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Thursday,
February 2,
2012 |
| NTRA Thoroughbred
Notebook |
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PHOTOS OF THE WEEK
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#FakeRacingMovies, a Twitter hashtag that took off
on Tuesday, trended as the third most-talked-about,
non-promoted topic on Twitter. Some of the best examples
of the hashtag included “The Green Monkey Hornet”
(@BombsawayBob), “This is Spinal Tapit” (@MIBredclaimer)
and “Eightfiveinafifty First Dates” (@BklynBckstretch) |
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The poster Laurel Park will give away to fans in
conjunction with its celebration of Rapid Redux on
February 18. Image courtesy of Maryland Jockey Club. |
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TwinSpires.com takes out a front page ad on ESPN’s
horse racing site to celebrate Micheal Beychok’s $1
million score in the National Handicapping Championship
in Las Vegas last weekend. |
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FOLLOW US ON TWITTER
@NTRA
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Penelope P. Miller/NTRA Photos |
Michael Beychok is a 48-year-old political consultant
from Baton Rouge, Louisiana, who took home first place
and $1 million in prize money at Treasure Island Las
Vegas last weekend in the Daily Racing Form/NTRA
National Handicapping Championship Presented by
Sovereign Stable. |
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TWO MINUTE LICK WITH MICHAEL BEYCHOK
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Have you qualified for previous editions of the NHC?
Yes, this year’s was the fourth in a row for me.
What is your best finish in a handicapping tournament prior to
this year?
The best was a second in a YouBet tournament in 2001. I won
$20,000 for that finish. And I finished in the top 20 last year
in the NHC.
What wager created the largest payout for you?
I've hit the Pick 6 at Santa Anita on January 1st, in two out of
the past four years. These were major scores with the hit in
2011 being around $100,000 and the hit in 2009 being about
$70,000. Odd that they occurred on the same day, but it’s true.
That time of the year seems to be a lucky period for me.
What is your most memorable horse racing experience?
The year that Ferdinand won the Kentucky Derby. It was 1986, and
we had been going to the Derby for eight years at that point on
our way to an 18-year stretch when my dad took us to the Derby
in full style. I was just really beginning to think, wrongly it
turned out, that I could handicap the horse races and in
particular the Kentucky Derby. I had been touting all year,
since seeing Ferdinand’s last race of 1985, that this horse
could win the Derby. I was even more buoyed by his Santa Anita
Derby performance. He was 20-1 and when he broke through the
hole on the rail I looked back at my father, who had bet a ton
on him based on my opinion, and the joy and pride on his face
was something I’ll never forget.
How did you first get into horse racing?
A friend of my father’s, Democratic political advisor James
Carville, was working at my father’s law firm and one weekend my
father sent me along with him to the track for an outing. I’ve
been hooked ever since.
Does anyone in your family share your enthusiasm as a
horseplayer?
My brother shares my enthusiasm and my oldest son, Bradley, goes
to the track on occasion with me, but it can be a fairly
lonesome existence.
What accomplishment in life are you most proud of?
My proudest accomplishment is my oldest son, Bradley, who has
grown up to be a son any parent can be proud of. Professionally,
I helped elect a woman to the City Council in New Orleans after
Hurricane Katrina that I believe transformed the future of city
government even though she was just, in her words, “A housewife
who wanted her story told” of survival post-Katrina.
Who is your favorite horse racing writer?
My favorite website is gradeoneracing.com, although Ray Paulick
has a great website and Steve Byk does a great job on the radio.
What’s your favorite racetrack?
Well, before the win it was Churchill Downs, but today it’s
going to be Golden Gate, and especially $8,000 maiden claiming
races, since it was one of those that put me over the top in the
NHC!
Who has been the biggest influence on you, both professionally
and in racing?
In my professional career, my father has definitely been my
biggest influence. In my handicapping career, there have been so
many people that have helped me, it would be hard to pick one.
If you could have dinner with any person in the sport of horse
racing, who would it be?
I’d say (jockey) Leslie Mawing, because she won the race that
made me a millionaire!
What were you thinking when you realized that you won $1 million
in the NHC?
It hasn’t really set in yet. The money’s great, but the first
thing that went through my head was, “I’m going to be at the
Eclipse Awards.” It’s such a special award, and it honors the
people that support the game, so I think that it’s important. I
hope that I can be a good representative at least for that one
night and not embarrass the horseplayers of America.
Which racetrack is your home track?
