INGLEWOOD, Calif. - It may be too late for Lion Heart to be named champion 2-year-old, but trainer Patrick Biancone said Eclipse Award voters should hold onto their ballots until after the Grade 1 Hollywood Futurity on Dec. 20.
"Two-year-old of the year is for the best horse," Biancone said, noting that "everybody looks at the Beyers, so I would say [Lion Heart] has as much of a chance as any."
ALBANY, Calif. - Trainer Chuck Jenda no longer claims many horses, but he will try to make a recent claim pay off for a second time in Thursday's Golden Gate Fields feature.
Jenda claimed Rainbow Sand, a 2-year-old filly, for $20,000 on Sept. 3. He brought Rainbow Sand back after a seven-week layoff, dropped her to the $16,000 level, stretched her out to a mile from 5 1/2 furlongs, and saw her score a two-length victory.
LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Jockey Tony D'Amico was the rider of Take Charge Lady when she began her career. On Thanksgiving Day he will be back aboard when she makes what will likely be her final start, in the Falls City Handicap at Churchill Downs. Plans call for her to be retired after the race and bred next year.
CHICAGO - At Hawthorne this time last year, Glitterbdancing was a sure thing. Put her in a maiden race, and she was sure to run second.
The streak started last September at Arlington, when Glitterbdancing finished second in her second start. She kept it up through the end of the Chicago racing season, twice finishing second at Hawthorne, once by a head, the other by a neck. Then Glitterbdancing started her 2003 season March 1 at Hawthorne - by finishing second.
MIAMI - Saturday's second annual Florida Million program had some compelling stories.
One was Best of the Rest defending his title in the $200,000 Carl G. Rose Classic only 15 days after the death of his owner-breeder, Bernie Oxenberg. Another was Sir Oscar winning a battle of undefeated 2-year-olds, outgaming Wynn Dot Comma in the stretch to win the $150,000 Jack Price Juvenile.
ETOBICOKE, Ontario - Winter Garden put the icing on a sensational 3-year-old campaign here on Sunday by winning the Grade 3 Bessarabian, a seven-furlong race for fillies and mares.
A Kentucky-bred owned by Frank DiGiulio and trained by Bob Tiller, Winter Garden was winning her third stakes and sixth race from nine starts this year. She also finished second once and third twice, and concludes her campaign with earnings of $470,826.
INGLEWOOD, Calif. - Julie Krone did not take the bait. After winning the Moccasin Stakes on Victory U. S. A., her third of four wins Sunday, Krone was asked to compare Victory U. S. A. with unbeaten Halfbridled, whom Krone has ridden in all four of her starts.
"I'm not saying anything," said Krone, smiling. "All I know is I appreciate riding her."
Aside from Breeders' Cup Day, which was excluded from meet totals, the 2003 Oak Tree meet at Santa Anita was a disappointment to track officials. Average daily handle for the meet, which ended Nov. 9, declined 0.8 percent to $9,631,159, down from last year's $9,709,897, according to figures released by the Oak Tree Racing Association. Average ontrack attendance was down 9.2 percent to 8,913 from 9,813 in 2002.
Average daily ontrack handle declined 3.1 percent to $1,981,805 from $2,044,989.
The rift between the Churchill Downs Simulcast Network and the Southern Racing Cooperative moved into a second week on Monday when the Churchill network did not simulcast its only track racing, Calder Race Course, to the 17 tracks in the cooperative.
OZONE PARK, N.Y. - Slew Valley has lost his last 14 starts, a string dating back to June 6, 2001. His connections have picked a most interesting race in which to attempt to end that skid.
Slew Valley will make his next start in the $4 million Japan Cup on Nov. 30. On Monday, he worked one mile in 1:39.37 over Belmont Park's main track, and on Tuesday he was scheduled to depart New York en route to Tokyo via Anchorage, Alaska.