Gulfstream Park was dark on Monday, the first Monday that the track did not hold a live race since opening on Jan. 3. It will be that way for the five remaining weeks in the extended Gulfstream meet, with one fewer day of racing a week for south Florida racing fans, trainers, and owners, and one fewer working day for Gulfstream employees.
But if anyone is upset about lost betting, racing, or earning opportunities, the complaints haven't reached the ears of the horsemen.
Jockey Tony D'Amico on Monday hit the hat trick he didn't want to hit. After being removed earlier this year from the top Ken McPeek-trained 3-year-olds, Harlan's Holiday and Repent, D'Amico has been replaced aboard Perfect Drift for Saturday's $500,000 Lane's End Spiral Stakes.
Murray Johnson, the trainer of Perfect Drift, said two-time Kentucky Derby-winning jockey Eddie Delahoussaye would ride Perfect Drift in the Spiral.
The Maryland Jockey Club, the owners and operators of Laurel Park and Pimlico Race Course, had a profit of $1.5 million in 2001, according to financial statements filed with the Maryland Racing Commission.
The 2001 result was nearly double the profits posted by the MJC in 2000, when net income was $671,000. Joe De Francis, the chairman of the MJC, attributed the gain to record-setting wagering and attendance figures for the 2001 Preakness and cost-cutting at the MJC's racetracks.
OCALA, Fla. - Bold World toyed with a field of six rivals in the six-furlong $50,000 Ocala Breeders' Sale Sprint Stakes for 3-year-old fillies on a non-betting program at the Ocala Training Center on Monday.
Bold World raced alongside Stacy's Toy and Sea Span before jockey Jorge Chavez let her run, and then it was just a question of the winning margin. She won by 10 1/2 lengths in 1:09.80. Sea Span finished second.
The $1 million Pacific Classic at Del Mar will be run a week later than a year ago, one of a few minor revisions on the stakes schedule for Del Mar's upcoming meeting, which runs from July 24 to Sept. 11.
The highlight of the season, the $1 million Pacific Classic, will be run on Aug. 25, a week later than last year. The Pacific Classic is one of five Grade 1 races on the schedule.
There are two Grade 1 stakes on opening weekend, the Ramona Handicap for fillies and mares on July 27 and the Eddie Read Handicap on July 28.
ARCADIA, Calif. - It may be only the first day of spring, but 2-year-old racing starts at Santa Anita on Wednesday with a two-furlong dash for California-bred fillies.
Over the years, the two-furlong races have drawn a wide range of talent, from future stars such as Golden Ballet, who parlayed the experience of two losses in such races in 2000 to a career that include six stakes victories, to a great majority of others who never made a significant impact.
JAMAICA, N.Y. - Though short fields abound, Wednesday's nine-race card at Aqueduct includes four allowance races topped by a third-level condition featuring a meeting between stakes-winning Griffinite and multiple stakes-placed Voodoo.
The $47,000 allowance feature at seven furlongs could serve as a prep for the Grade 1 Carter Handicap on April 13. That race recently lost top candidates Squirtle Squirt and Wrangler to various ailments.
ARCADIA, Calif. - The pick six pool on Wednesday at Santa Anita is expected to climb past the $1 million mark after bettors failed to hit the bet on Sunday, leaving a carryover of $193,207.
Five of the six races in the pick six Wednesday are sprints, at between 5 1/2 and seven furlongs. There is one race over a mile; all six are on dirt.
ALBANY, Calif. - A series of stiff suspensions for rough riding at Golden Gate Fields is causing concern among jockeys and their agents, and has caused two riders to plan to leave northern California.
Two of the top five riders at the meeting have been given suspensions that extend to the end of the meet, March 31. Apprentice Kevin Krigger, who was sidelined March 9 when he injured his elbow, has returned home to St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands, after being handed a 10-day suspension. Ben Russell has been given consecutive seven- and 10-day suspensions.
ALBANY, Calif. - It's a familiar story in northern California. Trainer Jerry Hollendorfer is the one to beat in Wednesday's feature race at Golden Gate Fields.
Hollendorfer, northern California's leading trainer, is being recognized nationally these days because of his solid group of 3-year-olds, including U S S Tinosa, who was second last Sunday in the San Felipe Stakes at Santa Anita and has been a separate entry in both Kentucky Derby Future Wager pools. The Hollendorfer-trained Cappuchino and Yougottawanna have also been separate entries in the pools.