Stakes Entries, Post Positions and Odds
2012 Southwest Stakes: Entries and Post Positions
by Matt Gardner on Feb 18, 2012 7:59 PM EST
in Stakes Entries, Post Positions and Odds
Twenty-one horses entered the 2012 Grade 3 Southwest Stakes at Oaklawn Park, causing track officials to split the race into two divisions. Each race will both carry the same graded status, as well as a $250,000 purse. The divisions will run as Race 8 and Race 9 (Post times: 4:41 and 5:15 Central; TV; TVG, HRTV) on Monday's Oaklawn Park card.
Junebugred, winner of the Smarty Jones Stakes at Oaklawn on January 16th is one of 11 entries in the first division of the Southwest. He'll be joined by the runner-up in the Smarty Jones, Reckless Jerry, along with an intriguing entry from trainer Steven Asmussen, Unbridled's Note.
Breeders' Cup Juvenile Sprint winner Secret Circle leads the field in the 2nd division of the Southwest. He finished 2nd in the G3-Sham Stakes at Santa Anita back on January 7th in his first attempt at two turns.
Oaklawn Park is offering a special Southwest Stakes Daily Double beginning with the running of the first division.
Below are the entries and post positions for the Southwest Stakes. I'll have a preview of each division on Sunday afternoon.
4 commentsDonn Field Is Deep And Balanced
by Matt Gardner on Feb 11, 2012 12:03 PM EST
in Stakes Entries, Post Positions and Odds
[Apologies for the light posting over the past few days; I'm fighting a nasty cold that has knocked me out and put a big dent in my handicapping.]
Saturday looks like it is going to be an excellent all-around day of racing at Gulfstream Park with two Grade 1s, the Donn and the Gulfstream Park Turf Handicap, headlining a fantastic card that will run over a wet main track and a turf course currently listed as "GOOD". The Donn Handicap has drawn a large and competitive field, led by several of the bigger names from the 2011 season and a couple of lightly raced horses that look to finally step up to the big stage.
Below are the entries, post positions and morning line odds for Saturday's Grade 1 Donn Handicap, along with a look at the field.
| PP | Horse | Jockey | Trainer | ML |
| 1 | Where's Sterling | J. Lezcano | N. Canani | 12/1 |
| 2 | Mission Impazible | J. Castellano | T. Pletcher | 6/1 |
| 3 | Ruler On Ice | R. Napravnik | K. Breen | 6/1 |
| 4 | Redeemed | E. Prado | R. Dutrow | 12/1 |
| 5 | Soaring Empire | J. Leparoux | C. Gambolati | 10/1 |
| 6 | Al Khali | A. Garcia | W. Mott | 20/1 |
| 7 | Flat out | A. Solis | C. Dickey | 5/1 |
| 8 | Trickmeister | R. Dominguez | R. Dutrow | 6/1 |
| 9 | Shackleford | J. Castanon | D. Romans | 7/2 |
| 10 | Hymn Book | J. Velazquez | S. McGaughey | 8/1 |
| 11 | Sangaree | R. Maragh | K. McLaughlin | 10/1 |
Alpha Leads Withers Field At The Big A
by Matt Gardner on Feb 1, 2012 3:44 PM EST
in Stakes Entries, Post Positions and Odds
Godolphin's Alpha, winner of the Count Fleet Stakes on January 7th, leads a field of seven in the Grade 3 Withers Stakes at Aqueduct on Saturday afternoon (Post time: 4:05pm ; TV: TVG & HRTV). The Withers is Alpha's fifth lifetime start, following a score against Maiden Special Weight's at Saratoga last September, a 2nd place finish in the G1-Champagne to Union Rags in early October, and a disappointing 11th place finish at the Breeders' Cup Juvenile. His first race of 2012, the aforementioned Count Fleet, Alpha wore down pacesetter Il Villano inside the final furlongs to win by a relatively easy two and a half lengths.
Alpha, like the winner of last Sunday's Holy Bull at Gulfstream Park, is a three-year-old son of Bernardini. He is out of a Nijinsky II mare (Munnaya) and most of his siblings spent their racing career in England or France.
Alpha followed up his victory in the Count Fleet with a blistering five furlong bullet work on Jan. 30th over the Belmont training track.
Two shippers from Laurel Park may provide the toughest test for Alpha in the Withers. 1-Hakama won a maiden race at Aqueduct before heading to Laurel to score in an $40k OC/N1X event in gate to wire fashion. He probably won't get any breaks in the early going but he's shown the ability to stretch his speed over two turns.
6-Tiger Walk also ships in from Lauren after defeating optional claimer/N1X company; prior to that score he ran primarily on the lawn. The son of Tale of the Cat didn't crush that field at Laurel but it was a nice workmanlike effort in his first dirt try, especially when you consider that he was wide throughout the race. There isn't any Trakus at Laurel so it's a guess as to how much ground he lost over the entire race, but there is no doubt that he ran much further than the runner-up, Service for Ten. His maiden score wasn't too shabby as the second place horse came back to win against Maiden Special Weights at Aqueduct in late November.
