OZONE PARK, N.Y. - Few jockeys on this circuit had more momentum entering the winter meet than Alan Garcia. He was riding for one of the top outfits on the grounds, bringing home longshot winner after longshot winner.
On Dec. 31, owner Ernie Paragallo - for whom Garcia had ridden 11 winners in five weeks - got disgusted with one of Garcia's rides and abruptly severed ties with him. When Garcia went winless the next two weeks, it looked like he would be in for a long, cold winter.
PHOENIX - The $100,000 purse of Saturday's Turf Paradise Breeders' Cup has lured three Southern California shippers who will try to knock off the local favorite, Grimm. Ten 3-year-olds and up run in the 1 1/16-mile turf race, which will be run as race 8 and is one of three stakes on a nine-race card. The others are the $75,000 Arizona Oaks (race 3) and $100,000 Turf Paradise Derby (race 6).
With rain in the forecast, the turf could be soft for the race.
PHOENIX - Virden's lone loss in three career starts came the one time she sprinted. Trainer Dan McFarlane, taking over for Kurt Carlton, thinks, therefore, that the 1 1/16-mile Arizona Oaks Saturday at Turf Paradise might be right for her. The $75,000 race attracted a field of seven 3-year-old fillies.
, a daughter of the router Tactical Cat, debuted going long at Turf Paradise on Dec. 5 and rolled by the front-runners for an easy win in the mud. Heavy rains were expected in the Phoenix area going into Saturday, which could make for another off track.
Officials at Turfway Park and its managing partner, the Keeneland Association, say they are proceeding with preliminary plans that could result in a weather-resistant, synthetic Polytrack racing surface being laid as early as this summer.
"We are currently in the process of having an engineering firm look into the cost and other aspects of what we could incur if, in fact, we decide to have the track replaced," said Turfway's president, Bob Elliston.
Based on her previous trip to Maryland this winter, it seems safe to conclude New York-based trainer Jennifer Pedersen brings horses that are ready to run their best.
On Jan. 29, Pedersen shipped in three runners to Laurel Park and two of them won. On Saturday, she makes a return appearance, this time with entrants for four races, including Mr. Sword, who faces first-level allowance company in race 8 after winning his maiden at Laurel on Pedersen's last trip to the track.
Ebony Breeze, who has won all three times she's started at Tampa Bay Downs, comes up from Miami as a solid choice in the $60,000 Manatee Stakes. The seven-furlong stakes drew a field of 14 fillies and mares.
Hall of Fame trainer Bill Mott has named Heberto Castillo Jr. to ride Ebony Breeze at 116 pounds.
Ebony Breeze has won seven races, three of them at Tampa Bay Downs, including the 2003 Gasparilla Stakes as a 3-year-old.
Apparently they made Dixie Kiss mad. After a nice maiden win at Sunland Park, she returned on Dec. 26 against allowance foes but had trouble at the start and finished second. She came back Jan. 28 in a similar spot, didn't miss the break, and romped by 10 1/4 lengths. Now back on track, Dixie Kiss is the likely favorite and horse to beat in Saturday's $53,200 El Paso Times Handicap at Sunland. The 6 1/2-furlong race attracted nine 3-year-old fillies.
Golden Marlin will be such a strong favorite Saturday when the Likely Exchange Stakes is run at Turfway Park that perhaps the most surprising aspect of the one-mile race is the number of opponents who showed up to run against her.
The maximum 12 fillies and mares are entered in the $50,000 Likely Exchange, the 10th of 12 races at the Florence, Ky., track.
Native Annie hasn't had any racing luck in her turf starts, but given how sharp she is right now, it's no surprise her connections will give her another shot on grass Saturday night in the $40,000 Tomball Stakes at Sam Houston Race Park.
Native Annie has the added benefit of running against Texas-breds in the 1 1/16-mile turf race for fillies and mares. She is tough to get past given her sharp form, having won three of her last four starts, including a pair of stakes for fillies and mares bred in Texas.