Wednesday, September 03 2008

Marie Rossa tops George Rosenberger Memorial

Marie Rossa will be looking for her first career stake victory in the $100,000 George Rosenberger Memorial at Delaware Park this Saturday. The mile and a sixteenth turf stakes has attracted a total of 15 fillies and mares. The Rosenberger, which is restricted to horses that have started at Delaware Park in 2008, is limited to twelve starters.

Monmouth Park Barn Notes for Tuesday, September 2, 2008

LEZCANO, LEVINE AND BROOME SHOW WAY WITH 4 WEEKS TO GO

With four weeks of racing to go in the 2008 Monmouth Park season, jockey Jose Lezcano, trainer Bruce Levine and owner Eddie Broome show the way in the respective categories for meet-end honors come closing day on Sept. 28.

Lezcano, a 23-year-old native of Panama, has 105 victories, 14 more than his nearest rival Eddie Castro. Joe Bravo, 13-time riding champion at Monmouth, is third with 73 wins. Stewart Elliott is fourth with 59 victories, four more than Elvis Trujillo.

Solar Flare looks tough in DTHA Owners Day Stakes

After facing Grade I stakes competition in his last two starts, Fox Hill Farms' Solar Flare will be looking to get back into the winners' circle in the $100,000 Delaware Thoroughbred Horsemen Association Owners Day Stakes at Delaware Park this Saturday. A field of eleven has been entered in the mile and an eighth test for 3-year-olds and upward. The DTHA Owners Day Stakes is restricted to horses that have started at Delaware Park in 2008.

The last three starts for the Argentina-bred trained by J. Larry Jones have been state side. The 4-year-old son of Salt Lake made his first seven starts in his native country. In his last, he ran seventh in the mile and an eighth $750,000 Whitney Handicap at Saratoga on July 26. On June 28, the he ran second in the mile and a quarter $400,000 Suburban Handicap at Belmont Park. In his United States debut, he posted ¾-length triumph in the mile and seventy yard allowance at Delaware Park on June 3. He has a career record of four wins and four seconds from ten starts from $146,462.

Graeme Six tops Endine Stakes

The $200,000 Grade III Endine Stakes highlights the 16th annual Owners Day Card at Delaware Park on Saturday, September 6. The thirteen-race card will feature 140 of the top thoroughbreds in the area competing for more than $400,000 in purses.

In the Endine Stakes, Team West Side Stable's and Tom O'Grady's Graeme Six tops a field of nine in the six-furlong contest for fillies and mares.

Tuesday, September 02 2008

VINEYARD HAVEN GETS TRIP—AND THREE CHIMNEYS HOPEFUL

Jockey Alan Garcia had already ensured himself of at least a tie with John Velazquez for the Saratoga Race Course leading rider title earlier on the meet’s Closing Day card Monday afternoon.

So, when he went to post aboard Vineyard Haven in the 104th running of the Grade 1, $250,000 Three Chimneys Hopeful, Garcia just wanted a clean trip and to give his horse a fighting chance.

He did just that, and got more than a little help from Cribnote and Munnings to win the seven-furlong sprint for two-year-olds by two and a quarter lengths in 1:23.40 on the fast track. It was Garcia’s 39th winner of the 36-day meet.

HOSTESS IS THE MOSTEST IN GLENS FALLS ‘CAP

Jockey Rajiv Maragh had a tough beat on William L. Clifton Jr.’s Hostess when he rode her for the first time on June 21.

But Maragh gained knowledge and put it to good use Monday afternoon, as he patiently rated Hostess and then turned her loose in the lane to win the 13th running of the Grade 3, $108,900 Glens Falls Handicap by a neck over rallying Palmilla.

Her winning time of 2:11.66 for the 11 furlongs was a Saratoga Race Course inner turf course record, breaking the old mark bet by Babinda (GB) on July 26, 1997.

KIMMEL’S STREAK REACHES SEVEN

When Premium Gold spurted away to victory in Monday afternoon’s third race at Saratoga Race Course, he handed trainer John Kimmel his seventh consecutive victory.

