Wandering Eyes

An all-apprentice six-race racecard will take place at Goodwood on Friday, June 6. The evening meeting is part of the Three Friday Nights racing fixture held by the course this year. After the conclusion of the card, the 2025 Leading Apprentice Jockey will be crowned. The title is awarded through points accrued throughout the card by the competing apprentices. Kaiya Fraser won the title in 2024. Senior racing executive at the Professional Jockeys Association (PJA), Adam McNamara, said, “The all-apprentice race day from Goodwood has always been an initiative the PJA is fully behind. It cannot be understated how beneficial it is to our apprentice jockeys to have the opportunity to showcase their talents in front of a big crowd on a premier track. Over the last number of years, it has been the springboard for a number of apprentices to kick start their seasons and potentially their careers.” The post All-Apprentice Racecard Set For Goodwood On June 6 appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

A trio of Flat horses-in-training have been added to the Arqana Summer Sale as wildcards. The sale will be held from Monday, June 30-Thursday, July 3. The Satoshi Kobayashi-trained Short Final, who won the G3 Kronimus Badener Meile in Germany last week will be consigned as lot 412. Rated 108, the son of Zelzal will be joined by lot 400, Dioptase. By New Bay and rated 102, Dioptase was runner-up in the G3 Prix Greffulhe and is a winner over 1500m and 2000m. Rounding out the trio is Kirchner (Pinatubo) (lot 396). A winner at two, he was most recently fourth in the Listed Derby du Languedoc. For the full catalogue, please visit the Arqana website. The post Group Winner Among Wildcard Trio Added To Arqana Summer Sale appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

Marygate Stakes winner Secret Hideaway is the latest juvenile to have been snapped up by new connections ahead of Royal Ascot with Medallion Racing and partners purchasing an interest in the Adrian Keatley-trained daughter of Starspangledbanner. Secret Hideaway was a gritty winner of the Marygate at York for owner-breeder Paul Shanahan and would appear to have a host of options at the Royal meeting, including the Queen Mary Stakes, for which she is generally available at odds of 20-1. Mark McStay commented, “I was delighted to help secure an interest in Marygate Stakes winner Secret Hideaway on behalf of Medallion Racing, Stave Weston and Evan Trommer, who will now partner with her owner-breeders Paul Shanahan and Timmy Hyde.” He added, “She did well to win her race at York having sustained a significant bump at the start. There looks to be plenty more to come. I was very impressed with the filly when I inspected her at Adrian Keatley's stable in Malton. She's hopefully a filly with a bright future looking to Ascot and beyond.” The post Medallion Racing And Partners Buy Into Queen Mary Contender Secret Hideaway appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

An additional 83 horses have supplemented to the upcoming Ocala Breeders' Sales Company's June Sale of 2-Year-Olds in Training and Horses of Racing Age, which will be held June 17 and 18. Included in the supplemental entries are offspring by sires such as Charlatan, Constitution, Curlin, Ghostzapper, Gun Runner, Independence Hall, Leinster, Maxfield, McKinzie, Medaglia d'Oro, Mitole, Not This Time, Nyquist, Oscar Nominated, Quality Road, Tiz the Law, Twirling Candy, Vekoma, Win Win Win, and Yaupon. For complete pedigree information on the supplemental offerings, visit obssales.com. The under-tack portion of the sale will take place June 10-14 with sessions beginning at 7:30 a.m. ET each day. Hips one through 172 are scheduled to breeze Tuesday; followed by hips 173-343 Wednesday; hips 344-386 and supplemental hips 387-430 and 451-534 Thursday; hips 535 through 705 on Friday; and hips 706 through 833 and supplemental hips 834 through 873 on Saturday. The June 17 sale session will offer hips one through 386, plus supplemental entries 387-430, with the June 18 session selling hips 451-833, along with supplements 834-873. The horses of racing age, hips 901-903, will also be offered June 18. Each session of the sale begins at 10 a.m. The post OBS Adds 83 Supplemental Entries to June Sale appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

Tuesday's PricedUp Pushes EBF Maiden Fillies' Stakes went the way of subsequent G2 Queen Mary Stakes heroine Leovanni (Kodi Bear) last term and that Karl Burke trainee's year-younger stablemate Zelaina (Mehmas) will also attempt to double up at Royal Ascot after delivering a performance of raw power in the latest renewal of Nottingham's five-furlong dash. Going some way along the road to justifying her £650,000 price tag at the recent Goffs UK Breeze-Up sale, she heads to Berkshire with a TDN Rising Star rosette in the bag after securing a third straight victory for Burke, who also struck here with subsequent Queen Mary third Beautiful Diamond (Twilight Son) in 2023. Zelaina broke sharply from the stands' side stall and seized an immediate lead in this debut. On cruise control in front for the most part, the even-money favourite was shaken up passing the furlong marker and extended clear in style to easily outpoint Secret Oath (Lope De Vega), hitting the line powerfully with an impressive 2 3/4-length buffer back to that €550,000 Goffs Orby yearling. Zelaina, who was originally knocked down as a £82,000 Goffs UK Premier yearling, becomes the third juvenile Rising Star this year, and fifth overall, for her sire and joins Godolphin's Maximized and Wise Approach on the roll of honour. Wow! Zelaina (Mehmas) looks a very exciting filly and is set for Royal Ascot now after a fine debut for @karl_burke and Wathnan Racing at @NottsRacecourse pic.twitter.com/Vou7G1u7Ec — Racing TV (@RacingTV) June 4, 2025 The post Mehmas’s Breeze Up Sensation Zelaina Powers to TDN Rising Star Rosette at Nottingham appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

Coventry Stakes-bound Power Blue, a horse Robson Aguiar describes as Adrian Murray's best chance of a winner at Royal Ascot, will be offered under the hammer at the Goffs London Sale. Meanwhile, a deal has already been brokered for Murray's recent Curragh maiden winner Ipanema Queen, who will line out for the Albany Stakes at the royal meeting for a partnership comprising Stonestreet Stables and Amo Racing. “We are going to the London Sale with Power Blue,” Aguiar, the assistant trainer to Murray, said. “He ran a good race when second to Albert Einstein in the Marble Hill Stakes. That was a prep for Royal Ascot – he ran 85 per cent fit and there is more to come from him. There is improvement in him going to Ascot and I think he will run a big race in the Coventry Stakes. I think he goes to Ascot with a realistic chance. Every year, we bring horses to Ascot that have chances, and we won the Norfolk with Valiant Force. Bucanero Fuerte and Arizona Blaze also finished third in the Coventry and the Norfolk [respectably]. I think Power Blue is one of the best horses we will bring to Royal Ascot over the past few years and he is definitely as good as Valiant Force, Bucanero Fuerte and Arizona Blaze.” He added, “After Ascot, he could be a horse for the National Stakes at the Curragh and maybe even the Breeders' Cup. He is going to improve a lot when he steps up to seven furlongs and even a mile. He is still growing.” Ipanema Queen was bought by John Bourke of Hyde Park Stud for just €4,500 at the Goffs Autumn Yearling Sale. It proved to be an inspired buy after the daughter of Sands Of Mali, who Bourke retained a share in, landed a median auction maiden over six furlongs at the Curragh by over five lengths last month. Aguiar said, “Ipanema Queen will go to the Albany. We will enter for the Queen Mary as well but the plan is to go for the Albany. I think there is a lot more to come from her as well. We were going to bring her to a barrier trial but she was good at home so we decided to run at the Curragh. We thought she would run well but didn't expect her to win. She was very impressive and we're looking forward to Ascot with her.” On the rest of the stable's running plans for the Royal meeting, he continued, “Arizona Blaze will go for the Commonwealth Cup and Paris Carver will go for the Queen Mary. We got her from the breeze-ups in America so we only have her a short time. We were happy with her debut run at the Curragh and the plan is to go straight to Ascot now. She is another who will improve a lot. Dallas Star will go for the Queen Alexandra Stakes over 2m6f, we have What's Your Game running at Leopardstown on Thursday who is also in the mix for Ascot as well and Tiberius Thunder will go for the Britannia Stakes. “I don't think Bucanero Fuerte will go to Ascot. It's 50-50. He's working well but I'd encourage him [Murray] more to run in a Listed race or a Group 3 next time and, if he keeps on improving, maybe we can aim him at a Group 1 towards the end of the year. California Dreamer is also in good form and she could go for the Jersey Stakes.” Asked to nominate the team's best chance of a winner at the meeting, he concluded, “I think Power Blue is our best chance of a winner all week. The Ballydoyle horse [Charles Darwin] and Charlie Appleby's Frankel colt [Treanmor] look good but, the rest of the field, I'm not scared of them. I think he's a very nice colt who's only going to get better. We've got some nice horses going to Ascot but I think he is our best chance.” The post Aguiar Nominates Power Blue As Murray Stable’s Best Chance Of Royal Ascot Winner appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

