HORSE RACING NEWS & RESULTS

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CURLIN BACK TO THE TRACK

Preakness winner Curlin returned to the racetrack yesterday at Churchill Downs for the first time since last Saturday's heart-pounding victory in the Preakness Stakes.

Curlin galloped a mile over a "fast" surface for trainer Steve Asmussen in his first appearance on the track since the Preakness win. Regular exercise partner Carmen Rosas was aboard for the routine gallop.

"He's doing great," said Scott Blasi, the assistant who oversees Asmussen's Churchill Downs stable. "Everything looks great."

Asmussen was at Churchill Downs on Monday and said that "all indications" at this point would be to send the imposing chestnut son of Smart Strike on to the 1 -mile Belmont Stakes on June 9.

"Our responsibility is obviously his health," said Asmussen. "I think the one thing that everybody wants out of that race [the Preakness] is for the top three finishers to come out of it as they obviously did out of the Derby. It was so nice to see them all at the Preakness training the way they did with no chinks in the armor. All of them were still tight together and [we] thought they were going to show up and you'd have to run really well to win, and I think that's what happened."

If all continues to go well for Curlin, Asmussen said he would ship to Belmont Park on the Wednesday before the race. But he would have a routine schedule. "Most likely he'll breeze on Monday morning," Asmussen said. "We'll just stay with the routine."

EBAY BIDS RISE FOR PAINTING OF BARBARO WINNING DERBY

The NTRA Charities Barbaro Memorial Fund will benefit from a painting of Barbaro created on Kentucky Derby Day in the Churchill Downs paddock by Susan Sommer-Luarca. The item is now for sale on eBay.

The artist, who allowed Derby Day patrons to watch as she recreated the colt, arranged for Barbaro's jockey, Edgar Prado, to sign the portrait, which was donated to the NTRA to be auctioned to aid the Barbaro Memorial Fund.

The current highest bid for the 5' by 4' tonal acrylic on canvas, which went up for auction May 22, is $7,600 with bidding due to close at 10:00 a.m. (ET) on Friday, June 1. The starting bid was $5,000.

"I tried to capture on my canvas the beauty, strength, and elegance of this magnificent Kentucky Derby champion," said Sommer-Luarca. "It was my desire to capture the magical essence of Barbaro and the magic of his movement. I feel very fortunate that my artwork can support the NTRA Charities - Barbaro Memorial Fund."

The Barbaro Memorial Fund was created to raise awareness and funds for equine health and safety research in the name of the late 2006 Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands (gr. I) winner, whose struggle to overcome a catastrophic injury captivated horse enthusiasts around the world.

Those wishing to make cash donations to the NTRA Charities - Barbaro Memorial Fund may do so at www.ridingwithbarbaro.com.

SANTA ANITA TO INSTALL CUSHION TRACK

Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, Calif., has announced that it has contracted with Equestrian Surfaces of the United Kingdom to install Cushion Track, virtually the same synthetic racing surface installed at Hollywood Park a year earlier.

Cushion Track is composed of silica sand mixed with synthetic fibers, elastic fiber and granulated rubber. The material is coated with a blend of wax.

We believe we have done very thorough due diligence, said Santa Anita President Ron Charles. We went to racetracks around the world numerous times to evaluate synthetic tracks from the point of view of the horsemen, jockeys, fans, weather conditions and track operators.

Charles cited that a key factor in the decision was the consistency of having almost identical racing surfaces at Hollywood Park and Santa Anita. He stated that it was impossible to ignore how well horsemen have received and praised the Cushion Track at Hollywood Park. We believe the horsemen will definitely appreciate this consistency, because there's a definite level of confidence that the horses display when they train daily over virtually the same surface.

The target date for project completion is the first week in September, which would allow for approximately three weeks of training prior to the opening of the Oak Tree race meeting on Sept. 26.

