LEXINGTON, Ky. – Kentucky Oaks winner Shedaresthedevil, who finished third in the Grade 1 Spinster on Sunday at Keeneland in her first try against older horses, will pass on the Breeders’ Cup in favor of arriving at Oaklawn Park as a fresh horse for a winter-spring campaign.

LEXINGTON, Ky. – Luis Saez enjoyed a stellar opening weekend at Keeneland, winning nine races, including a Grade 1 stakes each day.

Saez, whose agent is former trainer Kiaran McLaughlin, kicked things off by winning a pair of races Friday, including the Grade 1 Alcibiades Stakes with Simply Ravishing. His three wins on Saturday included the Grade 1 Breeders’ Futurity aboard Essential Quality and the Grade 2 Woodford Stakes on Leinster.

LEXINGTON, Ky. – Empire of Gold, a 3-year-old making his graded stakes debut against older horses, was dismissed at 51-1 in the Grade 2 Phoenix Stakes on opening day at Keeneland. After a strong runner-up effort, he is likely to be a much shorter price when he returns to Lexington next month.

Trainer Terry Eoff said he plans to bring Empire of Gold, who is based at Remington Park, back to Keeneland for the $100,000 Perryville against his fellow 3-year-old sprinters on the Breeders’ Cup Saturday undercard on Nov. 7.

LEXINGTON, Ky. – It was a big weekend for fillies trained by Ken McPeek. Swiss Skydiver will return to Kentucky a conquering heroine after outdueling Kentucky Derby winner Authentic in the Preakness Stakes in Baltimore. Back home, her two young understudies held down the ropes, as Simply Ravishing and Crazy Beautiful swept the exacta in the Grade 1 Alcibiades Stakes on Friday at Keeneland.

Simply Ravishing earned an automatic berth in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies with the victory, and Crazy Beautiful is likely to join her in the starting gate.

Cool Arrow has won his last three starts, including the Grade 3 Smile Sprint here Sept. 5. And his trainer, Terri Pompay, admitted the temptation was there to try to take her red-hot sprint specialist to the next level, with the Breeders’ Cup looming on the horizon.

But in the end, Pompay opted to map out a more prudent path with Cool Arrow, whom she trains for Wanda Polisenni’s My Purple Haze Stable. Pompay said she might send him to Keeneland for an allowance race.

Richard “Rick” Leigh, a longtime steward and racing official in Kentucky and elsewhere, died Sunday morning following a lengthy battle with cancer. He was 73.

Leigh died of cardiac arrest in a hospital in Florence, Ky., after having a difficult time breathing, according to his stepson, Tyler Picklesimer, also a steward and longtime racing official in Kentucky.

LEXINGTON, Ky. – Reigning Eclipse Award champion turf female Uni was winless in 2020 as she came to Keeneland, where she sizzled a mile in a course-record 1:32.87 while winning last year’s Grade 1 First Lady Stakes. Although the time for her one-length victory in Saturday’s renewal was well off her own mark – she finished in 1:34.90 – Uni did put herself back in the win column on a course she adores and is prepared to move ahead to a defense of her win in the 2019 Breeders’ Cup Mile at Santa Anita.

LEXINGTON, Ky. – Ivar is by a Japanese-bred stallion, was born in Brazil, and spent the early part of his career racing in Argentina, where he was a multiple Group 1 winner. But he didn’t have far to travel to get home after winning his first U.S. Grade 1 on Saturday. After cooling out from his victory in the Shadwell Turf Mile on Saturday evening, Ivar vanned straight back to his base at The Thoroughbred Center on the northeast side of Lexington, just more than 20 minutes from Keeneland.

On Sunday morning, trainer Paulo Lobo reported that the colt was doing “very well.”

Jockeys Victor Espinoza, Heriberto Figueroa, and Juan Hernandez were fined $100 each by Santa Anita stewards over the weekend for violations of new whip regulations put in place by the California Horse Racing Board at the beginning of the month.

The new rules limit riders to six underhanded strikes in a race. Riders cannot use the whip more than twice in succession before pausing to give a horse a chance to respond to urging.

ARCADIA, Calif. - Cupid’s Claws was claimed for $50,000 at Del Mar on Sept. 5 and won the Grade 3 Tokyo City Cup at 1 1/2 miles on dirt at Santa Anita in his next start on Sept. 27.

The recent win has left the large partnership that owns the 5-year-old gelding and trainer Craig Dollase planning a start in the Grade 2 Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance Stakes at 1 5/8 miles on dirt at Keeneland on Nov. 6.

The race was formerly known as the Marathon Stakes and holds appeal because it’s “13 furlongs for $200,000,” Dollase said. “Why not?