Fair Grounds. It’s a nice Twin Spires track, and I hope to go
down there, maybe own a few more horses, and let Al Stall train
them and see what happens. |
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TRIPLE
CROWN WATCH
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(Image courtesy of Benoit Photos) |
BLINGO
Owner:
Mr. and Mrs. Jerry Moss
Trainer:
John Shirreffs
Sire:
Artie Schiller
Record:
2-1-0-1
Earnings:
$57,000
Current Wynn Las Vegas Derby odds:
40-1
The skinny:
Closed belatedly in CashCall Futurity. Working steadily for 2012
debut. Imposing physical specimen.
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Image courtesy of Hodges Photography/Lynn
Roberts) |
MR. BOWLING
Owner:
Brereton C. Jones
Trainer:
Larry Jones
Sire:
Istan
Record:
5-3-0-1
Earnings:
$201,048
Current Wynn Las Vegas Derby odds:
75-1
The skinny:
Has won three of his last four, including gutty win in Lecomte
Stakes.
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(Image courtesy of Four Footed Fotos) |
SHARED PROPERTY
Owner:
Jerry Namy
Trainer:
Tom Amoss
Sire:
Scat Daddy
Record:
4-2-0-1
Earnings:
$86,300
Current Wynn Las Vegas Derby odds:
75-1
The skinny:
Gelding will continue on Louisiana road to Derby after wide
third in Lecomte Stakes.
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(Image courtesy of
HorsePhotos.com) |
MIDNIGHT TRANSFER
Owner:
Warren B. Williamson
Trainer:
Carla Gaines
Sire:
Hard Spun
Record:
5-2-1-0
Earnings:
$96,050
Current Wynn Las Vegas Derby odds:
100-1
The skinny:
Will stretch out in San Felipe Stakes after nice sprint win in
San Pedro at Santa Anita.
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(Image courtesy of Benoit Photos) |
CONSULADO
Owner:
Cubanacan Stable
Trainer:
Mike Puype
Sire:
More Than Ready
Record:
2-1-1-0
Earnings:
$41,600
Current Wynn Las Vegas Derby odds:
125-1
The skinny:
Gelding blitzed maiden field by 7 ¼ lengths in second career
start at Santa Anita.
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(Image courtesy of Northview Stallion
Station) |
ISN’T HE CLEVER
Owner:
J. Kirk and Judy Robison
Trainer:
Henry Dominguez
Sire:
Smarty Jones
Record:
4-3-1-0
Earnings:
$113,960
Current Wynn Las Vegas Derby odds:
150-1
The skinny:
Three for four in New Mexico going short. Gelding romped by 11 ¾
lengths last time in Riley Allison Futurity. Starts in
Saturday’s Robert B. Lewis Stakes at Santa Anita.
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VOICES
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FROM THE GRANDSTAND
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Owner Barbara Banke on why Rachel Alexandra and her new
baby colt were taken to an equine hospital last week:
“I’m a Rachel-chondriac. We are taking every precaution
to ensure that Rachel and her colt are healthy and
happy.”
David Milch, co-creator of
Luck, quoted
in Sports
Business Journal on what the sport of horse racing
offers in terms of storytelling:
"It's the human drama on the grand scale and the
opportunity to explore deep emotions in a dramatic
setting. And, for me, I have experienced the highs and
lows of the game. I have owned the winners of two
Breeders' Cups. But I have also experienced such deep
disappointment, and I wouldn't trade either for the
other."
Tom Chiarella in
Esquire.com on the heavy use of jargon-filled
dialogue in Luck:
“It takes some explaining. You suffer a little for that
in the first episodes of
Luck…But
remember this truth: If you don't like to talk, you
don’t belong at the track.”
Trainer Graham Motion on Animal Kingdom’s scheduled
return in the February 25 Tampa Bay Stakes as a stepping
stone to the Dubai World Cup:
“Any of these earlier races would have been pushing it.
We want to have him fit for his first race so it doesn’t
take too much out of him for the race that we’re really
pointing for. I think a turf race will be easier on him
coming back .It’s a little kinder than the dirt. If the
race in Dubai was on dirt, it would probably be a
different story.”
Jayson Stark in ESPN.com on the portly duo of
Miguel Cabrera
and the newly-signed
Prince Fielder
possibly hitting back to back in the Detroit Tigers
lineup:
“It's also quite a spectacle. We're not talking about
two Breeders’ Cup jockeys here, you know.”
Owner Connie Apostelos on winning her first graded
stakes race with Papaw Bodie in the John B. Connally
Turf Cup at Sam Houston Race Park last Saturday:
“This is a dream come true. I got into this business a
couple of years ago…I have just become addicted to it.”
