Horse Racing: BELMONT dates move to AQUEDUCT; SARATOGA opens July 11

[MiamiScreamingEagles]

Kentucky Derby 2019 point standings
Leader board for qualifying points to the 2019 Kentucky Derby, which will be run at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Ky., on Saturday, May 4, 2019. Points are earned by the top four finishers in designated Kentucky Derby prep races.

Gunmetal Gray, #17 on the list below, suffered what is described as a non-career threatening injury within the last 24-48 hours. The updated report indicates removal from consideration to the Kentucky Derby.

[TR][TH] Rank	Horse	Trainer	Points	Non-Restricted Stakes Earnings
1.	By My Standards	Bret Calhoun	100	$600,000
2.	War of Will	Mark Casse	60	$440,840
3.	Code of Honor	Shug McGaughey	54	$338,070
4.	Long Range Toddy	Steve Asmussen	53.5	$830,000
5.	Cutting Humor	Todd Pletcher	50	$462,467
6.	Haikal	Kiaran McLaughlin	50	$247,500
7.	Tacitus	Bill Mott	50	$210,000
8.	Game Winner	Bob Baffert	45	$1,610,000
9.	Spinoff	Todd Pletcher	40	$224,000
10.	Omaha Beach	Richard Mandella	37.5	$450,000
11.	Mind Control	Gregg Sacco	30	$355,000
12.	Anothertwistafate	Blaine Wright	30	$228,960
13.	Country House	Bill Mott	30	$120,000
14.	Sueno	Keith Desormeaux	28	$265,000
15.	Improbable	Bob Baffert	25	$389,520
16.	Mucho Gusto	Bob Baffert	24	$286,800
17.	Gunmetal Gray	Jerry Hollendorfer	21.75	$247,500
18.	Bourbon War	Mark Hennig	21	$90,200
19.	Somelikeithotbrown	Mike Maker	20	$321,665
20.	Outshine	Todd Pletcher	20	$74,500
21.	Knicks Go	Ben Colebrook	18	$656,085
22.	Signalman	Kenny McPeek	18	$392,840
23.	Tax	Danny Gargan	12	$167,500
	+Complexity	Chad Brown	10	$275,000
24.	Gray Attempt	Jinks Fires	10	$211,666
25.	Harvey Wallbanger	Kenny McPeek	10	$208,320
26.	Well Defined	Kathy O’Connell	10	$172,970
27.	Instagrand	Jerry Hollendorfer	10	$156,000
28.	Vekoma	George Weaver	10	$147,600
29.	Win Win Win	Mike Trombetta	10	$116,000
30.	Roiland	Tom Amoss	10	$57,460

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[GKJ]

Sounds like Santa Anita has a plan to re-open

 

[MiamiScreamingEagles]

Sounds like Santa Anita has a plan to re-open

Santa Anita set to resume racing Friday with eight-race card

ARCADIA, Calif. – Santa Anita resumes racing on Friday for the first time in nearly four weeks with an eight-race program highlighted by the Grade 2 San Luis Rey Stakes.

Racing was halted after the March 3 program following a rash of equine fatalities since late December that led track officials to conduct an inspection of the main track. The surface underwent renovation before the main track reopened for training on March 11.

Friday’s program, which begins at 1 p.m., Pacific, has fields of 11, 7, 9, 8, 10, 8, 6, and 10. The $200,000 San Luis Rey Stakes at 1 1/2 miles on turf is the seventh race and has a field of six – Epical, Risky Proposition, Unapologetic, Beach View, Marckie’s Water, and Ashleyluvssugar.

There are five races on the main track and three on turf. Entries were drawn on Sunday.​

 

[MiamiScreamingEagles]

DUBAI WORLD CUP​

DUBAI (Official web site: Racecards | Dubai Racing Club)
With this being one of the most anticipated weekends on the racing calendar, just a head's up as far as post time in Dubai for the $12,000,000 (U.S.) World Cup. TVG will show the entire 9-race card which begins at 3:45 p.m. local time on Saturday (7:45 a.m. ET). The 9th race, which is the World Cup, is scheduled to go off at 8:40 p.m. in Dubai (12:40 p.m. ET). To summarize, the race card will go from 7:45 a.m. until approximately 1:00 p.m. ET when the last race concludes and TVG will broadcast fully. The card should be released in its entirety in the next 24-48 hours. Roughly 20 horses will make the trek to Dubai from the U.S.A.

Over $35,000,000 (U.S. Dollars) will be issued in purse money.

CARDS:

• From the host site (fairly extensive info): Form Guide | Emirates Racing Authority
• From the DRF: Daily Racing Form | Horse Racing Entries | Live Odds & Scratches

DUBAI WORLD CUP CARD (purses in U.S. dollars):

1. Dubai Kahayla Classic Sponsored By Mubadala - ($1,000,000)
2. Godolphin Mile Sponsored By Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum City-District One ($1,500,000)
3. Dubai Gold Cup Sponsored By Al Tayer Motors ($1,500,000)
4. Al Quoz Sprint Sponsored By Azizi Developments ($2,000,000)
5. UAE Derby Sponsored By Saeed & Mohammed Al Naboodah Group ($2,500,000)
6. Dubai Golden Shaheen Sponsored By Gulf News ($2,500,000)
7. Dubai Turf Sponsored By DP World ($6,000,000)
8. Longines Dubai Sheema Classic ($6,000,000)
9. Dubai World Cup Sponsored By Emirates Airline ($12,000,000)​

DUBAI WORLD CUP (listed alphabetically; post positions not drawn)

UAE DERBY (post positions drawn)

====================

UPDATE:
Roy H (Paco Lopez/Peter Miller) has been scratched from the $2.5 million sprint race (race 6 on the card) in Dubai to be run on Saturday. That is a pretty significant scratch. The 7-year-old has a foot abscess and will be pointed to a race in Santa Anita later. Roy H has a record of 23 10-5-2 and has earned over $3,000,000. He has won the last two Eclipse Awards for Male Sprinter of the Year.

 

[MiamiScreamingEagles]

Rider assignments announced today:

Kentucky Derby implications:

• Javier Castellano will ride Hidden Scroll (Bill Mott) in the Florida Derby (March 30). Joel Rosario had the mount. He is in Dubai.
• Flavien Prat will ride Instagrand (Jerry Hollendorfer) in the Santa Anita Derby (April 6). Javier Castellano had the mount.
• Jose Ortiz will ride Improbable (Bob Baffert) in the Arkansas Derby (April 13). Drayden Van Dyke had the mount. Ortiz w/Baffert? Hmmm.

