Greyhound Breeding

The splendid Splendora set the pace, took the GI B. Wayne Hughes Beholder Mile at Santa Anita Park and made headlines. Now, let's get to this week's rankings: 5. REGALED, OP, 3/7, GII Azeri Stakes, 1 1-16 miles Beyer Speed Figure- 93 (2nd) (m, 5, by Mohaymen-Ascot Walk, by Daaher) O-Ribble Farms and Front Page Equine. B-Chris Baccari (Ky). T-Whit Beckman. J-J.D. Ramos. Her come-from-the-clouds style is probably more suited to 1 1/8 miles than the Azeri's 1 1/16 miles, but she made up 4-plus lengths in the final furlong to be closing rapidly on Majestic Oops (below). Her previous attempt in the GIII Falls City was the dullest she has looked since being acquired in an online sale last May for $300k and turned over to Beckman, but she was given a three-month break from serious training and bounced right back to form. She presumably will be seen next at Oaklawn in the $1.25 million GI Apple Blossom Handicap Apr. 11.   4. STRONG DESTINY, TP, 3/6, allowance, 1 1-16 miles (AW) Beyer Speed Figure- 94 (f, 4, by Constitution-Barbadia, by Speightstown) O-All In Racing and Royer Family Stables. B-Juddmonte (Ky). T-Phil Sims. J-Fernando De La Cruz. A breeding powerhouse can't keep everything, so despite her Juddmonte-strong extended female pedigree it made sense to cull the underperforming five-race maiden Strong Destiny at Keeneland November, where she brought a modest $60k. And then came Tapeta. In her first start for new connections, she whipped an odds-on favorite at Turfway by 8 1/2 lengths. Then Friday she dominated a first-level allowance by 15 1/2engths with a final quarter of :24.75 on a slow surface. It will be interesting to see if this new performance level translates from Tapeta back to say Keeneland or Churchill's dirt.   3. MAJESTIC OOPS, OP, 3/7, GIII Azeri Stakes, 1 1-16 miles Beyer Speed Figure- 94 (m, 6, by Majestic Harbor-Miss Oops, by Olmodavor) O-Medallion Racing, Evan Trommer, Agave Racing Stable and Sheila Regan. B-William and Sandy Dory and Gary and Janet Kropp (Cal). T-Dan Ward. J-Francisco Arrieta. Majestic Oops | Coady Media She had run once against champion Nitrogen (Medaglia d'Oro), finishing 11 lengths behind her in the GI Longines Breeders' Cup Distaff. She had met Regaled twice, finishing 10 1/2 lengths behind her in the same race and 11 1/2 lengths behind her in the GIII Delaware Handicap. But the Azeri was a new day on Majestic Oops's favorite surface, and she churned through Oaklawn slop to defeat both and earn her coveted first graded victory. It was also the first higher level win for 67-year-old trainer Ward, former longtime assistant to Bobby Frankel and Jerry Hollendorfer who went on his own in 2023. Ward deftly engineered a dramatic form improvement for Majestic Oops at last year's Oaklawn meet, after which her current owners acquired her privately last summer.   2. R DISASTER, GP, 3/7, GIII Hurricane Bertie Stakes, 6 1/2 furlongs Beyer Speed Figure- 95 (m, 5, by Awesome Slew-Making Havoc, by Gottcha Gold) O-Averill Racing, Two Eight Racing and ATM Racing. B-Ocala Stud & J. Michael O'Farrell Jr (Fla). T-Saffie Joseph Jr. J-Micah Husbands. By my count, Rich Averill has raced 57 horses with names beginning with “R.” And it's working: that list includes four of his five graded winners, of which R Disaster is the most recent. This was her second graded win, and it wasn't necessarily expected by Saffie Joseph in her return from her first-ever mini-vacation. “I was concerned,” he said. “I didn't think she was 100 percent fit.” He needn't have worried, given her 5 1/2-length victory. She shot right to the front as usual, and jockey Michael Husbands said, “I just sat there.”   1. SPLENDORA, SA, 3/7, GI Beholder Mile, 1 mile Beyer Speed Figure- 100 (m, 5, by Audible-Miss Freeze, by Frost Giant) O-Boyd Racing and By Talla Racing. B-The Elkstone Group (Md). T-Bob Baffert. J-Juan Hernandez. This makes five straight Ws on the track for the GI PNC Bank Breeders' Cup Filly and Mare Sprint winner, but she was beaten in the ballot box–losing in Eclipse Award voting for outstanding female sprinter to GI Prevagen Breeders' Cup Turf Sprint sensation Shisospicy (Mitole) by a 113-68 margin. Baffert said the ultimate goal is a return to the Breeders' Cup to “get her that championship she should have gotten (last year).” But before that, co-owner Michael Talla said his mare will be sent East “where the money is.” And if money is the criteria, logical spots would be the Apple Blossom at 1 1/16 miles–where she would likely face Nitrogen–or the $1 million GI Derby City Distaff at seven furlongs on the Derby undercard May 2.   The post Five Fleet Fillies Of The Week: Mar. 2-8 appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

The Hong Kong Jockey Club will see two new names in the form guide next month when local apprentice Nichola Yuen Hang Yiu joins the riding roster from April 1, followed by Group One-winning Australian jockey Ethan Brown on April 26. Yuen will be just the second female jockey to ride full-time in Hong Kong since 2017, following Britney Wong Po-ni’s recruitment in 2025. Yuen entered the Jockey Club’s trainee programme in 2016 before moving to Australia in 2021 where she recorded 61 wins over three...View the full article