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VIDEOS OF THE WEEK
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Michael Beychok, who was sitting in second place going
into the final race of last weekend’s DRF/NTRA National
Handicapping Championship, remains chilly as he watches
his selection win him $1 million by a nose. (NTRAHorseRacing
YouTube Channel)
Algorithms captures Sunday’s Grade III Holy Bull Stakes
(GulfstreamPark YouTube
channel)
An owner talks about the impact that her 34-year-old
Thoroughbred mare has had on her life (SimonSchusterVideos
YouTube Channel)
Fox Hill Farm goes to the town of Havre de Grace, Md.,
to get the final answer on how to pronounce the 2011
Horse of the Year’s name (Fox
Hill Farm)
Opening theme/credits from Luck (AlexanderMitrakov’s
YouTube Channel)
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IN THE NEWS
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Million-dollar top prize at
National Handicapping Championship decided by a single
buck (Daily Racing Form)
Becoming a millionaire by a nose (Standardbredcananda.ca)
The NHC and champ Michael Beychok among the latest
“Winners of the Week”
(ESPN.com)
Three qualify already for 2013 NHC (Daily
Racing Form)
Union Rags and Hansen top the Jockey Club’s Experimental
Free Handicap (The Jockey Club)
Algorithms crushes juvenile champion Hansel in Holy Bull
(SunSentinel.com)
El Padrino looks like good Kentucky Derby prospect
winning two-turn allowance
(Daily
Racing Form)
Kentucky Derby contenders are getting harder to predict
(Los
Angeles Daily News)
After capturing the magic once, Derby winning trainers
face long odds to make repeat trip
(Courier-Journal.com)
Animal Kingdom pointed towards Tampa Bay Stakes (Thoroughbred
Times)
Game on Dude is set to go again (ESPN.com)
Awesome Feather blows them away (ESPN.com)
Breeders’ Cup’s return to NBC can only help
(Daily
Racing Form)
Giants’ Hall of Fame linebacker Sam Huff weighs in on
the Super Bowl and horse racing (The
Saratogian)
Five years later: Barbaro’s death remembered (Baltimore Sun.com)
Sun shines brightly on Santa Anita (SierramadrePatch.com)
Ramsey Zimmerman relishing his chance to ride again (SportsNOLA.com)
Thoroughbreds get their
speed from just a few ancestors (MSNBC.com)
NY approves race-day testing of jockeys for booze
(Wall Street Journal.com)
Wedding Guide: Couple ties the knot at horseracing track
(Altavista
Journal.com)
Stronach plans IPOs for six racehorse-ownership firms (Baltimore
Sun.com)
Stronach plan presents $10 question to investors (Daily Racing Form)
State of the States in online gambling (ADINEWS.com)
The Fair Grounds: The Times-Picayune covers 175 years of
New Orleans history (New Orleans Times-Picayune)
Star Guitar owner first lady of Louisiana racing
(Daily
Racing Form)
Guidry named to Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame
(Thoroughbred Times)
Jockey Calvin Borel to return to Oaklawn this February (The
Brownsville Herald)
Julie Krone inducted into Ballina Jockey Club
Ladies Jockey Hall of Fame (NorthernStar.com)
Professional skateboarder, MTV personality and
Thoroughbred owner Rob Dyrdek honored by City of Los
Angeles (Thoroughbred Times)
Racehorses find a home on a Finger Lakes farm (Ithaca
Journal.com)
TRF plans to relocate 600 horses to a ranch in
Colorado (The
Blood-Horse)
Grant to help fund TRF’s prison program that teaches
inmates to care for horses
(The
Saratogian)
OTTB Hoppy looks to move up the dressage ranks in
2012 (Aiken
Standard.com)
Luck
in the news:
Luck renewed for season two (TV.com)
Luck renewed for
second season by HBO (HuffingtonPost.com)
HBO renews Luck
(LosAngelesTimes.com)
HBO renews Luck,
stronger in reviews, so far, than ratings
(NewYorkTimes.com)
HBO’s Luck ratings slow out of the gate (The
Hollywood Reporter.com)
Thoroughbreds and degenerates in HBO’s
Luck (New
York Times)
Decoding the secrets to HBO’s horse racing drama (Los
Angeles Times.com)
HBO screens Luck
in Vegas before 200 NHC contestants (Bizbash.com)
Long odds and a last shot (RollingStone.com)
HBO drama Luck puts its money on big name talent (VancouverSun.com)
Luck review: Horse
racing has its ups and downs (NeonTommy.com)
A dark horse winner (SportsIllustrated.com)
