We were quite disturbed to see the photos and read the articles that have been running in the media the last few days. The well publicized visit by the NFL star, Terrell Owens when he visited the barn of trainer John Shirreffs and in return got a first hand look at the mare and took several photo ops with the 19-19 win machine. Not that we doubt Owens' ability on the playing field. He's a good receiver and can win you football games. It's his on field antics and what he does off the football field. He's a distractor and "cancer" and will take advantage of every chance and opportunity to promote himself and himself only. If racing is looking for ways to attract attention, Zenyatta certainly doesn't need any assistance from Mr. Owens. She's way too classy for that.
Blind Luck continues her preparations for the Breeders' Cup and drilled a snappy 1:01.20 at Hollywood Park on Sunday. With Joel Rosario up, her connections were quite please with the drill and deemed her to be right on schedule.
Tuesday, October 19, 2010
Monday, October 18, 2010
Zenyetta, Blame drill for Breeders' Cup
Zenyatta was also seen at Hollywood Park earlier in the week and also drilled for her upcoming appearance in either the Breeders' Cup Classic or Ladies Classic. Her connections were happy with the way she looks and is preparing for her next start. Zenyatta will be looking to keep her perfect streak in tact which now stands at 19.
As reported last week, the new dirt track is progressing nicely at Santa Anita and projections have the new course being completed by December 6th which will allow several weeks of "settling" and allowing horses to train before any adjustments need to be made for opening day on December 26th.
The 2010 Grade II $150,000 Oak Tree Mile on Saturday went to the outsider, Fantastic Pick for jockey Corey Nakatani and trainer James Lloyd. Owned by Ford, Maycock and Smole the 3-year-old gelding was winning for the fifth time in 15 lifetime efforts and paid a hefty $46.20 to his backers while he edged out the promising local debut try of Blue Panis who was coming here from France. The invader did everything but win after cutting out the pace under Joe Talamo.
Sunday's feature the Grade III $100,000 Harold C. Ramser Handicap was taken by the upsetter Go Forth North under David Flores for trainer A.A. Avila and owners Lo-Bo Racing, Pyle and Summer of Fun Stable. The 3-year-old filly now has won a Graded race and is black type.
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Tuesday, October 12, 2010
Santa Anita begins on new dirt track
Construction was to have begun on Santa Anita's new dirt track on Monday, October 11 according to the tracks website. The beginning of the removal of the synthetic course has begun and the target date to have the new dirt down is December 6, 2010 in time for horses to begin training and for track officials to work out any bugs or kinks before the meeting opens. This is indeed good news for serious horse players and horsemen alike. For those who would like to follow the progress of the removal of the synthetic course you can click here.
Sidney's Candy was scratched from Saturday's Grade II $150,000 Oak Tree Mile due to a pending sale of the 3-year-old colt by Candy Ride. Trainer John Sadler confirmed the sale and said the transaction should be concluded this week.
Wednesday's card at Hollywood Park was canceled due to a heavy rain that fell onto the track and caused flooding which washed sand and debris onto parts of the backstretch. Riders and track management were concerned for the safety of both horses and riders so the card was canceled about 1:40 P.M.
Liberian Freighter ran perhaps the best race of his career when winning the Grade II $150,000 Oak Tree Mile Saturday, October 9 under Martin Garcia for trainer Neil Drysdale at $46.40. The 5-year-old gelding was winning for the eighth time in 22 lifetime starts for owners Dougan Estate of Nahem and Winner.
The Grade I $250,000 Ancient Title run on Saturday, October 9 was taken down by Smiling Tiger under Russell Baze for trainer Jeff Bonde. The lone 3-year-old in the field vs. older rewarded his backers with a $9.20 payoff.
Monday's Holiday Grade III $100,000 Morvich Handicap was taken by Quick Enough under Patrick Valenzuela for trainer Doug O'Neill . While a recent claim by his current connections, the son of High Brite has paid quick dividends for his new owners and should be seen again real soon.
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Sidney's Candy was scratched from Saturday's Grade II $150,000 Oak Tree Mile due to a pending sale of the 3-year-old colt by Candy Ride. Trainer John Sadler confirmed the sale and said the transaction should be concluded this week.
