Ablo, Dover Dere, and Magna Graduate are among the top horses expected for the Grade 3, $750,000 West Virginia Derby at Mountaineer Race Track on Sunday. The 1 1/8-mile race will anchor an all-stakes card of nine races worth a cumulative $1.5 million, making for the richest day of racing ever in West Virginia.

Dover Dere could go favored following his second-place finish to Surf Cat last out in the Grade 2 Swaps Breeders' Cup at Hollywood Park. He arrived at Mountaineer on Tuesday, and will be ridden by Pat Valenzuela, according to Doug O'Neill, who trains Dover Dere.

VANCOUVER, British Columbia - In her first full year as a trainer, Tracy McCarthy is having a tremendous year. She has won eight races from 32 starts at Hastings, and not included in her stats are three stakes wins in Alberta with Stole One and Hotenuforyoo. Stole One and Hotenuforyoo are trained by McCarthy at Hastings but she runs them under Stuart Simon's name when she ships them to Alberta.

MIAMI - Saturday will be a homecoming in more than one way for Saint Jules, when the lightly raced 2-year-old returns to south Florida to compete in the $75,000 Dr. Fager Stakes.

Saint Jules was sold privately by owner-trainer Henry Collazo to Sanford Goldfarb after he won his only start by four lengths at Calder on May 1. Saint Jules has been training steadily in New York since early July in preparation for Saturday's opening leg of the Florida Stallion Stakes, and his new trainer, Richard Dutrow Jr., is opting to send the colt back to Collazo's barn before the race.

AUBURN, Wash. - Gold Lad is the one to beat when he takes on seven other older horses going 6 1/2 furlongs in Friday's $10,200 feature at Emerald Downs, a $10,000 starter allowance race.

Gold Lad, a 4-year-old son of Gold Fever, was a prompt favorite in his Emerald Downs debut on July 17, scoring by a neck over Irishskysarsmiling in a $25,000 optional claiming event run in 1:09.80 for six furlongs. Before shipping to Emerald, Gold Lad had posted 4 wins from 16 starts in northern California. Leading trainer Tim McCanna has again given the mount to leading rider Kevin Krigger.

EDMONTON, Alberta - Perhaps it has been left to Raylene, returning from Woodbine, to end the domination by Vancouver shippers in Alberta stakes for fillies and mares.

Raylene, Alberta's 2003 horse of the year, will meet Stole One, a winner of stakes at Stampede and Northlands this year, in a field of seven for the $50,000 Madamoiselle at 1 1/16 miles Friday at Northlands.

VANCOUVER, British Columbia - At 8 years old, Buckeye Bates isn't as fast as he once was. Nevertheless, the classy British Columbia-bred gelding still knows how to win races, and he looks very live in the feature race at Hastings Friday.

It's a tough spot, though. A very sharp Strategic Intrigue and the speedy Above the Clouds have also been entered in the 6 1/2-furlong claiming race, which drew six horses. It goes as the seventh race.

BOSSIER CITY, La. - It appears to be official: Alex's Allure's future lies on the grass.

It did not take long for nationally ranked trainer Cole Norman to make an impact at Evangeline Downs.

Norman arrived two weeks ago, following the conclusion of Lone Star Park's season, and will race here on a daily basis for the first time. He made his presence felt with 7 wins from his first 11 starters, including two wins on Monday.

A benefit dinner that will start a fund-raising drive to build a chapel on the Canterbury Park backstretch area has been rescheduled from Sunday, Aug. 21, to Saturday, Aug. 20. Hall of Fame riders Pat Day and Sandy Hawley will both be on hand to speak, sign autographs, and visit with fans.

Former trainer Steve Erban contributed his services as an architect in designing the proposed 3,000-square-foot chapel, which will be named in honor of the late Dean Kutz, a top rider during Canterbury's early days.

Apprentice Channing Hill has been a frequent visitor to the races at Columbus the past couple of weekends as he recuperates from a sore back and prepares to resume his promising career in New York. Hill said he planned on returning for the last couple of weekends of the Saratoga meet, which concludes Sept. 5.