Legal Horse Betting Weekly Global Roundup

Now that the American Triple Crown of thoroughbred horse racing is over, legal horse betting attention turns to the worldwide stage. All across the globe there were potential horse racing stars of the future, with plenty of two-year-olds drawing attention as possible Kentucky Derby, Preakness Stakes and Belmont Stakes Triple Crown runners next year. This past week included the weekend before Royal Ascot and the week after the Belmont Stakes, so it is understandable if equestrian attention waned. Even so, it will not be long before Saratoga, Del Mar and the Breeder's Cup are on the radar, and some great horse racing action was spotted around the world. And it appears a shot of moonshine was an invaluable winning ingredient this past week.

At Golden Gate Fields, Moonshine Bay won the $50,000 Albany Stakes by a half length over Incline Village. The six-year-old gelding covered 5 furlongs on turf in 57.21 seconds. And in classic action, Moonshine Mullin overtook favorite Will Take Charge with 3 furlongs to go to win by 1 3/4 lengths in the Grade I Stephen Foster Handicap at Churchill Downs. Calvin Borel was on top for the win after a disappointing Belmont Stakes run. Moonshine Mullin hit the post at 10 to 1, in spite of having won four straight races. Aside from taking down the Foster purse winners share of $323,848, Moonshine Mullin receives a free pass to the Breeders' Cup classic on November 1.

Tapiture was considered a definite Kentucky Derby favorite before suffering from a trouble filled outing at Churchill Downs earlier this year. Rebounding nicely and winning by two lengths over Ulanbator at the same racetrack, Tapiture claimed the $100,000 Grade III Matt Winn event for three-year-olds by two lengths. The Tapit colt covered the 1 1/16 mile track in a quick 1:43.99 with Rosie Napravnik on top for the first time. Trained by Steve Asmussen, Tapiture also won the Grade II Kentucky Jockey Club last fall, and the Grade III Southwest at Oaklawn. Albano looked as much like a winged horse as is possible, claiming a 6 1/2 length win over Encryption in last weekend's $150,000 Grade III Pegasus Stakes for three-year-olds at Monmouth Park.

After a last-place finish during the Grade I Humana Distaff at Churchill Downs, Iotapa proved that race was an anomaly. Winning by an incredible 10 1/4 lengths during Saturday's $300,000 Grade I Vanity Stakes at Santa Anita, the four-year-old ran 9 furlongs in a quick 1:47.64. Also at Churchill Downs, Molly Morgan closed from way back to beat a strong field in the $200,000 Grade II Fleur de Lis Handicap. The five-year-old mare took the race by a full 4 lengths over Flashy American. Moving from last to first, Gamay Noir won the $150,000 Grade III Obeah Stakes at Delaware Park by a half length over Montana Native.

Looking ahead at possible Kentucky Derby and Triple Crown 2015 candidates, two-year-old filly Fashion Alert looked impressive in her very first career start. At Belmont Park, The Old Fashioned filly started poorly but recovered well under jockey John Velazquez in the $100,000 Astoria Stakes. Winning by 4 3/4 lengths over the race favorite Liatris, Fashion Alert covered 5 1/2 furlongs in 1:04.01. In other two-year-old action, Dekabrist overcame I'm Venezuelan to capture the $50,000 Kodiak Island Stakes at Gulfstream Park by 1 1/2 lengths. In France, Avenir Certain looked sharp in a one length win during Sunday's Group I Prix de Diane Longines at Chantilly. This sets up nicely for the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe in the fall.

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