Newsletter

Fair Grounds – LeComte Stakes
Santa Anita – Palos Verdes
Gulfstream Park – Kitten’s Joy Stakes
Fair Grounds – Colonel Bradley Handicap
Thoroughbred Racing Action

Fair Grounds – LeComte Stakes

On the Derby Trail in Louisiana

The first big test for the three-year-olds in Louisiana with dreams of running on the first Saturday in May at Churchill Downs comes this Saturday with the 68th running of the LeComte. The Grade 3 race is part of the three-year-olds stakes series at Fair Grounds, which culminates in the Louisiana Derby on April 1.

This year’s LeComte drew a full field of thirteen with one entry and will go as race eleven on the thirteen-race card. Post time 5:55 ET.

The morning line favorite for the two-turn race is Shared Property at 4-1. Shared Property has not run since early October when he was sixth in the Grade 1 Breeders’ Futurity at Keeneland. In the Grade 1 the gelding was void of any early speed before putting in a late run. Prior to that race Shared Property won the Grade 3 Arlington Washing Futurity over the synthetic track at Arlington Park and a maiden race over the conventional dirt at Ellis Park.

Off of his two stakes races Shared Property is the class of the field, but contention runs deep. After the top choice there are five betting interests between 9-2 and 6-1 on the morning line.

Seven Lively Sins is 9-2 on the morning line coming in off of back-to-back Grade 3 races. Two starts back the Stormy Atlantic-colt ran in the one-turn Iroquois and finished a respectable second. Then, in his first start around two-turns he was fourth in the Jackpot at Delta Downs.

Exfactor is next at 5-1 on the line and he exits the local prep for this race, the Sugar Bowl. In the Sugar Bowl Exfactor stalked the early pace then was game down the lane and just prevailed by a nose of Laurie’s Rocket. Laurie’s Rocket just finished fifth in the Smarty Jones at Oaklawn Park on Monday, which did not exactly flatter the form.

The entry of Dan and Sheila and Z Dager as well as Hammers Terror and Capetown Devil are all 6-1 on the morning line and all have a shot.

Dan and Sheila comes out of a maiden score at one-mile at Gulfstream Park and is an attractive enough mount for John Velazquez to come over for trainer Todd Pletcher. Z Dager goes for the same owner, Zayat Stables, but is trained by Steve Asmussen. Z Dager broke his maiden in his last race, which was at Fair Grounds over the distance of the LeComte.

Hammers Terror and Capetown Devil also have wins over the course and distance and both look like good three-year-old prospects. Hammers Terror has been on every one’s radar since his debut in late September at Arlington Park and even though he is bred for the turf he proved in his last he can run well on the dirt.

Capetown Devil ran a better speed figure than Hammers Terror in his last race, but they were run on different days about a month apart.

The other interesting horse in the lineup is the 8-1 Mr. Bowling for trainer Larry Jones. Mr. Bowling has not run since finishing third in the Grade 3 Iroquois at Churchill. Prior to that he won the Dover Stakes at Delaware Park, which was at the same distance of the LeComte.

The pace scenario is going to be the most important aspect in handicapping the race. Many of these horses have run their best races on or near the pace, which could set it up for a closer. Ted’s Folly doesn’t have the graded class of the others in the field, but he will be doing his best running late. The third place horse in his last race came back to win his next start, an allowance race at Oaklawn Park, and the second place horse was a very good second to the perfect trip winner in the Smarty Jones.

Ted’s Folly may be a lot higher than his 10-1 morning line and could be a bomb in the gimmicks.

Santa Anita – Palos Verdes

Amazombie Back to the Track

The feature race on Saturday at Santa Anita is the 60th running of the Grade 2 Palos Verdes. The six-furlong sprint drew a field of eight led by the Eclipse Award-winning Amazombie.

Amazombie had an outstanding 2011 campaign with five wins in nine starts including the Grade 2 Potrero Grande, Grade 1 Ancient Title and Grade 1 Breeders’ Cup Sprint. For his efforts the gelding was recently named Male Sprinter of the year.

