(Wednesday, October 19, 2005) - Southwest Racing Partnership's flashy juvenile gelding Make A Secret, who zipped 400 yards in :19.759 two weeks ago, will start from post position No. 7 in Saturday's Grade 1, $310,770 Dash For Cash Futurity at Lone Star Park in Grand Prairie, Texas.

Make A Secret, who will be coupled in the wagering with Cotton Nash as the 6-5 morning line favorite, is the horse to beat. The California-bred son of Raise a Secret recorded the fastest time among 87 horses in nine trial races at Lone Star on Oct. 8. Prior to that race, the Firecracker Futurity champ was fourth as the favorite in Quarter Horse racing's coveted $1.9 million All American Futurity when the Ruidoso Downs racing strip came up "muddy."

"The horse is doing absolutely outstanding - really, really great," Make A Secret's trainer Heath Taylor said Wednesday. "The draw was fine, a good wide draw. But this is a tough race. There are a lot of good horses in there. I think you can make a case for several horses, but my horse is doing extremely well and he likes to tangle with the competition. When my horse is challenged, he likes to dig in and find another gear. All we need now is a little luck."

Gilbert Ortiz has the mount.

Make A Secret, a three-time winner and earner of $220,210 in seven starts, is one of four stakes winners in the field. All American Winner, the 7-2 second choice trained by Alex Villarreal, prevailed in the Grade 1 Sam Houston Futurity last month. This Candys Red Hot, a "Sleepy" Gilbreath trainee at odds of 10-1, is a winner in five of six starts including the Grade 1 Speedhorse Gold and Silver Cup Futurity at Fair Meadows in July. One Special Shade, an 8-1 shot also trained by Gilbreath, was victorious in the Grade 3 Ford New Mexico Juvenile Challenge at Ruidoso in August.

Here's the complete Dash For Cash Futurity field from the rail out (with jockey and morning line odds): Fast Results (Tony Bennett, 20-1); All American Winner (Rodrigo Vallejo, 7-2); Racing Zone (Roy Baldillez, 5-1); Cotton Nash (Joe Martinez, 6-5); Shaken Easy Dash (Larry Payne, 12-1); Sixes Glass (Juan Vazquez, 20-1); Make A Secret (Ortiz, 6-5); This Candys Red Hot (Alex Baldillez Jr., 10-1); Ida Snow Man (Jacky Martin, 15-1); and One Special Shade (G.R. Carter Jr., 8-1).

The Dash For Cash Futurity will goes as Race 12 at approximately 9:57 p.m. CT on Saturday's 13-race program that begins at 5 p.m. CT.

Taylor Hopes for Better Luck With Make A Secret

Horse racing is often about luck. And sometimes it's better to be lucky than good. Just ask 35-year-old trainer Heath Taylor, who'll start the favored entry of Make A Secret and Cotton Nash in Saturday's Grade 1 Dash For Cash Futurity at Lone Star Park.

Taylor still hasn't recovered from the disappointment on a rainy Labor Day afternoon at Ruidoso Downs. That's when his well-regarded arsenal of Make A Secret, Jess A Classy Lad and Vodka On Ice finished fourth, eighth and 10th in this year's $1.9 million All American Futurity.

"That loss was just devastating," said Taylor, who resides in Ledbetter, Texas. "I haven't gotten over it and it has nothing to do with the money."

The All American Futurity, a 440-yard sprint for 2-year-olds with a $1 million first prize, is the most sought after victory in American Quarter Horse racing. In the Quarter Horse industry, it's as coveted as Thoroughbred racing's Kentucky Derby.

"I don't golf, I don't fish and I don't go hunting," Taylor said. "All I do is race horses day and night at five, six or seven different racetracks. My family has had to make tremendous sacrifices to allow me to do my job. The All American Futurity is the Mecca of Quarter Horse racing and I thought I had some horses that could win the race."

