AUBURN, Wash. - Queenledo circled the field with a quick move turning for home and drew out to a two-length victory over entrymate Gins Majesty in Sunday's $40,000 Irish Day Handicap at Emerald Downs.
Queenledo, a 3-year-old daughter of Slewdledo, was fifth in the field of six after a slow half mile in :47.60, but made up a three length deficit from the quarter pole to the three-sixteenths marker and polished off the mile in 1:36.60 under Ricky Frazier.
INGLEWOOD, Calif. - Before Sunday, Brooke's Halo had a sketchy record in stakes. It turns out those races were run over the wrong distances.
Making her first start over 1 1/16 miles, and beyond seven furlongs, Brooke's Halo led throughout the $177,500 at Hollywood Park, scoring her first stakes win.
INGLEWOOD, Calif. - Loose leads and slow paces in major stakes at Hollywood Park have produced the highlights of Sweet Return's career.
Sweet Return led throughout the Grade 1 Hollywood Derby to score a 16-1 upset in November 2003. Saturday, the same tactics led to Sweet Return pulling a minor upset in the $350,000 .
Left alone to set fractions of 26.08 and 50.62 seconds, Sweet Return ($10) held off a late run from even-money Red Fort to win by a head.
Ridden by Alex Solis, Sweet Return finished in 2:01.35.
ALBANY, Calif. - Desert Boom ($12.60) broke sharply and controlled the pace as he captured the $100,000 Grade 3 by two lengths over stablemate Easy Million at Golden Gate Fields on Saturday.
Trainer Art Sherman said he entered both in the race because they were training so well. He plans to run both in the Claiming Crown Jewel on July 16 at Canterbury Park.
Desert Boom won the 1 1/16-mile race in 1: 40.94. Easy Million, who closed well from last, was six in front of Yougottawanna at the wire.
GRAND PRAIRIE, Texas - Forrest G. pulled a 33-1 upset in the $135,450 colts and geldings division of the Texas Thoroughbred Association Sales Futurity at Lone Star Park on Saturday when he rallied to an authoritative, two and a half length win. Lord Vicar finished second, a nose in front of third-place finisher D Denton.
BOSSIER CITY, La. - Silver Haze picked up his third straight win on the grass and second in stakes company with an impressive effort in Saturday's Bossier City Handicap. Bob O's Boy finished second followed by South Beach Boy and He's Royal Dee. The winner survived a claim of foul lodged by Quincy Hamilton on board the runner up for alleged interference exiting the final turn. The stewards judged that there was insufficient evidence for a disqualification.
ELMONT, N.Y. - Imagine a 12-round fight in which the champion has to fend off a fresh challenger every four rounds. That's what Lost in the Fog was faced with in the Grade 2, $170,000 on Saturday at Belmont Park, and the nation's best 3-year-old sprinter scored a knockout to remain unbeaten after seven starts.
Starting from post 2, Lost in the Fog was hooked early by Going Wild. When that colt dropped away midway on the turn, Middle Earth took up the chase. And after Lost in the Fog turned back Middle Earth, Egg Head loomed menacingly at the top of the stretch.
ELMONT, N.Y. - Trainer Todd Pletcher and Cot Campbell, head of the Dogwood Stable syndicate, debated for most of the week whether to run Limehouse in Saturday's $250,000 at Belmont Park or next Saturday's $750,000 Stephen Foster Handicap at Churchill Downs.
Despite Limehouse's affinity for Churchill - he's 3 for 4, with the loss a fourth-place finish in the 2004 Kentucky Derby - the decision was made to run in the Grade 2 Brooklyn. It turned out to be the right call as Limehouse rolled to a 1 1/2-length victory over Gygistar in the 117th Brooklyn Handicap at Belmont Park.
ELMONT, N.Y. - When Good Reward runs in a Grade 1 race at the distance of 1 1/4 miles, he can do no wrong.
Good Reward put in a tremendously game effort to win his second Grade 1 in the at Belmont Park on Saturday. Good Reward was a half-length winner over Relaxed Gesture, who finished a nose in front of the 9-5 favorite, Artie Schiller.
