Wandering Eyes

Calandagan is the world's top-rated horse and rides a string of three straight group 1 wins but faces one more challenge this season--the Nov. 30 Japan Cup (G1T).View the full article

Grade 1 winner Hope Road appears strong to get a second consecutive win in the Bayakoa Stakes (G3) at Del Mar, while Hey Nay Nay faces a competitive field of juveniles earlier on the Nov. 30 card in the Cecil B. DeMille Stakes (G3T).View the full article

HISA has issued a $6,000 fine and a 10-day suspension to trainer Danny Gargan for breezing a horse six days after it had received an intra-articular joint injection. He is to serve his suspension from Dec. 7-16.View the full article

Domino Vitali (Uncle Mo), one of just two first-time starters in the field, made a winning debut for Amo Racing after they picked her up for $600,000 at OBS March last year. Quickly to the front from the outside gate under Daniel Centeno, the 4-5 favorite had to shake off early pressure from Hola Hermosa (Adios Charlie) but, once free of that rival, burst clear of the back and came home largely untested six lengths ahead of Blazing Affair (Mastery). Bred by Repole Stable, who purchased West Coast Chick for $400,000 at Keeneland November in 2019, Domino Vitali is her dam's third winner from four to race. That dam, herself a half-sister to GISW and sire Klimt (Quality Road), has a yearling Life Is Good filly sold for $170,000 at Keeneland September this year and a weanling Forte colt who brought $125,000 at Keeneland November behind his dam who sold in foal to Yaupon for $60,000. DOMINO VITALI was much the best today under Daniel Centeno for owner @amoracingltd pic.twitter.com/9n3BGhBmd9 — Delgado Racing (@RacingDelgado) November 28, 2025 6th-Tampa Bay Downs, $32,000, Msw, 11-28, 3yo/up, f/m, 6 1/2f, 1:17.80, ft, 6 lengths. DOMINO VITALI (f, 3, Uncle Mo–West Coast Chick {GSP, $163,184}, by Malibu Moon) Sales History: $280,000 Ylg '23 KEESEP; $600,000 2yo '24 OBSMAR. Lifetime Record: 1-1-0-0, $19,200. Click for the Equibase.com chart or VIDEO, sponsored by FanDuel TV. O-Amo Racing USA; B-Repole Stable, Inc. (KY); T-Jorge Delgado. The post Uncle Mo’s Domino Vitali Goes Coast To Coast In Tampa Maiden Win appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

Calandagan is the world's top-rated horse and rides a string of three straight group 1 wins but faces one more challenge this season--the Nov. 30 Japan Cup (G1).View the full article

Hall of Fame trainer Steve Asmussen starts Iroquois Stakes (G3) winner Spice Runner and dominant allowance winner Soldier N Diplomat in the Nov. 29 Kentucky Jockey Club at 1 1/16 miles on the Churchill Downs main track.View the full article

Ag Bullet, bought back by owners Calvin Nguyen and Joey Tran at The November Sale at Fasig-Tipton when she fell short of her reserve when bidding halted at $2.9 million, may collect instead Nov. 30 in the $300,000 Matriarch Stakes (G1T) at Del Mar.View the full article

