DEL MAR, Calif. - A drop in class, and a target to run at, are two factors that should lead Janet to a victory in the Grade 2 Palomar Handicap on Sunday at Del Mar.

As the leaders of the female turf division have scattered - Astra and Golden Apples to the Yellow Ribbon on Oct. 5 at Santa Anita, Affluent to the WinStar Galaxy Stakes on Oct. 4 at Keeneland - the Palomar has taken shape as a $150,000 consolation prize.

ELMONT, N.Y. - Say Florida Sandy failed in his bid to win the General Douglas MacArthur Handicap for a third time when he finished sixth as the even-money favorite in Friday's opening-day feature at the Belmont Park fall meet.

Well Fancied was the 4 1/4-length winner of the restricted MacArthur.

Peninsula Gaming Partners, which operates a riverboat casino in Iowa, made two major purchases last week that will affect the future of Evangeline Downs near Lafayette, La.

The company became the sole owner of the track by purchasing the 50 percent of the facility that it didn't already own from businessman William Trotter, and, in a separate transaction, it purchased approximately 500 acres in a neighboring parish that will serve as the new home for a rebuilt Evangeline Downs.

AUBURN, Wash. - The late defection of Always a Dixie, the 121-pound highweight and probable favorite for Sunday's 1 1/8-mile Belle Roberts Handicap at Emerald Downs, will leave just five older fillies and mares to vie for the $60,000 pot.

Always a Dixie, a winner of three of her four starts at Emerald Downs, all in stakes, was declared out of the race on Friday night by her trainer, Barbara Heads, who reported the filly had bruised a hoof.

VANCOUVER, British Columbia - Two-year-olds headline the 12-race card at Hastings Park Sunday afternoon as both divisions of the Canadian Thoroughbred Horse Society Sales Stakes are on tap. Bullseye Bill should go favored over seven other colts and geldings, but it's hard to say who will be favored in the fillies' division. Both races are worth $60,000 and are at 6 1/2 furlongs.

DEL MAR, Calif. - After a four-month break, Habibti returns in Sunday's $75,000 Torrey Pines Stakes at Del Mar, a race that trainer Bob Baffert expects to lead to a start in more prominent stakes this fall.

The winner of the Del Mar Debutante and Hollywood Starlet last year, Habibti has not run since finishing third in the Kentucky Oaks at Churchill Downs on May 3. Baffert warned that she is not 100 percent ready for a return.

"She might come up a little short, but she's doing well," he said. "This was a last-minute thought."

MIAMI - Sir Bear will run next in the $100,000 Spend a Buck Handicap on Oct. 12 here, rather than in the Grade 2 Kentucky Cup Classic next Saturday at Turfway Park as originally planned.

"We decided it was just too far to ship not knowing who you might catch in the race," said Sir Bear's trainer, Ralph Ziadie, on Friday.

Sir Bear worked a half-mile in 48.60 seconds here Friday morning.

ETOBICOKE, Ontario - Nuclear Debate has racked up plenty of miles throughout his career, racing in England, France, Italy, Hong Kong, Dubai, the United States, and Canada.

But Nuclear Debate will be confronted with a new type of journey here Sunday: The Atto Mile will be the longest distance he has yet attempted.

Despite being a 7-year-old veteran of 44 starts, Nuclear Debate has not raced farther than 6 1/2 furlongs. He finished seventh and third in two trips over Santa Anita's hillside course earlier this season, both at 6 1/2 furlongs.

ETOBICOKE, Ontario - Wando will test his skills on the grass while facing United Stakes shippers Lismore Knight and My Boy Kyle in Sunday's Grade 2 Summer Stakes, a supporting feature on Atto Mile Day at Woodbine.

A field of 12 2-year-olds was drawn for the one-mile turf race, worth $291,250. Stroll, who might have been the favorite, was reported sick on Friday, and didn't make the trip from New York.

ETOBICOKE, Ontario - Diadella, upset winner of the Canadian Handicap last summer, will try to defend her title when she faces eight rivals at Woodbine on Sunday.

The Grade 2 Canadian, a 1 1/8-mile turf race for fillies and mares, has a purse of $281,250 and is the major local prep for the $750,000 E.P. Taylor Stakes, a Grade 1 race here Sept. 29.