Handle figures continue to rise at the Los Alamitos evening meeting with few tracks nationwide operating because of the coronavirus outbreak.
Sunday, Los Alamitos handled a record $2,901,650 on a nine-race program of races for Quarter Horses and lower-level Thoroughbreds, eclipsing the previous mark of $2,843,573 from April 25.
Trainer Justin Clark has been suspended six months and fined $1,500 after two of his runners tested positive for the prohibited medication clenbuterol in races at Los Alamitos in January.
The suspension began May 4 and continues through Dec. 29. The decision was announced in a ruling published May 1 by Los Alamitos stewards Ron Church, James Dreyer, and Tom Ward.
Richard Baltas, leading trainer at the interrupted Santa Anita winter-spring meeting, is currently serving a 15-day suspension for a medication violation and will not have any starters in his name until May 22.
Baltas said Sunday that some horses from his stable could run this weekend under the direction of an assistant.
HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. - A victory by the 25-1 Areyoutalkingtome in the afternoon’s finale provided a shocking end to a challenging Rainbow 6 sequence that returned $31,476.56 for a 20-cent wager Saturday at Gulfstream Park. The mandatory force-out of the jackpot began with a carryover of just under $1.5 million and attracted $10,654,456 in new wagers.
Santa Anita has yet to receive approval from the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health to resume racing on Friday amidst the coronavirus outbreak, according to a statement released early Saturday.
The track has not operated since March 22 and was ordered closed by county health officials on March 27 when it was deemed a nonessential business because of the pandemic. Training has continued since late March with the hope that racing would resume.
War of Will’s return to the turf has been put on hold for a couple of weeks.
Trainer Mark Casse scratched War of Will, last year’s Preakness winner, from Saturday’s $75,000 Sunshine Forever Stakes and instead will point him to the Grade 1, $300,000 Shoemaker Mile, scheduled to be run at Santa Anita on May 25.
Though Santa Anita has not yet received final approval from Los Angeles County health officials to resume racing, officials with The Stronach Group seem confident they will, according to Casse. Santa Anita has not raced since March 22.
Emerald Downs in Auburn, Wash., anticipates opening for spectator-free racing on June 20 and has requested approval for 44 racing dates this year, according to a letter that the track’s top official sent to Washington racing constituents.
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Robbie Medina, a longtime assistant to Hall of Fame trainer Shug McGaughey, has left that job to become general manager of Guinness McFadden’s Blackwood Stables in Lexington, Ky.
The news was first reported by Thoroughbred Daily News.
Medina, in a phone interview with Daily Racing Form Thursday, said he was approached by McFadden several months ago and has been working at Blackwood for a week. McFadden was co-owner of Country House, who finished second but was placed first in the 2019 Kentucky Derby following the disqualification of Maximum Security.
Indiana Grand announced Thursday it will open its backstretch to outside horses on Monday and plans to start its 2020 racing season on or around Sunday, June 14.
Indiana Grand, in Shelbyville southeast of Indianapolis, was scheduled to begin its racing season April 14 but closed its stabling area when the track’s casino ceased operations March 16 because of the coronavirus pandemic. Indiana Grand initially asked horse people already stabled at the track to leave, but reversed course and permitted the 100 or so horses already at the track to remain.
