Wandering Eyes

Randy Winick, trainer of the 1993 Breeders' Cup Juvenile (G1) winner Brocco, died Feb. 15 at age 76. He trained many stakes winners throughout his career, including grade 1 winners Dontstop Themusic, Country Queen, Mitterand, and Spence Bay.View the full article

Five different tracks produced our fastest maidens this week, and the list includes nothing but winners – no runners-up. 5. CREED'S VISION, TAM, 2/14-2nd, 6 furlongs (VIDEO) Beyer Speed Figure-89 (g, 4, by Jimmy Creed–Moon Vision, by Pollard's Vision) O-West Point Thoroughbreds, Michael P. Lyden and CJ Stables. B-Country Life Farm and Moon Vision Broodmare (Md). T-Arnaud Delacour. J-Charlie Marquez. West Point could have another solid Maryland-bred on its hands. Jaxon Traveler was recently retired after a remarkable run of sprint stakes wins every year from age 2 to 7, and now Creed's Vision has seemingly turned his career around at Tampa. His back-to-back Beyers of 84 and now 89 are 20 points higher than what he recorded in five starts as a 2- and 3-year-old at Laurel. He's modestly-bred–the first foal to race from a dam who squeezed $234k out of 44 starts–but he's a gelding, so who cares? 4. SEA VISTA, AQU, 2/12-1st, 6 1/2 furlongs (VIDEO) Beyer Speed Figure-90 (c, 4, by Street Sense–Sara Louise, by Malibu Moon) O/B- Godolphin (Ky). T-Brad Cox. J-Manny Franco Given her fine Godolphin pedigree, Sea Vista had been an underachiever. Her full sister Sara Street placed in three stakes including a strong half-length 2nd in the Gazelle Stakes (Gr. II), and stakes-winning half-brother Nash ran fast races, as well. But in her sixth start, she got over the hump with a determined odds-on victory for a career-high Beyer. Three-time GSW Sara Louise has had difficulties getting into foal lately, but was bred in 2026 to Speaker's Corner. 3. PUBLISHER, OP, 2/15-2nd, 1 1/16 miles (VIDEO) Beyer Speed Figure-90 (c, 4, by American Pharoah–Indian Pride, by Proud Citizen) O-Gus King and Estate of Brereton Jones. B-Brereton Jones (Ky). T-Steve Asmussen. J-Erik Asmussen. Yes, this is the same Publisher who was 2nd in the Arkansas Derby last year to earn a starting spot in the Kentucky Derby. Yes, he was still a maiden after a dozen starts, including back-to-back odds-on losses against maiden company. But at 3-to-5 Sunday, this time, the $600,000 Fasig-Tipton Saratoga graduate he overcame brief traffic issues to deliver in a big way. Asmussen has no peers at spotting horses like this in the right stakes races around the country, so you'll probably be encountering his name the rest of the year. 2. TROUBLE CALLING, FG, 2/14-2nd, 6 furlongs (VIDEO) Beyer Speed Figure-91 (c, 3, by Dialed In–Into Trouble, by Into Mischief) O/B- Donamire Farm (Ky). T-Greg Foley. J-Luis Saez Trouble Calling proved his recent sharply improved Beyer–which previously earned him a matching No. 2 ranking on Five Fastest Maidens–was no fluke. He couldn't quite deal with debuter Knock It Off that day, but Saturday at Fair Grounds he sailed home by 6 1/4 lengths in a sprint Beyer only two points slower than Paladin earned in the Risen Star later on the card. Donamire dam Into Trouble won the Arlington-Washington Lassie and has also produced top turf sprinters Troubleshooting (Gr. I winner) and Big Trouble. 1. THE LAST STRAW, SA, 2/15-2nd, 6 furlongs (VIDEO) Beyer Speed Figure-93 (c, 4, by Into Mischief-Bast, by Uncle Mo) O/B-Spendthrift Farm (Ky). T-Richard Mandella. J-Marco Demuro. The proverbial racing lightbulb went on in his fourth lifetime start, as he showed signs of living up to his illustrious Spendthrift pedigree. Into Mischief….enough said. Bast is a familiar name as well–a three-time Gr. I winner who was third in the 2019 Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies. Her racing career ended prematurely after taking the Gr. II Santa Ynez in January of her 3-year-old season, and Spendthrift bought her at that year's Keeneland November for $4.2 million from Baoma Corp. owners Charles and Susan Cho. The Last Straw is Bast's second foal to race. The post Five Fastest Maidens: Feb. 9-15 appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

