Dorthys Champ took the lead right out of the gate and had the others chasing in his 2 3/4-length upset of Rockem Sockem in Tuesday's $50,000 Michigan Breeders' Cup Handicap at Great Lakes Downs.

Dorthys Champ ($38.40) also left his more highly regarded stablemate, favored Above the Wind, in his wake.

Trained by Ronnie Allen, Dorthys Champ was a 12-length winner in a sprint allowance, but had never before been able to carry his speed in a route. Jorge Collazo Jr. picked up the mount after Freddie Mata stayed with Above the Wind, who finished fifth.

Remington Park is moving closer to opening a casino. The track received preliminary approval of its gaming license application from the Oklahoma Racing Commission last week, and a conditional license order could come up for adoption at the next commission meeting Aug. 11. Blue Ribbon Downs also received preliminary approvals last Thursday.

"It's a step further along than we have been before," said Gordon Hare, executive director of the commission.

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. - Last year, on the second day of the Saratoga meet, a 2-year-old colt based at Delaware Park came here and put on a dazzling performance winning the Sanford.

This year, another Delaware Park-based juvenile has arrived for the second day of the meet, and though the name of the race has changed, trainer Steve Klesaris hopes the result remains the same when he saddles in the Grade 2, $150,000 Saratoga Special at six furlongs.

OCEANPORT, N.J. - Jay's Suave has run well in all but one start since trainer Jim Ryerson claimed him for $40,000 in January at Gulfstream Park. That one poor outing came May 15 in an allowance at Monmouth Park, Ryerson's home track.

That makes Thursday's featured $39,000 first-level allowance race for 3-year-olds an interesting test. Jay's Suave gets another chance to show he can run on the Jersey Shore. He has the rail against eight rivals in the six-furlong race.

CHICAGO - A little less than two months left in the 2005 Arlington Park meet, and trainer Wayne Catalano has his own record in range.

SANTA ROSA, Calif. - Day two of the Sonoma County Fair dawns Thursday with handicappers, trainers, and jockeys still trying to figure out the quirks of the newly installed turf course.

Racing secretary Greg Brent has carded two turf races Thursday, including the feature, a $40,000 starter allowance at one mile for fillies and mares.

Early in the meet will be a feeling-out process for everyone. What role will speed play? Will there be a course bias to the inside or outside? How will the length and type of grass and the rail position affect runners?

COLUMBUS, Neb. - Nebraska's live racing shifts to the Columbus Races at Agricultural Park on Thursday, opening day of a 24-day meet that runs through Sept. 11.

The purse schedule has seen a much-welcomed increase, with the bottom purse at $4,600 and ranging up to $7,100 for open allowance horses. The purse fund received $290,000 from the Nebraska Horsemen's Benevolent and Protective Association through the success of its simulcasting facility at Horsemen's Park in Omaha, making the increase possible.

ETOBICOKE, Ontario - Strut the Stage and Royal Regalia will both make their first start since competing on the 2004 Breeders' Cup card in Thursday's Woodbine feature. The $87,900 classified allowance has attracted a mixed bag of six runners, who will negotiate 1 1/16 miles on the grass.

Strut the Stage, an accomplished 7-year-old trained by Mark Frostad, had a successful four-race campaign in each of the past two years. He won back-to-back Grade 2 stakes during the summer of 2003, including the Chinese Cultural Centre.

DEL MAR, Calif. - It's with great expectations as well as a heavy heart that Tim Yakteen sends out three of the 30 runners in his barn Thursday, including a rapidly improving long-distance specialist in the day's richest race and a runner representing a recently deceased owner in another race.

AUBURN, Wash. - Do's Buckshot will attempt to regain his winning stride in Thursday's Emerald Downs feature, a $3,500 starter handicap at 6 1/2 furlongs.

Do's Buckshot, a 7-year-old former class horse, began the meet with four straight wins, two in sprints against $3,500 claimers and two in routes against $3,500 starter allowance and starter handicap foes. He stepped up to the $10,000 starter allowance level for his last outing on July 4, but faded to finish sixth to the razor-sharp Itstufftobegood in that 1 1/16-mile affair.