Friday, February 03 2012
Carmel Heitzmann, Badly Injured Last Season, Prepares to Run Marathon for Horse Rescue
NEW ORLEANS (Friday, February 03, 2012) – What a miraculous comeback year it has been for Fair Grounds-based horsewoman Carmel Heitzmann!
Severely injured when kicked by a horse in front of the Fair Grounds stands last Feb. 17, Heitzmann’s life was in jeopardy during those first critical hours and days, but following exploratory surgery that led to the removal of 24 inches of her colon, the wife of local trainer Eric Heitzmann was released from the hospital 10 days later.
Raiseanothergator Wins South Mississippi Owners & Breeders
NEW ORLEANS (Friday, February 03, 2012) – Pop-A-Top LLC’s Raiseanothergator, away alertly and quickly in command, made or forced the pace with William Reed’s Surley throughout the early going but drew off in the stretch run to win Friday’s 16th renewal of the $40,000 South Mississippi Owners and Breeders Stakes at Fair Grounds by 4 1/4-lengths.
Trained by Tom Amoss and ridden by James Graham, Raiseanothergator returned mutuels of $6.20, $2.80 and $2.40, accomplished the six furlongs in 1:10.90 after alternating for early splits of 22.30 and 43.75 and increased his career earnings to $69,691 with his third career win in six lifetime starts.
Gamilati sensational in Guineas romp
His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minster of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai was present to see Godolphin's Gamilati lead home a 1-2 when comfortably beating stable companion Pimpernel in the Gulf News-sponsored Listed UAE 1000 Guineas, the first Classic of the season and over 1600m on the all-weather.
Frankie Dettori was in the saddle on the winner who confirmed the promise of her win in the 1400m trial for this race and she seemingly relished the extra 200m and has taken the switch to the all-weather with relish. Dettori always looked confident, tracking his five rivals until producing the filly on the outside and she could not have won more easily with Pimpernel, who endured a few traffic problems early in the straight, running on at one pace for second.
Thursday, February 02 2012
Musical Affair Returns in Needles Saturday
HALLANDALE BEACH, FL - Kathleen Amaya and Raffaele Centofant’s Musical Flair, a 2 ¾ lengths winner in August of the five furlong Fasig-Tipton Turf Dash in his only start on grass, is set for his 2012 debut Saturday in a field of seven 3-year-olds going the same distance over the Gulfstream Park course in the $60,000 Needles Stakes.
Jockey J.M. Rios will be back aboard Musical Flair for trainer Sal Santoro in his first start since Oct. 8 when finishing l1th of 13 in the Breeders’ Futurity (G1) at Keeneland. The Breeders’ Futurity was won by Dullahan going 1 1/16 miles after Musical Flair set the pace for three-quarters of a mile.
GOLDEN GATE FIELDS SCHEDULES SPECIAL EARLY POST TIME FOR SUPER BOWL SUNDAY
ALBANY -- Golden Gate Fields has scheduled a special post time of 11:15 a.m. for Sunday’s racing program. The early start will enable the eight-race card to be completed by approximately 2:45 p.m., well before kickoff of the Super Bowl (3:30 p.m.).
All gates will open at 9:30 a.m. and Golden Gate Fields will give away eight 42-inch high definition televisions and also offer fans the usual Dollar Day Sunday specials – $1 general parking, $1 general admission, $1 hot dogs, $1 beers, and $1 sodas.
Guineas for Gulf News at Meydan
Gulf News sponsor this Friday afternoon 's Dubai World Cup Carnival meeting at Meydan with the official feature, the UAE 1000 Guineas highlighting a card which also includes the Group 3 Al Shindagha Sprint.
The first Classic of the season, the 1600m Listed UAE 1000 Guineas has attracted a field of seven headed by Godolphin's Gamilati who comfortably won the 1400m trial for the race on her local debut. Trained by Mahmoud Al Zarooni, she proved she handles the all-weather surface on that occasion and she looks the one they all have to beat with Frankie Dettori again in the saddle.
