DEL MAR, Calif. - It doesn't matter to Ron McAnally where he succeeds on Saturday.
McAnally has starters in major stakes at Arlington Park and Del Mar and is hoping to end a bleak month. On Wednesday, he won his first race of the Del Mar meeting with Penamacor, his 24th starter. Last year's record was also disappointing: McAnally had two winners from 67 starters.
ARLINGTON HEIGHTS, Ill. - Before you decide Fan Club's Mister is a hopeless longshot in the Secretariat Stakes, take a look at the chart of the 1985 Secretariat. There's Day Shift in third, a 23-1 shot who, like Fan Club's Mister, was trained by Rickey Harris.
Day Shift ended up second in that Secretariat when the place horse, Racing Star, was disqualified for interference. "I think he was going to win," Harris said. "They were three across the track, and Day Shift got bounced, literally, right off the rail.
DEL MAR, Calif. - An eight-month vacation and talented field stand in the way of comebacker Auction House, who will try to win the Harry F. Brubaker Handicap for the second straight year Friday. It won't be easy.
Ten entered the Brubaker, a 1 1/16-mile turf race that features the United States debut of well-regarded South African import Delta Form, the return to stakes company of much-improved I've Decided; $100,000 claim Quianlong; and class-dropper National Anthem, the 119-pound highweight.
ARLINGTON HEIGHTS, Ill. - What a nice way to start the weekend. With $2.1 million in Grade 1 stakes money on the line Saturday in Arlington's International Festival of Racing, Friday's 10-race card, with the John Henry Stakes as the feature, is a tasty appetizer.
Handicappers and casual fans alike can sink their teeth into the $60,000-added John Henry, named for the two-time winner of the Arlington Million. Run at 1 1/16 miles on turf, the race attracted a full and highly competitive field of 12. In fact, it is difficult to know where analysis begins.
SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. - Last Friday, trainer Todd Pletcher was glad to see the rains come and force the Glens Falls Handicap to the dirt. That helped Irving's Baby cruise to a front-running victory.
This Friday, Pletcher hopes the forecast for showers proves incorrect.
That's because Pletcher plans to send out I'm All Yours in Friday's $75,000 West Point Handicap for New York-breds, but only if the race remains on the turf.
OCEANPORT, N.J. - The connections of Juggernaut figured that he would turn out to be an allowance-quality or high-claiming horse. It would be fair to say, then, that the 2-year-old Juggernaut has far exceeded expectations by making it to the field for Saturday's Grade 3 Sapling at Monmouth Park.
Juggernaut, based at Calder, started his career modestly in a $32,000 maiden claiming race at his home track. At the time, trainer Larry Pilotti wasn't overly impressed with the colt, who had some shin problems, so he decided to see what he could do in a lesser maiden race.
SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. - She was good enough to finish second to Flute in the Kentucky Oaks and good enough to finish second to Fleet Renee in the Mother Goose. But if Real Cozzy is to have any say in year-end honors in the 3-year-old filly division, she must find a way to win a Grade 1 race.
Trainer Dan Peitz hopes that breakthrough comes in Saturday's $750,000 Alabama at Saratoga.
SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. - The great showdown will have to wait.
Fleet Renee, winner of the Ashland and Mother Goose, will miss Saturday's Grade 1 Alabama and a meeting with Kentucky Oaks winner Flute because of an unspecified injury, according to owner Verne Winchell.
"[It's] not enough to be anything permanent," Winchell said Wednesday afternoon from his Las Vegas home. "It's nothing serious. She'll be back for the next one."
SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. - Even running in races he doesn't want to run in, trainer D. Wayne Lukas can't help but find the Saratoga winner's circle.
Lukas was hoping to run Jump Start in a preliminary allowance race earlier this meet to use as a prep for the Grade 1 Hopeful on Sept. 1. But when that race didn't fill, Lukas decided to run Jump Start in Wednesday's Grade 2 Saratoga Special instead.
Turfway Park has released the stakes schedule for its upcoming fall meet, which again will be highlighted by the six-race Kentucky Cup series on Sept. 22.
The Kentucky Cup Classic, which has had its purse lowered from $500,000 to $400,000 this year, is the richest of the Kentucky Cup races. Include and Guided Tour are among the top handicap horses being pointed to the Grade 2, 1 1/8-mile Classic.
The rest of the Kentucky Cup series consists of the Turfway Park Breeders' Cup, the Sprint, the Juvenile, the Juvenile Fillies, and Starter Stakes.
