Racing News

There will be no shortage of hope surrounding the 68th running of the $300,000 Del Mar Futurity (gr. I) on the seaside racetrack’s closing day, Sept. 7.

A year ago, eventual Triple Crown winnerAmerican Pharoah broke his maiden in the seven-furlong grade I event for 2-year-olds, the first of eight straight graded victories for the Pioneerof the Nile   colt.

The odds of another Triple Crown winner emerging from the first top level race for 2-year-olds on the West Coast are rightfully long, but Reddam Racing’s Nyquist has already provided a flash of brilliance.

The Metro Pace has consistently been the biggest race for two-year-old pacers in the sport. Each Labour Day weekend, the top two-year-old pacers from different states and provinces converge on Mohawk Racetrack for the richest race for freshmen. Over the years, the Metro Pace champion has quickly stamped himself as the top rookie pacer.

This year, the Ontario Sires Stakes (OSS) has a big chance to be home of the top rookie pacer in harness racing. A group of four OSS competitors will compete in the ten-horse $685,000 Metro Pace Saturday night.

Royal Posse dug in deep and turned back a game rival in pacesetter Saratoga Snacks to win his stakes debut, the $100,000 Evan Shipman for New York-breds Sept. 4 at Saratoga Race Course.Watch Video Zivo, racing for the first time since running eighth in last year's Breeders's Cup Classic (gr. I) and favored at odds of 4-5, finished fourth.

Royal Posse emerged from the claiming ranks three starts back, when trainer Rudy Rodriguez and owner Michael Dubb picked him up for $20,000 in a mile event worth $40,000 May 31 at Belmont Park. The 4-year-old Posse  gelding was second July 24 and then won Aug. 20 in allowance optional claiming events at the Spa, both at the Shipman's 1 1/8-mile route.

On the eve of this year’s Metro Pace, the 2014 champion returned to Mohawk Racetrack for a tune-up in qualifying action. Artspeak, last year’s two-year-old champion, and driver Scott Zeron took to the track for the morning’s fourth qualifier and turned in a sizzling mile of 1:50.1.

The Tony Alagna trainee went directly to the front for Zeron and posted opening fractions of :28 and :56.4. The son of Western Ideal paced a third-quarter in :27, before firing home impressively in :26.2 for a :53.2 back-half and a 23 ¼ length victory. Friday’s qualifier was Artspeak’s first charted line since a fourth-place finish in the Battle of Brandywine on August 22 at Pocono. 

Owned by Brittany Farms, Marvin Katz, Joe Sbrocco and In The Gym Partners, Artspeak has three victories from eleven starts this season for earnings of over $409,000. Purchased for $100,000 at the 2013 Lexington Selected Yearling Sale, Artspeak currently has 11 career victories, a bankroll exceeding $1.2 million and a mark of 1:48.4 taken at The Meadowlands. The three-year-old pacing colt has only missed the top-five once in 21 career starts.

“She’s very talented, but sometimes I wonder where to put the 50 cents in because the ride can get bouncy.”

Such was the post-race postulate Thursday night from driver Jim Morrill Jr. after he—with some able assistance from odds-on favorite Soft Idea ($3.10)—set a track record during Yonkers Raceway hosting of the $147,723 New York Sire Stakes Frank Becerra Pace for 2-year-old fillies.

Soft Idea, this summer’s division dominatrix, threw down a 1:53.4 gauntlet in the final ($48,941) division. Leaving from post position 3, she took over from second choice American Ivy (Brian Sears), then held that one at bay by a determined neck. It was more than three lengths back to Lyra (George Brennan) in third.

Rookie trotting fillies took center-stage Thursday night at Mohawk Racetrack for three divisions of the Champlain Stakes. The annual Grand Circuit week at Mohawk kicked-off with 26 two-year-old trotting fillies competing in three Champlain divisions over a ‘Good’ racing surface. Hall of Fame trotter Kadabra was a proud father Thursday night, as his fillies swept the three Champlain divisions.

There has been plenty of hype surrounding trotting filly Caprice Hill and the Tony Alagna trainee lived up to that hype once again in the $87,960 final division. Driven by Yannick Gingras, Caprice Hill trotted well off the gate to grab the front heading into the first turn. The daughter of Kadabra went unchallenged through the opening-half, posting fractions of :28.3 and :58.4.

Around the final turn, Caprice Hill began to extend her lead and was on top by four lengths at the three-quarter pole in 1:27.4. In the stretch, Gingras was motionless as the rookie trotting filly made her way home in :28.3 to score a 7 ¼ length victory in 1:56.2. Im Outstanding finished second, while Twice Is Right was third.

