HOT SPRINGS, Ark. - If the track surface at Oaklawn, where racing was canceled Thursday because of snow, happens to be wet Saturday, it should not bother Emily Ring, who faces four rivals in the $50,000 American Beauty.
The six-furlong stakes tops an 11-race card that also features the seasonal debut of Crafty Shaw, who finished second to Lido Palace in the Grade 2, $400,000 Clark Handicap at Churchill in his last start.
ARCADIA, Calif. - Got Koko was overlooked when she pulled an upset at 17-1 in the La Brea Stakes Dec. 28.
In the El Encino Stakes on Jan. 19, she was the second betting choice, and proved her La Brea win was no fluke by overcoming a wide trip for a stylish win.
When Got Koko returns on Saturday in the $200,000 La Canada Stakes at Santa Anita, she will be the center of attention. A victory will make her only the third 4-year-old filly to win all three races in the La Canada series, joining Taisez Vous (1978) and Mitterand (1985).
ALBANY, Calif. - A pair of hard-knocking local horses will try to upset a trio of graded winners in Saturday's $100,000 Tanforan Handicap at Golden Gate Fields.
Trainers Dennis Ward and Chuck Peery know they are asking a lot of Surprise Halo and Cappucino Kid, respectively, to go against the likes of Grade 1 winner Sligo Bay, Grade 2 winner Seinne, and Grade 3 winner Devine Wind in the 1 1/16-mile turf race.
But Ward believes his runner, Surprise Halo, will be a factor in the lane despite his apparent lack of credentials.
OZONE PARK, N.Y. - Though Grey Comet won last month's Count Fleet Stakes in front-running fashion, trainer Gary Contessa still believes his undefeated 3-year-old New York-bred is better with something to run at.
Be careful what you wish for, Gary.
NEW ORLEANS - Distinctive Code has a problem.
"She's so big, she barely fits in the gate," said trainer Larry Robideaux.
But once she gets out, there's nothing at all wrong with Distinctive Code. A 4-year-old amazon of a filly, Distinctive Code has won five times and finished second five times in a productive 14-race career, and Saturday she has found a spot to win the first stakes of her career when she starts in the $75,000 Pan Zareta Handicap at Fair Grounds.
HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. - The pattern is a familiar one. Last winter, Moon Queen returned 14 weeks after finishing off the board as the favorite in Aqueduct's Grade 2 Long Island Handicap to register a 6 1/2-length victory in Gulfstream Park's Grade 3 The Very One Handicap. On Saturday, Moon Queen is back to defend her title in The Very One in her first start since finishing far back as the favorite in the Long Island Handicap.
HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. - Steve Flint is going to leave well enough alone. The trainer got away once with running Allamerican Bertie on the turf. The second time, she finished last.
Now, said Flint, "We're going to let her do what she wants to do."
That is running two turns, on dirt, and daring anyone to catch her. That is the prospect 10 rivals face in Saturday's $100,000 at Gulfstream Park. Allamerican Bertie figures to be both the favorite and the one to catch in the Grade 3 race at 1 1/16 miles.
Cleaning House, the horse whose performance in a trial race at Delta Downs is under investigation, is scheduled to run back in the finals of the $30,000 Graduation Futurity on Saturday night at Delta.
Cleaning House, trained by Steve Asmussen, finished third in his Jan. 23 trial for the Graduation Futurity. The 2-5 favorite under jockey Donnie Meche, Cleaning House broke poorly in the five-furlong race and ultimately ran third, beaten 2 3/4 lengths.
HOT SPRINGS, Ark. - An overnight snowstorm forced Oaklawn Park to cancel live racing on Thursday, the fourth time the track has had to scrap a program this meet because of weather. The first three days of the season were pushed back a week because of a frozen track, so instead of the scheduled Jan. 24 start this year, the meet began Jan. 31.
HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. - Tom Proctor does not have enough horses in his stable to crack the leading trainer standings at Gulfstream Park. But Proctor, a second generation horseman, has enough quality in his barn this winter to have won four races from the first seven horses he has run during the opening month of the meet.