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By Wandering Eyes · Posted
By Michael Guerin Young driver Seth Hill will get a golden opportunity to impress his new boss at Addington tonight. Not that Bob Butt isn’t already impressed. Butt trains The Lazarus Effect, one of the more promising pacers in Canterbury and a $2.50 favourite for the IRT Thanks Bettors Delight Pace at Addington even though he faces a second line draw in the big field. Hill will do the driving for the first time tonight. If The Lazarus Effect wins with the talented junior driver in the cart he only gets half the rating points so would stay on the front line for his next big aim, the NZBS Sales Series Pace at Kaikoura. “And I have no issues handing Seth the reins,” explains Butt. “He is a good young driver who has been working for me for about a month and a very good bloke so we are enjoying having him here.” The Lazarus Effect wore down race rival tonight It’s Tough the last time they clashed and is favoured to do so again tonight, with Butt also having stable newcomer Donmaro in the race. “Rodger [Austin, former trainer] sent him out here to try something new and I really like him,” says Butt. “I can see him going a good race and even if he can’t win this he is worth following.” Butt takes a strong team to the races tonight even if his most favoured ones face difficult draws. He rates Tactical Bid (R5, No.17) a future open class trotter although admits tonight’s race has its own challenges with a huge field and the three-year-old being on the unruly in the 2000m stand. He has one-eyed pacer One Eyed Bandit in the Janice Guerin Memorial as the three-year-old tries to stay remain unbeaten at his second start. “He has a heap of speed but also a lot to learn,” says Butt. “He can win but obviously it is a big field so he will need a bit of luck.” Yet another Butt-trained rep in Gold Bullion is favoured in the IRT Thanks Grego Trot, which is not actually what the race is called but everybody knows who that means. Gold Bullion starts off the 20m mark in another huge field and Butt admits he has been disappointed with the big boy who has at times looked open class material. “He was good two starts ago but not so good last start but I have freshened him up and I think he can improve. “But he will need to as it is a big field and he has to give Confessional a 10m start.” Tonight’s meeting starts with the $45,000 Macca Lodge Sires’ Stakes Classique Trot which has only drawn a field is four and will have unbeaten filly Duchess Maria as everybody’s early multi anchor. View the full article -
By Wandering Eyes · Posted
By Michael Guerin Trainer Matty White thinks Mediator is edging closer to being the finished product. And that should be good enough to win at Alexandra Park tonight at a meeting where White has a strong hand. The South Auckland trainer has five of his 23-strong stable racing tonight, with smart horses in Mhai Surfer Girl (R1) and Lord Popinjay (R10) taking on good fields at either end of the programme. But it is Mediator (R7, No.4) who gives White his best chance in the TAB – Northern Metro Pacers Heat 3 Mobile Pace (7.54pm). He’s a $1.75 favourite. Mediator is almost a victim of his reputation getting too big too early, which can happen when you are a son of Captaintreacherous and former outstanding filly Willow and you win your first two races. Both those wins came in March and then Mediator finished a close up fifth in a Sires’ Stakes heat at Cambridge behind Bettors Anvil, Greased Lightnin and Got The Chocolates, pretty hot form for a pacer racing in R35-43 grade tonight. The only reason he is still there is immaturity as he is still developing physically and mentally but his stride and natural speed suggests there is plenty more to come. “He is getting there and I think we will start seeing something like this best soon,” says White. After two mixed runs to start this campaign Mediator was luckless at Alexandra Park when second to Blazing Louie, being in the trail when the leader stopped and being forced to come across heels before finishing well. “I thought it was a good run and this looks the right race for him,” says White. Mhai Surfer Girl is a smart mare but returning in a good horse’s race to open the night and White says while she will need the run in that grade he has lofty aims. “She has never gone a bad race and we will look at the Queen Of Hearts in December with her and then the Golden Gait.” White says Forgiveness (R2) is up against it in a sharp TAB Metro Trotters heat headlined by Higher Power while juvenile American Falcon (R3) is another at the improving stage. “He has gone two good races so far but can’t draw a barrier. “He has got barrier 6 again this week but he is getting stronger so is still a chance.” Lord Popinjay has been a “surprise package” since joining White’s team and was excellent winning last start but again faces a 20m handicap over 2200m. “He is going super but so much depends on the start. “If he can step well and get past two or three then he has a real chance but in a race like this if they string out and you are at the back it is totally different. So the start really matters.” White also drives Better Reaction for his father Les in a tricky TAB Metro pacing heat in which his best would be good enough to get some money but it is a heat that could slide by in 2:40 for the 2200m mobile and then luck and field position would be the difference between 1st and 5th. He also partners Tight Lines in the last of 11 races (there is a surprise) and says while he has never driven the three-year-old he says any Brian and Gareth Hughes runner deserves respect. View the full article -
By Wandering Eyes · Posted
