Point of Entry can solidify his present status as the nation's leading long-distance turf performer with a victory in Saturday's Grade 1, $600,000 <a target="_blank" href="http://www.brisnet.com/edgeped/turfclassic12">Joe Hirsch Turf Classic Invitational</a>. The 1 1/2-mile fixture over Belmont Park's Widener course came up light compared to other stakes on Super Saturday with only six names dropped in the entry box.
The top three from the Grade 1 Whitney Handicap on August 4 are in the spotlight Saturday when they headline a surprisingly robust field in the Grade 1, $1 million <a target="_blank" href="http://www.brisnet.com/edgeped/jcgc12"> Jockey Club Gold Cup</a>. The historic 1 1/4-mile test tops a bumper card of Breeders' Cup preps on Belmont Park's "Super Saturday" program.
<i><b><font face="Arial" size="4">COMMENTARY</font></b></i>
Undefeated two-year-old filly So Many Ways, winner of the Grade 1 Spinaway Stakes and Grade 3 Schuylerville Stakes, will not travel to California to run in the Grade 1 Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies, it was announced Wednesday.
The Great Race Place, Santa Anita, opens a 24-day Autumn Meet Friday, which will be highlighted by the Breeders' Cup World Championships on November 2-3.
<i><b><font face="Arial" size="4">BELMONT NOTEBOOK</font></b></i>
Canary Row, trained in Ireland by Patrick Prendergast, is among eight runners for the Group 3, £40,000 Somerville Tattersall over seven furlongs at Newmarket on Thursday, the first day of the Cambridgeshire Festival.
Winning Express, trained by Ed McMahon, is one of the 15 fillies engaged for the Group 1, £163,500 Cheveley Park at Newmarket on Saturday after she was supplemented Monday at a cost of £15,000.
The race to become champion steeplechaser of 2012 is about to reach its final fences as Belmont Park hosts the Grade 1, $150,000 <a target="_blank" href="http://www.brisnet.com/edgeped/lonesomeglory12"> Lonesome Glory</a> on Thursday.
Trevor Denman celebrates his 60th birthday Monday and on Friday, he'll embark upon his 30th season as the voice of Santa Anita when the 2012 Autumn Meet gets underway at 1 p.m. (PDT).
On Saturday, she wrapped up her gifted history at the local oval with a victory by almost seven lengths, and that led to the ice cream celebration that had been publicly promised to the racing fans on hand by the acknowledged dean of Chicago newscasters.
"I am honored and very proud to receive this award," said Mazza, who has trained horses for Holly Crest Farm and other stables in New Jersey for 46 years. "It is very meaningful to me."
Gary and Mary West's homebred Book Review rolled to a convincing victory as the 7-5 favorite in Saturday night's $400,000 <a target="_blank" href="http://www.brisnet.com/edgeped/ctoaks12.pdf">Charles Town Oaks</a>. Making her two-turn debut in this seven-furlong scramble around Charles Town's tight oval, the Chad Brown trainee circled the field on the final turn and kicked 1 3/4 lengths clear.
At Belmont Park on Sunday, Grade 1 Whitney Invitational Handicap winner Fort Larned turned in his final serious work for Saturday's Grade 1, $1 million Jockey Club Gold Cup Invitational, covering five furlongs in 1:01 shortly after 6:30 a.m. (EDT).
Trainer Dale Romans, who has already has established a personal record for single-season North American earnings in 2012, has confirmed Little Mike and Finnegans Wake for Saturday's Grade 1, $600,000 Joe Hirsch Turf Classic Invitational and Dullahan primed for the Grade 1, $400,000 Jamaica Handicap on October 6.
Classic winner Shackleford breezed five furlongs in a bullet 1:00 4/5 at his Churchill Downs base on Sunday, pleasing trainer Dale Romans in his last major move ahead of Saturday's Grade 2 Kelso Handicap at Belmont.
J. Paul Reddam's Handsome Mike parlayed a front-running trip into a two-length upset in Saturday's Grade 2, $1 million <a target="_blank" href="http://www.brisnet.com/edgeped/pennderby12.pdf"> Pennsylvania Derby</a>, winning as the 19-1 longest shot at Parx Racing. The Scat Daddy colt proved resilient after setting a moderate pace beneath Irad Ortiz Jr., withstanding challenges from Alpha and Stephanoatsee before re-asserting command in deep stretch, and snapped a seven-race losing skein in the process.
In a race that included reigning champion female sprinter Musical Romance and multiple Grade 1 queen Turbulent Descent, it was Padua Stable's homebred Dust and Diamonds who proved superior in Saturday's Grade 2, $200,000 <a target="_blank" href="http://www.brisnet.com/edgeped/gallantbloom12.pdf"> Gallant Bloom Handicap</a> at Belmont Park.
Last year's unbeaten champion two-year-old filly My Miss Aurelia outdueled pro tem divisional leader Questing by a head in Saturday's $971,200 <a target="_blank" href="http://www.brisnet.com/edgeped/cotillion12.pdf"> Cotillion Stakes</a>, in a climactic finish to the first Grade 1 event ever staged in Pennsylvania. The 1 1/16-mile test served up a clash worthy of the occasion -- a virtual match race, with Eclipse Award implications -- and it lived up to the advance billing.