World Cup Card (Dubai)

• Jose Ortiz will ride Coal Front (Todd Pletcher). John Velazquez had the mount.
• Joel Rosario will ride True Timber (Kiaran McLaughlin). Joe Bravo had the mount.
• Mike Smith, Jose Ortiz, Joel Rosario, Flavien Prat, Joe Talamo, Robby Albarado, Paco Lopez and Emisael Jaramillo are U.S. based jockeys in Dubai.

 

[MiamiScreamingEagles]

The draw for the Dubai World Cup was held Wednesday morning (ET). The race will be race 9 of 9 on the World Cup card. Info on the other races can be found above in post #554.

1(1)

GUNNEVERA (USA) (USA)5 yrs. Ch H20 (6-5-2)

Owner: Salomon Del Valle
Trainer: A Sano
Jockey: Emisael Jaramillo
Weight 57.0 Kgs
Official Rating 119


2(2)

CAPEZZANO (USA) (USA)5 yrs. Bay G14 (5-1-2)

Owner: Sultan Ali
Trainer: S bin Ghadayer
Jockey: Mickael Barzalona
Weight 57.0 Kgs
Official Rating 118


3(3)

NORTH AMERICA (GB) (GB)7 yrs. Bay G17 (7-3-2)

Owner: Ramzan Kadyrov
Trainer: S Seemar
Jockey: Richard Mullen
Weight 57.0 Kgs
Official Rating 118


4(4)

AUDIBLE (USA) (USA)4 yrs. Bay C9 (5-1-2)

Owner: WinStar,China Horse,Starlight,Head Of Plains
Trainer: T Pletcher
Jockey: Flavien Prat
Weight 57.0 Kgs
Official Rating 120


5(5)

SEEKING THE SOUL (USA) (USA)6 yrs. Bay H24 (6-6-6)

Owner: Charles E Fipke
Trainer: D Stewart
Jockey: Mike Smith
Weight 57.0 Kgs
Official Rating 115


6(6)

PAVEL (USA) (USA)5 yrs. Gr/Ro H14 (3-1-1)

Owner: Reddam Racing LLC
Trainer: D O'Neill
Jockey: Joel Rosario
Weight 57.0 Kgs
Official Rating 115


7(7)

GRONKOWSKI (USA) (USA)4 yrs. DkB C11 (4-2-1)

Owner: Phoenix Thoroughbred Ltd III
Trainer: S bin Ghadayer
Jockey: Oisin Murphy
Weight 57.0 Kgs
Official Rating 111


8(8)

AXELROD (USA) (USA)4 yrs. Bay C13 (4-2-1)

Owner: Phoenix Thoroughbred Ltd III,Slam Dunk Racing
Trainer: S bin Ghadayer
Jockey: Royston Ffrench
Weight 57.0 Kgs
Official Rating 110


9(9)

NEW TRAILS (USA) (USA)5 yrs. Bay G8 (3-3-0)

Owner: Hamdan Sultan Ali Alsabousi
Trainer: A bin Harmash
Jockey: Connor Beasley
Weight 57.0 Kgs
Official Rating 111


10(10)

YOSHIDA (JPN) (JPN)5 yrs. Bay H13 (5-3-0)

Owner: China HorseClub, WinStar Farm, Head Of Plains
Trainer: W Mott
Jockey: Jose Ortiz
Weight 57.0 Kgs
Official Rating 120


11(11)

K T BRAVE (JPN) (JPN)6 yrs. Ch H34 (11-8-6)

Owner: Kazuyoshi Takimoto
Trainer: H Sugiyama
Jockey: Joao Moreira
Weight 57.0 Kgs
Official Rating 116


12(12)

THUNDER SNOW (IRE) (IRE)5 yrs. Bay H22 (7-7-3)

Owner: Godolphin
Trainer: S bin Suroor
Jockey: Christophe Soumillon
Weight 57.0 Kgs
Official Rating 122


13(13)

DOLKONG (USA) (USA)5 yrs. Ch H15 (7-3-2)

Owner: Lee Tae In
Trainer: S Foster
Jockey: Olivier Doleuze
Weight 57.0 Kgs
Official Rating 110

 

[MiamiScreamingEagles]

FLORIDA DERBY​

Gulfstream will be the center of the North America racing scene. The Florida Derby is the headliner. In addition, it is mandatory payout for the Rainbow 6. If that bet is not hit Thursday or Friday of this week, I wouldn't be shocked to see a pool of $20,000,000.

There will be plenty of eyes looking in various directions with this race. The Kentucky Derby is wide open. Unless one of Baffert's stars excels, this could be the year of a surprise. In this race, the 4 and 9 have held my interest for a while. The 1 and the 7, the latter with hot connections, will receive much attention as well.

The Florida Derby will award Kentucky Derby qualifying points of 100-40-20-10 to the top four finishers.

FLORIDA DERBY

What: Grade I. A Kentucky Derby prep, the winner gets 100 points towards admission to the race in May. Arguably one of the two most important preps of the year.
Where: Gulfstream Park, Hallandale Beach, Florida
When: Saturday, March 30, 2019, Race 14
Post time: 6:30 p.m. Eastern Time
Who: 3 year olds
Distance: 1 1/8 miles
Surface: Dirt
Purse: $1,000,000
Television: NBCSN during a 6:00-7:00 pm ET; continuing coverage on TVG
History: Inaugurated in 1952. Some of the all-time greats have run in this race and winners since 1990 include future Kentucky Derby winners Always Dreaming, Nyquist, Orb, Big Brown, Barbaro, Empire Maker, Monarchos, Thunder Gulch and Unbridled. Others include Spectacular Bid, Northern Dancer, Carry Back, Needles, Nashua and Tim Tam.

