Racing News

The venerable 10-year-old pacing superstar Foiled Again ($3.20, Yannick Gingras) prevailed in the eighth annual $220,000 Bobby Quillen Memorial Monday (Sept. 15) at Harrington Raceway in 1:50.2.

A large crowd filled the Harrington grandstand, watching harness racing’s heavyweights among the older pacing horse ranks battle it out on Delaware’s half-mile racetrack.

On an evening when the trotters had the spotlight, the sport’s best older pacing mares contested two eliminations for next Saturday’s C$286,000 Milton Stakes.

Sixteen of the finest pacing mares were split into two C$35,000 eliminations.

Five Fillies Stable's Sistas Stroll gave jockey Drayden Van Dyke his first graded stakes score Sept. 13 as Tom Proctor trainees ran 1-2 in the $150,000 Pucker Up Stakes (gr. IIIT) at Arlington International Racecourse (VIDEO).

The 3-year-old daughter of Stroll  edged stablemate V V Goodnight by 1 1/2 lengths to take the 1 1/8-mile test over soft going. Final time was 1:55.13 with the rail set out in lane five.

The Pucker Up was a third straight victory and a first stakes win for 15-2 shot Sistas Stroll. She broke her maiden at Churchill Downs in June at second asking and won an Aug. 16 Del Mar allowance going the Pucker Up distance in solid fashion last time out.

A field of 16 sophomore pacers have dropped into the box for the $647,500 Little Brown Jug presented by Fazoli's, the second leg of Pacing's Triple Crown, set for Thursday (Sept. 18) at the Delaware County Fair.

The purse for the 69th edition of the Jug will be the richest in the history of the classic event, besting the 2001 edition, which carried a purse of $646,050.

Casie Coleman, who conditioned the last two Jug champions, Michael's Power in 2012 and Vegas Vacation in 2013, will be looking to make it three straight at Delaware when she sends McWicked behind the gate on Thursday. Coleman is among seven trainers to win the Jug in back-to-back years and is bidding to be the first with three in a row.

Julie's Love, whose last appearance was in early April at Gulfstream Park, heads a field of nine older fillies and mares inBelmont Park's Noble Damsel Stakes (gr. IIIT) Sept. 13. The $200,000 race at one mile on the Widener Turf Course, shares the bill with the $500,000 Sands Point Stakes (gr. IIT) for 3-year-old fillies.

Recent grade III winner Medea is the 123-pound highweight under the allowance conditions of the Noble Damsel, but it is Julie's Love who has a win over the inner turf course and has a slight class edge having knocked heads against graded foes in three of her past four starts. 

Julie's Love, a 6-year-old British-bred mare by Ad Valorum—Skimmia, by Mark of Esteem, is trained by Graham Motion for owners Bobby Flay, Irving Cowan, and Barry Weisbord. The celebrity chef Flay is riding a hot streak with his Thoroughbred holdings of late, selling a pair of yearlings for seven-figures each during Book One of the Keeneland September yearling sale.

It would appear that driver John DeLong has a way with the ladies. At least the four-legged kind, that is.

On Saturday night (Sept. 13) DeLong will gather the lines behind three standout pacing distaffs on Illinois’ biggest evening that showcases Prairie-state youngsters: Super Night.

The 25-year-old Beloit, Wisconsin native, who began driving professionally in 2005, will be looking to score a repeat performance in the $118,000 Lorna Propes Championship with Let’s Go Higher, a 6-year-old Cole Muffler mare that he drove to victory in last year’s Propes Championship in 1:50.4.

Frank Calabrese's Fast Anna, who came tantalizingly close to winning in the Ketel One King's Bishop (gr. I) last time out in his stakes debut, takes another crack at a breakthrough stakes victory in the $300,000 Gallant Bob (gr. III) Sept. 20 at Parx Racing. 