Dead tree alert: The beautiful losers of
Luck (Time Entertainment.com)
Good “Luck”: HBO’s horse racing drama a sure bet (Boston-Herald.com)
Odds-on favorite:
Luck
horse-track characters are best
since Sopranos (NY Post.com)
Luck series premiere recap: Agony and Ecstasy at Santa
Anita (EW.com)
Chantal Sutherland co-stars in HBO’s
Luck (The
Star.com)
HBO’s
Luck more than just a day at the races (DallasNews.com)
Is HBO's Horse-Racing Series
Luck a Big
Gamble? (Seattlepi.com)
HBO places a bet on horse racing drama
Luck (Reuters)
HBO’s Luck is
saddled by the details (Washington
Post)
HBO places its bets on horse racing drama
Luck (Huffington Post.com) |
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IN THE BLOGOSPHERE
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Beychok wins million-dollar grand prize in DRF/NTRA National Handicapping
Championship (Chicago
Barn to wire.com)
How one dollar makes a millionaire (SportsNola.com)National
Handicapping Championship Recap (Equinometry.com)
NHC Thoughts from Mike Watchmaker (Daily
Racing Form)
Looking back at the NHC (Highrollersportsbetting.com)
Horse of the Year Havre de Grace starts her defense
early this year (The
Brock Talk.com)
Animal Kingdom to kick off his 2012 season in Grade III
Tampa Bay Stakes (Team
Valor)
Rapid Redux to be honored at Laurel February 18 (Brisnet.com)
Rapid Redux: the blue-collar horse who
captured the imagination of a nation (WBAL)
Rousing Sermon heading into the Robert B. Lewis Stakes
this Saturday (Bettor.com)
Sheppard hoping to be Ever So Lucky (The
Blood-Horse)
Catching up with Storm Cat (ESPN.com)
Dynaformer: racing’s favorite grump Racing's favorite
grump (The
Blood-Horse)
Tiznow – Patriots redux (The
Blood-Horse)
McPeek has racing in his blood, an eye for the horse and
a winning record (KY
Forward.com)
Effects of slot machine installation on Thoroughbred race courses
(Lawyers.com)
Trainer Ferris Allen reaches 2000-win milestone (WBAL.com)
Pletcher stable sweeps Forward Gal and the Holy Bull (HorseraceInsider.com)
Horse racing – now and then (Entertainment.Ezinemark.com)
Will El Padrino make Derby dreams come true
for Let’s Go Stable? (ESPN.com)
Fake horse racing movie names go wild on Twitter (Giving
My Ten Cents)
Winning when you lose (Horseracingradio.net)
Kit Harrington comes out to support HBO’s “Luck”
(JustJared.buzznet.com)
HBO’s ‘Luck”
trots at first but gallops to a finish (RedeyeChicago.com)
Review on HBO’s drama “Luck”
(A.V.club.com) HBO’s
let’s “Luck”
ride second season (Zap2it.com)
TRF creates new program for NYRA OTTB (Brisnet.com)
Off-the-track Thoroughbred showcase: Virga and P Y
Twenty (The
Paulick Report)
OTTBs you should know: Hank the Wonder therapy horse
(Retired
Racehorse blog.com)
Innocent Til Proven is a circuit hunter/jumper (Off-Track
Thoroughbreds) |
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CALENDAR
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RACING TO
HISTORY
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Feb. 3, 1989: Apprentice
jockey Nate Hubbard hung on for second—literally—when his horse,
Sweetwater Oak, stumbled near the finish line at Golden Gate Fields and
flipped the rider out of his saddle. As he tumbled forward, Hubbard
grabbed on to the filly’s neck and hung in mid-air until the race was
over. The track stewards ruled it an official finish because Hubbard’s
feet never touched the ground and Sweetwater Oak carried her assigned
weight throughout the race.
Feb. 3, 1990: Jockey Bill
Shoemaker rode his final career race at Santa Anita Park, finishing
fourth aboard Patchy Groundfog in ‘The Legend’s Last Ride.’ He retired
with a then-record 8,833 wins.
Feb. 4, 1926: Wheatley
Stables, formed by Mrs. Henry Carnegie Phipps, recorded its first win
ever, with a two-year-old filly named Sturdy Stella.
Feb. 4, 1997: Cigar was
named Horse of the Year for the second consecutive year.
Feb. 4, 2005: Jockey
Richard Migliore scored his 4,000th career victory aboard Benjamin Baby
in the seventh race at Aqueduct.
Feb. 5, 1997: A
six-year-old horse, Isitingood, broke the world record for a mile—1:32
1/5—set in 1968 by Dr. Fager.
Isitingood was timed in 1:32.05 over the Santa Anita Park turf
course.