[TR][TH]PP	Horse	Jockey	Wgt	Trainer	M/L
1	Hidden Scroll (KY)	Javier Castellano	122	William I. Mott	5-2
2	Current (KY)	Manuel Franco	122	Todd A. Pletcher	15-1
3	Harvey Wallbanger (KY)	Brian Joseph Hernandez, Jr.	122	Kenneth G. McPeek	15-1
4	Bourbon War (KY)	Irad Ortiz, Jr.	122	Mark A. Hennig	7-2
5	Everfast (KY)	Chris Landeros	122	Dale L. Romans	20-1
6	Hard Belle (KY)	Jose A. Batista	122	Jaime Mejia	50-1
7	Maximum Security (KY)	Luis Saez	122	Jason Servis	9-2
8	Bodexpress (KY)	Nik Juarez	122	Gustavo Delgado	30-1
9	Code of Honor (KY)	John R. Velazquez	122	Claude R. McGaughey III	3-1
10	Union's Destiny (KY)	Leonel Reyes	122	Juan Carlos Avila	30-1
11	Garter and Tie (FL)	Jeffrey Sanchez	122	Ralph E. Nicks	15-1

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Full card:

[TR][TH]Race #	Purse	Race Type	Distance	Surface	Starters	Est. Post (ET)
Race 1	$40,000	Claiming	1 1/16 Miles	Turf	12	11:30 AM
Race 2	$75,000	Allowance Optional Claiming	7 Furlongs	Dirt	12	12:00 PM
Race 3	$80,000	Maiden Special Weight	1 Mile	Dirt	9	12:30 PM
Race 4	$300,000	Gulfstream Park Mile S.	1 Mile	Dirt	6	1:00 PM
Race 5	$125,000	Cutler Bay S.	1 Mile	Turf	7	1:30 PM
Race 6	$125,000	Sanibel Island S.	1 Mile	Turf	8	2:00 PM
Race 7	$80,000	Maiden Special Weight	1 1/16 Miles	Turf	16	2:30 PM
Race 8	$250,000	Gulfstream Park Oaks	1 1/16 Miles	Dirt	7	3:00 PM
Race 9	$80,000	Maiden Special Weight	1 1/16 Miles	Turf	15	3:34 PM
Race 10	$100,000	Sand Springs S.	1 Mile	Turf	9	4:17 PM
Race 11	$85,000	Allowance Optional Claiming	7 Furlongs	Dirt	11	4:49 PM
Race 12	$86,000	Allowance Optional Claiming	1 Mile	Turf	11	5:26 PM
Race 13	$250,000	Pan American S.	1 1/2 Miles	Turf	9	6:00 PM
Race 14	$1,000,000	Xpressbet Florida Derby	1 1/8 Miles	Dirt	11	6:30 PM

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[MiamiScreamingEagles]

March 29, 2019

Aqueduct (New York):

• Race 6: A July-bred from Kentucky ran. That is what is generally considered well past the North America breeding season; most foals are born Jan.-May.

Mahoning Valley (Ohio):

• Race 8: The $.20 Pick 6 paid over $23,000.
• Race 5: The winning horse was 0-for-29 lifetime at the track and 1-for-47 overall.

Gulfstream (Florida):

• Jockey's race: Irad Ortiz, Jr. (130 wins) and Luis Saez (128 wins) have hooked up in a spectacular battle for leading rider at the important meet which closes on Sunday.
• Rainbow 6: The wager exceeded $3,000,000 today and hit the figure right on cue as they entered the gate in race 6. Following the finale of race 11, the winning bets received over $95,000. Saturday is mandatory payout day.
• Race 6: Cherie DeVaux, a former assistant to Chad Brown, trained a winner for the first time in her 2-year career as head trainer. She is 1-for-30.
• Race 8: In a $100,000 purse, Javier Castellano was nowhere to be found on board a 3-to-5 shot.
• Race 9: The winning horse was bet down to 3-to-1 from a morning line of 10-to-1.
• Race 10: In a Grade III thriller, Irad Ortiz, Jr. charged like a freight train and nipped Luis Saez at the wire. Santa Monica won as she was "loose and charging."

​

• Race 11: A bomber in the finale with a 23-to-1 shot winning. The only horse singled for the Rainbow Six was the 10 who didn't factor. That will do wonders for the Rainbow Six tomorrow.
• Edgard Zayas, who has been sidelined with a broken leg since December, is scheduled to return for the spring/summer meet opener on Thursday.

Oaklawn (Arkansas):

• Race 8: The ticket was topped by 35-1, 11-1 and 54-1 shots and the ensuing trifecta returned $17,262.30. The $1 super boasted a payout of $130,948.20.

Santa Anita (California):

• Re-opening Day: Re-opened today amid some rules changes and other modifications awaiting. The track has been dark since March 3.
• Handle: Over $6,000,000.
• Race 7: Epical (Tyler Baze/James Cassidy) was sent off the favorite and wired the field of five in the Grade 2 feature race .

​

 

[MiamiScreamingEagles]

DUBAI WORLD CUP
Meydan Racecourse (UAE)
March 30, 2019 ​

DUBAI WORLD CUP CARD (purses in U.S. dollars, $35,000,000):
1. Dubai Kahayla Classic Sponsored By Mubadala - ($1,000,000)
2. Godolphin Mile Sponsored By Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum City-District One ($1,500,000)
3. Dubai Gold Cup Sponsored By Al Tayer Motors ($1,500,000)
4. Al Quoz Sprint Sponsored By Azizi Developments ($2,000,000)
5. UAE Derby Sponsored By Saeed & Mohammed Al Naboodah Group ($2,500,000)
6. Dubai Golden Shaheen Sponsored By Gulf News ($2,500,000)
7. Dubai Turf Sponsored By DP World ($6,000,000)
8. Longines Dubai Sheema Classic ($6,000,000)
9. Dubai World Cup Sponsored By Emirates Airline ($12,000,000)​

The full card. Entries can be seen by clicking each race. Additional info in post #554

[TR][TH]Race #	Purse	Race Type	Distance	Surface	Starters	Est. Post (ET)
Race 1	$1,000,000	Stakes	1 1/4M	Dirt	15	7:45 AM
Race 2	$1,500,000	Stakes	1M	Dirt	13	8:15 AM
Race 3	$1,500,000	Stakes	2M	Turf	10	8:50 AM
Race 4	$2,000,000	Stakes	6F	Turf	13	9:30 AM
Race 5	$2,500,000	Stakes	1 3/16M	Dirt	14	10:05 AM
Race 6	$2,500,000	Stakes	6F	Dirt	10	10:40 AM
Race 7	$6,000,000	Stakes	1 1/8M	Turf	13	11:20 AM
Race 8	$6,000,000	Stakes	1 1/2M	Turf	8	12:00 PM
Race 9	$12,000,000	Stakes	1 1/4M	Dirt	13	12:40 PM

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[MiamiScreamingEagles]

Race 1 is in the books. The horse on the rail looked spent but fought and was determined to win.

 

[MiamiScreamingEagles]

Race 2 in the books. Good outing for the U.S. as Coal Front (Jose Ortiz/Todd Pletcher) gets the victory.

 

[MiamiScreamingEagles]

March 30, 2019

• The Ortiz brothers won in two different parts of the world today and combined to go 18 6-2-4.

