HOT SPRINGS, Ark. – Combatant will make his next start in the Grade 2, $600,000 Oaklawn Handicap on May 2, according to his trainer, John Sadler. 

Combatant won the Grade 1 Santa Anita Handicap in his last start March 7. He is owned by Hronis Racing, which purchased the 5-year-old horse at auction in November at Keeneland. 

Jockey Channing Hill, who was thrown from his mount in the second race Friday at Oaklawn Park, has been diagnosed with three compression fractures in his lower back, according to his agent, John Gasper.

Gasper said Friday night that Hill told him he was not experiencing any pain. Hill was to remain at St. Vincent in Hot Springs, Ark., overnight for observation. Gasper said the rider has an MRI scheduled for Saturday.

HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. - When entries were drawn over the weekend for the first two juvenile races of the local season, most everybody was predicting the same trainer would win both events. But few, if any, suggested that trainer would be Juan Alvarado, not Wesley Ward, whose barn typically dominates 2-year-old races at this time of year.

After briefly considering a trip to Oaklawn Park for the Grade 1, $750,000 Arkansas Derby on May 2, the connections of Max Player have decided to pass that race and wait for something closer to home in New York.

“I spoke to [owner] George Hall and we’ve decided that it’s too far to go,” Rice said by phone Friday from Belmont Park. “It’s going to be a pretty strong race and it’s a long way to travel so we’re going to stay here and hope that we reopen and have something that’s immediately in front of us.”

Scott Chaney, an attorney with an extensive background in racing as an assistant trainer and steward at Southern California tracks, has been named the executive director of the California Horse Racing Board, the regulatory body announced in a statement on Thursday afternoon.

Chaney replaces Rick Baedeker, who last fall announced his intention to leave the position after a successor was found. The racing board said Baedeker retired on March 31.

In order to be able to ride at Oaklawn Park on May 1-2, jockey Javier Castellano will have to self-quarantine somewhere other than New York for two weeks, according to his agent, John Panagot.

To satisfy that requirement, Castellano left New York for Florida on Thursday and will spend two weeks at his mom’s apartment in the Hollywood area before flying to Arkansas on April 30. He is scheduled to ride British Idiom in the Grade 3 Fantasy Stakes on May 1 and Farmington Road in the Grade 1 Arkansas Derby on May 2.

With limited graded stakes options for the foreseeable future, trainer Mark Casse is looking at a pair of overnight stakes at Gulfstream Park for two of his stable stars.

War of Will, last year’s Preakness winner, could return to the races in the $75,000 Sunshine Forever Stakes, a 1 1/16-mile turf race May 9.

As with most of his colleagues, Tim Padilla would love to know when he can move on to his next outpost. Without moratoriums on racing imposed by the coronavirus, Padilla would be training horses at Canterbury Park in Minnesota by now.

“We’re all in a holding pattern,” Padilla said this week from Tampa Bay Downs in Oldsmar, Fla. “It’s a nightmare, really.”

HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. – It’s already been a frustrating winter for trainer Scott Becker and his speedy Florida-bred filly Wildwood’s Beauty. The 4-year-old daughter of Kantharos has been run down in deep stretch in her last two starts, having to settle for second in both the Grade 2 Inside Information and Grade 3 Hurricane Bertie Stakes during the Gulfstream Park Championship meet.

HOT SPRINGS, Ark. – Pirate’s Punch was a knockout winner in his Oaklawn debut earlier this month, and he could return for the track’s signature race for older horses. Trainer Grant Forster said Pirate’s Punch is a candidate for the Grade 2, $600,000 Oaklawn Handicap on May 2.

Pirate’s Punch was a five-length winner of an optional $100,000 claiming race April 3 at Oaklawn. He dueled for the lead and jetted clear, covering the 1 1/16 miles in a sharp 1:42.48. The performance was good for a Beyer Speed Figure of 97.