HOT SPRINGS, Ark. – He’s the face that launched a thousand tweets.
Well, a whole lot more than that.
Southern Phantom, who makes his first start at 4 on Friday at Oaklawn, is a social media sensation for his looks. He’s a bald-faced, blue-eyed colt with chrome wrapped around all fours legs – splashing up past his knees and hocks and onto his belly.
This is fun stuff, people!
HOT SPRINGS, Ark. – Hall of Fame trainer D. Wayne Lukas, who is wintering at Oaklawn, has pretty much seen it all when it comes to the Kentucky Derby – having won four runnings. This year, the race will have a completely different look, with the coronavirus forcing its postponement until Sept. 5.
“It’s going to change the dynamics, going to change the field, I think, quite a bit,” Lukas said when asked about the later date. “I personally don’t think they’ll get 20. A number of things could happen.
HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. – Todd Pletcher had Gouverneur Morris as his main hope for the Kentucky Derby when the race was still scheduled for May 2, even though the gray colt was far short on qualifying points.
But with the new Sept. 5 date having been set for the Kentucky Derby, not only does Pletcher have far more opportunity for Gouverneur Morris to crack the lineup, but the possibility now exists that a late bloomer might ultimately surface from his deep bench.
“It could work out in favor of a few of ours,” Pletcher said.
Santa Anita has further tightened its admission policy for race days as a result of the coronavirus outbreak to exclude all non-essential personnel except for “trainers and their attending staff,” a decision that will exclude horse owners.
The policy, which will take effect on Friday, was announced in a text message on Tuesday afternoon. The track cited compliance with the Centers for Disease Control’s guidelines to limit gatherings. In a separate message, the track stated that only “licensed working personnel” will be allowed in the stables until further notice.
The announcement Tuesday that the Kentucky Derby will be moved to Sept. 5 due to the coronavirus pandemic could lead to a new date for the Grade 1, $1 million Arkansas Derby, according to Oaklawn Park president Lou Cella. The Arkansas Derby is currently scheduled for April 11.
Cella said Tuesday that Oaklawn has been in discussions with a number of factions to determine the best date for the 1 1/8-mile race that has been won by such horses as American Pharoah, Smarty Jones, and Sunny's Halo.
The news that Churchill Downs would delay the Kentucky Derby by four months to Sept. 5 owing to the coronavirus pandemic, and that the Preakness would be delayed, too, caused trainers of leading Derby and Triple Crown contenders to ponder how they’d proceed in coming months, while realizing the situation in regards to racing’s overall schedule remains fluid.
The New York Racing Association has not yet determined whether it plans to move the Belmont Stakes to the fall in light of the Kentucky Derby being rescheduled for Sept. 5 and the Preakness likely to be run in September as well.
Fonner Park in Grand Island, Neb., announced Monday it has suspended racing until further notice at the request of Mayor Roger Steele. The move follows a request by Nebraska Gov. Pete Ricketts that attendance at sporting events be limited to less than 250 people, according to a press release from Fonner.
Dennis Drazin, the chief executive officer of the company that runs Monmouth Park in Oceanport, N.J., said in a statement released on Monday that he has asked the New Jersey Legislature to pass a bill that would prohibit the possession of any medications on track grounds unless that medication was obtained at a pharmacy located at the track, among other policies.
HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. – Jockey Luis Saez has made the decision not to travel to Fair Grounds this weekend for the Louisiana Derby program or fly to Dubai the following week for the rich Dubai World Cup card, his agent, Richard Depass, revealed Monday.
