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FFS @curious you are going down these rabbit holes more and more. They rebuilt the underlying track infrastructure - camber, drainage and irrigation. The pure swamp part is long gone. The top layer is definitely now sand. They sub-layer could be anything. What they are testing in OZ that they couldn't get tested in NZ is beyond me. Sand would have been used because it would have been the cheapest option. It would be interesting to know where they sourced it from and how it was treated before laying.

Calmbeforethestorm now only paying $4.60. it was still paying $9 when i looked last night. actually thats about what it should have opened at,but still it hasn't trotted all the way on race day yet,so who knows with it. if i was looking at that field,i would say everyone in it would be hoping they run second,not win,as the way the handicapping system works the winner will then have to run in their next start,against horses like prince teka,brianna,holly highlander,etc. really whoever wins today,thats the end of their racing earning potential for 12 months,possibly a lifetime. its a real indictment on the current way races are programmed.The programmers don'tseem to care whether they retain 1 win horses for racing. so in race 1 today,everyone will be driving to run 2nd at best.Probably morrie aftom may be trying the hardest,so maybe it wins.Who knows.10 minutes time we will find out

Just a Minute (Not This Time–Breaking Beauty, by Into Mischief), who debuted as a 9-2 shot here, set up shop midpack as the field was led by a longshot up the backstretch. The filly made steady progress by sticking to the fence around the far turn. With the rail lane wide open entering the straightaway, the 2-year-old fired her best shot, closed with alacrity when she shifted to the two path inside the final sixteenth and held off a late charge from Cynical Humor (Gun Runner) to leave the kids' table behind and eat with the grown-ups. The winner is a half-sister to Tiz Dashing (Tiz the Law), GSW, $292,207. A $300,000 Keeneland November buy in 2019 for Summerhill while Event Detail (City of Light) was in utero, Breaking Beauty is also responsible for a yearling colt by Charlatan and a weanling colt by Gunite. She was entered in Prince of Monaco's book for 2026. Just a Minute's second dam, German multiple group stakes winner Que Belle (Seattle Dancer), also produced GSW Osidy (Storm Cat) and French group stakes heroine Quetsche (Gone West). 8th-Churchill Downs, $122,883, Msw, 11-26, 2yo, f, 5fT, :58.28, fm, 3/4 length. JUST A MINUTE (f, 2, Not This Time–Breaking Beauty, by Into Mischief) Sales History: $240,000 RNA Ylg '24 FTSAUG; $325,000 Ylg '24 KEESEP. Lifetime Record: 1-1-0-0, $69,300. Click for the Equibase.com chart or VIDEO, sponsored by FanDuel TV. O-G. Watts Humphrey, Jr.; B-Camas Park Stud (KY); T-Victoria H. Oliver. A nice top pick winner from @JoeyDaKRacing! Just a Minute scores at 9/2 in R8 at @churchilldowns under @luissaezpty for trainer Vickie Oliver! #TwinSpiresReplay pic.twitter.com/ACzq3UA5YP — TwinSpires Racing (@TwinSpires) November 26, 2025 The post Not This Time’s Just A Minute Leaves Kids’ Table On Debut At Churchill appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

i'm on the same page as well about larsens driving. I've always thought larsens got a reasonable tactical brain,but horses don't quite run for him like they do for some others. yesterday he had to be on a downer anyway. He would have been upset about what happened with montage,a horse he had driven many times.Wasn't everyone in that race lucky to avoid montage when he faltered so badly. It just happened that the horse trailing montage, driven by b orange, had dropped off a couple of lengths off his back and the fella 3 back the inside was happy sitting there and not following montage.B orange reacted very quickly and other drivers behind followed suit Quite fortunate indeed. so larsen,with montage in the back of his mind, he drove his trotter xerion,gave it the perfect run,but it seemed to struggle from a lap out and was disappointing. Xerions a horse that i've pointed out previously was kept going over winter when its form was getting worse and it appeared the horse was getting more run down.He did finally give it a freshen up and after that,it won last week,bit it wasn't as good yesterday. So he would have hopped on his 2 year old on a bit of a downer,and he produced a dumb drive. actually i started a thread on him a year or so ago and expressed the opinion,horses seemed to run much better for his son when he came back for a holiday and drove his fathers horses,but then his son went back to victoria. Larsen is a trainer that buyers should pay a bit more for his horses.As hosn horses seem to always go on and do a good job when sold. Theres been some in queensland like that.So hes a good honest trainer.

The 2025 live Thoroughbred racing season at Finger Lakes Gaming and Racetrack came to an end Nov. 26.View the full article

HISA has issued a show-cause notice and is considering a provisional suspension for New York-based trainer Rudy Rodriguez, alleging he failed to provide required veterinary care and diagnostic follow-up for horses placed on the veterinarians' list.View the full article

The state of Kansas approved 1,000 HHR machines, which is a precursor to the return of Thoroughbred racing in the state. While Kansas has not had live Thoroughbred racing since 2008, the goal is for the sport to return in the fall of 2026.View the full article

you end your post with a comment that seems to accept stake money will be reduced significantly because of the overspending going on at the moment. while you've also expressed the opinion that the current overspending is a good thing,as its necessary to maintain current participation levels. So the obvious question is,if you believe maintaining the current stake levels and bonuses and big payout races is necessary to maintain current participation levels,then why don't you think thats going to be relavant when they run out of the money to do that in 3 years time. Its like,you promote policies that will have a far greater negative impact on the industry in years to come,than was necessary had we had leadership who were fiscally responsible.And you seem to acknowledge that. and even if you think the current policies are working,can you then explain how that thinking lines up with the stats that show declining licence holder numbers,mares being bred,field size numbers,turnovers,on course attendance,etc,etc,etc.

