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The overall aim of these bonuses (this is yet another one), is to retain quality horses in NZ, so the quality of the fields rises and betting turnover increases. I'm not sure this will have any impact on this objective. Quality NZ 4-year-old horses tend to stay in NZ for all or some of the first G1's, namely the Hawkes Bay carnival, then the best ones are off to Aus for the Victorian Spring racing. Any Aus horses that compete in the Kiwi, how likely are they to come back for HB, when the Victorian Spring racing is the attraction. The $500K bonus is not large enough to change this. The 2 best 3 year olds from last season never competed as 4 year olds in NZ because they got purchased for big money by Aus. This bonus nor any other bonus would have changed that -
By Wandering Eyes · Posted
We continue to spotlight a few of the extraordinary mares–and some of the people behind them–who produced the Grade I winners of 2025. The two mares we highlight today are responsible for the last two GI Kentucky Oaks winners, with the 2024 Oaks victress adding to her laurels in 2025 and the 2025 Oaks winner returning to the track for 2026 in hopes of doing the same. Both are also finalists for this week's Eclipse Awards. Sataves, dam of Thorpedo Anna By any measure, Judy Hicks is a smart woman. She even has the papers to prove it: two bachelor's degrees, two master's degrees, and one Ph.D. But perhaps the smartest thing she's ever done came from the heart instead of the head. On a late January night in 2015, a client's mare at her Brookstown Farm near Versailles, Ky. surprised everyone by foaling six weeks early. Because the mare, a daughter of Stormy Atlantic named Pacific Sky, was so early, the foaling was unattended. The foal was alive but tiny and weak, just 40 inches tall and 60 pounds, and she had a crushed hock. Outside advice given to the client recommend the filly be put down, but Hicks found herself asking if she could have the filly instead. Hicks has always had a tremendous heart for animals–all five of her degrees are in animal-related fields–and she wanted to give this one a chance. “I wanted to save this little filly,” said Hicks. “I could feel there was something there. She didn't breathe very well, but boy was she full of energy. She found the bag on that mare on her own. They told me it would be a disservice to the horse to keep her, but I wanted to try to save her life.” Luckily for the sport, the answer Hicks received was yes. If it hadn't been, there would be no Thorpedo Anna (Fast Anna) today. Judy Hicks with Sataves and her dogs Smoke, Dozer, and Nova | Sarah Andrew Hicks did save the filly, a daughter of the late Uncle Mo who was born the same year his first crop propelled him to leading freshman sire honors. She let her mother name the filly Sataves–“it has something to do with a Buddist god, I think”–and the filly thrived under her care, despite suffering from stunted growth. She never raced and today she's only 14.2 hands. “She's very little,” said Hicks, “She's so small, she has to reach up on her tiptoes to put her head over the fence. She's temperamental. She's crooked in front. Her left foot toes in so bad it almost touches her right. That hock is big and she's not very attractive, but I love her and she knows I saved her.” Sataves has since produced four foals for Hicks, including 2024 Horse of the Year and champion 3-year-old filly Thorpedo Anna, whose long list of accomplishments includes 2024's GI Breeders' Cup Distaff and Kentucky Oaks and 2025's GI Apple Blossom Handicap and GI Personal Ensign Stakes. Everyone knows the tale: Hicks sold her at Fasig-Tipton October as a yearling for $40,000 to trainer Kenny McPeek and ended up keeping a piece of her. But what made her breed Sataves to the late Fast Anna to begin with? Grade I-placed himself, he sired 14 black-type winners in his five crops, but Thorpedo Anna is his only graded winner. “It was his body, I always pick bodies,” remembered Hicks. “He was by Medaglia d'Oro and he was a perfect score on conformation. Everything about him was absolutely gorgeous. Anna got his huge hind end and great shoulder. If anything, Fast Anna would have given Thorpedo Anna a length of neck because Sataves has a short neck, although I don't know if that was from her immaturity. “Sataves looks just like Uncle Mo but with short legs,” continued Hicks. “Her cannon bones never grew–that's why she's short–but her babies all get their sire's attributes. Kathryn Nikkel deserves some credit, as she was the adviser who picked Uncle Mo to breed to Pacific Sky.” Hicks has been around a number of good horses, including in an