A winner of ten races and over $1.5-million in his career, Amazombie is likely to be a short price on Saturday. In five career starts at Santa Anita he has three wins and a second. Both the Ancient Title and Potrero Grande were over the track as well as the Sunshine Millions Sprint, which he won in January 2011.

Those looking to beat the favorite should look to a couple of speed horses as the track has been playing very well to speed since the meet opened in December.

The speed of the speed is Euroears, who drew post eight for the six furlong sprint. Euroears is an eight-year-old who has made have of his 22 starts since turning six in 2009. The Langfuhr colt won the Palos Verdes last year in wire-to-wire fashion, but must improve off of his last three races, two of which were last place finishes by double digit lengths.

Courtside is another speed horse and when left on the lead he can be dangerous. In the Cal Cup Sprint Courtside was send off at 9-2, but won easily and had something left in the tank. In three starts at Santa Anita the four-year-old gelding has two wins including a win on a sloppy, sealed track, which may be the case on Saturday.

Add to the fact that Courtside comes in with two bullet workouts on the 9th and 15th and he looks like one to take seriously on the rise in class.

Frumious ran in the Cal Cup Sprint against Courtside and chased him around in the early stages before finishing sixth, but has come back to win two straight races and his last race was a smasher. In that race, at Santa Anita, Frumious made the lead through swift fractions, :43.80 for the half mile, and won by just over a length. The speed figure he earned in that race is only topped by Amazombie, Euroears and M One Rifle.

M One Rifle comes in to the Palos Verdes on a four race losing streak and his only win in his last nine races came in a five-furlong sprint at Hollywood Park. The six-year-old gelding may be a better horse over the synthetics as evident by his zero-for-two record on the dirt.

Completing the Grade 2 field are Galientos, Mensa Heat and Canonize. Scheduled as race eight on the nine-race card, post time for the Palos Verdes is 7:07 ET.

Gulfstream Park – Kitten’s Joy Stakes

Three-Year-Olds on the Turf

Saturday’s feature race at Gulfstream Park is the Kitten’s Joy for three-year-olds on the turf. A field of eight entered the two-turn affair with two horses dropping from Grade 1races.

Lucky Chappy has been off since early November after finishing fourth in the Grade 1 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf. The Juvenile Turf was his second race in the U.S. after finishing third in the Grade 3 Bourbon at Keeneland.

Prior to coming to the U.S. for Team Valor the High Chaparral colt was running in Italy. The Irish-bred won two of his three races there including an $89,500 stakes races. In Italy Lucky Chappy was running near the front, but has found the U.S. pace to be swifter.

At the mile and one-sixteenth distance of the Kitten’s Joy, Lucky Chappy will just be getting started. He may be better suited once the distances increase.

Cozzetti drops from the Grade 1 CashCall Futurity at Hollywood Park, which was run over their Polytrack surface. Prior to the CashCall the Cozzene colt won a maiden race over a sloppy main track at Churchill. To start his career Cozzetti ran twice over the turf with a fourth place, beaten one length, his best finish.

A return to the turf may be what Cozzetti needs for a return to the winner’s circle. By Cozzene he is out of a Lemon Drop Kid-mare, which gives him turf breeding on both sides of his pedigree.

Italo, Argentine Tango, El Roman, Howe Great, Empire Builder and Scorcher all have runs over the Gulfstream Park turf course with Italo and Empire Builder exiting the Dania Beach Stakes.

Italo won the Florida-bred Appleton Juvenile Turf Stakes at Calder in mid-November then finished seventh, beaten just under three lengths, in the Dania Beach. In the Dania, Italo was “steadied early” and that caused him to be rank, but probably did not cost him a better placing.

Empire Building finished in front of Italo in the Dania Beach and simply ran around the track a bit one-paced. He is likely to improve off that race, which was his first off a two-month layoff. His best hope is to get good early position off Howe Great, who is expected to set the pace.

Howe Great broke his maiden at Parx then shipped down to Gulfstream Park for a successful stretch out over the turf. That race was a non-winners of two-lifetime race, but the Kitten’s Joy came up light on speed and jockey Edgar Prado could enjoy an easy front-running score.