After an unsuccessful Triple Crown campaign, Optimizer looks to have found his home back on the turf. The D. Wayne Lukas-trained colt captured his first graded stakes win in record fashion on Saturday in the Grade 3, $200,000 <a target="_blank" href="http://www.brisnet.com/edgeped/kent12.pdf">Kent Stakes</a> at Delaware Park.
Multiple Grade 1 winner The Factor has been retired from racing and will enter stud at William S. Farish's Lane's End Farm near Versailles, Kentucky, for the 2013 breeding season. Raced by George Bolton and David Shimmon's Fog City Stable, The Factor won six races, five of them graded, including the Grade 1 Malibu and Grade 1 Pat O'Brien.
Godolphin aims for a third consecutive victory in the Group 1, £163,500 Fillies' Mile with Certify going for the highlight of the second day of the Cambridgeshire Festival at Newmarket this upcoming Friday. The Mahmood Al Zarooni-trained filly is one of the ante-post favorites for next year's Group 1 One Thousand Guineas, back at Newmarket, following three impressive victories that included a cozy neck success in the Group 2 May Hill over a mile at Doncaster on September 14.
Owner Ahmed Zayat is holding out hope that his star colt Paynter, who has waged a terrific battle against the twin evils of colitis and laminitis, could actually make it back to the races.
West Point Thoroughbreds announced the retirement of its nine-year-old warrior <a target="_blank" href="http://www.brisnet.com/edgeped/awesomegem.pdf"> Awesome Gem</a> on Friday. A well-traveled Grade 1 winner, all-surface performer, and earner of more than $2.8 million, the Awesome Again gelding remarkably won or placed in at least one graded stakes in each of his seven seasons of racing.
Demand for quality yearlings from an exceptionally deep global buying bench drove strong commerce throughout Keeneland's September Yearling Sale, producing double-digit increases in average and median prices.
Trainer Todd Pletcher said he wants to survey weekend workouts before he plots paths for many of his Belmont graded stakes contenders, but did confirm four-year-olds San Pablo and Stay Thirsty for the Grade 1, $1 million Jockey Club Gold Cup at 1 1/4 miles on September 29.
<a target="_blank" href="http://japanracing.jp/_news2012/120919.html"> Japanracing.jp reports</a> that the Yasutoshi Ikee-trained Trailblazer is currently in Southern California in preparation for his scheduled run in the Grade 2 Arroyo Seco Mile (formerly known as the Oak Tree Mile) on October 6. Trailblazer, a son of Zenno Rob Roy, is aimed ultimately for the November 3 Breeders' Cup Turf at Santa Anita.
The Grade 1, $750,000 CashCall Futurity, an annual stop for future Triple Crown contenders, will once again be the most lucrative event on the stakes calendar for the 2012 Autumn meet at Hollywood Park.
The Grade 1, $1 million Jockey Club Gold Cup Invitational on September 29 at Belmont Park is the centerpiece of Super Saturday, which features four additional Grade 1s and the Grade 2 Kelso Handicap, each a "Win and You're In" event for the Breeders' Cup on November 2 and 3 at Santa Anita Park.
Gutierrez, 25, and Puhich, an agent since 1944, will receive the Mr. Fitz Award, named for the late Hall of Fame trainer James "Sunny Jim" Fitzsimmons, for typifying the spirit of racing. Gutierrez rose from the relative obscurity of Hastings Racecourse in Vancouver to sweep the opening two legs of the Triple Crown aboard I'll Have Another.
"You never can predict something like that," trainer Chad Brown said of the blowout. "She's been very strong in her gallops. Six weeks out from the Breeders' Cup, I think she needed a race, so I'm not at all upset about winning by that many and having a strong final time. I think she needed the race and we got the race we needed."
The Breeders' Cup has announced the launch of Blazing Silks, Breeders' Cup Edition, an interactive social network game that allows horse racing fans and social gamers to train and care for Thoroughbred horses. Fans can then race their horses against friends and past Breeders' Cup Champions in photorealistic 3D races at some of the most famous racetracks in the world. Blazing Silks combines the thrill of racing with immersive role-playing gameplay, allowing the ownership, training and caring for your own Thoroughbred with the interactive elements that have helped propel social gaming into the mainstream.
<b><i><font face="Arial" size="4">HANDICAPPING INSIGHTS</font></i></b>
<i><b><font face="Arial" size="4">BELMONT NOTEBOOK </font></b> </i>
Samantha Siegel, who operates Jay Em Ess Stable, has retired her four-year-old stars Redeemed and Boys at Tosconova, both of whom were trained by Rick Dutrow.
Spurious Precision, the undefeated winner of the Grade 2 Saratoga Special on August 12, was euthanized Tuesday morning. The two-year-old, who was preparing for the Grade 1 Champagne on October 6, suffered a fractured left knee during a workout at Aqueduct Monday. The preliminary diagnosis indicated the injury might be repaired surgically, and he was sent to the Hogan Equine Clinic in Cream Ridge, New Jersey, but additional X-rays revealed extensive damage to the bone structure of the knee.