Angus Chung Yik-lai has a trio of solid chances at Happy Valley on Wednesday night, headlined by last-start winner Outgate in the first section of the Class Three Bonham Handicap (1,200m). The seven-year-old saluted for the first time in 623 days when he was dropped back in trip from 1,650m to 1,200m, winning by three quarters of a length over the smart Bienvenue who will step out as a favourite in the Class Three Craigengower Cricket Club Challenge Cup (1,200m). “I didn’t expect a win last time...View the full article

David Hayes hopes China Win (NZ) (Super Seth) can warrant last-minute selection for the HK$26 million 149th BMW Hong Kong Derby (2000m) when he contests Wednesday night’s Class 3 Lyttelton Handicap (1800m) under Zac Purton.   Currently rated 67, China Win is aiming to emulate Beauty Alliance, who last season secured the final BMW Hong Kong Derby spot with victory in this race at Happy Valley, earning a 12-point rating rise (65 to 77) and his place in the contest, which is finalised by the selection panel, who will determine the 14-runner field later this week.    Hayes said: “I think if he was lucky enough to win, then he’d be in the calculations to get the last spot. The horse has a good gate (three), and his trackwork and trials have been excellent.   “He’s had a bit of time between runs because he was scratched due to a heart anomaly, which was rectified straight away, so that put us a bit behind the eight ball, but he’s in good form for this race.”   The BMW Hong Kong Derby takes place at Sha Tin on 22 March, and China Win has emerged as an unlikely candidate. The Super Seth gelding took seven starts to break through, but has shown that stamina is his best asset by winning his most recent two outings over 1800m.   “His win before last was probably more eye-catching with Zac on when he came from last and barrier 14, and even the start before that he was only beaten an inch, so he’s in really good form,” Hayes said. “He’s by a sire that produces horses who get over a bit of ground. We couldn’t be happier with the way he’s progressing.”   Hayes is looking forward to unleashing Ka Ying Rising (NZ) (Shamexpress) in the HK$5.35 million Gr.2 Sprint Cup (1200m) on 6 April at Sha Tin, where the world’s leading sprinter goes for a record-extending 19th consecutive win.   “He did some striding work with Zac on this morning (Tuesday). Zac was very happy with him, and he ran home in around 12 and a half seconds. He’ll have a barrier trial around 10 days out from the 6th (of April). He’ll be in the Sprint Cup, then the Chairman’s Sprint Prize (Gr.1, 1200m) and then his season is over,” Hayes said. View the full article

The retirement of five-time Group One winner Legarto (NZ) (Proisir) has been confirmed by her principal owners Philip and Catherine Brown. When the six-year-old won Saturday’s Gr.1 Bonecrusher New Zealand Stakes (2000m) it was accepted that was her final race in this country, but the possibility remained that she would have one further start in the Gr.1 Australian Cup at Flemington on March 28. However, following discussions between Legarto’s ownership group, which includes trainers Ken and Bev Kelso, the decision has been made to bring down the curtain on her career. “Bev and I would have loved the opportunity to give her one last race on the same track that she won the Australian Guineas, but we accept the majority decision to retire her now,” Ken Kelso said. “She’s been a wonderful mare – a horse of lifetime as I stated again on Saturday – and we’re comfortable with her being retired at the top of her game. “Winning the Herbie Dyke and Bonecrusher Stakes at her last two starts, especially when a lot of people had written her off, that has been immensely satisfying for all of us.” Legarto credited Opie Bosson with his 100th Group One success when she repeated her 2024 win in last month’s Gr.1 Herbie Dyke Stakes (2000m) and he took his record on her to a perfect two-from-two when she dug deep to beat fellow Proisir six-year-old Waitak in the Bonecrusher Stakes. Legarto will now be let down and prepared for the Magic Millions National Broodmare Sale at the Gold Coast in May, which Philip Brown describes as the logical path to realise her true worth for all concerned. She was purchased for $90,000 from breeder Warwick Jeffries at the 2021 National Yearling Sale and went on to win 12 times, with just three placings outside the top five in her 24-start career. After winning the Gr.1 New Zealand 1000 Guineas (1600m) in the first half of her three-year-old season, she became the first New Zealand-trained horse to also claim the Gr.1 Australian Guineas (1600m). With the addition of a $500,000 Champion Stayers’ bonus as a four-year-old on top of her actual race stakes, Legarto’s total earnings topped $3.6 million. “Racing a horse like her is what you dream of while not really expecting it to come true,” Brown said. “She gave us so many thrills and highs and while it’s difficult to nominate any race in particular, beating the Aussies on their turf in the Australian Guineas has to be right up there. “Seeing her back to her best in her last two starts has also been special, and for her to go out a winner means so much to everyone involved in her career. “Ken and Bev, her devoted strapper and work rider Megan Winter, the jockeys associated with her, and the great team of owners that have enjoyed the ride, it all adds up to a fantastic experience that you just can’t match. “It’s going to be hard to say goodbye to this marvelous horse we all know as Lulu, but knowing that she will go to a wonderful new home and be mated with the very best stallions, that’s the future she deserves.” View the full article