5-How Do I Win finished well behind Alpha in the Count Fleet but has shown enough flashes of talent in his prior races to be a contender in this race. Anything coming from Pletcher in a graded stakes race like this has to be respected, especially if the horse has shown some decent form on prior occasions.
The New York-bred 3-Swag Daddy will try non-restricted company for the first time in his career for trainer Richard Dutrow. Dutrow is winning at a 37% clip during the current Aqueduct meet.
4-King Kid ran a decent third to Reveron and Casual Trick in the ungraded Gulfstream Park Derby back on New Year's Day. Any improvement off of that race would put him right in the thick of the contenders in the Withers.
Below are the entries and post positions for Saturday's Withers Stakes.
2012 Holy Bull Stakes: Hansen Leads Field Of Six
by Matt Gardner on Jan 26, 2012 3:24 PM EST
in Stakes Entries, Post Positions and Odds
Hansen, the 2011 Breeders' Cup Juvenile winner and champion two-year-old, will make his season debut against five rivals in Sunday's Grade 3 Holy Bull Stakes at Gulfstream Park. (Post time: 4:45pm Eastern; TV: HRTV). The Holy Bull is a one-turn mile with a total purse of $400,000.
Hansen, a three-year-old son of Tapit out of a Sir Cat mare (Stormy Sunday), was a perfect three-for-three during his Eclipse winning juvenile campaign. He began his career with a twelve and a quarter length romp against Maiden Special Weight company at Turfway Park before turning in another dominating performance in winning the Kentucky Cup Juvenile by over thirteen lengths. He capped off his juvenile season by holding off Union Rags in deep stretch of the Breeders' Cup Juvenile. In his three lifetime starts, he has yet to run behind another horse at any portion of a race.
Below are the entries and post positions for Sunday's Holy Bull. Morning line odds will be updated later.
Updated: Morning line odds have been added. Hansen set as 6/5 favorite; Algorithms at 5/2.
2012 Lecomte Stakes: Entries, Post Positions and Morning Line Odds
by Matt Gardner on Jan 18, 2012 3:44 PM EST
in Stakes Entries, Post Positions and Odds
The Fair Grounds kicks off their 2012 graded stakes program for three-year-old colts with this Saturday's Grade 3 Lecomte Stakes at a mile and seventy yards on the main track. (Post time: 4:55 Central; TV: HRTV) The Lecomte is the first of two local graded stakes (Risen Star Stakes) on the path to the $1 million Grade 2 Louisiana Derby. This year's Lecomte drew a large field of thirteen horses, led by Exfactor, a recent winner of the ungraded Sugar Bowl at the Fair Grounds in December, and the winner of the G3-Bashford Manor at Churchill Downs last July.
Among the other contenders in the Lecomte:
- Undefeated Capetown Devil, who has won races at Keeneland, Churchill and the Fair Grounds over the last three months.
- Shared Property, winner of the G3-Arlington-Washington Futurity last September and sixth in the G1-Breeders' Futurity at Keeneland in early October.
- Hammers Terry, a winner at Keeneland last October when breaking his maiden, followed by a two-turn score at the Fair Grounds on Dec. 8th in an OC $50k/N1X event.
- Seven Lively Sins, second by three-quarter of a length to Motor City in the G2-Iroquois on Oct. 30th and fourth in the G3-Delta Jackpot on Nov. 19th.
- Mr. Bowling, third in the G3-Iroquois at Churchill following an easy win in the ungraded Dover Stakes at Delaware on Oct. 8th.
Saturday's Fair Grounds card will also feature the F.W. Gaudin Memorial Stakes, the Silverbulletday Stakes, the G3-Colonel E.R. Bradley Handicap on the lawn, and the Louisiana Handicap.
Below are the entries and post positions for Saturday's Lecomte. The morning line odds will follow, when released.
On Fire Baby To Challenge The Boys In The Smarty Jones
by Matt Gardner on Jan 16, 2012 3:00 PM EST
in Stakes Entries, Post Positions and Odds
On Fire Baby, and three-year-old daughter of Smoke Glacken and winner of the G2-Pocahontas and G2-Golden Rod at Churchill Downs last fall, will take on eleven colts in Monday's 100,000 Smarty Jones Stakes at Oaklawn Park in Hot Springs, Arkansas (Post Time: 4:33pm Central; TV: TVG). The Smarty Jones is the first two-turn stakes race for three-year-olds of the season at Oaklawn and, even though it is not a graded stakes race, it is can provide a good launching point on the road to the $1 million Arkansas Derby. Below are the entries, post positions and morning line odds for the Smarty Jones.