Wednesday's card at Hollywood Park was canceled due to a heavy rain that fell onto the track and caused flooding which washed sand and debris onto parts of the backstretch. Riders and track management were concerned for the safety of both horses and riders so the card was canceled about 1:40 P.M.
Liberian Freighter ran perhaps the best race of his career when winning the Grade II $150,000 Oak Tree Mile Saturday, October 9 under Martin Garcia for trainer Neil Drysdale at $46.40. The 5-year-old gelding was winning for the eighth time in 22 lifetime starts for owners Dougan Estate of Nahem and Winner.
The Grade I $250,000 Ancient Title run on Saturday, October 9 was taken down by Smiling Tiger under Russell Baze for trainer Jeff Bonde. The lone 3-year-old in the field vs. older rewarded his backers with a $9.20 payoff.
Monday's Holiday Grade III $100,000 Morvich Handicap was taken by Quick Enough under Patrick Valenzuela for trainer Doug O'Neill . While a recent claim by his current connections, the son of High Brite has paid quick dividends for his new owners and should be seen again real soon.
If you are heading to the races real soon why not take us with you? We have affordable packages for every budget and are a must use for an enjoyable day at the races! Visit us now at:
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Sunday, October 3, 2010
Rachel out, Zenyatta continues the parade
Rachel Alexandra was retired from racing which is past, old news to some. But lets not forget that this wonderful and talented filly did much for racing and will certainly go down in the history books as one of the good ones. Despite the match racing not unfolding with Zenyatta, she was a monster in 2009 and her accomplishments were many. Congrats and thank you to her connections for having down a wonderful job with her.
Speaking of Zenyatta who remains perfect at 19 wins from 19 career starts. The now 6-year-old mare continues to do what she has to do and that is win her races. Saturday's triumph in the Grade I $250,000 Lady's Secret added to her bankroll which is now over a whopping 6,254,580. Ridden again by Mike Smith, the daughter of Street Cry returned $2.20 at 1/9 odds and covered the 1 1/6th miles in 1:42.97. Not much left to say as we are running out of things to say about her except she is always fun to watch her strut her stuff. Next stop will be the Breeders' Cup Classic.
Zenyatta has to be given credit for the huge attendance at Hollywood Park on Saturday which drew 25,837. Was it the Zenyatta hat or the mare herself that was responsible for the draw? We'll let you figure that one out for yourself.
Another local star, Lookin at Lucky made good when he scored in Saturday's Grade II $500,000 Indiana Derby. Trained by Bob Baffert and ridden by Martin Garcia, the son of Smart Strike took a positive step forward for his next appearance in the Breeders' Cup Classic.
Jaycito perhaps should be looking for some flights to the Breeders' Cup as well with his sharp looking win in Saturday's Grade I $250,000 Norfolk Stakes. Overpowering the race favorite late, J P's Gusto, Jaycito is a son of Victory Gallop and was ridden by Mike Smith for trainer Mike Mitchell. Jaycito paid $8.40 for the win.
The Grade I $250,000 Yellow Ribbon was taken by the invading Hibaayeb for trainer Saeed bin Suroor under Rafael Bejarano. Paying $8.60 for the win, the 3-year-old filly snapped back to life after appearing to be tailing off some in Great Britain. She has now won 3 races from 11 lifetime efforts.
Bob Baffert's Richard Candy is the Rodney Dangerfield of racing. He gets no respect. Winning the Grade I $250,000 Goodwood under Alonso Quinonez, the son of Lemon Drop Kid was allowed to postward at odds of 8/1 to return $18.60 for the win.
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Speaking of Zenyatta who remains perfect at 19 wins from 19 career starts. The now 6-year-old mare continues to do what she has to do and that is win her races. Saturday's triumph in the Grade I $250,000 Lady's Secret added to her bankroll which is now over a whopping 6,254,580. Ridden again by Mike Smith, the daughter of Street Cry returned $2.20 at 1/9 odds and covered the 1 1/6th miles in 1:42.97. Not much left to say as we are running out of things to say about her except she is always fun to watch her strut her stuff. Next stop will be the Breeders' Cup Classic.