Feb. 7, 1969: Diane Crump
became the first woman jockey in America to compete in a parimutuel race
when she finished tenth of 12 aboard a 48-1 shot, three-year-old Bridle
’n Bit, in the seventh race at Hialeah Park.
Feb. 7, 1996: A racing
oddity occurred at Oaklawn Park when the winners of seven consecutive
races started from the number one post position.
Feb. 7, 1999: Jockey Eddie
Delahoussaye picked up his 6,000th career victory aboard
Sweetcakesanshakes in the third race at Santa Anita Park. Delahoussaye
became the 14th rider in North American racing history to reach the
6,000-win mark.
Feb. 8, 1941: Whirlaway
began his three-year-old season with a win in a six furlong allowance
race at Hialeah.
Feb. 9, 1894: The Jockey
Club was incorporated. As originally conceived, it was to assume the
management of racing, previously overseen by the Board of Control.
Included in The Jockey Club’s functions were licensing, allotment of
racing dates, appointment of officials and the interpretation and
enforcement of racing rules.
Feb. 9, 1940: After a
year’s absence from competition, seven-year-old Seabiscuit, champion
handicap horse of 1937 and 1938, returned to racing at Santa Anita,
where he finished third in a handicap race. Seabiscuit ran three more
races in 1940, concluding his career with a win in the Santa Anita
Handicap.
Feb. 9, 1974: Jockey Chris
McCarron rode his first winner, a five-year-old gelding named Erezev, at
Bowie Racecourse. By year’s end, McCarron had established a then-record
number of winners for a single season: 546. Fifteen years later, on Nov.
30, 1989, jockey Kent Desormeaux eclipsed that mark.
Feb. 9, 2004: USA Today
named jockey Julie Krone one of America’s 10 toughest athletes.
Feb. 10, 1998: Undefeated
Two-Year-Old Champion Favorite Trick was named 1997 Horse of the Year.
Feb. 10, 2008: Jockey
Edgar Prado gained the 6,000th win of his career when he
guided Sumphin to victory in the 6th race at Gulfstream Park. Prado
became the 16th jockey in history to win 6,000 races.
Feb. 11, 1933: The Jockey
Club released data showing that as of 1932, the U.S. had surpassed Great
Britain and Ireland in foal production for the first time, to become the
world’s leading producer of Thoroughbreds.
Feb. 12, 1981:
Julie Krone rode her first career winner, a $3,500
claimer named Lord Farkle, in the sixth race at Tampa Bay Downs.
Feb. 14, 1966: Buckpasser
suffered the only defeat of his three-year-old season when he finished
second in a non-betting race, the Black Caesar Purse, at Hialeah. He
went on to post 13 consecutive victories in 1966 (12 of them in stakes
races), but was unable to compete in any of the Triple Crown races
because of a hoof injury.
Feb. 14, 1990: Ladbroke at
Golden Gate Fields inaugurated co-pooling of its wagers with those of a
sister organization, Ladbroke Racing Wyoming. The co-pooling of wagers
across state lines, made possible by California legislation that had
gone into effect Jan. 1, was a first in U.S. racing.
Feb. 14, 2003: Hall of
Fame jockey Johnny Longden, the only horseman to both ride (Count
Fleet) and train (Majestic Prince) a Kentucky Derby winner, died at age
96.
Feb. 15, 1974:
Future Triple Crown champion Seattle Slew was foaled at White
Horse Acres, Lexington, Ky.
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WEEKEND STAKES RACES top |
SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 4
Robert B. Lewis Stakes, 3yo, $200,000, Grade II, 1 1-16M, Santa Anita
Park
Strub Stakes, 4yo, $200,000, Grade II, 1 1-8M, Santa Anita Park
Withers Stakes, 3yo, $200,000, Grade III, 1 1-16M, Aqueduct
Sam F. Davis Stakes, 3yo, $200,000, Grade III, 1 1-16M, Tampa Bay Downs
Arcadia Stakes, 3&up, $150,000, Grade II, 1M (T), Santa Anita Park
Toboggan Stakes, 3&up, $150,000, Grade III, 6F, Aqueduct
Endeavor Stakes, 4&up (f&m), $150,000, Grade III, 1 1-16M (T), Tampa Bay
Downs
Correction Stakes, 3&up (f&m), $100,000, 6F, Aqueduct
Essex Handicap, 4&up, $100,000, 1 1-16M, Oaklawn Park
Florida Oaks, 3yo fillies, $100,000, 1 1-16M (T), Tampa Bay Downs
Marshua Stakes, 3yo fillies, $75,000, 6F, Laurel Park
SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 5
San Antonio Stakes, 4&up, $200,000, Grade II, 1 1-8M, Santa Anita Park
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