Meydan (Dubai, UAE):

• Purses and card: $35,000,000 (U.S.) and nine races with some of the sport's most talented performers. U.S. jockeys who were overseas included Jose Ortiz, Mike Smith and Joel Rosario.
• Race 9: Thunder Snow (Christophe Soumillon/Saeed bin Suroor) won the Dubai World Cup and the world's largest purse at $12,000,000 (U.S.). He repeated the win from 2018 and became the first horse to win this race twice. The 5-year-old has earned over $16,000,000.

​

• Race 7: Almond Eye (Christophe Lemaire/Sakae Kunieda) is something special and proved it in this $6,000,000 race. The Japanese-based filly is 8 7-1-0, is on a 7-race win streak and has earned over $10,000,000. This was her first race outside of Japan. Today, as a virtual lock, she was tested but not taxed and appears to have an attractive future.
• Race 6: XY Jet (Emisael Jaramillo/Jorge Navarro), a Florida-bred, was the victor. The 7-year-old has won 12 times, seven on the Gulfstream oval. U.S.-breds finished 1-2-3.

X Y JET - 2019 GROUP 1 DUBAI GOLDEN SHAHEEN​

• Race 5: Plus Que Parfait (Jose Ortiz/Brendan Walsh), coming in off a 13th place finish in the Risen Star in Louisiana, received 100 points towards entry into the Kentucky Derby by winning the $2.5 million UAE Derby. "Some horses struggle at Fair Grounds," trainer Walsh said.

Race 5 UAE Derby Sponsored By Saeed & Mohammed Al Naboodah Group​

• Race 3: English-breds finished 1-2-3.
• Race 1: A thriller limited to Purebred Arabians.
• Countries that bred winners: USA (3), Ireland (2), England (2) and Japan (1). The opening race was for Purebred Arabians.
• Countries that finished top three in the 8 non-Arabian races: U.S. (9), England (6), Japan (4), Ireland (2) and France (2).
• William Buick, based in England, won three times as did trainer Charles Appleby.
• Jose Ortiz (2) and Emisael Jaramillo (1) were other U.S.-based jockeys who won. Trainers Brendan Walsh and Todd Pletcher represented the U.S. in the winner's circle.
• Godolphin led all owners with four wins.

Aqueduct (New York):

• Overview: A comparatively light day of racing with many shippers including Maryland and Philly.
• Race 9: The two oldest horses in the race finished 1-2 led by 10-year-old Chilean-bred Turco Bravo. The victory was his 18th in 77 starts.
• Rob Atras, formerly of Canada and assistant trainer to Robertino Diodoro, won again. He is an almost impossible 29 13-9-0 (45%/76%) at the meet.
• Eric Cancel won his three starts on this day.

Laurel (Maryland):

• Race 9: The conclusion to the card saw three across the wire. A strong finish.

Tampa Bay (Florida):

• Race 8: One of the biggest payouts of the year as seen below. The $2 exacta was a stunning $3,516.80. The $2 tri was $38,348.40. The $1 super paid over $43,000. The $2 Pick 3 paid more than $5,200. David Flores, who recently retired as a jockey after 25,000+ rides, was the victorious trainer for the second time in his career.

Win	Place	Show
$179.80	$62.60	$25.20
	$45.40	$20.00
		$6.20

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• Race 9: The $2 Pick 3 paid an incredible $27,968. The $2 double was as remarkable $3,259.
• Race 10: The $2 Pick 3 paid over $6,800. The $2 Pick 4 returned over $36,000.

Gulfstream (Florida):

• Handle: Exceeded $47 million. A phenomenal day of racing which began at 11:30 a.m. ET. Today was the penultimate day of racing at the meet and also mandatory payout day for the Rainbow 6. Thursday begins the spring/summer meet.
• Irad Ortiz, Jr., (4) and Luis Saez (3), the two leading riders at the meet, dominated the day. Ortiz has 134 wins to Saez's 131 as the meet enters its final day.
• Race 14: Maximum Security (Luis Saez/Jason Servis) won the all-important Florida Derby and 100 points towards entry into the Kentucky Derby. Maximum Security is a perfect 4 4-0-0 with all wins at Gulfstream. Now the question is how he will adapt to another facility. The connections are as hot as anyone at any meet. A bomber at 80-to-1 came in second ($47.40 for place) which spoiled my exotics which ended 1st, 3rd and 4th (7-8-9-4). Over $6.5 million was bet in the pool including $1.5 million in exacta wagering. Wow!

​

• Race 13: Focus Group (Irad Ortiz, Jr./Chad Brown) nipped Melmich (Javier Castellano/Kevin Attard), the Canadian-shipper, in one of the most fantastic finishes of the day. The Grade II race was 1 1/2 miles and had a purse of $250,000.

​

• Race 11: The winner, ridden by Irad Ortiz, Jr., last raced in the 2018 Belmont Stakes (June 2018).
• Race 10: Tyler Gaffalione used every ounce of energy to hold off John Velazquez, who won twice today, in a tremendous race.
• Race 9: Over $14,400,000 was added to the approximately $3m in the Rainbow Six which surpassed $17,100,000 just prior to the horses being sent off. Following the race, there were 31,000,000+ tickets alive. Each winner eventually received about $1,900 following race 14.
• Race 8: Champagne Anyone (Chris Landeros/Ian Wilkes) won the Grade 2 $250,000 Gulfstream Park Oaks at 7-to-1 and in impressive fashion. The rider is the son-in-law to the trainer. Champagne corks were a-poppin'.
• Race 5: One of the best finishes of the day with nearly four across the wire. Irad Ortiz, Jr. closed furiously, he was on his game today.
• Race 4: The $.10 super was $0.66. That is as small as I have ever seen.
• Race 1: A 23-to-1 bomb ridden by Feargal Lynch, who I do not recall ever riding at the track, won. The roulette bet paid $2.60 which is why that is a risky proposition.
• Javier Castellano was a horrendous 11 0-3-0. He has won just once in his last 23 starts.
• Manny Franco, the current leading rider at Aqueduct, had 13 starts for 10 different trainers. He hit the board seven times but without a win. He was 13 0-4-3.

Oaklawn (Arkansas):

• Steve Asmussen had a tough day going 9 0-1-0.

Sam Houston (Texas):

• Closing day: The meet closed today.

Santa Anita (California):

• Handle: Over $13,000,000.
• Purses: Four of $100,000 or more including two at $400,000.
• Race 9: Secret Spice (Geovanni Franco/Richard Baltas) pulled a mild stunner at 11-to-1 in winning the Grade I $400,000 Beholder Stakes.
• Race 5: Ohio (Ruben Fuentes/Michael McCarthy) won the $400,000 Grade I Frank Kilroe mile against challenger Catapult (Drayden Van Dyke/John Sadler) in what was one of the most drawn-out photo finish reviews of all-time. The winner was bred in Brazil. UPDATE: An article regarding the lengthy time...