unusual circumstance where she purchased a mare from a sheriff's sale on the courthouse steps, developed her descendants for a few generations, and eventually saw a yearling she sold out of the family produce Grade I winner and young sire Newgate (Into Mischief). However, she said nothing can prepare a person for the wide ride of an incredibly popular Horse of the Year. “It gives me goosebumps,” said Hicks. “A lot of times I don't know that it really sank in. No one can prepare you for what she did, but I grasped it, I took charge of it, and I got everything out of it I could plus more. “There's so many variables. You have to have a Kenny McPeek, who is willing to take chances. You have to have ability, but I don't know if anybody else had her, if they would have done the same things. You just don't know.” The Northern California native and self-proclaimed George Strait fanatic has had “ups and downs and goods and bads. It has all formed me into the person I am, but I've basically been just a working farm manager. I love my farm and I love saving animals.” Hicks still cared for Pacific Sky until recently, when she put down the long-retired mare, who was suffering from laminitis, and buried her on the farm. Hicks leads Thorpedo Anna into the Personal Ensign winner's circle at Saratoga | Sarah Andrew Hicks and her husband, R.W., run a boarding operation on their approximately 460 acres at Brookstown Farm. They've recently sold part of their land and have toyed with the idea of retiring, but with well over 100 horses to care for, it won't be anytime soon. “I have 10 of my own, 10 in partnerships with other people, and I board probably 80 or 90,” said Hicks. “I've got 40 to foal this spring, I've got about 30 barren mares and maidens to breed, plus 23 yearlings, and some old retired girls. R.W. grows corn and soybeans and we bale our pastures to use for bedding.” In 2007, they suffered the worst tragedy parents can face when their 17-year-old son, Dusty, broke his neck in a diving accident in a pond on their farm. Hicks, her daughter Kristi, and Dusty were on a horseback ride on the 4th of July when it happened. Hicks said Dusty was a top swimmer in the state of Kentucky and had just gotten a full-ride swimming scholarship to Stanford University. “While nothing prepares you for Thorpedo Anna,” said Hicks, “I've had some really bad things in my life that have probably prepared me by helping my strength. My son died when he was 17 and to endure that was beyond anything. I'm still extremely strong and I try and stay as positive as I can.” Hicks is now a grandmother, as her daughter, who lives in Texas, has two little girls, Charlee and Mallory. Thorpedo Anna's older half-sister, Charlee O (Tourist), is named for Kristi's daughter. “She's five and spoiled and Kristi is going to have her hands full with that one,” said Hicks with a laugh. “When I look back at my life, I do have to smile. The memories I have.” Thorpedo Anna's dam at Brookstown Farm | Sarah Andrew Hicks has kept Charlee O, who has a Bolt d'Oro yearling filly and is in foal to Good Magic. She'll go back to Good Magic in 2026. Hicks also retained 25% of Sataves's 4-year-old McAfee (Cloud Computing), a multiple graded-placed colt, and owns her 2-year-old filly, After the Storm (Known Agenda), outright. After the Storm is in training with McPeek and Hicks said the trainer claims she has Anna's hip and leg. Sataves lost her last two pregnancies, a Gun Runner at around eight months and a Curlin before 30 days. “We're thinking maybe we should just take her to Oklahoma and breed her to a cheap stallion because that's when she tends to stay in foal,” joked Hicks, who said the mare is heading to Not This Time this year. “It's unfortunate she lost those two. I sent her over to Dr. Bramlage at Rood and Riddle and the reproductive group over there went over her with a fine-tooth comb. “I'm having to upgrade. I can't go to cheap stallions anymore with her. She's the Broodmare of the Year. Besides me having really, really good sales luck with Not This Time, he is just a magnificent-looking stallion. Hopefully the foal can get his attributes.” The diminutive Sataves in October | Sarah Andrew Sataves, now just 11, was named the 2024 Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association Broodmare of the Year in September at TOBA's 40th anniversary awards dinner. Somewhat remarkably, Hicks has never received any inquires about selling her. That's fine with Hicks. “Because she's so unattractive, I don't think anybody would want to buy a 14.2 mare,” mused Hicks. “Maybe they know what she looks like, but I've never had even a phone call. I have never been asked to sell