LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Twilight Road ($7.20) notched the first stakes victory of his 30-race career when he drew off to win the Grade 3, $112,700 Ack Ack Handicap on opening day of the 30-day fall meet at Churchill Downs.
Twilight Road narrowly missed winning a graded stakes in February at Gulfstream Park. Jockey Pat Day, who has won 142 stakes at Churchill, said Twilight Road "had come to the stretch all on his own, so I knew that he had something left in his tank."
OZONE PARK, N.Y. - Fircroft, who chased eventual Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies winner Storm Flag Flying in her last two starts, preferred the softer company Sunday as she rallied to win the $84,000 Miss Grillo Stakes by one length at Aqueduct.
Marc's Rainbow, who gave way grudgingly after making all the early pace, held second, 4 1/4 lengths ahead of 3-2 favorite One and Twenty. There were nine scratches from the race, which was originally scheduled to be run at nine furlongs on turf, but was moved to the same distance on dirt because of Saturday's heavy rains.
Cherokee's Boy ($2.60) crushed his seven rivals by 21 3/4 lengths in the $80,875 Tri-State Futurity, a race restricted to 2-year-olds foaled in Maryland, Virginia, or West Virginia.
Cherokee's Boy ran the seven furlongs over a muddy track in 1:26.76.
OZONE PARK, N.Y. - Like father, like son is the latest handicapping angle to get results in the wake of stakes sweep in the slop by the Jerkens boys on a rainy and windy Saturday at Aqueduct.
Multiple Choice, trained by "Giant Killer Junior" Jimmy Jerkens, rated off early fractions of 22.85 and 46.01 seconds - as his stablemate Voodoo battled for the lead inside of Saint Verre and Sing Me Back Home - and rallied wide into the stretch to win the $111,400, Grade 3 Sport Page Handicap by a widening 7 1/4 lengths.
ARLINGTON HEIGHTS, Ill.- Gold Mover ended a two-race losing streak with an emphatic victory in the $100,000 Safely Kept Handicap on the Breeders' Cup undercard Saturday at Arlington.
Gold Mover ($3.60) was the beneficiary of a perfect trip under jockey Jerry Bailey. Stalking pacesetters Harmony Lodge and Victory at Sea through quick fractions of 21.70 and 43.91 seconds, Gold Mover took the lead with a three-wide move on the turn and won by 7 3/4 lengths over Oglala Sue. The 4-year-old Gold Mover finished seven furlongs in 1:22.70.
OZONE PARK, N.Y. - WinStar Farm has purchased a 75 percent interest in the promising 2-year-old colt Erinsouthernman from West Point Stable. Erinsouthernman, third in the Grade 1 Champagne in his last start, will be turned over to trainer Elliott Walden for his 3-year-old campaign.
A Florida-bred son of Eltish, Erinsouthernman won his maiden at first asking by 4 3/4 lengths on Sept. 1 at Saratoga, running seven furlongs in 1:24.70. He next ran in the Champagne, finishing 4 1/2 lengths behind the winning Toccet.
NEW YORK - All-sources wagering on the eight Breeders' Cup races at Arlington Park this year established a new record of $108 million, according to Breeders' Cup officials.
The figure ended a one-year decline in Breeders' Cup wagering. Last year, betting on Breeders' Cup's eight-race card at Belmont Park in New York fell to $98.7 million. A year earlier at Churchill Downs in Louisville, handle was $101.3, which set a record for the fifth year in a row.
CHICAGO - Arlington Park's 2002 race meet concluded Sunday, and with it a two-year shift in schedule and purpose that culminated in Saturday's Breeders' Cup World Thoroughbred Championships. Arlington, traditionally a summer racetrack, became a summer and fall track the last two seasons to play host to the Breeders' Cup, which went off to widespread acclaim and a sellout crowd on Saturday.
Tradition returns next year, when Arlington opens on Mother's Day and ends in late summer.
SAN MATEO, Calif. - Russell Baze on Saturday became the fourth jockey in history to record 8,000 victories, reaching the milestone with a wire-to-wire ride aboard Ourwhistlebritches in the eighth race at Bay Meadows.
Baze joins Laffit Pincay Jr., Bill Shoemaker, and Pat Day in the exclusive club.
"It feels fantastic," Baze said of reaching the milestone.
The win also was timely.
Retama Park near San Antonio reported declines in attendance and handle during its 51-night meet that closed Saturday.
Attendance averaged 2,276 a night this season, down from last year's draw of 3,192. Handle on the track's live races averaged $1,166,781 a card compared to $1,207,880 in 2001.
Retama recorded its best handle of the meet Saturday night when $1.5 million was wagered on a 13-race program. Attendance was 4,082.