Chips Are Down Finally Ends Long Winless Streak

A return to Hollywood Park was all Chips Are Down needed to end a four-race losing streak.

Winless since he won an allowance race in Inglewood last Dec. 3, the 3-year-old Distorted Humor colt sat third behind a duel, took the lead into the stretch and went on to score by one length over Yes He’s A Pistol in the $70,250 Bien Bien Stakes on Saturday.

There was a lengthy post-race inquiry after an incident on the first turn, but stewards Darrel McHargue, Kim Sawyer and Tom Ward ruled Take A Chance, who finished last at 16-1, caused his own problems and they made no change in the order of finish.

Chips Are Down, the even-money favorite who is owned by Bob and Beverly Lewis and trained by Bob Baffert, ran the 1 1/16 miles in 1:43.30 under Garrett Gomez while winning for the third time in 11 starts. Becrux, the 7-5 second choice in a field reduced to four after the scratch on Friday of Giant Shift, finished a distant third in his first start on the main track in this country. He had won on the dirt in Dubai earlier in the year.

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Jockey Jose Lezcano won half of the races in an all-stakes pick four at Calder in Miami. Lezcano won the $200,000 Elmer Deubeck with 5-1 shot American Miss, then returned less than 30 minutes later to take the $150,000 Jack Dudley Sprint Handicap with 9-1 outsider Weigelia.

The other races were won by Revved Up, the 3-2 second choice who captured the $150,000 Bonnie Heath Turf Cup Handicap for trainer Christophe Clement, and 10-1 shot Whos Crying Now, who won the $200,000 Carl G. Rose Classic.

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King’s Drama, the 3-5 favorite, easily won the $150,000 Red Smith Handicap at Aqueduct in what was the final graded stakes of the year in New York on turf.

Owned by Gary Tanaka and trained by Bobby Frankel, the 5-year-old King’s Theatre gelding, who was ridden by Edgar Prado, won for the eighth time in 25 starts while completing the 1 3/8 miles in 2:15.37 in the Grade II. Rousing Victory, an 8-1 shot, was second, beaten by 2 1/2 lengths.

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My Typhoon, the 17-10 favorite, held off 3-1 shot Isla Cozzene to win the $150,000 Mrs. Revere at Churchill Downs. Robby Albarado rode the 3-year-old Giant’s Causeway filly for Mrs. Charlotte Weber’s Live Oak Plantation and trainer Bill Mott in the Grade II.

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Apollitical Time, who was claimed for $16,000 last year, shocked heavily favored Ocean Runaway to win the $637,000 Los Alamitos Super Derby on Saturday night.

A 3-year-old filly by the thoroughbred sire Apollo, Apollitical Time broke well under jockey Ramon Sanchez and went on to complete the 400 yards in a stakes-record 19.36 seconds. This bettered the mark of 19.43 set in 2004 by Be A Bono and she barely missed the track record of 19.34 set by Takin On The Cash on Dec. 19, 1990.