SARATOGA LIVINGThe City. The Culture. The Life.

The New York Gaming Commission on Monday approved a proposed set of rules that would allow the New York Racing Association to offer a jackpot-type pick six bet, a wager that has become increasingly prevalent at U.S. tracks.

The rules, which are now subject to a 60-day public-comment period, would allow NYRA to set aside a portion of the pick six pool for a payout that would be awarded only if there is a single winning ticket. Many racetracks have converted their pick six wagers to the jackpot-style bet, though NYRA has so far resisted, and a NYRA official said last week that it does not currently have plans to introduce the wager but prefers to have the “optionality” to offer the bet in the future.

Under the rules, if no ticket has the correct pick six sequence, NYRA would be able to award the “major share” of the pool to “those who selected the first-place finisher in the greatest number of pick-six jackpot races,” with the remainder, the “minor share,” added to the carryover.

Jackpot-style pick six bets were first introduced in South Florida, and since then they have been added to racetracks on nearly every major racing circuit. The wagers differ in some jurisdictions in the amount that is set aside in each pool for the jackpot, and by the minimum wager allowed.

The bets have generated enormous carryovers and payouts, and they have proved immensely popular when the carryovers reach in the hundreds of thousands of dollars. However, some bettors are highly critical of the structure of the bets, and the news that the rules would be considered generated some backlash on social media from bettors who prefer New York’s traditional pick six structure.

Also at the meeting, the commission added a provision to a rule limiting purses in claiming races to double the claiming price that would allow racetracks to apply for exemptions to the rule on a meet-by-meet basis. NYRA supports the provision because it wants to raise purses in its lower-priced claiming races in order to compete with purses in neighboring jurisdictions, particularly Pennsylvania.

The 2-to-1 limit was first approved in 2012 as part of a handful of measures considered by the gambling commission during an investigation into a spate of fatalities at Aqueduct racetrack. At the time, the commission said that rapid run-ups in purses at Aqueduct had incentivized trainers to enter unsound horses to race in claiming races.

Dr. Scott Palmer, the commission’s equine medical director, told the commission that a number of other measures have allowed the commission to better monitor horses for soundness since 2012, and he said he supported the approval of the measure.

“We’ve made important strides in this area over the last six years,” Palmer said.

This story originally appeared on DRF.com. 

Visit DRF.com for additional news, notes, wagering information, and more.

ELMONT, N.Y. – Thursday’s $85,000 allowance feature at Belmont Park is a stakes-caliber race regardless of whether it is run on the turf, as scheduled, or moved to the dirt, as is possible.

March, a six-month layoff not withstanding, has proven himself a stakes-caliber horse on either surface.

March, who hasn’t run since finishing third in the Grade 3 Canadian Turf on March 3, returns as a gelding in this multi-conditioned allowance scheduled for 1 1/16 miles. Only five horses were entered for the turf and one, Black Tide, is likely to scratch after winning Sunday’s $125,000 Ashley T. Cole Handicap. Control Group and Rocky Tough were designated for the main track only.

March won the Grade 3 Bay Shore at Aqueduct and Grade 2 Woody Stephens at Belmont as a 3-year-old. Late in that campaign, he came within a head of winning the Grade 1 Hollywood Derby on turf. Myriad infirmities have limited him to just six starts over the last three seasons.

March, now 6, was gelded following the Canadian “to take a little weight off him and add to his longevity,” said trainer Jonathan Thomas, who said March is a barn favorite and is likely going to be his stable pony when his racing career ends.

Thomas said he was not necessarily pointing to this race, but when it came up he opted to enter him.

“The horse historically has really run well off the bench,” said Thomas, noting he won a 1 1/16-mile allowance race last December at Gulfstream off a 10-month layoff.

With Black Tide expected to scratch, Blacktype could play out as the primary speed in the race. Blacktype, a 7-year-old trained by Christophe Clement, has won three starts over Belmont’s turf course, including last year’s Grade 2 Knickerbocker.

Profiteer drops in class after running seventh in the Grade 1 United Nations. Night Prowler goes first off the claim for Dermot Magner, who has done well with limited starters.

KEY CONTENDERS

March, by Blame
Last 3 Beyers: 93-97-89
◗ Over the last three years, Thomas is 5 for 16 with a $2.80 ROI bringing horses back off a layoff greater than 180 days. Two of those wins came on turf during the Belmont spring-summer meet.
◗ Figures live on dirt should the race be run on that surface.