A classy sprinter since he burst on the racing scene as a juvenile, 6-year-old Damon's Mound pursues a seventh stakes victory in his 19th-career race in the Feb. 21 Gulfstream Park Sprint.View the full article

Inspired by the strong performance of purse sources, Fair Grounds announces the addition of two race dates to the 2025-26 meet. The additional days will be Monday, March 9, and Monday, March 16.View the full article

Fair Grounds Race Course & Slots has added two additional race dates to the 2025-26 meet, the track announced Tuesday. The additional days, which were “inspired by the strong performance of purse sources” according to the release, will be Monday, March 9, and Monday, March 16. “Following the purse meeting with the Louisiana HBPA and Racing Commission, all parties involved were confident that the addition of two race days fits within our current projections and reflects a shared commitment to the strength of the meet,” said Jason Boulet, senior director of racing at Fair Grounds Race Course & Slots. The Thursday-through-Sunday schedule remains intact for the remaining dates in February. March will now include two five-day race weeks: March 5-9 and March 12-16. Closing week remains Thursday, March 19, through Sunday, March 22. The post Fair Grounds Adds Pair Of Mondays To 2026 Meet appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

Unraced since winning the Aug. 23 GI Travers Stakes at Saratoga, Sovereignty (Into Mischief) got back to work Sunday morning at Payson Park in Florida, working three furlongs in 37.40 breezing. It was the first workout this year for the 2025 Horse of the Year and 3-Year-Old Champion. “We've got him back on a regular training schedule,” trainer Bill Mott said. “We're a ways away from sorting out exactly where he will run. There are a couple of races in mind. We don't think he'll be ready until April, so we will potentially look at the (April 18) Oaklawn Handicap or the (May 1) Alysheba. We got behind and missed Dubai. That was something we would have thought about, but we just got a little behind schedule. With the travel and with him not being able to get a prep in we just thought it was too much to ask.” Mott said that the work did wonders for the now 4-year-old. “He looks great,” he said. “It's amazing. Just with putting the one little easy breeze into him, it's like all of a sudden he flipped a switch. He came out looking pretty sassy after that.” Sovereignty was expected to end his year in the 2025 GI Breeders' Cup Classic, but had to be withdrawn due to a fever. “It was unfortunate that he missed out on the Classic,” Mott said. “But who knows? There are a lot of what-ifs, but maybe if he would have won the Classic, he wouldn't have been brought back this year. Who knows? It could turn out well.” 2025 Horse of the Year and Derby/Belmont winner SOVEREIGNTY (Outside), recorded his first breeze since before the Breeders Cup Classic, 3F – 37:40, Jimmy Quispe up at Payson Park. First step of a return process. Excited for what's coming with this talented horse. SOVEREIGNTY… pic.twitter.com/yDuTG464rm — Agentes305 (@agentes305) February 15, 2026 Mott also gave updates on several other star horses in his stable: Chief Wallabee (Constitution): Winning his career debut on Jan. 10 at Gulfstream, he was one of the more impressive maiden winners at the meet. Initially, Mott said he would not push the colt to make the GI Kentucky Derby, but is now saying that he hasn't ruled anything out. “With Chief Wallabee, we are looking for a spot for him,” he said. “He is nominated for the (Feb. 28) Fountain of Youth, which really isn't my normal progression, to bring a horse into that kind of race in just their second start. But he is nominated. He's also nominated for the (Feb. 28) Gotham. We will look at those races. It is a lot to ask to run that type of horse in one of those races. It's not the normal progression. Most of those horses have had several races and have a foundation under them, which we don't have.” On the same day that Chief Wallabee broke his maiden, Mott sent out another impressive first-time winner in Thunderously (Gun Runner). He said that horse is “on the shelf.” Baeza (McKinzie) With the passing of trainer John Shirreffs, GI Pennsylvania Derby winner Baeza has been transferred to the Mott barn. The colt has yet to arrive at Mott's Florida headquarters. While still under the care of Shirreffs, he has had three works this year. Mott has not picked out a spot for him yet. “He has not traveled yet,” he said. “He's only had three works, a couple of easy three-furlong works and a half,” he said. When asked if it might be hard to keep Baeza and Sovereignty apart, Mott said: “Maybe not so much early in the year. It's doable. If it falls into a situation and they are compromised by a timing issue and they have to run against one another, that's just the way it is. Otherwise, there is certainly a good possibility you could separate them until you get toward the end of the year. Hopefully, we will have that issue when it comes to the Breeders' Cup. Hopefully, one or both of them are good enough and sturdy enough to make it to the Breeders' Cup Classic. Everybody would like that to happen. Let's hope we will have that issue when we get to the Classic.” Knightsbridge (Nyquist): An impressive winner of the GIII Fred W. Hooper Stakes, Knightsbridge will make his next start in the Feb. 28 GIII Gulfstream Park Mile. The post Sovereignty Is Back On Work Tab; Could Resurface In The Oaklawn Handicap Or The Alysheba appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