Hollywood has “The Longest Yard.” Now Santa Anita has “The Longest Photo.”
After an interminable amount of time–perhaps more than five minutes–as fans waited with the anticipation of an expectant father, results of a photo finish from Saturday's Grade I Frank E. Kilroe Mile on turf were posted, showing 9-1 outsider Ohio the winner by the narrowest of noses over 4-5 favorite Catapult.

While it was the toughest of beats for the connections of Catapult, it was a feel-good story for those of Ohio, trainer Michael McCarthy and owners Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners and Bruce Treitman, but most of all 21-year-old jockey Ruben Fuentes, who was riding in his first Grade I race.

“My initial reaction was we got beat,” was the assessment Sunday morning from McCarthy, who gained international acclaim for his masterful preparation of City of Light in winning the $12 million Pegasus World Cup Invitational at Gulfstream Park on Jan. 26.

“I was very pleased that Ohio showed up and ran like that. But after about two or three minutes of waiting for the photo, I felt they were taking an awfully long time to look at it–maybe it could be a dead-heat.

“After about five minutes, I thought, 'This is nice. I don't think they'll make anybody a loser here,' and then when they eventually flashed his number (two), I was in total shock. I couldn't believe it. Both horses ran too good to lose.
“I'm very pleased for Ruben. He's a nice young man, comes out here and tries his best every day, is very polite and seems dedicated to his craft, so it's good to be able to team up with someone like him.”

Ditto for Fuentes' agent, 29-year-old Tijuana native Saul Marquez, who has been booking mounts for 12 years, the last two for the 21-year-old Fuentes, who hails from El Paso.

“He's the hardest worker,” Marquez said. “He never says no, always has a smile on his face and I think this is the start of a long and successful career. It runs in the family, because Ruben's father, Miguel, also rides. He's known as the Mike Smith of Mexico City.

“Waiting for that photo yesterday was very nerve wracking, but very rewarding.”​

 

[MiamiScreamingEagles]

KENTUCKY DERBY LEADER BOARD​

Updated Kentucky Derby leader board. The top 20 make it.

[TR][TH] Rank	Horse	Trainer	Points	Non-Restricted Stakes Earnings
1.	Plus Que Parfait	Brendan Walsh	104	$1,540,400
2.	By My Standards	Bret Calhoun	100	$600,000
3.	Maximum Security	Jason Servis	100	$582,800
4.	Code of Honor	Shug McGaughey	74	$432,070
5.	War of Will	Mark Casse	60	$440,840
6.	Long Range Toddy	Steve Asmussen	53.5	$830,000
7.	Cutting Humor	Todd Pletcher	50	$462,467
8.	Haikal	Kiaran McLaughlin	50	$247,500
9.	Tacitus	Bill Mott	50	$210,000
10.	Game Winner	Bob Baffert	45	$1,610,000
11.	Gray Magician	Peter Miller	41	$526,000
12.	Spinoff	Todd Pletcher	40	$224,000
13.	Bodexpress	Gustavo Delgado	40	$188,000
14.	Omaha Beach	Richard Mandella	37.5	$450,000
15.	Bourbon War	Mark Hennig	31	$137,200
16.	Anothertwistafate	Blaine Wright	30	$228,960
17.	Country House	Bill Mott	30	$120,000
18.	Sueno	Keith Desormeaux	28	$265,000
19.	Improbable	Bob Baffert	25	$389,520
20.	Mucho Gusto	Bob Baffert	24	$286,800
21.	Somelikeithotbrown	Mike Maker	20	$321,665
	+Manguzi (Fr)	Ali Rashid Al Rayhi	20	$280,000
22.	Outshine	Todd Pletcher	20	$74,500
23.	Signalman	Kenny McPeek	18	$392,840
24.	Tax	Danny Gargan	12	$167,500
25.	Derma Louvre (JPN)	Hirofumi Toda	10	$616,402
	+Complexity	Chad Brown	10	$275,000
26.	Harvey Wallbanger	Kenny McPeek	10	$218,320
27.	Gray Attempt	Jinks Fires	10	$211,666
28.	Well Defined	Kathy O’Connell	10	$172,970
29.	Instagrand	Jerry Hollendorfer	10	$156,000
30.	Vekoma	George Weaver	10	$147,600
31.	Win Win Win	Mike Trombetta	10	$116,000
32.	Roiland	Tom Amoss	10	$57,460

[TBODY]
[TBODY] [/TBODY][/TH][/TR][/TBODY]

[TBODY][TR][TH]Upcoming Derby preps as the season concludes...

Apr 6

Wood Memorial

Aqueduct (New York)

1 1/8 Mile

POINTS: 100-40-20-10

[TBODY] [/TBODY]

Apr 6

Santa Anita Derby

Santa Anita (California)

1 1/8 Mile

POINTS: 100-40-20-10

[TBODY] [/TBODY]

Apr 6

Blue Grass

Keeneland (Kentucky)

1 1/8 Mile

POINTS: 100-40-20-10

[TBODY] [/TBODY]

Apr 13

Arkansas Derby

Oaklawn (Arkansas)

1 1/8 Mile

POINTS: 100-40-20-10

[TBODY] [/TBODY]

[/TH][/TR][/TBODY]

 

[MiamiScreamingEagles]

KENTUCKY
The Blue Grass Stakes is April 6. As many as 16 horses have been mentioned in the race and Mark Casse could be sending four. Keeneland's meet opens this week.

CALIFORNIA
The Santa Anita Derby is April 6. The field could be limited to seven with Bob Baffert's game Winner the headliner. Jerry Hollendorfer's Instagrand is likely running, too.

NEW YORK
The Wood Memorial is April 6. The field will be confirmed later in the week. Possible runners in a field of 10:

Horse	Sire	Trainer
Tacitus	Tapit	Bill Mott
Haikal	Daaher	Kiaran McLaughlin
Tax	Arch	Danny Gargan
Final Jeopardy	Street Sense	Jason Servis
Overdeliver	Overanalyze	Todd Pletcher
Outshine	Malibu Moon	Todd Pletcher
Much Better	Pioneerof the Nile	Bob Baffert
Not That Brady	Big Brown	Rudy Rodriguez
Joevia	Shanghai Bobby	Gregory Sacco
Grumps Little Tots	Sky Mesa	Jason Servis

[TBODY] [/TBODY]

 

[MiamiScreamingEagles]

March 31, 2019

Aqueduct (New York):

• Closing day: From Dec. 7, 2018 through Sunday, all-sources handle on Aqueduct’s races was $335,521,091. At the most recent comparable meet, $293,795,129 was bet.
• Leading trainer and jockey: Linda Rice won the trainer's title at the winter meet. Manny Franco won the rider's title.
• Next up: The 12-day Aqueduct spring meet begins April 5 and ends April 20. Then comes Belmont.
• Race 8: Pat's No Fool (Jevian Toledo/Gary Capuano) won the $100,000 feature. The Laurel connections were misjudged going into the Big A. Laurel shippers to New York are not generally overmatched but sometimes get overlooked. The $1 Pick 3 returned over $7,300.
• Race 9: The $.50 Pick 4 was a monster at $44,700+.

