HORSE RACING

• Monmouth Park welcomes Horse of the Year

  Oceanport, NJ (Sports Network) - Defending Horse of the Year Rachel Alexandra has safely arrived at Monmouth Park in preparation of her start in Saturday's 1 1/8-mile Lady's Secret Stakes.

  The four-year-old champion filly was taken from her summer residence at Saratoga Race Course and got to Monmouth Park about 9 a.m. (et) Tuesday morning.

  "She shipped just fine, everything's great," said trainer Steve Asmussen's chief assistant Scott Blasi, who arrived with Rachel. "She'll gallop up to the race and school in the paddock on Friday afternoon." In order to lure the filly to Monmouth for the Lady's Secret the track increased the purse from $150,000 to $400,000. This will be the filly's second race at the New Jersey shore track.

  Last year Rachel, co-owned by Jess Jackson and Hal McCormick, won the $1 million Haskell Invitational versus three-year-old males.

  Entries for the Lady's Secret Stakes will be drawn on Wednesday.

  Racing secretary Mike Dempsey expects four or five other females to take on the reigning Horse of the Year.

  "It looks like she'll be facing four or five rivals," said Dempsey.

  "The race will be drawn on Wednesday when we'll obviously know for sure, but right now my best estimate is a field of five, perhaps six." Rachel, who has Calvin Borel as her jockey, has won 12 of 17 career starts for $3,216,730. This year she has won one of three races for $258,376.

  In her last start this year she won the Fleur de Lis by 10 1/2-lengths on June 12.

  She came up short in her initial two starts of 2010. She was second to Zardana at the Fair Grounds in the New Orleans Ladies Classic and runner-up to Unrivaled Belle at Churchill Downs in the La Troienne.

  Borel will also ride in the Haskell Invitational for the second straight year. The veteran jockey, who was aboard Rachel in last year's victory, will guide Kentucky Derby champ Super Saver in the 1 1/8-mile race on Sunday, August 1.

  "From what I hear, Super Saver is doing very well," Borel commented. "He put on a little weight which is good to hear because he really had to run hard in the Derby. He's not a big horse at all, and I think the Derby and Preakness took a little out of him.

  "I spoke with Elliott Walden (Director of Racing for WinStar Farms) the other day and he told me that Super Saver looks great and is really training well. He's had a bit of a break since the Preakness, and it looks like a pretty tough field, but he should be ultra-tough in there." Trained by Todd Pletcher, Super Saver was eighth in the Preakness Stakes behind 2009 champion two-year-old colt Lookin At Lucky.

  Lookin At Lucky, trained by Bob Baffert, is expected to ship in from California for the Haskell.

  07/20 13:56:27 ET