The concerns voiced by Mike Repole and Aron Wellman reflect what many in our industry have felt for years – a disconnect between leadership and the realities of the sport. For that reason, I have resigned from my position as a member of The Jockey Club. While I valued the opportunity to serve as a member, the role offered little meaningful visibility into the direction or decision-making that shapes our sport. My time as a member left me with the impression that influence remains concentrated among a small group rather than reflecting the broader industry it claims to represent. While my personal and my family's commitment to Thoroughbred racing remains strong, I no longer have confidence in The Jockey Club's current leadership or its vision for the future. I, and LNJ Foxwoods, stand with those calling for meaningful change. The post Letter To The Editor: Calling For Meaningful Change appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

Street Beast and Fulleffort, the 1-2 finishers of the Leonatus Stakes, will need to fight off some out-of-town shippers as Turfway Park joins the Road to the Kentucky Derby Feb. 21 in the $175,000 John Battaglia Memorial Stakes.View the full article

In this week's Maiden Watch, Trouble Calling, a Dialed In half brother to grade 1 winner Troubleshooting, draws off to a 6 1/4-length with to earn his first career victory Feb. 14 at Fair Grounds Race Course & Slots.View the full article

The Racing Medication & Testing Consortium (RMTC) has awarded 25 Racing Industry Veterinary Student Externships, the company announced Tuesday. This program, which is in response to the supply and demand concerns associated with available equine veterinarians to meet the racing industry's needs, provides a shared experience for veterinary students with racetrack practitioners and regulatory veterinarians. “Thanks in part to partnerships with industry sponsors and host veterinarians, the RMTC has been able to award 65 externships over the past three years,” said Dr. Michael Hardy, RMTC Executive Director. “The early impact of the program has resulted in numerous job offers and new equine veterinarians working within the racing industry.” Since its inception in 2024, this program has gained significant industry support, with all 25 externships for 2026 funded by program sponsors, including AVMA Trust, AAEP Foundation for the Horse, Breeders' Cup Ltd, Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority (HISA), New York Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association, Oak Tree Racing Association, Del Mar Thoroughbred Club, Horseshoe Indianapolis, The Jockey Club, National Horsemen's Benevolent and Protective Association as well as the Indiana, Nebraska, Tampa Bay, Charles Town and Virginia chapters of HBPA. The post RMTC Distributes 25 Racing Industry Vet Student Externships For 2026 appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

Byron King's Top 12 on the Road to the Kentucky Derby, presented by Spendthrift Farm.View the full article