Post time for the race on Saturday is 4:45 ET and is the third leg of the late pick-4, which starts in race eight at 3:49 ET.

Fair Grounds – Colonel Bradley Handicap

Grade 3 Older Turf Runners

The LeComte is not the only graded stakes race on the Saturday card at Fair Grounds as the 26th running of the Grade 3 Colonel Bradley Handicap will also take place.

The Colonel Bradley is a two-turn turf race and drew a very competitive field of eight. Just like the LeComte there are several horses grouped close together in the morning line with six between 3-1 and 6-1.

Suntracer, at 3-1, is the morning-line favorite and is looking to win his second straight race, and third overall, on the Fair Grounds turf. The last race for Suntracer was perhaps his best yet. Sent off at nearly 3-1 the Kitten’s Joy-colt was last year, but put in a torrid late run to win going away. Off two months since then he comes into the Colonel Bradley a fresh horse and the one to beat.

Strike Impact is the second choice on the line and he will be positioned in front of the top choice early. An eight-year-old gelding Strike Impact has won sixteen of 60 career races, but has yet to crack the top spot over the Fair Grounds turf. He may be better on the Churchill grass, but can hit the board in the Bradley.

Baltimore Bob and Mr. Vegas come out of a common allowance race on the turf at Fair Grounds and should once again be dueling out on the front end.

Of the two Mr. Vegas gets top billing as he won that race by a length and is a perfect two-for-two over the course. If they can set an easy pace on the lead then the closers will have their work cut out to run them down late.

Lonesome Street was once a horse that would be part of the pace, but since his win at Indiana Downs in June he has been a horse that comes off-the-pace. After the Indiana Downs stakes score Lonesome Street was fourth in an allowance race at Saratoga then was second in the Unbridled stakes on the grass at Louisiana Downs. The Unbridled was in mid-September and the Colonel Brady will be his first start since then.

Glenwood Canyon is an interesting horse that will be making his first start on the turf after running his last 26 races on either dirt or synthetic. The son of Silver Deputy is not exactly bred for the turf, but any time you have a trainer hitting at 30% then you must look closer. Do keep in mind that Glenwood Canyon is also entered in the ninth race on the day, the Louisiana Handicap, which is on the main track.

Rounding out the field are Heavenville and Dubious Miss with post time scheduled for 3:58 ET.

Thoroughbred Racing Action

Weekend Stakes Action

Great racing action from across the country this weekend.  Watch these races all on BetAmerica.com.

Saturday – January 21

• Santa Anita: Palos Verdes Stakes – G2, $150,000, 4yo & up, 6f
• Santa Anita: Megahertz Stakes, $75,000, 4yo & up f&m, 8f turf
• Gulfstream Park: Kitten’s Joy, $100,000, 3yo, 8.5f turf
• Fair Grounds: LeComte Stakes – G3, $175,000, 3yo, 8f 70f
• Fair Grounds: Colonel Bradley Handicap – G3, $100,000, 4yo & up, 8.5f turf
• Fair Grounds: Silverbulletday Stakes, $125,000, 3yo f, 8f 70f
• Fair Grounds: Louisiana Handicap, $100,000, 4yo & up, 8.5f
• Fair Grounds: F.W. Gaudin Memorial Stakes, $75,000, 4yo & up, 6f
• Fair Gournds: Pan Zareta Stakes, $75,000, 4yo & up, 5.5f turf
• Tampa Bay Downs: Manatee Stakes, $50,000, 4yo & up, 7f
• Golden Gate: California Oaks, $100,000, 3yo f, 8.5f
• Sam Houston: Star of Texas Stakes, $100,000, 4yo & up, 8.5f
• Sam Houston: Groovy Stakes, $50,000, 3yo, 7f
• Sam Houston: Spirit of Texas Stakes, $50,000, 4yo & up, 6f
• Sam Houston: Richard King Stakes, $50,000, 4yo & up, 9f turf