Pundits tabbed Make A Secret, a $35,000 yearling purchase by Teddy Abrams Jr., Teddy Abrams Sr., Lyle Guillory and Darrell Hubbard, as the horse to beat. After all, the winner of the Grade 2 Firecracker Futurity was the fastest of 160 horses in 16 All American Futurity trials with an eye-popping time of :21.246.

"If we would've won, I'd have some inner peace," Taylor said.

Instead, he's tormented by the heavy rain that turned the New Mexico racing strip into a muddy bog on race day. Much to Taylor's dismay, 7-5 favorite Make A Secret and his two stablemates didn't care for the wet surface.

"My horses were all doing super and me and my staff worked our butts off to get them ready to fire," said Taylor, whose horses have amassed more than $8 million over the years. "But, unfortunately, the racetrack came up muddy that day. For whatever reason, Make A Secret just could not stand up in the bog on the outside of the racetrack for the first 350 yards. He went from about ninth to fourth in the last 50 yards. I mean, we had three of the top five qualifiers and drew posts seven, nine and 10. We went up there thinking we were supposed to win."

Taylor has too much respect for the sport of horse racing to dismiss the top efforts by winner Teller Cartel, runner-up Arealstraitheart or third place finisher Brindis Por Cayenne. In fact, he was delighted that his good friend trainer Paul Jones won the race. But he can't help but think about what could have been if the rain hadn't fallen and the track was fast.

"My hat goes off to the top three finishers, but it was devastating," Taylor said. "I felt like I had a rug jerked out from under me."

Perhaps a victory in Saturday's Dash For Cash Futurity would provide Taylor with some solace.

"When he came back the other day in the trial and ran like he did - 400 yards into a slight headwind in :19.759 - he validated himself," Taylor said. "If he had run that kind of race in the All American, he would have been competitive. I'm not going to say he would have won, but he darn sure would have been a lot closer. He might be better coming into this race than he was in the All American. We'll see Saturday. These types of races are so hard to win. My horse is ready but you can't count your chickens before their hatched. We need some luck."

First Comment Tops Friday's Dash For Cash Derby Field; Si Puede in Rheudasil

A graded stakes doubleheader, headlined by the Grade 1, $147,400 Dash For Cash Derby, highlights Friday night's action at Lone Star Park in Grand Prairie, Texas. First Comment, looking to avenge a second place finish to durable 3-year-old filly Si Puede in last month's Grade 2 Sam Houston Derby, was made the 5-2 Dash For Cash Derby morning line favorite after drawing the rail.

Meanwhile, Si Puede, an impressive winner of six in a row that led to Horse of the Meeting honors at Sam Houston, bypassed the Dash For Cash series for a start in Friday's co-feature, the Grade 3, $20,000 Rheudasil Handicap. The Dave Correll-trained filly will use the 350-yard race - exclusively for fillies and mares - as a steppingstone to the Nov. 11 Texas Classic Derby trials.

J.W. Owens' First Comment, trained by Jeff Acuna, was the fastest of 25 three-year-olds in three Dash For Cash Derby trials on Oct 7 with a 440-yard time of :21.546. One of First Comment's chief rivals will be 3-1 second choice Mighty Invictus, the Jack Brooks-trained runner who'd been chasing top 3-year-old DM Shicago all year.

Here's the complete Dash For Cash Derby field from the rail out (with jockey and morning line odds): First Comment (Rodrigo Vallejo, 5-2); Real Easy Okey (Jose Vega, 8-1); Strawfly Romance (Jorge Bourdieu, 15-1); Mighty Invictus (Juan Vazquez, 3-1); Winners Award (Tad Leggett, 8-1); Hez Habit Forming (Jose Alvarez, 30-1); Miss Eye Candy (Alex Baldillez Jr., 20-1); Ro Anns Money (Gilbert Ortiz, 12-1); Tooting Otoole (Jacky Martin, 10-1); and Six Packa Moonshine (Roy Baldillez, 5-1).