Charles Briere's Fairway Consignment was responsible for two of the top three lots during Tuesday's opening session of the Arqana February Mixed Sale, including the Listed-winning hurdler Elektrix (Gemix), who was knocked down to Hubert Barbe of Horse Racing Advisory – bidding on behalf of Haras de Couëly – for €80,000. Offered as lot 113, Elektrix enjoyed her career highlight when winning the Listed Prix Gaston Branere at Auteuil in April last year. The five-year-old is out of another talented hurdler in the G3 Prix Pierre de Lassus winner and G1 Prix Renaud du Vivier second La Grande Dame (Daliapour), while this is also the family of the multiple Grade 1 winners Brighterdaysahead (Kapgrade), Caldwell Potter (Martaline) and Mighty Potter (Martaline). “She was a very good racemare,” said Haras de Couëly's Hubert O'Delant. “She's from a family that has produced some very nice horses, and we have the possibility of choosing many crosses for her. We're delighted to be able to have purchased a mare of this quality to join the stud's broodmare band.” Early in the session, Haras d'Etreham signed for the other headline lot from Fairway Consignment when the Toronado mare Chiaraniya (lot 9) fetched €67,000. From the extended family of the top-level winners Maranoa Charlie and Tiggy Wiggy, the five-year-old Chiaraniya was placed in a pair of Listed races on the Flat in a career spanning 16 starts for trainer Mickael Seror. Of the 173 lots offered, 108 sold at a clearance rate of 62%. With 108 fewer lots being offered compared to this day 12 months ago, the aggregate was down by 53% at €1,257,250, whereas the average held up well at €11,641 (-3%) and the median was €4,500 (-10%). Along with Elektrix, Secret Sky (Camelot) also achieved the session-topping price of €80,000 when going under the hammer as lot 180. Sébastien Desmontils, acting on behalf of Colin and Melba Bryce's Laundry Cottage Stud, emerged on top in the battle to secure the three-race maiden who was third in the Listed Prix de Thiberville as a three-year-old. Offered by Coulonces, the now-seven-year-old is out of the winning Tale of the Cat mare Oh Star who, in turn, is out of the 1,000 Guineas heroine Sleepytime (Royal Academy). Elsewhere, lot 32, a Siyouni colt from La Motteraye Consignment, proved the most sought-after of the 33 yearlings to go through the ring on Tuesday when picked up by Ronald Rauscher for €58,000. A half-brother to the G1 Preis von Europa winner Aspetar (Al Kazeem), the colt is out of the winning Dansili mare Bella Qatara who, in turn, is out of the triple Oaks heroine Alexandrova (Sadler's Wells). This is also the family of Ecurie des Monceaux's star broodmare Prudenzia (Dansili), the dam of the top-level winners Chicquita (Montjeu), Diamond Necklace (St Mark's Basilica) and Magic Wand (Galileo), among others. The action at Arqana resumes at 11am (local time) on Wednesday with a final session of breeding stock, stores, two-year-olds and horses-in-training. The post Fairway Consignment Mares Find Favour as New Year Gets Underway at Arqana appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

The Ocala Breeders' Sales Company has implemented additional control measures for its under-tack shows in 2026, the company announced Tuesday. In a press release, OBS states the measures “further enhance existing standards that prioritize the well-being of horses and riders.” Beginning with the under-tack show for the March Sale of Two-Year-Olds in Training, use of the riding crop will be restricted to where the rider will not be permitted to strike the horse with their hands off the reins before, during or after the breeze. Also starting this year, all horses will be required to have a veterinary statement stating they are suitable to perform in the under-tack show. Any entries without an affirming statement will be scratched from the sale. This will be in addition to the existing practice of a staff veterinarian monitoring the training leading up to the under-tack show and positioned on track during the under-tack show. Additionally, OBS states that the new protocols complement safety rules which have already been successfully implemented. The administration times for NSAIDS and corticosteroids were tightened to where neither are allowed to be administered within 48 hours of a horse's under tack performance and no other medication is allowed within 24 hours of an under-tack effort. Corticosteroids are also not permitted within 24 hours of a horse's sale session. No NSAIDS can be administered after 6 p.m. the day prior to a horse selling. Any overages for these medications will result in a horse being subject to return. Last year, OBS instituted a gallop only option where sellers can enter their horses with this designation which will be on the catalog page. The 2026 OBS March Sale will be held March 10-12 with under-tack shows taking place March 4-7. The post OBS Implements Additional Control Measures Ahead Of March Under-Tack Show appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