Sunday – January 22

• Santa Anita: La Canada Stakes – G2, $150,000, 4yo f, 8.5f
• Santa Anita: San Pedro Stakes, $75,000, 3yo, 6.5f
• Gulfstream Park: Sweetest Chant Stakes, $100,000, 3yo f, 8f turf
• Oaklawn Park: American Beauty Stakes, $50,000, 4yo & up, 6f
• Sunland Park: El Paso Times Handicap, $50,000, 3yo, 6.5f

Santa Anita – San Fernando Stakes
Gulfstream Park – Hal’s Hope Stakes
Fair Grounds – Marie G. Krantz Memorial Handicap
Tampa Bay Downs – Gasparilla & Pasco Stakes
Thoroughbred Racing Action

Santa Anita – San Fernando Stakes

Tapizar and Prayer for Relief Lead the Field

The feature race on Saturday at The Great Race Place is the 60th running of the San Fernando stakes for four-year-olds on the main track. The Grade 2 race drew a field of eight led by Prayer for Relief and Tapizar; let’s take a look.

Prayer for Relief comes into the race off just over a month layoff after a disappointing effort in the Grade 1 Clark Handicap at Churchill Downs in late November. He was scheduled to run in the Breeders’ Cup Classic, but had to be scratched due to illness. With the missed training time it was no surprise that the Jump Start-colt did not fire.

Prior to the Clark Prayer for Relief had won five of his last seven races including wins in the Grade 2 Super Derby at Louisiana Downs, the Grade 2 West Virginia Derby at Mountaineer Park and the Grade 3 Iowa Derby at Prairie Meadows.

From the rail jockey Rafael Bejarano will have to get a good early position and could find himself on the lead. His most impressive victory came in the Super Derby, a race in which he led from start to finish.

Tapizar is also coming off a layoff having not run since the Grade 1 Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile at Churchill Downs in early November. The Tapit-colt ran close to the pace that day, which was not the spot to be and finished fifth, beaten almost nine lengths.

One of the most impressive victories on the resume for Tapizar was a score over the Santa Anita track last year. He won the Grade 3 Sham in wire-to-wire fashion, but his biggest win came when stalking the pace at Churchill Downs in November 2010.

From post eight jockey Corey Nakatani will have plenty of options on where to put his colt in the early stages. Should the pace be slow then Nakatani will have his mount on the lead, but if fast then he can stalk as well.

Eoin Harty upset the apple cart in the Sham and is looking to do the same with his colt Balladry. An Unbridled’s Song colt Balladry has won two of eleven career starts, but has only crossed the wire first in one race.

Two starts back, last October, Balladry sat well off the pace and was able to storm home the easiest of winners. That race was at the same distance on the same track as the San Fernando.

Irish Art is bred for the turf, but has been first or second in five of his seven career starts. If he takes to the dirt then the son of Artie Schiller could hit the board.

Rounding out the field are Riveting Reason, Dreaminofthewin, Spud Spivens and First Strike. Post time for the San Fernando on Saturday is 7:07 ET.

Gulfstream Park – Hal’s Hope Stakes

Jackson Bend Headlines the Grade 3

This Saturday at Gulfstream Park there are two stakes races for four-year-olds and upward. The first is the Hal’s Hope Stakes going one mile on the main track. A field of nine will line up for the Grade 3 and all eyes will be on Jackson Bend.

Jackson Bend had an outstanding 2011 campaign winning the Grade 1 Forego at Saratoga and placing in three other stakes races, which included the Grade 2 Kelso Handicap and Grade 1 Breeders’ Cup Sprint.

The last race for Jackson Bend was the Breeders’ Cup Sprint at Churchill where he was third as the 5-2 post time favorite. In the Sprint Bend sat well off the pace before making a late run. At six furlongs Jackson Bend was never going to be hitting his best stride until late and that was just the case. His best wins have come at seven furlongs so the mile distance in the Hal’s Hope will be ideal.

Two negatives for the probably favorite and that are the rail draw and the three seconds and no wins in four career start at Gulfstream Park. Two other horses, Our Dark Knight and Soaring Empire; however, love the strip.