He called it a “once-in-a-lifetime” experience, smiling in the Paris sunshine, spry and dapper in his bow tie and blazer. And then he added: “I mean, I'm 90 years old, so I don't know how much more lifetime there is!” That helped the interview go fairly viral. But there was much else besides: the sheer joie de vivre, the sense of just how much living Russell Jones has crammed into that lifetime; plus an infectious sense of the fulfilment available, when you invest in a horse in a purely sporting spirit. Jones only found himself at Longchamp because he had wanted to honor the memory of Johnny Harrington by participating in a partnership at the stable run by his dear friend's widow Jessica. In his time, to be sure, Jones has plenty of horse trading. He would know as well as anybody the commercial potential of bloodstock. In fact, along with his late brother Richard, he consigned Producer (Nashua) to achieve a broodmare record $5.25 million at Keeneland in 1983. Even so, there may be a lesson for those people who nowadays approach the game in a wholly mercenary spirit, in the way things have played out with Barnavara (Ire) (Calyx {GB}). Because this €70,000 yearling goes to the Sceptre Sessions at Tattersalls Tuesday (hip 1753) as winner of the G1 Prix de l'Opera–a race once won, funnily enough, by Producer. What a weekend the Alpha Racing syndicate had in Paris–and how often did thoughts turn to Johnny. Jones had gotten to know him way back in the 1960s, when Johnny was working for the Curragh Bloodstock Agency, and had come to America to help launch Jonathan Sheppard's training career. They hit it off so well that Johnny started staying with Jones in Pennsylvania, whenever he travelled over. “But then, one of his first visits, my wife went into labor,” Jones recalled. “She told him she didn't know where the hell I'd got to, and he was to drive her to the hospital. At that stage Johnny hadn't yet had any children himself, and he was in a total sweat, praying that she didn't deliver this baby right there on the front seat. “He was a great one for telling stories on himself, and always said that was the most nervous he'd ever been. Anyway, over the years, it just became a great friendship. So it was tough, when he died. They got me to do a reading at the service, and I helped carry the casket. So I was almost like family.” Jones told Patrick Cooper he would like to support the stable, but didn't imagine he could make too much of a difference with just the odd horse here and there. Cooper mentioned that he was setting up a syndicate with Elaine Lawlor and the Harringtons' son-in-law Richie Galway. At first, Jones felt that that he might not enjoy delegating selection to others, but after a couple of years of doing his own thing, he got on board with Alpha Racing. “And I've been there ever since,” he says. “It's just been so much fun. Unlike a lot of syndicates, more or less all of us were veterans in the horse game. They weren't doing it as a financial investment–which was right up my alley because you do that, in this game, you're a little crazy. This was not going to be too expensive and we were all just doing it for fun.” And that approach has actually proved more lucrative than tends to be the case when people are under pressure to make things pay. Last year, the syndicate sold its €65,000 yearling Kinesiology (GB) (Study Of Man {Ire}) to Australia after four consecutive runner-up finishes in stakes company. Now the time has come to cash out Barnavara. “I think she was just maturing as she went along, and getting better as a result,” Jones suggests. “Every time we asked her the next question, she got better. It was amazing. At the Curragh, she was devastating, just galloped them to death. She has this very high cruising speed and can keep it going. She's a filly that can take the run out of horses. She goes out there and says, 'Come on, then, here I am: come get me.' Sometimes she gets headed, and comes again. The whole thing has been unreal, especially the way it has opened up Ireland for me again.” Russell Jones | Tod Marks That's because many earlier years, of this life well lived, were largely spent jumping across open country, whether at home in Chester County or in Ireland. Jones connects us to a golden age, to an extent, one that has gone beyond recall. He won his very first race, aged 13, in a point-to-point staked out cross-country, with flags. But the gusto characteristic of those days keeps Jones very much engaged in the here and now–still serving, in fact, on the Pennsylvania State Horse Racing Commission. “I grew up on a dairy farm in Pennsylvania,” Jones explains. “Started out fox-hunting, then riding point-to-points and eventually steeplechase. That first race, I was on a 14.2hh pony, but she was mostly Thoroughbred, I think. My mother was against my going, unless my father rode in the race too, to look after me. By the time I got into the final field, I had opened up on them–but there were all these people standing along the fence, and I couldn't tell where the finish was. Then an old man that used to follow the hounds took off his cap and threw it in the air, so I shot over and got there. My father finished ahead of the rest. Probably he let me win!” Jones was not permitted to contest the open at the adjacent hunt until he was 16, and promptly won that at the first attempt, too. “But I'm sounding like I was some kind of important talent, which I never was,” he stresses. “I was just game to go and have a crack at it, and lucky as hell to win a couple of races. Basically, most of my riding career was on horses I was trading. Like the Maryland Hunt Cup winner I bought at the racetrack for five grand.” That was the famous Jacko (Chi), five-time Timber Horse of the Year. “He'd been brought up from Valparaiso in Chile to Delaware Park,” Jones recalls. “He'd beaten a total of two horses in four races here, was really just an acclimatization project in the works. We took him home, gelded him, and started hacking around the country. And he jumped like a horse that had done it all before: just a natural at the job. He won 19 races over timber for us.” But Jones was no mere passenger, as his myriad other accomplishments as horseman attest. A Master of Fox Hounds for a decade, he was still fearlessly out in the field to the age of 85. In the Thoroughbred world, too, he has added to the heritage of a neighborhood that once produced breed-shapers Danzig and Storm Cat. His own impact was through Walnut Green, for many years the largest sales agency outside Kentucky, achieving global reach through the likes of Flower Alley, At Talaq and Golden Pheasant. “In the early '70s, I was working in the stock market business and just training some jumpers on the side,” Jones recalls. “But then in 1976, I consigned a horse for a lady in Wilmington, Delaware, the first horse I ever consigned, and I didn't know what the hell I was doing. But we just built and built. Producer was a mare we sold for a couple of guys from Chicago. They sent her to us to breed to Northern Dancer, and just hit an absolute gold mine. But I think we only held the record until the January Sale! “Anyway, we did that until '05. But our major clients were dying off, and we weren't developing new ones. It had become a disadvantage being in Pennsylvania. We even thought about starting up in Kentucky, but we liked our life so well at home. Kentucky hunting just wasn't as good! So we decided we'd look for somebody younger that might take the business over.” They were struggling for takers when Mark Reid approached Richie at the September Sale and asked whether they might ever consider selling the business. “Are you crazy?” Richie replied, quick as a flash. “We're making so much goddamn money, I don't think we can afford to.” But they found a way, right enough. Not that Jones was done yet. One evening he found himself sitting at dinner next to an old friend, Phyllis Wyeth. “Her father had bought Devil's Bag as a yearling, Gone West too,” Jones recalls. “And Phyllis wanted to get into the business herself. So she had me come down and look at their horses and help with consigning. Next thing you know, she's not only a great friend, but an important customer. We had some great years, topping out with Union Rags.” Wyeth sold that horse as a yearling for $145,000. When he resurfaced in the Gulfstream Sale, the following February, Jones called her. “You bred a monster here,” he said. “He's gorgeous, 10 times the horse we sold.” “Well, let's buy him back.” “Phyllis, you wouldn't get him even for double what they gave us. He'll make $400,000.” “Okay, go to $390,000.” It was eerie how it played out. The bidding raced along until Jones managed to get in his single bid, at $390,000. And the hammer came down. “He was the best 2-year-old in the country,” Jones marvels. “Got beat a head at the Breeders' Cup, by a better ride on Hansen, and then won the [GI] Belmont. But finally her infirmity caught up with Phyllis and six or seven years ago she died. So many of these clients that were great friends are gone now. So I'm now down to five mares in Kentucky, with Noel Murphy, plus one in Ireland.” Nonetheless, he spent virtually the entire Keeneland November Sale seated by the inside back ring, making notes on foals. Complimented on his stamina, he shrugs. “At my age, I can't walk around the grounds like I did when actively engaged,” he says. “So it's a compromise. I can tell if they're crooked, but most of all I like to see how they move, what the frame is. These foals are telling me what stallions to think about, for breeding mares next year. I have gotten away from going to the farms to look at stallions. They don't always produce what they look like. Looking at what they're putting on the ground, for me, is more reliable. The only reason I'd look at stallions is to see whether they're a suitable physical match.” The system seems to be functioning pretty well, Jones having recently used Good Magic, Vekoma and Yaupon when “on the bubble.” “I could see what they were throwing and breeding to them before they exploded,” he says. “But you'd even do it for amusement: it's all such theater, so addictive. You've got to keep pace with what's happening, got to keep improving yourself. You see somebody doing better than you, you say, 'I better find out what they're doing that I'm not.'” Some attitude, at his time of life! Again, however, it is chicken-and-egg: what got him this far is the same verve that keeps him going now. That's why the old horse trader is happy even to sell Barnavara, so ending a sentimental journey. As it says in the film, they'll always have Paris. “I think that trading instinct in me still comes to the fore,” he says. “She's sound as a bell and may get a whole lot better next year. But we finished off with that incredible weekend in Paris: museums, Notre Dame, restaurants. Our race was right after the Arc, so we're with our filly in the stable area and here comes the Arc winner being led back in. It was just so much fun, the whole weekend, even before winning.” And, as such, an apt tribute. Because it would never have happened but for Johnny. “I suppose not,” Jones says. “I mean, you never know why these things happen. But when they do, you just make sure you enjoy the hell out of them.” The post Barnavara Fairytale Keeps Jones Young appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