Blacktype, by Dunkerque
Last 3 Beyers: 89-92-95
◗ A Belmont horse for course with five wins from 13 starts here, including an allowance win in July.
◗ Most recently, he finished fifth in the Lure Stakes at Saratoga on Aug. 11.
“I thought he ran a touch below form in Saratoga,” Clement said. “Was disappointed, because he had a nice race at Belmont before that. He’s an older horse. The same old question: Can you get him back to his prime? He seems to be doing well since he got back from Saratoga.”

Profiteer, by War Front
Last 3 Beyers: 93-98-95
◗ Drop in class, return to Belmont where he is 2 for 3, and jockey switch to Jose Ortiz all point to him being live.

This story originally appeared on DRF.com. 

Visit DRF.com for additional news, notes, wagering information, and more.

ELMONT, N.Y. – When he won a three-way shake to claim Shanghai Dreams for $40,000 last month at Saratoga, trainer Robert Falcone Jr. felt he was getting a horse that could be effective on both dirt and turf.

That versatility could come in handy Wednesday at Belmont Park if Mother Nature puts in jeopardy the five scheduled turf races, including a six-furlong New York-bred allowance for fillies and mares that includes Shanghai Dreams. Rain is forecast for Tuesday and Wednesday and could affect a turf course that has yet to be labeled firm since the meet began Sept. 7.

Shanghai Dreams drew the rail in a field in which 13 horses were entered to run on the turf and two more were designated as main track only. Though Falcone said he would prefer to run Shanghai Dreams on turf, he also said she would run if the race is moved to the dirt.

Shanghai Dreams finished fourth for trainer George Weaver in her debut, a six-furlong maiden race run over firm ground here June 8. That race caught Falcone’s eye and his interest was piqued when the horse showed up in a $40,000 maiden claimer at Saratoga on Aug. 13. That scheduled turf race was run on the dirt, and Shanghai Dreams whistled to a 5 1/4-length victory over a fast main track.

“It showed that she could do dirt somewhat,” said Falcone, who claimed the horse for Zilla Racing Stables. “It’s always nice to have a horse that [can] do both surfaces.”

Falcone said Shanghai Dreams is training like a horse eager to get back to the races.

“She wants to run,” Falcone said. “She’s jumping out of her skin.”

If the race remains on turf, the main competition figures to come from Something Joyful, a five-length maiden winner here off a year layoff on Sept. 8, and Southern Gal, who makes her 3-year-old debut after injuring an ankle following a maiden win last November at Aqueduct.

If the race is on dirt, She’s Delightful and Bid You Adieu look to be significant players.

KEY CONTENDERS

Shanghai Dreams, by Shanghai Bobby
Beyers: 60-60
◗ Came with a wide rally in the lane and just missed third when breaking from post 12 in debut.
◗ She was able to set a modest pace and take the field all the way in off-the-turf maiden claimer at Saratoga.
“Not a lot of horses could be that versatile, which it seems like she is,” Falcone said. “Both of them were good efforts. We have the option if no one wants the lead, we can take it.”

Something Joyful, by Kitten’s Joy
Beyers: 68-64
◗ Came off a 345-day layoff to win a six-furlong maiden race here Sept. 8, rallying from off the pace under Javier Castellano.
“The one thing I wanted to see her do was relax and make a run, and Javier did a really nice job of doing that,” trainer Jeremiah Englehart said.

She’s Delightful, by Mission Impazible
Last 3 Beyers: 67-73-63
◗ Has run into seemingly better competition than she would meet here if this race is moved to the main track.

This story originally appeared on DRF.com. 

Visit DRF.com for additional news, notes, wagering information, and more.

ELMONT, N.Y. – Catholic Boy, the Travers winner, worked three furlongs in 39 seconds Sunday morning at Belmont Park as he begins to ratchet up preparations for the $6 million Breeders’ Cup Classic on Nov. 3 at Churchill Downs.

Exercise rider Tracey Morgan kept Catholic Boy several paths off the rail and had the colt under a snug old as he cruised around the main track shortly after it opened following a midmorning renovation break. Catholic Boy galloped out a half-mile in 51.76 seconds.

Trainer Jonathan Thomas said it was by design that Catholic Boy worked several paths off the rail, saying he felt it “was the better part of the racetrack.”

Thomas said he hadn’t planned on breezing Catholic Boy until next week, but the horse was wanting to do something. Catholic Boy did seem a bit excited as he kicked his back legs out a couple of times while backing up for the work.

