INGLEWOOD, Calif. - Mont Saint Michel has shown erratic form since arriving from Chile in early 2002.
He has one win in seven starts, and has been second or third in three other races in the last 15 months.
While he is overshadowed in trainer Bobby Frankel's world-class stables, there are races that Mont Saint Michel can win, which is why he deserves consideration in the second race at Hollywood Park on Friday.
OCEANPORT, N.J. - The Monmouth Park racing office scrambled Wednesday morning to round up runners for Saturday's Grade 2, $300,000 Molly Pitcher Breeders' Cup Handicap.
Stakes coordinator Mike Melendez had only three firm commitments for the 1 1/8-mile contest for fillies and mares: Summer Colony, Enjoy, and Alchemilla.
Summer Colony will carry top weight in the field at 120 pounds. The assignment is one pound more than she had in last year's Molly Pitcher, when she ran second to Atelier.
MIAMI - Trust N Luck, winner of the Grade 1 Fountain of Youth and a Kentucky Derby contender until his disappointing performance in the Coolmore Lexington Stakes, has resumed training after returning to trainer Ralph Ziadie's barn last weekend.
Trust N Luck was sent to the farm at Ocala Stud shortly after his fourth-place finish in the Lexington.
LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Trainer Steve Penrod ranks fifth all-time in stakes wins at Churchill Downs, having sent out 22 winners, many of them for Claiborne Farm.
But after Claiborne began sending its horses to other trainers in the mid-1990's, stakes wins - at Churchill or any other track - have been few and far between for Penrod. "It's been a long time between drinks," he said.
ETOBICOKE, Ontario - Stakes winner Silver Nithi should be a major player in Friday's Woodbine feature, a second-level allowance worth $74,400.
A strong six-horse field of fillies and mares was drawn for the 1 1/16-mile race, which also includes Grade 2-placed Saint Bernadette.
Trained by David Bell, Silver Nithi was coming off her maiden win when she finished a bang-up second to Ginger Gold in the 2002 Labatt Woodbine Oaks. She subsequently captured the second leg of the Canadian Triple Tiara, the $250,000 Bison City Stakes at Fort Erie, while upsetting Ginger Gold.
EDMONTON, Alberta - Real Simard has forged a reputation as one of the top riders in western Canada since climbing aboard his first mount in 1986.
This year he arrived at Northlands Park for the summer meet as the most envied rider in the jocks' room, as the pilot of 3-year-old sensation Taiaslew.
Taiaslew has been unbeatable since he arrived in Alberta as 2-year-old, and Simard is the jockey of choice for trainer Greg Tracy.
BOSSIER CITY, La. - In a tip-off that the quality of racing will be improved at this Louisiana Downs meet, the riding colony is deeper than ever. The defending champ, Gerard Melancon, will face a host of new faces, among them Lonnie Meche, who is due to arrive after Churchill Downs closes July 6, and Eddie Martin Jr., the current leader at Lone Star Park.
Also new are Carlos Gonzalez, Steve Bourque, Roman Chapa, Don Pettinger, and Jeremy Beasley.
BOSSIER CITY, La. - Trainer Cole Norman planned to put That Tat away until August after the gelding won his second straight stakes last month, but he has bounced back well and will instead run Friday in the $50,000 Kings Court.
The six-furlong race is the opening- day feature on a 12-race card at Louisiana Downs.
That Tat, unbeaten in four starts this year, figures to go favored in a competitive field that is completed by Doctor Mike, Dirty Mike, Dash for Daylight, and Front Nine.
LOUISVILLE, Ky. - The long-awaited return of Ipi Tombe is all set for Saturday, when the international superstar will face what figures to be a short field of fillies and mares in the $150,000 Locust Grove Handicap at Churchill Downs.
Ipi Tombe, a winner in 11 of 13 career starts, has not raced since defeating males in the $2 million Dubai Duty Free on March 29 for former trainer Michael deKock. In the Grade 3 Locust Grove, a 1 1/8-mile grass race, she will be making her U.S. debut and her first start for trainer Elliott Walden.