A trio of Hong Kong heavy hitters are among the 22 Group 1 winners signed on for the Longines Hong Kong International Races (HKIR) at Sha Tin on Sunday, December 14. Romantic Warrior (Acclamation) is aiming for his fourth win in the G1 Longines Hong Kong Cup after winning that event the past three years. Aiming to extend his unbeaten streak to 16 races, Ka Ying Rising (Shamexpress) targets the G1 Longines Hong Kong Sprint. Rounding out the local trio is Hong Kong Triple Crown hero Voyage Bubble (Deep Field) who is hoping to defend his crown in the G1 Longines Hong Kong Mile. They will face an international brigade featuring the horse rated best in the world, Calandagan (Gleneagles), and the gelding's stablemate Quisisana (Le Havre) from the Francis-Henri Graffard yard. Both of the French-trained runners are pointing to the Cup. G1 Sprinters Stakes hero Win Carnelian (Screen Hero) and fellow top-liner Satono Reve (Lord Kanaloa) are both signed on to the Sprint, and Khaadem (Dark Angel) is also entered in that affair. Docklands (Massaat), who recently finished ninth in the G1 Mile Championship, will try his hand in the Mile, while G1 Dubai Turf winner Soul Rush (Rulership) will also take in that race. Japanese Classic heroine Embroidery (Admire Mars) is another for the Mile. In the Vase, Giavellotto (Mastercraftsman) will attempt to defend his title, but he faces Eydon (Olden Times) and top-level winners Sosie (Sea The Stars) and Goliath (Adlerflug). Andrew Harding, executive director, racing, HKJC, said, “The Longines Hong Kong International Races are one of the most important events on racing's global calendar, and this year we look forward to witnessing the feats of Romantic Warrior, Ka Ying Rising, Calandagan, Soul Rush and Voyage Bubble, among many others. “We are excited by the quality of selected runners for this year's Longines Hong Kong International Races and the presence of so many of the stars is in keeping with our long-held commitment to deliver sporting excellence. The stage is now set for Sunday, 14 December at Sha Tin.” The post Longines HKIR Feature 22 Group 1 Winners appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