Thomas decided to change plans and ship Catholic Boy from Saratoga to Belmont to do the bulk of his training as opposed to going to Churchill Downs a month before the Breeders’ Cup. Thomas said Catholic Boy would likely have three or four more breezes before shipping to Churchill, where he will have one or two works over the main track.

“He trained really well here leading up to the Pennine Ridge,” Thomas said, referring to a turf race he won here in June. “The horse goes out in the round pen for 30 minutes and grazes for an hour, and those are things we can do at Saratoga or Belmont that we can’t necessarily do at Churchill.”

Thomas added that he is more confident training Catholic Boy at Belmont, calling it “the best place on earth to train.”

This story originally appeared on DRF.com. 

Visit DRF.com for additional news, notes, wagering information, and more.

ELMONT, N.Y. – It wouldn’t be fair to make a judgment on Battle of Midway’s level of competitiveness as a Breeders’ Cup contender based on his lone start this year, a well-beaten second to the undefeated Catalina Cruiser in the Grade 2 Pat O’Brien Stakes at Del Mar.

Saturday should provide a better barometer of Battle of Midway when he makes his second start of his comeback in the Grade 2, $300,000 Kelso Handicap at Belmont Park, where he won’t face a horse the caliber of Catalina Cruiser.

Battle of Midway will meet six opponents in the Kelso, a race he is likely to use as a stepping-stone to attempt a repeat in the Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile at Churchill Downs on Nov. 3.

Battle of Midway, owned by WinStar Farm and Don Alberto, was retired and sent to stud duty following his 3-year-old season last year, which included a third-place finish in the Kentucky Derby and a win in the Dirt Mile. But Battle of Midway was found to be subfertile after impregnating just five of 60 mares during the breeding season.

In the Pat O’Brien, Battle of Midway bobbled leaving the gate, but otherwise got a good trip. Still, Catalina Cruiser drew away from him to win by 7 1/4 lengths.

“I don’t think we were going to beat that horse that day,” said Dan Ward, assistant to trainer Jerry Hollendorfer. “The race kind of got his mind back on racing. He’s got three good works since the race.”

On Sept. 8, Battle of Midway worked five furlongs in 58.80 seconds. He came back a week later and worked six furlongs in 1:12.60.

Battle of Midway will break from the rail under Flavien Prat and high weight of 123 pounds. He is spotting the rest of the field five to seven pounds.

“He can make his own style,” Ward said. “If they go fast he can sit, or he can go.”

Trainer Chad Brown sends out the uncoupled entry of Timeline and Patternrecognition. Timeline won the Grade 3 Peter Pan over this track at age 3, but has lost stakes at Belmont and Saratoga in his last two starts.

“Getting him back to one turn over this racetrack that he’s done well on in the past I think is going to be good for him,” Brown said.

Patternrecognition, a 5-year-old with only nine starts, is coming off a solid allowance win at Saratoga on Aug. 11. He is making his stakes debut here.

“He’s a horse we always thought a lot of,” Brown said. “I like the distance of the race for him.”

Still Having Fun won the Grade 2 Woody Stephens here in June before finishing fifth in the Grade 1 H. Allen Jerkens at Saratoga. Though Still Having Fun is cross-entered in Saturday’s Grade 3 Gallant Bob at six furlongs, trainer Tim Keefe opted for the one-turn mile.

“The way he ran in the Woody Stephens, he certainly could have gone another furlong,” Keefe said. “Unfortunately, I don’t think we’ll get the same kind of pace in the Kelso we got in the Woody Stephens.”

Sunny Ridge beat Timeline in the State Dinner Stakes going one turn here in July. Realm has won his last two starts. No Dozing comes out of a fifth-place finish in the Grade 1 Forego.

– additional reporting by Jim Dunleavy

This story originally appeared on DRF.com. 

Visit DRF.com for additional news, notes, wagering information, and more.

ELMONT, N.Y. – Trainer Chad Brown likely will have the two top betting choices in Saturday’s Grade 3, $200,000 Noble Damsel Stakes at Belmont Park. But both Uni and Dream Awhile likely will have to catch Hawksmoor, who looms the potential lone speed in what is expected to be a field of four fillies and mares to contest the one-mile turf race.

Six were entered in the Noble Damsel, but the connections of Lift Up and Mythical Mission said Thursday those horses will run in Saturday’s $150,000 All Along Stakes at Laurel instead.

