ALBANY, Calif. - A pair of 2-year-old fillies, both on winning streaks, meet in a rematch in Friday's Golden Gate Fields feature.
The six-furlong race is only a $10,000 claimer, but it will match Gottahavemilk, who has won two straight by five and six lengths, against Kleven's Alibi, who has won three straight. Her first victory in the streak was by four lengths over Gottahavemilk.
Evangeline Downs, which will conduct racing at a new site in Opelousas, La., next year, has named Jason Boulet as its new racing secretary. The track opens for a 21-date Quarter Horse meet on Feb. 5, with its Thoroughbred season to run April 7 to Sept. 5.
Boulet, 36, replaces Warren Groce, who had served one season in the post. Boulet is the assistant racing secretary at Fair Grounds and will leave there on Jan. 1.
Boulet is a past jockey agent to such riders as Gerard Melancon and Jamie Theriot.
ETOBICOKE, Ontario - Total wagering was down by 2.6 percent and average daily handle down 5.5 percent from last year on Woodbine's live Thoroughbred racing for 2004. The meeting, which ended Sunday, comprised 167 days, compared to 162 last year.
Total wagering declined to $338,349,688 from $347,433,630 last year. Average daily handle was $2,026,048. A total of 33 races were lost over five cards this year. Last year, several days were canceled because of inclement weather.
PORTLAND, Ore. - Trainer Jim Fergason took a gamble when he entered Mr. and Mrs. Bill Johnson's homebred Katowice filly, Wice O Kat, in Saturday's Os West Oregon Futurity at a mile.
Wice O Kat, who was still a maiden after two starts, looked very tough if entered against females in the $10,000 Jane Driggers Debutante on the same Oregon Championship Day card, but she was only the third choice behind Cascadiansasquatch and Abtastic in the $41,780 Futurity.
But the gamble paid off, barely.
First-time starter Regal's Big Girl gave her connections and backers more than a few anxious moments before Saturday's 14th race at Beulah Park.
A 3-year-old daughter of Lac Ouimet, Regal's Big Girl got spooked coming onto the track for the post parade and dumped jockey Paul Melancon. She then eluded the outriders and galloped loose around the turn before going into the chute and behind the starting gate, which was in place for the six-furlong Ohio-bred maiden special weight event.
The old Evangeline Downs in Carencro, La., will not sit vacant after live racing begins at the track's new site in Opelousas, La., in February. As it is now, the old Evangeline will continue to operate as a training center, but its management will change. Charles Ashy Jr., a former vice president with the old Evangeline, will be the general manager of the Evangeline Training Center.
Manor Downs in Austin, Texas, has released its stakes schedule for 2005, and the final day of the meet, April 24, will feature two futurities, one for Thoroughbreds and the other for Quarter Horses. The 21-date mixed meet will begin Feb. 26.
The $75,000-added Manor Downs Futurity for Quarter Horses will be one of the richest stakes of the meet. The Manor Downs Thoroughbred Futurity, to be run at 4 1/2 furlongs, has a purse of $20,000. Trials for the Thoroughbred Futurity are April 9.
Proven Cure, who earned a 106 Beyer Speed Figure for winning a starter allowance on Oct. 28 in his last start, heads a full field of stakes-quality rivals in the featured ninth race Friday night. The 6 1/2-furlong allowance carries an optional claiming price of $50,000, and other starters in the 10-horse field include stakes winners Term Sheet, The Niner Account, Leo's Last Hurrahy, Explosive Count, Record Assembly, and Czech Mate.
Black Bart, who suffered a fatal injury in last Saturday's Grade 2 Native Diver at Hollywood Park, was the 2003-04 horse of the meeting at Turf Paradise. A 5-year-old son of Stage Colony-Lyrical Pirate, Black Bart was second, chasing pacesetter and eventual winner Truly a Judge, when he took a bad step in midstretch and suffered a severe injury to his right hind leg. According to track stewards, Black Bart's injury was too severe to save him and he had to be euthanized.
Cajun Pepper stamped himself as the early favorite for the $161,324 Riley Allison Thoroughbred Futurity on Dec. 26 after his 7 1/2-length win in the second of two trials for the 6 1/2-furlong race. His chief competition in the finale should be Expect Will, who won his trial by three-quarters of a length. The winner of the Riley Allison gets a berth into the $500,000 WinStar Derby at Sunland on April 2.
Cajun Pepper remained perfect in four starts with the trial win, in which he earned an 89 Beyer Figure.