Sports news from racingfigures.com / horses

... will be the Woodward at Saratoga on August 30, owner Jess Jackson announced this afternoon. After the turf experiment that resulted in a second-place finish in the Man o' War last month, the colt is returning to dirt, "where he's a champion," said Jackson, who didn't rule out another attempt at running Curlin over grass or taking a shot at the Arc next year (noting though that there's only a "slim" chance that Curlin will race as a 5-year-old). The move is terrific news for NYRA, which historically has struggled to attract a crowd during the final weekend of...

Big Brown breezed three furlongs in :38.66 over the Aqueduct turf course this morning in a final prep for the Haskell on Sunday. Asked why the surface change, trainer Rick Dutrow told DRF, "just felt like doing it; no reasoning to it." Michael Iavarone gave Blood-Horse more: "The dogs were way out off the rail, and it was just what we wanted; no gallop-out. It was just a lung opener. Rick decided to work on the turf just to protect his feet. God forbid if anything went wrong, like if he stepped on a rock or something like that. Rick...

- Curlin could be Arc-bound. Time to start planning an October Paris sojourn ... - Dear NTRA: Free "Web 2.0" advice worth following. - Check out the Paulick Report, now live. - San Felipe winner Georgie Boy, who missed the Kentucky Derby with a pulled muscle in his hind, is back in training and prepping for races later this year. - Enjoy Met Mile winner Divine Park while you can: Stud plans for the 4-year-old son of Chester House are set. - Posting will be light this week, but I'll back in full swing soon, looking toward to the upcoming...

- Zenyatta may be most exciting horse racing this year (and yes, I'm including Big Brown in the also-rans, since he's a comet that'll be seen no more after June 7). The 4-year-old filly ran her unbeaten streak to five in the G2 Milady at Hollywood on Saturday. Bumped and squeezed at the start, Zenyatta showed a super turn of foot, closing from last into a slow pace (the first quarter in :24.74, the first half in :48.19) and kicking away to a 2 1/2-length win. "She always makes everyone look like they stopped," said co-owner Ann Moss after. "It's...

- The dress code at Saratoga will be more casual this summer. "It's the way the world is headed," said NYRA spokesman John Lee of the changes (Gazette). Men in tank tops will remain forbidden in the clubhouse. Thank goodness. - Spin! "The truth of the matter is, once we eliminate use of anabolic steroids, we will have arrived at the European drug model with some variations." Those variations, so minor -- just Lasix, phenylbutazone, and cortiscosteroids. - Magnificience returns triumphant from a 13-month layoff....

According to the final necropsy results (PDF) released today by the KHRA, there was no "catastrophic event," no heart attack or pulmonary aneurysm that felled Eight Belles as she galloped out after finishing second in the Derby, causing her leg injuries. The report concluded that the filly suffered compound fractures in both front legs at the fetlock joints, for which she was euthanized on track, and noted that "no pre-existing bone pathology was observed." In other words: She was sound and what happened was a terrible accident. 5/16 Update: KHRA reports that Eight Belles tested negative for steroids and other...

Abolishing horse racing would abolish the Thoroughbred whose purpose as a racehorse dominates any reason that it might otherwise exist. I've read a couple articles about how horse racing has turned off some fans. I've yet to talk to anyone actually invested in the industry who has turned away from it. The breeding sheds were still open on May 4, the tellers took bets on the day's races, and Fasig-Tipton didn't cancel any of its upcoming sales. The thing that astonishes me is that the whole situation seems to have surprised people. Barbaro's accident was only two years ago, and...

Disappointing, but hardly unexpected: Rags to Riches has been retired. The hairline fracture that sidelined the champion filly in 2007 reappeared following a recent gallop at Palm Beach Downs. "We took some additional X-rays," said trainer Todd Pletcher, "and after discussing the situation with Mr. Tabor, we agreed it wasn't worth the risk of continuing on with her" (DRF). Rags to Riches will be bred to Giant's Causeway this spring. She exits with a record of 6-5-1-0, earnings of $1.3 million, and a place in racing history as the first filly to win the Belmont in 102 years:...

Rags to Riches breezed three furlongs in :38.4 over a good track at Palm Beach Downs on Tuesday, according to a Watch Mail received this morning. After more than six months away, the Belmont Stakes winner finally may be on...

"It would be like if I wanted to retire and they told me to go and live in a cave and be a person again."...

Last seen finishing nearly 24 lengths behind Asiatic Boy in the 2007 UAE Derby, Nashua Stakes winner Day Pass returns in the second at Gulfstream on Sunday. Once more in trainer Kiaran McLaughlin's barn, the colt starts in the 7-furlong OC/N2X off a string of decent works, including two recent...

With a record of 3-0-0-1 and earnings of $10,240, The Green Monkey has been retired to stand stud at Hartley-De Renzo Thoroughbreds of Florida in 2009. The farm plans to build the 4-year-old Forestry colt his own barn and is considering offering tours to visitors interested in seeing the priciest...

The funniest thing I've read in weeks: The awestruck populace listened in rapt attention to the words of the great horse's spirit as he urged the people to remove their metaphorical blinders and open their eyes to the world around them; to never put too much weight on their sesamoid...

Glenye Cain Oakford reports that Barbaro's little brothers are progressing well, with 2-year-old Nicanor in early training at a Florida farm and "unnamed yearling" still gamboling in a Kentucky pasture....

Evening Attire's 10 most memorable races, as chosen by trainer Pat Kelly on the eve of the gray gelding's 2008 debut (DRF). [Link via the delightful Brooklyn Backstretch.]...

The sensational three-year-old filly Magnificience returned to training two weeks ago and is about six weeks away from her first workout in months for trainer Bruce Headley, reports Daily Racing Form: Headley said Magnificience is galloping daily on the training track, and that she is "very smooth, she is the...

"A natural pack leader, the idea of 'cover' to Lava Man is repulsive, and staring at the heels of pacesetters Surf Cat and Get Funky down the backstretch and into the far turn appeared to sap Lava Man's spirit" (DRF+)....

Photo courtesy of Horsephotos/NTRA. John Henry, 32, was euthanized at 7:05 p.m. Monday at the Kentucky Horse Park (Herald Leader). The long retired champion had been in poor health since August and was suffering from Cushing's disease and kidney problems. "There was a real difference in his demeanor and...

- After losing the Adirondack and Spinaway Stakes at Saratoga by a combined 50 lengths, Phantom Income returned to winning form on Saturday in the NATC Futurity at Meadowlands (Blood-Horse). Sent off at 8-1, the two-year-old filly pressed the early pace, then squeezed through on the inside to win by...

Rags to Riches spiked a temperature this morning, forcing the cancellation of a scheduled work and imperiling her planned start in the September 8 Ruffian at Belmont. "She's acting perfect, she's bright, sharp and aggressive, but the thermometer's a little bit off," said trainer Todd Pletcher (DRF). Later in the...