ARCADIA, Calif. - A flawless performance by Pleasantly Perfect in Saturday's $245,000 at Santa Anita left winning trainer Richard Mandella wondering whether the 6-year-old has improved since his victory in the Breeders' Cup Classic last October.

Pleasantly Perfect ($5.80) stalked the pace in a field of four and romped clear in early stretch to win the Grade 2 San Antonio by four lengths over 10-1 Star Cross.

"He's getting smarter and stronger all the time," Mandella said. "My horse is a different horse. There's no limit yet to him."

HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. - A year ago, was the toast of the local 3-year-old division after upsetting a field that included eventual Eclipse Award winner Funny Cide in the Holy Bull Stakes. Offlee Wild returns to the scene of his most important victory Monday at Gulfstream Park to take on six rivals under second-level allowance conditions in quest of his first win since the Holy Bull.

NEW ORLEANS - won his career debut Jan. 10 as the favorite in a 12-horse field, and in the week leading up to the Grade 3 Lecomte Stakes here at Fair Grounds, his name came up as a possible participant. Monkey Hill has generated some buzz, and it will be interesting to see how his development progresses in Monday's featured ninth race at Fair Grounds.

PORTLAND, Ore. - Jekyll and Hyde, Donovan Scores, and Bon to Run, who took turns outfinishing each other in January, will attempt to sort out their pecking order in Monday's featured race at Portland Meadows. At a mile for older $5,000 claimers, the race has drawn a field of seven, including a stable coupling.

The three-way competition began Jan. 3, when Jekyll and Hyde won his Portland Meadows debut at the expense of Donovan Scores, whom he outfinished by four lengths after a mile in 1:39.21. Trainer Tony Canady claimed the 7-year-old Jekyll and Hyde out of that race for $3,200

HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. - Newfoundland has been sitting patiently on the sidelines, waiting to run since the meet opened, and he finally got his chance after overnight rains moved Saturday's to a sloppy main track. He made the most of his opportunity, outgaming 2-1 favorite Millennium Dragon following a stretch-long drive to win the 1 1/16-mile Canadian by a neck.

HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. - Cajun Beat will be the marquee name and 123-pound highweight for Saturday's $100,000 Deputy Minister Handicap. But trainer Carlos Morales says True Direction, a talented but injury-plagued horse who will be coming off a seven-month layoff, is ready to take on the reigning Breeders' Cup Sprint champion in the 6 1/2-furlong dash.

OZONE PARK, N.Y. - Everything has been going right for trainer Richard Dutrow Jr. at Aqueduct's inner-track meet, and he proved that Saturday with his one-two finish with She's Zealous and Fit Performer in the $82,875 Correction Handicap.

Before a crowd of 4,558, She's Zealous ($9) won the Correction by one length over Fit Performer, the 2-1 favorite and 117-pound highweight who was not coupled in the wagering with her stablemate. It was another three lengths back to Balmy in third in the nine-horse field of fillies and mares.

NEW ORLEANS - Even the people closest to him sometimes find Mystery Giver difficult to understand, but one thing is obvious: Mystery Giver thrives at Fair Grounds. For the third year in a row, Mystery Giver won the , this time beating Skate Away by a neck.

Mystery Giver doesn't eat with gusto, and his manners in his stall border on rude. In fact, Richie Scherer, his trainer, thinks Mystery Giver simply hates being in his Fair Grounds barn. Out on the track, it's a different story.

OLDSMAR, Fla. - Sometimes giving the average horseplayer an even break pays off. At least that's what the facts and figures released for the first third of the current Tampa Bay Downs meeting suggest.

With little fanfare, the track instituted a new business policy this season in which it stopped accepting wagers from a number of betting outlets, primarily offshore sites. Some of these sites have among their clientele a faction that employs sophisticated computer systems that reveal last-minute wagering opportunities the average horseplayer has no way of tracking.

OLDSMAR, Fla. - Mary Murphy dueled to the stretch, opened a clear advantage after five furlongs, then just lasted over late-closing 35-1 longshot Really Royal to post a half-length victory in Saturday's $60,000 Manatee Stakes at Tampa Bay Downs.

Ridden by Pedro Rodriguez, who replaced Rosemary Homeister Jr., Mary Murphy returned $18.80 after racing the seven furlongs in 1:26.64. Really Royal was 2 1/4 lengths ahead of 28-1 shot Cherry Hill Tree as the 4-3-1 trifecta returned $4,286.40. The 4-3 exacta was worth $485.40.