Right arms and legs were made to be given for the Tattersalls December Foal Sale-topping Frankel colt who, at 1.15 million gns to Coolmore Stud, became the most expensive foal sold anywhere in Europe this year. Like two old gunslingers facing off at dawn, MV Magnier took his position at the back of the cage while his opposition and eventual underbidder, Juddmonte's Simon Mockridge, sat almost directly opposite the Coolmore posse in the seats close to the exit of the ring. Flanked by Barry Mahon, Mockridge did not go down without a fight. In fact, he produced an audacious piece of bidding when the James Wigan-bred colt was hovering on the 900,000gns mark by instructing Tattersalls boss Edmond Mahony to round the number up to a cool million. Alas, that volley was returned by Magnier and then some. “A great result for James Wigan – he is one of the best breeders there is,” said Magnier, with his pockets a little lighter but arms and legs intact. “It's a great farm and they have a great track record of raising very good horses. Frankel is a very good stallion, as you all know, and a lot of the sons of Galileo are doing well at stud.” This sale has been a happy hunting ground for Coolmore in recent times. Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf winner Gstaad (Starspangledbanner), who Magnier sourced from Maywood Stud here in 2023 for 450,000gns, is perhaps the best example of such. Irish 2,000 Guineas winner Magna Grecia is another. Magnier revealed that the Frankel colt would likely chart a similar path to those horses and end up in Ballydoyle. After that, there's no predicting what kind of heights he might scale. He said, “We'll bring him back home and we'll review what we do in the summer but I would say most likely he will go to Ballydoyle. It's a lot of money for him but, I suppose when you breed a horse like that, the Wigans deserved to get that price.” If the bidding battle between Coolmore and Juddmonte was one of wit and great stamina, what can you say about the foresight of the breeder, who sourced the granddam, In The Mist (Pivotal), as a foal at this sale exactly 20 years ago. In The Mist carried Wigan's distinguished colours to victory but her daughter and dam of the Frankel colt, Cloudy Dawn (Kodiac), really put the page in lights with a Group 3 success when in training with William Haggas. Wigan said, “I didn't have any sort of price in my head. I just thought he was a very nice horse who deserved to make a good price. I bred the dam and bought the granddam as a foal at this sale. Frankel is a stallion who produces horses with great bone, great substance and I think he suits a mare with speed – and she was fast.” Asked if he always knew that the Frankel colt could be something out of the ordinary, he added, “He's always been a very nice horse and he has a very nice character. Obviously, you don't expect to sell a foal for that sort of price. Delighted that MV got him and he is going to the best possible home. The mare is back in foal to Camelot.” While the stats were down overall on Friday, it is worth remembering that this corresponding day of trade 12 months ago was off the charts. Of the 215 foals offered on Friday, 188 sold at a clearance rate of 87%, which was down by 3%. The turnover fell by 25% to 23,311,500gns while the median fell by 9% to 80,000gns. The average fell by 22% to 123,997gns. Cheers! More Success For Starman's Breeder David Ward A Frankel colt out of a sister to Starman; it sounds like something from a Carlsberg advert, doesn't it? 'Carlsberg don't breed horses, but if they did, they'd probably be the best in the world.' Okay, you get the gist. Well, David Ward has enjoyed something of his own real-life Carlsberg advert. Having bred and raced the first-season sire sensation Starman, he also supplied the Frankel colt out of Group 3-placed Sunday Star (Kodiac), who sold to Ed Sackville on behalf of TBT Racing for 700,000gns. The colt, who was described by the agent as having a stallion's pedigree, was sold by Watton Manor Sud. Ed Player commented, “The pedigree needs no introduction. Starman has had the most incredible first season and I think he is going to get even better. His horses are scopey and they stay a mile – he is going to be the real deal as a stallion. There is no reason why this lad can't turn into a stallion, too. I am delighted for David as he puts a lot into it and he has had a fantastic year on the track and with the stallion.” TBT Racing has not had a bad year, either, and Simon Sadler, the man behind the white, blue and orange silks, was in attendance at Tattersalls to oversee his new purchase. The owner of horses like Noble Champion, Ten Bob Tony and more, said, “It's been fantastic – really enjoyable. Never really anticipated having three Group winners and a Listed winner. Ecstatic. This rounds it all off. Today has been a great day, seeing Frankel [at Banstead Manor Stud] this morning and then buying a Frankel who is related to Starman. Very much looking forward to next year.” Sackville added, “Simon came to Newmarket today. We went to Banstead Manor this morning to see Frankel. After seeing Frankel, he wanted a Frankel. Lovely horse. Ed [Walker, trainer] knows the family better than anyone. He trains the full-sister, who we expect to hopefully win next time. It's a stallion's pedigree and he is a lovely, athletic colt who will hopefully make up into a very nice racehorse.” Ace Stud Swoops For Gewan's Little Brother Given Yuesheng Zhang's Yulong team holds Classic aspirations for Dewhurst Stakes winner Gewan (Night Of Thunder), it was not surprising to see those connections swoop for his little brother by Native Trail from Overbury Stud at 500,000gns. Gewan has been one of the star performers of 2025. A breeze-up graduate, he won the Group 3 Acomb Stakes before being snapped up by the Yulong boss. That proved to be an inspired acquisition when Gewan defeated Gstaad in the Dewhurst, a performance that will no doubt provide connections with genuine Classic hopes heading into the winter. The Native Trail colt, who was consigned by Overbury Stud, was rightly billed as one of the star lots of the sale and he didn't disappoint. “Surprised, thrilled and very excited – it is wonderful,” said Overbury Stud's Simon Sweeting. “We have been very lucky indeed. He is a late foal, but it is fabulous.” He added, “We did consider selling as a yearling and, if we had to take him home today, we would have done. We entered him before the Dewhurst and when myself, Charlie and Richard [Brown, Blandford Bloodstock] chatted, we decided that if we could get him away to an end user now, we would do that and we are thrilled that he has been bought by Ace Stud.” The colt's dam, Grey Mystere (Lethal Force), was shrewdly purchased by the ace agent Brown for €120,000 at the breeding stock sale at Arqana in 2021. Sweeting recalled, “We were very lucky! I was in England, Charlie was here in Newmarket, and Richard was in France, and we got a call from him to say that you have got a new mare. She is empty this year because this was so late, but she is booked into Night Of Thunder for next spring.” On the emotions surrounding the sale, he concluded, “You could watch the Dewhurst and enjoy it, but this was a blur. It won't sink in for a while – it might never happen again so we will enjoy this.” Subplots In many ways, Frankel was the hero of the day given the only three foals offered by the superstar stallion ended up being the three most expensive lots through the ring on Friday. Featuring among that 2.7 million spend was an 850,000gns Lady Bamford homebred filly out of Group 1-placed Tropbeau (Showcasing). It was Henry Lascelles who retained the filly on behalf of her breeder. He commented, “She's a homebred filly who we really like. Her full-brother is a two-year-old with the Gosdens. We like him too and he'll run in the spring next year, and we also have a Night Of Thunder filly who'll go into training next year too. This filly is a credit to Lady Bamford, Chris [Lock, stud manager] and the whole team at Daylesford. She's a lovely filly and we're delighted to get her back. Tropbeau was a very good racemare, she was a Group 2 winner at two and Group 1-placed at three. She's a really exciting mare.” Minzaal's stock has never been higher and many shrewd judges are tipping the Derrinstown Stud-based stallion for first-season sire honours in 2026. The Group 1-winning sprinter is one of the most famous horses that Ringfort Stud boss Derek Veitch has bred and the County Offaly-based breeder was back in the big time with a half-brother by Blue Point selling for 260,000gns to Manyard Thoroughbreds. Veitch said, “Lots of good people turned up for him. It was brilliant and the mare has been really lucky for me. It still makes me giggle when I see all the gilets and hats here with Minzaal's name on them – to think that our little farm in Offaly is having an influence on the breed.” On selecting Blue Point for Pardoven (Clodovil), he added, “He was a very good sprinter – he is a young sire that suits the market and the pedigree suited. It made a lot of sense. We need to decide what to do with the mare now. She is empty and I could do with a filly out of her at this stage. We might visit some neighbours and send her to Starman.” Paddy Twomey has been a notable force at the foal sales this year – signing under various different guises – and went to 550,000gns on behalf of Bond Thoroughbreds to secure a Wootton Bassett colt out of Galileo mare First Flower, who is a sister to Irish 1,000 Guineas heroine Hermosa. The Wootton Bassett colt was consigned by Baroda Stud. Godolphin's sole purchase of the week came deep into the session when Anthony Stroud went to 625,000gns for land a Kingman filly dual German Group 3 scorer Well Disposed (Dubawi). Frank Dorff, manager of Gestut Rottgen, said, “She looks just like her mother. I am very happy she made a very good price and she has gone to a very good home. Let's hope she is a Group 1 winner in Britain. He added, “She is a special one and we were very tempted to keep her. You don't often breed one with that quality and the market recognised that and sometimes you have to sell. The mare is in foal to Frankel and if it is a colt he will be a stallion prospect. We have not sold many from the family as we are not a commercial stud. We breed to produce good racehorses and later good broodmares.” Buy of the day Top marks to David Byrne of Rochestown Lodge Stud for acting fastest to secure lot 820, a Mehmas filly who failed to sell in the ring at 70,000gns, but was signed up merely minutes afterwards for 68,000gns. A good-looking filly by a top-notch stallion, she fell through the cracks for whatever reason by not selling in the ring. Byrne didn't complicate things and is understood to have gotten down to the Kenilworth House Stud's door before a number of other pinhookers. She's one to keep an eye on with a view towards the yearlings sales next year. Chances are she won't be led out of the ring unsold twice in her life. Thought for the day Rare enough that you canvass the opinion of buyers about the first-season sires and every single bit of feedback is positive. From Dragon Symbol to Good Guess and Triple Time, the general consensus among buyers is that the foals by the younger generation have been very good. The market seems to agree. The post Coolmore Beats Juddmonte To The Punch On 1.15 Million Gns Frankel Colt At Tattersalls appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