You might have a lifelong passion for horses, and even devote your whole working life to their welfare. But sometimes there is no substitute for sitting on their backs. A few years ago, Dr. Jeff Berk took a vacation from his relentless schedule as an equine veterinarian in order to-well, spend a little time with horses. His next trip to Britain was not to Tattersalls, as usual, but to an eventing course run by two former Olympians. Though Berk was a perfectly accomplished rider, with years of foxhunting behind him, it was this experience that clarified the secret to horsemanship. “And that was that you don't muscle a horse,” he explains. “That's why a small, slight person can be a very good rider. Because it's not about your muscular development. It's about the shifts and balances, all the nuances and subtle signals you can give to a horse, so that if you're speaking their language correctly, they will do things automatically. Which becomes the most beautiful partnership there can be, between human and animal.” To Berk, exploring that rapport brought home the daily miracle he enjoys in engaging professionally at such close quarters. “I know they're ignorant in some ways,” he acknowledges with a smile. “But they're very intuitive creatures that want to do what you ask, so long as you know how to ask them. To me, that's phenomenal. To be honest, I think that the Thoroughbred horse is a gift from God, unique among the animal kingdom. I don't know any other animal as majestic.” Such admiration, however, only makes our accompanying responsibility more urgent. That's why this past president of the American Association of Equine Practitioners became a director of Light Up Racing, the sport's campaign to elevate understanding inside and outside its own community. But Berk also believes that each of us, beyond that proactive organization of collective messaging, owes the horse a less formal duty of vigilance; and that we need to think carefully about how the sales and breeding industries have evolved. He has been around the business rather longer than his youthful looks imply. In fact he had already cut his teeth as a racetrack veterinarian, at Thistledown in Ohio, before heading to Ocala in 1983 to start his own practice. Even before then, he had been saturated with animal lore. His father, a polo player and eventer (still riding daily at 95), was a veterinarian by trade; and during vet school at the University of Pennsylvania, Berk himself would spend summers at Delaware Park walking hots and grooming. “I became addicted,” he says simply. “There was no other path for me.” Recovering from a surgery, he decided to prioritize sales work and moved to Lexington, Kentucky, with Equine Medical Associates. But he is licensed at all points of the compass, home and abroad, and has duly been able to compare many different cultures and practices. And he admits himself “very troubled” by the way young horses are nowadays raised. He invokes one of his earliest clients, the old Farnsworth Farm, then the largest Thoroughbred breeder in Florida: between 300 and 450 mares, a dozen stallions. They raised their stock “properly.” “And I'm going to define what that is,” Berk says. “They were foaled out correctly, with great attention. Then the mare and foal would gradually be graduated: round pen, small paddock, eventually a big field, 50 acres plus, where they could run around with the rest. They were raised rough: brought up once daily to be fed and examined, the other 23, 23½ hours living outside. “Why's that important for the development of young horses? Well, it's not only mentally, as herd animals. At least as importantly, all that activity helps to develop the strength, flexibility, and health of all their structures. It's not just bone, but ligament and tendon as well. Everything gets exercised in the right way for the age they are.” Sure enough, these horses were so sound that they required hardly any vet work. But a world where adolescent animals are sometimes put through three sales cycles inside 18 months-weanling, yearling, 2-year-old-feels very different. “Every time a horse goes through a sale, what happens?” asks Berk. “Number one, they have to go through prep, which means a lot of time in the stall. And then maybe there are some little bone fragments. They really don't bother a horse, but they're hard to sell with those. So they undergo a surgery, and that's another month in the stall. “So it's entirely possible, when you're trying to buy a young horse for an athletic pursuit, that it may have spent two, three, four months in a stall exactly when it should be out exercising the way horses do when left to their own devices.” Little wonder, then, if Berk has observed soundness issues that were formerly less prevalent. “I'm not saying that 20 years ago nobody ever saw a high suspensory,” Berk says. “But we didn't see nearly so many of the things we do now that we're putting their bodies and minds under a level of pressure that's not normal for their age.” This is one of those vets who believes that intervention will often be a poor substitute for pasture. That's why he is grateful for clients with patience, something he finds more often when people work as a team. “When you rush horses, it never pans out,” he says. “It's about good decisions. Sales are when they are, there's no flexibility. But if people try to make a horse fit into a program, it may or may not work. Our business has evolved so that people tend to operate in silos, in their own unique space with a unique corporate structure. So perhaps every stakeholder's mission statement should address the collective responsibility we have, above and beyond corporate profits.” Berk challenges us whether commercial dividends banked by cutting corners on a particular horse can ever redress the wider erosion of credibility. “Breeding or