Hawksmoor, a 5-year-old Irish-bred daughter of Azamour, won both the Grade 3 Beaugay and Grade 2 New York stakes in front-running fashion at Belmont in the spring of 2017. But she is winless in seven starts since then, with four runner-up finishes, including a second to Quidura in the Grade 2 Ballston Spa at Saratoga on Aug. 25.

“I thought that was a very competitive race,” trainer Arnaud Delacour said. “I was pretty happy with that. They didn’t go very fast early, but they really came home. I was very happy to see she could kick and stay with that type of filly.”

Delacour believes Thundering Sky also could show speed in the Noble Damsel, but he would be content to see Hawksmoor sit second early under Manny Franco.

“For sure, we need to get her out of the gate wherever she’s comfortable, whether it’s on the pace or right off the pace,” Delacour said. “She should be close.”

Uni is 2 for 2 this year, both wins coming at one mile and in listed stakes. She did show an explosive turn of foot to run down stablemate Precieuse in the De La Rose on Aug. 4 at Saratoga, her first start after missing the Grade 1 Gamely due to a temperature after she shipped to Southern California.

“She ran super to run down a nice filly in Precieuse,” Brown said.

Dream Awhile was beaten a neck by stablemate Elysea’s World in the Grade 3 Matchmaker after winning the Grade 3 Eatontown in June. She was scratched out of the Dr. James Penny Memorial at Parx earlier this month when that race came off the turf.

Dream Awhile has finished worse than third only once in 11 career starts. Javier Castellano rides the 126-pound highweight.

Thundering Sky is only 3 for 24, but one of those wins came in the Pebbles Stakes going a one-turn mile here in 2016.

This story originally appeared on DRF.com. 

Visit DRF.com for additional news, notes, wagering information, and more.

The New York Gaming Commission will vote on Monday on a proposed set of new rules that would allow Thoroughbred tracks in the state to offer jackpot-type wagers that have proved popular but controversial at other tracks in the U.S.

The proposed rules, which were posted on the New York Gaming Commission website on Thursday, would allow New York Thoroughbred tracks to offer a pick six bet that would pay out the entire pool only if a single ticket has the correct sequence of six winners. If a single ticket does not have the correct sequence, the “major share” of the pool would be distributed to “those who selected the first-place finisher in the greatest number of pick-six jackpot races,” with the remainder, the “minor share,” added to the carryover.

Contacted after the rules had been posted on the website, an official for the New York Racing Association, which operates Aqueduct, Belmont, and Saratoga, said NYRA did not have immediate plans to add a jackpot pick six, but that it wanted the option of adding the bet to the wagering menu in the future. The official noted that the public would have 60 days to comment on the rules if the gambling commission approves the proposal at Monday’s meeting.

“To add wagers in New York is a very thorough process,” said David O’Rourke, NYRA’s chief revenue officer. “This wager is popular, we wanted to have the optionality, but we have absolutely not come to a decision on when or if we would implement it.”

Pick-six jackpot bets have proved enormously popular at some tracks, especially those in South Florida, where the wager had its major-track debut and is called the Rainbow 6. The wagers have in some cases generated enormous carryovers and one-day handles, particularly on days in which the wager is facing a mandatory payout.

But many horseplayers have been critical of the bets as well. That has led some tracks to tweak the formula, such as at Del Mar Thoroughbred Club and Santa Anita Park in Southern California, where the majority of the pool is paid out according to traditional pick six rules but a small portion, 15 percent, is withheld each day for a carryover that is only available in the event of a single winner.

The New York rules do not specify any percentages that are to be withheld from the pools, aside from the designation of the “major share” and “minor share.” The rules also do not include a specific minimum wager. The minimum wager for a pick six at NYRA tracks is $2, as it is at Southern California tracks. The minimum bet for the Rainbow 6 at Gulfstream Park and several other tracks owned by Gulfstream’s parent company, The Stronach Group, is 20 cents.

On Wednesday, bettors wagered $2.5 million into the pick six at Belmont Park while chasing a carryover of $326,010.

“Obviously, the $2 pick six, there’s a tradition behind it, there’s a strong group of customers that want to play this bet and we need to understand, are we going to get more business because we’re the last man standing on this type of bet,” O’Rourke said. “We just need to have the optionality. … It’s just responsible business to have it on the sidelines.”

This story originally appeared on DRF.com. 

Visit DRF.com for additional news, notes, wagering information, and more.

McKinzie will try to regain his first-string role in Bob Baffert’s stable Saturday when he returns from a more than six-month break in the Grade 1, $1 million Pennsylvania Derby at Parx Racing.