In this continuing series, we take a look ahead at US-bred and/or conceived runners entered for the upcoming weekend at the tracks on the Japan Racing Association circuit, with a focus on pedigree and/or performance in the sales ring. Here are the horses of interest for this weekend running at Kyoto and Tokyo Racecourses: Saturday, November 29, 2025 6th-KYO, ¥14,250,000 ($91k), Newcomers, 2yo, 1800m MATENRO HOUR (c, 2, Constitution–Stave, by Ghostzapper) was a $1.1-million purchase by former trainer Yuichi Fukunaga at the 2024 Keeneland September Sale and is the second foal to the races for her three-times stakes-placed dam, a daughter of Grade II winner Buy the Barrel (E Dubai) and a half-sister to European multiple group-placed Mise En Rose (War Front) and to the unraced Indian Bay (Indian Charlie). The latter has left her mark on racing in this jurisdiction as the dam of Group 3 winner and Group 1-placed turf sprinter Shivaji (First Samurai), while his sister Tarabi was a stakes winner and twice placed at the elite level in this country. The yearling half-sister to Matenro Hour, Maranello (Not This Time), was knocked down to Cindy Heider for an even $2 million at Keeneland this past September. O-Chiyono Terada; B-Hinkle Farms (KY); T-Yuichi Fukunaga Sunday, Noveber 30, 2025 5th-TOK, ¥14,250,000 ($91k), Newcomers, 2yo, 1600m EGYPTIAN MAU (JPN) (f, 2, American Pharoah–Heavenhasmynikki, by Majestic Warrior) is the first Japanese-foaled produce for her dam, who carried the colors of owner Ron Paolucci to eight victories and earnings of better than $426,000, including the 2019 GIII Vagrancy Handicap at Belmont Park. The Ohio-bred mare changed hands at the 2021 Fasig-Tipton November Sale, fetching $775,000 from Katsumi Yoshida carrying the Into Mischief filly Sylph's Mischief, a winner at two in Japan in 2024. Tom Marquand, who rides Group 1 winner Brede Weg (Jpn) (Lord Kanaloa {Jpn}) in Sunday's G1 Japan Cup, has the call on the filly, who runs in the Silk Racing blue-with-red-dots. O-Silk Racing Co Ltd; B-Northern Racing; T-Ryo Takei The post Seven-Figure Constitution Colt Makes First Appearance At Kyoto appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

On a day many gathered with friends and family to reflect on the good fortune and blessings in their lives, AEOLIAN (f, 3, Tapit–Danzatrice {MSW & GSP, $312,145}, by Dunkirk) gave her connections a Thanksgiving Day thrill in the eighth race at Churchill Downs. The grey bobbled at the break in her unveiling Aug. 31 at Saratoga, and was a well-beaten fifth against those maidens. She returned last out Oct. 17 at Keeneland, got an extra sixteenth of a mile to work with, and ran a much-improved second to be beaten by a nose in the shadow of the wire by a 12-1 longshot. Brushing with Delicious Diva (Hard Spun) on their way out of the gate here, Aeolian watched the race unfold from midpack as the frontrunner cruised through fractions of :23.53 and a half in :46.65 with pressure coming at her from all sides. The grey was rolling from the four path as the complexion up front changed around the bend, and Glamorama (Justify) briefly held the lead as they swung into the lane, but it was short-lived. Collaring that one in upper stretch, Aeolian drew off to win by six lengths. A full-sister to 'TDN Rising Star, presented by Hagyard' Tapit Trice, GISW, $1,873,650, the victress is the most recent full-sibling to the races for dam Danzatrice. All three of her Tapits–Aeolian, Tapit Trice, and Danzit–have all gotten their picture taken and the aforementioned eldest brother is her lone elite-level runner. The mare, a half-sister to champion juvenile filly MGISW Jaywalk (Cross Traffic), has a fourth Tapit, a yearling, and a 2025 weanling by Not This Time. She returned to the breed-shaping stallion for a fifth cover for 2026. One of Danzatrice's half-sisters is the mother of SW Jupiter (Upstart) while a second claims SP Abdul (Tapit). 8th-Churchill Downs, $120,000, Msw, 11-27, 3yo/up, f/m, 1m, 1:36.62, ft, 6 lengths. AEOLIAN (f, 3, Tapit–Danzatrice {MSW & GSP, $312,145}, by Dunkirk) Lifetime Record: 3-1-1-0, $94,750. O-Gainesway Stable (Antony Beck); B-Gainesway Thoroughbreds LTD. (KY); T-Chad C. Brown. *Full to Tapit Trice, GISW, $1,873,650. Click for the Equibase.com chart or VIDEO, sponsored by FanDuel TV. The post Tapit’s Aeolian Rolls Home Best Against Maidens on Churchill’s Thanksgiving Card appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

Davyjonz's victory in the eighth race at Laurel Park on Thanksgiving Day put a tidy bow on a highly successful season of turf racing in Maryland. View the full article

