POMONA, Calif. - Against all odds, the bullring is back.
The $50,000 Foothill Stakes launches the Los Angeles County Fair race meet Friday at Fairplex Park, and the 10 runners in the six-furlong stakes must negotiate a second turn to which they are unaccustomed. Unusual? Not really. Fairplex, host to the L.A. County Fair since 1933, is a five-eighths-mile oval, unique on the Southern California circuit.
ETOBICOKE, Ontario - Southern Chance, who ran against an apparent track bias in his last start, has a realistic chance of landing the first allowance condition in Thursday's $63,500 Woodbine feature.
Southern Chance was claimed for $40,000 from a loss in conditioned company in June by owner-trainer Audre Cappuccitti, who didn't hesitate to run him back at the first allowance level on July 24.
He raced prominently throughout that six-furlong dash to be third, ending up 1 1/2 lengths behind next-out winner Classic Manner.
LOUISVILLE, Ky. - There are some big horseshoes to fill Saturday in the Kentucky Cup Juvenile, but Pat Byrne believes he may have the horse to do the filling.
Byrne will send out Private Gold in the $100,000 Kentucky Cup Juvenile at Turfway Park in Florence, Ky. The last two runnings of the Juvenile were won by Point Given - who was the Horse of the Year at 3 in 2001 - and by Repent, who is regarded as one of the top members of his class after being narrowly defeated last month in the Travers Stakes.
MIAMI - Last year, Flying Birdie was far and away the most dominant 3-year-old sprinter on the grounds, winning 6 of 7 starts, including three stakes, with her only setback a one-length loss to Fly Me Crazy in her 2001 finale. She was particularly unstoppable at five furlongs, both on turf and dirt, winning all three of her starts at the distance by an average margin of five lengths.
POMONA, Calif. - Trainer Mike Machowsky has been pointing Line Rider to the $50,000 Foothill Stakes for several weeks. While that fact alone does not guarantee victory for the 3-year-old on Friday, opening day of the Los Angeles County Fair meet at Fairplex Park, it does reveal positive intent.
"I think he'll be real tough against straight 3-year-olds, and he's a horse that should love that [five-eighths-mile] track," Machowsky said. "He's very agile, he's very coordinated."
ALTOONA, Iowa - Invaderfromtheeast heads a field of 11 in Friday night's $50,000-added Iowa Stallion Futurity at Prairie Meadows.
Invaderfromtheeast, one of four winners entered in the six-furlong race, finished third, beaten 7 3/4 lengths, to top Iowa-bred 2-year-old El Saddler in the Iowa Cradle Stakes here in his most recent start Aug. 31.
In the Iowa Cradle, Invaderfromtheeast experienced minor traffic trouble and was steadied approaching the stretch.
MUSKEGON, Mich. - Terry Houghton, who was was hit in the head by a trailing horse after his mount clipped heels and threw him to the ground Aug. 25, is at home with his family in Livonia after a stay at a Muskegon hospital.
"He's fine now, but the doctors aren't ready to release him to ride," said his father, Ronnie Houghton. "They're saying a couple of weeks or longer until he can come back."
Houghton was six wins off the pace of Russell Baze, the national leader, until the accident. He was still in second place through last Sunday with 256 wins, 23 behind Baze.
COLUMBUS, Neb. - Jockey Armando Martinez reached 1,000 career wins Saturday evening to top off a big weekend at the Columbus Races.
Martinez rode four winners last Friday night to reach 999 wins. In Saturday's last race, Martinez sent Oberlin Yankee to the front in the mile and 70-yard event. He opened up seven lengths in midstretch and coasted home 3 1/4 lengths in front to record win No. 1,000.
The win streak boosted Martinez to a 42-37 lead over Alex Granda in the rider standings as Columbus enters its final weekend of racing.
In just six months of operation, the slots casino at Delta Downs in Vinton, La., has helped the small track overhaul its racing program. The 80-night Thoroughbred meet, which runs from Nov. 7 to March 23, is proof of that as Delta will offer a record $2.5 million in stakes led by the $500,000 Delta Jackpot for 2-year-olds on Dec. 21.
Purse distribution will also be an all-time high of $160,000 a day.
Trainer Kenny Smith's stable has been doing well the last month at Louisiana Downs in Bossier City, La., but he has not. Smith recently had his tonsils removed, and has been slowly regaining his health.
"I've lost 40 pounds," said the trainer, who was at the Keeneland sale Wednesday.
Despite the physical setback, Smith is in good spirits because of horses like Big Hubie, who came within a nose of winning his fourth straight race Sept. 2 when he was edged by Rebridled in the $50,000 Barksdale Handicap at Louisiana Downs.