Field Narrowly Favored as Derby Future Pool Closes

The second of three pools of Churchill Downs' 2007 Kentucky Derby Future Wager ended on Sunday with 'all others' a narrow favorite in a scramble with reigning 2-year-old champion Street Sense, Remsen (gr. II) and Holy Bull (gr. III) winner Nobiz Like Shobiz, and Louisiana Derby (gr. II) winner Circular Quay.
The mutuel field, the betting interest that represented all 3-year-olds other than the 23 individual horses in pool 2, emerged as a slight 6-1 favorite when betting on the four-day pool concluded at racetracks and off-track wagering outlets across North America at 6 p.m. (EDT) Sunday evening.
The battle for second choice – and favored individual horse – went to Elizabeth Valando’s Nobiz Like Shobiz. The son of Albert the Great earned strong support throughout KDFW pool 2 despite his loss as a heavy favorite in last week’s Fountain of Youth (gr. II) at Gulfstream Park. Nobiz Like Shobiz closed at odds of 8-1, as did James Tafel’s 2-year-old champion and Bessemer Trust Breeders’ Cup Juvenile (gr. I) winner Street Sense and Michael and Doreen Tabor’s Circular Quay, the impressive winner of Saturday’s $600,000 Louisiana Derby. But the Barclay Tagg-trained Nobiz Like Shobiz closed at final odds of $8.00-to-1 to edge Street Sense ($8.10-to-1) and Circular Quay ($8.80-to-1).
Total wagering in the pool was $379,613. The third and final KDFW pool of 2007 is scheduled for April 12-15. The Kentucky Derby presented by Yum! Brands (gr. I) is May 5 at Churchill Downs.
Other horses that attracted strong support during pool 2 included WinStar Farm LLC and Maverick Racing's Any Given Saturday (11-1), who is scheduled to run next week in the Tampa Bay Derby (gr. III); J. Paul Reddam’s Great Hunter (11-1), winner of the Robert B. Lewis (gr. II) at Santa Anita; Derrick Smith and Michael Tabor’s Sham Stakes (gr. III) winner Ravel (11-1); and James Scatuorchio and Michael Tabor’s Scat Daddy (16-1), winner of the Fountain of Youth (gr. II).
Source tcm.bloodhorse.com

Invasor in 'fabulous form' leading up to Dubai World Cup

“He loves his work and he does it effortlessly,” said McLaughlin, who trains the horse for Sheikh Hamdan bin Rashid al Maktoum’s Shadwell Stable. “He’s very fit and he puts a lot into his gallops, so we decided he didn’t need to work every week.”

Invasor raced on last year’s Dubai World Cup card, finishing fourth to Godolphin’s Discreet Cat in the UAE Derby (UAE-G2), his only career loss. Although Discreet Cat, who won the Hill 'n’ Dale Cigar Mile Handicap (G1) in track-record time on November 25 at Aqueduct, again is expected to be in the field, McLaughlin said he expects a much different result.“He’s filled out—he’s put on quite a bit of weight—and he’s matured mentally,” he said of his multiple Grade 1 winner. “He’s in fabulous form.”

McLaughlin said that he, Sheikh Hamdan, and Shadwell General Manager Rick Nichols decided to send 19-year-old jockey Fernando Jara to Dubai to ride at Nad Al Sheba on Thursday in a race at the Dubai World Cup distance of 2,000 meters (about 1 1/4 miles) so that he will be fully prepared for the world’s richest race on March 31.

“We felt it would be a good experience for the kid to go over there and get a feel for the track,” McLaughlin said, pointing out that the Jara never previously has been to Dubai.Source
Source www.kentuckyderby.com

Sweetnorthernsaint Considered for Godolphin Mile

Sweetnorthernsaint, last year’s Kentucky Derby (gr. I) favorite and Preakness Stakes (gr. I) runner-up, may travel to the Dubai at the end of this month for the $1 million Godolphin Mile (UAE-II) on March 31.
The 4-year-old son of Sweetsouthernsaint breezed five furlongs in 1:01 2/5 handily at Laurel Park under the watchful eye of trainer Michael Trombetta, then posed for photos that will be included with his shipping papers should his connections decide to send him halfway around the world for the one-mile event.
Maryland Jockey Club racing official Denver Beckner took the photos and is preparing the paperwork for Mersant International, an export company that handles the shipping of horses to Dubai.
“We are looking at it, but I’ll know more in the next few days,” said Trombetta after he saddled a horse in the paddock for Thursday’s third race. “There is a whole barrage of things you have to do, lots of blood tests, and they’re sending me some kind of insecticide that they require you to spray on the horse for two weeks prior to getting there. I don’t know all of the details except that they are mailing it to me so I can start doing it. It’s up in the air, but we’re going to look at it. It’s the $1 million dollar Godolphin Mile. We were invited to both races (the Mile and the World Cup), but the mile is the one we are looking at.”
Sweetnorthernsaint has started twice this year. He finished third in the Hal’s Hope (gr. III) and fifth in the Sunshine Millions Classic, both at Gulfstream Park, before returning to Maryland in February.
Source racing.bloodhorse.com