Inglis Digital USA has attracted a record-sized catalogue for its 2025 December sale, led by the multiple Grade 3-placed Brotha Keny (Mo Town), who enters the auction off a victory in the Zia Park Derby Nov. 25, according to a press release on Friday from the online auction company. Bidding is now open for the 79-horse sale, and the first lot will close Wednesday, Dec. 3 at 2 p.m. Eastern, with subsequent listings hammering in three-minute increments. The auction offers horses available for inspection in eight different states, giving buyers a local option to shop and buy all over the map. The December catalogue is highlighted by Brotha Keny, a 3-year-old gelding whose steady climb up the ladder has led him to become a Grade 3-placed multiple stakes winner, with room to keep climbing at age four. Trained by William Morey for owners Lance and Steve Kinross, Brotha Keny has won two of his last three starts, first taking the Bourbon Flight Stakes Sept. 20 at Churchill Downs, and most recently shipping west to Zia Park, where he swung wide and charged down the stretch to take the listed Zia Park Derby by a half-length. Earlier this year, Brotha Keny showed his first flashes of upward mobility, finishing third in the GIII Indiana Derby and GIII West Virginia Derby. A versatile runner, the dark bay has won at distances from one mile to 1 3/16 miles, has already beaten older competition as a 3-year-old, and earned a Beyer Speed Figure of 93 in four of his last five starts, showing he is capable of competing at a high-level for a broad spectrum of buyers. Brotha Keny is consigned by Paramount Sales, agent, and is available for inspection at Turfway Park. Also included among the sale's racing prospects is New York-bred Share the Ludt, a stakes-placed runner who comes to the December sale off a hard-charging score in a 6 1/2-furlong allowance race at Aqueduct. He earned a 77 Beyer Speed Figure for winning the Nov. 15 race. It was the second career win for the 3-year-old Catalina Cruiser colt, who graduated in May of this year in an Aqueduct maiden special weight by six lengths. He has already made an impact on the lucrative New York-bred stakes calendar as a 2-year-old, finishing second in last year's New York Breeders' Futurity at Finger Lakes. Share the Ludt is offered by New York-based Melanie Giddings, who owns and trains the colt. Breeders looking to expand their broodmare band will find plenty of quality options in the December catalog, including Mo Pro, a 6-year-old Uncle Mo mare who is offered in-foal to the red-hot young sire Vekoma, and believed to be carrying a colt. Consigned by Small Batch Sales, agent, Mo Pro comes from a page rich with black type, as a half-sister to SW Oscar Eclipse (Oscar Performance) and Grade II-placed Malibu Curl (Curlin). Her extended family adds further stakes success with Grade I winner A.P. Indian (Indian Charlie) and Grade II winner Tiz Shea D (Tiznow). Sea Rocket, a 4-year-old daughter of Into Mischief carries a foal from the debut crop of GI Belmont Stakes winner Dornoch. Consigned by Norevale Farm, Sea Rocket is a half-sister to just-retired MGSW Royal Spa (Violence), and she hails from the family of Grade I winner Sippican Harbor (Orb) and Japanese multiple stakes winner Awesome Result (Justify). Clicquot | Sarah Andrew Erna, a winning 5-year-old Curlin mare, is offered in-foal to another debuting stallion in Grade I winner Arabian Knight. She has recent graded black-type on her page, in 2025 GI Cotillion Stakes winner Clicquot (Quality Road), along with Grade I winner and black-type producer Magnificent Song (Unbridled's Song). She is offered by Consign Ltd., agent. Other mares in the catalog are pregnant to stallions including Bolden, Cairo Prince, Cyberknife, Flameaway, Flat Out, Greatest Honour, Irish War Cry, Known Agenda, Mr. Jagermeister, Oxbow, Proxy, Sacred Life, and Speaker's Corner. Those shopping for the long-term will find yearlings sired by Basin, By My Standards, Central Banker, Coal Front, Free Drop Billy, Heart to Heart, Holiday Promise, Omaha Beach, Rock Your World, Tapiture, Thousand Words, and War Dancer. Stallions with weanlings in the catalogue include Americanrevolution, Country Grammer, Global Campaign, Kantharos, Modernist, Mucho Macho Man, Silver State, Tourist, and Union Rags. “We're offering our biggest catalog to date, and I'm really proud of what we've put together,” said Inglis Digital USA CEO Kyle Wilson. “The quality is top-notch, and should suit any breeding or racing operation.” Interested parties must register for an account on the Inglis Digital USA website and request a bidding limit in order to place bids. Click here to view the catalogue and register to bid. The post Zia Park Derby Winner Brotha Keny Leads Record-Sized Inglis Digital USA December Sale appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

All proceeds from the upcoming Sha Tin meeting on Sunday will be donated to support victims and their families from the Tai Po fire, according to a Hong Kong Jockey Club (HKJC) release. The fire ravaged a public housing estate in Tai Po, Hong Kong earlier this week, killing over 125 people. The HKJC said in a statement, “The Hong Kong Jockey Club is deeply saddened by the loss of so many lives during the tragic fire at Wang Fuk Court in Tai Po, as well as the injuries and personal loss suffered by many others. The Club has announced its first tranche donation of HK$100 million, through its Charities Trust, to support victims and the families of the deceased. The Club has also reviewed all of its operations to ensure that in every aspect of its activities we recognize the terrible impact of this tragedy. “Moreover, the race meeting scheduled to take place on Sunday will be conducted on a fully scaled back basis. The meeting will be held behind closed doors with only owners, stewards, voting members and their invited guests in attendance. There will be no sponsors. The stewards of the Club, officials, trainers and jockeys will observe a minute of silence and jockeys will wear black armbands as a mark of respect. There will be no live music. Off-course betting branches will provide essential customer services only. Members and public customers with table or seating reservations in racecourses and off-course betting branches will be refunded. “All gross income from this race meeting, estimated to be around HK$70 million, will be donated to support those affected by the tragedy, in consultation with the Government. This brings the Club's total contribution to around HK$170 million [€18,821,712].” The post Sha Tin’s Sunday Meeting Proceeds To Be Donated To Support Tai Po Fire Victims appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

The 2026 Japan Road to the Kentucky Derby kicks off Saturday afternoon with the running of the $196,541 Cattleya Stakes, an allowance race over the one-turn 1600-meter configuration at Tokyo Racecourse. And if the ante-post market is anything to go by, horses bred in and/or sourced out of American bloodstock markets should have a giant say in the outcome with the first Saturday in May just over five months away. The cat was very much out of the bag when Magna Victor (Maxfield) made his first trip to the races in a 1400-meter newcomers event at Hanshin back on Sept. 6. A $75,000 Keeneland September yearling turned $1-million OBS March breezer, the son of the dual stakes-winning and Grade II-placed Eyeinthesky (Sky Mesa) was hammered into 1-10 favoritism and kicked away in the final 400 meters to graduate by some nine lengths (see below, SC 10), good for 'TDN Rising Star' presented by Hagyard honors. Leading rider Yuga Kawada was on board that afternoon and has a return call from gate seven for trainer Mitsu Nakauchida, an increasingly important presence at U.S. yearling and juvenile sales. Satono Voyage (Jpn) (Into Mischief) carries the recognizable silks owner Hajime Satomi and looks to remain perfect in three tries since a debut effort on the grass this past June. A 10-length maiden winner over 1200 meters at Niigata Aug. 9, he easily accounted for allowance rivals by five lengths going the metric seven furlong at headquarters on Nov. 9. A son of the extremely talented Jolie Olimpica (Brz) (Drosselmeyer)–who was sold to Japanese interests for $675,000 at the 2021 Fasig-Tipton November Sale–Satono Voyage is the mount of Keita Tosaki and will break from the four hole. 東京第９レース #オキザリス賞 (２歳１勝クラス、ダート1400m)は #岩田望来 騎手騎乗の #サトノボヤージュ が６番手から抜け出し、マジッククッキーに５馬身差を付けました。 勝ちタイムは、コースレコードに０秒１差まで迫る１分23秒２、上り３ハロン36秒８(稍重馬場)。… pic.twitter.com/FjH0T9sEww — 『優駿』編集部 (@YUSHUN_Magazine) November 9, 2025 A distant third choice in the wagering is Koichi Nishikawa's Arcadia Cafe (Into Mischief), a $550,000 Keeneland September yearling and a half-brother to the same owner's Cafe Pharoah (American Pharoah)–champion dirt horse in Japan and back-to-back winner of the G1 February Stakes over course and distance–and Luxor Cafe (American Pharoah), who took the third and fourth legs of the 2025 Japan Road to the Kentucky Derby. Narrowly beaten on debut, Arcadia Cafe graduated over the 1600 meters on a rain-affected Tokyo main track Nov. 1 (see below, SC 2) and once again has the services of Damian Lane. The progeny of Mary's Follies (More Than Ready)–also the dam of 'Rising Star' Eclipse Award winner Regal Glory (Animal Kingdom)–are a combined 8-8 going a mile on the Tokyo dirt track. The post American-Bred, -Sired Juveniles Loom Large In Cattleya Stakes appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

