Horse racing betting

New Zealand-bred Black Mamba, beaten a nose by Magical Fantasy last month in the Santa Barbara Handicap, will try to turn the tables in a tough field of 11 fillies and mares in Saturdays $250,000 Gamely Stakes at Hollywood Park in Inglewood, Calif.

The Grade I Gamely will be run on the grass at nine furlongs one furlong shorter than the Santa Barbara distance.

Black Mamba, who won the Beverly Hills Handicap and the John C. Mabee Handicap in back-to-back starts last summer, will be making her second start of 2009 in the Gamely. She enters with four wins in 24 starts for earnings of $702,171.

Magical Fantasy, the 2008 Del Mar Oaks winner, has won three of 13 races and $452,431.

Competition runs much deeper, however, in a field which includes 2008 CashCall Mile winner and Gamely runner-up Diamond Diva; 2008 Santa Barbara winner Foxysox; Bel Air Sizzle and Visit, second and third, respectively, in the Santa Ana Handicap in their last start at 1 1/8 miles, and Toque de Queda, beaten less than a length by Magical Fantasy while finishing third in the Santa Barbara.

The field lines up as follows from the rail out: Tuscan Evening, with Rafael Bejarano up, carries 117 pounds; Bel Air Sizzle, Joe Talamo, 119; Toque de Queda, Victor Espinoza, 117; Diamond Diva, David Flores, 123; Modification, Corey Nakatani, 117; Visit, Brice Blanc, 117; Magical Fantasy, Alex Solis, 123; Ainamaa, Aaron Gryder, 117; Foxysox, Tyler Baze, 119; Black Mamba, Joel Rosario, 123, and Lemon Chiffon, Mike Smith, 117.

Great Britain-bred Diamond Diva is on the same path which led to her victory in the 2008 CashCall Mile. Off ten months following that victory, she returned to the races May 2 with a second behind Gorgeous Goose in the one-mile Wilshire Handicap. She enters the Gamely with six wins in 17 starts for earnings of $741,683.

Hall of Fame trainer Bobby Frankel will be represented by Toque de Queda and Visit. The latter finished fourth while making her U.S. debut in the 2008 Breeders Cup Filly Mare Turf and was subsequently awarded third money. Yet to win in three 2009 starts, she was beaten a neck while finishing third in the Santa Ana Handicap.

Irish-bred Tuscan Evening broke her maiden in January her first of three victories in four 2009 starts. The Jerry Hollendorfer-trained filly set the pace before settling for third while making her lone stakes start in the Las Cienagas Handicap.

Modification enters after finishing in a dead heat for third in the Humana Distaff at Churchill Downs; Ainamaa won an allowance race after a fourth in the Santa Barbara, and Lemon Chiffon was third in the Distaff Turf Mile in her most recent start at Churchill Downs.

ALL QUIET STILL ON THE BELMONT STAKES FRONT

A field of 10, including Kentucky Derby winner Mine That Bird, is shaping up for the June 6 Belmont Stakes. That number could increase to 11 should the connections of Preakness winner Rachel Alexandra decide to enter their filly in the Test of the Champion. But no word on her participation is expected at least until a scheduled workout next Monday at Churchill Downs.

That means the Belmont riding assignments are still up in the air with Calvin Borel, the regular rider of Rachel Alexandra and the rider of Mine That Bird in the Derby, waiting as long as possible to choose one over the other.

Mine That Birds trainer Chip Woolley would prefer that Borel ride his gelding in the Belmont, but he has been very patient in waiting for an announcement by his Derby jockey. For Woolley, it comes down to loyalty, and the realization that it was Borel who piloted Mine That Bird to the victory of a lifetime in the Kentucky Derby.

I dont want Calvin sitting on the sidelines,said Woolley, referring to the prospect of Borel making a premature decision to commit to Rachel Alexandra for the Belmont and then not have a mount because the filly does not get entered next Wednesday, and because another rider has committed to Mine That Bird.

No matter who he winds up riding, Borel, with a Belmont victory, would be the first jockey in history to win all three legs of the Triple Crown in one year aboard more than a single horse.

ALBARADO, EMIGH APPROACHING RIDING MILESTONES

Robby Albarado, regular rider of 2007 and 2008 Horse of the Year Curlin, needs just two more victories to become the 56th jockey to ride 4,000 winners in North America. Albarado, 35, had the day off on Thursday, but he is slated to ride in six races at Churchill Downs tomorrow, including the morning line favorites in races three and seven.

