ELMONT, N.Y. - Forbidden Apple proved again that he is a monster at Belmont Park by winning the $250,000 Kelso Handicap, a Grade 2, for the second year in a row.

Forbidden Apple, under Jose Santos, saved ground throughout the one-mile Kelso on the grass, and slipped through on the rail in midstretch for a half-length win over the late-charging Sarafan. It was another half-length back to City Zip, who was making his turf debut, in third.

The final time over a yielding course was 1:36.77. Forbidden Apple returned $6 as the favorite in the nine-horse field.

ELMONT, N.Y. - When the gates opened for the fifth race at Belmont Park on Sept. 9, many of those who made Bella Bellucci the 1-2 favorite surely let out a groan. The debuting juvenile filly fell out of the gate under Mike Smith, spotting her seven rivals at least one length in the six-furlong race.

Those groans quickly turned to glee, however, as Bella Bellucci, without any encouragement from Smith, moved into contention around the turn and eventually drew clear for a 5 3/4-length victory while racing five wide the entire trip.

ARCADIA, Calif. - The field for Monday's Henry P. Russell Handicap at Santa Anita was spread around last year, racing in Europe, the Middle East, South America, South Africa, and California.

On Monday, the field of six starting in the restricted $75,000 race should offer clues as to which new faces bear watching in major stakes in coming months.

ETOBICOKE, Ontario - Macho Uno prepped for his triumph in the 2000 Breeders' Cup Juvenile with an easy win over just three other 2-year-olds in the Grade 1 Grey BC Stakes at Woodbine.

With no high-profile shippers like Macho Uno entered in Monday's renewal of the 1 1/16-mile Grey, a full field of 14 was drawn for the race, which carries a record purse of $291,000.

Trainer David Bell, who is looking at the Grey as little more than a nonwinners-of-two allowance, is sending out the uncoupled duo of Changeintheweather and Adjalah.

MIAMI, Fla. - There are 400,000 reasons why jockey Roger Velez and his colleagues want to win Saturday's In Reality Stakes.

But besides the $400,000 purse, Velez has extra incentive to win the final leg of the open division of the Florida Stallion Series when he rides O'Rocky for trainer Eddie Plesa Jr. in the main event on the $1.5 million Festival of the Sun program.

FORT ERIE, Ont. - Bernard Lizotte, a 61-year-old relative newcomer to the horse-training business, has a solid shot at winning both the Bridgeport Stakes and the Memorial Stakes on Monday at Fort Erie.

The two $50,000 1 1/16-mile races, one for males and one for females, are Fort Erie's last stakes races of the year.

Lizotte sold his 300-acre farm in Quebec three years ago, and became a licensed trainer last year.

ARLINGTON HEIGHTS, Ill. - Call him the Midwest's Bobby Frankel. While Frankel has reeled off Grade 1 wins from coast to coast this year, trainer Niall O'Callaghan, more quietly and on a smaller scale, has won a slew of graded stakes in the Midwest with horses like Guided Tour, Keats, Tijiyr, and Generous Rosi. Saturday, it was Humble Clerk, who won the Grade 3, $150,000 Arlington Matron by a length over Maltese Superb.

MIAMI - T V Sports Director bounced back from the worst performance of his career to register perhaps his best effort yet, rallying to a 1-length victory over Tour of the Cat in Saturday's $50,000 Needles Stakes at Calder.

T V Sports Director finished seventh, beaten nearly 32 lengths, in the Unbridled Stakes on Aug. 19 when he returned to the main track for the first time in nearly five months. After that, trainer Reed Combest discovered the 3-year-old colt had an illness that was affecting his cardiovascular and respiratory systems.

ETOBICOKE, Ontario - First-time starter Atlantic Fury upset 3-5 favorite El Soprano in Saturday's $250,000 Cup and Saucer Stakes for Canadian-bred 2-year-olds at Woodbine.

Atlantic Fury, the lone filly in the six-horse field, set slow fractions over soft ground in the 1 1/16-mile turf event while being pressed by Classic Case. El Soprano trailed early, but moved into a stalking position along the rail on the turn.

ANDERSON, Ind. - Scoop found the sloppy going to her liking Friday night at Hoosier Park and won the $205,800 Indiana Breeders' Cup Oaks by a comfortable three lengths.

Ridden by Robby Albarado, Scoop ($11) angled inside pacesetting favorite Caressing going to the far turn and drew clear turning into the quarter-mile stretch of this seven-eighths of a mile oval. Albarado was in cruise control through the lane, drawing off under only mild urging through the final eighth of a mile.