Tue, 11/15/2005 - 00:00

Seeking the Carat in fine form

ETOBICOKE, Ontario - Seeking the Carat, who is coming off a solid second-place finish over six furlongs on turf here Oct. 9, appears to have found a favorable spot in Thursday's $71,300 feature at Woodbine. A field of eight has been entered for the 6 1/2-furlong race, a third-level allowance with an optional claiming clause of $80,000.

Seeking the Carat is entered for $77,500 and will be looking for his second win in four starts since being claimed for $57,500 by owner-trainer John Cardella here Aug. 6.

Tue, 11/15/2005 - 00:00

Horses begin their migration south

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Fields have been extraordinarily big at Churchill Downs this fall, but they may be taking a minor hit for the balance of the meet. The Fair Grounds at Louisiana Downs meet, which begins Saturday in Bossier City, La., has decreased the available pool of horses from which Churchill racing secretary Doug Bredar and his staff have been drawing since the meet began Oct. 30.

Tue, 11/15/2005 - 00:00

Shining stars of Million Day

Jim Lisa
Revved Up, a 7-year-old, wins the Bonnie Heath. He will be back in 2006.

MIAMI - There were stars aplenty on the fourth annual Florida Million Day card, which showcased statebreds in eight stakes races for all age groups here last Saturday.

The No. 1 star for the day goes to the 7-year-old gelding Revved Up for his performance in the Bonnie Heath Turf Cup. A homebred son of With Approval, Revved Up rallied to a convincing 2 1/2-length victory over even-money favorite Silver Tree in the Bonnie Heath, earning his fifth victory on the year. Revved Up has not finished worse than second in seven starts this year.

Tue, 11/15/2005 - 00:00

Fair Grounds boosts purses

Better-than-expected business at offtrack betting parlors in the New Orleans area has spurred a purse hike for the Fair Grounds at Louisiana Downs meet, which begins Saturday in Bossier City, La. Purses in overnight races will be increased by $1,000 during the 37-day meet, with four stakes on Jan. 14 each receiving a $50,000 boost. The Risen Star, Silverbulletday, Bayou Breeders' Cup, and Duncan Kenner are now worth $250,000 each, according to a Churchill Downs Inc. news release.

Tue, 11/15/2005 - 00:00

Next step for 'Charming'

Michael J. Burns Photo Ltd.
Charming Ruckus, Todd Kabel up, wins Sunday's Jammed Lovely.

ETOBICOKE, Ontario - The Jammed Lovely Stakes represented a golden opportunity for Charming Ruckus here at Woodbine last Sunday.

A seven-furlong race for Ontario-foaled 3-year-old fillies, the Jammed Lovely attracted a field that included several underachievers, and Charming Ruckus, who had been solid of late, looked to have an edge.

The betting public agreed, making Charming Ruckus the 9-5 favorite, and she rallied smartly to score by a length under Todd Kabel.

Mon, 11/14/2005 - 00:00

Baffert in line for another sweep

Benoit & Associates
Chips Are Down wins the Bien Bien, one of Bob Baffert's two weekend stakes wins at Hollywood.

INGLEWOOD, Calif. - Trainer Bob Baffert is off to a hot start at Hollywood Park's fall meeting. He won five races the first five days of the meet, including a sweep of the weekend's stakes, and he'll shoot for another stakes sweep this weekend in races for 2-year-olds.

Baffert will send out Da Stoops in the Grade 3 Hollywood Prevue Stakes on Saturday and Cotton Bay in the Moccasin Stakes for fillies on Sunday. Both races are worth $100,000 and cover seven furlongs.

Victor Espinoza has the mount on both runners.

Mon, 11/14/2005 - 00:00

Robledo drops to prep for Native Diver

INGLEWOOD, Calif. - It took more than two years to get Robledo back to the races, and after an initial misstep, he has turned in two excellent efforts, including a second-place finish in the Hinds Invitational at Fairplex in his last start.

is taking a step back on Wednesday at Hollywood Park, into a third-level allowance race, but it is a means to an end for trainer Vladimir Cerin, who would like to use Wednesday's seventh race as a springboard for Robledo to the Grade 3, $100,000 Native Diver Handicap on Dec. 10.

Mon, 11/14/2005 - 00:00

Bad weather ruins Big M meet

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. - Heavy rain deluged The Meadowlands Racetrack in October and the business numbers took a pounding at the meet, which ended Saturday night.

The track posted double-digit declines in average ontrack and total handle compared with 2004 for the abbreviated 25-day meet.

Daily ontrack handle dropped 12.3 percent to $366,795. Average daily total handle on The Meadowlands races from all sources fell 15.8 percent to $1,855,835.

Mon, 11/14/2005 - 00:00

Saratoga '06 seat prices set

The New York Racing Association will introduce uniform pricing for clubhouse and grandstand reserved seats at Saratoga in 2006.

In the past, NYRA had two price levels in both areas. The new policy means one price for all clubhouse seats and one price for all grandstand seats.

"We decided to take a two-tier pricing system and simplify it," said Jerry Davis, NYRA's director of admissions and parking.

Mon, 11/14/2005 - 00:00

No shame in second for Rousing Victory

OZONE PARK, N.Y. - Trainer Phil Serpe was very pleased with Rousing Victory's second-place finish Saturday in Aqueduct's Grade 2 .

No horse in the race was a match for King's Drama, a Grade 1 winner who was using the Red Smith as a tuneup for the Japan Cup.

King's Drama coasted to a 2 1/2-length win as the 3-5 favorite.

Rousing Victory rallied three wide on the final turn and continued gamely through the lane to earn the place spot in the 1 3/8-mile race, the final graded turf stakes of the year in New York.