King T. Leatherbury, with more than 6,000 wins to his credit, is the third leading trainer in wins in racing history. He has won 51 training titles at Pimlico or Laurel Park, and saddled more than 300 winners in four consecutive seasons during the 1970's.
Yet for all his accomplishments, Leatherbury has nearly always been merely a spectator for the Maryland's most prestigious race, the Preakness Stakes.
Look no further than the last running line of the horses in posts 1 through 5 to gauge just how tough the Jim McKay Breeders' Cup Handicap at Pimlico has come up.
All five runners won their last start at either the same nine furlongs as the $200,000 McKay or a half-furlong longer. Their winning Beyer Speed Figures fall within a narrow range of 101 to 107.
Toss in Classic Endeavor, a two-time Grade 3 winner late last fall, and it's clear the McKay contenders are difficult to separate.
HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. - Lady in Pink won her last start by 19 1/2 lengths and won a stakes in her only appearance on grass. Those performances are sure to make the speedy 3-year-old Lady in Pink the overwhelming choice to beat five rivals in Saturday's $75,000 Cellars Shiraz Stakes at Gulfstream Park.
VANCOUVER, British Columbia - With California wagering outlets now betting into the Hastings pools, there wasn't much doubt that the handle for opening weekend would be significantly higher than last year. The enormity of the difference, however, was staggering. The overall handle on live Hastings races was up by 84 percent on Saturday and 96 percent Sunday. While those numbers are a bit skewed because there were 19 races held this year as opposed to 16 in 2004, the per-race average was still up by more than 61 percent. Even more encouraging to Hastings management was the ontrack numbers.
Semaphore Man is the one to beat Saturday, when he faces six other 3-year-olds going six furlongs in the $50,000 Golden Circle Stakes at Prairie Meadows.
Trained by Kelly Von Hemel, Semaphore Man has scored open-length victories in both of his sprint starts, including a debut win over special weight company at six furlongs Feb. 12, when he overcame a slow break to score by 9 1/4 lengths at Oaklawn Park.
Three weeks later, faced older first-condition allowance rivals at one mile. He raced greenly and blew the first turn, finishing third, beaten 6 1/4 lengths.
GRAND PRAIRIE, Texas - True Tails brings the whole package into the $50,000 Wafare Farm for 3-year-old fillies at Lone Star Park on Saturday. She has speed, class, a win over the track, and high-percentage connections, assets that will serve her well in the Wafare.
A six-furlong race, the Wafare drew seven, including Lady Carmen, an impressive allowance winner at Fair Grounds for trainer Steve Asmussen, Ketchmewhereyoucan, Ready to Live, and Airizon.
GRAND ISLAND, Neb. - The $100,000 Bosselman/Gus Fonner Stakes on Saturday drew a field of nine runners that provides handicappers with a tough study because the field runs strong from top to bottom.
is the highweight at 118 pounds for the 1 1/1`6-mile test and might be a slight favorite off his second in the Sunland Park Handicap on March 26. He has two stakes wins this year, and trainer Jose Gonzalez will bring in Ken Tohill from New Mexico to ride.
ETOBICOKE, Ontario - Saturday's Woodstock is billed as the first stakes prep for the 1 1/4-mile Queen's Plate, the $1 million showpiece for Canadian-bred 3-year-olds here June 26.
But Moonshine Justice and Dave the Knave, the top two Canadian-breds among the Woodstock nominees, are taking a pass on the open six-furlong race.
Both Dave Cotey, who trains Moonshine Justice, and Bob Tiller, the trainer of Dave the Knave, are aiming their Plate hopefuls for the May 7 Queenston, a seven-furlong race for Ontario-foaled 3-year-olds.