PAIR OF GRADE I TURF STAKES SET FOR HOLLYWOOD ON MONDAY

Fast and Furious, third-place finisher in the 2005 Shoemaker Breeders' Cup Mile, will try again in the $300,000-added Grade I turf test on Monday, trainer Ron McAnally said yesterday at Hollywood Park. The 6-year-old son of Singspiel comes off a third-place finish in an allowance race here on April 26, his first start in six months.

His last race was not his style of running, said McAnally of the front-running effort by the French-bred who had come from behind in previous starts. But he got a lot out of it. And it looks like there will be speed in the Shoemaker.

A field of 10 is probable for the Shoemaker. The likely favorite will be Kip Deville, who has won his last three starts, all at one mile on turf, including the Grade I Kilroe Mile at Santa Anita and the Makers Mark Mile at Keeneland. He will face a stiff test, however, from the venerable nine-year-old The Tin Man, who will be making his first start of 2007. The Tin Man captured last year's Arlington Million.

A select field of five or six seems likely for the $300,000-added Gamely Breeders' Cup Handicap, the other half of the Hollywood Park Grade I stakes doubleheader on Memorial Day. The Gamely is for fillies and mares at 1 1/8 miles on turf. Probably starters include the undefeated New York invader Vacare.

CLASSY MET MILE HEADS HOLIDAY WEEKEND AT BELMONT PARK

Belmont Park in Elmont, N.Y., will play host on Monday to the 114th running of the Grade I, $600,000 Metropolitan Handicap, annually one of the more important races on the New York calendar. Top contenders include Silver Wagon, winner of last month's Grade I Carter Handicap at Aqueduct; Latent Heat, winner of Santa Anita's Grade I Malibu Stakes back in December; Lawyer Ron, the Oaklawn Handicap victor who is undefeated at the one-mile distance; and Silent Name, a Japanese-bred son of Sunday Silence coming off a four-length victory in the Commonwealth Breeders' Cup Stakes at Keeneland last month.

Meanwhile Belmont Park continues preparations for the 139th running of the $1 million Belmont Stakes on June 9th.

One horse who is getting good at the right time for the Belmont is Slew's Tizzy. In only three weeks, Slew's Tizzy has scored a pair of graded stakes wins in Keeneland's Coolmore Lexington Stakes and in the Lone Star Derby, which makes him a live up and comer to take on the likes of Curlin, Street Sense and Hard Spun.

Everything is falling into place, said Greg Fox, who trains Slew's Tizzy for Brooklyn native Joseph Lacombe. Right now, the plan is to work Saturday.

Slew's Tizzy is going to need a jockey for the Belmont Stakes. Robby Albarado, who rode Slew's Tizzy in the Lexington and Lone Star Derby, is obviously going to pilot Preakness champion Curlin in the Belmont.

We've got a few guys in mind, Fox said. We hate to lose Robby, but there are a lot of talented riders out there. We're working out the details.

FLORES NOTCHES 3000TH CAREER VICTORY

David Flores, who rode his first winner at Caliente in his native Mexico in 1984, notched the 3000th victory of his career Sunday at Hollywood Park when he guided 7-1 shot Time to Get Even to a dramatic victory in a three-horse blanket finish to the 14th running of the Lazaro S. Barrera Memorial Stakes.

Flores, 39, has had many big moments at Hollywood Park. He registered his first Grade I victory while riding longshot Marquetry to victory over Farma Way in the 1991 Hollywood Gold Cup and he also won the classic on Siphon in 1996.

I've seen many jockeys take a week or a lot of mounts to get over the number, but I was lucky to get over right away, said Flores, who rode a pair of winners on Saturday.

U.S. WITHDRAWS BETTING SERVICES COMMITMENT MADE TO WTO

During Tuesday's regularly scheduled meeting of the World Trade Organization (WTO) Dispute Settlement Body (DSB), the DSB adopted the decision of a WTO arbitration panel after the United States confirmed that it had taken steps to formally withdraw its global trade commitment to open the U.S. market to foreign providers of gambling and betting services. The commitment had been made to the WTO during the Clinton Administration as part of the General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS).

