third-highest in track history, after a parade of longshot winners dominated the final six races Thursday.
Only one favorite, Clif's Storm ($4.40), in the 10th and last race, was a winner in the Thursday pick six which began with a carryover of $247,486 and brought a single-day handle of $748,110. Five of six winners returned $3,836 for $2.
A pair of tigers from New York could be the most dangerous runners in a crowded field for Saturday's Grade 1, $300,000 at Laurel Park.
Tiger Heart and I'm the Tiger, both of whom ran second in prestigious stakes in New York this season, head the 16th running of the Dash, one of only five Grade 1 races at six furlongs in the country.
The numbers speak for themselves.
After just five horses competed in last year's Laurel Futurity, when it was run on the main track, the race was shifted to the track's newly refurbished turf course for 2005.
Although Laurel sacrificed the Futurity's Grade 3 status by switching surfaces, that drawback was more than offset by increased interest at the entry box.
BOSSIER CITY, La. - Across from the grandstand there's a forest, not the old Gentilly neighborhood. The French Quarter? Try Barksdale Air Force Base.
No, this is not the typical Fair Grounds racing season.
The 37-day meet that starts Saturday is dubbed Fair Grounds at Louisiana Downs, an arrangement set up by Mother Nature herself. Hurricane Katrina precipitated the move to northwest Louisiana, where Fair Grounds is leasing Louisiana Downs and conducting the business of running the meet. Louisiana Downs still controls the racing facilities, helping out as needed.
OZONE PARK, N.Y. - Familiar surroundings and a favorable distance could put Evening Attire back in the winner's circle Saturday in the Grade 3, $100,000 Stuyvesant Handicap at Aqueduct.
A 7-year-old gelding, Evening Attire holds a huge back-class edge over five rivals in the Stuyvesant, which is run at 1 1/8 miles. He has earned over $2.4 million in 44 career starts, including a Grade 1 triumph in Belmont's 2002 Jockey Club Gold Cup. Evening Attire loves the Big A, where he is 4 for 6, and four of his career wins have come at this distance.
INGLEWOOD, Calif. - Bengal Lore is less than a length away from being a multiple stakes winner. He lost the Barretts Juvenile by a half-length in September and the Sunny Slope Stakes by a nose at Santa Anita last month.
Saturday at Hollywood Park, Bengal Lore will be favored to end his stakes drought in the $100,000 for 2-year-olds at Hollywood Park.
One prominent question surrounding his chances is the seven-furlong distance. Bengal Lore is a front-runner who has been caught in his last two starts, a point that handicappers are certain to ponder.
VANCOUVER, British Columbia - Pat Answer could be hard to catch in the feature race at Hastings Saturday. The 6 1/2-furlong allowance race for 2-year-old fillies that have not won a stakes drew five horses and goes as the seventh race.
Trained by Jim Loseth, Pat Answer has shown very good speed in her two races, both at 3 1/2 furlongs. Like many first-time starters, Pat Answer was a bit
AUBURN, Wash. - The top fillies and mares on the grounds will come together in Saturday's Matinee Girl Invitational Handicap at Portland Meadows, a six-furlong race with a purse of $7,500.
Also on the Saturday card are a pair of six-furlong stakes for Oregon-bred 2-year-olds, each with a purse of $20,000-added. The Janet Wineberg for fillies will go as the fifth race with a field of 10, while the Bill Wineberg for colts and geldings has lured 11 entrants and will go as eighth race.
OZONE PARK, N.J. - With the grass-racing season winding down, the $65,000 Soaring Softly Stakes Saturday at Aqueduct was hugely popular at the entry box Thursday.
The 1 1/16-mile turf race for 3-year-old fillies drew a full field of 10 with five more consigned to the also-eligible list. A 16th horse, Merrill Gold, was entered as a main-track-only runner.
Wild Chick looks like a top contender following a seven-length turf allowance victory most recently at The Meadowlands Racetrack.
The versatility Charming Socialite has shown this year left his connections a difficult decision over for Saturday night's Texas Champions Day card at Sam Houston Race Park in Houston.
Charming Socialite is a stakes winner on dirt and turf and at different distances, indicating he could be competitive in the program's $100,000 Star of Texas at 1 1/16 miles, the $50,000 Richard King Handicap at 1 1/8 miles on turf, or the $50,000 Spirit of Texas Sprint.