The top three finishers from last year's Hollywood Turf Cup (G2T) return for a rematch Nov. 28 at Del Mar. Up for grabs is the lion's share of a $200,000 purse. View the full article

The 2025 live thoroughbred racing season at Finger Lakes Gaming and Racetrack came to an end on Wednesday, Nov. 26.View the full article

What soil? As far as I can see, they tried to build a sand track in a swamp.

Ain't she a beaut, Clark? A fantastic field of nine, led by 3-1 morning-line favorite and G1 Dubai World Cup hero Hit Show (Candy Ride {Arg}), will line up for the GII Clark S. at Churchill Downs on Black Friday. The Wathnan Racing colorbearer defeated last year's re-opposing Clark winner Rattle N Roll (Connect) by a length in the GIII Hagyard Fayette S. at Keeneland last out Oct. 25. “We were really proud of Hit Show's effort in the Fayette,” trainer Brad Cox said. “He hasn't missed a beat since winning the Dubai World Cup. We're looking forward to another top effort in the Clark.” Cox will also saddle 'TDN Rising Star, presented by Hagyard' and Godolphin homebred First Mission (Street Sense), who fell just a nose short in the 2023 Clark. The MGSW was a disappointing fourth in the GI Goodwood S. at Santa Anita last time Sept. 27. “The Clark is First Mission's final start before he retires to stud duty,” Cox said. “We expect him to bounce back on Friday.” The field for the Clark also includes talented sophomores: GI Preakness S. runner-up and last-out Fayette third Gosger (Nyquist); runaway GII Fasig-Tipton Risen Star S. winner and GI Pennsylvania Derby runner-up Magnitude (Not This Time); and GIII West Virginia Derby winner Chunk of Gold (Preservationist). After bringing $3.7 million from Dixiana Farm at Keeneland November, GI Queen Elizabeth II Challenge Cup S. heroine Lush Lips (GB) (Ten Sovereigns {Ire}) is the horse to beat in the GII Mrs. Revere S. on the undercard. Friday's graded stakes action also includes the GII Hollywood Turf Cup S. at Del Mar. The GIII Falls City S., featuring GI Breeders' Cup Distaff third-place finisher Regaled (Mohaymen), anchors the 12-race Thanksgiving Day program at Churchill Downs. The post Field of Nine Ready to Put on a ‘Show’ in Loaded Clark appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

Observations on the European Racing Scene turns the spotlight on the best European races of the day, highlighting well-bred horses early in their careers, horses of note returning to action and young runners that achieved notable results in the sales ring. Thursday's Observations features a daughter of a Breeders' Cup winner. 16.30 Chelmsford City, £8,000, Mdn, 2yo, f, 7f (AWT) Cheveley Park Stud's SO REGAL (GB) (Kingman {GB}), a John and Thady Gosden trainee, is a homebred daughter of GI Breeders' Cup Filly & Mare Turf heroine Queen's Trust (GB) (Dansili {GB}). Her nine rivals include Kirsten Rausing's Campeona (GB) (Study Of Man {Ire}), who is a Sir Park Prescott-conditioned daughter of dual Group 3-winning G1 Grosser Preis von Bayern runner-up Cubanita (GB) (Selkirk). The post Daughter Of Breeders’ Cup Heroine Queen’s Trust In Line For Chelmsford Bow appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

She may be the small filly taking on some seasoned sprinters, but Trevor Andrews insists Luana Miss is well capable of punching above her light weight as he gets set to unleash his stable star in the Nov. 29 Winterbottom Stakes (G1) at Ascot.View the full article

The $400,000 Golden Rod Stakes (G2) Nov. 29 at Churchill Downs is the next stop on the Road to the Kentucky Oaks. Trainer Brad Cox will look for a second consecutive win with Rags to Riches Stakes winner Life of Joy.View the full article

