Santa Anita

Ed DeRosa of Brisnet.com takes on TDN's Steve Sherack and Brian DiDonato as they handicap Triple Crown prep races plus the big three races themselves. The three will make $100 Win/Place bets in the preps and $200 Win/Place bets in the Kentucky Derby, Preakness and Belmont. Highest bankroll at the end wins. DeRosa - GII Fasig-Tipton Fountain of Youth S. Results - Country Grammer ran well enough last week to sneak into my Kentucky Derby rankings, but not well enough to win any points, so I'm looking to bust out...

Five-year-old filly Got Stormy (Get Stormy), who turned in one of the best turf performances of 2019 when she bested the boys in Saratoga's GI Fourstardave H. in August, returns to open company for Saturday's GI Frank E. Kilroe Mile S. at Santa Anita. Subsequently second in the GI Woodbine Mile Sept. 14, she again completed the exacta as the favorite behind eventual champion turf female Uni (GB) (More Than Ready) in the course-and-distance GI Breeders' Cup Mile Nov. 2. She annexed the GI Matriarch S. at Del Mar Dec....

Hall of Famer Bob Baffert sends out two of his (at least) four serious GI Kentucky Derby contenders in a short but stacked running of the GII San Felipe S. at Santa Anita Saturday. Favored at 6-5 on the morning line, Authentic (Into Mischief) was last seen greenly taking the GIII Sham S. here by 7 3/4 lengths over stablemate Azul Coast (Super Saver), who came back to snag the El Camino Real Derby. A $350,000 KEESEP yearling purchase by the powerhouse, stallion-making syndicate of SF Racing, Starlight, Madaket, et...

TVG will continue its "Chasing the Derby" series Saturday with expanded coverage of the GII Tampa Bay Derby and the GII San Felipe S. TVG's Matt Carothers and Gabby Gaudet will be on site at Tampa Bay Downs with coverage and analysis of the key Kentucky Derby prep race as well as the full card from Tampa Bay Downs, which includes four additional stakes races. On the West Coast, Todd Schrupp, Simon Bray, Christina Blacker, Britney Eurton and Mike Joyce will lead the coverage of the San Felipe from Santa...

A conference call among a variety of California industry stakeholders Tuesday brought further clarity to a state-wide California Horse Racing Board (CHRB) rule change, which went into effect Mar. 1, concerning what can be administered to a horse after the time it has been entered to race. The rule changes--which the CHRB adopted on an emergency basis in January, then formally approved Feb. 20--had caused confusion and concern among certain trainers about how it would impact their training programs. Tuesday's conference call brought clarity to two of the main sticking...

Back home in California after finishing second aboard Midnight Bisou (Midnight Lute) in the inaugural running of the $20-million Saudi Cup, jockey Mike Smith said the penalties handed down to him for excessive use of the whip were "absurd." Under rules enacted just before the running of the Saudi Cup card, riders were limited to striking a horse no more than 10 times during a race. The Saudi stewards ruled that Smith struck Midnight Bisou 14 times and also was guilty of hitting his mount with no regard for the...

Tim Ritvo, who has served The Stronach Group in a variety of executive capacities since 2011, is leaving his role as chief operating officer of the company effective immediately, according to a release issued Monday afternoon. The company has no immediate plans to fill his position, the release said. "I am honored to have been part of The Stronach Group and am proud of the accomplishments that we have made for the industry across our racing and training programs," Ritvo said. "As a former jockey, passionate fan and life-long horseman,...

Santa Anita Park has announced a new program to reward the owners of horses who have supported the current race meeting with a Loyalty Bonus to horses who have raced from Dec. 28 through Feb. 29. From Mar. 6 through the end of the season June 21, all eligible horses will receive an additional 10% bonus in their first start during that period (paid on first through fifth place earnings). The bonus money will be fully funded by Santa Anita and The Stronach Group and is separate from the purse...

by Reg Lansberry Tommy Trotter, whose 56-year career encompassed decades as one of the sport's most acclaimed racing secretaries, died Sunday in Aventura, FL, after a brief illness. In addition to his renown as a racing secretary, he was a widely respected handicapper who stamped the immortal careers of Kelso, Forego and other champions by assigning them forbidding amounts of handicap weight that served to certify their greatness. "When I think of Tommy Trotter, I think of Jimmy Kilroe," said Tom Robbins, executive vice president for racing at Del Mar....

The Sunshine Bonus, a program coordinated by Santa Anita and Thoroughbred Owners of California to attract out-of-state horses, will pay an additional 50% to the owners of horses who finish first through fifth, and have not raced in California during the previous 12 months. In addition to the 50% bonus, all eligible horses also will earn a guaranteed $3,000 bonus for their first starts at the track. The Santa Anita Sunshine Bonus will begin in April and be in effective through the remainder of the current winter/spring meeting. First time...

Longtime California trainer Henry Moreno passed away Sunday at The Kensington care facility in Sierra Madre following a lengthy battle with dementia. He was 90. Moreno, who was born in Corona, grew up on his father's Quarter Horse ranch and began as a Quarter Horse trainer before switching to Thoroughbreds in the early 1960s. He conditioned Chilean import Tizna (Chi), who won the 1974 and 1974 renewals of the GI Santa Margarita Invitational H., as well as the 1975 GI Ladies H. He saddled Re Toss (Arg) to upset Eclipse...

When Maximum Security (New Year's Day) touched down in Saudi Arabia last week, a new chapter began for the horse that had a star-crossed 2019. On Saturday, he will face the stiffest challenge of his career in the inaugural running of the $20-million Saudi Cup. It's a race that will answer a lot of questions, but don't be surprised if the end result is an emphatic win from last year's 3-year-old male champion. While Maximum Security had a strong 3-year-old campaign, his year was remembered more for what didn't happen...