Meanwhile, Illinois-based rider Chris Emigh, 38, is two wins shy of the 3,000-win plateau. At press time, he is winless from two mounts at Arlington Park today, with two additional mounts remaining on the Thursday card.

JOCKEY JOUBERT SCORES RARE TRIPLE

While much of the racing world is focused on Calvin Borels possible sweep of the Triple Crown with multiple horses, Mid-Atlantic based jockey Jenna Joubert registered an uncommon riding triple of her own on May 14, tallying wins at three different racetracks in that single day.

Joubert started things off with a victory aboard Chloes Song in the second race at Pimlico for trainer Dane Kobiskie. Joubert then traveled to Penn National where she guided Prove Mcguilty to win that tracks opening race, again for trainer Kobiskie. Then it was back in her car for a ride to Charles Town and yet another victory, this time on Cover My Six in the ninth race for trainer Justin Nixon.

While rare, Jouberts feat is not unprecedented. It was last accomplished by fellow Mid-Atlantic jockey Jonathan Joyce who rode winners at Pimlico, Delaware Park and Penn National on August 20, 2005.

GRAYSON-JOCKEY CLUB FUNDS ADDITIONAL STUDY ON SURFACES

Grayson-Jockey Club Research Foundation announced today that it is providing $50,000 to fund an innovative research project designed to create a state-of-the-art method of assessing racetrack surfaces. The project is being conducted by Dr. Sue Stover, Dr. Mont Hubbard, Dr. Shrinivasa Upadhyaha and Jacob Setterbo at the University of California-Davis.

The researchers seek to replicate synthetic and dirt racetrack surfaces in a laboratory setting. Successful validation of the laboratory track in a boxwill enable the study of factors that affect hoof impact, and thus propensity for injury, on racetrack surfaces in a carefully controlled environment.

The track in a box is designed to gather data from simulated hoof impacts on different surface materials. Subsequently, hoof impact data will be used in a computer model of the equine forelimb to predict fetlock joint angle and suspensory ligament and digital flexor tendon strains with different race surface properties.

We believe that, eventually, standard mechanical properties can be determined, and racetrack surface manufacturers can engineer surface materials that will minimize fetlock injuries in racehorses,said Stover.

The model and simulation can be used to determine these optimal, standard mechanical properties. Conducting this research in a laboratory setting can simulate an infinite number of race surfaces without having to build and test entire new racecourses,Stover explained.

Additionally, the computer model can allow for testing of extremes, which would not be appropriate if actual horses were being used.

In reference to how this project interfaces with existing science and other recently launched efforts funded by industry organizations, Dr. Stover stressed, This laboratory study complements the efforts of Drs. Mick Peterson and C. Wayne McIlwraith, who are conducting composition analysis and performance testing of existing race surfaces to promote consistency and reduce injury rates. These efforts are important for direct feedback to racetrack management teams, but are limited to existing race surfaces under varying environmental conditions.

The recently launched project is being added to the 17 others that the foundation earlier announced it would be funding in 2009. The total allocation for all 18 will be $924,894 this year.

BELMONT BASH TO BENEFIT EQUINE RESEARCH AND N.Y. RACE TRACK CHAPLAINCY

The Belmont Bash, hosted by the New York Racing Association (NYRA) and The Jockey Club, will be held on Thursday, June 4, 2009, at The Clubhouse at Meadowbrook Pointe in Westbury, N.Y.

Tickets are $250 per person and proceeds will benefit Grayson-Jockey Club Research Foundation and the Race Track Chaplaincy of America (RTCA), New York Division.

The Bash will feature cocktails, dinner, a charity casino and musical entertainment by the Faze 4 Orchestra.

Raising funds to benefit our sports equine and human participants is a fitting prelude to the 141st running of the Belmont Stakes two days later,said NYRA President and CEO Charles Hayward. We are proud to support Grayson-Jockey Club Research Foundations efforts in the field of equine medical research as well as efforts by the New York division of the Race Track Chaplaincy of America to minister to the needs of the hard-working families on the backstretch at NYRA racetracks.

Additional information about the Belmont Bash is available by contacting Nancy Kelly at (212) 521-5305 or nkelly@jockeyclub.com; or Jenifer Van Deinse at (212) 521-5327 or jvandeinse@jockeyclub.com.