The Rheudasil Handicap lineup: Perry Story (Ortiz, 8-1); Athena Raquel (Vallejo, 6-1); Sixy Thru Traffic (Raul Ramirez Sr., 5-1); Candy Eye Rose (James Brooks, 20-1); Zevis Eye Opener (Roy Baldillez, 8-1); Maid It Special (Martin, 15-1); Bullions N Garters (Roy Brooks, 7-2); Si Puede (Vega, 3-1); Lady Eye Opener (Alex Baldillez Jr., 15-1); and Kissmeifyoucatchme (Fernando Camacho, 12-1).

The Dash For Cash Derby will goes as Race 12 at approximately 9:57 p.m. CT, while the Rheudasil goes one race earlier at 9:30 p.m. CT. The first of 13 live races Friday is 5 p.m. CT.

Breeders' Cup Preview Party This Saturday at 9:30 a.m.

Lone Star Park at Grand Prairie will host its 10th annual Breeders' Cup Preview Party on Saturday from 9:30 a.m. to 11 a.m. in the Post Time Pavilion.

There'll be in-depth analysis and video review of contenders in the eight Breeders' Cup World Thoroughbred Championship races by the Fort Worth Star-Telegram's Gary West, The Dallas Morning News' Rick Lee and Daily Racing Form's Vance Hanson.

Plus, the first 200 attendees will receive a complimentary edition of the Breeders' Cup Advance Edition, featuring lifetime past performances for all horses pre-entered in the Oct. 29 Breeders' Cup.

117 Horses Pre-Entered for Breeders' Cup World Thoroughbred Championships

Led by Woodward Stakes and Stephen Foster Handicap winner Saint Liam, Santa Anita and Goodwood Breeders' Cup Handicap winner Rock Hard Ten, Pacific Classic and Jockey Club Gold Cup winner Borrego, undefeated sprinting sensation Lost In The Fog, and defending champions Ashado, Better Talk Now, Ouija Board and Singletary, 117 horses - including 22 from Europe - were pre-entered for the 2005 Breeders' Cup World Thoroughbred Championships.

The 22nd running of the Breeders' Cup World Thoroughbred Championships, consisting of eight Grade 1 races with purses and awards totaling a minimum of $14 million, will be held on Saturday, Oct. 29 at Belmont Park in Elmont, N.Y., and will be televised live by NBC Sports (12 p.m. to 5 p.m. CT). This is the fourth time that Belmont Park - celebrating its 100th anniversary - will host horse racing's greatest international spectacle. Belmont Park previously hosted the Breeders' Cup in 1990, 1995 and in 2001.

Lone Star Park, which hosted last year's Breeders' Cup before a crowd of 53,717, will showcase the simulcast event throughout its facility that day before live American Quarter Horse racing begins at 5 p.m. CT. Drive Thru Wagering off Gate 2 will open at 7:30 a.m. and remain open until post time for the Breeders' Cup Classic - Powered by Dodge. The Post Time Pavilion will open early at 8:30 a.m. and Grandstand doors will open at 10:30 a.m. The first simulcast from Belmont Park is 11 a.m. CT, while the first Breeders' Cup race - the Alberto VO5 Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies - is set for 12:20 p.m. CT. For those that can't make it to Lone Star on Oct. 29, the racetrack will offer advance Breeders' Cup wagering all day on Friday, Oct. 28.

The 117 pre-entered horses is the highest number since the 2000 Breeders' Cup at Churchill Downs when 135 horses were pre-entered.

Saint Liam and Rock Hard Ten finished in a tie for first in the final voting in the Dodge Classic Division of the weekly World Thoroughbred Championships Poll released last week. Borrego finished in third place. All three are pre-entered in the $4 million Breeders' Cup Classic - Powered by Dodge - at 1 ¼ miles. A victory by one of these horses in the Classic could earn him the Horse of the Year title. A victory by Lost in the Fog in the $1 million TVG Breeders' Cup Sprint could also net him Horse of the Year honors.

