ETOBICOKE, Ontario - Olympian will launch his 2004 campaign in Wednesday's fourth race, a five-furlong dash for $25,000 claimers that has lured seven other older runners.
The first Wednesday card of the Woodbine meeting contains seven races rather than the usual eight, because of a shortage of entries. The card includes a pair of $25,000 optional claimers, one for maidens and the other for nonwinners of two.
ELMONT, N.Y. - The disappointment of not being able to run Eddington in the Kentucky Derby is behind him. Trainer Mark Hennig is now looking forward to hopefully playing the role of spoiler in the May 15 Preakness when Eddington challenges Derby winner Smarty Jones.
was kept out of last Saturday's Kentucky Derby, along with Rock Hard Ten, due to a lack of sufficient graded stakes earnings. Eddington was the first horse excluded from the 20-horse field that was entered.
When did Atlantic City Race Course get relocated to the French countryside?
The track, founded by Bob Hope, Frank Sinatra and other celebrities in 1944, will run for all of four days this year, spread out over two weeks. All the races will be run on the grass, with two of the racing days devoted exclusively to steeplechases. That kind of schedule sounds more like racing on the outskirts of Paris than racing near the Jersey Shore boardwalk.
And by the way, betting on the track's races will only be available on track.
GRAND PRAIRIE, Texas - Kool Humor, Fitzroyal, and Won CC were all nominated to Saturday's $75,000 Ford Express at Lone Star Park, but instead will run Wednesday night in a six-furlong allowance. The competitive race also drew stakes-quality rivals Dash for Daylight, Lights on Broadway, and Ski Bum.
CARENCRO, La. - Kiss a Native rallied after trailing early in Saturday night's $50,000 John Henry Handicap and picked up his first local win.
Witt Ante finished second after showing the way into the stretch, and Prince Slew, the favorite, finished third. No Its Not, who won this race last year and easily captured the allowance prep three weeks ago, finished fifth after prompting the early pace.
Ridden by Michael Wright, Kiss a Native won for the 14th time in 34 lifetime starts, and the $30,000 winner's share padded his career earnings to just under $1,100,000.
GRAND ISLAND, Neb. - Southern Alert picked up her first stakes win with a 1 1/4-length victory in the $25,000 Al Swihart Memorial Handicap on Saturday.
Ridden by R. D. Williams, Southern Alert set all of the pace of the 6 1/2-furlong test for fillies and mares and had enough left to hold off defending champion Burning Memories. Holding a clear lead through fractions of 22.00, 45.60, and 1:11, Southern Alert finished up the 6 1/2 furlongs in a meet best 1:18.20 for trainer Larry Donlin.
Defending champion Pie's Lil Brother ($41.80) made up six lengths in the final furlong and nailed 3-5 favorite Coach Jimi Lee in the last stride to score an upset victory in the $50,000 Prairie Express at Prairie Meadows.
Pie's Lil Brother, who was winless in seven starts since capturing this event last year, trailed in the eight-horse field on the turn in the 5 1/2-furlong Express. Coach Jimi Lee shook loose after an early duel and clocked a half-mile in 44.93 seconds.
GROVE CITY, Ohio - Floater ($3.20) made a five-wide rally on the final turn and wore down pacesetter Another Freddy through the stretch to score a 1 3/4-length victory in the Wintergreen Handicap, the closing day feature at Beulah Park.
Huber Villa-Gomez was aboard Floater, who finished the 1 1/16 miles in 1:46.08 over a muddy track in defeating five 3-year-old Ohio-bred rivals. Tim Girten trains Floater, who scored his first win of 2004 and his fifth career win in eight starts. Floater was the Ohio-bred juvenile champion in 2003.
ETOBICOKE, Ontario - Mobil figured to be at a disadvantage heading into Saturday's seven-furlong Vigil Handicap.
Mobil was making his first start of the year, and although he was 2 for 2 at the distance, it certainly is not his best. He also was facing a razor-sharp Chris's Bad Boy, the 1-2 choice, who had won the six-furlong Jacques Cartier here two weeks earlier and appeared to be the lone speed in the field of five.
But when the dust cleared Mobil was a going-away winner under Todd Kabel, in an effort that earned him a career-high Beyer Speed Figure of 102.
INGLEWOOD, Calif. - Saint Buddy, who finished third in the $1 million Santa Anita Handicap on March 6, returns from a two-month break in a $54,000 allowance race on turf at Hollywood Park on Wednesday.
was given the layoff by design, according to trainer Rafael Becerra. He says a return on turf is not an indication that Saint Buddy will be campaigned solely on that surface.
"I think he's good on both," he said.