STANTON, Del.--The Hendriks family had a good run of three wins, including a Stakes win, the last week in June and first week in July.
Wendy Hendriks had a winner trained by son Ricky, the trio of Wendy and Ricky Hendriks and Debra Kachel had a winner, also trained by Ricky, and Wendy's grandson McLane Hendriks trained a Stakes winner.
Also during that period, Graham Motion had four winners including two Stakes winners while Alpha Racing, of which Russell Jones is a partner, and George Strawbridge had important winners in Ireland and England.
McLane Hendriks saddled his mother's homebred Witty to win the $50,000, 6 furlong Stanton Stakes at Delaware Park by 5 lengths on June 29.
"He's a really nice horse," said McLane. "He did it all himself. We put him back on dirt after trying the turf at Penn National, and we wanted a place where he could get his confidence back."
Witty has now run six times with four wins, three in stakes, after finishing second in his first start, a maiden race, all of those five on dirt..
HIS ONLY bad race was in the G2 Penn Mile Stakes on the turf at Penn National on June 3.
"You have to throw that race out," said McLane. "It was very soft turf up there. We put him in that race because his family likes turf. But you couldn't tell anything from that race because the turf was so soft. But for now, we'll stick with what he knows. We have a few options of where to go next, a few local as well as Monmouth and Saratoga."
"I have 17 in training now, all at Fair Hill," said McLane. "Plus I've been doing a lot of riding. Taylor Letterman, who came up through pony racing, has ridden Witty all along, and she's done a wonderful job with him."
Klayton's Kandy, owned by Kachel and Wendy and Ricky Hendriks, and trained by Ricky, won a $28,900, 1 1/16mile turf Allowance Optional Claiming race by 1 1/2 lengths at Penn National on June 30, and High Dollar Date, owned by Wendy and trained by Ricky, won a $20,000, 1 1/6 mile turf Maiden Claiming race by 6 3/4 lengths at Delaware park on July 1.
GRAHAM MOTION had two Stakes winners on July 2, one in a dead heat in Canada and one at Delaware Park.
Michael Dubb, Madaket Stables and Wonder Stables' Crystal Cliffs ended in a dead heat with Lady Speightspear in the $175,000, 1 mile turf Nassau Stakes at Woodbine.
The 5-year-old mare now has four wins, three seconds and two thirds from nine starts.
Sparkle Blue, owned by Catherine Parke and Augustin Stable and bred by Parker, won the $100,000, 1 1/16mile turf Christiana Stakes at Delaware Park by 1/2 length, also on July 2.
With three wins now from five starts, that was Sparkle Blue's first stakes win.
Motion also saddled two winners on July 1, with Wertheimer et Frere's homebred Zatip winning a $55,920, 7 furlong Allowance race at Laurel by 1 length, and Eclipse Thoroughbred partners and Albert Frassetto's Piqua winning a $55,200, 1 1/16 mile turf Maiden Special Weight at Laurel by 3/4 length.
ALPHA RACING'S Keepupwithmyempire, trained by Jessica Harrington and ridden by Shane Foley, won an Irish EBF Median Sires Series $28,500 race for 2 year-olds at Naas in Ireland by a widening 4 lengths on July 2.
Alpha Racing buys yearlings for resale.
"It was a great race for him,"said Jones. "He beat the two favorites."
On the same day at Haydock, GEORGE STRAWBRIDGE'S Free Wind (Ire), trained by John and Thady Gosden, won the $155,500, Group 2 for fillies Lancashire Oaks by 3 lengths in an extraordinary exhibition of guts and ability.
About 1 1/2 furlongs from the finish line, Free Win, on the inside, was smashed against the rail by Eshaada, not once but twice.
How she even stood up was amazing, perhaps being pinned between the horse and the rail kept her on her feet.
But she dropped back behind Eshaada, who eventually finished third, swung out and around horses and went on to win by 3 over Sea La Rosa(Ire).
BERNIE HOUGHTON saddled his mother's Sylmar Farm's Bourbon Music, bred by his mother Betsy Houghton, to win a $31,600, 6 furlong Allowance race by 6 lengths.
Rated inside early,Bourbon Music swung three wide on the turn and drew away to be by far the best.