The initial entries for the June 16 Goffs London Sale, held in association with Fitzwilliam Sports and Privat 3 Money, include G2 Royal Lodge Stakes hero Ghostwriter. A son of Invincible Spirit from the yard of Clive Cox, the 4-year-old was third in the 2024 G1 International Stakes and holds a Timeform rating of 120. Timeform describes him as a “big, good-topped colt: very smart performer.” He carries an entry for the G2 Hardwicke Stakes at Royal Ascot, as well as an entry in the G1 King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes later this summer. Adrian Murray consigns Power Blue (Space Blues) to the sale. A debut winner, he ran second to Albert Einstein (Wootton Bassett) in the G3 Marble Hill Stakes at The Curragh last month, and holds an entry in the G2 Coventry Stakes. Another lot of note is Eqtidaar 3-year-old colt Tropical Storm from the yard of Andrew Balding. He won the Listed Westow Stakes at York recently and was runner-up in the G2 Norfolk Stakes at two. He holds entries in both the G1 Commonwealth Cup Stakes and the G1 King Charles III Stakes. Held at Kensington Palace Gardens the evening of Monday, June 16, the sale allows buyers the opportunity to run their new acquisitions in their colours at the iconic meeting. The full catalogue including pedigrees, race and conformation videos along with Royal Ascot targets, will be available early next week. Henry Beeby, Goffs Group chief executive, said, “No other sale in the world offers the opportunity to purchase a horse on Monday and see it run in your colours at Royal Ascot the same week. The global appeal of the Goffs London Sale and its unique proposition continues to thrive, and we are proud to announce these high-class Royal Ascot contenders and international prospects among the early entries, with more to follow. “Goffs, together with our title partners Fitzwilliam Sports and Privat 3 Money, look forward to welcoming invited guests from around the world to Kensington Palace Gardens to open Royal Ascot week with a sale, and an audience, like nowhere else.” The post ‘Smart Performer’ Ghostwriter Anchors Initial Goffs London Entries appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

Jean Rice, matriarch of a family of top horsemen, passed away May 27 at the age of 85. Born Sept. 9, 1939 in Antigo, Wisconsin, Jean did not come from a racing family, but–alongside her husband of 59 years and top pinhooker Clyde Rice–she created one of the sport's most well-respected and deeply talented families of horsemen. She earned a four-year teaching degree while raising her four children, all of whom became jockeys and/or trainers. Curt Rice was one of the leading riders of his time and his brother Wayne gave him a run for his money in the saddle before transitioning to the training ranks. Their eldest son, Bryan Rice, got his start working under his father and Clyde's childhood friend, Hall of Famer D. Wayne Lukas. Bryan trained under his own name, alongside his wife Holley, at the racetrack before following his parents to Ocala and developing Woodside Ranch, where they give young racehorses their early education. Jean was one tough lady and she raised another in the nation's leading female trainer Linda Rice, whose career achievements on the New York circuit speak for themselves. Jean's four children have combined to win 3,824 as either trainer or jockey. That number does not include the many achievements of her grandchildren, almost all of whom are in the racing business. Her eldest grandson, Brandon Rice, operates Ricehorse, a 2-year-old training and sales operation, alongside his wife Alexandra deMeric Rice. Grandsons Adam and Kevin are both talented trainers in their own rights. Her granddaughter Taylor was a very skilled jockey before transitioning into motherhood and still likes to give her husband, leading rider Jose Ortiz, a run for his money breezing at Saratoga. Her other granddaughter Ashley is a major player in the western performance horse world, while grandson Cash makes his trade in dairy cows, but spends as much time supporting his family's passion as he possibly can. Jean was also blessed with 10 great grandchildren, all of whom are too young to add to the family's list of racing achievements just yet, but will surely extend their matriarch's reach in due time. Jean Rice supported her husband's many ventures and ideas in the horse business from Wisconsin to West Virginia to Pennsylvania before ultimately landing in Florida and developing the well-known Indian Prairie Ranch. She steered the ship at Indian Prairie Ranch, where the family educated the likes of champion Family Style and Grade I winner Titalating, both of whom were also purchased by her husband. While Clyde was traveling between sales and racetracks in search of racing's future stars, Jean kept things going on the home front, handling not only the family, but the business end of things. She was meticulous and exceptionally organized, keeping all the accounting in perfect order. Anyone who met Jean will tell you she was sharp as a tack, no-nonsense, honest, and funny. She was full of entertaining anecdotes, most of which centered around her family and horses, of course. Her mind was like a steel trap, and she always paid attention, so whenever a horse issue was discussed, she could recall a similar issue Clyde or one of her children had encountered and tell you exactly what they did to fix it. Jean will be dearly missed and her family welcomes all to attend her celebration of life Sunday, June 8 at 2 p.m. at Hiers-Baxley Funeral Home located at 910 E Silver Springs Blvd. in Ocala, Florida. The post Jean Rice, Racing Family Matriarch, Passes Away appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

The draw for the 19 protagonists in Saturday's G1 Betfred Derby took place on Wednesday morning, with Godolphin's G1 2,000 Guineas hero Ruling Court set to exit a favourable stall in seven. Ryan Moore's choice of the Ballydoyle trio is yet to be declared and the G3 Derby Trial and G3 Ballysax Stakes winner Delacroix is drawn 14 in a special renewal carrying the added title of “In Honour Of His Highness Aga Khan IV”, with fellow TDN Rising Star The Lion In Winter drawn on the wing in 19. The G3 Chester Vase winner Lambourn has the “lucky” stall 10, which has housed 11 winners. Ralph Beckett's Dante winner Pride Of Arras and G3 Autumn Stakes runner-up Stanhope Gardens have drawn 16 and two respectively, both of which have never housed a Derby winner. Others of note include Wathnan Racing's Dante runner-up Damysus, who is drawn 15, the unbeaten Aga Khan Studs representative Midak who will exit from stall four and the Westerberg colour-bearer Tennessee Stud in 12. Nine fillies will take part in Friday's Oaks, with Godolphin's 1,000 Guineas winner Desert Flower in stall one. Ryan Moore is expected to ride the Listed Cheshire Oaks scorer Minnie Hauk, who is drawn next door in two while the other Ballydoyle trial winners Giselle and Whirl are in three and nine respectively. Riding arrangements for Coolmore are expected slightly later today. Derby: Stall 13 Al Wasl Storm (David Probert) 15 Damysus (James Doyle) 14 Delacroix (TBC) 8 Green Storm (Billy Loughnane) 10 Lambourn (TBC) 3 Lazy Griff (Christophe Soumillon) 4 Midak (Mickael Barzalona) 17 New Ground (Alexis Pouchin) 9 Nightime Dancer (Jamie Spencer) 5 Nightwalker (Tom Marquand) 16 Pride Of Arras (Rossa Ryan) 1 Rogue Impact (Luke Morris) 7 Ruling Court (William Buick) 18 Sea Scout (Harry Davies) 2 Stanhope Gardens (Hector Crouch) 12 Tennessee Stud (TBC) 19 The Lion In Winter (TBC) 11 Tornado Alert (Oisin Murphy) 6 Tuscan Hills (David Egan Oaks: Stall 1 Desert Flower (William Buick) 5 Elwateen (Jim Crowley) 3 Giselle (TBC) 4 Go Go Boots (Oisin Murphy) 2 Minnie Hauk (TBC) 7 Qilin Queen (Tom Marquand) 6 Revoir (Hector Crouch) 8 Wemightakedlongway (TBC) 9 Whirl (TBC) The post Ruling Court Draws Well In The Derby, Desert Flower Faces Eight In The Oaks appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

By Adam Hamilton New Zealand’s hopes of winning next month’s Inter Dominion trotting series in Brisbane have soared with two star Aussies set to miss the series. Boom four-year-old mare Keayang Zahara, who is well known to Kiwis, and the gifted Susan Is Her Name both won’t be at Albion Park. Susan Is Her Name, who ended Keayang Zahara’s 15-race winning streak at Menangle last month, has been sidelined with a leg injury while Keayang Zahara’s connections haven’t made a final call, co-trainer Paddy Lee today said he “presumed she wouldn’t be going.” Keayang Zahara blazed through an unbeaten streak of 14 wins last season, including seven at Group 1 level. The four-year-old returned from a break with a narrow Melton win and then suffered her first defeat when she led, over-raced and was rundown late by Susan Is Her Name in the Group 1 Macarthur Mile at Menangle on May 10. Keayang Zahara hasn’t been herself since the race. “It took a lot out of her and that really surprised us because she’s been to Sydney last year and handled it well and she absolutely thrived during her time in NZ late last year,” Lee said. “Maybe it was the hard run and the time they went, we don’t really know. “But she lost a lot of condition and muscle tone and she has only done light work since. “I’d say the family (Lee and Craven clan who own the mare) will make a final decision by the end of the week, but I can’t see her going. “She needed more time out than we thought after the (Sydney) trip. She’s starting to look better now, but still isn’t right back to herself. “Put it this way, she’s not looking anything like the mare we took to NZ late last year.” Star Kiwis Bet N Win and Oscar Bonavena, along with Aussie-based TAB Trot winner Arcee Phoenix, are now the biggest guns of the trotting series, which starts on July 5 and has a $500,000 final on July 19. View the full article

