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    • An eight-time stakes winner, primarily against California-bred competition, Grand Slam Smile enters off back-to-back stakes wins for trainer Sean McCarthy.View the full article
    • With the encouragement of Sergio de Sousa from Hidden Brook Farm and Carrie Brogden from Machmer Hall, a group of 17 Thoroughbred industry stakeholders have pledged to donate a total of $35,000 in prize money for a series of TAKE2 Thoroughbred Hunter and Jumper Classics at the Kentucky Horse Shows and Split Rock Jumping Tour in 2026. The 20 TAKE2 Classics, offering $1,750 in prize money each, will be held at 10 horse shows at the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington, Kentucky, between May and September. The TAKE2 Classics sponsors are: Adrienne Camire, Byron Nimrocks, Cary Bloodstock, De Sousa Stables, Eaton Sales, Elite Sales, First Finds Farm, Hagyard Equine Medical Institute, Hidden Brook Farm, Julie Davies LLC, Notch Hill Farm, Okalee Farm, Peppermint Stables, Rood & Riddle Equine Hospital, Valerie Mastromonaco and Woods Edge Farm. De Sousa, in addition to serving as managing partner at Hidden Brook, has competed in the TAKE2 Jumpers since 2022. “The TAKE2 League is the perfect next step for adoption and retraining programs for Thoroughbreds around the country,” he said. “It allows horses and riders to compete at high-level venues, giving continuation to their development. Hopefully, some will move up from TAKE2; if not, it is a great level of competition for amateur riders like me.” Brogden added, “I aspire to see demand for Thoroughbreds return to the robust levels experienced during the breed's peak in the 1970s and 1980s and with this kind of leadership and support, I truly believe it is possible. These sponsored classes are a huge step in the right direction!” The TAKE2 Second Career Thoroughbred Program offers prize money and year-end awards for League members competing in Thoroughbred Hunter and Jumper divisions at more than 500 horse shows across the country, including the $20,000 TAKE2 Hunter & Jumper Finals which have been held in Lexington each year since 2019. This season it will be held Sept. 20 at Split Rock Kentucky National, where the final have taken place since 2023. “It's heartening to see the commitment to the horses by the Thoroughbred racing and breeding industry,” TAKE2 Executive Director Andy Belfiore said. “Aftercare and the smooth transition to second careers are causes we can all unite behind, and the Classic sponsors are staunch supporters.”   The post Stakeholders Donate $35,000 in Prize Money for 2026 TAKE2 Thoroughbred Classics appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article
    • Editor's note: Currently, Lasix is banned in two-year-old racing and in stakes races 48 hours before a race. The Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority (HISA) is approaching a critical vote regarding the use of race-day Lasix in the rest of racing. Per the original Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act of 2020, the drug is effectively banned under that same 48-hour rule, though most states currently operate under a three-year exemption put in place to allow time for studies to be conducted. That exemption is now coming to an end on May 22. A final decision on whether to extend that exemption, or to ban the medication entirely, will be subject to a vote of the nine-member HISA Board of Directors. In order to extend the exemption, the vote must be unanimous; otherwise, Lasix will be banned.  The following letter to the HISA board was signed by trainers W.I. Mott, Chad Brown, Mark Casse, Jena Antonucci, and Ron Moquett; and Eric Hamelback, CEO of the National Horsemen's Benevolent & Protective Association, and provided to the TDN. The HISA Board faces a consequential choice: pursue reform grounded in science–or pursue symbolism that may ultimately harm the very horses they seek to protect. If a human Olympic runner bled into his lungs every time he sprinted, no one would call treatment “cheating.” They would call it medicine. Yet calls to eliminate furosemide, commonly known as Lasix, from horse racing are often framed as a necessary stand against “doping.” It is a powerful word. It signals integrity. It reassures the public. But when rhetoric outpaces veterinary reality, well-intentioned policy can produce unintended consequences. That disconnect is at the heart of the debate over furosemide and whether it should be eliminated from the sport entirely. Critics frame its use as a symbol of