This is a great day for the parimutuel industry, Alex Waldrop, President and CEO of the National Thoroughbred Racing Association (NTRA), said on Tuesday. As a result of the withdrawal by the United States of its GATS commitment, the WTO will no longer play a role in the global debate on U.S. regulation of gambling services over the Internet. The NTRA has monitored this case for over two years, and we have argued from the outset that the GATS commitment should be withdrawn. Today's decision validates our long-held position.

The decision by the U.S. to withdraw its WTO commitments on gambling services effectively means that the U.S. will no longer have an international obligation to allow foreign investors to provide gambling services either cross-border, through a foreign Internet site, or through a commercial presence in the United States, such as a casino or racino.

The WTO issue surfaced two years ago in the form of a complaint by Antigua, which was seeking access to U.S. Internet gaming markets. In reviewing Antigua's case, the WTO determined that the U.S. was not in compliance with WTO standards calling for consistent applications of trade guidelines, and that the U.S. had discriminated between off- and on-shore Internet wagering operators, to the detriment of Antigua.

Tuesday's developments could represent the final step in the long-standing legal proceeding between Antigua and the United States. Antigua has procedural rights to secure permission from the WTO to retaliate against the United States, but it appears that the U.S decision to withdraw its WTO market access commitments on gambling services will neutralize the value of those rights.

The United States withdrawal of its WTO market access commitments does not require the U.S. to make any changes in current laws or practice, nor is it anticipated that the U.S. Government will make any changes as a result.

EVERYTHING MUST GO!

A racing oddity occurred following the fourth race at Churchill Downs in Louisville last Sunday. The race featured a field of six sprinters in for a claiming price of $12,500, meaning any licensed owner could purchase one of the contestants for that price as long as a claim had been properly lodged before the race. The system insures that superior horses do not enter races against inferior competition just for the sake of picking up easy purses.

For this event, horsemen came out to Churchill Downs with the fervor of bargain shoppers attacking the mall on the day after Thanksgiving. One by one, each horse returning to be unsaddled after the race was led from his previous owners to his new owners due to a claim. When the dust had settled, all six horses in the race had changed hands via this claiming process.

RACING TO HISTORY

May 24, 1905: Harry Payne Whitney's Tanya became the second (and last) filly to win the Belmont Stakes. Ruthless was the first filly to win the Belmont, in 1867. Whitney also won the Kentucky Derby with a filly, Regret, in 1915.

May 24, 1977: At odds of 13-1, Louis and Patrice Wolfson's two-year-old colt Affirmed won his maiden race by 4 1/2 lengths at Belmont Park, ridden by jockey Bernie Gonzalez.

May 25, 1991: Jockey Steve Cauthen won his fourth European derby, the Derby Italiano, with Hailsham, trained by Clive Brittain. Cauthen has also won the Epsom Derby twice, the Irish Derby and the French Derby, in addition to his Kentucky Derby win with Affirmed.

May 25, 1998: Jockey Eddie Maple announced his retirement at Belmont Park while accepting the 1998 Mike Venezia Award. Maple ended his career with 4,398 career victories and earnings of $105,318,593.

May 27, 1823: A $20,000 match race between American Eclipse (representing The North) and Henry (representing The South) was held at Union Course, Long Island. Eclipse won in two-of-three heats, after his original jockey, William Crafts, was replaced by Samuel Purdy before the second heat. The race, witnessed by 60,000 spectators, was the first to have been timed by split-second chronometers, which were imported for the event.

May 27, 1873: A bay colt, Survivor, won the first Preakness Stakes by 10 lengths, the largest margin in the race's history.

May 27, 1878: The entire field of Preakness Stakes horsesthreewas owned by a single family, the brothers George and Pierre Lorillard. George's horses finished first and third.

May 27, 1882: Trainer Robert Walden won his fifth consecutive Preakness Stakes, with Vanguard. Walden won a total of seven Preaknesses, a record for a trainer.

May 27, 1979: Jockey Chris McCarron, 24, won his 2,000th career race, aboard Stembok, in the second race at Hollywood Park.