The Jockey Club of Canada plans to offer a new Outstanding Western Canadian Backstretch Worker Award which will be presented for the first time at the upcoming 51st annual Sovereign Awards ceremony, the organization said in a release on Friday. The new award will go along with the Outstanding Groom Award, which has been given in the past to a stablehand working in Ontario. The Backstretch Worker Award is open to those who hold a valid Thoroughbred license in the provinces of Alberta, British Columbia, and/or Manitoba. Click here to submit nominations for all awards. The post Backstretch Worker Commendation Added To Canadian Sovereign Awards appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

GI Belmont Derby winner Test Score (Lookin At Lucky) looks poised to add a second win at the top level Saturday in the GI Hollywood Derby at Del Mar. The only Grade I winner in the field, the Amerman Racing homebred has strung together an enviable career with only two off-the-board finishes in 11 races and earnings north of $1.4m for trainer Graham Motion. He exits a solid win in last month's GII Twilight Derby at Santa Anita over this same 1 1/8-mile distance, defeating Maaz (Fr) (Galiway {GB}) who lines up to oppose him once more Saturday. That French-bred runner, imported early this year after breaking his maiden in England, picked up his first win two back at the mile Oct. 3 before running second at 15-1 odds in the Twilight Derby. Beaten 2 1/2 lengths in the King's Plate, Tom's Magic (Justify) rebounded last time out to take the second leg of the Canadian Triple Crown in a narrow win going 1 1/2 miles in the Breeders' Stakes Sept. 28. He's been freshened since for trainer Michael Stidham but will need to sharpen considerably given his only head-to-head contest facing Test Score resulted in a ninth at Keeneland in the GIII Transylvania Stakes back in April. As the only other horse in the field to even line up for a Grade I race, Noble Confessor (Quality Road) ships in for Todd Pletcher and St. Elias Stables off a pair of seconds in New York in the GII Jockey Club Derby Invitational Oct. 4 and the GIII Hill Prince Stakes Nov. 8. His only prior try at the top level was a sixth, beaten 2 1/4 lengths, in last year's GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf on the local course. Tom's Magic | Julia Sebastianelli/EQUI-PHOTO The field also features a pair of first-time stakes winners led by recent Let It Ride Stakes victor Tempus Volat (Not This Time) and Juddmonte homebred Salamis (Speightstown) who captured the Gio Ponti Stakes at Aqueduct Sept.28. Making their stakes debuts are Copp (Blame) for Michael McCarthy and maiden Kokosan (Unified) for John Sadler. Earlier in the card, the graded action kicks off as Cabo Spirit (Pioneerof the Nile) and Almendares (GB) (Havana Grey {GB}) renew their rivalry in the GII Seabiscuit Handicap. The pair were separated by just a head as they both finished behind Johannes (Nyquist) in the GII City of Hope Mile at Santa Anita Sept. 27. Stay Hot (Summer Front) also looks to break through here after a pair of close finishes in graded stakes company his last two starts for Peter Eurton. 6-year-old El Potente (Temple City) exits back to back wins including a three-length romp in the GIII Thunder Road Stakes but that was his last race and he comes off a nine-month layoff Saturday for Dan Blacker. Sumter (War Front) led for much of the running of this race one year ago but faded badly to last. He exits a win in the Lure Stakes Oct. 18 for Richard Mandella. Rounding out the graded stakes action at Del Mar Saturday, the 2-year-old fillies go one mile in the GIII Jimmy Durante Stakes. A largely untested group, there are a couple of class droppers in the mix led by GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies runner La Ville Lumiere (City of Light). While seventh there and never a factor, the Michael McCarthy runner gets back to grass where she broke her maiden earlier this season. Sweet Little Lila (Ire) (Palace Pier {GB}), while still a maiden, ran third going just a 1/16th longer in the Selima Stakes two back at Laurel for Brittany Russell and Umbralle (Into Mischief) also exits stakes company on the dirt when fourth in the Anoakia Stakes Oct. 19. Trainer Phllip D'Amato gives Yours Sincerely (Ire) (Cable Bay {Ire}) another try after she ran fourth on this surface and distance in the GIII Surfer Girl Stakes Oct. 5. Two runners make just their second start with Whisper Hill Farm homebred Just Aloof (Justify) exiting the narrowest of wins on debut at Aqueduct for Chad Brown Oct. 16 and Cee Drew (Cistron) entering off a state-bred win at Santa Anita for Dan Blacker. Making her North American debut is Special Wood (Fr) (Wooded {Ire}) who came over from France after her last start in a stakes race at Lyon-Parilly Sept. 9. And rail-drawn Latte Luv (Constitution), who broke her maiden on the grass in her last start in gate to wire fashion, will likely look repeat that effort for Chief Stipe O'Neill. Letmecounttheways | Coglianese In Kentucky, the 2-year-old fillies continue to shine over on the main track in the GII Golden Rod Stakes. After the scratch earlier in the week of main contender Explora (Blame) for Bob Baffert, the race could come down to undefeated New York-bred Letmecounttheways (Yaupon) for Michael Maker. Perfect in two starts with an average winning margin of 5 3/4 lengths, she exits a stakes win in the Maid O' The Mist Stakes at Aqueduct going one mile Oct. 25. She lines up just inside of Life of Joy (Gun Runner) who rocketed to a maiden win at Horseshoe Indy by 14 3/4 lengths and backed that form up with a 2 1/4-length win in the Rags to Riches Stakes over course and distance Oct. 26 for Brad Cox. “We really like her,” Cox said of Life of Joy. “She broke her maiden in Indiana and it was a really big step up going from that race to the stakes at Churchill. That race [the Rags to Riches] came up with somewhat of a short field and she got a really good trip. There are a few more fillies in this race and it's a deeper group . She has to step up again. She's another one that had a really good breeze this morning [Nov. 24] over this track. She is training well and is training forward since that last run. We've seen positive things from her since that last run.” A third undefeated filly, Baracca (Oscar Performance), joins the line up from the rail for Brendan Walsh off a win in the optional claiming ranks at Churchill Oct. 31. Walsh also starts second-time starter and 'TDN Rising Star, presented by Hagyard' Bella Ballerina (Street Sense) who broke her maiden at Keeneland Oct. 5 by 4 1/4 lengths. Fellow 'TDN Rising Star' Atropa (Into Mischief) impressed for Cherie DeVaux in her second start at Keeneland Oct. 9, breaking her maiden by 10 lengths. And The Grumpy Rabbit (Not This Time) picked up Grade I black-type two starts back when third in the GI Darley Alcibiades at Keeneland Oct. 3 and most recently ran second behind Life of Joy in the Rags to Riches Stakes. The post Test Score The Class Of Saturday Graded Action At Del Mar appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

