NEW ORLEANS - Fair Grounds could have become a showcase for the Sam-Son Farms stakes horses this month. Instead, the Sam-Son stars will be waiting for Keeneland.
Strut the Stage, second in the Grade 1 Secretariat last year, twice entered turf allowance races here as trainer Mark Frostad tried to start the colt's 4-year-old campaign, but the first race failed to fill, and when the second was rained off the turf, Strut the Stage scratched.
HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. - The gawkers and whisperers were out in force Saturday in the vicinity of Sec. 224 in the clubhouse box.
That's where O.J. Simpson watched the beginning of the Florida Derby card with a small group of friends before moving on to the turf club. Simpson, who now lives in the Miami suburb of Kendall, said it was his first-ever trip to Gulfstream.
"I used to go to the track in California all the time," said Simpson, who formerly owned horses in partnership with B. Wayne Hughes and other Los Angeles-area owners.
HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. - Just because Ethan Man has shown himself to be a prototypical miler doesn't mean Pat Byrne isn't tempted to try him at a classic distance. Ethan Man, a son of Glitterman, was highly impressive in drawing off to win the seven-furlong on the Gulfstream Park undercard Saturday, leading Byrne to name the 1 1/8-mile Blue Grass Stakes as the colt's next possible start.
"This is the time of year that everyone wants to stretch out," said Byrne, who trains Ethan Man for West Point Thoroughbreds. "Why is that?"
ALBANY, Calif. - Trainer Bobby Frankel's domination of graded stakes races continued Saturday when No Slip won the Grade 3, $200,000 Golden Gate Breeders' Cup Handicap.
No Slip ($4.20) was not originally going to run in the race, but Frankel entered him when defending champion Northern Quest came up with a quarter crack earlier in the week.
Although the Golden Gate Fields turf course had been favoring speed, No Slip came from off the pace set by stablemate Sumitas to win the 1 1/8-mile turf race by two lengths over Kerrygold. Sumitas finished third.
OLDSMAR, Fla. - Jockey Bobby Walker Jr. and the horse Comedy Club have more in common than the victory they shared on Friday's card.
Comedy Club has been in several barns in his 35-race career and has raced at a number of tracks around the Midwest. Walker, a native of Louisiana, has ridden at a number of tracks around the Midwest.
Comedy Club has competed from the bottom claiming ranks up to allowance company, while Walker has gone from being sidelined with injuries and out of action completely to being among the leading riders at Canterbury last summer.
JAMAICA, N.Y. - Affirmed Success proved there is still some life in his 8-year-old legs by accelerating past Multiple Choice approaching the eighth pole and drawing clear for a two-length victory in Saturday's $108,200 Toboggan Handicap at Aqueduct.
Vodka got up in the final jump to nip Multiple Choice by a neck for second. It was 6 1/4 lengths back to Wrangler, the 4-5 favorite, who finished a nonthreatening fourth. Run Kush Run and King's Messenger completed the order of finish.
ARCADIA, Calif. - All eyes will be on Siphonic in Sunday's $250,000 at Santa Anita. He is right in the middle of the seven-horse field, with three horses to his inside and three to his outside. His every move will be watched by fans at the track, who will want to see if Siphonic behaves better in the paddock than he did before the Jan. 19 Santa Catalina Stakes, and by bettors around the country, who want to see if Siphonic can turn in an emphatic performance in the first of his final two scheduled preps for the Kentucky Derby.
JAMAICA, N.Y. - While most of the money will be concentrated on Mayakovsky and Saarland in Sunday's $200,000 at Aqueduct, there is every reason to believe each one is vulnerable in what will be their 3-year-old debuts.
A field of seven will contest the one-turn mile of the Gotham, a Grade 3 race that serves as a prep for the $750,000 Wood Memorial on April 13. In addition to the two headliners, Tank's Expectation, Parade of Music, Rum Splasher, Heir D' Twine, and Two Shakes complete the field.
NEW ORLEANS - Fair Grounds will hold a benefit dinner Wednesday for the ailing former jockey Randy Romero. Romero, who is at his home in Louisville, needs a kidney transplant, but because of numerous injuries incurred during his long career as a rider, is not covered by insurance.
Shane Sellers, another retired rider, has organized the Randy Romero Kidney Transplant Fund. Sellers, who has embarked upon a country-music singing career, will appear at the dinner but will not be performing.
NEW ORLEANS - Even though his first early-season objective, the Grade 1 Pimlico Special, was scrapped this year, trainer Bud Delp is proceeding as planned with the comeback of Include. Include, who won the Special last year, is scheduled to make his first start of the year on April 20 in the Jennings Handicap at Pimlico.