RACING ON THE AIR (all times Eastern) June 6, Belmont Stakes undercard (Belmont Park); 12:00-5:00 p.m., ESPN

June 6, Belmont Stakes (Belmont Park); 5:00-7:00 p.m., ABC

RACING TO HISTORY

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, Colins 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 cameras 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.

June 1, 1881: Pierre Lorillards Iroquois became the first American-owned and -bred horse to win a European classic race when he won the Epsom Derby under one of Englands greatest riders, Fred Archer. Iroquois won seven of nine starts as a three-year-old, including Englands 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 worlds 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, had more victories at that time than Baze.

June 2, 2007: A portrait of Barbaro brought a winning bid of $14,400 on ebay in support of the NTRA Charities-Barbaro Memorial Fund.

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 horseracing 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 Kings 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 Miamis Calder Race Course.

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. McLaughlins triple was matched by jockey Laffit Pincay Jr. in 1984.

June 5, 1901: William C. Whitneys 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. Whitneys 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 Joness quest to become horseracings 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 colts 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 tracks 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.

June 7, 1930: Gallant Fox became the second winner of the Triple Crown after he won the Belmont Stakes under Earl Sande. Gallant Fox subsequently sired another Triple Crown winner, Omaha.

June 7, 1941: Whirlaway won the 73rd running of the Belmont Stakes and became the fifth horse to win the Triple Crown.

June 7, 1947: Owner William Helis had three stakes wins in three different states. Rippey won the Carter Handicap at New Yorks Aqueduct; Jobstown won the Absecon Handicap at New Jerseys Atlantic City and Elpis won the New Castle Handicap at Delaware Park.

June 7, 1980: Genuine Risk became the first filly to compete in all three Triple Crown races. She won the Kentucky Derby and finished second in both the Preakness and Belmont Stakes.

June 7, 1986: Trainer Woody Stephens saddled Danzig Connection to win his fifth consecutive Belmont Stakes. Stephens won the previous races with Conquistador Cielo (1982), Caveat (1983), Swale (1984) and Creme Fraiche (1985).

June 7, 1997: In his bid to become the 12th horse to win the Triple Crown, Silver Charm was outdueled during the stretch run of the Belmont Stakes by Touch Gold. Silver Charm held on for second and became the 13th horse to have lost the Triple Crown after winning the Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes.

June 7, 2003: Triple Crown hopeful Funny Cide lost his bid to become the twelfth Triple Crown winner finishing third to Empire Maker and Ten Most Wanted before 101,864 in the 135th Belmont Stakes. The NBC telecast of the Belmont generated the highest rating for any horse race since the 1990 Kentucky Derby. The final hour of the telecast earned the highest rating (10.7) of any prime-time program on television that week.

June 7, 2008: Big Brown is eased in the stretch of the 140th Belmont Stakes, ending his attempt to capture the Triple Crown. Longshot Da Tara won the race wire-to-wire before 94,476 spectators.

June 7, 2008: Legendary sportscaster Jim McKay, the creator of the Maryland Million, died at age 86.

June 8, 1935: Omaha, son of Triple Crown winner Gallant Fox, became the third winner of the Triple Crown with a win in the Belmont Stakes.

June 8, 1985: Brushwood Stables Creme Fraiche became the first gelding to win the Belmont Stakes.

June 8, 1991: Julie Krone became the first female rider to compete in the Belmont Stakes. Her mount, Subordinated Debt, finished ninth as the third-longest shot in the field. Also on that date, Mane Minister became the only horse to finish third in all three Triple Crown events.

June 8, 2002: A record Belmont Park crowd of 103,222 witnessed War Emblem fail in his bid to become Thoroughbred racings 12th Triple Crown winner at the 134th Belmont Stakes. War Emblem finished eighth behind longshot Sarava, who paid $142,50 to win as the highest priced winner in Belmont Stakes history. Belmont Parks previous attendance record was 85,818, set in 1999 when Charismatic finished third in attempting a Triple Crown sweep.

June 9, 1888: James McLaughlin set the record for most number of wins by a jockey in the Belmont Stakes, six, when he rode Sir Dixon to a 12-length victory. McLaughlins record was matched by Eddie Arcaro in 1955.

June 9, 1887: Only two horses competed in the Belmont Stakes. It was the smallest field in the races history, which again had only two starters in 1888, 1892, 1910, and 1920, the year Man o War won the Belmont by 20 lengths.