The six-furlong race drew a field of seven 3 year-old sprinters, and Fast Anna drew post six when entries were taken Sept. 15. The event goes as race 10 on the 13-race program and is one of two supporting graded stakes on the $1 million Pennsylvania Derby (gr. II) undercard, joining the $1 million Cotillion Stakes (gr. I) for 3-year-old fillies. Post time for the Gallant Bob is 4 p.m. EDT.

A son of Medaglia d'Oro   out of Calabrese's champion 2006 champion 2-year-old filly Dreaming of Anna, Fast Anna has raced just three times in his career, jumping immediately to grade I company after winning his first two starts for trainer Kathy Ritvo. 

The grade I Cotillion Stakes, which figures to have a major impact on the 3-year-old filly championship, attracted some of the top members of the division and few interesting wild cards for its Sept. 20 renewal at Parx Racing.

A field of nine was entered in the $1 million Cotillion, a 1 1/16-mile test that goes as race 11 on a 13-race card at the Pennsylvania track. The $1 million Pennsylvania Derby (gr. II) for 3-year-olds is the 12th race on the program.

The Cotillion has lured Winchell Thoroughbreds' Untapable, winner of the Longines Kentucky Oaks and Mother Goose Stakes (both gr. I); Repole Stable's Stopchargingmaria, winner of the Alabama Stakes and Coaching Club American Oaks (both gr. I); and Treadway Racing Stable's Sweet Reason, winner of the Acorn Stakes and Test Stakes (both gr. I). Also in the field is Main Line Racing Stables' locally basedJoint Return, who almost upset Stopchargingmaria in the Alabama in her first start with blinkers.

Although he is still relatively new as an owner, Lindsey Rankin understands how rare it is to find a top racehorse.

So he is trying to enjoy the ride with Lady Shadow to the fullest.

Lady Shadow is among 22 horses in Wednesday’s $298,100 Jugette for 3-year-old female pacers at the Delaware County Fair in Ohio. The field was divided into three eliminations, from which the top three in each will advance to the same-day final.

In his final work before he resumes racing in the upcoming $1 million Pennsylvania Derby (gr. II), 2014 dual classic winner California Chrome drilled six furlongs handily in 1:13 4/5 the morning of Sept. 13 at Los Alamitos.

Working on his own with regular rider Victor Espinoza aboard, California Chrome turned in splits of :25 2/5 for the opening quarter, :49 3/5 for a half mile, and five furlongs in 1:01 4/5. According to Los Alamitos clocker Russ Hudak, California Chrome galloped out seven furlongs in 1:27 4/5.

The 1 1/8-mile Pennsylvania Derby is Sept. 20 at Parx Racing.

Friskie Adam, Ohio's sensational 3-year-old pacing colt, suffered a season-ending injury while experiencing his first defeat of the year in the final Sires Stakes leg this past Saturday (Sept. 6) at Scioto Downs.

Undefeated in his first eight starts -- all stakes -- the Feelin Friskie-Lottery Fever colt held on to finish third Saturday, despite a fracture of his left hind ankle.

he cooperative spirit between racing and breeding programs in the Mid-Atlantic region will be on full display Sept. 13 when Laurel Park in Maryland offers five stakes for horses bred and/or sired in Virginia.

The special card for Virginia-breds came about after the 2014 live race meet atColonial Downs, the only Thoroughbred track in the state, was cancelled. Each of the stakes for Virginia-bred and/or -sired racehorses are scheduled for turf and carry a purse of $60,000 provided by the Virginia Thoroughbred Association.

Topping the field for the Brookmeade Stakes, a 1 1/16-mile grass test for fillies and mares, 3-year-olds and up, is Embarr, who won the race in 2011 and 2012 at Colonial Downs. Bred, owned, and trained by Susan Cooney, the 6-year-old daughter of Royal Academy carries top weight of 124 pounds as she seeks her first win since taking the Dahlia Stakes at Pimlico Race Course April 5.