Mr. and Mrs. William K. Warren Jr.'s 5-year-old Saint Liam, trained by Richard Dutrow Jr., won the Donn Handicap at Gulfstream Park in February, then was shipped to California for the Santa Anita Handicap, where he finished fourth to Rock Hard Ten. Saint Liam came back in June to win the Stephen Foster at Churchill Downs by 2 ¾ lengths, finished second in the Whitney at Saratoga, and returned to win the Woodward by two lengths under jockey Jerry Bailey in his last start.

Mercedes Stables LLC and Madeleine Pickens' 4-year-old Rock Hard Ten has won all three of his starts this year for trainer Richard Mandella. After capturing the Strub Stakes and the Santa Anita Handicap, Rock Hard Ten was given nearly seven months off to recuperate from nagging injuries, but returned with a flourish winning the Goodwood Breeders' Cup under Gary Stevens. Mandella won the 2003 Breeders' Cup Classic with Pleasantly Perfect, a day in which the trainer won an unprecedented four Breeders' Cup races.

Jon Kelly, Brad Scott and partners' 4-year-old Borrego has come on strong during the second half of the year. Trained by Beau Greely, Borrego finished third in the Santa Anita Handicap in March, but after two stakes losses at Hollywood Park, Borrego was a very different horse at Del Mar, coming from off the pace to win the Pacific Classic, and then earlier this month, toyed with seven rivals en route to winning The Jockey Club Gold Cup by four lengths in a hand ride under Garrett Gomez.

The standout foreign runner in the Classic appears to Starcraft, a New Zealand-bred 5-year-old, who has raced in England this year for trainer Luca Cumani. Owned by the Australian Syndicate, Starcraft has won the NetJets Prix du Moulin de Longchamp and the Queen Elizabeth II Stakes in his last two starts. Starcraft also has been pre-entered in the NetJets Breeders' Cup Mile.

Harry Aleo's undefeated Lost In The Fog is pre-entered in the $1 million TVG Breeders' Cup Sprint at six furlongs. From his San Francisco base, trainer Greg Gilchrist has guided the 3-year-old Lost in the Fog through a season of eight wins at seven different tracks, and has become one of racing's most popular horses with victories in California, Florida, and three times in New York. Lost in the Fog comes into the Breeders' Cup off a 7 ¾ length victory in the Bay Meadows Speed Handicap on Oct. 1. Among the challengers slated to face Lost in the Fog are Vosburgh winner Taste of Paradise and Pomeroy, who won the Alfred G. Vanderbilt Handicap at Saratoga.

Starlight Stables, Paul Saylor and Johns Martin have pre-entered the 4-year-old filly Ashado to defend her title in the $2 million Emirates Airline Breeders' Cup Distaff at 1 1/8 miles. Along with Ashado, defending champions Better Talk Now, Ouija Board and Singletary also have been pre-entered. If all four start, it will be the first time since 1993 (Paseana, Lure, Thirty Slews and Fraise) that four defending champions have run on a Breeders' Cup Day.

Ashado is trained by Todd Pletcher, last year's Eclipse Award winning trainer and the leader among all trainers in purses this year with more than $14 million in total earnings. Ashado gave Pletcher his first Breeders' Cup victory when she captured the Distaff last year at Lone Star Park. This year, Ashado has won three Grade I stakes races - the Ogden Phipps, the Go for Wand, and most recently the Beldame at Belmont Park. She has been ridden in all her starts this year by John Velazquez, who leads all jockeys in purses won in 2005 with more than $19 million. Should Ashado finish first or second in the Distaff, she will pass Azeri and become North America's all-time leading female money earner. Challenging Ashado in the Distaff is Stewart Madison's Happy Ticket, the Southwest flash who was a fast closing second in the Beldame, and Godolphin Racing's Stellar Jayne, third in last year's Distaff, and winner of her last two starts for new trainer Saeed bin Suroor.