The Chris Waller-trained Frosty Girl made the perfect start to her career when coming from last to land the Asahi Super Dry Plate (1300m) on debut at Warwick Farm on Wednesday. The three-year-old daughter of Super Seth sports the colours of prominent Kiwi owner Glenn Ritchie and has been patiently handled by Waller, trialing on six occasions before making her raceday debut. Taken back to the rear of the field by James McDonald from a wide gate, Frosty Girl looped the field to score by just over a length and a half from Cinsault and Pierro’s Girl. “It was a good win,” Waller said. “She is still learning as you can see. We intended to be a little bit closer to the pace, but she was a bit slow away. “James didn’t panic. He got her into a good rhythm and got her out to the right part of the track and finished off without any interruptions, so it was good. “Like most New Zealand-bred horses, if you look after them, they will look after you. “Super Seth from Waikato Stud is doing a fantastic job, so it’s good to see New Zealand with another really promising stallion on the way. “We will have to pay a bit more for them, but we will be buying a lot more of them.” Winning jockey James McDonald was also pleased with the performance. “She’s shown really good promise, so it’s nice to get her kick-started and produce something like that,” he said. Bred by Waikato Stud and Gary Wallace, Frosty Girl is out of the O’Reilly mare Oh So Chilled, a half-sister to the Listed winner Savacool. The filly was purchased by Chris Waller Racing and Mulcaster Bloodstock for $150,000 as a yearling at Karaka Book 1 from the Waikato Stud draft. With his eldest progeny three-year-olds, Super Seth has sired three Group One winners and six stakes winners to date, with Frosty Girl one of 41 winners by the young Waikato Stud stallion. View the full article

Velocious will bid to add Australian black type to her impressive domestic record when she steps out at Eagle Farm on Saturday. The Stephen Marsh-trained daughter of Written Tycoon will run in the Listed U & U Queensland Day Stakes (1200m) with multiple Group One-winning jockey Ethan Brown to don the Go Racing silks aboard the three-year-old. She won’t be the only feature race contender on the card for the syndication company, with the John O’Shea and Tom Charlton-prepared Maison Louis to take aim at the Gr.1 Queensland Derby (2400m). Velocious earned her passage across the Tasman with her most recent success over 1100m. “We’ve always had Australia in the back of our minds for her and she had a couple of unlucky runs before her last start at Te Rapa,” Go Racing General Manager Matt Allnutt said. “That was the race that was going to decide whether she went over or not. “She duly went out and won that and there’s not much left for her in New Zealand, especially with the way the tracks are, so we’re trying our luck in Queensland.” Saturday’s performance will determine the length of Velocious’ stay in Australia. “If she came out and won, there are other races for her coming up and we would like to think she’s going to run very well,” Allnutt said. “Then we can push on and reassess targets, basically it’s an open-ended ticket at this stage.” Velocious has six victories from her 12 starts, including the Gr.1 Systema Stakes (1200m) and Listed Karaka Millions (1200m) to earn champion juvenile honours before underwent a wind operation earlier this season. She has returned to win twice, both noteworthy efforts against older open grade opposition, and in between times had little luck when out of the frame in the Gr.3 Cambridge Breeders’ Stakes (1200m) and in an age group event at Ellerslie. “Thankfully, Michael McNab got her out of the gates well last start and got the job done for us,” Allnutt said. Bred by Inglewood Stud, Velocious was a $190,000 Karaka purchase for Go Racing who also purchased her younger half-sister by Dundeel for $300,000. Also trained by Marsh, Alacritous suffered an interrupted passage when unplaced on debut before she beat Cream Tart, a runaway winner on Monday, at Matamata. “She went away for a spell after that and is a different type being by Dundeel,” Allnutt said. “We’ve taken our time with her and she’ll come back into work shortly and be prepared for the 1000 Guineas (Gr.1, 1600m), all going well.” Meanwhile, Go Racing’s Maison Louis has won three of his six starts and finished fourth in the Gr.3 Rough Habit Plate (2000m) at Doomben in his final Derby lead-up. Ben Melham has been booked to ride the son of Super Seth on Saturday. View the full article

Connections are hoping patience pays off when Dream All Day makes her return to racing at Flemington on Saturday. The Mick Price and Michael Kent Jnr-trained Dream All Day, a younger sister to star Savabeel mare Atishu, is entered for a fillies and mares benchmark 78 grade race over 1400m. Atishu sold for $2.7 million on the Gold Coast last week having won 11 of her 51 starts and just shy of $6 million in prize money, having been originally purchased as a yearling at Karaka for $260,000 by Go Racing. Dream All Day still has a long way to go to match the deeds of Atishu who was a three-time winner at Group One level, but as a rising five-year-old Dream All Day has a good record having raced on seven occasions for two wins and five minor placings. The mare has not raced since finishing third over 1800m at Flemington in January and sports the colours of breeders Waikato Stud. “She’s prepped up well,” Kent Jnr said. “She’s been working at our beach stable which she really enjoys, and she trialled well. She was on the heels of Zloties in a jump-out last week. “That mare was race fit and is a Group Two winner and pulled away from her late, but Blake Shinn thought her work through the line was good. “She will probably be vulnerable fresh, 1400m, in better grade this prep, but she has a big finish, and I think we learned a bit from her last prep. “I don’t think she enjoyed being ridden too close to the speed. She got away with it when she won at Flemington as that race was devoid of any pace at all and at her next one, we rode her the same way and she didn’t have the same finish. “I think when she is conserved early, she can be dynamic late.” In form apprentice Luke Cartwright, who rode a treble at a recent Sandown Saturday meeting, will ride Dream All Day taking 3kg off her 56kg impost. “I think it will be a nice kick-off, and I think we’ll then look to go out in trip,” Kent Jnr said. “She’s a sister to Atishu so 2000m should eventually suit. “She’s not dour, she’s got a turn of foot. “Do we think we want to get her out quickly, or do we keep her fresh for a turn of foot. If she could take her turn of foot to 2000m, she would be very effective.” View the full article

Winter is often the time for apprentice jockeys to shine, and they will get the full spotlight on Thursday when they compete at New Plymouth’s apprentice only day. The eight-race card will exclusively feature apprentice jockeys, who will travel to Taranaki from all corners of the country to showcase their talent. In-form Cambridge apprentice Rihaan Goyaram is particularly looking forward to heading south, where he will have a full book of rides. The 21-year-old currently sits on 32 wins for the season, having taken out the opening event on the Cambridge Synthetic on Wednesday, extending his golden run of form of late. The expat Mauritian was out of action for the majority of this year and he is making the most of his opportunities now that he is back in the saddle. “I broke my ankle in January,” he said. “I had surgery and I was off for nearly four months. I was back riding in autumn. The leg is alright now, I have got some screws in, but it has been going well. “I am riding work for a few trainers in Cambridge, including Andrew Forsman, Stephen Marsh, Shaun Phelan, Colm Murray and Shaune Ritchie. They have all been a big help. “I hope to outride my three-kilo claim soon, I only need four more wins (three following Wednesday’s win).” He may get that opportunity on Thursday, with eight rides, including four for his employer Ralph Manning. “It looks like I have a really good book of rides tomorrow, so I am really looking forward to it,” Goyaram said. “My biggest supporter is my boss, Mr Ralph Manning, and he has been a massive help from day one.” Goyaram’s first mount for the stable will be last-start winner Dancin In The Dark in the One Bold Cat @ Arrowfield R65 (2000m), while his other rides for Manning include Small Town Girl in The Bold One @ Grangewilliam Stud Maiden 2YO & Up (1600m), Super Wraith in the Leica Lucy 2024/2025 Season Winner Filly Of The Year R65 (1400m), and Niagara Sky in the Robbie Patterson & Regal Lodge R75 (1200m). “Dancin In The Dark is a last start winner and won on a Heavy9 track. Tomorrow we have drawn one, and it’s a Heavy10. I think he is a good chance,” Goyaram said. “Small Town Girl ran a good second last start. We have drawn decent (8), and she will like the ground tomorrow. “Niagara Sky is fresh-up and should like the track, she is a wet-tracker, and Super Wraith ran a decent race last start and if he can cope with the track tomorrow, he will run well too.” Local trainer Allan Sharrock is also supporting Goyaram with three rides, while Marton trainer Fraser Auret has engaged him to ride debutant Not So Unusual in the opening race of the card. View the full article