her. Or maybe they know that I wouldn't sell her, so they don't even bother to offer.” Thorpedo Anna suffered mild bone bruising in the fall and was retired in October. John Sikura's Hill 'n' Dale at Xalapa acquired a half-interest in the star mare in August, then purchased another 20% for $1 million at Keeneland's Championship sale in late October. The finalist for Eclipse champion older mare now resides at Hill 'n' Dale and is scheduled to visit Gun Runner for her first foal and Curlin for her second. Hicks said she still owns her portion and doesn't plan to part with it. “I have not yet been out to see her,” said Hicks, who said she hated the way Thorpedo Anna's career ended with a tough loss in the GI Juddmonte Spinster Stakes and just returned from two weeks alone in Cabo San Lucas to help process it. “That horrible loss hit me hard. I had to get away and it was the best therapy for me as I was very, very heavy hearted and it was very emotional for me. Part of it is just sadness. Your daughters grow up and leave home and that's what she's done and I have to be happy for her, but it's bittersweet.” Wedding Toast, dam of Good Cheer While Thorpedo Anna was bred by one woman from a discarded filly and an inexpensive stallion yet still turned into an icon, the 2025 Kentucky Oaks winner represents the other end of the spectrum. Godolphin homebred Good Cheer (Medaglia d'Oro) was bred to be a headliner. Wedding Toast in June | Sarah Andrew In 2008, Godolphin's Darley arm purchased Stonerside Farm, near Paris, Ky., from Robert and Janice McNair. Included in the purchase was approximately 170 carefully cultivated broodmares. One of them was Golden Sheba (Coronado's Quest), an unraced half-sister to Stonerside's five-time Grade I-winning luminary Congaree. The first mating arranged by Darley for Golden Sheba was a visit to brilliant home stallion Street Sense. Wedding Toast, a member of his second crop, was the happy result. Racing as a homebred, Wedding Toast captured the 2015 GI Ogden Phipps Stakes and GI Beldame Stakes among her five black-type victories. Good Cheer, who like her dam has five black-type wins, is her fourth foal. “[Wedding Toast is] special, but they're all treated the same here so you can't [let yourself] get too overwhelmed with one superstar mare,” said Ben Lynch, the broodmare manager at Stonerside, last summer. “They're all treated at such a high level, which I think makes a big difference across the board. It's a pretty star-studded barn here itself and it's kind of like that across the farm, so we're very spoiled.” Good Cheer's dam at Godolphin's Stonerside Farm | Sarah Andrew Godolphin has one of the most high-powered broodmare bands in the industry, evidenced by an unprecedented weekend last May when a Kentucky Derby-Oaks double in America turned into a Classic quadruple on both sides of the pond for the global operation, which became the first ownership group to sweep all four Classics in the same year. Three of Godolphin's four winners were homebreds. It was Good Cheer who kicked off the heady weekend with her Oaks score. Lynch distinctly remembers the Oaks winner. “She was, I think, maybe the second crop of foals I was around here. Similar to the mare, she's just all class. Never made a fuss, just very straightforward. Everyone loved her from the beginning.” Like her own dam, Good Cheer is by a revered home stallion in Medaglia d'Oro. Pensioned last fall at the age of 26, he sired a long list of superstars, with Good Cheer marking his third Kentucky Oaks winner. “[Director of Bloodstock] Michael Banahan told me the Mr. Prospector line to Medaglia d'Oro is very successful,” said Lynch, “so that was kind of a big draw to try with [Wedding Toast] and give it a go and it worked out pretty well.” Lynch, who grew up in Maryland, went to the University of Kentucky, and interned with Godolphin during college before joining the organization full-time, said Wedding Toast passes on her class. “The biggest thing would be her mind,” he said. “That's the thing we all notice here working with her every day. She's just a class act and her foals are always the same. They're always very flashy, so everyone is excited to see whenever we're foaling her what they're going to come out looking like.” Wedding Toast wins the 2015 Ogden Phipps | Sarah Andrew Wedding Toast has a freshly minted 2-year-old full-sister to Good Cheer named Best Wishes, who is currently in early training with Niall Brennan. The mare was bred to Nyquist–yet another stellar home stallion–for 2026 and is due in May. Wedding Toast has one other daughter, a placed 5-year-old by Tapit named Queen of Paris, whom Godolphin has retained and is also in