Eight fillies and mares with graded stakes credentials are scheduled to enter the gate for the $200,000 Yellow Ribbon Stakes (gr. IIT) Sept. 6 at Del Mar, but only one in the full field of 12 is 3 years old and she may be the one to beat.

DP Racing's Prize Exhibit finished third last time out in the Del Mar Oaks (gr. IT), but won back-to-back graded events leading up to that with victories in the Senorita Stakes (gr. IIIT) and San Clemente Handicap (gr. IIT).

The rest of the graded winners in the field need to prove they can return to their top form.

Grade I winner Cavorting will drop a level to contest the $300,000 Prioress Stakes (gr. II) as the season at Saratoga Race Course draws to an end, but the Aug. 8 Longines Test Stakes (gr. I) victress could have her work cut out for her in a field of 11 3-year-old fillies.  

With grade II winner Ekati's Phaetoncoming in off the layoff, Miss Woodford Stakes winner Fusaichi Red looking to step up in company, and multiple grade III winner Irish Jasper hoping to improve upon a fourth in the Test, the six-furlong Prioress is loaded with intrigue.

A loaded field of 2-year-old fillies has lined up for Sunday's sixth race atSaratoga Race Course, a seven-furlong sprint on the main track that includes half sisters to Preakness Stakes (gr. I) winners Shackleford   and Bernardini  , as well as a $1.9 million 2-year-old-in-training purchase.

Carella, a half sister to successful sire Bernardini, will go out for Godolphin Racing and trainer Tom Albertrani, who campaigned Bernardini for his six-win, Eclipse Award-winning sophomore campaign. Albertrani is hopeful that Carella, by Tapit   out of 2006 Broodmare of the Year Cara Rafaela, will follow in her half brother's footsteps.

Kaleem Shah's Dortmund might have been forgotten by some in the aftermath of stablemate American Pharoah's Triple Crown run, but the massive son of Big Brown   could be getting primed for a late-year campaign.

Dortmund, along with the rest of trainer Bob Baffert's Del Mar string, will head back north to Santa Anita Park Sept. 9. A return to the Arcadia, Calif. track could be a key for Dortmund, who won all three of his 2015 Triple Crown prep races at Santa Anita—the Robert B. Lewis (gr. III), San Felipe (gr. II), and Santa Anita Derby (gr. I)—and trained impressively there before a third-place finish in the Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands (gr. I) and a fourth in the Xpressbet.com Preakness Stakes (gr. I). 

Through the early part of his career, Control The Moment has been in total control. On Saturday, he will try to seize the moment and win the Metro Pace.

Unbeaten in six races, Control The Moment is the 9-5 morning line favorite in Mohawk Racetrack’s C$685,000 Metro Pace for 2-year-old male pacers. He won his Metro elimination by 3-1/2 lengths last weekend and will start the final from post four with regular driver Randy Waples at the controls for trainer Brad Maxwell.

Voracity and Betting Line also won Metro eliminations. Voracity, who was piloted by Waples in his elim, will start from post three with Sylvain Filion driving for trainer Tony Alagna. Betting Line leaves from post two with Steve Condren at the lines for trainer Casie Coleman.

The top two finishers from the Sanford Stakes (gr. III)—Magna Light and Uncle Vinny—who saw their order of finish changed when stewards determined interference by Magna Light in the stretch occurred, will meet again Sept. 7 in the $350,000 Hopeful Stakes (gr. I) at Saratoga Race Course.

Starlight Racing's Uncle Vinny finished three-quarters of a length behind Magna Light in the six-furlong Sanford July 25 at Saratoga, but was placed first when the stewards disqualified Magna Light to second. 

Three familiar runners will try to take down breakthrough La Jolla Handicap(gr. IIIT) winner Prospect Park in the $250,000 Del Mar Derby (gr. IIT) Sept. 6.

The three that followed the Tapit   colt in his turf debut at Del Mar—Om, Royal Albert Hall, and Papacoolpapacool—will all return for the Del Mar Derby, which will run at the same 1 1/16 distance on the turf. Prospect Park dusted the La Jolla field by 4 1/4 lengths Aug. 9 and trainer Cliff Sise says the colt owned and bred by Pam and Martin Wygod is doing even better heading into the Del Mar Derby.

After rolling to a 10-length victory in the Prairie Meadows Juvenile Mile Stakes Aug. 7, Mark Breen's Pinnacle Peak will try for a second straight stakes win Sunday, Sept. 6 in the $100,000 Sapling Stakes at Monmouth Park. 

Trained by Michael Stidham for owner Mark Breen, Pinnacle Peak finished second in his career debut, a 5 1/2-furlong maiden special weight race July 18 at Prairie Meadows, but once stretched out to one mile for the Aug. 7 stakes race, the son of Yes It's True   thrived, easily putting away seven other juvenile rivals to secure his first career win.