May 27, 1981: Bill Shoemaker became the first jockey in racing history to win 8,000 races when he rode War Allied to victory in the first race at Hollywood Park.

May 27, 1985: Under jockey Laffit Pincay Jr., odds-on favorite Spend a Buck defeated Creme Fraiche by a neck to win the Jersey Derby and earn $2.6 million, the largest single purse in American racing history. Two million dollars of the purse came from a bonus to Spend a Buck for winning the Cherry Hill Mile, the Garden State Stakes, the Kentucky Derby and the Jersey Derby. Angel Cordero Jr., the regular rider of Spend a Buck, was committed to ride Track Barron in the Metropolitan Handicap in New York on the same day and was persuaded to give up his mount in the Jersey Derby. Track Barron finished third in the Metropolitan, earning $40,620.

May 28, 1997: Visa USA and Triple Crown Productions announced that they had increased the bonus for winning the Triple Crown to a total of $5 million.

May 28, 2000: Jockey Edgar Prado registered his 4,000th career victory aboard Thunder Breeze in the second race at Belmont Park.

May 29, 1897: Scottish Chieftain, owned by Marcus Daly, became the only Montana bred to win the Belmont Stakes.

May 29, 1907: Colin began his undefeated career, breaking his maiden by two lengths at Belmont Park.

May 29, 1946: Two-year-old fillies Chakoora and Uleta became the first Thoroughbreds to complete a transcontinental flight. They were flown from New York to Inglewood, Calif., by the American Air Express Corporation, for a 2,446-mile trip that lasted 20 hours due to adverse weather conditions.

May 30, 1903: Flocarline became the first filly to win the Preakness Stakes.

May 30, 1908: Jockey Joe Notter misjudged the finish of the Belmont Stakes and eased up on his mount, Colin, whose career record to that point was 13-for-13. Notter barely recovered from his mistake to hold off the drive of Fair Play, who came within a head of defeating Colin. When he retired, Colin's record stood at 15 wins in as many starts.

May 30, 1936: Omaha, the Triple Crown winner of 1935, won the Queens Plate at Kempton Park, England, for owner William Woodward.

May 30, 1941: Hollywood Park introduced the vibrationless camera, developed by Hollywood cameraman Lorenzo del Ricio. Eight patrol judges with the cameras, which were attached to their binoculars, were stationed at intervals around the track. Jockey Nunzio Pariso was the camera's first victimhe was shown on film crowding a rival on the far turn.

May 30, 1969: Jockey Patricia Barton won her first career race, at Pikes Peak.

May 31, 1969: Racing returned to Pennsylvania when Liberty Bell racetrack opened, near Philadelphia. The state had not had legal racing since 1802 and became the 30th state to adopt parimutuel wagering.

May 31, 2001: Jockey Pat Day became just the third jockey in history to win 8,000 races, hitting the milestone by winning the sixth race at Churchill Downs aboard Camden Park. Day joined Laffit Pincay Jr. and Bill Shoemaker in the 8,000 club.

May 31, 2004: Jockey Glenn Corbett rides his 2,000th career winner aboard Charmer Mac at Prairie Meadows.

June 1, 1881: Pierre Lorillard's Iroquois became the first American-owned and -bred horse to win a European classic race when he won the Epsom Derby under one of England's greatest riders, Fred Archer. Iroquois won seven of nine starts as a three-year-old, including England's St. Leger Stakes.

June 1, 1946: Assault became the seventh horse to win the Triple Crown, with a victory in the Belmont Stakes.

June 1, 1973: In his final tuneup for the Belmont Stakes and the Triple Crown, Secretariat went six furlongs in 1:11 3/5, doing the first three furlongs in :35 2/5 and five furlongs in :59.

June 1, 1978: In his first start ever on the turf, eventual four-time champion grass horse John Henry won a $35,000, 1 1/16-mile claiming race by 14 lengths at Belmont Park. John Henry was voted champion turf horse for the years 1980-81 and 1983-84.

