ETOBICOKE, Ontario - Adjalah, a contender for the $1 million Queen's Plate on June 23 at Woodbine, tuned up with a sharp six furlongs in 1:12.60 on a fast main track Tuesday morning.
With rider Richard Dos Ramos in the irons, Adjalah worked in company with Peaks or Valleys, a 4-year-old filly who was clocked in 1:15.40.
"He worked very strongly," said David Bell, who trains Adjalah for the Beclawat Stable of Les Pereira. "He just galloped away from her."
AUBURN, Wash. - Trainer Dave Bennett, who has run a horse in every 2-year-old race at the Emerald Downs meeting, was rewarded for his persistence on Sunday when Freedom March, appearing better seasoned than her eight 2-year-old filly rivals, won the Pierce County Stakes at five furlongs.
Under jockey Gary Baze, Freedom March swept to the lead in the final furlong and scored a 2 3/4-length victory over the favored Marva Jean, a first-time starter, in a stakes-record 58.20 seconds. Miss Mariah, another first-time starter, was up for third.
ELMONT, N.Y. - Someone remarked to Sue McPeek that the life of she and her husband, trainer Ken McPeek, had been like soap opera the past two years. "Yes, 'As the Racetrack Turns,' " she said.
It turned their way on Saturday, when the McPeek-trained Sarava became the longest-priced winner in Belmont Stakes history, denied War Emblem the Triple Crown, and put a satisfying coda on a roller-coaster spring for McPeek.
NEW YORK - Despite a Kentucky Derby result that failed to thrill many horse racing fans, the 2002 Triple Crown ended up being a runaway success for racetracks and NBC as they rode the coattails of War Emblem's improbable bid for the Triple Crown Saturday in the Belmont Stakes.
CALGARY, Alberta - Trainer Jim Brown could have been excused for believing he was home in Vancouver as he awaited the return of Duchess of York winner Catahoula Rose last Saturday amidst a driving rain at Stampede Park.
The wet weather suited Catahoula Rose just fine as she romped home a two-length winner over the early pacesetter Slewability, under a ground-saving ride from Anthony Stephen.
Catahoula Rose, a 4-year-old filly, found the muddy surface to her liking and settled comfortably into third spot during the early stages of the 1 1/16-mile, $40,000 handicap.
ELMONT, N.Y. - Proud Citizen, who came out of his fifth-place finish in Saturday's Belmont Stakes with a fractured left front shin, will undergo surgery within two weeks to help expedite the healing process, and is expected to be out four to six months.
Dr. Stephen Selway, who took another set of X-rays Sunday night after having taken a set Saturday, said he wanted to wait a little while, to allow the horse to get more sound and "get over the ordeal," before inserting fragment screws into Proud Citizen's cannonbone.
Mervin Muniz, longtime director of racing and racing secretary at Fair Grounds, underwent colon surgery Sunday after being diagnosed with cancer two weeks ago. Monday morning, Muniz said the surgery had been a success, and a full recovery was expected.
"The prognosis is good," Muniz said. "When they blow the bugle opening day on Thanksgiving, I'll be there." Muniz said he had been suffering from a persistent stomach ailment that eventually landed him at his doctor's office, at which point a blood test revealed the cancer.
GRAND PRAIRIE, Texas - David Flores and Mike Smith will replace Eddie Delahoussaye and Kent Desormeaux in the National Thoroughbred Racing Association All-Star Jockey Championship at Lone Star Park on June 21 after the original invitees canceled because of scheduling problems.
Robby Albarado, who fractured a knuckle in a recent spill at Churchill Downs, said that he still plans to make the competition.
It's a Monster is headed to bigger and better things after surviving a duel and pulling away to a two-length victory in Monday's $57,700 Oh Say Stakes at Delaware Park.
A 3-year-old colt trained by Ben Perkins Jr., It's a Monster ($4.60) will be pointed to the Grade 3, $100,000 Jersey Shore Breeders' Cup Stakes on July 4 at Monmouth Park after winning for the fourth time in six lifetime starts.
ELMONT, N.Y. - The dog days of summer - otherwise known as the six weeks between the Belmont Stakes and the opening of Saratoga - commence Wednesday at Belmont Park with a nine-race card highlighted by a second-level allowance race scheduled for the turf.