By Jonny Turner It is not even December and the White stable’s annual southern raid is already on. Trainers Brent and Tim White campaign plenty of horses in Otago and Southland in summer and this year it will be no different. But before the Ashburton trainers try to continue their success they’ve had in Central Otago in recent seasons, they’ll pop over the border to Oamaru on Thursday. Among the five-strong White team is Snooowgood, whose last start was behind Dash Dosh, who went on to win the Group 1 New Zealand Trotting Oaks. Prior to that, the three-year-old took on more quality types in the Group Three Hambletonian Classic. Snooowgood drops back in grade at Oamaru and also reverts to standing start racing. “She has just got to bring manners at the start, that will be the key,” Tim White said. “It looks like a very winnable race for her considering what she has been racing.” The White stable will give Stealers Wheel the second start of his new campaign at Oamaru. There looked to be plenty of merit in the pacer’s fresh-up fifth at Ashburton. “He did plenty of work first up, he didn’t really get a spell during that race,” White said. “His work since has been pretty good and the best version of him would go pretty close, you would think,” White said. Two White-trained pacers go head to head at Oamaru in Molly Maeve Estelle and Jazzys Upstart. The pair will be driven by Sarah and Gerard O’Reilly respectively. Molly Maeve Estelle battled in her last outing, but her camp thinks the run is best forgotten. “We are going to forgive that last run, she was on the fence and nothing seemed to run on from there that day on the wet track at Ashburton.” “Her run before that was good and she’s drawn one this week so we are hoping she can go a much better race.” Jazzys Upstart was also down the track at Ashburton, but she also had her excuses. “She didn’t get much luck last start, she did a bit of work early and then Sarah came in and put her hand up and said she went a bit early.” “She went good at Oamaru before that, she seems to go well down there.” The White barn will give Bettor Dreams her debut in the two-year-old fillies event at Oamaru. “She is the loveliest horse to have around the place and she hasn’t done anything wrong in her trials.” “We are hoping she can step up at the races and maybe the Bettor’s Delight can come out in her.” View the full article

By Jordyn Bublitz The New Zealand Junior Drivers Championship gets underway at Cambridge Raceway tonight, and among them is first-time contender and Canterbury-based junior driver, Mia Holbrough. Holbrough has already enjoyed a standout season, producing a career-best 14 winners and 40 placings, and her selection for this year’s championship is the reward for a year of consistency, growth, and confidence. For Holbrough simply lining up is a dream realised. “It feels incredible, being in the Junior Champs is something I’ve dreamed about since I got my licence, it means a lot,” she said. The opening two heats of the Championship will be run as Races 3 and 5 tonight at Cambridge, and Holbrough heads into night one with two competitive bookings. To kick off the series the southern reinswoman will partner the Michelle Wallis and Bernie Hackett–trained trotter Viscount Mackendon, a four-year-old son of Volstead who has put together several honest performances in recent races. While the gelding faces a tricky assignment from three the second row, Holbrough remains upbeat about his chances and has labelled him the horse she is most looking forward to throughout the series. “He’s gone really good his last couple of starts and he looks like a pretty versatile and safe trotter. We’re going to need a little bit of luck from the draw, but hopefully we can get the right drag into the race,” Heat 2 sees Holbrough team up with Sea Of Love, a five-year-old daughter of Downbytheseaside for trainers David and Claire McGowan. The mare steps back in grade after tackling some tough opposition at Alexandra Park last start, and her handy draw gives Holbrough options early. “She faced a tough field at Auckland last start, but prior to that at Cambridge she’d been running some nice consistent races. We’ll have to see what happens off of the gate but fingers crossed we’ll land a nice spot,” Although every junior driver lines up hoping to lift the trophy on finals night, Holbrough is equally focused on making the most of the opportunity. For her, the Championship represents more than points and placings. “I’m just looking forward to the experience, meeting new people, driving the best I can for these trainers and hopefully making some new connections.” With form on the board, confidence in her drives, and genuine excitement for the challenge ahead, Holbrough shapes as one to watch when the tapes fly at Cambridge tonight. The ones to beat in the opening Junior Drivers Championship Heats By Brittany Graham The cream of the New Zealand young driving crop will be on display over the coming few days when the National Junior Driving Championships takes place. Six heats will be staged over three venues, before the winner is crowned on Sunday at Methven as part of the Green Mile meeting. With such a deep group of talent, luck in running and allocated drives is going to play a crucial role, so here’s who has fared well on night 1. Race 3 Cambridge – Thursday @ 6.24pm – Heat 1 One to beat: Mia Holbrough, #11 Viscount Mackendon Holbrough looks poised to make her Championship debut a memorable one when she teams up with Michelle Wallis, Bernie Hackett and their ever-consistent square gaiter Viscount Mackendon. While the second row looks potentially tricky, he was luckless last start and Holbrough has had a great recent run with trotters, most notably Buffy Northstains whose successes propelled her into the series. Smokey: Monika Ranger, #5 Patrick Mahomes Ranger was awarded the HRNZ CEO wildcard to take part in this year’s series and it’s not hard to see why. A constant in the winner’s circle both here at Cambridge, and at Alexandra Park, she has a phenomenal strike rate on trotters this season winning 11 times from 37 steers. Race 5 Cambridge – Thursday @ 7.14pm – Heat 2 One to beat: Sam Thornley, #5 Billy The Kid Thornley comes into the series as the equal most successful driver with 220 wins across his six seasons of driving and will look to draw on all that experience in search of his first Championship success. He partners front of the field type Billy The Kid who should suit his aggressive driving style. Smokey: Emily Johnson, #10 Midrew Lucre Johnson has made an instant impression on the Northern junior drivers’ scene after returning from a successful stint in Western Australia. Eight of her 20 wins this season have been here at Cambridge Raceway and she will have a very strong hold on the form of her charge, and her rivals’. From a nice trailing draw, she can pick up some further valuable points to position herself favourably heading to Addington for the first time on Friday. View the full article