Saturday's Grade 2 $200,000 <a target="_blank" href="http://www.brisnet.com/edgeped/gallantbloom12">Gallant Bloom Handicap</a> at Belmont Park serves as a dynamite prep for this year's Breeders' Cup Filly & Mare Sprint at Santa Anita on November 2. The deep field features Turbulent Descent, an impressive winner of the Grade 1 Ballerina Stakes in her first start for Todd Pletcher; defending sprint champion Musical Romance, who has been freshened off her victory in the Grade 1 Princess Rooney in early July; Grade 1-winning sophomore Emma's Encore; and C C's Pal, who notched her second Grade 2 score this season when taking the Honorable Miss at Saratoga last out.
Chief Bearhart, who was voted champion turf male of 1997 and was twice named Canadian Horse of the Year in 1997-98, died Tuesday in Japan. The 19-year-old, who was suffering from heart failure, had been a stud at the Japan Bloodhorse Breeders' Association (JBBA) Shizunai Stallion Station.
The National Turf Writers and Broadcasters Association will honor Kentucky Derby and Preakness-winning jockey Mario Gutierrez and his agent, Ivan Puhich, recently retired Churchill Downs track superintendent Raymond "Butch" Lehr, and two-time Eclipse Award recipient Bill Mooney at its annual awards dinner on October 31 in Pasadena, California.
Del Mar's horsemen earned an extra 10 percent payment on top of already record-breaking purse payouts as final figures became available for the track's 2012 summer racing season. Meeting Friday, the Thoroughbred Owners of California's board of directors approved the additional payout, which totaled $1,466,532.
The official event logos for Kentucky Derby 139 and Kentucky Oaks 139 were released Tuesday by Churchill Downs. Officially licensed apparel and headwear featuring the new logos are now available for purchase online at <a target="_blank" href="http://www.KentuckyDerbyStore.com"> KentuckyDerbyStore.com</a>.
Deputed Testamony, the most recent Maryland-bred to win his home state's most prestigious event, the Preakness at Pimlico, died Tuesday at Bonita Farm in Darlington, Maryland. At the time of his death, Deputed Testamony, 32, was the oldest living winner of a U.S. classic.
Matthew Benton and Christina Moore, students at the University of Arizona's Race Track Industry Program (RTIP), have been awarded The Jockey Club Jack Goodman Scholarships for the 2012-2013 academic year, it was jointly announced Tuesday by Matt Iuliano, executive vice president and executive director of The Jockey Club, and Doug Reed, director of the RTIP.
Grade 2 victor Fairbanks got off the mark as a sire when Golden Heart City captured Monday's 1ST race at Parx Racing, a $40,000 maiden claimer for juvenile fillies, by 1 1/4 lengths under Stewart Elliott. Owned by CJZ Racing Stable and trained by Tony Dutrow, Golden Heart City completed six furlongs in 1:12 and pushed her career earnings to $29,870 from a line of 2-1-0-0.
Questing can tighten an already firm grip on three-year-old filly divisional honors with a victory Saturday in the $1 million <a target="_blank" href="http://www.brisnet.com/edgeped/cotillion12">Cotillion</a> at Parx Racing. Elevated to Grade 1 status this year, the Cotillion will be the first top-level race ever contested in the state of Pennsylvania, which saw pari-mutuel Thoroughbred racing introduced in 1969 at the defunct Liberty Bell Park.
Unbeaten champion Awesome Feather, unraced since a facile score in the Florida Sunshine Millions Distaff in late January, will return to the races in Thursday's $85,000 <a target="_blank" href="http://www.brisnet.com/edgeped/nastystorm12.htm">Nasty Storm Stakes</a> around a one-turn mile at Belmont Park.
Multiple Grade 1-winning millionaire <a target="_blank" href="http://www.brisnet.com/edgeped/getstormy.pdf">Get Stormy</a> has been retired to stud, according to reports published Monday. At his best from a mile to nine furlongs on turf, the Tom Bush charge was last seen finishing third to Wise Dan in the Grade 2 Fourstardave Handicap at Saratoga August 11.
<a target="_blank" href="http://www.brisnet.com/edgeped/hansen.pdf">Hansen</a>, last year's champion two-year-old colt who was recently diagnosed with a tendon injury, has officially been retired, co-owner and breeder Dr. Kendall Hansen told The Paulick Report late Sunday night. Stud plans are still in the works for the striking gray son of Tapit.
The Breeders' Cup announced Monday that a limited quantity of reserved seats remain for the two-day international festival of racing, November 2-3, at Santa Anita Park, as advanced sales have outpaced 2008 and 2009, the last time the event was held in Southern California.
On Saturday, Grade 1-winning Zagora put in her second work since setting a track record of 1:39.07 when taking the Grade 2, 1 1/16-mile Ballston Spa on August 25 at Saratoga Race Course. The five-year-old French-bred daughter of Green Tune breezed four furlongs in :49 4/5 on Saturday, the same time she clocked exactly one week prior.