June 1, 1999: Mr. Prospector, the most influential sire of his generation, died in his stall at Claiborne Farm in Paris, Ky. He was 29.

June 2, 1943: Trainer Hirsch Jacobs claimed two-year-old Stymie for $1,500. By the end of 1947, Stymie had become the world's leading money-winning Thoroughbred, with earnings of $816,060 and 22 stakes victories.

June 2, 1947: After a six-year layoff, 13-year-old Honey Cloud won the second race at Aqueduct. His jockey, Clarence Minner, had not ridden in 10 years.

June 2, 2005: Hall of Fame jockey Russell Baze recorded his 9,000th career victory aboard Queen of the Hunt in the eighth race at Golden Gate Fields. Only Laffit Pincay Jr., who registered 9,530 wins during his racing career, has more victories than Baze.

June 3, 1943: To further the war effort, the Navy took over Tanforan racetrack and used it as a training base.

June 3, 2004: Smarty Jones became the first horse racing figure to make the cover of ESPN The Magazine.

June 4, 1870: Ed Brown became the first African-American jockey to win the Belmont Stakes, with Kingfisher.

June 4, 1913: At odds of 100-1, Aboyeur became the first horse to win the Epsom Derby by an on-course disqualification after Craganour, who won by a head, was disqualified for bumping. During the race, a suffragette had rushed onto the track and pulled down the King's horse, Anmer. The suffragette, Emily Davison, died of a fractured skull.

June 4, 1941: Three days before his race in the Belmont Stakes, which would complete his Triple Crown, Whirlaway worked 1 1/4 miles in 2:02 2/5.

June 4, 2005: Jockey Eddie Castro set a North American record for most wins by a jockey in a single day at one racetrack by winning nine races on the 13-race card at Miami's Calder Race Course.

His nine winners. June 5, 1884: James McLaughlin became the first jockey to ride three consecutive Belmont Stakes winners, when he rode Panique to victory. He previously won with George Kinney (1883) and Forester (1882). McLaughlin repeated his feat in 1886-88, with each of his wins aboard horses owned by the Dwyer brothers. McLaughlin's triple was matched by jockey Laffit Pincay Jr. in 1984.

June 5, 1901: William C. Whitney's Volodyovski won the Epsom Derby, making him the second American owner (after Pierre Lorillard in 1881) to have won the race. Whitney leased the English-bred horse for the express purpose of winning at Epsom. Whitney's trainer, John Huggins, was the first American to train an Epsom Derby winner.

June 5, 1937: War Admiral became the fourth winner of the Triple Crown, with a win in the Belmont Stakes.

June 5, 1943: Count Fleet ended his racing career by winning the Belmont Stakes by 25 lengths. He was the sixth American Triple Crown winner. Count Fleet was such a heavy favorite for the race, going off at odds of 1-20, that no place or show wagering was allowed.

June 5, 1969: Jockey Mary Bacon won her first race, at Finger Lakes. Among apprentices, she finished 23rd in the races-won category that year, with 55 victories in 396 starts and purses of $91,642. Bacon was the first female to join the list of leading apprentices.

June 5, 1985: Steve Cauthen won the Epsom Derby aboard Slip Anchor and became the only American jockey to win both the English and Kentucky Derbies. Cauthen had previously ridden Affirmed to victory in the 1978 Kentucky Derby.

June 5, 1993: Julie Krone became the first female rider to win a Triple Crown race when she won the Belmont Stakes with Colonial Affair.

June 5, 1999: Charismatic lost his bid to become the 12th Triple Crown winner when he fractured his left front cannon bone and sesamoid while finishing third to Lemon Drop Kid in the Belmont Stakes.

June 5, 2004: Smarty Jones's quest to become horseracing's 12th Triple Crown winner ended when he was upset by 36-1 longshot Birdstone by one length before a record crowd of 120,139. NBC Sports' telecast of the Belmont was the highest rated program of any kind for the week.

