SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. - Trainer Christophe Clement will have the luxury of choosing between two key contenders, Philantha and Picture Palace, in Wednesday's $44,000 feature, a preliminary allowance for fillies and mares at a mile and a sixteenth on the inner turf course at Saratoga.
Clement said he will run only one of his two fillies and will not decide which until assessing the past performances of the field.
Welcome to monsoon season. After a fairly dry summer, Chicago has been soaked with storm after storm during the last 10 days, conditions that have wreaked havoc with Arlington's turf racing schedule. Only once in the last six racing days has the turf course been in decent enough shape for racing, and with rain in the local forecast Monday, another washout is possible Wednesday, when two grass races are carded.
DEL MAR, Calif. - Eight is not enough.
Eight horses were entered in Wednesday's $100,000 Generous Portion Stakes, for 2-year-old California-bred fillies at Del Mar, but there was supposed to be a ninth. Confusion over an entry resulted in one of the potential top choices - Icantgoforthat - being left out of the race, making the assignment that much easier for Whitewinesipper, who might qualify for trainer Cliff Sise as the one who didn't get away.
ETOBICOKE, Ontario - Nymphenburg, an impressive winner of the Aug. 6 Victoriana Stakes, should take the bulk of the betting action in Wednesday's Woodbine headliner, a $100,000 optional claimer on the grass.
The one-mile race has attracted five other fillies and mares - Cozy Up Doc, Knight Dancer, Love a Ruckus, Cascada Alta, and Mema's Turning Red.
EDMONTON, Alberta - Fancy As made a bold move in the stretch to overtake Stage Classic in last Saturday's $150,000 Canadian Derby here, leaving him undefeated in 11 starts in Alberta.
As expected, Harbour Ice and the favored Ontario import Stage Classic set the early pace with Fancy As stalking through the first mile of the Grade 3, 1 3/8-mile race.
As the field approached the final turn, jockey Richard Hamel asked Fancy As to move, and the two favorites battled down the stretch, much the same as in the Aug. 6 Manitoba Derby. But this time Fancy As caught Stage Classic.
SARATOGA SPRINGS, N. Y. - Penny's Gold, undefeated in four starts since coming to the U.S. and turned over to trainer Christophe Clement last winter, worked a half mile in 47.85 over the turf course at the Oklahoma training track on Monday in preparation for her toughest test to date in Monday's nine furlong, $500,000 Diana Handicap.
"It was a very good work," Clement said after Penny's Gold pulled up. "She finished very well. Galloped out five furlongs in 59 [seconds] and change. She is training very well, and as long as the going is not too soft she'll run in the Diana."
Homefieldhit ($9.20) held off a late-surging Medium Rare by a neck to win the $30,000 Remington Park Sprint Championship in Oklahoma City . It was a nose back in third to Cowboy Ettiquette.
Homefieldhit covered six furlongs in 1:10.33 under jockey Cliff Berry, who was aboard for owner-trainer C.R. Trout.
SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. - Ransom's Pride came into Monday's $84,875 Yaddo Handicap for New York-bred fillies and mares as the only member of the field without previous turf experience. She came out a game neck winner over Longingtobeme under a well-judged ride by Jorge Chavez.