foal to Nyquist for this spring. Good Cheer, who got much of the fall off to recover from bone bruising, recently shipped back to Brad Cox at Payson Park to target a 2026 campaign. She's a finalist for Eclipse champion 3-year-old filly. Lynch said it's extra special to see the foals he's helped raise succeed on the racetrack. “It's always nice to see your babies run,” he said. “You're up with them all night foaling them and raising them and if there's any problems, you're always there with them, so you spend probably more time with them than with most of your friends or family. They become your friends and family, too.” The post The Producers: Sataves and Wedding Toast appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article -
By Wandering Eyes · Posted
The New York Thoroughbred Breeders, Inc. (NYTB) concluded its Board elections to fill six vacant seats, with members voting for candidates to serve four-year terms beginning January 2026 through December 31, 2029. Elected to the Board were H. James Bond, Rick Burke, Lois Engel, Michael Lischin, Lere Visagie and Richard Zwirn. Current Board members who have two years remaining in their four-year terms include Scott Ahlschwede, Thomas J. Gallo III, Jane McMahon, Vivien G. Malloy and Mallory Mort. The post Bond, Engel Amongst Six New NYTB Board Members appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article -
By Wandering Eyes · Posted
Keeneland's 15-day Spring Meet, which will run from Friday, April 3 through Friday, April 24, has scheduled 19 stakes worth a total of $9.55 million to set a season record for total stakes purses, the track announced Tuesday. In addition to offering two marquee events for 3-year-olds–the $1.25 million GI Toyota Blue Grass for males and the $750,000 GI Central Bank Ashland for fillies–the meet includes three races that have been upgraded for 2026 and also have increased purses. Contributing to stakes purses for the season is $2.25 million from the Kentucky Thoroughbred Development Fund (KTDF), pending approval from the Kentucky Horse Racing and Gaming Corporation. “Keeneland's Spring Meet is a celebration of the very best of Thoroughbred racing,” Keeneland Vice President of Racing Gatewood Bell said. “This is a credit to the outstanding horses from leading owners; the competition among successful trainers and jockeys; and the knowledge and enthusiasm of our fans and horseplayers. They all contribute to Keeneland's success, which generates a lot of pride throughout Central Kentucky.” Spring Meet stakes that were upgraded and received $50,000 purse hikes were the $400,000 GII Giant's Causeway on April 12; the $400,000 GII Baird Doubledogdare on April 17; and the $350,000 GIII FanDuel Limestone on April 10. For this season, Keeneland has adjusted the stakes schedule to accommodate the two stakes that would have been run opening Sunday, April 5, which this year is Easter when Keeneland is closed for racing. The GII MiddleGround Capital Beaumont moved to opening day, and the Palisades Stakes will be run Sunday, April 19. Opening day, April 3, now presents four stakes–all for 3-year-olds–led by the year's first Grade I event for sophomore fillies: the 88th running of the $750,000 Central Bank Ashland at 1 1/16 miles. The other stakes that day are the $400,000 GII MiddleGround Capital Beaumont, at seven furlongs on the dirt for fillies; the $600,000 GIII UK HealthCare Transylvania at 1 1/16 miles on the turf; and the $400,000 Lafayette Stakes, a seven-furlong dirt race. Entries for opening day will be taken Monday, March 30. On the meet's first Saturday, April 4, the 102nd Toyota Blue Grass highlights five stakes on the card, annually Keeneland's biggest race day of the spring season. Joining the Toyota Blue Grass are the $650,000 GI Resolute Racing Madison, for fillies and mares at seven furlongs on the dirt; the $500,000 GII Appalachian Presented by Japan Racing Association, for 3-year-old fillies at one mile on the grass; the $400,000 GII Valvoline Global Shakertown, for 3-year-olds and up at 5 1/2 furlongs on the turf; and the $350,000 GIII Commonwealth, for older horses at seven furlongs on the dirt. The Toyota Blue Grass and the Central Bank Ashland both are worth 200 points on the Road to the Kentucky Derby and Road to the Kentucky Oaks, respectively. The winners of each stakes will earn 100 qualifying points to the respective classic. The early nomination deadline for the two races is Feb. 18. Late nominations are due March 18. Once again, Spring Meet stakes are scheduled for Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays. On Friday, April 10, Keeneland will run two turf stakes: the $650,000 GI Maker's Mark Mile, for 