North Island jockeys Lynsey Satherley and Kate Hercock gained a fresh perspective on race riding over King’s Birthday weekend, attending a meeting in New Caledonia. Satherley had previously ridden in the French archipelago, but over the past two years, civil unrest and damage to infrastructure has disrupted the regular racing calendar. Now in a period of recovery, New Caledonia was able to resume racing and the two accomplished hoops were invited to ride for a local trainer. “I went over there and rode for them two seasons ago, it initially came up through Grant Cooksley and a couple of others,” Satherley said. “For me, it was a nice opportunity to get away in the sun for a weekend. “Kate had mentioned that if it ever came up again, she would be keen to have a look around as well.” New Caledonia has a quartet of tracks and Satherley encountered a new venue over the weekend, comparable to the tight-turning circuits on the West Coast of the South Island. “They had eight races and they were probably only seven or eight horse fields,” she said. “It was quite small in that sense and probably more like a trial day for the horses we rode because they don’t have trials very often either. “I went to a different track this time, they only have four tracks and I’d ridden at two of them previously. This would have been the tightest, Kate compared the circuit to be similar to Greymouth.” Having ridden through the current racing season at home, Satherley and Hercock were able to bring that form and experience to the fore against some of their less-practiced counterparts. “It’s very different from here, their riding is not up to what we’re used to, which is probably why Kate and I had a bit of an advantage,” Satherley said. “It was different because they hadn’t been racing for nearly two years and a lot of their jockeys hadn’t been riding for that time, so they were hungry to win. “The first night was a bit of a drama with flights being delayed, but the next day we were able to relax at the bungalow owned by the family. Kate and I get along very well, so it was like taking your best mate with you. “We enjoyed ourselves, the people we rode for are a lovely family and they pay for everything and do everything for you. “They’ve given Kate and I some dates in the future to go back if we wished to, and I’ve just signed a contract for a couple of meetings at the end of the month and in July.” View the full article

Strada Del Sogno (f, 2, Street Boss–Line Up, by Violence), whose only career start to date resulted in a third-place finish last month behind Royal Ascot-bound Lennilu (Leinster) in the Royal Palm Juvenile Fillies Stakes at Gulfstream Park, sold for $150,000 to top Fasig-Tipton's June Digital Sale Tuesday. Taylor Made Sales Agency, agent consigned the chestnut filly as hip 2. Offered as a horse of racing age from Gulfstream, Strada Del Sogno sold to Elkin Family Racing. Total receipts for the June Digital Sale included 53 horses sold for $1,401,500, an average of $24,587 with a clearance rate of 78%. In addition to horses of racing age, the catalogue also offered racing/broodmare prospects, 2-year-olds in training, broodmares (including mares with foals at foot), and yearlings. “The top three sold were all horses of racing age, marking the shift from breeding season to racehorses and racing prospects,” said Fasig-Tipton Director of Digital Sales Leif Aaron. “It's already been an exciting year in 2025 with six sales on the books and more than 575 head sold so far. The momentum is strong, and the season is just getting started.” The top three sellers were rounded out by the winning 3-year-old colt Landing Craft (Omaha Beach), who sold as hip 9 for $130,000 to Lucky Hat Racing from the consignment of Taylor Made Sales Agency, agent; and last week's maiden winner Zandvoort (Good Magic). The latter, consigned as hip 52 by Steve Asmussen, agent, is a 3-year-old colt who sold for $105,000 to Abubaker Kadoura. Full results are available online at Fasig-Tipton's site. Fasig-Tipton will next host the July Digital Sale from July 17-22 with entries closing July 7. The post Royal Palm Juvenile Fillies Third Strada Del Sogno Tops Fasig-Tipton June Digital Sale appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

Last week, 'Five Fastest Maidens' became six because of a fifth-place tie. This week, only four maidens met our minimum threshold of an 80 Beyer Speed Figure 4) KAPOOR, CD, 5-31, Race 4, 7 furlongs Beyer Speed Figure- 80 (f, 3, Uncle Mo–Kareena, by Medaglia d'Oro) O/B-Godolphin; T-Bill Mott; J-Irad Ortiz, Jr. She was Mott's second promising maiden to graduate on Saturday's strong Churchill Downs card, leading all the way after starting her career with third-place efforts at both Gulfstream and Keeneland. Godolphin bought dam Kareena for $400,000 from Jane Lyon at Saratoga in 2014, and she showed enough talent in five starts to record Beyer Speed Figures of 98 and 96 and win Belmont's Jersey Girl Stakes in 1:07.87. Kapoor's older half-sister Padma (Tapit) was second in Gulfstream's Cash Run Stakes. 3) EXCITE, CD, 5-31, Race 1, 1 1/8 miles Beyer Speed Figure- 83 (c, 3, Speightstown–Elate, by Medaglia d'Oro) O/B-Claiborne Farm & Adele B. Dilschneider (Ky); T-Bill Mott; J-Irad Ortiz, Jr. The second foal to race and first winner for Claiborne/ Dilschneider's $2.6-million earner and Grade I winner Elate, also trained by Mott. After three losses on grass, Excite was switched to dirt against a strong maiden field in the finale on Kentucky Derby day. In that race, he was bounced around early and dropped to last on a sloppy strip, yet came with an encouraging run for fourth at a seven-furlong distance likely shorter than he prefers. This time, he was on the pace and drew off through the lane to win by 5 1/4 lengths. 2) MOR FORCE, LS, 5-30, Race 1, 4 1/2 furlongs Beyer Speed Figure- 84 (c, 2, Mor Spirit–Ready Witted, by More Than Ready) O-Norman Stable; B-Adcock's Red River Farm & Hume Wornall (La); T-Jayde Gelner; J-Ramon Vazquez. Alabama grocery exec Robby Norman is having a breakout 2025. And like the stable's GII Rebel winner Coal Battle and standout Louisiana-bred filly Secret Faith, this 2-year-old is a product of Louisiana breeders Jay Adcock and Hume Wornall who was plucked out of the Texas Yearling Sale for a modest bid–in this case, $20,000. Mor Force debuted here with a sharp 5 1/2-length score over Liteupthenite, also owned by Norman. Both are trained by young Jayde (J.J.) Gelner. 1) THIRTY TWO CHUNK, SA, 6-1, Race 3, 6 furlongs Beyer Speed Figure- 88 (g, 3, by More Than Ready–She's My Gem, by Into Mischief) O-Muir Hut Stable; B-Three Chimneys Farm (Ky); T-Mark Glatt; J-Kazushi Kimura. Named for a massive wild bear with a YouTube following, he was the bear among these maiden claimers. Dropped in for $50,000 by Glatt and owner Sean Rodgers after an unsuccessful debut on grass, he immediately sped to the front and widened to win by 8 1/2 lengths in 1:09.71. Perhaps just as importantly, no one filled out a claim slip. The namesake bear “32 Chunk” weighs an estimated 1,200 pounds at age 30, and Glatt estimates that his 3-year-old gelding tips the scales at a comparatively trim 1,100. “But he was chunky as a baby,” Glatt said, “and we thought it was a great name.” The post The Five Fastest Maidens, Presented by Taylor Made, for the Week of May 26-June 1 appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

Observations on the European Racing Scene turns the spotlight on the best European races of the day, highlighting well-bred horses early in their careers, horses of note returning to action and young runners that achieved notable results in the sales ring. Wednesday's Observations features several high-priced auction purchases. 2.52 Nottingham, Mdn, £6,899, 2yo, f, 5f 8yT ZELAINA (GB) (Mehmas {Ire}) debuts for Wathnan Racing and Karl Burke in this maiden the stable has won for the last two years with the subsequent G2 Queen Mary Stakes third Beautiful Diamond and with Leovanni, who captured that Royal Ascot prize 12 months ago. At £650,000 the top-priced filly at the Goffs UK Breeze Up, the half-sister to the G2 Railway Stakes-placed Arctician faces the Coolmore-owned and Simon and Ed Crisford-trained filly Novelette (Ire) (Sioux Nation) who at £410,000 was second only to her among her sex at that auction. Godolphin's newcomer, the Charlie Appleby-trained Secret Oath (Ire) (Lope De Vega {Ire}), was also a big-money purchase with the daughter of the GII Nassau Stakes and G3 Albany Stakes runner-up Bletchley costing €550,000 at Goffs Orby Book 1. The post Mehmas’s Goffs UK Breeze-Up Star Zelaina Debuts In Key Maiden appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