If Tuesday's opening session of the December Foal Sale at Tattersalls was all about Dragon Symbol, then Wednesday was the day that the young upstart received a sharp warning should he wish to assume the throne as Whitsbury Manor Stud kingpin, with the present incumbent, Havana Grey, taking his turn to play the starring role on a day of fierce trade at Park Paddocks. By the close of play, Havana Grey accounted for five of the day's top 18 lots, headlined by lot 650 from the Whitsbury Manor draft. The colt out of the Italian Listed winner Avengers Queen (Brazen Beau), from the family of the Group-winning sprinters Diligent Harry (Due Diligence) and El Caballo (Havana Grey), was knocked down to Charlie Vigors of Hillwood Bloodstock for 260,000gns. “Havana Grey needs no introduction,” Vigors said of the sire-of-the-moment. “He's been pretty good to us and pretty good to everybody who has been involved with him. As the better mares are coming through, I think his profile is only going to keep increasing.” On what the future holds for this colt, he added, “We'll get him home and make a plan from there, but he could well be coming back next year. He obviously has the pedigree, I liked the physical, and I liked the page, so everything added up. We were delighted to get him – we were at our limit, I'd say.” Of the 10 Havana Grey weanlings offered across the first two days, nine have sold for a total of 1,009,000gns, putting him third on the overall sires' list behind first-crop sensations Shaquille and Dragon Symbol. His average of 112,111gns was further boosted by the sale of lot 576, also from the Whitsbury Manor draft and belonging to the same family as the day's headliner. Bred on the cross which produced the Hampshire farm's newest stallion recruit, Elite Status, the colt is out of the winning Swiss Spirit mare Amoreena, a half-sister to the aforementioned Diligent Harry (Due Diligence), as well as the Listed Prix Kistena scorer Harry Three (Adaay). Tally-Ho Stud struck the winning bid at 165,000gns. “He's a good-moving horse, by a good stallion,” said Tally-Ho's Tony O'Callaghan, who also signed for lot 557, by the same stallion, at 105,000gns. “We've had bits and bobs by the stallion before. We've bought two by him today, but we just worry about the model. We had 150 [thousand] in mind going in there if we wanted to give ourselves any chance of getting him.” Completing the trio of Havana Grey colts occupying a spot among the top 15 was lot 468, this one bred on the same cross as the dual Group 1-winning juvenile Vandeek. He is out of the winning Exceed And Excel mare Excesso Velocidad, a half-sister to the Italian black-type winners Fast Spirit (Make Believe) and Bright Filly (Ten Sovereigns). Also consigned by Whitsbury Manor, he was purchased by Mimi Wadham of WH Bloodstock for 110,000gns. “He's a lovely colt. He looks fast and it's a proven cross that has worked,” said Wadham. “The sire can do no wrong and we were really happy to get him – and surprised, to be honest. We had to push but we felt it was slowing up, so we thought we had a squeak.” She added, “The plan will be to bring him back for Book 2. We sold a filly [by Havana Grey] that we bred in Book 2 this year for 160,000gns. This colt would stack up very well against her, so fingers crossed.” 'The Standout Of All The Foals We Saw' Michael Swinburn of Genesis Green Stud joked that he “nearly fell off his chair” when he saw 51 foals by Shaquille catalogued in this week's sale, but he soon struck a more sombre note when telling the backstory of lot 618, the colt who became the most expensive weanling by the first-crop sire to date when going the way of Ace Stud for 180,000gns. “I bought the mare barren and, of course, she had to die this year of cancer, so he was reared on a foster mare,” Swinburn began. “It was touch and go whether she was going to make the foaling. Literally, two weeks after the foal was born, we had to put her down. She was just getting lighter and lighter and I was giving out to the lads saying, 'Guys, are you sure you're feeding this filly?'” Described by Swinburn as “a great mare”, the late Sunset Avenue (Street Cry) was a 6,500gns purchase at the 2023 December Mares Sale, having already produced two black-type performers in the GIII Robert J. Frankel Stakes runner-up Excellent Sunset (Exceed And Excel) and the Listed King Richard III Stakes second Path Of Thunder (Night Of Thunder). “I'll be honest with you, I wasn't going to breed to Shaquille,” Swinburn added of the mating which produced one of Wednesday's star turns. “I'm not a great man for first-season sires, but I went to see him and Sunset Avenue, being a Street Cry, they [her progeny] can be fairly plain. So, I thought, 'I've got a mare for you,' and that was her. “I thought I was going to be very clever by putting a nice one [by Shaquille] in this sale. But I was very surprised, when I saw the pedigrees of the Shaquilles in the book, how good the mares were. He has to have a great chance with the mares that he's had and they're going down a storm. All of the proper people are buying them.” The dual Group 1-winning sprinter Shaquille has now had 21 weanlings sold, from 25 offered, across the first two sessions here at Park Paddocks. That group have achieved a total of 1,138,000gns and an average of 54,190gns, with two others also changing hands for a six-figure sum on Wednesday. They included lot 622, New England Stud's half-brother to the multiple Group 3 hero Rocchigiani (Time Test) – later named Flaming Rabbit when continuing his career in Hong Kong – who sold to Camas Park Stud for 125,000gns. “As the markets been suggesting today already, they're well liked, the whole lot of them,” added Paul Curran of Ace Stud, the Newmarket farm which the son of Charm Spirit calls home. “They've done a very good job of getting some nice ones here and there's a huge number of them. The first thing we wanted to see is that he's stamping his stock and he seems to be doing that which is great. “This one is going to be retained and will race in our colours. We went around and looked at about 100-120 [foals] for Wednesday and I actually thought he was the standout of all the foals we saw. We came in for the week thinking we wanted to buy the standout one. I think we got that and he was in and around the price we thought he was going to be.” Subplots Figures – Of the 256 lots offered, 219 sold at a healthy clearance rate of 87%, up from 85% last year. The 10,416,000gns turnover climbed by 15%, while the 47,425gns average was up by 8% and the 35,000gns median by 3%. Ghaiyyath – Havana Grey aside, Ghaiyyath was the star of the more established sires on Wednesday, with the Kildangan Stud resident laying claim to two of the top 10 lots, including a colt from Starfield Stud who sold to Harry Sweeney's Japan-based Paca Paca Farm for 160,000gns. “He was a very popular foal and a lot of very shrewd judges were on him,” Starfield's Micheál Orlandi said of lot 628. “A lot of them were pinhookers and they have to buy at what they think is value, but we are very thankful to all of them who bid. I think that Paul McCartan was underbidder. It is tough on the pinhooker to come up against Harry, but it is a great result. Thankfully, the stars aligned this evening and it has been like that for the stallion this week.” Ghaiyyath is a perfect six for six so far this week, with all of his weanlings finding a buyer. That sextet has sold for an aggregate sum of 505,000gns and at an average of 84,167gns. Sales schedule – Tony O'Callaghan didn't mince his words when asked whether he looks forward to this hectic time of year. “No, not really,” replied the deadpan patriarch of the Tally-Ho dynasty, before providing a bit of food for thought with his opinion on how the sales schedule could be improved. “The sales are too compact and all together,” he continued. “This sale should be a week later. You've the same again all next week, then France. For the lads working, they're here at five o'clock in the morning and they're still here at 10 o'clock at night. All December is free for them and they should use a bit of it. I've been saying this for a few years, but they don't do anything about it. December is idle, so why can't we run up until later in the month?” Farhh – The progeny of Farhh always possess a bit of scarcity value given his well-documented fertility issues but, even so, it was good to see his name up there on the leaderboard amidst a slew of first-crop stallions. Lot 487 from Brook Stud, a colt out of an unraced half-sister to the black-type winners Dan's Dream (Cityscape) and Caernarfon (Cityscape), was the one flying the flag for the Darley sire on Wednesday when bought by Two Turn Investments for 98,000gns. The proven sire of Group 1 winners such as King Of Change and Tribalist, Farhh continues to produce the results from limited numbers, as evidenced at Goffs last week when his sole weanling catalogued sold to Apricot Bloodstock for €155,000. Can Lightning Strike Twice With Lush Lips Sibling? Bloodstock agent Mark McStay and American owner Steve Weston stuck to a winning formula when swooping for another of the day's early pacesetters in lot 470, a full-brother to their high-class filly Lush Lips who, subsequent to her victory in last month's GI Queen Elizabeth II Challenge Cup Stakes, changed hands at Keeneland for $3.7 million. Needless to say, this colt's price tag didn't make it into quite such rarefied air but, at 150,000gns, it was a result which delighted Nick Pocock of Stringston Farm. McStay, too, expressed his satisfaction at being able to continue his association with the family, having first purchased Lush Lips for £82,000 at the Goffs UK Premier Yearling Sale. “He's a beautiful horse and I'm delighted to get him,” said the Avenue Bloodstock agent. “He was well presented by Stringston and the Pococks who are great breeders. When you breed a Grade I winner like Lush Lips, you're entitled to get paid.” Outlining future plans for the colt, he added, “I've purchased him on behalf of Steve Weston's Parkland Thoroughbreds. He's been a really good client in recent years with Porta Fortuna, Balantina and Lush Lips, amongst others. “He'll probably go back to Luke Barry at Manister House Stud in Ireland and we'll make our plans in the spring with him then. Whether we reoffer him or race, I don't know, but it's a nice problem to have. “I thought, as an individual, this was a really nice horse. I wasn't just buying the relation to a horse that had done me well. She [Lush Lips] was an outstanding physical and this foal was a really good type as well.” Lush Lips and recent Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf heroine Balantina feature among three individual top-level winners for former Coolmore stallion Ten Sovereigns, who relocated to Turkey for the latest breeding season. With that in mind, Pocock was tempering his expectations when this colt went through the ring, whilst hoping that the recent exploits of Lush Lips might give proceedings a gentle nudge in the right direction. He said, “We're delighted with that price. We didn't know what we were going to make coming up here, with him being by Ten Sovereigns who has obviously moved to Turkey. It made it difficult to value the horse, but Ten Sovereigns has had a very good year in America, which we've been part of. “It's lovely having the update and for it to come so close to the sales is always a help. He was a lovely colt who never put a foot wrong and he's been very busy. It was nice for him to be sold back to Mark McStay after he bought Lush Lips.” The post Havana Grey Colt Headlines Fierce Trade During Second Session at Tattersalls at 260,000gns appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