Laurel (Maryland):

• Trevor McCarthy won the rider's title and Claudio Gonzalez the trainer's division at the 46-day winter meet which started January 1st and concluded March 31st.

Tampa Bay (Florida):

• Card: Twelve races held of which six were worth $115,000. Tampa Bay was a primary track of interest.
• Handle: Neared $7,000,000.
• Jockeys: Daniel Centeno won four times including twice for leading trainer Gerald Bennett. Visiting riders Tyler Gaffalione and Chris Landeros won twice as did local Antonio Gallardo.

Gulfstream (Florida):

• Irad Ortiz, Jr. won the meet's riding title with 135 victories, He snapped a 134-134 tie with Luis Saez in the penultimate race of the meet. Ortiz, Jr. said afterwards "I love what I do. I like to win. I don't make comments about cheap horses," when the interviewer mentioned that the jockey will ride any type of horse. Saez broke the annual meet's all-time winningest record last year with 137 victories.
• Race 11: Luca Panici's awesome effort in the final race of the meet deprived Luis Saez of tying Irad Ortiz, Jr. for the meaningful meet's title as winningest rider. Panici and Saez hooked up in an epic stretch duel. If Saez had won, he would have tied Ortiz, Jr., the reigning North America Eclipse Award Winner. Saez and Ortiz, Jr. could very well be the best two riders currently in North America.

​

• Race 10: Irad Ortiz, Jr. pulled ahead of Luis Saez by one win with his first victory of the day.
• Race 9: Luis Saez, who entered the day three wins behind Irad Ortiz, Jr. for the meet lead, pulled even with his third victory of the day. Both had 134 wins with rides in the final two races.

Oaklawn (Arkansas):

• Race 9: Landeskog (Jon Court/Doug O'Neill), a first time starter, was impressive in victory in a 6-length romp. The owner of the horse is NHL player Erik Johnson.

Santa Anita (California):

• Race 6: A mere seconds after winning race 9 at Oaklawn, trainer Doug O'Neill won this race which was slightly delayed perhaps due to Oaklawn's starters entering their gate.
• Race 4: Law Abiding Citizen (Tiago Pereira/Mark Glatt) won the $100,000 Grade 3 San Simeon. The race was marred by a spill involving two horses and riders.

 

[Orr Fourever]

I had no luck again. I shall never surrender. Try again next weekend...

 

[MiamiScreamingEagles]

The fourth and final Kentucky Derby futures pool was released. There will be shifting based on the three important races this weekend (Keeneland, Aqueduct and Santa Anita) and next weekend's Arkansas Derby (Oaklawn). Listed alphabetically are the runners with their trainers in parenthesis and the odds.

Game Winner and Maximum Security are the favorites at 8-to-1. Another bi-coastal rivalry ala Affirmed-Alydar and Easy Goer-Sunday Silence?

#1 Anothertwistafate (Blaine Wright, 30-1)	#9 Haikal (Kiaran McLaughlin, 30-1)	#17 Roadster (Baffert, 15-1)
#2 Bodexpress (Gustavo Delgado, 20-1)	#10 Improbable (Baffert, 10-1)	#18 Signalman (Kenny McPeek, 50-1)
#3 Bourbon War (Mark Hennig, 15-1)	#11 Instagrand (Hollendorfer, 15-1)	#19 Spinoff (Pletcher, 30-1)
#4 By My Standards (Bret Calhoun, 12-1)	#12 Long Range Toddy (Steve Asmussen, 15-1)	#20 Tacitus (Bill Mott, 30-1)
#5 Code of Honor (Shug McGaughey III, 12-1)	#13 Maximum Security (Jason Servis, 8-1)	#21 Vekoma (George Weaver, 20-1)
#6 Cutting Humor (Todd Pletcher, 15-1)	#14 Omaha Beach (Richard Mandella, 10-1)	#22 War of Will (Mark Casse, 15-1)
#7 Galilean (Jerry Hollendorfer, 30-1)	#15 Outshine (Pletcher, 30-1)	#23 Win Win Win (Mike Trombetta, 50-1)
#8 Game Winner (Bob Baffert, 8-1)	#16 Plus Que Parfait (Brendan Walsh, 30-1)	#24 "All Other 3-Year-Olds" (15-1)

[TBODY] [/TBODY]

 

[MiamiScreamingEagles]

Keeneland opens its popular meet on Thursday. Suggestions: keep an eye on Wesley Ward's two-year-olds, use Gulfstream shippers.

​

TRANSYLVANIA STAKES

What: Grade III.
Where: Keeneland Racecourse (Lexington, KY)
When: Friday, April 5, 2019, Race 9
Post time: 5:30 pm Eastern Time
Who: 3 year olds
Distance: 1 1/16 miles
Surface: Turf
Purse: $150,000
Television: TVG
History: Inaugurated in 1989.
Preview: Competitive field of 11 entered in Transylvania - Brisnet

[TR][TH]PP	Horse	Jockey	Wgt	Trainer	M/L
1	The Black Album (FR)	Jose L. Ortiz	120	Rodolphe Brisset	-
2	Onthewaytonevrland (IRE)	John R. Velazquez	118	Wesley A. Ward	-
3	Go Away (KY)	Feargal Lynch	118	Eddie Kenneally	-
4	Avie's Flatter (ON)	Javier Castellano	120	Josie Carroll	-
5	Weekly Call (KY)	Brian Joseph Hernandez, Jr.	118	Doug F. O'Neill	-
6	Dunph (KY)	Julien R. Leparoux	118	Michael J. Maker	-
7	Louder Than Bombs (KY)	Luis Saez	120	David Fawkes	-
8	War Film (KY)	Florent Geroux	118	Steven M. Asmussen	-
9	Hawaiian Noises (KY)	Rafael Bejarano	118	Wesley A. Ward	-
10	Henley's Joy (KY)	Tyler Gaffalione	120	Michael J. Maker	-
11	Life Mission (KY)	James Graham	118	Ben Colebrook	-

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[MiamiScreamingEagles]