The 2025 Belmont Stakes Racing Festival–held for the second straight year at Saratoga Race Course while the transformation of the new Belmont Park continues–begins with a 10-race program saluting New York-breds on Wednesday. 'New York Showcase Day' will feature six $200,000 stakes races exclusively for New York-breds–the Bouwerie S., Commentator S., Critical Eye S., Kingston S., Mike Lee S. and Mount Vernon S. Morning-line favorites for the six stakes races are as follows: Kay Cup (Instagrand) (Bouwerie) (9-5); Bank Frenzy (Central Banker) (Commentator) (7-5); Sterling Silver (Cupid) (Critical Eye) (1-1); Hush of a Storm (Creative Cause) (Kingston) (2-1); Mo Plex (Complexity) (Mike Lee) (2-1); and Silver Skillet (Liam's Map) (Mount Vernon) (3-1). “Kicking off this year's Belmont Stakes Racing Festival with New York Showcase Day is a great opportunity for fans and our program participants to experience the quality and talent of New York's breeding and racing industry,” New York Thoroughbred Breeders Executive Director Najja Thompson said. Admission gates open at 11 a.m. with first post scheduled for 12:40 p.m for the GI Beverly R. Steinman Hurdle H. over the fences. The first 10,000 fans to enter with paid admission will receive a free, white baseball cap featuring the NYTB and 2025 Belmont Stakes logos. The Belmont Stakes Racing Festival–featuring 27 stakes races with purses totaling $11.275 million, led by the 157th renewal of the GI Belmont Stakes–will take place from Wednesday, June 4 through Sunday, June 8. Graded action gets underway on Thursday's 10-race program with the grassy GII Intercontinental S. and GIII Poker S. The Intercontinental includes the GIII Giant's Causeway S. re-opposing one-two-three, led by 2024 Intercontinental winner Future Is Now (Great Notion). America's Day at the Races will present daily coverage and analysis of the Belmont Stakes Racing Festival on the networks of FOX Sports. Future Is Now (middle) winning the 2024 Intercontinental in a wild finish | Sarah Andrew The post Belmont Stakes Racing Festival Kicks Off With New York Showcase Day appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

A Thoroughbred and Quarter Horse trainer's argument with a New Mexico state steward in 2021 over a licensing dispute that got escalated all the way up that state's Supreme Court has resulted in a ruling issued Monday establishing that New Mexico's governmental organizations can be immune from liability in civil rights lawsuits if they are carrying out administrative actions that are judicial in nature. According to an opinion issued June 2 by the Supreme Court of New Mexico in a case involving Bradley Bolen vs. the New Mexico Racing Commission (NMRC), the state's Civil Rights Act (CRA) “expressly preserves judicial immunity as a defense. Judicial immunity is justified by public policies supporting independent decision-making and ensuring the integrity of a judicial or quasi-judicial process. These policies apply to both individuals and governmental entities performing judicial functions.” However, just because the New Mexico Supreme Court ruled that judicial immunity can, in theory, be used as a defense by the racing commission, it didn't rule as to whether that immunity actually applied to the NMRC in this specific instance. In that respect, the court sent the case back to a district court to decide “whether and to what extent NMRC is immune using the framework set forth in this opinion.” The case began in July 2021, when Bolen got into an argument over the telephone with a NMRC state steward after learning that an assistant trainer whom Bolen wished to employ would not have his license reinstated after a lengthy period of suspension. The Supreme Court's opinion stated that “the parties do not dispute that Bolen criticized the steward during the phone call.” The NMRC then asserted that Bolen's phone manners had transgressed regulations prohibiting “conduct or reputation [which] may adversely reflect on the honesty and integrity of horse racing or interfere with the orderly conduct of a race meeting.” A panel of three stewards presided over an evidentiary hearing on the alleged infraction and found that Bolen violated the conduct rule. They fined him $500, but stipulated that the fine would be waived so long as Bolen had no additional violations within one year. “Bolen appealed the ruling under regulations that entitle him to a de novo hearing before an independent administrative hearing officer,” the Supreme Court opinion stated. “Bolen also sued NMRC in the district court, asserting a claim under the CRA for a violation of his rights to free speech and due process under Article II, Sections 17 and 18 of the New Mexico Constitution. “Bolen alleged that NMRC pursued the disciplinary proceeding in retaliation for his protected speech with the steward and for a previous, unrelated lawsuit he had filed against NMRC's Executive Director. Bolen ultimately withdrew his administrative appeal, choosing only to pursue litigation in the district court,” the opinion stated. The NMRC countered with a claim that its “quasi-judicial administrative actions” in pursuing the disciplinary proceeding entitled it to absolute immunity from Bolen's CRA claim. The district court refused to extend that quasi-judicial immunity to the commission. The NMRC appealed, and a state appeals court eventually concluded that the district court had erred because the “plain language” of the law confirmed that judicial immunity is available to a public body in defense of a CRA claim. So after the appeals court reversed the district court, Bolen petitioned the state's Supreme Court, which then issued the June 2 opinion, nearly four years after the original dispute over the phone. “We answer: Yes, a public body may raise judicial immunity as an affirmative defense to claims brought pursuant to the CRA,” the Supreme Court opinion stated. “We explain that judicial immunity, which applies to judges, advocates, and witnesses, may be consistently applied under the CRA to preserve the role of the judiciary in protecting a person's constitutional rights,” the opinion stated. “We also articulate a framework for determining when that defense applies to quasi-judicial adjudicatory proceedings in the executive branch,” the opinion stated. “However, as the record and arguments presented here are insufficient to resolve the question of NMRC's entitlement to immunity, we reverse the Court of Appeals to the extent it held that NMRC is immune from Bolen's CRA claim. We remand to the district court for further proceedings consistent with this opinion,” the Supreme Court opinion stated. “We also emphasize that judicial immunity should extend no further than necessary to achieve the policy goals of protecting independent decision-making and ensuring the integrity of an established adjudicatory process,” the opinion stated. “A court considering a public body's entitlement to judicial immunity should, therefore, carefully parse the challenged conduct to determine whether and to what extent that conduct consists of a judicial function. Judicial immunity will protect a public body from liability only when the nature of the proceeding and the nature of the challenged conduct merit absolute protection from suit,” the Supreme Court opinion stated. The post Trainer-VS.-Steward Spat Yields New Mexico Supreme Court Opinion on Immunity in Certain Civil Rights Suits appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