Following an easy three-furlong breeze in :37 with Irad Ortiz Jr. aboard at Keeneland Oct. 23, trainer Jose D'Angelo says 3-year-old filly Shisospicy is ready for the challenge of the $1 million Breeders' Cup Turf Sprint (G1T) at Del Mar Nov. 1.View the full article -
By Wandering Eyes · Posted
After breezing Morplay Racing and Qatar Racing's Shisospicy at Keeneland Oct. 23, jockey Irad Ortiz Jr. says the Jose D'Angelo-trained filly is in "great condition" ahead of the $1 million Breeders' Cup Turf Sprint (G1T) at Del Mar Nov. 1.View the full article -
By Wandering Eyes · Posted
Before we can solve the Thoroughbred aftercare problem, we must first define it–and understand its full scope. For this discussion, aftercare refers to the rehoming, retraining, and retiring of Thoroughbreds who: never make it to the racetrack; are not fast enough to race; have finished their racing careers and lost commercial value; can no longer perform as sport horses; or no longer serve useful breeding purposes. When I first began asking industry insiders what it would truly cost to provide lifetime care for all Thoroughbreds that need it, I could not find a clear consensus. The responses ranged from lively debate to polite silence. So I did what any data-minded realist would do: I started counting. After running the numbers every possible way, the result was sobering. I believe we are facing an estimated half-billion-dollar-a-year aftercare problem. To many, that sounds implausible—as it did to me at first. But math has a way of clarifying difficult truths. To simplify the detailed analysis, I summarized the calculations in clear terms. The 2025 foal crop is roughly 17,300. Assume that 10,000 of those horses, about 60 percent, will eventually need some form of aftercare. If half of them are retrained or rehomed and placed in permanent homes, the estimated cost per horse is $5,000, totaling $25 million annually. When the remaining 5,000 foals require full retirement, at an average of 10 years of care at $10,000 per year, the total reaches $500 million. Overall, I believe the projected annual aftercare cost for the current foal crop is approximately $525 million. There are, of course, countless variables. Some horses will require fewer years of care, while others will need more. Annual costs vary by geography, facility, and the specific type of aftercare needed. Yet even with optimistic assumptions, the scale of the challenge remains enormous. To its credit, the industry has made remarkable progress. Old Friends, New Vocations, the TAA, TCA, and NTA, among others, have set admirable standards. Stallion farms, breeders, and sales companies have made meaningful contributions, and countless individuals give time, money, and heart. One major initiative strives to raise $28 million annually—an extraordinary achievement, yet still only a fraction of what's needed to cover every horse in need. The truth is, our industry cannot afford to fund a half-billion-dollar annual aftercare obligation. So where do we go from here? At Stallion Season Exchange (SSE), we believe aftercare can no longer be an afterthought—it must begin with Beforecare. Our approach reimagines funding not as charity but as participation. By connecting consumers directly to the life of the Thoroughbred, we can transform aftercare from a cost center into a shared responsibility and a shared experience. This direct-to-consumer (B2C) model, built on marketing, technology, and emotional engagement, will be developed over the next five years with industry support under the banner of the “2030 Movement”. The main goal of the 2030 Movement is to create the Beforecare Pension Plan, a permanent and sustainable funding source to support non-profit aftercare programs, with a long-term annual capacity of $500 million. By 2030, aftercare will no longer rely on industry underwriting, as consumers, empowered by technology and engagement, will sustain it. This plan allows consumers to buy lifelong participation in a Thoroughbred's journey, from the moment a foal stands and nurses to its racing or sport-horse career and eventual retirement. By licensing images and digital likenesses of Thoroughbreds throughout their lives, the initiative will connect the physical and digital worlds, combining sport, lifestyle branding, and global fandom into a single ecosystem. In a rapidly evolving digital age, where artificial intelligence and immersive media are redefining how people connect to what they love, it's easy to imagine consumers “participating” in the raising, training, and retirement of the horses they help support, without owning them outright. The potential for engagement, loyalty, and scale is tremendous. By 2030, the Beforecare Pension Plan is projected to be fully operational and self-sustaining. The initial five years will rely on visionary sponsors who believe this challenge can, and must, be solved once and for all. Afterward, the industry's charitable aftercare resources can be redirected to other critical priorities, including programs that support the human side of the Thoroughbred business. The challenge is significant but not insurmountable. The math is clear. The technology is available and advancing rapidly. The public's desire for meaningful involvement has never been stronger. The 2030 Movement is achievable. What's needed now is leadership, coordination, and the courage to act. Danny Burgner is the Founder of the Stallion Season Exchage and Beforecare, whose goal is to build a healthy, sustainable future for all Thoroughbreds, and to transform how the public views and engages with the Thoroughbred—honoring racing and breeding traditions while providing lifelong care for the horses that make it all possible. The post Letter to the Editor: Solving Our Half-Billion-Dollar Aftercare Problem appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article
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