and deservedly so. It's lucky they're not low now like the general 4-6 k races they run all round Australia every day. But you got lucky and ENTAIN saved the day . (Temporarily you say) It's a Good thing !!! for 5 years you keep saying. In Queensland we are grateful that the ENTAIN group Ladbrokes props us up in the betting market, so we can race 5-6 race meetings per week for our cohort of about 500 horses. excellent stuff. you want to criticise the hand that feeds you ? , but if you didn't get fed ( by Entain) you might of been racing for half the prizemoney they are now by now already ? . And Deservedly So. Deservedly = Because you bloke Refuse to support the 'Product' anymore and slander North Island harness altogether, all the innovations , and you can Really get the feeling of how Popular the once great Harness Racing Sport is in New Zealand these days from the CONSTANT Bagging it gets on NZ harness forums lol. eye rolling stuff 🙄 lol😉 At least in Australia we still enjoy the sport (as a sport) and try and keep the small fields going around at Marburg or Globe Derby or Mildura or wherever. Ballarat even has full 10 horse fields tonight going around in $6000 races. You are right and that will become the norm in NZ one of these days. Oamaru racing for 10 and 12 K races today is just FAR to MUCH. it will be cut in half one day to 5 and 6 k because of the revenue . no one betting on those poor horses. so yeah ! cut the prizemoney in half and see how it goes from there? Why should they get more prizemoney when no-one betting on them ? Par for the course old mate. A sign of tough financial times for one and all.