SARATIOGA SPRINGS–One thing trainer Michael McCarthy didn't have to worry about as he planned his trip to Saratoga Race Course was lodging. For his horses, anyway. When McCarthy shipped GI Belmont Stakes favorite Journalism (Curlin) and two other stakes horses to the Spa, he knew right where they were going. That would be the barn of Hall of Fame trainer Todd Pletcher, who McCarthy worked for as an assistant for nearly 12 years before going out on his own in 2014. “I was a slow learner,” McCarthy said with a laugh. Pletcher gladly opened the barn door on the Oklahoma Training Track for his friend. Besides Journalism, McCarthy's Look Forward (Bolt d'Oro), who is entered in the GI Acorn Stakes and Endlessly (Oscar Performance), who will go in the GI Manhattan Stakes. All the races are on Saturday. “We have done this before,” Pletcher said. “When Locked (Gun Runner) went to the Santa Anita Handicap, we shipped into his barn. He has had horses ship in here other times, and I have had horses in California. We send our staff out there and his staff comes here with his horses. Makes it a lot easier on everyone.” “I am very familiar with those surroundings,” McCarthy said of being back in Pletcher's barn. “I spent a couple seasons up here during my tenure with Todd. He has been gracious enough every time we have come to New York to be able to house us.” Accommodations through the Spa City and beyond are pricey for the public during Belmont week, but Pletcher came up with a special rate for McCarthy's four-legged travel partners. “Yeah,” he said. “Free!” McCarthy is hoping for better results during this trip to Saratoga. In the past, he has brought Grade I runners to the Spa with high expectations and left disappointed. City of Light (Quality Road) was second in the GI Forego in 2018; hat was McCarthy's first horse he saddled at Saratoga as a head trainer. He also brought Ce Ce (Elusive Quality), who was fifth in the GI Ballerina in 2022 and Clearly Unhinged (Into Mischief), second in the GI Test in 2023. According to Equibase, McCarthy has started 11 horses at Saratoga without a winner. “Hopefully, we will find the winner's circle here, and, hopefully, it will be Saturday,” McCarthy said. “This might be the hardest place in America to win at.” Baeza Has A Hall Of Fame Name If the name of GI Belmont Stakes runner Baeza (Justify) sounds familiar, it is. The colt, trained by John Shirreffs, was named in honor of Hall of Fame jockey Braulio Baeza, who won the Belmont three times during his riding career, which started in 1955 and ended in 1976. “Of course he is,” Shirreffs said when asked if Baeza the horse was named for Baeza the jockey. “One of his owners, Lee Searing (majority owner, C R K Stable LLC), really likes jockeys. He is a jockey guy.” Grandview Equine shares ownership in the horse. Shirreffs is delighted that his stable star has this racing moniker. When Shirreffs was working in New York, he became friendly with Baeza, who was long retired but still wanted to be around the thoroughbreds. He and Shirreffs became friendly, and the former rider would walk horses for him when the trainer was spending time at Belmont Park. “He just wanted to be involved because he loved horses,” Shirreffs said. “I really, really enjoyed my time with Braulio Baeza.” Braulio Baeza, who is now 85 years old, had 14 mounts during his career in the Belmont. In 1963, he rode Chateaugay (Swaps) to victories in the Kentucky Derby and Belmont and was second in the Preakness. Baeza, the horse, comes into the Belmont after finishing third –just a neck behind second place finisher Journalism, in the Derby. Before that, he was second in the GI Santa Anita Derby, losing to Journalism by three quarters of a length. Shirreffs thought enough of Baeza to enter him in the Santa Anita Derby after he broke his maiden in his third try. He returned to California after the Kentucky Derby and shipped to Saratoga last week. There was not much talk about running him in the GI Preakness. “I skipped the Preakness mostly because he is a May 13 foal,” Shirreffs said. “He is very young, and I trained him very hard for the Santa Anita Derby and the Kentucky Derby was a big, emotional race. Bringing him back in two weeks (for the Preakness) would have been asking too much for a somewhat immature, lightly raced horse.” Brown Coming In Under The Radar This Time A year ago, trainer Chad Brown had the favorite for the GI Belmont Stakes in Sierra Leone (Gun Runner). He finished third. Brown is back for this year's Belmont, but 'TDN Rising Star' Hill Road (Quality Road) isn't attracting the same kind of attention that Sierra Leone did. Hill Road | Sarah Andrew The winner of the GIII Peter Pan Stakes, who is owned by Amo Racing USA, Hill Road is 10-1 on the Belmont morning line, the fifth choice in the field of eight. Brown isn't detoured by that. He saw enough talent in Hill Road's rallying three quarters of a length victory in the 11/8-mile Peter Pan on May 10 to move forward. “I am going to try [for the upset],” Brown said. “I had the favorite last year, and it didn't work.” Hill Road began his career on the turf for trainer Adrian Murray in Ireland, and, after two starts, came to the United States and switched to dirt in the GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile. After Hill Road finished third, he came to Brown, a five-time Eclipse Award winning trainer. Following a third-place finish in the GIII Tampa Bay Derby, Brown hoped to run the colt in the GII Wood Memorial. A fever scrapped that plan and bounced him off the GI Kentucky Derby trail. Now, here he is. “Every month that went by, he continued to move forward and get stronger and get fitter,” Brown said. “Right now, I think he is peaking.” When Brown first started working with Hill Road, one thing he noticed was the horse did not change leads. “That has always been him,” Brown said. “He moves forward pretty good.” It happened in the Peter Pan, but Hill Road still got the job done with a strong kick. With the Belmont being run at 1 1/4 miles at Saratoga, Brown is confident that could be right in Hope Road's wheelhouse. “He galloped out big [in the Peter Pan],” Brown said. “The thing that gives me the most hope with this horse is the distance of the race. But he is not going to have an easier race because he can get the distance. Many in this race can.” The last Peter Pan winner to come back and take the Belmont was Arcangelo (Arrogate), who won in 2023 at Belmont Park at 1 1/2 miles. Antiquarian (Preservationist), the 2024 Peter Pan winner, finished fifth in last year's Belmont. The post Belmont Stakes Notebook: McCarthy Feels Right at Home in Pletcher’s Barn appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