Our Dark Knight runs for the same connections as Hal’s Hope and has run against his stablemate in the past. In the Grade 3 Skip Away at Gulfstream Park last year Our Dark Knight finished over 20-lengths behind Jackson Bend. Our Dark Knight has not won since last January and will be a long shot come Saturday.

Soaring Empire has not run since the $100,000 Majestic Light stakes at Monmouth Park in late-July, but comes in with a sizzling work tab and has two wins and two seconds in five career starts over the track. One of those wins was in this race last year.

In the Hal’s Hope last year Soaring Empire sat just off the early pace before taking the lead in stretch and holding on to win by just over a length. The versatile five-year-old horse can adapt to any pace scenario and is the biggest danger to the top choice.

Soaring Empire may have to take to stalking tactics on Saturday with the duo of Successful Mission and Decisive Moment drawn to his inside.

Successful Mission has won back-to-back races at Calder and Monmouth Park and is coming off an eight month layoff. Previously a turf horse Successful Mission showed in the off-the-turf Elkwood that he can handle the main track too.

Decisive Moment won the Delta Mile in mid-November at Delta Downs over a pair of Southern California runners and ran well enough last year to get a spot in the Grade 1 Kentucky Derby. His best races have come at Delta and Calder and must show he can run at Gulfstream Park.

Sangaree deserves a mention off his back class, but he has not won a race since early 2010. He is winless in his last twelve starts and has not run since a fifth place finish in the Grade 1 Cigar Mile Handicap at Aqueduct in late November.

Sky Venture, Cool Blue Red Hot and Will’s Wildcat complete the field. The Hal’s Hope is scheduled as race nine on the eleven-race card with post time at 4:17 ET.

Fair Grounds – Marie G. Krantz Memorial Handicap

Filly and Mare Turfers in the Bayou

The weekend turf stakes at Fair Grounds continue this Saturday with the 17th running of the Marie G. Krantz Memorial Handicap for fillies and mares. The two-turn affair drew a field of nine with Cherokee Queen installed as the 3-1 morning line favorite.

Cherokee Queen, Pleasantly Blessed, Miss Shananiegans, Weekend Party and A She’s Adorable all come out of the Blushing K D Handicap at Fair Grounds in December. Cherokee Queen was much the best that day running wide and getting up to win by a neck.

Pleasantly Blessed was second with Weekend Party fourth, A She’s Adorable fifth and Miss Shananiegans seventh. It was the eighth win in 29 career starts on the turf for Cherokee Queen and tenth win overall.

The new shooters in the race looking to defeat the favorite are Skipping Town, Poof Too, Juanita and Countess Lemonade. Skipping Town and Poof Too have runs over the Fair Grounds turf course while the other two are new to the Bayou.

Skipping Town goes dirt-to-turf for trainer Sam Ishaq and the turf is where she belongs. The dirt start from the connections was a puzzler as she is just one-for-nine on dirt. On turf; however, she has seven wins in fifteen career starts with five seconds and one third.

Five of those fifteen turf starts have come at Fair Grounds and twice she has crossed the wire on top. The other three times she was second. Top rider Robby Albarado gets the mount and she must be respected.

Poof Too has one start over the course, a third place finish in the Pago Hop Stakes in late November. She is only making her eighth career start so she does have upside, but must prove it against this company.

Juanita has run at the turf at Gulfstream Park, Indiana Downs and Penn National. Her best two wins were on the dirt in wire-to-wire fashion at Churchill Downs and Hoosier Park, but does own a win over the turf. Like Poof Too, Juanita must also prove she belongs.

Countess Lemonade ships west from her East Coast base and picks up a new trainer in Al Stall. The five-year-old mare may not win this race, but her owner is probably the best cook in the bunch. Celebrity chef Bobby Flay owns her and is looking for her first win in the U.S. after staring her career in France.

If she is able to duplicate her run in the Blushing K D then Cherokee Queen is going to be tough to hold off.

Post time for the Krantz Memorial is 5:25 ET.

Tampa Bay Downs – Gasparilla & Pasco Stakes

Three-Year-Old $100,000 Stakes

The feature races on Saturday at Tampa Bay downs are the Gasparilla and Pasco Stakes. Each stakes is worth $100,000 with the Gasparilla for fillies and the Pasco for open company.