Before the unprecedented streak began, Kimmel had saddled only one winner at Saratoga this season. That changed when Kimmel saddled three winners on Friday, August 29 and one each on Saturday, Sunday and two of the day’s first three winners on Monday’s card.

Kimmel also entered Break Water Edison in Monday’s featured 10th race, the 104th running of the Grade 1, $250,000 Three Chimneys Hopeful

YEARLING SALES STAKES RECAPS

TORONTO, September 1 * Jono Jones piloted three Yearling Sales graduates to victory during the 2008 edition of Woodbine's Yearling Sales Stakes day on Monday.

The six $125,000 added-money events are featured annually on Labour Day weekend in advance of the Canadian Thoroughbred Horse Society's Canadian-bred horse auction.

The 2008 sale will be held on Tuesday, September 2 (Select Session, 3 p.m.) and Saturday, September 6 (Preferred Session, 3 p.m.) at the Woodbine Sales Pavilion at the south end of the Woodbine property.

WHO’S THE COWBOY TAKES ICECAPADE GIVING ELLIOTT 5TH WINNER

OCEANPORT, N.J. * Gerald Sleeter’s Who’s the Cowboy ran down Joey P. in the shadow of the wire to capture the $75,000 Icecapade Stakes at Monmouth Park on Monday, giving jockey Stewart Elliott his fifth winner on the card. Earlier in the day in the $60,000 Gilded Time Stakes, Run Sully Run came flying down the center of a firm turf course, stepping the 5 ½ furlongs in 1:01 4/5.

Who’s the Cowboy covered the six furlongs over a fast main track in 1:09 2/5 and returned $21, $6.20 and $2.80. It was a neck back to Joey P. who paid $3.20 and $2.10 and completed a $48 exacta. Maddy’s Lion rallied from last to third, two lengths farther back, and returned $2.60 to show.

STARDOM BOUND WINS DEL MAR DEBUTANTE

Rallying from the clouds under Hall of Fame jockey Mike Smith, Stardom Bound charged from twelfth and last place to win Monday's Grade I $250,000 Del Mar Debutante and clinch the two-year-old filly championship of the 2008 Del Mar meeting.

Slow from the gate in the seven-furlong sprint, Stardom Bound, a non-winner in two maiden races in which she was second, looped her rivals on the stretch turn and continued on powerfully to win by 4 1/4 lengths in 1:22.50. She became only the second maiden in the history of the race to win, emulating the feat of Cindy's Hero in 2000.

I’m Smokin Stakes

GARRETT GOMEZ (Babs Moossa) -- "I'm sittin' there on the fence and I'm watching Russell (Russell Baze on Control Seeker). He's got horse and he's ahead of me and he's got to make a decision. I'm thinking he's an old (veteran) rider and his first decision has got to be to keep his horse out of trouble. So I figure he's going to go to the outside and leave the inside to me. Sure enough, it happens that way. This time it worked out. Sometimes it doesn't. You're either a hero or a zero."

RUSSELL BAZE (Control Seeker) -- "This is only his third start and he's still figuring things out. He's still putting it together. I had a good trip and just got beat. No complaints."

Arlington Park Barn Notes: Sept. 1

BRANDON COUNTERS WITH SUNDAY PUNCH RIDING DOUBLE

Apprentice jockey Brandon Meier landed a significant counterpunch Sunday in the battle for leading apprentice honors this summer at Arlington, winning two races to increase his lead to eight victories over rival “bug” rider Inez Karlsson.

One day earlier, Karlsson scored a riding triple to close the gap between them, but Karlsson went winless Sunday. There are now 13 racing days remaining in Arlington Park’s 2008 season entering Monday’s Labor Day program.

Meier, a 20-year-old native of nearby Elk Grove Village, cut the teeth of his career as a jockey on May 11 – literally. Meier won that riding debut by 4 1/4-lengths aboard Frank Calabrese’s Houseboat, but suffered some fractured teeth and received seven stitches as a result of a starting gate mishap with that mount.