| PP | Horse | Jockey | Trainer | ML |
| 1 | Laurie's Rocket | B. Hernandez, Jr. | D. Stewart | 8/1 |
| 2 | Junebugred | J. Bravo | S. Hobby | 5/1 |
| 3 | Prince Cheval | G. Kuntzweiler | G. Allen | 20/1 |
| 4 | No Spin | C. Hill | T. Ice | 6/1 |
| 5 | Fastestwhogetspaid | I. Ocampo | B. Williamson | 15/1 |
| 6 | Optimizer | T. Thompson | D. Lukas | 5/2 |
| 7 | Copus | J. Felix | B. Rainwater | 30/1 |
| 8 | Jake Mo | M. Berry | A. Milligan | 10/1 |
| 9 | Hard Nosed | R. Santana, Jr. | R. Moquett | 30/1 |
| 10 | On Fire Baby | J. Johnson | G. Hartlage | 7/2 |
| 11 | King Coral | G. Saez | A. Milligan | 20/1 |
| 12 | Reckless Jerry | S. Laviolette | K. Smith | 10/1 |
CashCall Futurity: Entries, Post Positions and Morning Line Odds
by Matt Gardner on Dec 14, 2011 6:09 PM EST
in Stakes Entries, Post Positions and Odds
Saturday's Grade 1 CashCall Futurity (Post time: 4:37 Pacific; TV: TVG) is the first of the final three Grade 1 stakes races on the 2011 calendar, with the Malibu Stakes will running on Monday, Dec. 26th, and the La Brea taking place on Saturday, Dec. 31st. The CashCall Futurity at Hollywood Park, the final graded stakes race for juveniles on the year, has drawn a very nice field of 13 colts to contest the mile and a sixteenth trip. The total purse for the race is $750,000, of which the winner's share would go a long way to making a horse eligible for the 2012 Kentucky Derby.
Below are the entries and post positions for Saturday's Grade 1 CashCall Futurity.
UPDATED: Hollywood has released the morning line for the race, a morning line that doesn't peg any kind of favorite. Drill gets the de facto honors at odds of 9/2, but Liaison and Majestic City chime in at 5/1, with Sky Kingdom checking in at 6/1. Given the amount of success that Majestic City has enjoyed at Hollywood Park, 5/1 would be a decent price. Drill, on the other hand, would seem a tad optimistic at 9/2 given his poor form as of late. If getting back to synthetics can wake him up, perhaps that number is a steal. But he might just be hitting the wall of his juvenile season.
| PP | Horse | Jockey | Trainer | ML |
| 1 | Handsome Mike | C. Nakatani | D. O'Neill | 12/1 |
| 2 | Brother Francis | V. Espinoza | J. Cassidy | 10/1 |
| 3 | Groovin' Solo | A. Quinonez | M. Cho | 99/1 |
| 4 | Empire Way | J. Rosario | M. Harrington | 30/1 |
| 5 | Drill | M. Garcia | B. Baffert | 9/2 |
| 6 | Sky Kingdom | G. Gomez | B. Baffert | 6/1 |
| 7 | Blingo | M. Smith | J. Shirreffs | 8/1 |
| 8 | Rousing Sermon | J. Talamo | J. Hollendorfer | 10/1 |
| 9 | Liaison | R. Bejarano | B. Baffert | 5/1 |
| 10 | Cozzetti | J. Leparoux | D. Romans | 12/1 |
| 11 | Majestic City | R. Dominguez | P. Miller | 5/1 |
| 12 | Basmati | H. Berrios | D. O'Neill | 12/1 |
| 13 | Desormais | D. Flores | P. Gallagher | 30/1 |
Bob Baffert's Drill, winner of the G1-Del Mar Futurity back on Sept. 7th, will attempt to get back on track after a pair of hugely disappointing races at Churchill Downs and Delta Downs. After finishing 2nd to Creative Cause in the G1-Norfolk at Santa Anita, Drill was a no-show in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile and a lackluster 7th in the Delta Downs Jackpot. Saturday's race might be the perfect spot to get back on track as he'll return to a synthetic surface after three consecutive failure on dirt.
Majestic City, 13th in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf in his last start, will look to stay perfect on Hollywood Park's synthetic main track. After breaking his maiden back on May 21st, Majestic City went on to win the Proctor Memorial and the G3-Hollywood Juvenile Championship. His experience and success at Hollywood Park should be a valuable asset on Saturday.
If you don't like either of the two "name" horses, there are plenty of contenders to be found throughout the field:
Clark Handicap: Flat Out Leads Field Of 13
by Matt Gardner on Nov 23, 2011 12:31 PM EST
in Stakes Entries, Post Positions and Odds
A large and competitive field of thirteen horses will line up to contest Friday's Grade 1 Clark Handicap at Churchill Downs (post time 5:42 Eastern; TV: HRTV). Flat Out, the post time favorite for the Breeders' Cup Classic (where he finished a fairly dull 5th), seeks to close out 2011 with his second Grade 1 win of the season and his first victory in three lifetime starts at Churchill Downs. Among the contenders for Friday's Clark Handicap:
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