racing's excesses. Supporters see something far less sensational: a regulated veterinary tool used to manage Exercise-Induced Pulmonary Hemorrhage (EIPH), a condition that affects all equines and a significant percentage of racehorses during intense exertion. EIPH has been studied extensively, including by researchers affiliated with the American Association of Equine Practitioners. During high-speed racing, extreme cardiovascular pressures can cause delicate pulmonary capillaries to rupture. In mild cases, bleeding may be microscopic. In more serious cases, repeated episodes can lead to scarring, chronic inflammation, diminished lung function and, in rare instances, catastrophic outcomes. Horses are obligate nasal breathers. Unlike human athletes, they cannot open their mouths to increase airflow when exertion peaks. The physiological stress generated inside their chest at racing speed is extraordinary. This vulnerability is rooted in anatomy–not in training methods or competitive ambition. Furosemide's primary pharmacologic action is diuresis, reducing vascular pressure and mitigating the severity of pulmonary bleeding. It does not create speed. It does not manufacture stamina. It does not alter a horse's innate ability. It addresses a medical risk associated with extreme exertion preventing pulmonary bleeding that contributes to career longevity. The term “performance-enhancing drug” carries powerful emotional weight. But preventing internal lung bleeding is not the same as artificially enhancing speed. The science on subtle secondary performance effects remains debated. What is not debated is that furosemide reduces the severity of EIPH. Eliminating the medication will not eliminate the condition. It will remove a regulated therapeutic tool currently administered under veterinary oversight and strict protocols. Those of us who work in barns before sunrise understand that stewardship is not a slogan. It is daily accountability for the health and comfort of an animal that cannot advocate for itself. Preventative medicine is a cornerstone of humane care in every other athletic discipline–human or animal. As such, evidence-based policy is imperative, not symbolic prohibition for welfare of the horse. We recognize that public trust in racing is fragile. Integrity and transparency are essential. That is why we support uniform rules, clear reporting, rigorous veterinary supervision and continued scientific research. If future evidence yields safer or more effective alternatives, horsemen will adapt–as this industry has repeatedly done in pursuit of safety and reform. Policymaking decisions driven primarily by optics and not science risk undermining equine welfare in the name of appearances. The question before the Authority Board is not whether the sport must evolve–it must, it is and will continue to. The question is whether eliminating a treatment that reduces lung bleeding serves the horse or simply satisfies a narrative. Treating pulmonary hemorrhage under veterinary supervision is not doping. It is responsible care. And in any reform effort, the horse–not the headline–must come first. —W.I. Mott, Chad Brown, Mark Casse, Jena Antonucci, Ron Moquett, and Eric Hamelback The post Letter to the Editor: Horse Must Come First With Any Reform Efforts appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article
    • The Irish Thoroughbred Breeders' Association (ITBA) has announced the return of its Ask The Expert Series for 2026. This year's programme, which is set to take place during March and April, features a number of online seminars designed to provide attendees with insight and guidance on a range of areas including HR, health and safety, farm grants, latest updates on West Nile Virus, and pedigree management. The seminars listed below are free to attend but registration will be required. Wednesday, March 18, 3pm: HR & Health and Safety: Cost saving through compliance Wednesday, March 25, 7pm: Grants 101: What payments are available to you? Wednesday, April 1, 7pm: Not just the physical: Understanding pedigrees Wednesday April 15, 7pm: Emerging Viral Diseases To register, please email Hannah Marks on hmarks@itba.ie. The post ITBA Launches Online Ask The Expert Series appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article
    • Vazquez won his 500th race at Oaklawn Park Feb. 20, becoming just the 11th rider to reach that number of local wins. His total of 13 wins for the week vaulted him to the top of the Oaklawn jockey standings.View the full article
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