The second choice on the tote at 2-1, Alpine Princess (Empire Maker) gained the lead in the lane and never looked back to take home the GIII Falls City Stakes at Churchill Downs on Thanksgiving. The filly put in an extensive campaign, which included a trio of runner-up finishes at the higher-level dating back to the GIII Comely Stakes at the Big A a year ago. Alpine Princess was last seen running second in the GII Locust Grove Stakes under the Twin Spires Sept. 13. The 4-year-old made the pace after the bell when there were no takers from the rest of the field. In control around the first turn, Alpine Princess was joined by longshot Corningstone (Kantharos), who decided to go to the front up the backstretch. The Brad Cox trainee moved off the rail and went on the attack with a strong move around the far turn. After a brief duel past the eighth pole, Alpine Princess got the better of her rival and won the holiday feature. Favorite & MGSW Royal Spa (Violence), who was making her final start before she heads to the breeding shed, finished fifth. “I'm so proud of her that she [Alpine Princess] was able to get a graded stakes victory today,” said trainer Brad Cox, who also won the 2019 Falls City with Mylady Curlin. “It meant a lot to her owners and I'm thankful to get the job done today on Thanksgiving.” Pedigree Notes: The venerable Classic Empire (by Pioneerof the Nile) now has 40 graded winners to his credit and a roster which includes additions like Interstatedaydream and the Cox-trained Angel of Empire. The winner is her dam's first foal. Le Moine is also responsible for current 3-year-old filly in-training Eliza Vance (Mitole), a yearling filly by Game Winner and a weanling filly by Forte. She was bred to Vekoma for 2026. Alpine Princess's second dam is Canadian stakes winner Retraceable (Medaglia d'Oro), who produced MSW Another Miracle (American Pharoah). The Falls City champ includes among her extended female family Canadian MGSW Passion For Action (Speightstown). Thursday, Churchill Downs FALLS CITY S.-GIII, $385,000, Churchill Downs, 11-27, 3yo/up, f/m, 1 1/8m, 1:50.46, ft. 1–ALPINE PRINCESS, 121, f, 4, by Classic Empire 1st Dam: Le Moine, by Curlin 2nd Dam: Retraceable, by Medaglia d'Oro 3rd Dam: Embraceable, by Dehere 1ST GRADED STAKES WIN. ($190,000 Ylg '22 KEESEP). O-Full of Run Racing II LLC and Madaket Stables LLC; B-Betz/DJ Stables/Peter V. Lamantia/Classic Empire Syndicate (KY); T-Brad H. Cox; J-Irad Ortiz, Jr. $240,455. Lifetime Record: 17-6-4-4, $949,065. Werk Nick Rating: A+. Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree. Click for the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree. 2–Corningstone, 121, m, 5, Kantharos–Ice Women, by Street Sense. ($90,000 Wlg '20 KEENOV; $75,000 Ylg '21 KEESEP; $275,000 4yo '24 KEENOV). O-Payson Stud, Inc. and RTA Trust; B-Deann Baer & Greg Baer DVM (IN); T-Kenneth G. McPeek. $63,050. 3–Raging Sea, 125, m, 5, Curlin–Stormy Welcome, by Storm Cat. ($300,000 RNA Ylg '21 KEESEP). O/B-Alpha Delta Stables, LLC (KY); T-Chad C. Brown. $39,025. Margins: 2, 5 1/4, NK. Odds: 2.41, 27.07, 3.48. Also Ran: Regaled, Royal Spa, Neon Icon, In Just My Heels, Chilled. Scratched: Quietside, Standoutsensation. Click for the Equibase.com chart and the TJCIS.com PPs. VIDEO, sponsored by FanDuel TV. Alpine Princess takes the G3 Falls City at @churchilldowns under @iradortiz for trainer @bradcoxracing! #TwinSpiresReplay pic.twitter.com/5XL5GjySo5 — TwinSpires Racing (@TwinSpires) November 27, 2025 The post Alpine Princess Feasts On Falls City Under Twin Spires On Thursday appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

3rd-CD, 120K, Msw, 2yo, f, 7f, 1:56 p.m. The second of two 'Stars of Tomorrow' days at Churchill Downs features a card loaded with promise. In a battle of homebred heavyweights, POWERED BY FAMILY (Quality Road) debuts for St. Elias Stable and West Point Thoroughbreds. Out of GI Personal Ensign winner Icon Project, who RNA'd at the Tattersalls December Mare Sale for 1,450,000gns in 2015, the filly is a half to GSW Fashion Business (GB) (Frankel {GB}). Out of a Grade I winner herself, Icon Project is a half-sister to the dam of MGSW/MGISP and leading sire Munnings (Speightstown). Rail-drawn Al Ghadeer (Gun Runner), out of GISP Classofsixtythree, is a full-sister to GSW Sixtythreecaliber and a half-sister to GSW/GISP Gunmental Gray (Exchange Rate). Another homebred, How About Now (Not This Time) races for Mandy Pope's Whisper Hill Farm. A half-sister to SW/MG1SP Fleet Review (War Front), she is out of a winning full-sister to MGISW Rip Van Winkle (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}). Noble Glow (Gun Runner), a Juddmonte homebred, is the second foal out of Argentinian Mare of the Year Summer of Love, a dual Group 1 winner and Champion 3-year-old filly in her native country in 2018. $500,000 Keeneland September grad White Smoke (Essential Quality) is a half-sister to GSW Promise Keeper (Constitution), GSP War Stopper (Declaration of War) and SW Wicked Awesome (Awesome Again). First dam Mira Alta is an unraced half-sister to GISW Great Hunter (Aptitude) and to the dam of MGSW/MGISP Owendale (Into Mischief). Second-timer Presumptuous (Into Mischief), a Godolphin hombred for Brendan Walsh out of SW/GISP Emboldened, adds blinkers from the outside Saturday after finishing fifth at 16-1 odds at Keeneland Oct. 18. TJCIS PPS 7th-CD, 120K, Msw, 2yo, 61 1/16m, 3:55 p.m. The colts go two turns on the dirt a Juddmonte homebred Swift Blade (Quality Road) debuts from the outside post for Brad Cox. The second to the races for Atheer (his 3-year-old full brother is already a winner), Swift Blade's second dam is none other than the Champion mare Close Hatches, the dam of MGSW/MGISP Tacitus (Tapit), GISW Scylla (Tapit) and GSW Batten Down (Tapit). This is also the family of SW/MGISP Lockdown, the dam of another Eclipse winner in Idiomatic (Curlin). A trio of second-time starters also lines up led by $975,000 FTSAUG grad Stirring Words (Constitution) who endured a troubled trip to finish eighth in his Churchill debut back in Sept. He lines up inside up Forever Rocket (Into Mischief), a full-brother to MGSW/MGISP Frank's Rockette. Steve Asmussen brings in Maximum Effort (Maxfield) who just missed by a neck on debut at Keeneland Oct. 23. TJCIS PPS 12th-CD, 120K, Msw, 2yo, 7f, 6:26 p.m. Two pricey second-timers get another go with $1.75m KEESEP yearling Cannoneer (Into Mischief) returning for Brad Cox after running third on debut going 5 1/2 furlongs under the Twin Spires June 1. He's drawn inside of Steve Asmussen runner Dragones (Gun Runner) who brought $1.7m at FTSAUG last year and ran second at Saratoga as the favorite Aug. 30. TJCIS PPS 3rd-GP, 70K, Msw, 2yo, 6f, 1:17 p.m. Rail-drawn Treptow (Good Magic) brought a final bid of $850,000 at FTSAUG last year. Danny Gargan trains the half-brother to MGSW Gam's Mission (Noble Mission {GB}).TJCIS PPS The post Saturday Insights: Churchill Maidens Feature On Stars Of Tomorrow Day appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