June 6, 1919: Man o' War won his first race ever, a five-furlong contest over a straightaway at Belmont Park. He won by six lengths, running the distance in 59 seconds, and went off at odds of 3-5. In each of his 20 subsequent races, Man o' War was the odds-on favorite.

June 6, 1972: In preparation for his colt's July 4 racing debut, trainer Lucien Laurin put blinkers on two-year-old Secretariat for the first time. Secretariat responded by working a half-mile at Belmont Park in :47 3/5, the fastest time he had ever worked up to that date.

June 6, 1987: Bet Twice became the first horse to receive a Triple Crown bonus after winning the Belmont Stakes over rival Alysheba. He earned $1 million in addition to the first-place money.

June 6, 1992: Jockey Carl Gambardella won his 6,000th career victory, aboard Nip of Gin, at Rockingham Park.

June 6, 1998: Real Quiet was denied the Triple Crown when Victory Gallop edged him at the wire in the Belmont Stakes before an audience of 80,162. The crowd was the second-largest in the track's history and just shy of the mark set in 1971 when Canonero II failed in his Triple Crown bid before 82,694 spectators. Total handle on the Belmont Day card was a record of $55,613,482.

WEEKEND STAKES RACES (unrestricted stakes worth $75,000 and up) SATURDAY, MAY 26

Sheepshead Bay Handicap, 3&up (f&m), $150,000, Grade II, 1 3-8M (T), Belmont Park

Louisville Handicap, 3&up (f&m), $150,000, Grade III, 1 1-2M (T), Churchill Downs

Hanshin Cup Handicap, 3&up, $100,000, Grade III, 1M, Arlington Park

Alydar Stakes, 3yo, $75,000, 1 1-8M, Hollywood Park

SUNDAY, MAY 27

Connaught Cup Stakes, 4&up, $150,000, Grade III, 1 1-16M (T), Woodbine

Jaipur Stakes, 3&up, $100,000, Grade III, 6F (T), Belmont Park

Cinderella Stakes, 2yo fillies, $75,000, 5 1-2F, Hollywood Park

Willard L. Proctor Memorial Stakes, 2yo fillies, $75,000, 5 1-2F, Hollywood Park

MONDAY, MAY 28

Metropolitan Handicap, 3&up, $600,000, Grade I, 1M, Belmont Park

Lone Star Park Handicap, 3&up, $400,000, Grade III, 1 1-16M, Lone Star Park at Grand Prairie

Gamely Breeders' Cup Stakes, 3&up (f&m), $300,000, Grade I, 1 1-8M (T), Hollywood Park

Shoemaker Breeders' Cup Mile Stakes, 3&up, $300,000, Grade I, 1M (T), Hollywood Park

Dallas Turf Cup Handicap, 3&up, $200,000, Grade III, 1 1-8M (T), Lone Star Park at Grand Prairie

Golden Gate Fields Breeders' Cup, 3&up, $200,000, Grade III, 1 3-8M (T), Golden Gate Fields

Ouija Board Handicap, 3&up (f&m), $200,000, Grade III, 1M (T), Lone Star Park at Grand Prairie

Memorial Day Handicap, 3&up, $100,000, 1 1-16M, Calder

Winning Colors Stakes, 3&up (f&m), $100,000, Grade III, 6F, Churchill Downs

Pin Oak Stud USA Stakes, 3yo, $100,000, 1 1-16M (T), Lone Star Park at Grand Prairie

Stonerside Stakes, 3yo fillies, $100,000, 7F, Lone Star Park at Grand Prairie

Turf Amazon Handicap, 3&up (f&m), $100,000, 5F (T), Philadelphia Park

Valid Expectations Stakes, 3&up (f&m), $100,000, 6F, Lone Star Park at Grand Prairie

Decoration Day Handicap, 3&up (f&m), $750,000, 1M (T), Mountaineer Park

Memorial Day Handicap, 3&up, $75,000, 1M (T), Mountaineer Park

TUESDAY, MAY 29

Ohio Valley Handicap, 3&up (f&m), $75,000, 6F, Mountaineer Park

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