DISTAFF HANDICAP

What: Grade III.
Where: Aqueduct Racetrack, Ozone Park, Queens, New York
When: Friday, April 5, 2019, Race 8
Post time: 5:15 pm Eastern Time
Who: 4-year-olds and up; fillies and mares
Distance: 7 furlongs
Surface: Dirt
Purse: $150,000
Television: TVG
History: Inaugurated in 1954
Preview: Big A's Distaff Has Holiday Feel - BloodHorse

[TR][TH]PP	Horse	Jockey	Wgt	Trainer	M/L
1	Split Time (NY)	Rajiv Maragh	118	Linda Rice	-
2	Holiday Disguise (NY)	Jose Lezcano	118	Linda Rice	-
3	Rosyjersey (NY)	Joey R. Martinez	112	Susan F. Ouellette	-
4	Startwithsilver (NY)	Eric Cancel	117	Linda Rice	-
5	Come Dancing (KY)	Manuel Franco	118	Carlos F. Martin	-
6	Yorkiepoo Princess (FL)	Dylan Davis	118	Edward R. Barker	-
7	Kathryn the Wise (NY)	Irad Ortiz, Jr.	117	Chad C. Brown	-
8	Pacific Gale (KY)	Joe Bravo	118	John C. Kimmel	-
9	Dawn the Destroyer (KY)	Junior Alvarado	119	Kiaran P. McLaughlin	-

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[MiamiScreamingEagles]

This weekend offers a high volume of graded stakes races including three Kentucky Derby preps which will be shown on NBCSN from 5:30 pm - 7:30 pm ET. Racing can also be found on other networks including MSG, Fox Sports 2 and of course TVG.

The entries for the three Derby preps are below (this will be updated):

Wood Memorial -- 6:00 pm ET
Blue Grass Stakes -- 6:23 pm ET
Santa Anita Derby -- 6:30 pm ET​

WOOD MEMORIAL

What: Grade I. The top four finishers earn points to the Kentucky Derby based on 100-40-20-10.
Where: Aqueduct, South Ozone Parks, Queens, NY
When: Saturday, April 6, 2019, Race 10
Post time: 6:00 pm Eastern Time
Who: 3-year-olds
Distance: 1 1/8 miles
Surface: Dirt
Purse: $750,000
Television: NBCSN, 5:30 pm - 7:30 pm ET
History: Inaugurated in 1925. The most recent winner of this race to triumph in the Kentucky Derby was Fusiachi Pegasus in 2000.
Preview: Haikal Ready for Two-Turn Test in Wood Memorial - BloodHorse

1. Tax (Danny Gargan, Junior Alvarado)
2. Tacitus (Bill Mott, Jose Ortiz)
3. Hoffa’s Union (Mark Casse, Dylan Davis)
4. Haikal (Kiaran McLaughlin, Rajiv Maragh)
5. Final Jeopardy (Jason Servis, Manny Franco)
6. Overdeliver (Todd Pletcher, Kendrick Carmouche)
7. Not That Brady (Rudy Rodriguez, Mario Gutierrez)
8. Grumps Little Tots (Jason Servis, Jose Lezcano)
9. Math Wizard (Saffie Joseph, Eric Cancel)
10. Outshine (Todd Pletcher, John Velazquez)
11. Joevia (Gregory Sacco, Nik Juarez)​

TOYOTA BLUE GRASS STAKES

What: Grade II. The top four finishers earn points to the Kentucky Derby based on 100-40-20-10.
Where: Keeneland Racecourse, Lexington, Kentucky
When: Saturday, April 6, 2019, Race 10
Post time: 6:23 pm Eastern Time
Who: 3-year-olds
Distance: 1 1/8 miles
Surface: Dirt
Purse: $1,000,000
Television: NBCSN, 5:30 pm - 7:30 pm ET
History: Inaugurated in 1911. The most recent winner of this race to be victorious in the Kentucky Derby was Strike the Gold in 1991 with Chris Antley in the irons for Nick Zito. Ah, the memories!
Preview: Toyota Blue Grass Stakes has horses ‘taking deep shots’

[TR][TH]PP	Horse	Jockey	Wgt	Trainer	M/L
1	Somelikeithotbrown (NY)	Tyler Gaffalione	123	Michael J. Maker	10/1
2	Vekoma (KY)	Javier Castellano	123	George Weaver	9/5
3	Signalman (KY)	Brian Joseph Hernandez, Jr.	123	Kenneth G. McPeek	5/1
4	Market King (KY)	Jon Kenton Court	123	D. Wayne Lukas	20/1
5	Chess Chief (VA)	Paco Lopez	123	Dallas Stewart	30/1
6	Dream Maker (KY)	Florent Geroux	123	Mark E. Casse	12/1
7	Admire (KY)	Robby Albarado	123	Dale L. Romans	15/1
8	Win Win Win (FL)	Irad Ortiz, Jr.	123	Michael J. Trombetta	7/2
9	Sir Winston (KY)	Julien R. Leparoux	123	Mark E. Casse	15/1
10	Lucky Lee (KY)	Chris Landeros	123	John C. Servis	20/1
11	So Alive (KY)	Luis Saez	123	Todd A. Pletcher	15/1
12	Parsimony (PA)	Mario Gutierrez	123	Doug F. O'Neill	20/1
13	Moonster (KY)	John McKee	123	Dale L. Romans	30/1
14	Aquadini (KY)	Corey J. Lanerie	123	Dallas Stewart	30/1

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[TBODY][TR][TH]SANTA ANITA DERBY

What: Grade I. The top four finishers earn points to the Kentucky Derby based on 100-40-20-10.
Where: Santa Anita Park, Arcadia, California
When: Saturday, April 06, 2019, Race 8
Post time: 7:14 pm Eastern Time; 4:14 pm Pacific Time
Who: 3-year-olds
Distance: 1 1/8 miles
Surface: Dirt
Purse: $1,000,000
Television: NBCSN, 5:30 pm - 7:30 pm ET
History: Inaugurated in 1935. Arguably the most important KY Derby prep in recent years as three of the past seven KY Derby winners have won this race.. Bob Baffert has won this race eight times.
Preview: Champion Game Winner Back for Santa Anita Derby - BloodHorse

[TR][TH]PP	Horse	Jockey	Wgt	Trainer	M/L
1	Roadster (KY)	Mike E. Smith	124	Bob Baffert	5/2
2	More Ice (FL)	Geovanni Franco	124	Jerry Hollendorfer	30/1
3	Nolo Contesto (KY)	Joseph Talamo	124	John W. Sadler	6/1
4	Synthesis (KY)	Rafael Bejarano	124	George Papaprodromou	30/1
5	Instagrand (KY)	Flavien Prat	124	Jerry Hollendorfer	3/1
6	Game Winner (KY)	Joel Rosario	124	Bob Baffert	4/5

[TBODY]
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[TBODY][TR][TH]
MY PICKS IN NUMERICAL ORDER:
Wood Memorial -- 1-2-10
Blue Grass Stakes -- 1-3-11
Santa Anita Derby -- 1-5-6
[/TH][/TR][/TBODY]​

[/TH][/TR][/TBODY]

 

[MiamiScreamingEagles]

This is being billed as Stakes Saturday with many graded stakes in North America. A Grade I is below.

