Rachel Alexandra, Risen Star, Gulfstream Park Sprint, Fair Grounds Handicap, Mineshaft Handicap, Futurity Handicap, Blue Diamond, Oakleigh Plate, Chipping Norton, Tiznow, Nakayama Kinen, Citi Hong Kong Gold Cup, Queen's Silver Jubilee Cup, and more.
Maxis Stable's Enterprising stalked favorite Oscar Nominated and gained an advantage in the deep stretch to win the $125,000 Fair Grounds Handicap (G3T) Feb. 25 by three-quarters of a length to give trainer Mike Maker the exacta for the race.
Each week BloodHorse.com looks forward to the weekend's biggest races. This week we have a full slate of stakes at Fair Grounds Race Course & Slots, a Kentucky Oaks (G1) prep at Aqueduct Racetrack, and more.
Calumet Farm will introduce four new stallions in 2017, led by 2015 champion turf male Big Blue Kitten.
Longshot S'maverlous proved up to the challenge of his first stakes try and registered a clear victory in the $400,000 New Orleans Handicap (gr. II) March 26 at Fair Grounds Race Course & Slots.
Chocolate Ride struck for a second consecutive win in the $125,000 Fair Grounds Handicap (gr. IIIT) Feb. 20, leading at every point of call before holding off fast-finishing Roman Approval at Fair Grounds Race Course & Slots.
Morning-line favorite Chocolate Ride, state-bred star String King have 19 starts between them on the Fair Grounds turf; They square off Feb. 20 in the $125,000 Fair Grounds Handicap (gr. IIIT).
Graded stakes winner Major Gain has been retired from racing and will stand the 2016 breeding season at McMahon of Saratoga Thoroughbreds in New York.
Three graded stakes winners will look to claim their second victories in that category in the $300,000 Kentucky Turf Cup Stakes (gr. IIIT) Sept. 12 at Kentucky Downs.
Lucky Speed saved all for the stretch run, surging from off the pace to collar Panama Hat in deep stretch and capture the $350,000 American St. Leger (gr. IIIT) Aug. 15 at Arlington International Racecourse.
Should fan favorite The Pizza Man start in the Arlington Million XXXIII Stakes (gr. IT), then Ken and Sarah Ramsey's Hyper becomes the main threat for the 1 11/16-mile American St. Leger Stakes (gr. IIIT).
Tested by a strong stretch run to his inside from Dynamic Sky, Aldous Snow proved up to the challenge as he held off that rival to win the $150,000 Singspiel Stakes (gr. IIIT) for a second straight year.
Charles Fipke's homebred grade I winner Java's War will look to return to winning form in the $150,000 Singspiel Stakes (Can-III) July 5, his first graded try since his 3-year-old season in 2013.
West Point Thoroughbreds' Twilight Eclipse will look to make it a double June 6 in the $1 million Knob Creek Manhattan (gr. IT) at Belmont Park, coming off his first grade I win in the May 9 Man o' War Handicap (gr. IT).
Millionaire Willcox Inn had his stallion career cut short when he had to be euthanized after being injured in a paddock accident May 24.
The 2014 Arlington Million winner will step straight into the highest level of competition for his first start of the year, and takes on 2014 Man o' War victor Imagining May 9 at Belmont Park.
TimeformUS looks at the Elkhorn Stakes (gr. IIT) at Keeneland. read blog
Robert Evans' Unitarian will attempt to become the fourth horse to win the $250,000 Dixiana Elkhorn (gr. IIT) in consecutive years April 18, when he faces 10 rivals at Keeneland.
John Wentworth's Chocolate Ride went right to the front and never looked back to upset the $125,000 Fair Grounds Handicap (gr. IIIT) at Fair Grounds Race Course & Slots Feb. 21.
Todd Pletcher said J S Bach would be scratched from the Risen Star Stakes (gr. II) and trainer David Carroll said Villandry would be scratched from the Fair Grounds Handicap (gr. IIIT).
On Feb. 21, the 6-year-old son of English Channel returns with a new trainer, and his connections' hope that he can ace the $125,000 Fair Grounds Handicap (gr. IIIT), a race in which he finished second in 2014.
Daddy's Kid could be the class play as he takes on eight opponents in the $200,00 John B. Connally Turf Cup (gr. IIIT) at Sam Houston Race Park the night of Jan. 24. Also on the bill is the $400,000 Houston Ladies Classic.
TimeformUS Weekend Stakes Plays for the G1 Shadwell Tuf Mile, featuring lifetime PPs from Wise Dan. read blog
Tom LaMarra and Claire Novak at Keeneland to preview the Shadwell Turf Mile featuring Wise Dan, Optimizer, Silver Max, Kaigun, and Seek Again. Watch Video
Two-time Horse of the Year Wise Dan faces the stiffest challenge of his remarkable return from colic surgery when he takes on Seek Again and Silver Max among seven rivals in the $1 million Shadwell Turf Mile (gr. IT) Oct. 4.
| Horse | Trainer | Breeder / Owner |
|---|---|---|
| Bim Bam | Ron Moquett |
|
| Cavalero | John Troy Hardy |
|
| Golden Yank | Gary A. Thomas |
|
| Hyper | Chad C. Brown |
|
| Macho Bull | Gennadi Dorochenko |
|
| Major Gain | Louie J. Roussel, III |
|
| Optimizer | Jose Fernandez |
|
| Quality Control (BRZ) | Thomas M. Amoss |
|
| Strike Impact | Patrick J. Dupuy |
|
| Two Months Rent | James J. Toner |
|
| Unlatch | Albert M. Stall, Jr. |
|
| Willcox Inn | Michael Stidham |
|
| Race | Track | Date |
|---|---|---|
| Ontario County S. | FL | |
| Bashford Manor S. (G3) | CD | |
| Debutante S. | CD | |
| Kelly's Landing Overnight S. | CD | |
| Petticoat S. | ALB |
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