The Met Mile at Belmont Park and a whole lot of grass racing elsewhere highlight the U.S. Memorial Day weekend.
Overseas, the 3-year-olds continue to sort themselves out in England, Ireland and France while Ambitious Dragon seeks to become only the second-ever Hong Kong Triple Crown winner. The Japanese Derby at Tokyo and a tough grass race for older horses at Longchamp in Paris also invite attention.
Attend the details:
The $750,000, Grade I Met Mile looms as one of the best races so far this year in the handicap division. The field is expected to include the likes of last year's Breeders' Cup Mile winner, Caleb's Posse; the runner-up in that race, Shackleford; 2011 Cigar Mile Handicap victor To Honor and Serve; Carter Handicap winner Jackson Bend and others. It should be a great race to watch and to bet.
The other main-track action in the handicap ranks centers on Monday's $300,000, Grade III Lone Star Park Handicap at 1 1/16 miles and Saturday's $150,000 (Canadian), Grade III Eclipse Stakes at Woodbine at the same distance over the all-weather surface. Pender Harbour, victorious in the last two legs of the 2011 Canadian Triple Crown, makes his 4-year-old debut in the Woodbine event.
Turf wars:
Simmard, coming off a pair of third-place finishes in Grade II events, is the highweight for Saturday's $100,000, Grade III Louisville Handicap at Churchill Downs. The event is 1 1/2 miles over the Matt Winn Turf Course. The eight-horse field also includes Cease and Tahoe Lake. Cease started his career on the grass but seeks his first win on the surface. Tahoe Lake has been in the money in his last five starts.
Saturday's $125,000 Arlington Classic at Arlington Park finds 10 3-year-olds ready to try 1 1/16 miles on the greensward. Silver Max is the morning-line favorite off three straight wins, the last two of them graded affairs at Keeneland and Churchill Downs. Also in the field is Hero of Order, hoping a detour to the green course will right the ship after two poor showings in the wake of his 109-1 Louisiana Derby upset win.
In New York, Aruna looks to end a two-race nasty patch in Saturday's $200,000, Grade II Sheepshead Bay Stakes for fillies and mares at 11 furlongs on the grass. She was fifth in the Breeders' Cup Filly & Mare Turf last fall and sixth in her seasonal debut in the Grade I Jenny Wiley at Keeneland.
Sunday's $150,000 (Canadian), Grade II Connaught Cup at Woodbine pits 4-year-olds and up at 7 furlongs on the lawn.
Monday at Hollywood Park finds the $250,000, Grade I Gamely Stakes for fillies and mares at 1 1/8 miles on the grass.
Also on Monday at Monmouth Park, distaffers go 1 1/16 miles on the grass in the $100,000, Grade III Violet Stakes.
Fillies and mares:
Monday's $400,000, Grade I Ogden Phipps Handicap at Belmont is expected to put last year's winner, Awesome Maria, against It's Tricky, winner of last year's Acorn and both of her previous starts this year. Also expected is Patchattack, coming off a victory in the Doubledogdare at Keeneland. This will be another tough one to pick.
No easier is the third graded event on Memorial Day at the Elmont, N.Y., oval -- the $300,000, Grade I Acorn Stakes for 3-year-old fillies. The event is the first jewel of the New York filly Triple Crown and is expected to attract On Fire Baby, undefeated at the Acorn's 1-mile distance. Contested and Hard Mystery also are proven performers at 7 furlongs and 1 mile.
Also Saturday, the $150,000, Grade III Arlington Matron at 9 furlongs on the all-weather track finds seven on tap, including early favorites Upperline and Kathmanblu.
Overseas:
Ambitious Dragon will need to reverse course if he hopes to become Hong Kong's second-ever Triple Crown winner by taking the HK-Group 1 Standard Chartered Champions & Chater Cup Sunday at Sha Tin. The Tony Millard trainee won the 1,600-meter Stewards' Cup in January and the 2,000-meter Citibank Hong Kong Gold Cup in February. Since, he finished a dull seventh in the Group 1 Dubai Duty Free March 31 and fourth in the Group 1 BMW Champions Mile last month back on his home turf. The race is over 2,400 meters and the field also includes established stars in Irian and Mr Medici as well as promising newcomer Dominant. However, Ambitious Dragon is the reigning Hong Kong Horse of the Year and this is the Year of the Dragon.
At the Curragh, Aidan O'Brien conditions seven of the 15 horses confirmed for Saturday's Group 1 Abu Dhabi Irish 2,000 Guineas. But O'Brien's top 3-year-old prospect, Camelot, is ticketed for the Epsom Derby next month and bypassing the chance to collect the Guineas double after winning the Newmarket event. Among the small herd of Ballydoyle entrants is Daddy Long Legs, triumphant in the UAE Derby on World Cup night but thoroughly trounced and eased in the Kentucky Derby. Hermival is in from France for trainer Mikel Delzangles. Richard Hannon is expected to start Trumpet Major. Here's yet another good, competitive event.
The Group 1 Etihad Airways Irish 1,000 Guineas and Group 1 Tattersall Gold Cup highlight the Sunday card at the Curragh.
Haydock's weekend feature is the Group 2 Betfred.com Temple Stakes. The 5-furlong challenge is the first sprint in this year's Qipco British Champions series. Sole Power, who suffered a narrow loss in the Al Quoz Sprint in Dubai in his last race, is expected, as well as Prix de l'Abbaye winner Tangerine Trees, who returns from a layoff.
Sunday's Group 1 Tokyo Yushun, or Japanese Derby, attracted 24 nominations with the likes of World Ace, Gold Ship, Deep Brillante and Spielberg among the better-fancied.
At Longchamp in Paris, Cirrus des Aigles headlines an eight-horse field in Sunday's Group 1 Prix d'Ispahan for 4-year-olds and up going 9 miles on the grass. Cirrus des Aigles passed up last Sunday's Group 1 Singapore Airlines International Cup in favor of this event. Golden Lilac, Tin Horse and Reliable Man also are likely.
The Longchamp card also includes the Group 1 Montjeu Coolmore Prix Saint-Alary for 3-year-olds, going 10 furlongs on the green. Nine are entered there.