Wednesday, February 01 2012
Thursday’s 10-cent Rainbow 6 Carryover $105,465.14
HALLANDALE BEACH, FL – Gulfstream Park’s 10-cent Rainbow 6 will have a carryover Thursday of $105,465.14.
There were unique tickets alive going into Wednesday’s last race with four horses, but there was no unique ticket on the winner, Rock On Baby.
Gulfstream Today: 2.1.12
Endorsement, a prominent candidate for the 2010 Kentucky Derby before being sidelined by injury, took a giant step on the comeback trail Wednesday at Gulfstream Park.
The 5-year-old son of Distorted Humor coasted to an easy front-running score in the fourth race, a $56,500 optional claiming allowance event. While never having to be asked to extend himself by jockey Julien Leparoux, Endorsement covered 1 1/16 miles in 1:42.35 to prevail by 2 ¼ lengths as the 4-5 favorite in a field of nine.
DOMINGUEZ RECLAIMS OUTRIGHT LEAD IN JOCKEY STANDINGS FOLLOWING 4-WIN WEDNESDAY AT BIG A
OZONE PARK, N.Y. – Ramon Dominguez reclaimed the lead in the Aqueduct Racetrack inner-track jockey standings by winning four races on Wednesday.
Fourth in race 1 and without a mount in race 2, Dominguez picked up his first winner in race 3 when he guided Ms. Bird Watch ($3.70) to victory and capped his own rolling $22.20 Double with a score in race 4 aboard Princess Mara ($10.60). He was second with his next mount in race 6, posted a runway win in race 7 with Congo ($8.60), was nipped on the wire when runner-up by a neck in race 8, and concluded the card with winner’s circle appearance aboard Shalaka ($7.50) in race 9.
NICOLE H TOPS CORRECTION CROWD
OZONE PARK, N.Y. – Fresh off a repeat victory in the New Year’s Day Interborough Stakes, Nicole H will try to maintain her momentum as she heads a field of seven female sprinters in Saturday’s 73rd renewal of the six-furlong, $100,000 Correction Stakes at Aqueduct Racetrack.
Winner of four of her last five starts, Nicole H is a perfect 3-for-3 over the inner track, having taken the Garland of Roses in her final start of 2010 in addition to the last two runnings of the Interborough. Between her Interborough victories she captured the Grade 2 Distaff Handicap over the Big A main track last April, and then was sidelined with a respiratory infection for six months. In her first start off the layoff, she came up a nose short to It’s Me Mom in the Robert O’Malley Stakes at Suffolk Downs on October 22.
REPOLE ENTRY TAKES ON TOUGHIES IN TOBOGGAN
OZONE PARK, N.Y. – In 2011, Calibrachoa earned his first graded stakes victory with a half-length triumph in the Grade 3, six-furlong Toboggan. Saturday, Calibrachoa will be joined by fellow Repole Stable color-bearer Caixa Eletronica when he makes a title defense at Aqueduct Racetrack in the $150,000 race.
Now 5, Calibrachoa is 5-0-1 from six starts at Aqueduct and is unbeaten in three outings over the inner track. Most recently, he was third, beaten four lengths in the Big A’s Grade 1 Cigar Mile Handicap on the main track November 26. Caixa Eletronica, who beat one horse to finish fifth in the Cigar Mile, returned to take the Rise Jim overnight stakes by 4 ¾ lengths January 8. The coupled entry was made the 7-5 favorite for the Toboggan.
WILL ALPHA REIGN SUPREME IN WITHERS?
OZONE PARK, N.Y. – On the first Saturday in May, only 20 hopefuls will get to line up in the starting gate for the Kentucky Derby. On Saturday afternoon at Aqueduct Racetrack, seven 3-year-olds will try to take a big step on the road to the Derby in the 132nd running of the Grade 3, $200,000 Withers.
“The Withers is an important race because it’s graded and you don’t get to run in the Derby unless you have those graded stakes earnings,” said Kiaran McLaughlin, who will saddle Alpha, the even-money favorite on the morning line, in the 1 1/16-mile Withers. “When you look at the schedule, you start with the first Saturday in May, and work back from there. We are taking the Withers as an important step, and maybe, maybe, afterward we’ll talk about what we’re going to do.”