Singletary shocked last year's NetJets Breeders' Cup Mile with a half-length victory at odds of 16-1 for Little Red Feather Racing. The 5-year-old, trained by Don Chatlos, returns to the $1.5 million Mile following a win in the Oak Tree Breeders' Cup Mile at Santa Anita earlier this month. But a repeat win will be a formidable task against the likes of Stud TNT's Leroidesanimaux, which translates to "King of the Animals." Trained by Bobby Frankel, the 5-year-old Leroidesanimaux has won all three of his starts this year, most recently the Atto Mile at Woodbine by nearly eight lengths. Timber Bay Farm and Mrs. Thomas Walsh's Artie Schiller, who finished third as the favorite in last year's Mile, and winner of this year's Bernard Baruch at Saratoga, also has been pre-entered.

The $2 million John Deere Breeders' Cup Turf at 1 ½ miles appears to have one of its strongest pre-entered fields in years. European standouts H H the Aga Khan's Azamour, winner of the King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Diamond Stakes and English Derby winner Motivator for the Royal Ascot Racing Club lead the group. Defending Turf champion Better Talk Now and Dell Ridge Farm and William Schettine's Shakespeare lead the American contingent. Owned by Bushwood Stables and trained by Graham Motion, Better Talk Now has won the U.N. Handicap at Monmouth and the Man o' War Stakes at Belmont this year. The 4-year-old Shakespeare, trained by Bill Mott, is unbeaten in five career starts, most recently winning the Joe Hirsch Turf Classic at Belmont.

The $1 million Emirates Airline Breeders' Cup Filly & Mare Turf at 1 ¼ miles offers a showdown between Lord Derby's defending champion 4-year-old filly Ouija Board and Michael Bello's Megahertz. Trained by Ed Dunlop, Ouija Board won an Eclipse Award in 2004 and also was acclaimed the European Horse of the Year. This year, however, she was sidelined with injuries over the summer, but came back to win the Princess Royal John Doyle Stakes at Newmarket on Sept. 24. The tough 6-year-old mare Megahertz has won four of five starts this year for trainer Bobby Frankel, including the Yellow Ribbon Stakes earlier this month at the Oak Tree at Santa Anita meeting.

First Samurai leads the group of 2-year-olds pre-entered for the $1.5 million Bessemer Trust Breeders' Cup Juvenile at 1 1/16 miles. Owned by Bruce Lunsford and Lansdon Robbins III, and trained by Frank Brothers, First Samurai has won all four of his starts, including the Hopeful at Saratoga and the Champagne Stakes at Belmont on Oct. 8. First Samurai will be challenged by Merv Griffin's Stevie Wonderboy, winner of the Del Mar Futurity. Also pre-entered is the Mike McCarty-owned and Steve Asmussen-trained Private Vow, a nine-length winner of the Futurity at Belmont.

Trainer D. Wayne Lukas has won the $1 million Alberto VO5 Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies a record four times. He might have a fifth winner in Bob and Beverly Lewis' Folklore, who captured the Matron Stakes at Belmont by 14 lengths. But Lukas protégé Todd Pletcher may have the favorite for the 1 1/16 mile race in Michael Tabor and Susan Magnier's Adieu, who defeated Folklore in the Spinaway at Saratoga and then won the Frizette at Belmont Park.

DOWN THE STRETCH - Friday night's Heineken "Party at the Park" will feature country music by The Steve Tenpenny Band. Meanwhile, 1970s and '80s classic rock from Double Ace will be performed between races Saturday. The Heineken "Party at the Park" series continues every Friday and Saturday through Oct. 29 with live music and drink specials in the Courtyard of Champions from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m...The purse for the Oct. 29 Graham Paint Futurity final on Oct. 29 will be $209,197. Fastest qualifier and Grade 1 winner Got Country Grip is the horse to beat.