Play With Fire

An overflow field of 3-year-old fillies is set to face the starter for Friday' GII Bank of America Valley View Stakes on the final couple of days of racing at the Keeneland Fall Meet. For bettors, the 8 1/2-furlong feature, which carries purse money of $400,000 (including KTDF money), seems like a true 'spread' race. Minnesota-bred Play With Fire (Oscar Performance) looms a logical favorite to give Chad Brown his second Valley View winner in the space of three years (Surge Capacity, 2023). Acquired privately from Fergus Galvin and trainer...

There really isn't a whole lot that trainer Bill Mott has left to accomplish in the Thoroughbred business. Since recording his first graded stakes victory with Heatherten--who also gave him his first Grade I success--for owner John Franks some 41 years ago, the 72-year-old has saddled the winners of over 150 top-level contests with superstars of either sex, such as Taylor's Special, Theatrical (Ire), Paradise Creek, Fraise, legendary dual Horse of the Year Cigar, Ajina, Escena, Wekiva Springs, Favorite Trick, Dream Supreme and her son Majestic Warrior, Drosselmeyer, To Honor...

Despite the fact that Journalism (Curlin) became the first of his generation to earn as many as three elite-level victories with his thrilling success in the GI NYRABets Haskell Stakes last weekend, Godolphin's Sovereignty (Into Mischief) remains at the head of this year's sophomore class by virtue of convincing head-to-head tallies in the GI Kentucky Derby on May 3 and when last seen in the GI Belmont Stakes right here at Saratoga on June 7. But the argument can be made that Saturday's GII Jim Dandy Stakes at the Spa...

Having beat older horses in an allowance at Churchill downs in course record time Apr. 30, Classic Q stepped up to contest the 1 1/8-mile GIII Regret Stakes but faded from the lead as the favorite when last seen May 31. Dropped back to the flat mile Thursday, the 8-5 favorite put in a stellar effort to earn her first black type win in the Wild Applause on the opening day of the July 4th Racing Festival at Saratoga. Sent to the lead just as she was in the Regret...

Play With Fire (Oscar Performance) was produced widest into the Pimlico stretch and steamed down the center of the rain-affected turf course to take out Friday's Hilltop Stakes. Off as the 7-2 second choice in a field scratched down to eight when Complexity Jane (Complexity) dumped jockey Sheldon Russell in the preliminaries, the $85,000 OBS March graduate was content to drop out to the back of the field and was shuffled all the way to last as favored Me Governor (The Factor) took them along at a leisurely clip. Following...