The Scorpion mare Ledecka (lot 19) topped the ThoroughBid November sale at £30,000 on Wednesday. Placed in two starts in National Hunt Flat races, the five-year-old mare is from the family of G3 Queen's Vase winner Silver Wedge (Silver Hawk). She was offered by Beatbush Farm and picked up by Red Racing. Pour Les Fillies (Pour Moi) (lot 17) brought £9,500 from Mickey Bowen Racing. A winner of a NH Flat race, a point-to-point and a hurdle race, the Gordon Elliott-consigned seven-year-old is from the same family as Listed Long Distance Hurdle hero Marello (Supreme Leader). Of the 22 lots offered, 17 sold (77%) for a gross of £83,800. The average was £4,929 and the median settled at £2,500. The post ThoroughBid November Sale Topped By Ledecka appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

The resignation of Minnesota Racing Commission chair Dr. Camille McArdle highlights issues facing the state's horse racing and breeding industry, including continued tension between regulators, political leadership, and tribal gaming interests.View the full article

Yep - the answer lies in the soil! They would need special dispensation to get through Australian Customs I imagine.

Root cause of Awapuni racecourse woes eagerly anticipated George Heagney November 25, 2025 Once a highlight of the summer calender, it’s now been four years since Awapuni has hosted Boxing Day festivities.Warwick Smith / Manawatū Standard Bosses at Palmerston North’s Awapuni Racecourse are awaiting the results of soil testing to see what work needs to be done to restore the troubled track to action.https://bitofayarn.com The grass track has been closed for two years. It was shut for 19 months while extensive renovations were done to fix drainage problems, then meetings have been halted since a slip during the first race at an event in April, which was abandoned.https://bitofayarn.com New Zealand Thoroughbred Racing and the Racing Integrity Board announced in October that all trials and race meetings at Awapuni would be stopped for the rest of the year to work on the track’s long-term sustainability. Richard Simpson is the chairman of Race, which runs racing at Awapuni and Trentham in Wellington. He told the Manawatū Standard what happened next was up to the track experts as consultant Liam O’Keeffe and others from Australia inspected the track last week and took soil samples back. Once they had those results, likely in mid-December, then it would give them a clearer idea of what work the track needed and whether it would have to be renovated. The grass track at Awapuni Racecourse is closed while work is done to determine what is causing issues with it.Adele Rycroft / Manawatū Standard Simpson said they were in “limbo” until then and it was too early to make a call. It had been “extremely” frustrating to have faced repeated problems and lengthy delays.https://bitofayarn.com He said New Zealand Thoroughbred Racing was in control of the project and the track didn’t become Race’s again until after the first successful meeting was completed. But Simpson said the track’s drainage, irrigation and camber was perfect, it was getting the grass to settle and root development that was the issue. Race did maintenance work on the track over winter such as coring and sweeping, which was putting small holes into the track to allow air in and bring the track firmness down, and adding more sand to the track. Not being able to host its major race days such as the Manawatū Cup before Christmas, Boxing Day, and its biggest meeting, the Sires Produce Stakes in April, had been a big blow financially. Boxing Day in particular drew huge numbers of people on course. Simpson said the club had been doing what it had to do to survive. It remains unclear when horses’ hooves will again be allowed to touch the contentious turft at Awapuni.Warwick Smith / Manawatū Standard “Financially we’re surviving, but we’re under a bit of pressure. We thought we’d be back racing,” he said.https://bitofayarn.com “NZTR are supporting us. It’s certainly not easy.” Awapuni had been scheduled to host a return to racing on November 1 but that was put off. Recent meetings had already been shifted to other race tracks in the lower North Island and Simpson wasn’t sure where coming meetings would be held yet. NZ Thoroughbred Racing chief executive Matt Ballesty said the organisation was committed to Awapuni long term. “We are currently in the hands of the experts and are awaiting solo testing and sourcing options before we have a definite course of action. “The reality is these things take time and we like everyone are disappointed it's taken so long but we must make sure each step from here is the right one.”https://bitofayarn.com Soil samples have been taken from Awapuni Racecourse to determine what to do next with the troubled track.Warwick Smith / Manawatū Standard An update would be provided once they were clear what the next steps were, he said. Race held its annual meeting last week and Simpson said the track was the main thing on everyone’s minds. “They’re saying, ‘When can we go racing?’” Race chief executive Tim Savell announced in September he was resigning after four years in the role.https://bitofayarn.com Simpson said they hadn’t looked for a replacement yet while they dealt with the track.