ARLINGTON HEIGHTS, Ill. - Kicken Kris kicked away from his 10 rivals in upper stretch before pulling away to a surprisingly easy 15-1 upset in the Grade 1, $400,000 Secretariat Stakes, the last of the three Turf Festival races run Saturday at Arlington Park.
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DRF Past Performances
Sweet Jo Jo drew away in the final furlong from odds-on favorite Renaissance Lady to post a three-length victory Saturday in the $81,250 Anna M. Fisher Debutante Stakes at Ellis Park in Henderson, Ky.
Owned by Jack Grunwald and trained by Steve Asmussen, Sweet Jo Jo raced just off the pace in the seven-furlong Debutante before drawing clear in deep stretch under Sal Gonzalez Jr. A Florida-bred by Grand Slam, Sweet Jo Jo returned $6.80 with her third victory from four career starts.
SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. - Revenge is sweet, as trainer Barclay Tagg found out on Saturday afternoon at Saratoga Race Course in the $750,000 Alabama Stakes before a crowd of 36,137.
Tagg, who lost the last leg of the Triple Crown with Funny Cide to the Bobby Frankel-trained Empire Maker, upset the Grade 1 Alabama with Island Fashion. Spoken Fur, trained by Frankel, finished third and missed out on a $2 million bonus that linked the Mother Goose, Coaching Club American Oaks, and the Alabama.
SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. - It was Puzzlement whom trainer Phil Johnson feared the most when he ran Volponi in the Grade 1 Whitney Handicap two weeks ago.
Right horse, wrong race.
Johnson's worst fears were realized on Saturday when Puzzlement, under Jorge Chavez, rallied up the rail in the stretch and outfinished a wide Volponi to win the Grade 2, $300,000 Saratoga Breeders' Cup Handicap by 3 1/4 lengths. For the fifth time in as many starts this year, Volponi finished second. It was 1 1/4 lengths back to Iron Deputy in third.
Harlan's Holiday suffered a strained suspensory ligament in his right hind leg during the running of Saturday's Grade 2, $300,000 Saratoga Breeders' Cup, in which he finished last, and his racing career is most likely over, trainer Todd Pletcher said.
According to Pletcher, the injury occurred to the medial suspensory branch in his right hind leg.
"He obviously did this during the course of the race," Pletcher said. "We'll assess it, but with an injury of this nature it's likely he will be retired to the breeding shed."
SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. - Strong Hope upset Empire Maker in the Jim Dandy Stakes two weeks ago. On Saturday morning, Empire Maker served notice that he looks ready to turn the tables in next Saturday's $1 million Travers, putting in a very strong six-furlong workout over Saratoga's main track.
ARLINGTON HEIGHTS, Ill. - In the end, he needed only one. Trainer Bobby Frankel got his 18th Grade 1 victory of the year when Heat Haze, his only remaining starter Saturday in the $700,000 Beverly D. at Arlington Park, swept past the entire field to post a 1 1/4-length victory.
DEL MAR, Calif. - Santa Catarina, the winner of the Hollywood Oaks and the runner-up in the Kentucky Oaks, has been taken out of serious training and will not start in the Breeders' Cup Distaff at Santa Anita in October, trainer Bob Baffert said.
During the first round of the Breeders' Cup Future Bet in late July, Santa Catarina closed at 24-1 in betting for the Distaff.
"I'll freshen her up," Baffert said. "She's had little physical problems. She'd have to run against Azeri, and I want her to grow up. She needs the time."
DEL MAR, Calif. - The multiple stakes winners Designed for Luck, Mountain Rage, and Wooden Phone return from layoffs in a $70,000 allowance race Monday at Del Mar.
Even with their impressive past credentials, they will need top performances to compete with Decarchy and Denied, who have run well at this meeting.
Decarchy finished second by five lengths to Special Ring in the Grade 1 Eddie Read Handicap on July 27. Denied has won three consecutive races in allowances or optional claimers, showing dangerous tactical speed in each win.