Horse Racing News

Saturday's $300,000 Gulfstream Park Handicap, on the other hand, drew an evenly matched field of 11 older horses topped by Grasshopper, This Ones for Phil, Harlem Rocker, and Cool Coal Man.

Ernie Paragallo, a onetime leading owner in New York whose racing privileges were revoked last year, was found guilty on 33 counts of animal cruelty by a Greene County district judge on Wednesday.

Noble's Promise has raced exclusively on synthetic and turf surfaces to this point in his career, but there are reasons to believe that the Grade 1 winner might be an even better horse on dirt.

The champion 2-year-old of 2009, Lookin At Lucky will be adding blinkers Saturday when he makes his first start of the year in the Grade 2, $300,000 Rebel Stakes at Oaklawn Park.

Hollywood Park has made severe cuts to its stakes schedule for the upcoming spring-summer meeting from April 21 to July 18, including reducing the purses of five Grade 1 races.

Rachel Alexandra had her final work for Saturday's New Orleans Ladies at Fair Grounds, going a half-mile in 49 seconds there Monday. A few hours later, she drew post 2 in a field of five fillies and mares in the 1 1/16-mile race.

Zenyatta had just completed a six-furlong workout at Hollywood Park on Friday morning when trainer John Shirreffs looked at his stopwatch and grinned.

Regardless of whether time is measured in decades or years, Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert has been waiting for a horse like Misremembered and a race such as Saturday's $750,000 Santa Anita Handicap for a long time.

Careless Jewel, among the dominant members of last year's crop of 3-year-old fillies despite a disappointing performance in the Breeders' Cup Ladies' Classic in her season finale, is getting closer to her return.

Mike Machowsky has seen enough.