“The Derby is the only thing that matters.” It's a pretty definitive opening gambit, even from a man whose words generally don't spend much time in the mincer. Later, Jeremy Brummitt will temper this statement but first let's deal with the Derby, a race which, for this week at least, really is the only thing that matters. “I honestly think the people who come into racing and breeding with a passion are all led by the north star of the Derby,” he says. “And the people who think there are rival claims, almost without exception, are driven by financial gain. In other words, they see the business as a means for them to make a living or make a lot of money. But the fundamental essence of the sport is the pursuit to try and win the Derby. Every sport – not just every sport, every human pursuit – has one holy grail. Everything has a pinnacle.” Towards this year's summit climb two horses with which Brummitt has had a direct involvement. They are both outsiders in the Derby betting but, at the time of writing, they represent 10 per cent of the likely field. Lazy Griff was a €75,000 yearling purchase at BBAG, the year after Brummitt had bought subsequent Group 1 winner Tamfana there for €20,000. Tuscan Hills was bred by Australian owner-breeder John Wheeler, for whom the agent bought the colt's dam Taqleed for 70,000gns at the Tattersalls December Mares Sale. Among the Shadwell draft of 2021, the mare was unraced but, as a daughter of Sea The Stars out of the 2005 Oaks winner Eswarah, her bloodlines held obvious appeal for a man with a laser focus on Epsom. “Every racing jurisdiction in the world has a flagship race called the Derby. There isn't a South Australian Arc de Triomphe. And if we ever put a man on the moon, the feature race for their first racing season will be called the Moon Derby,” he says. Brummitt doesn't really like to be labelled as a bloodstock agent, even though that's an essential part of his work. He is also a breeder and advises other breeders, but overall he would probably be happiest being called a racing fan, and he is keen to ensure that others follow. “It's so important to get young, impressionable people through the turnstiles at the races, paying attention to the horses, more than the gambling, certainly more than adjuncts of entertainment, because once you fall in love with the horses, you inevitably will get it,” he says. “It's an unusual person who studies horses, thinks they have an opinion and doesn't want to back them.” Brummitt continues, “I'm lucky enough to work for a few people of very different backgrounds who've taken very different paths to where they are now. But they all started off the same way, by a fascination with horse racing. And the banner races from their early periods are the ones that are still synonymous with achievement, 50 or 60 years later. “I'm a great believer in heritage handicaps as well. I think it's high-minded of the professionals to sneer at the value of the Cambridgeshire and the Cesarewitch, but the racing public like them, and when racing was exceptionally popular, they were front-page news. “That appeal of asking top horses to run in top handicaps is massively underestimated. What's surprising is how often the best horse defies increasing imposts. However much people like to use metrics to prove that horses can't run beyond the exactitudes of a slide rule, you can't ever quantify spirit. And the best horses have an indomitable spirit that overcomes an extra three pounds.” The Charlie Johnston-trained Lazy Griff wins the G3 Prix de Conde | Scoop Dyga Lazy Griff, bred by Peter and Aline Rodde at Gestut Westerberg, is by Protectionist, who won one of the world's great staying handicaps, the Melbourne Cup. “It's one of my favourite families,” he says of the late son of Monsun who is from the same dynasty as Stradivarius, with whom Brummitt has close ties through his work for owner-breeder Bjorn Nielsen, another man with a Derby dream. “I remember Protectionist because he ran in the Grosser Preis von Berlin, and I think Hoppegarten may well have been the first racecourse in Europe to display sectional times live during the race. Protectionist ran an exceptional last 600 metres, admittedly in a slowly-run race, but as with so many stayers, it sets a lie to the idea that they're slow. Although he's perceived as a Melbourne Cup winner and a two-miler, he won that race by running 600 metres in a very quick time indeed. And there's very few horses who race over any distance who can sustain the run for 600 metres. Recently, Sosie ran the last 600 metres in the Ispahan in just over 33 seconds.” Tuscan Hills, who carries the hopes of Amo Racing in the Derby, shares his sire Night Of Thunder with the Oaks favourite Desert Flower. It is 20 years since Night Of Thunder's sire Dubawi ran third in the Derby to Motivator and Walk In The Park and, as mentioned above, the Epsom pointers loom large in Tuscan Hills's pedigree. Not only did Eswarah win the Oaks, but so too did her dam Midway Lady. And it never hurts to see the name Galileo nestled in there as broodmare sire of Night Of Thunder, meaning that Tuscan Hills is inbred 4×3 to Urban Sea through her two Derby-winning sons. Reflecting on the purchase of the colt's dam Taqleed for Wheeler, Brummitt says, “It's a shame really, because John wanted me to buy a mare that we could breed to Camelot Southern Hemisphere time and then send to Australia to breed to [South Australian Derby winner] Russian Camelot. I bought Russian Camelot for John. “Quite soon after I bought the mare, her second foal came up as a weanling, and I thought he was the standout weanling at Goffs in February, so we bought him to send to Australia to advertise the mare. Her first two foals were by Tamayuz. “Six months after that, the first foal won a Listed race in Italy and was second favourite for the Gran Criterium, so everything was coming up roses. Then the mare had a Night of Thunder, which again was ideal. We only had to pay 70,000gns [for the mare] because she had a very late cover, which put off a lot of people, but it wouldn't deter you if you were planning to campaign the horse with a view to taking him to Australia as a mature horse. So the mare went in foal to Camelot, was shipped to Australia, and unfortunately, in the space of a week, her first foal broke a leg and didn't turn up in the Criterium, and the mare died in quarantine in Australia.” Tuscan Hills, trained by Raphael Freire, gives Amo Racing another Derby chance | Racingfotos It is a story which will resonate with many breeders, who will be all-too familiar with the heartbreak that so often underpins any successful endeavour. The mare's demise changed the plan for her Night Of Thunder colt, who ended up being offered at the Goffs Orby Sale through Manister House Stud and sold to the Amo Racing team for €100,000. “[Tuscan Hills] wasn't the most correct as a foal. He's very athletic with an absolutely sublime temperament, but because we thought we were going to race him, we jealously defended him from interference from farrier and vet,” Brummitt says. “So he's grown up naturally with a very good foot, which I'm passionate about. But also, he is what would be considered incorrect, exactly like his sire. But [Night Of Thunder] did manage to win the Guineas and it didn't stop him winning the Lockinge at four either. So he ticked, in my opinion, the most important criteria in that he stayed sound for three seasons at the top level.” He adds of Tuscan Hills, who won both his starts at two, including the Listed EBF Silver Tankard Stakes at Pontefract, and was seventh on comeback in the Dante, “It held down his sales price because we didn't do any cosmetic work on him, but importantly he's a sound racing proposition. “He's such a good mover and he's compact, very well-balanced. I'd be shocked if he couldn't handle Epsom or fast ground. And whatever he does at Epsom, I hope he rewards the people who bought him, and he manages to win at the top level because he's got the temperament that you would expect to handle rollercoasters and open-top buses.” Brummitt indicates that Lazy Griff, a full-brother to G3 Bavarian Classic winner Lambo, is a similarly phlegmatic character. The colt was second to Lambourn in his sole start this year in the G3 Chester Vase this year and his trainer Charlie Johnston is attempting to secure the services in the Derby of Christophe Soumillon, who rode Lazy Griff to victory at Chantilly last year. Brummitt says, “I thought he was a fantastic individual with a great temperament, and I think he'll run his race. His price suggests that's not going to be good enough, which may be the case, but there'll definitely be horses shorter in the betting that won't run their race because of temperamental flaws. That's as much a part of the equine make-up as physique and action. I think both horses are likely to give everything they've got.” Lest anyone think that Brummitt cannot appreciate those glorious speedballs that blaze a trail down the straights of York or Ascot, he says, “I like sprinters. It's the subversion of speed to precocity that annoys me. But I do like sprinters.” He adds, “I think what's generally less appreciated is how many top sprinters are out of mares by Classic-winning sires. Everyone is raving about Starman at the moment, and he is out of a Montjeu mare. “It doesn't matter to me that a horse runs over six furlongs. That's great. But a horse that runs three times at two, it doesn't matter if they win by a distance, to the general public and the punter – and that's what sustains racing – he's retired before they ever realise he ran. He's done nothing for this sport. He's made the breeder and the buyer and the connections happy. He'd make me very happy if I was connected to him, but he's not actually advanced horseracing one jot. But a horse that stays sound and runs for six seasons and turns up in the Stewards' Cup and the Ayr Gold Cup and the Wokingham: he's a tremendous servant to racing.” A sire very much on the rise who falls between these two stools is Mehmas, who was never out of the first three in his eight starts but raced only in his juvenile season. There can be no denying the tremendous start he has made to his stud career, however, with those connected to his stock often pointing to their equable temperaments. “Mehmas is an interesting horse,” says Brummitt. “[His offspring] are tough. They have a very recognisable way of galloping. He's by a horse in Acclamation who was widely regarded as a source of two-year-old speed, and most popularly promoted as the winner of the Doncaster sales race, but he actually had his finest day as a four-year-old. So what's wrong with that? Kodiac did the same as a five-year-old. It didn't stop them being superior progenitors of juveniles, and Mehmas is out of tremendous middle-distance family. He goes back to Lucayan Princess, who bred Luso and Needle Gun. That's a fantastic female family.” He would, however, like to see a greater range of stallions being given a chance at stud, rather than a decreasing number of sires covering increasingly large books. “Because the one thing we know about breeders, myself included, is none of us are smart enough to be right even half the time,” Brummitt says. “Otherwise, you wouldn't have been able to go to Dubawi with a four grand fee in his third season, and more than 23 people would've wanted to breed to Wootton Bassett in his first crop. That's why it's important that we give more stallions a proper chance, and I don't pretend that I would be any more accurate in my estimation. I'd just like to be able to choose from 30 instead of 12, that's all.” Properly into his stride now, Brummitt continues, “And I think the great shame of modern racing is people feel proving a horse can stay beyond a mile and a quarter, let alone a mile and a half, is in some way indicative of a potential weakness in the breeding shed that they might be slow. But the point of trying the racehorse is to prove how good they are, not to conceal how bad they are. And we've got far too many stallions at stud who've been campaigned to conceal how bad they are instead of campaigned to prove how good they are.” Lazy Griff and Tuscan Hills probably won't feature too prominently in the Derby tips ahead of Saturday but in Middleham Park Racing and Amo Racing they represent ownership groups who have never been afraid to campaign their horses with ambition. There should be no greater ambition in racing than to win the Derby, and for Brummittt, the vicarious thrill of having played a role in these two colts lining up at Epsom will be satisfying indeed. The post The Derby’s Guiding Light: Why the Epsom Classic is a North Star for Breeders appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

Stall Hanse's Geography will fly the flag for Germany in the G3 Diomed Stakes at Epsom on Derby Day this coming Saturday, according to trainer Peter Schiergen. A multiple group winner in his native land, the 4-year-old most recently won the G3 Kalkmann-Fruhjahrs-Meile in mid-April and was gelded last month. The son of Holy Roman Emperor will face Archie Watson trainee Brave Emperor (Sioux Nation) in that contest. “He's coming over to run, Derby day is a big day, so we will be coming,” said Schiergen, who won the G1 Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe/G1 King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes with Danedream (Lomitas) in 2012, and will saddle Tunnes (Giuliani) in Friday's G1 Coronation Cup. “I think he is in good form, we have gelded him since his last run which we thought was a good idea and we think he's in a good place.” Geography will be ridden by William Buick. The post Germany Represented On Derby Day At Epsom With Geography appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