Calandagan is the world's top-rated horse and rides a string of three straight group 1 wins but faces one more challenge this season--the Nov. 30 Japan Cup.View the full article

Sunday, Tokyo, Japan, post time: 15:40, JAPAN CUP-G1, ¥960,400,000, 3yo/up, 2400mT Field: Justin Palace (Jpn) (Deep Impact {Jpn}), Croix Du Nord (Jpn) (Kitasan Black {Jpn}), Cosmo Kuranda (Jpn) (Al Ain {Jpn}), Deep Monster (Jpn) (Deep Impact {Jpn}), Sunrise Earth (Jpn) (Rey De Oro {Jpn}), Ho O Biscuits (Jpn) (Mind Your Biscuits), Danon Beluga (Jpn) (Heart's Cry {Jpn}), Calandagan (Ire) (Gleneagles {Jpn}), Seiun Hades (Jpn) (Silver State {Jpn}), Struve (Jpn) (King Kamehameha {Jpn}), Admire Terra (Jpn) (Rey De Oro {Jpn}), Yoho Lake (Jpn) (Deep Impact {Jpn}), Brede Weg (Jpn) (Lord Kanaloa {Jpn}), Danon Decile (Jpn) (Epiphaneia {Jpn}), Masquerade Ball (Jpn) (Duramente {Jpn}), Shin Emperor (Jpn) (Siyouni {Fr}), Durezza (Jpn) (Duramente {Jpn}), Tastiera (Jpn) (Satono Crown {Jpn}). Click here for the complete field. The post Black-Type Analysis: Can Calandagan Overcome Japan Cup Foes? appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

A grey son of Frankel became the first seven-figure lot of the Tattersalls December Foal Sale when selling for 1,150,000gns to MV Magnier. Lot 882 was consigned by West Blagdon Stud and is a son of the G3 Prix de Lieurey heroine Cloudy Dawn (Kodiac). He was bred by James Wigan. Under the third dam is Group 1 winner and celebrated producer Grey Lilas (Danehill). “A great result for James Wigan – he is one of the best breeders there is,” said MV Magnier. “It's a great farm and they have a great track record of raising very good horses. Frankel is a very good stallion, as you all know, and a lot of sons of Galileo are doing well at stud. We'll bring him back home and we'll review what we do in the summer but I would say most likely he will go to Ballydoyle. It's a lot of money for him but, I suppose when you breed a horse like that, the Wigans deserved to get that price.” The post MV Magnier Pays 1.15m Gns For Son Of Frankel At Tattersalls December appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

Calandagan is the world's top-rated horse and rides a string of three straight group 1 wins but faces one more challenge this season—the Nov. 30 Japan Cup.View the full article

