A 10-foot sinkhole caused by heavy rains last week has delayed the opening of training on the Suffolk Downs main track until it can be repaired.
The hole opened near the half-mile pole when a drainage outlet flooded last Thursday, the day the track was scheduled to open for training after having been closed for the winter last December.
Suffolk officials are not sure how long repairs will take but are hoping to be ready for the meet's opening day, Saturday, May 1.
HOT SPRINGS, Ark. - No horse has finished closer to the unbeaten Smarty Jones than Two Down Automatic, who will take on the comebacking Tiger Hunt in the $75,000 Northern Spur Breeders' Cup at Oaklawn Park on Saturday.
The one-mile Northern Spur for 3-year-olds is one of two stakes on the undercard of the $1 million Arkansas Derby. Smarty Jones is the favorite for that 1 1/8-mile race, while the connections of Two Down Automatic have opted to run in the Northern Spur.
Del Mar Show and Quest Star are the horses to beat in Saturday night's $200,000 Connally Breeders' Cup Turf Handicap at Sam Houston Race Park, while the ones to fear are Warleigh and Skate Away.
The Connally will be run over 1 1/8 miles on turf and it has drawn 11 older horses, including 119-pound highweight Better Talk Now. The race is Sam Houston's premier event, and it runs on the last day of the meet.
The $40,000 Jersey Lilly for fillies and mares and the $40,000 Turf Cup Sprint at five furlongs will support the Connally.
ARCADIA, Calif. - The promise that Erewhon has shown since switching to turf earlier this year could result in a win in Saturday's $100,000 La Puente Stakes at Santa Anita.
has run twice on turf, winning a maiden race in January and finishing second in the Pasadena Stakes last month. Those races have left trainer Wally Dollase hopeful that Erewhon can develop into a top 3-year-old on the turf this year.
Run over a mile on turf, the La Puente is Erewhon's first major test.
"Let's face it: He's a nice horse," Dollase said. "I think he'll improve every race."
CHICAGO - Fourteen years ago, the sting of losing an expensive racing prospect to injury made owner Richard Otto change tactics. Instead of buying racehorses, Otto would breed his own.
This from-the-ground-up approach often produces more headaches than stakes winners. Not for Otto. Saturday, on Illinois Day at Hawthorne Race Course, he and trainer Tony Mitchell have prohibitive favorites for two of six $100,000 stakes races.
GRAND ISLAND, Neb. - Giant Slam comes into Saturday's $30,000 Dowd Mile Handicap off two straight local victories and holds a slight edge over seven rivals in the local prep for the $100,000 Bosselman/Gus Fonner Stakes on April 24.
Giant Slam, trained by Chuck Wiley, may find himself alone on the lead. Giant Slam has won a pair of allowance races this year. R.D. Williams has the ride from post 7.
Grayglen comes into this race off an allowance win going one mile. Grayglen should be just off the pace and ready to pounce with Jerry Carkeek aboard from post 4.
PHOENIX - Channing Way has shipped from Turf Paradise to Southern California a number of times to chase bigger game. Saturday's $40,000 Cactus Flower Handicap at Turf Paradise, however, sees a turning of the tables: This time it's Channing Way who is the hunted and highweight, whereas a couple of tough Southern Californians ship into town looking to bag a big one. The six-furlong event lured a field of eight.
SUNLAND PARK, N.M. - Trainer Steve Asmussen will wrap up his first Sunland Park training title this weekend, and the achievement is as much a testament to his organizational skills as his horsemanship. With only 18 stalls on the grounds, Asmussen has continually shuttled horses in and out from Fair Grounds, Sam Houston, Oaklawn, and his training center in Laredo, Texas, always juggling condition books to find just the right spots.
ARCADIA, Calif. - Trainer Darrell Vienna has launched an appeal of the stewards' actions in the $500,000 Apple Blossom Handicap at Oaklawn Park last Saturday, arguing that the stewards were in error when they did not disqualify runner-up Wild Spirit for causing interference to the Vienna-trained Star Parade, who finished third.
A date for the appeal hearing has not been set, according to Bob Cohee, the manager of the Arkansas Racing Commission.
PORTLAND, Ore. - Poker Brad put the finishing touches on his preparation for Saturday's $40,000 Portland Meadows Mile on Tuesday at Emerald Downs, working five furlongs in company with stablemate Repletion's Victory.
Under jockey Ricky Frazier, Poker Brad broke off about four lengths behind his workmate and was ridden to stay behind until the top of the stretch, where he swung out for room and powered on by to hit the wire about four lengths in front in 59.40 seconds.
"It was just what the doctor ordered," said trainer Tim McCanna. "He'll think he's King Kong now."