June 9, 1945: Hoop Jr. won the Kentucky Derby, which was run one month after a national wartime government ban on racing was lifted.

June 9, 1973: Secretariat won the Belmont Stakes by 31 lengthsthe longest winning margin in the races historywhile setting a track record of 2:24, which has not been surpassed. The time was 2 3/5 seconds faster than the mark set by Gallant Man in 1957. Secretariats victory made him the ninth Triple Crown winner and first since Citation had swept the Derby, Preakness and Belmont in 1948.

June 9, 1979: Spectacular Bid lost his chance for the Triple Crown in the Belmont Stakes, finishing third to winner Coastal. Trainer Bud Delp alleged that the colt had sustained a foot injury after stepping on a safety pin the morning of the race.

June 9, 1984: Riding Swale in a wire-to-wire victory, Laffit Pincay Jr. won his third consecutive Belmont Stakes, becoming the only rider in this century to accomplish that feat. Pincay rode Caveat to victory in 1983 and Conquistador Cielo in 1982; all three of his mounts were trained by Woody Stephens. Jockey James McLaughlin also rode three consecutive Belmont winners, once from 1882-84, and again from 1886-88. Swales Belmont was also the first in which a female trainer saddled a horse for the race. Sarah Lundy sent Minstrel Star to a last-place finish.

June 9, 2003: Spectacular Bid, a Champion at ages 2, 3 and 4, died at the age of 27.

June 9, 2007: Rags to Riches wore down Preakness winner and eventual Horse of the Year Curlin in the stretch to become the first filly in 102 years to capture the Belmont Stakes. It was the first Triple Crown race won by trainer Todd Pletcher.

June 10, 1890: The Preakness Stakes was run outside Baltimore, at Morris Park in New York, under the auspices of the New York Jockey Club. Suspended for three years, the race was next run at the Brooklyn Jockey Clubs Gravesend Course, 1894-1908.

June 10, 1938: Hollywood Park opened in Inglewood, Calif. In its inaugural year, Hollywood Park attracted such racing stars as Lawrin, who had given jockey Eddie Arcaro his first Kentucky Derby victory, as well as Ligaroti and Seabiscuit, whose rivalry later reached its pitch in a match race contested at Del Mar on Aug. 12, 1938.

June 10, 1944: The only triple dead heat for first in a stakes race occurred at Aqueduct Racetrack in the Carter Handicap. The three winners were Brownie, Bossuet and Wait a Bit.

June 10, 1953: Trainer Charlie Whittingham, at age 40, saddled his first stakes winner when Porterhouse, ridden by Bill Boland, won the National Stallion Stakes at Belmont Park. Porterhouse was later named champion two-year-old of 1953.

June 10, 1972: Laffit Pincay Jr. won his 2,000th victory while riding at Hollywood Park.

June 10, 1978: Steve Cauthen, at age 18, became the youngest jockey ever to win the Triple Crown when his mount, Affirmed, won the Belmont Stakes. Also on that day, Alydar became the only horse to finish second in all three Triple Crown races. Affirmed was the 11th winner of the Triple Crown.

June 10, 2000: The 132nd Belmont Stakes drew a crowd of 67,810, making it the fourth largest in the racetracks history and the largest Belmont Stakes crowd ever when a Triple Crown was not at stake. The race was won by longshot Commendable, giving trainer D. Wayne Lukas his record 13th win in a Triple Crown race.

WEEKEND STAKES RACES (unrestricted stakes in N.A. worth $75,000 and up) SATURDAY, MAY 30

Nassau Stakes, 3up (fm), $300,000, Grade II, 1 1-16M, Woodbine

Gamely Stakes, 3up (fm), $250,000, Grade I, 1 1-8M (T), Churchill Downs

Sands Point Stakes, 3yo fillies, $150,000, Grade II, 1 1-8M (T), Belmont Park

Aristides Handicap, 3up, $100,000, Grade III, 6F, Churchill Downs

Dogwood Stakes, 3yo fillies, $100,000, Grade III, 1M, Churchill Downs

Golden Gate Fields Turf, 4up, $100,000, Grade III, 1 3-8M (T), Golden Gate Fields

SUNDAY, MAY 31

Honeymoon Handicap, 3yo fillies, $150,000, Grade II, 1 1-8M (T), Hollywood Park