The No. 1 3-year-old in Bob Baffert’s barn early in the year, McKinzie was forced to the sidelines in March following a bumping match with Bolt d’Oro in the San Felipe. Justify filled in admirably during his absence, sweeping the Triple Crown and retiring undefeated.

“In January, I thought I was going to win the Derby with him, but then he got hurt and the red horse came along,” Baffert said. “He’s like that Alabama quarterback Jalen Hurts in the championship game. He played the first half and then the freshman Tua Tagovailoa came in and ran the table.”

McKinzie beat Bolt d’Oro by a head in the San Felipe but was disqualified and placed second. He came out of the race with a hock injury that required stall rest.

“They were hitting each other, bouncing around pretty good,” Baffert said. “The injury was minor. I just couldn’t train him for a month. He’s been in my barn the whole time.”

The Pennsylvania Derby will not be an easy assignment for McKinzie, who is named for Baffert’s close friend, Los Alamitos executive Brad McKinzie, who died in August 2017. The 1 1/8-mile race has a 10-horse field that includes the rapidly improving trio of Hofburg, Mr Freeze, and Axelrod; the tough and consistent Bravazo; graded winners Instilled Regard, Core Beliefs, and King Zachary; and longshots Trigger Warning and First Mondays.

Baffert, who won the Pennsylvania Derby last year with West Coast and in 2014 with Bayern, has worked McKinzie nine times since Aug. 1, including three seven-furlong drills in the last month.

“It’s a tough spot to bring him back, but it’s the last million-dollar 3-year-old race of the year,” Baffert said. “He’s been training very, very well. I think he’s going to give a good account of himself. He’s got a lot of quality.”

Mr Freeze and McKinzie have the most early speed in the field and are drawn side by side in posts 7 and 8. Mr Freeze could end up on the lead under Robby Albarado with McKinzie and Mike Smith stalking from the outside.

Bravazo, Axelrod, and Core Beliefs have tactical speed and may land stalking positions. The deeper closers include Hofburg and Instilled Regard.

Dale Romans has entered both Mr Freeze and King Zachary. Mr Freeze will be making his first start since winning the West Virginia Derby by eight lengths on Aug. 4. The 102 Beyer Speed Figure he earned is tops in the field and a point better than McKinzie’s number in the San Felipe.

Hofburg won the restricted Curlin Stakes going 1 1/8 miles at Saratoga by five lengths July 27 and earned a 100 Beyer. Bill Mott was preparing Hofburg for the Travers when he spiked a fever and was forced to skip the race.

“Even though he won the Curlin, I think he might have been compromised by the mud and from having to come from behind,” Mott said. “He was the only horse to come from off the pace that day.”

Mott will equip Hofburg with blinkers for the Pennsylvania Derby.

“I think he’s an improving horse,” Mott said. “Pace is important for him because of his style. You don’t want them out there walking the dog in front of him.”

Bravazo is the iron horse of the 3-year-old crop and will be making his sixth consecutive Grade 1 start. Trained by D. Wayne Lukas, he has finished sixth in the Derby, second in the Preakness, sixth in the Belmont, second in the Haskell, and third in the Travers.

Instilled Regard will be racing for the first time since finishing fourth in the Kentucky Derby at 85-1. He was given 30 days off following that race, and owner Larry Best then transferred him from Jerry Hollendorfer to Chad Brown.

Instilled Regard has worked nine times in New York since July 21. Brown realizes this is a tough comeback spot for Instilled Regard, who won the Lecomte at Fair Grounds last winter.

“It’s a tall order for sure,” Brown said. “But he’s a very talented horse and the timing and distance of the race works for us.”

Axelrod has won the Smarty Jones at Parx and the Indiana Derby at Indiana Grand in his last two races, both for Mike McCarthy. He faces tougher company Saturday.

The Pennsylvania Derby will be Core Belief’s final start of the year, according to trainer Peter Eurton. He lost valuable position when he stumbled at the start of the Haskell in his last start and finished fourth. Eurton said he came out of the race with “a little bit of mucus.”

◗ The Pennsylvania Derby is co-featured on the 13-race Parx card with the Grade 1, $1 million Cotillion for 3-year-old fillies. Three other stakes are carded, including the Grade 3, $300,000 Gallant Bob, a six-furlong sprint for 3-year-olds.

– additional reporting by David Grening

This story originally appeared on DRF.com. 

Visit DRF.com for additional news, notes, wagering information, and more.