Zenyatta has to be given credit for the huge attendance at Hollywood Park on Saturday which drew 25,837. Was it the Zenyatta hat or the mare herself that was responsible for the draw? We'll let you figure that one out for yourself.
Another local star, Lookin at Lucky made good when he scored in Saturday's Grade II $500,000 Indiana Derby. Trained by Bob Baffert and ridden by Martin Garcia, the son of Smart Strike took a positive step forward for his next appearance in the Breeders' Cup Classic.
Jaycito perhaps should be looking for some flights to the Breeders' Cup as well with his sharp looking win in Saturday's Grade I $250,000 Norfolk Stakes. Overpowering the race favorite late, J P's Gusto, Jaycito is a son of Victory Gallop and was ridden by Mike Smith for trainer Mike Mitchell. Jaycito paid $8.40 for the win.
The Grade I $250,000 Yellow Ribbon was taken by the invading Hibaayeb for trainer Saeed bin Suroor under Rafael Bejarano. Paying $8.60 for the win, the 3-year-old filly snapped back to life after appearing to be tailing off some in Great Britain. She has now won 3 races from 11 lifetime efforts.
Bob Baffert's Richard Candy is the Rodney Dangerfield of racing. He gets no respect. Winning the Grade I $250,000 Goodwood under Alonso Quinonez, the son of Lemon Drop Kid was allowed to postward at odds of 8/1 to return $18.60 for the win.
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Monday, September 20, 2010
Pedroza, favorites keep rolling along at Fairplex Park
Martin Pedroza continues his torrid pace at Fairplex Park as he has sprinted away from the rest of the jockey colony. With the final week of racing head, it is safe to say Pedroza has all but wrapped up another riding title here at the Los Angeles County Fair. The 40-year-old something rider looks to be in his 20's the way he handles the horses, turns and other riders around these parts. Yes, call Martin Pedroza "Mr. Pomona" because he certainly is.
How about the ride Patrick Valenzuela gave Clubhouse Ride on Sunday in the $115,000 Barretts Juvenile? The two-year-old colt by Candy Ride (Ride The Rails) was winning for the second time in his career, coming off a solid good looking maiden win at Del Mar for trainer Clifford Sise. Clubhouse Ride unleashed a powerhouse move down the backside to vie for the lead and draw away for a sharp win. This all came after a rough start in which Clubhouse Ride was bumped hard leaving the gate to race well behind the field early on. Had he failed to kick it in, he would have had a built in excuse which makes his win here more impressive. The owners Six-S Racing Stables seem to have a nice colt on their hands and should be followed up the ladder.
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How about the ride Patrick Valenzuela gave Clubhouse Ride on Sunday in the $115,000 Barretts Juvenile? The two-year-old colt by Candy Ride (Ride The Rails) was winning for the second time in his career, coming off a solid good looking maiden win at Del Mar for trainer Clifford Sise. Clubhouse Ride unleashed a powerhouse move down the backside to vie for the lead and draw away for a sharp win. This all came after a rough start in which Clubhouse Ride was bumped hard leaving the gate to race well behind the field early on. Had he failed to kick it in, he would have had a built in excuse which makes his win here more impressive. The owners Six-S Racing Stables seem to have a nice colt on their hands and should be followed up the ladder.
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Monday, September 13, 2010
Opening week at Fairplex Park
Well the dirt racing has returned at Fairplex Park at the Los Angeles County Fair and we can't say enough about being able to handicap on the organic stuff. The course has played fair with speed being given the advantage early on. However, come-from-behinders have been fairing okay too so all in all it's been a very fair track from what we have seen. The weather has been awesome and we are looking for exciting days ahead with some great racing and stakes action.
One of the reasons we have always been a fan of this meeting is the racing. There is a vast quantity of shippers coming in from out of state and that brings its fair share of low level claimers to town. Old fashioned racing and race riding as the jockeys and trainers compete for better purse money. This aspect of the game seems to heighten the excitement level and ups the handicapping game to a renewed level as well. One negative aspect of this is that Martin Pedroza always seems to get overbet on everything he rides. Since he tends to ride the best horse in most races, he's a hard guy to beat. However when you do find a competitive horse that Pedroza isn't riding, chances are you'll find good value.