In approaching a Saturday that threatens to restore the Triple Crown viability of the American Thoroughbred-between Journalism (Curlin) here, and a son of Justify at Epsom-it feels timely to consider a horse often viewed as typifying the precarious compromise between size and speed, on the one hand, and soundness on the other. The double-edged reputation of Unbridled's Song traces right back to his own sales history. He was the perfect commercial model for a 2-year-old auction, so big and fast that the Barretts hammer fell at $1.4 million, back then a record. A dream pinhook ($200,000 yearling) was derailed, however, when his Japanese purchaser returned the gray with an X-ray query that he felt might prove an ankle chip. Unbridled's Song showed his brilliance intact in the GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile and GI Florida Derby, but later had to deal with various issues and broke down. At stud, despite anecdotal contention over the vulnerabilities implicit in that regal 17-hand frame, he built up a remarkable legacy. It seldom pays to generalize about Thoroughbreds but there were certainly examples, including key heirs Arrogate and Liam's Map, where it paid off to give his stock time to build the strength to support their scale. Cross Traffic, indeed, didn't start until four. All sires have foals that fail to fulfil their potential, for many different reasons, and it was certainly unfair to conflate such painful experiences as those of Buddha or especially Eight Belles. What did become incontestable, and soon, was that Unbridled's Song could replicate his class. Among the stars of his debut crop was GI Breeders' Cup Distaff winner Unbridled Elaine. Not that he could claim all the credit. Her dam Carols Folly, though one of just 11 foals in her crop by a son of In Reality named Taylors Falls, had already produced Glitter Woman (Glitterman) to win five graded stakes including the GI Ashland. So when Unbridled Elaine won the Pocahontas Stakes, it was plain that Carols Folly-a stakes winner against Alabama-breds at Birmingham, no less, and sold to the co-breeders of Unbridled Elaine for $5,700-was packing more genetic prowess than her obscure antecedents might suggest. That fall she was duly recruited, in a private deal, to the broodmare band then being assembled at Summer Wind Farm. Elaines were evidently on the mind of the Lyons family! They had already bought Evil Elaine (Medieval Man) on the eve of her son Favorite Trick's success at the 1997 Breeders' Cup, and would actually send that mare to none other than Unbridled's Song for her 2003 cover. Sadly, the resulting foal would prove her last-Evil Elaine died soon after delivering a filly named Unenchantedevening-and by tragic coincidence Carols Folly was also lost that same spring. But a happier one is that Unenchantedevening's grandson Citizen Bull (Into Mischief) today shares a barn with a brilliant descendant of Carols Folly. For last weekend offered a typical snapshot of the huge impact of Unbridled's Song as a broodmare sire. We'll review a couple of other samples shortly, but Unbridled Elaine herself demands our attention as third dam of GIII Triple Bend Stakes winner Nysos (Nyquist). Unbridled Elaine was cashed out by her owners three years after retirement, to Darley for $4.4 million at the 2004 Keeneland November Sale. Her yearling daughter by Rahy had made $260,000 in the same ring that September, but never made the racetrack and proved such a disappointing producer that she was discarded for $23,000 back at Keeneland 10 years later. She was back a couple of years later, moreover, when a $7,000 RNA was apparently prelude to a private sale to Texas. Yet her first recorded foal, the unraced Zetta Z (Bernardini), has since emerged as dam of Nysos. Unfortunately for her vendors, Zetta Z was sold for just $35,000, less than the value of her Street Sense cover, at the 2021 Keeneland November Sale. Her Nyquist weanling, following her into the ring, brought $130,000. If his first pinhook cycle ($150,000 Fasig October) proved less lucrative than his second ($550,000 OBS, via Best A Luck Farm), his explosive start on the track catapulted Zetta Z's value to $2 million, a sale record, from Coolmore at Fasig-Tipton in February last year. Apparently she had already changed hands once, before that auction, and hers has obviously been a tale of winners and losers. On the face of it, Nysos has flourished from fairly fallow soil, under two mares unraced through the kind of frailties often credited to the sire of the next dam. He has evidently had one or two hold-ups himself, but let's recognize the very fertile terrain behind. The foals delivered by Unbridled Elaine after her transfer to Darley included triple graded stakes winner Etched (Forestry); G2 Champagne Stakes winner Emotionless (Shamardal); and GIII Sham Stakes winner Out of Bounds (Discreet Cat). Two of Unbridled Elaine's half-sisters, meanwhile, had further confirmed the startling powers inherited from Carols Folly. One produced triple Grade II winner Lead Story (Editor's Note); while Glitter Woman herself gave us GI Suburban Handicap winner Political Force (by Unbridled Elaine's own sire). One way or another, then, the plain record of his first two dams should not leave us too mystified regarding Nysos. Besides this deeper family, after all, the intervening seeding could hardly be more reassuring. His first three dams are by landmark distaff influences: daughters of Bernardini have already passed 100 stakes winners; Rahy's place him in the top four American broodmare sires, with 184; and Unbridled's Song, with 211, is behind only A.P. Indy and Storm Cat. At stud, Nysos is bound to prove a popular conduit for his deceased grandsire and increasingly costly sire. And any smudging of detail, over the last couple of generations, will matter little against the vigor of those broader brushstrokes. Another Harmonious Score… Two other graded stakes winners last weekend evoked the distaff legacy of Unbridled's Song, as sire of their respective granddams. Curiously, moreover, both are also out of mares by the same sire, namely Giant's Causeway. (A cross best represented by Carpe Diem, albeit more conspicuously on the track than at stud.) GIII Regret Stakes winner Fionn (Twirling Candy) is the first foal out of Gaelic Gold, who was placed three times among New York-breds in a light turf career. On retirement, she was found at the 2021 Keeneland November Sale by Dixiana Farms for $275,000. (Fionn, in utero that day, returned to the same ring as a yearling to make $75,000 from Michael Lea/George Messina.) Gaelic Gold's dam Strike It Rich (Unbridled's Song), who won the GIII Boiling Springs Stakes on turf, has additionally produced hard-knocking Sea Foam (Medaglia d'Oro), whose $850,000 career included three New York-bred stakes on dirt. As with Unbridled Elaine, however, we cannot give all the credit to Unbridled's Song. In fact, Strike It Rich's dam Belle of Perintown (Dehere) won the Pocahontas Stakes two years after Unbridled Elaine. And in her second career she further contributed to her own sire's excellent record as a broodmare sire: a daughter by Hennessy produced graded stakes winners Great Stuff (Quality Road) and Coffee in Bed (Curlin); one by Distorted Humor won a couple of stakes and placed at Grade II level; and, most notably perhaps, her son by Liam's Map (himself, of course, by Unbridled's Song) is Beau Liam, now recycling his lightning speed at Airdrie. …Plus a Truly 'Grt' Chorus The other graded stakes scorer whose dam represents the Giant's Causeway-Unbridled's Song cross was Caitlinhergrtness (Omaha Beach) in the GIII Belle Mahone Stakes. And she, too, draws Dehere into her third generation-this time on top, with her sire famously boasting Dehere's great daughter Take Charge Lady as granddam. Like Fionn the following year, Caitlinhergrtness was bought in utero with her dam, the unraced Belatrix (Giant's Causeway), for just $40,000 at the 2020 Keeneland November Sale-even though Belatrix's half-sister Dogtag (War Front) had already won three stakes. Dogtag did better yet the following year, second three times in Grade II company and third in the GI Rodeo Drive, yet Belatrix returned to Keeneland in 2023 to make just $11,000 from Sean Perl. Now Belatrix has clearly had her problems, no foal being reported the last couple of years. But the stakes have meanwhile been raised by a Canadian championship for Caitlinhergrtness, winner of the King's Plate last summer before adding a Grade I podium in the Queen Elizabeth II Challenge Cup. North of the border, of course, they know all about Unbridled's Song as a distaff brand: Moira (Ghostzapper) herself is out of one of his daughters. Once again, however, there are many other factors in play. Caitlinhergrtness, in fact, is merely confirming continued functionality in one of the best international families of our time. (Belatrix is out of a stakes-placed Unbridled's Song half-sister to none other than Shamardal, with all that entails.) Tragically Dogtag can no longer contribute to the page, her death having been reported last year-fortunately bequeathing to LNJ Foxwoods a filly by Into Mischief. (Incidentally, don't forget that the War Front-Unbridled's Song cross behind Dogtag nowadays has a gorgeous conduit in Claiborne stallion Annapolis.) So let's hope that her latest owners can maybe eke one more filly out of Belatrix. She was covered this spring by Loggins, a choice that confirms their astute eye. He's by a noted broodmare sire (Ghostzapper), as is his dam (by Blame)-while his third dam was sired by a critter name of Unbridled's Song. The post Breeding Digest: Nysos Hitting High Notes of a Familiar Song appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

Paddy Twomey has added another major owner to his Tipperary training establishment with the news that American-based John Stewart has bought Royal Ascot bound two-year-old Rogue Legend. The Havana Grey colt had won two of his last three starts in the colours of the Rogues Gallery Partnership, who sent the Golden-based handler a batch of two-year-olds for the first time this year. That support has already been justified with Rogue Legend, who was ultra-impressive when landing a conditions race over the minimum trip at Tipperary last week and has a number of options at the Royal meeting later this month. Confirming the acquisition, Stewart said, “We have purchased Rogue Legend. He is an impressive two-year-old who is two from three and has a Timeform rating of 105, which places him in the top three of all European-trained two-year-olds right now.” The owner added, “He is with trainer Paddy Toomey and will run at Ascot. We are entering him in all the two-year-old sprint races and then will see how the races come up and pick a spot. We also have Believing running as well [in the G1 King Charles III Stakes] who we own with Coolmore. And maybe one more!” It was Twomey who sourced Rogue Legend during the Book 3 session of the Tattersalls October Yearling Sale for just 55,000gns. Following an eye-catching debut at Cork, Rogue Legend bolted up in a maiden over the same course and distance before enhancing his reputation with that silky smooth performance at Tipperary. Twomey commented on Tuesday, “We're looking forward to Royal Ascot with Rogue Legend. He has been very straightforward to train and is improving with every run, culminating with an impressive weight-carrying performance at Tipperary last Tuesday evening. It's great to have John Stewart and the Resolute team join the yard and I hope we can win together at Royal Ascot.” Asked about Royal Ascot targets, Twomey concluded, “He has done all of his winning over five furlongs so one of the Windsor Castle or the Norfolk Stakes would appear to be the most likely destination but he will also be entered in the Coventry Stakes as well.” The post John Stewart Acquires Paddy Twomey-Trained Juvenile Bound For Royal Ascot appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article