INGLEWOOD, Calif. - Licari and Storm Fox give trainer John Sadler two formidable starters in a $39,000 allowance race over a mile on turf at Hollywood Park on Wednesday.
A win by either would continue a strong run of success for the Sadler stable, which has won with three of nine starters in the first week of the Hollywood Park meeting.
ALBANY, Calif. - It's never fun when it happens.
Trainer Craig Dollase truly believes he ran the best horse in Saturday's Grade 3 , but he watched Hendrix finish third, then get disqualified to last.
"It's tough when you have the best horse," Dollase said.
Hendrix had room to move out and get in the clear on the second turn of the turf race, but jockey Garrett Gomez decided to wait for an opening, and an opening never developed.
ETOBICOKE, Ontario - Jockey Steven Bahen swept both Woodbine stakes on Sunday, aboard Simply Lovely in the $165,900 Fanfreluche, and on Le Cinquieme Essai in the $106,000 Labeeb.
Simply Lovely sat just off front-running Something Brewing in the six-furlong Fanfreluche, and took control at the quarter pole before coasting to a two and three-quarter length triumph. The final time was 1:12.41 seconds.
"She broke good and relaxed a little," said Bahen. "When I asked her to pick it up, she started dragging me along, and it was all over."
The dominating win by SLM Snowman in the $300,000 headlined the five Grade 1 stakes comprising the MBNA America Challenge Championship on Saturday night at Sam Houston Race Park.
Sam Houston Race Park set a live handle record of $1,335,862 on the 10-race card. An all-source record was assured with $1,815,798 wagered and the total handle from Los Alamitos not available.
LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Confirming a sensational last win at Keeneland, Halory Leigh followed through with another huge effort Sunday when pulling a 14-1 upset over favored Lady Tak and 10 other fillies and mares in the Grade 2, $230,400 .
Trained by Dale Romans and ridden by Craig Perret, Halory Leigh moved up steadily after racing well back through the opening half of the one-mile Distaff, then raced past Lady Tak with surprising ease to notch the first graded stakes, and easily the richest, triumph of her 20-race career.
VINTON, La. - Taking care of business as he almost always does, Leaving On My Mind ran to his short price in Saturday night's $100,000 Jean Lafitte Stakes, drawing clear to win by five lengths. Longshot Rubialedo rallied to finish second followed by My Parade, who also turned in a bit of late run.
LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Most of the top jockeys at Churchill Downs told their agents not to name them on horses for the Wednesday card, further inflaming a controversy that promises to have widespread ramifications over the national issue of sufficient insurance coverage for jockeys.
SAN MATEO, Calif. - Benefiting from a clean trip in a roughly run race, Congressionalhonor ($20.40) circled the field and won the Grade 3 $100,000 at Bay Meadows on Saturday.
Favored Hendrix appeared much the best but was trapped behind horse from the quarter pole. He had no room to move wide and finally bulled his way between horses, bothering both Kingdom Come and Big Squeeze at the eighth pole.
OZONE PARK, N.Y. - Owner Gary Tanaka was born in Idaho, and resides in London, but he is certainly quite at home in Long Island.
The Long Island Handicap, that is. For the third time in five years, Tanaka won the Grade 2 with a European-based 3-year-old filly. Saturday, Tanaka won the $150,000 turf stakes with Eleusis, a Kentucky-bred daughter of Diesis who had won 5 of 6 starts racing in France.
LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Bill Cartwright has been taking phone calls about selling a 2-year-old colt named Straight Line for months. To his credit, Cartwright resisted all offers, and after the colt won the $109,600 at Churchill Downs by five widening lengths Saturday, Cartwright said "only a life-changing" sum might make him pay closer attention.
That's huge bucks he's talking about. Cartwright speaks for a partnership of five well-heeled Chicago stockbrokers who co-own Straight Line with Harvey Vanier, the 80-year-old trainer whose wife, Nancy, is the other half-owner in the colt.