Martin Pedroza has done his early sprint away from the gate and is already well in front in the jockeys race. Doug O'Neill and Peter Miller are going head to head right now in the trainers race.
Opening day offered up the $50,000 Beverly J. Lewis stakes which was won by the Bob Baffert trained Subsidized under Martin Pedroza at $3.80. This daughter of Ghostzapper (Awesome Again) looked good taking the field in this 6 1/2 furlong contest and should be heard from again real soon.
Saturday's $50,000 E. B. Johnston was won by the odds on favorite U R All That I Am under Martin Pedroza for trainer Jerry Hollendorfer. The 4-year-old filly was reversing a losing streak of three in a row but looked back to her old self here as she was well bet on at 2-5 to return $2.80.
Sunday's $50,000 Bangles and Beads was won by Via Veneto under Martin Pedroza for trainer Bob Baffert to return $3.20 to her backers. The daughter of Orientate (Mt. Livermore) was winning for the third time in 12 career outings for her owner Donald Dizney.
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One of the reasons we have always been a fan of this meeting is the racing. There is a vast quantity of shippers coming in from out of state and that brings its fair share of low level claimers to town. Old fashioned racing and race riding as the jockeys and trainers compete for better purse money. This aspect of the game seems to heighten the excitement level and ups the handicapping game to a renewed level as well. One negative aspect of this is that Martin Pedroza always seems to get overbet on everything he rides. Since he tends to ride the best horse in most races, he's a hard guy to beat. However when you do find a competitive horse that Pedroza isn't riding, chances are you'll find good value.
Martin Pedroza has done his early sprint away from the gate and is already well in front in the jockeys race. Doug O'Neill and Peter Miller are going head to head right now in the trainers race.
Opening day offered up the $50,000 Beverly J. Lewis stakes which was won by the Bob Baffert trained Subsidized under Martin Pedroza at $3.80. This daughter of Ghostzapper (Awesome Again) looked good taking the field in this 6 1/2 furlong contest and should be heard from again real soon.
Saturday's $50,000 E. B. Johnston was won by the odds on favorite U R All That I Am under Martin Pedroza for trainer Jerry Hollendorfer. The 4-year-old filly was reversing a losing streak of three in a row but looked back to her old self here as she was well bet on at 2-5 to return $2.80.
Sunday's $50,000 Bangles and Beads was won by Via Veneto under Martin Pedroza for trainer Bob Baffert to return $3.20 to her backers. The daughter of Orientate (Mt. Livermore) was winning for the third time in 12 career outings for her owner Donald Dizney.
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Wednesday, September 8, 2010
Closing day at Del Mar. Hello Fairplex Park
As they say, no rest for the wicked. We put the wrap on Del Mar on Wednesday and jump right into Fairplex Park on Thursday. While Del Mar is always one of our favorite tracks we can't say we had a good time there this season as it was a sub-par meeting for us with below normal percentages for us. While it's not fair to blame the synthetic surface for our bad numbers since everybody has to handicap on the same surface, we sure would like to see some consistency in the track.
Speaking on consistency, how about the Del Mar Stewards call on Sunday when they let Twirling Candy stand after fouling Summer Movie? That is perhaps one of the worst calls we have seen in the game since we got involved 40-years ago. Brutal.
However, the meeting provided lots of bright spots like normal and all and all was a successful one. Kudos to management with them offering a minimum 50-cent Pick 4 which helped increase the handle of the Pick 4 and to great coverage on Facebook, which allowed fans to be apart of racing and comment on their experience at the track. One thing we could do without next year however is the "Cougar" promotion as the track promotes the older, affluent breast implanted and botox injected women that want to hook up and hang out with the with the younger guys trackside. Del Mar Management seemed fascinated in posting picks on Facebook and having one of these ladies crowned "Miss Cougar." Enough of this nonsense.
Congratulations to leading trainer Doug O'Neill and leading jockey Joel Rosario for a job and meeting well done. Rosario and Rafael Bejarano battled until the final race as Rosario prevailed by hanging a nose at the wire and winning the title. O'Neill had wrapped up the title long ago.
