COLUMBUS, Neb. - Strawberry Kid, a winner of four races in his first five starts this year, heads a field of five in the $15,000-added Stevens Handicap at 6 1/2 furlongs, the closing day feature at Columbus.

Strawbailey and Devout Sinner meet for the second time in the $30,000 Ricks Memorial at Remington Park in Oklahoma City.

The one-mile turf race for fillies and mares drew a field of 10, including the improving Western Delight, Turf Paradise shipper Jocko Miss, and Western Side.

Hadif's Allstar will never be accused of being a morning glory. Not one to wow her connections with flashy workouts in the a.m., she has always shown up when it counts - in the afternoon.

At least that has been the pattern for the unbeaten Hadif's Allstar in her first two career starts, and one trainer Sam David Jr., hopes will continue Sunday when she takes on seven others in the fillies division of the $100,000-estimated Friendship at Louisiana Downs in Bossier City, La.

The six-furlong race is restricted 2-year-olds bred in Texas.

MIAMI - Marquette should have enough speed to sit close to the pace and enough stamina to run down the tiring leaders when he turns back to five furlongs for Sunday's $40,000 Wayme Handicap on the turf.

Marquette has been a two-turn specialist throughout his career, but trainer Myra Mora may have found a good spot to shorten him up. Mora used similar tactics earlier this season with her multiple stakes winner Tour of the Cat, who has suddenly become the top older sprinter on the grounds after flourishing going a distance of ground earlier in his career.

ARLINGTON HEIGHTS, Ill. - Asked off the cuff about his talented 3-year-old filly Smoke Chaser, trainer Dennis Ebert replied, "I put her in for Sunday. Did the race go?"

Did it ever. A high-end allowance feature - especially on dirt - with more than a handful of horses has become a rarity here, but somehow Arlington's eighth race Sunday, at seven furlongs, attracted a field of 12. The field is deep, but 11 horses in it all have Smoke Chaser to beat.

ELMONT, N.Y. - When Mike Lakow, the racing secretary for the New York Racing Association, learned after the Alabama that Bobby Frankel was planning to give You the remainder of the year off, he got on the phone to the Hall of Fame trainer.

Though the Grade 1 Ruffian was still four weeks away, Lakow suspected the race wouldn't come up too strong and told Frankel he should reconsider. You remained in training and though the race is coming up tougher than Lakow may have let on, Frankel goes into Saturday's $300,000 Ruffian Handicap with confidence.

FLORENCE, Ky. - What Saturday's ninth running of the Kentucky Cup Classic lacks in star power, it compensates for with wagering value. The probable favorite in the field of nine is the perennially luckless Dollar Bill, but there would seem to be plenty of viable options among the rest.

The $400,000 Classic has become a stopover for many top horses since Turfway Park inaugurated the Kentucky Cup series in 1994, with genuine stars including Tabasco Cat (1994), Thunder Gulch (1995), Silver Charm (1998), and Captain Steve (2000) having won the Classic.

POMONA, Calif. - Pomona Derby winner Sigfreto, who has not won a race in nearly a year, returns Saturday to the scene of his greatest triumph. Graded stakes winner Dr. Park, winless in 14 months, also seeks a revival Saturday at Fairplex Park. Their droughts have been long, and skeptics wagering on the $50,000 Phil D. Shepherd Stakes may wonder - have Sigfreto and Dr. Park lost a step?

ELMONT, N.Y. - In an effort to give Whywhywhy his best chance to win Sunday's Grade 1 Futurity at Belmont Park, trainer Patrick Biancone is considering entering the maiden Le Notre as a rabbit to ensure a solid, contested pace.

"I may run Le Notre as a pacemaker," Biancone said from Saratoga. "I'm not sure yet, because I'm not sure who's going to run."

When told that New Jersey shipper Valid Video, a front-running winner of the Grade 3 Sapling Stakes at Monmouth Park, may be the main speed in the race, Biancone said, "He may want company."

VANCOUVER, British Columbia - Timely Minister heads a competitive field of nine older horses going 1 1/2 miles Saturday afternoon in a starter handicap, the third leg of the Endurance Series.

Although Timely Minister has been assigned high weight of 122 pounds, he might not be favored. Faithful Gal has won two of her three starts at 12 furlongs, and the Pat Jarvis-trained entrymates of Big Mig and Sensitive Issue have both done well in marathons. Plus, Tavolino recently defeated many of these going 1 1/16 miles.