ARLINGTON HEIGHTS, Ill. - Raving Rocket had barely finished Monday's third race here when Larry Rivelli's phone began ringing. That is what happens when you train a 2-year-old who wins as impressively as Raving Rocket. On the lead from the first step, Raving Rocket easily drew away from four opponents, winning a maiden race, his career debut, by almost 10 lengths. Raving Rocket ran very fast, 52.51 seconds for 4 1/2 furlongs on a sloppy track, but he did it easily.

GRAND PRAIRIE, Texas - Yessirgeneralsir will be given every chance to advance to the $4 million Breeders' Cup Classic, which this year will be held in his home state of Texas at Lone Star Park. One of the paths he could take to get to that race includes the Grade 1, $1 million Pacific Classic at Del Mar Aug. 22.

Yessirgeneralsir, a Texas-bred, turned in a flashy performance here Monday when he wired the field in the Grade 3, $300,000 Lone Star Park Handicap at 12-1. He covered 1 1/16 miles in a sharp 1:41.29 and earned a 104 Beyer Speed Figure.

AUBURN, Wash. - Steal the Gold seeks her third straight victory on Friday when she steps up to the allowance level to take on five other 3-year-old fillies in the six-furlong feature at Emerald Downs.

CALGARY, Alberta - The decision to schedule the 16th running of the Lilac, a one-mile handicap for 3-year-old fillies, on Friday evening proved to be fortuitous as Smarty Jones will be attracting all the attention at Belmont the following afternoon.

The $40,000 Lilac, a coming-out party for the best of this division stretching out for the first time, is normally slated for the weekend, and this marks the first time in years a stakes will be conducted on a Friday at this meeting.

Our Josephina needed six starts to finally win her maiden, but one race later the 4-year-old filly is a stakes winner.

The lightweight at 109 pounds in a field of six older filly and mare sprinters, Our Josephina ($16) drew off to a 6 1/2-length victory in Tuesday night's $75,000 Ohio Valley Handicap at Mountaineer Racetrack.

She was coming off a decisive victory against maidens at Churchill Downs, a 6 1/2-furlong race in which she carried 123 pounds.

Our Josephina covered six furlongs on a fast track Tuesday in 1:11.78.

BOSSIER CITY, La. - Just Plain Vanilla, twice stakes placed, should be a strong favorite in Friday's allowance feature for Louisiana-bred fillies. The 1 1/16-mile first-level allowance drew a field of nine, with most exiting the conditioned claiming ranks.

California-bred Quarter Horses with credentials that would be competitive in open Grade 1 Quarter Horse company highlight the weekend racing at Los Alamitos, in the trials to the Governor's Cup Futurity and the Governor's Cup Derby.

Five futurity trials will be held on Friday night and two derby trials on Saturday night. The finals for each race will be run as part of the nine stakes on the June 19 California Champions Night.

Miss Beduino Cash shoots for national prominence when she heads the Grade 3, $39,510 Ford Central Challenge for 2-year-olds at Canterbury Park on Saturday.

SAN MATEO, Calif. - Although he has started only nine horses, trainer Genaro Vallejo has proved he knows what he's doing, having won three times.

Vallejo isn't afraid to take a calculated risk, as he did when he entered Eight Karat in the San Jose Handicap last month. The filly ran third behind Heavenly Humor and Secret Corsage in a strong effort.

MIAMI - Racing secretary Bob Umphrey was hoping he might fill one of the two races for 2-year-old winners that he had written for Sunday's program. So the usually reserved Umphrey was positively ecstatic when he was able to make both of his juvenile races go, one with an eight-horse field and the second with seven.