Rafael Bejarano certainly didn't look like a leading rider candidate with his ride aboard Late Cuddle at odds on in the 5th race on Friday. Bejarano had the mare 4, 5-wide throughout and never did try to get her inside. Perhaps next time we'll see a rider switch on the Jerry Hollendorfer trained mare.
Those who saw Tell a Kelly win Saturday's Darley Debutante witnessed a visually impressive performance by a very talented filly. Racing for the John Sadler stable under Alonso Quinonez, the daughter of Tapit drew away for a powerful score, beating the undefeated Wickedly Perfect easily to pay $11.20. This filly needs to be followed as it looks like owners Ike and Dawn Thrash have a nice one.
The Del Mar Derby Sunday was won by Twirling Candy but result shouldn't have been allowed to stand up. Those that haven't seen this race need to see it. No mistake the 1/5 shot was best, but the son of Candy Ride completely took out Summer Movie and should have been DQ'ed for his win. The connections of John Sadler and Jenny Craig remained classy as owner Jenny Craig approached and apologized to the owners of Summer Movie for the incident. Twirling Candy remains undefeated and is now 4 for 4.
The Torrey Pines was won by Switch for the popular connections of John Sadler and Joel Rosario as the daughter of Quiet American took home the winners share of the $100,000 purse. Switch was winning for the third time in eight lifetime starts.
Closing day on Wednesday saw J P's Gusto win the Grade I $250,000 Del Mar Futurity under Patrick Valenzuela for trainer David Hofmans. The 2-year-old son of Successful Appeal looked quite powerful in his win and looks to have serious designs on the future as it appeared from his effort he can go further in distance.
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Speaking on consistency, how about the Del Mar Stewards call on Sunday when they let Twirling Candy stand after fouling Summer Movie? That is perhaps one of the worst calls we have seen in the game since we got involved 40-years ago. Brutal.
However, the meeting provided lots of bright spots like normal and all and all was a successful one. Kudos to management with them offering a minimum 50-cent Pick 4 which helped increase the handle of the Pick 4 and to great coverage on Facebook, which allowed fans to be apart of racing and comment on their experience at the track. One thing we could do without next year however is the "Cougar" promotion as the track promotes the older, affluent breast implanted and botox injected women that want to hook up and hang out with the with the younger guys trackside. Del Mar Management seemed fascinated in posting picks on Facebook and having one of these ladies crowned "Miss Cougar." Enough of this nonsense.
Congratulations to leading trainer Doug O'Neill and leading jockey Joel Rosario for a job and meeting well done. Rosario and Rafael Bejarano battled until the final race as Rosario prevailed by hanging a nose at the wire and winning the title. O'Neill had wrapped up the title long ago.
Rafael Bejarano certainly didn't look like a leading rider candidate with his ride aboard Late Cuddle at odds on in the 5th race on Friday. Bejarano had the mare 4, 5-wide throughout and never did try to get her inside. Perhaps next time we'll see a rider switch on the Jerry Hollendorfer trained mare.
Those who saw Tell a Kelly win Saturday's Darley Debutante witnessed a visually impressive performance by a very talented filly. Racing for the John Sadler stable under Alonso Quinonez, the daughter of Tapit drew away for a powerful score, beating the undefeated Wickedly Perfect easily to pay $11.20. This filly needs to be followed as it looks like owners Ike and Dawn Thrash have a nice one.
The Del Mar Derby Sunday was won by Twirling Candy but result shouldn't have been allowed to stand up. Those that haven't seen this race need to see it. No mistake the 1/5 shot was best, but the son of Candy Ride completely took out Summer Movie and should have been DQ'ed for his win. The connections of John Sadler and Jenny Craig remained classy as owner Jenny Craig approached and apologized to the owners of Summer Movie for the incident. Twirling Candy remains undefeated and is now 4 for 4.
The Torrey Pines was won by Switch for the popular connections of John Sadler and Joel Rosario as the daughter of Quiet American took home the winners share of the $100,000 purse. Switch was winning for the third time in eight lifetime starts.
Closing day on Wednesday saw J P's Gusto win the Grade I $250,000 Del Mar Futurity under Patrick Valenzuela for trainer David Hofmans. The 2-year-old son of Successful Appeal looked quite powerful in his win and looks to have serious designs on the future as it appeared from his effort he can go further in distance.
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