TOKYO, JAPAN — For 20 years the Japan Cup has remained at home. Alkaased (Kingmambo) was the last foreign raider to wrest it from the locals, winning in 2005 for the Italian-born, British-based combo of Luca Cumani and Frankie Dettori. This time around, for the 45th running of the race, the international challenge has been whittled to just one – but he's a good one: Calandagan. The son of Gleneagles, who will jump from stall eight, is the third runner in the race for Francis Graffard, who sent out Erupt (Dubawi) to finish sixth a decade ago and Goliath (Adlerflug) last year for that same sixth placing. The way his season has gone – with major international wins in the King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes, Champion Stakes and Breeders' Cup, as well as two Classics at home, Graffard cannot be overlooked when he shows up at a major race day. That is particularly true this Sunday when his representative happens to be topping the table for the Longines World Rankings. Two years ago those rankings had a Japanese horse and a Japanese race at the top for the first time after Equinox (Kitasan Black) brought his globally enjoyed career to a close with a Japan Cup performance which moved his trainer Tetsuya Kimura to tears. On Friday night, the stallion was rightly inducted into the JRA Hall of Fame. At the vast JRA-run Miho Training Centre earlier in the day, the trainer of this year's favourite, Masquerade Ball (Duramente), was pondering how his rising star of a three-year-old will cope with all the commotion in those crucial final moments before the start of the race. Asked if he is feeling confident, Takahisa Tezuka replies with a laugh, “Not really. That's the short answer.” For a longer answer, he adds some context. “The main reason is that the distance of the Tenno Sho is shorter [by 400m], and for that race they start from the chute in a very quiet area. The start of the Japan Cup is right in front of the grandstand where all the fans are clapping and shouting. Masquerade Ball is still mentally immature and sometimes gets agitated in different atmospheres. Personally, I think it would be nice if we could have a lead pony, like in the United States, that might help to calm him down. But we don't have that system in the JRA.” Takahisa Tezuka, trainer of Masquerade Ball | Emma Berry Instead of the services of a lead pony and outrider, Tezuka can call upon one ofJapan's most acclaimed jockeys, the French import Christophe Lemaire, who is currently leading the jockeys' championship and made his first partnership with the Shadai Farm homebred a memorable one by winning the Tenno Sho (Autumn) on November 1. It was quite the performance given that it was Masquerade Ball's first run in five months after finishing second to Croix Du Nord in the Japanese Derby (Tokyo Yushun). “In the Derby at Tokyo he was second and looking back at his record at Tokyo racecourse we know that he is really good there. That was one of the reasons that we chose the Tenno Sho after the summer break,” Tezuka says. “We used the summer break to give him a rest as we didn't want to train him during the summer heat.” The trainer, who has previously saddled Win Marilyn for victory in the Hong Kong Vase, may consider a foreign foray for Masquerade Ball when he returns to training next year. Tezuka also has plenty of respect for this year's international visitor to Tokyo. “He's only a three-year-old and he still has some maturing to do and I am not sure how well he will adapt to a different environment,” he says. “So at the moment I am just focusing on the domestic races for him and I don't have a specific race in a specific country in mind. [Travelling abroad] will be one option for him next year but it will be up to what the owner wants to do.” That happens to be Teruya Yoshida, a man with a greater global outlook than most and whose Shadai Farm is seeking a first win as owner in the Japan Cup. Of taking the challenge overseas, Tezuka adds, “Japanese horses need more than ability. They need to be able to adapt to their surroundings, to the undulations of the courses. Sending horses abroad always goes with the experience, not only for the horses but for the trainers or the staff who will take care of the horses daily. But we have to keep challenging overseas. “This year the Japan Cup will be a bit different. We have had several overseas-trained horses here for the past few years but Calandagan is a bit different. I am very happy that Masquerade Ball is going to run against the current number one in the world in the IFHA rankings.” Durezza in his stable at Miho Training Centre | Emma Berry By Friday evening's gala dinner for the Japan Cup, Lemaire, who has for a long time now been adopted by Japanese racing professionals and fans as one of their own, arrived to a hero's welcome. Conducting interviews in fluent Japanese, English and his native French, he is understandably looking forward to having a favourite's chance to equal the record of five wins in the Japan Cup held by the evergreen Yutake Take. “It will be a tougher race against the older horses but Masquerade Ball has got plenty of talent, he's improving race after race and the trip will be perfect for him,” says Lemaire. “I'm quite confident of victory again this year. “Yutaka is a legendary jockey here in Japan and all around the world, so breaking or tying one of his records would be a big achievement. Five Japan Cups would be fantastic for me of course, but I won't focus on that particular number. I will just focus on Masquerade Ball and giving him the best trip I can to try to win the race.” Masquerade Ball will also be running against no fewer than three Derby winners. His conqueror this year Croix Du Nord – whose sire Kitasan Black won the Japan Cup in 2016 and then supplied Equinox, the horse who gave it world-leading status in 2023 – is joined by Danon Decile and Tastiera, the winners of the two previous years and by stallions who also boast Japan Cup form in Epiphanaeia, the winner in 2014, and Satono Crown, who was runner-up to Kitasan Black. Danon Decile had the measure of Calandagan when the pair met in earlier this year in the Dubai Sheema Classic and he was then fifth in the Juddmonte International on his further international endeavours in the UK. Tastiera, too, has been on his travels and won the Queen Elizabeth II Cup in Hong Kong back in April. Then of course there are the returning dead-heaters from last year, Durezza and Shin Emperor, who finished joint-second behind Do Deuce (Heart's Cry), last year's Horse of the Year in Japan who is now at the Shadai Stallion Station. If Calandagan can't win then the Aga Khan Studs team would be happy with a victory for Siyouni's French-bred son Shin Emperor, the brother to Arc winner Sottsass, representing Breeders' Cup Classic-winning trainer Yoshito Yahagi. He is yet to win at the highest level, though the race he won in Riyadh in February, the Howden Neom Turf Cup, has recently been granted Group 1 status as a boost to the Saudi Cup undercard for next year. Tomohito Ozeki welcomes the press to his stable | Emma Berry Durezza is another reminder, along with Masquerade Ball, as to what a loss his sire Duramente was when he died at the age of just nine. Now five, Durezza landed the Kikuka Sho (Japanese St Leger) of 2023 and he returned from a leg fracture last year to post his valiant effort in the Japan Cup. He was also third behind Danon Decile and Calandagan in the Dubai Sheema Classic. “This is his third time racing against Calandagan so I am hoping he can finish in front of him in the Japan Cup,” says trainer Tomohito Ozeki, trainer of the dual Hong Kong Vase winner Glory Vase, as he shows a horde of marauding foreign press around his quiet stable at Miho. If there are other ways in which he'd rather spend his morning just 48 hours out from such a big race, he politely doesn't show it. He says, “[Calandagan] is the top-rated horse in the world and I think this will be a threat to my horse.” Another concern is Durezza's wide draw in stall 17 of 18, but Ozeki adds, “He was in 17 when he won the Kikuka Sho so perhaps it is a good number.” If you're looking for another good number, the sleek, dark brown Croix Du Nord, who loves to jump smartly and get on with it, breaks from gate two. Never mind all that, however. After a two-decade drought it's about time we had another European winner. So in this corner of TDN, to borrow the brilliant catchphrase of Georgia, daughter of the Aga Khan Studs racing manager Nemone Routh, we hereby declare ourselves to be CalandaFans. The post Japan Cup Home Defence Looks Strong; Just Don’t Tell the CalandaFans appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

A host of big-race successes in 2025 has contributed to Billy Jackson-Stops scooping the bloodstock agent of the year award for the first time. The presentation was made ahead of the penultimate session of the Tattersalls December Foal Sale on Friday, with Geoffrey Howson, the Hon. President of the Federation of Bloodstock Agents, handing over the prize. Jackson-Stops said, “I am greatly honoured to be named Bloodstock Agent of the Year. One of the greatest achievements anyone can have in their industry is recognition from their peers, so to be acknowledged by Geoffrey and others at the FBA means the world to me. “I must thank my wife, Lily. Without her, I could not have achieved anything close to what I've been fortunate enough to accomplish. Her ability to work, run a house, and largely raise our two children on her own is the reason I'm able to travel and work as much as I do. She gives me the peace of mind to focus fully on my job, and none of this would have been possible without her.” He added, “I've also been extremely fortunate to work with great trainers. I will always be indebted to George Scott, who took me on when I returned from Australia unemployed in 2017. We've shared some of our greatest successes together, with hopefully many more to come. Tom Clover and Andrew Balding have also been tremendous supporters. Good trainers can make average agents look good, and I've been lucky to have those three in my corner. “Finally, all the Group 1 winners this year tie back, in one way or another, to my three biggest supporters. Al Rabban Racing originally owned Gewan; Michael Blencowe initially owned Royal Supremacy and still retains a share; and Shaikh Nasser owns both Caballo De Mar and Bay City Roller. Being able to repay these people with success at the highest level has been hugely rewarding, and I cannot thank them enough for their continued support.” The post Billy Jackson-Stops Crowned Bloodstock Agent Of The Year appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

Alpine Princess put away 27-1 longshot Corningstone in deep stretch to win the 110th running of the $385,000 Falls City Stakes (G3) by two lengths in the traditional Thanksgiving Day fixture at Churchill Downs.View the full article