Wed, 01/29/2020 - 12:06

McPeek sends out Mayberry Deputy in search of another Holy Bull upset

Lauren King/Coglianese Photos
Mayberry Deputy was evacuated from a flooded barn at Gulfstream the week of his maiden win.

HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. – Kenny McPeek sent out Harvey Wallbanger to a 29-1 upset of the Holy Bull Stakes last year, so there’s fresh precedent for something similar to happen Saturday at Gulfstream Park.

McPeek will be back in the Holy Bull with another longshot, Mayberry Deputy, although he doesn’t expect the Majesticperfection colt to be quite as big a price on the tote.

“Probably not,” McPeek said. “His maiden win last month was impressive in the sense he got bounced around quite a bit, yet he still came through and got the job done.”

Wed, 01/29/2020 - 11:46

Newly named Texas-bred of the year Mr Money Bags being pointed to Razorback Handicap

Coady Photography
Mr Money Bags was impressive winning his 4-year-old debut in the Stonerside Sprint at Sam Houston.

Mr Money Bags is likely headed to Oaklawn Park after running a corker Sunday at Sam Houston Race Park. He dominated the $75,000 Stonerside Sprint, winning off by 6 3/4 lengths and earning a career-high Beyer Speed Figure of 98.

“That was over the top,” said Mike Neatherlin, who trains Mr Money Bags for breeder and owner Roy Cobb.

The next day, the Texas Thoroughbred Association announced Mr Money Bags would be honored as the 2019 Texas-bred of the Year during a March 21 banquet at Sam Houston.

Wed, 01/29/2020 - 11:20

Smarty Jones winner Gold Street one of three Asmussen has for Southwest

Coady Photography
Smarty Jones winner Gold Street will most likely start next in the Southwest Stakes for trainer Steve Asmussen.

Trainer Steve Asmussen won a pair of 3-year-old stakes in the Mid-South last week when Gold Street took the $150,000 Smarty Jones at Oaklawn on Friday and Rowdy Yates proved best in the $100,000 Riley Allison Derby at Sunland Park on Sunday.

Gold Street was making his two-turn debut. Owned by Mike McCarty, he won his second stakes and earned a career-high Beyer Speed Figure of 95.

“The Southwest is highly likely for him,” Asmussen said Tuesday of the Grade 3, $750,000 stakes Feb. 17 at Oaklawn.

Wed, 01/29/2020 - 11:16

No Parole sticking with statebreds in Premier Night Prince at Delta

Flashy 3-year-old Louisiana-bred No Parole will make his next start Feb. 8 in the $100,000 Premier Night Prince, a one-mile statebred-restricted race at Delta Downs, trainer Tom Amoss said Tuesday.

Amoss had said shortly after No Parole’s race on Jan. 11 that the colt probably would face open stakes competition when he returned to action.

“We’ve reconsidered our thinking on that,” Amoss said.

Wed, 01/29/2020 - 11:10

Houston Racing Festival card has record handle

Sam Houston handled more than $3.2 million on its Houston Racing Festival card of six stakes Sunday, a record for the program, which was established in 2013.

“It certainly went well,” said Frank Hopf, senior director of racing for Sam Houston.

Hopf said approximately $2.9 million was bet by offtrack patrons, while the ontrack crowd of 6,075 wagered more than $383,000 on the card. Both betting categories were records for the Houston Racing Festival.

Wed, 01/29/2020 - 10:56

Cox taking it slow and easy with Covfefe

Barbara D. Livingston
Covfefe will be given a few months of rest in Ocala, Fla., before going back into training early next year.

By now the news probably is all over Twitter – Covfefe is back at the racetrack following a winter break.

Tue, 01/28/2020 - 14:16

Houston Ladies Classic top three may meet again at Oaklawn

Coady Photography
Houston Ladies Classic winner Lady Apple could follow the path her stablemate Midnight Bisou took last year.

It appears Lady Apple, Serengeti Empress, and Street Band are headed for a showdown in the Grade 1, $1 million Apple Blossom at Oaklawn Park.

The fillies put on a horse race Sunday at Sam Houston Race Park, where Lady Apple fought up the rail to win the Grade 3, $300,000 Houston Ladies Classic by a half-length over favorite Serengeti Empress. It was another neck back in third to Street Band.

Mon, 01/27/2020 - 15:06

Comebackers would benefit from surface switch in feature

Barbara D. Livingston
Sonneter, entered in Friday's ninth-race turf feature at Fair Grounds, has done his best work on dirt.

Sonneteer might be the first name you recognize in the featured ninth race Thursday at Fair Grounds, but that doesn’t mean he’s the horse you want to play.

Sonneteer is entered for his 6-year-old debut in a high-level allowance race with multiple conditions and an $80,000 claiming option. All good, but the race is carded for 1 1/16 miles on turf. Sonneteer has a grass win behind him but has done all his best work on dirt. He excelled last spring going 1 1/2 miles winning the Champions Day Marathon at Churchill Downs.

Mon, 01/27/2020 - 14:23

Arizona Commission blocks Stronach Group from selling simulcast signals to outlets in the state

The Arizona Racing Commission has rescinded its permission to allow the simulcasting arm of The Stronach Group to sell signals to state betting outlets, citing a law passed last year.

The racing commission issued the ruling on Friday, one day prior to the Pegasus card at Gulfstream Park in Hallandale, Fla., making that day’s races at the track unavailable to all Arizona customers. Prior to the ruling, the signals controlled by the company, Monarch Content Management, were available to approximately 60 off-track betting outlets affiliated with Turf Paradise.

Mon, 01/27/2020 - 14:16

Hail to the Chief a different sort for Ward

Coady Photography
Hail to the Chief, a maiden winner going a mile, will make his stakes debut in the Withers.

OZONE PARK, N.Y. – Trainer Wesley Ward is best known for having fast, precocious, win-early 2-year-olds who aren’t often seen stretching out at age 3. In Hail to the Chief, Ward has a not-so-fast, late-developing juvenile colt who indicates that he wants to run long.

“He wants to go a mile and a half,” Ward said.

He’ll have to wait – perhaps until June – to get the chance to run that far. First, however, Hail to the Chief will get an opportunity to run 1 1/8 miles in Saturday’s Grade 3, $250,000 Withers Stakes at Aqueduct.