Races to Watch at Churchill Downs, Aqueduct and Hollywood Park

by Patricia Woo | Nov 26 2008

Churchill Downs, Aqueduct and Hollywood Park have saved the best of the fall season's horse races to bet on for this weekend! So make the most of your Thanksgiving holiday: Read on for a preview of five premier graded stakes, including the Clark Handicap and Commentator's bid for a third straight victory.

On Friday, Nov. 28, catch Commentator in the feature race of Churchill Downs' fall meet, the $400,000 Gr. 2 Clark Handicap. Fresh off a duo of impressive wins - the Massachusetts Handicap and the Whitney Handicap - Commentator's mere presence has narrowed the field of competitors to a possible six, including Delosvientos, Delightful Kiss, Dominican, Magna Graduate and Wayzata Bay, as well as Anak Nakal. The 7-year-old gelding has been training well, breezing half a mile in 48.60 seconds in his final prep before race day. Jockey John Velazquez will once again get the mount for trainer Nick Zito; Velazquez and Commentator have had tremendous success together, scoring wins in all but one of their five starts this year.

The 2009 Triple Crown may be more than five months away, but you can get an early look at some of the prospects in a duo of races on Saturday, Nov. 29, at Aqueduct. The $200,000 Gr. 2 Remsen Stakes for colts and the $200,000 Gr. 2 Demoiselle Stakes for fillies are important prep races for the Kentucky Derby and Kentucky Oaks and will showcase some of the best up-and-coming 2-year-olds in the nation. Among the nominees in the Remsen are the Todd Pletcher-trained American Dance and Idol Maker; Hello Broadway, Awesome Mitch, Hold Me Back and Old Fashioned are also expected. In the Demoiselle, Sky Diva, who finished third in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies event, is one of the frontrunners; others expected include Ain't Love Grand, Boleyn and Subprime.

Cap off your holiday long weekend on Sunday, Nov. 30 with a pair of $500,000 Grade 1 races at Hollywood Park: the Hollywood Derby and the Matriarch Stakes. Court Vision and Gio Ponto are expected to clash once more in the Hollywood Derby. The two have traded wins in their last two outings: Gio Ponto was victorious in the Gr. 2 Virginia Derby in July, while Court Vision edged out his rival in October in the Gr. 2 Jamaica Handicap. Cowboy Cal, Dixie Chatter and Muny are also expected for this one-mile turf race. The Matriarch Stakes will be a star-studded event, as last year's winner Precious Kitten will try to defend her title. Multiple graded stakes winner Cocoa Beach, who was second to Zenyatta in the Breeders' Cup Ladies Classic this year, will be racing on turf for the first time and should be tough competition. Other probable starters include Magical Fantasy, I Can See, Visit and Criminologist.

Don't miss out! Bet on horse racing at the Bodog Racebook!