The Gasparilla is up first, post time 3:42 ET, and is the start of the late pick-4. A field of ten will line up for the seven furlong affair with Delightful Magic the filly to beat.

Delightful Magic ran into some buzz saws early in her career. She hooked two-year-old filly champion My Miss Aurelia in her debut then ran against Stopshoppingmaria in start number two. She finally broke her maiden at Churchill Downs in her fifth career start before taking on stakes company at Delta Downs in her last.

In the Delta Princess Delightful Magic stalked the early pace before fading to be fifth. A return to one-turn and seven furlongs should be ideal for the daughter of Mineshaft.

The biggest danger to the favorite looks to come from Backstage Magic and Ode to Sami. Backstage Magic and Ode to Sami both have wins over the Tampa track and that is an important handicapping tool for the Oldsmar oval.

Venetian Sonata and Grand Entry exit the Sandpiper over the course while Jamraa comes out of the Grade 2 Golden Rod at Churchill Downs.

Two races later is the Pasco and the connections of Delightful Magic are looking for a double with their colt Prospective.

Prospective, owned by John C Oxley and trained by Mark Casse, exits a last place finish in the Grade 1 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile at Churchill Downs in early November. Prior to that the Malibu Moon-colt won two of three races over the synthetic surface at Woodbine.

Prospective still remains a question mark over a conventional dirt surface, but enters the Pasco as the horse to beat.

For Oby for trainer Pedro Mastre looks to be the biggest threat to Prospective based on his nose defeat to Ancient Rome in the $100,000 Spectacular Bid at Gulfstream Park. The speed figure earned by For Oby is tops in the field and if he runs back to that race wins for fun.

Others to consider in the seven-furlong race are Adirondack King shipping down from Parx for trainer John Servis as well as Angelofdistinction and Wildcat Creek, who are both coming out of the $75,000 Inaugural Stakes over the course.

Moroccan Brew technically needs to run faster to compete on Saturday, but his trainer is hitting at 32% for the meet, which is way up from his 11% overall number.

Post time for the Pasco is 4:40 ET.

Thoroughbred Racing Action

Weekend Stakes Action

Great racing action from across the country this weekend.  Watch these races all on BetAmerica.com.

Saturday – January 14

• Santa Anita: San Fernando Stakes – G2, $150,000, 4yo & up, 8.5f
• Gulfstream Park: Hal’s Hope Stakes – G3, $100,000, 4yo & up, 8f
• Gulfstream Park: Fort Lauderdale Stakes – G3, $100,000, 4yo & up, 8.5f turf
• Tampa Bay Downs: Pasco Stakes, $100,000, 3yo, 7f
• Tampa Bay Downs: Gasparilla Stakes, $100,000, 3yo f, 7f
• Oaklawn Park: Dixie Belle Stakes, $50,000, 3yo, 6f
• Golden Gate: California Derby, $100,000, 3yo, 8.5f
• Fair Grounds: Marie G. Krantz Memorial Handicap, $75,000, 4yo & up f&m, 8.5f turf
• Delta Downs: Genesis Stakes, $75,000, 3yo f, 7.5f
• Sunland Park: La Senora Stakes, $110,000, 3yo f, 6f
• Turfway Park: Wishing Well Stakes, $50,000, 4yo & up, 6f
• Turf Paradise: Cotton Fitzsimmons Mile Stakes, $75,000, 4yo & up, 8f turf

Sunday – January 15

• Santa Anita: Santa Ynez Stakes – G2, $150,000, 3yo f, 6.5f
• Santa Anita: Paseana Handicap, $75,000, 4yo & up f&m, 8.5f
• Gulfstream Park: Gulfstream Park Turf Sprint Stakes, $60,000, 4yo & up, 5f turf

Monday – January 16

• Santa Anita: San Gabriel Stakes – G2, $150,000, 3yo & up, 9f turf
• Oaklawn Park: Smarty Jones Stakes, $100,000, 3yo, 8f