CARTER HANDICAP

What: Grade I.
Where: Aqueduct Racetrack, South Ozone Park, Queens, New York
When: Saturday, April 6, 2019, Race 9
Post time: 5:22 pm Eastern Time
Who: 4-year-olds and up
Distance: 7 furlongs
Surface: Dirt
Purse: $400,000
Television: MSG (3:00-5:30 pm ET) and Fox Sports 2 (4:00-5:30 pm ET). Also. coverage on TVG.
History: Inaugurated in 1895.

[TR][TH]PP	Horse	Jockey	Wgt	Trainer	M/L
1	Sir Ballantine (KY)	Michael J. Luzzi	115	Danny Gargan	-
2	Vino Rosso (KY)	John R. Velazquez	120	Todd A. Pletcher	-
3	Life in Shambles (KY)	Eric Cancel	117	Jason Servis	-
4	Identity Politics (KY)	Jose L. Ortiz	116	Chad C. Brown	-
5	Skyler's Scramjet (KY)	Rajiv Maragh	117	Michelle Nevin	-
6	Timber Ghost (KY)	Junior Alvarado	115	James A. Jerkens	-
7	Honor Up (NY)	Jose Lezcano	116	Michelle Nevin	-
8	World of Trouble (FL)	Manuel Franco	121	Jason Servis	-

[TBODY]
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​

 

[MiamiScreamingEagles]

April 4, 2019

• Few major tracks ran this Thursday.

Gulfstream (Florida):

• Opening day: Today was the opener of the less popular spring/summer meet.
• Rains: The day began on the turf but following the third, turf became a non-option.
• Edgard Zayas returned from a broken leg suffered in December. He won twice.
• Ralph Nicks sent out two starters and won both races.
• Race 5: The $2 Pick 3 was a shocker at $10,000+.
• Race 4: A remarkable $1,582.40 for the daily double.
• Race 3: Samy Camacho brought home a 33-1 shot in style. The leading rider at Tampa Bay.

Keeneland (Kentucky):

• Opening day: The meet opened today with a rare 3:00 pm opener. The crowd was enthusiastic which is the norm for Keeneland. A pretty venue.
• Race 1: Bombers exploded in the opener with 13-1, 30-1, 40-1, 16-1 and 23-1 among the top five. The $1 super was a shocking $103,373.40. Mean Sophia (Agustin Gomez/Cirilo Gorostieta) won by 10 1/12 lengths in a race of all first-time starters. The jockey has four lifetime wins and the trainer is listed with six lifetime victories.

​

• Race 2: The $1 super paid $28.60. Compare that to the opener. That is as large a difference as I remember for a non-stakes day.
• Race 7: Bulletin (Javier Castellano/Todd Pletcher) won the $100,000 feature. The colt is a perfect 3 3-0-0.

​

• Joel Rosario was 3 2-1-0, the only rider to win 2+ times. No trainer won more than once.
• Wesley Ward had six entered but only one ran.

Oaklawn (Arkansas):

• Race 7: A close finish with a 48-1 defeating a 3-1 owned by top owner M and M Racing who won the first two races. M and M has 42 wins at the meet, more than double the runner up.
• David Cohen had three winners. He has 48 wins at the meet, two behind leader Ricardo Santana, Jr.
• The Arkansas Derby is April 13. It is the last major Kentucky Derby prep.

Santa Anita (California):

• Race 8: Mike Smith won the finale at 17-to-1, tied for the longest shot on the board. The winner of over 5,000 races won for trainer Neil French who has about 250 lifetime wins. I am not sure how often the duo has been paired. Gary Stevens, now retired and a Hall of Famer, road for French in the past.
• Mike Smith's superb numbers in 2019: 71 24-11-10 (34%/63%).

 

[MiamiScreamingEagles]

Three preps for the Kentucky Oaks which runs the first Friday in May.

 

[Preds Partisan]

 

[MiamiScreamingEagles]

April 5, 2019

Aqueduct (New York):

• Race 9: The $2 Pick 6 paid an astronomical $291,000+.
• Race 8: Come Dancing (Manny Franco/Carlos Martin) won the $150,000 Grade 3 Disatff in an exceptional performance going gate-to-wire.
• Manny Franco won three straight races.
• Carlos Martin was the winning trainer of the last two races.
• Irad Ortiz, Jr. had a brutal day, a rarity for him. He rode the card but was winless at 9 0-4-2. I get the feeling he will make amends on "Stakes Day Saturday."

Laurel (Maryland):

• Race 1: The 7-to-1 winner was DQ'd to second place.
• Race 5: One of the best races of the day with rider Johan Rosado fighting to the end. Lacey Gaudet winning trainer.
• Race 9: Brooks Robinson, a 4-year-old gelding out for the 5th time, was the runner-up.

Keeneland (Kentucky):

• Graphics: Lousy color scheme, but the track, despite its wonderful offerings, seems to think white on a light brown is easy on the eyes and additionally underneath a scrunched odds board in the color green. Nope! Laurel still has the best simulcast feed, white on black works and thicker numbers.
• Leaders: Javier Castellano 5 3-1-1 (60%/100%) and Joel Rosario 6 3-2-0 both have both three times through two days.
• Race 2: Lady Pauline (John Velazquez/Wesley Ward), another exceptional 2-year-old for Ward, debuted to a victory.

​

• Race 9: Avie's Flatter (Javier Castellano/Josie Carroll) came down from Woodbine (Canada) and impressed to a victory in the Grade 3 $150,000 Transylvania Stakes.

​

Gulfstream (Florida):

• Leaders: Through two days of the new meet, Edgard Zayas and Paco Lopez lead all riders with three wins. Ralph Nicks has trained three winners with a total of five starters.

Oaklawn (Arkansas):

• M and M Racing won two more times, that makes victories for the ownership with 8 of their past 14 starters.

Santa Anita (California):

• The Rainbow Six is a mandatory payout on Saturday. Estimates project a figure in the ballpark of $3,000,000.