ELMONT, N.Y. - Those wanting to get an early line on the Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies should pay close attention to Saturday's Grade 1 Matron Stakes at Belmont Park.
Among the seven juvenile fillies entered in the $300,000 Matron are two winners of early-season stakes in New York; the third- and fourth-place finishers from the Grade 1 Del Mar Debutante in California; and two of the more impressive babies seen during the Saratoga meet.
ELMONT, N.Y. - He was dominant in the spring and disappointing in the summer. As fall arrives, handicappers wonder what to make of Master of Disaster, who returns to action in Saturday's $300,000 at Belmont Park.
Master of Disaster, a son of Dance Master trained by Steve Klesaris, caught people's attention with a 13 1/4-length maiden victory at Delaware Park in which he equaled the track record for 4 1/2 furlongs (51.86 seconds) while earning a Beyer Speed Figure of 97.
ELMONT, N.Y. - After a disappointing start to the year, Smokey Glacken returned to form last month with an allowance win at Saratoga. With that confidence-builder under her, Smokey Glacken returns to stakes company Saturday in the Grade 3, $100,000 Floral Park Handicap at Belmont Park.
FLORENCE, Ky. - The Kentucky Cup has seen more than its share of superstar horses prevailing in short fields, so Turfway Park president Bob Elliston doesn't exactly know what to make of the way the five-race series shapes up for its 12th running Saturday.
"As a racetrack operator, you love to have the big names," said Elliston. "But when they're in a six-horse field, is that what the public really wants? At the end of the day, you might be better off with big, competitive fields."
FLORENCE, Ky. - Trainer Todd Pletcher makes the bulk of his living back East, but he also picks up the occasional pocket change by invading Turfway Park at opportune moments.
Pletcher twice has won Turfway's spring showcase, the Lane's End Stakes, with Balto Star (2001) and Flower Alley (2005), and he recorded his lone victory in the Kentucky Cup series two years ago when Smok'n Frolic won the Grade 3 Turfway Breeders' Cup as the favorite.
Every day along Interstate I-65, thousands of cars and trucks roar past Kentucky Downs in Franklin, Ky., never bothering to stop at the all-turf racetrack that sits along the highway and the Kentucky-Tennessee border.
Now is the time to hit the brakes. Beginning Saturday, and continuing for six racing days over the subsequent nine days, Kentucky Downs is expected to offer deep, competitive grass racing, in its own unique, fair-like environment.
POMONA, Calif. - The $120,000 Barretts Debutante on Saturday at Fairplex Park was going to be a nice, quiet little stakes with minimal ramifications. Forget that idea.
Instead of easy pickings for romping debut winner Catch My Fancy, Grade 3 runner-up Acceleration, or streaking front-runner Sugar Deputy, the Barretts Debutante shapes up as a tough race filled with speed. A 6 1/2-furlong race, the Barretts Debutante is restricted to fillies offered at a Barretts sale.
ETOBICOKE, Ontario - Leroidesanimaux, a winner of seven straight races, will break from the inside post as a solid favorite in Sunday's Grade 1, $1 million at Woodbine.
A field of nine was announced for the Atto Mile, a Grade 1 turf race for 3-year-olds and upward, at the ceremonial draw here Thursday.
Leroidesanimaux, a 5-year-old horse based in New York and trained by Bobby Frankel, is 8-5 on Daily Racing Form's morning line.
As the only Grade 1 stakes winner in the field, Leroidesanimaux will be the 124-pound highweight under the allowance conditions.
ARLINGTON HEIGHTS, Ill. - , like last year's Pucker Up winner, Ticker Tape, was purchased out of England by trainer Jim Cassidy. And like Ticker Tape, she shipped to Arlington Park from California after racing in the Grade 1 Del Mar Oaks. But whereas Ticker Tape lost by a nose, Singhalese won by a half-length, and that is not the only difference between them.