4-year-olds and up at one mile, and the $350,000 GIII FanDuel Limestone, for 3-year-old fillies going 5 1/2 furlongs. Two stakes the next day are the $650,000 GI Jenny Wiley, a 1 1/16-mile turf race for fillies and mares, and the $400,000 GIII Stonestreet Lexington, for 3-year-olds at 1 1/16 miles. The final prep on the Road to the Kentucky Derby, the Stonestreet Lexington will award a total of 42 Derby qualifying points. Of those, 20 points will go to the winner. Sunday, April 12 will feature the $400,000 GIII Giant's Causeway, a 5 1/2-furlong turf race for fillies and mares. Friday, April 24 is closing day of the Spring Meet when Keeneland will showcase racing and its world-famous auctions. Highlighting the race card is the $350,000 GIII Bewitch Presented by Keeneland Sales, for fillies and mares at 1 1/2 miles on the turf. After the races, Keeneland will hold the April Selected Horses of Racing Age Sale. The post Keeneland To Offer A Record $9.55 Million In Purses For Spring Meet appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article -
NZTR Unveils $500,000 Group 1 Bonus to Drive Elite 4YO Participation New Zealand Thoroughbred Racing 20 January 2026 New Zealand Thoroughbred Racing (NZTR) has confirmed a lucrative new $500,000 Group 1 4YO Bonus that will be available to the first horse that wins a New Zealand-based Group 1 race in its four-year-old season, that runs in the 2026 $4 million NZB Kiwi (1500m). The initiative, designed to strengthen the domestic pathway from elite three-year-old racing into top-level four-year-old performance, will apply to the entire 2026 NZB Kiwi field, with the first eligible NZB Kiwi runner to win a New Zealand Group 1 as a four-year-old triggering the $500,000 Bonus. NZTR General Manager - Racing, Mitch Lamb, commented on the new initiative. “The NZB Kiwi has quickly become one of the headline acts for our best three-year-old sprinter/milers, and now we’re putting a very real incentive on keeping those standout horses here and targeting our best races as four-year-olds,” Lamb said. “If we want our premier weight-for-age races in New Zealand to have the highest-quality fields and drive optimal wagering outcomes - both domestically and abroad, one piece of the puzzle is incentivising our best young gallopers to stay on home soil for longer.” To be eligible for the $500,000 Group 1 4YO Bonus, a horse must be NZB Kiwi eligible as a three-year-old and be a nominated slot horse that starts in the 2026 NZB Kiwi. The Bonus will then be triggered by the first eligible 2026 NZB Kiwi runner to win any New Zealand-based Group 1 race during its four-year-old season. The $500,000 Bonus will be shared between the key connections at the time it is won, with 50% paid to the current NZB Kiwi Slot Holder (or lessee) for the 2026 year and 50% paid to the horse’s registered ownership group at the time of the four-year-old Group 1 win. Where the horse is owned outright by the current Slot Holder, that Slot Holder will receive 100% of the Bonus as both Slot Holder and Owner. NZTR will also allocate a 10% share of the Bonus to the Trainer responsible for preparing the horse at the time of the Group 1 win in its four-year-old season. Lamb said the rationale is straightforward: keep the best of New Zealand’s elite three-year-old performers racing on home soil at four, increase the strength of local Group 1 contests, and create a more compelling wagering product. “We want The NZB Kiwi to be more than a single raceday moment, we want it to be a genuine launching pad,” Lamb said. “By making the entire NZB Kiwi field eligible, we’re sending a clear signal that we want these horses to progress to Group 1 level at four, and in turn, reward the teams who commit to that plan in New Zealand.” How the $500,000 Group 1 4YO Bonus works To be eligible, the horse must: be NZB Kiwi eligible and a three-year-old be a nominated slot horse that runs in the 2026 NZB Kiwi then, in its four-year-old season (2026-27), become the first 2026 NZB Kiwi runner to win any New Zealand-based Group 1 race $500,000 Group 1 4YO Bonus Split The Bonus will be split: 50% to the current NZB Kiwi Slot Holder or lessee (for the 2026 year), and 50% to the registered owner group at the time of the horse’s Group 1 win in its four-year-old season (2026-27) If the horse is owned outright by a current Slot Holder, that Slot Holder will retain 100% of the Bonus (as both Slot Holder and Owner) A 10% share of the Bonus will be allocated to the Trainer at the time of the horse’s first Group 1 win in its four-year-old season (2026-27) Full Bonus terms and conditions will be released shortly.
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