James Graham won a pair of races at Keeneland on Saturday, the second day of the spring meet. He rode Mop Head to a half-length tally in the seventh race, a long maiden special weight sprint, that resulted in a $9.60 win mutuel. The Dubliner came back in the next race to score an upset in the Grade 1 Ashland Stakes aboard Karlovy Vary. He had the 3-year-old filly in front the entire trip, fending off a host of challengers and reaching the wire in front by almost a length. Karlovy Vary paid $32.80 to win.
Luck can change quickly on the racetrack. Clifford Dooley is a case in point. The Dublin-born and -raised jockey couldn’t have been feeling too good after finishing dead last on the 2-1 second choice in Friday’s third race at Charles Town, which he then followed by finishing a distant second aboard the favorite in the next race. How did Dooley respond? By winning five of his next six races.
Dooley got favored Windancersboldone up by a nose in the fifth race for a $4.00 win mutuel. He then got second place in the sixth race, which was won by an odds-on chalk. Dooley then pulled a wire job in the seventh race aboard Paddy’s Deputy ($6.40) and came back in the eighth race aboard Soul Queen ($14.40).
Saturday’s early double went to Dooley, as well. Henry the Lover ($2.80) and The Things You Did ($7.40) combined for a $13.20 double.
David Moran is back for another season at Woodbine and he knocked out a couple wins on the Sunday card. Kissed by a Ghost rallied under Moran to win the first race and return $10.70 to win. Then, he got Bold Hipster home in front by almost four lengths in the fifth race, which was good for $6.40 on a win ticket.
Mike Doyle also found the win column at Woodbine. He sent out Edmond Odette’s I”llthinkaboutit to take the 10th race, a maiden special weight sprint. The winner is a 5-year-old homebred mare that was winless in six starts and had been sidelined for almost a year. She paid $13.20 to win.
Business hasn’t been booming for Pat Gallagher, who has endured a slow Santa Anita meet, but he got a win out of Edward Denike’s He’s a Dance Star in the fifth race in Arcadia on Friday. This was the 5-year-old gelding’s first start for Gallagher and he led gate to wire under Garrett Gomez in his first race since last August. The win price came back $10.00
Cathal Lynch continues to reap dividends with Dance With Bull, a 4-year-old gelding he took out of a maiden claimer in January. Dance With Bull won a starter allowance at Parx on Monday, his second win for Lynch in three tries. Angel Arroyo had him on the lead throughout and he reached the wire almost five lengths in front for a popular $3.00 win.
Lynch also sent out Gold Mark Farm’s Ebony Run to win Tuesday’s eighth race at Philly. This 5-year-old mare was two lengths the best in a first-level allowance at a mile, with Kendrick Carmouche in the irons. Ebony Run had previously broken her maiden by eight lengths and came right back to pop at a $6.80 win mutuel.