racing, there's always a delicate balance between commerce and sport,” he says. “Get too far over, at either end, you're in trouble. There has to be a financial aspect, for it to continue. But think about the roots of the sport, in England and Ireland, under certain conditions-one being a pretty good base of horsemanship, an emphasis on the animal.” He reminds us that when horse vans were first introduced, to Victorian Britain, the sport remained seasonal, spring to autumn. Horses were all turned out for the winter months; moreover walking to race meetings was treated as part of their conditioning, and often the same was true of races themselves. “Now what have we evolved to?” asks Berk. “America being such a big country, we can race year-round. And the horse never gets a break. I'm not trying to reinvent American racing. It's just that if you asked what is ideal for a horse, then that is not. Berk also has concerns about the business model of trainers, though he stresses that this is hardly their fault: they have had to respond to the expectations of owners who select trainers according to win percentages. “There was a time when public trainers didn't even exist,” he says. “Working for Calumet, you may be famous, but you're still an employee. But now that people measure success by win percentages, nobody's going to run unless they think they can win. So the idea of using a race [for fitness] is gone. What do we have instead? Work, work, work, work; race; work, work, work, work; race. And we all see the unfortunate result, the horses that didn't pan out because they didn't fit the program.” To Berk's point about the winter break, studies have shown unequivocally that the spelling of horses will reduce breakdowns-because bone is living tissue, capable of wear and repair. “Every Thoroughbred is an athlete, and every athlete is subject to injury,” Berk remarks. “Almost all of them have some tiny little thing they're living with, and ignoring, because they love to run. Give that horse some time off, the little thing heals and they start over again. If you don't, the little thing becomes bigger. Unbeknownst to you, the horse starts to acknowledge it, feel it. They start to travel differently. A horse that might have a problem in a hind ankle is changing the way that it travels, and then goes and bows a tendon. And they say, 'Oh, shame, stepped in a hole on the track.' But the primary problem may have been brewing for weeks and career-ending injury could have been avoided.” Another side of this same coin, essentially of vigilance, is the contentious business of sales vetting. Here, changing practice tends to reflect technological advances: digital radiography and video scopes, for instance, being reviewable online. Berk has even done so for Arqana yearlings while working a sale at Saratoga. Long days, for sure, with X-ray requests at 2 a.m., and the completion of a vetting process obviously remains contingent on a trusted pair of eyes over the water. But none of this, in itself, results in an overly simplistic “pass” or “fail”. To Berk, the very expression suggests a misapprehension. Vets seldom trade in anything as basic as thumbs up or down. “These are very nuanced discussions,” he emphasizes. “All these things we're doing-X-rays, throats, physicals, ultrasounds-are about assembling information, to establish a level of risk. My job is very much like a portfolio manager, with a shortlist of potential investments. I'm trying to establish a level of risk based upon the information I'm generating. And then I need to be articulate enough to package it for the client, in a way they can understand. So the exact same horse, with the same information, may be suitable for one client and not for another-based entirely upon their own ability to absorb risk and their unique purpose for the horse.” As Berk notes, it is not as though any horse has an absolute commercial value. “Let's say that a given horse should bring around $300,000,” he suggests. “Would you pay $1 million dollars for that horse? Clearly not. But even if there are significant findings, would you pay $1 for it? Of course. Well, there's a number between $1 and $1 million, and the agent's job is to figure out what it is.” Over the years, all this coalface participation has confirmed Berk in one axiom: our first commitment should always be to the horse. Overall, he feels of a community that profoundly respects the animal; it just needs to be better at explaining that. Along with colleagues Dr. Wayne McIlwraith and Dr. Emma Adam, he duly loaded the Light Up Racing platform with the science to counter malice and misinformation. “We talk about collective responsibility,” Berk says. “Well, what if somebody walked up to you and said, 'What happens to horses when they're done racing?' or, 'Is it bad to race 2-year-olds?' Instead of shrugging your shoulders, I think you have a bit of a responsibility: go to the website and within five minutes you could have a good answer, or can at least point that person to one. “We need to be transparent and communicate what we're doing and why, without trying to gloss over anything that needs improvement. But when you hear things that aren't just negative, but baseless, we can now say: 'Number one, where are you getting your information? And would you be interested in some facts?' Because to combat the false narratives out there, we all need to take part in conveying the truth-the lovely truth-about what a wonderful sport we have.” The post Berk Lighting a Path to Keep the Horse Up Front appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

For the fifth straight year, the European Pattern Committee has reduced the number of black-type races, which chair Jason Morris says, "reflects the collective responsibility that the EPC member countries share towards enforcing quality control."View the full article