Wandering Eyes

A batch of quality northerners have landed in Christchurch ahead of Saturday’s Gr.1 Al Basti Equiworld Dubai New Zealand 2000 (Guineas) at Riccarton, and local hope Alottago (Tagaloa) will lead the southern defence. The son of Tagaloa hasn’t put a foot wrong so far in his six-start career, placing in all three of his starts as a juvenile, including the Listed Welcome Stakes (1000m) and Listed Champagne Stakes (1200m), before returning as a three-year-old where he won his next two starts before finishing runner-up in last month’s Gr.3 Barneswood Farm Stakes (1400m) behind Cool Aza Rene. Trainer Lance Robinson has been pleased with his progress since that run and is excited to test his talent against some highly credentialed northerners on Saturday. “It is good having him in a race like that, we are excited about it,” Robinson said. “It is a step up, but all Group Ones are hard to win. I am happy with him, he has done everything right, so we will find out how good we are. “He just keeps stepping up all the time. The more we give him the better he gets. As long as he keeps on going that way I think he has got the makings of a very good horse.” The stable started New Zealand Cup Week off on a winning note courtesy of Pequot (NZ) (Vanbrugh) last Saturday, and the Vanbrugh gelding will back-up a week later in Saturday’s Moshtix Premier (1600m) “Pequot won on the first day where he was very impressive and he has done well this week,” Robinson said. “He steps up to a 75 rating race and we are happy with him.” The stable will also be represented by Miss Emerald in the Kuehne + Nagel Premier (1400m). “She is a runner’s chance,” Robinson said. Robinson has been pleased with his stable’s efforts during his home carnival, with Eight Pence (NZ) (Swiss Ace) also collecting a winning cheque at Riccarton on Wednesday in the Avon City Ford Premier (1400m), and he is hoping to continue that winning trend this weekend. “I was very pleased with him (Eight Pence), he just keeps stepping up,” Robinson said. “Every race we have given him he has just improved every time. He is going the right way. “He was a very immature horse and he has just taken a little bit of time and the owner has been very patient with him. He has given him the time and now he is reaping the rewards. “I will see how he comes through it and we will make a plan in a couple of days. We are in no rush with him, time is his best friend.” View the full article

In the first oral argument since the United States Supreme Court remanded three lawsuits related to the constitutionality of the Horseracing and Safety Integrity Act (HISA) back to their originating appeals courts five months ago, a panel of three judges on the Sixth Circuit of the U.S. Court of Appeals in Cincinnati on Wednesday heard from lawyers on both sides in a case that alleges the HISA Act gives a “private corporation broad regulatory authority.” This same Sixth Circuit panel, back on Mar. 3, 2023, already upheld a lower court's dismissal of that lawsuit, ruling that Congressional changes to the law made in 2022 made the HISA Act completely constitutional. But now the case, led by the states of Oklahoma, West Virginia and Louisiana against defendants that include the HISA Authority and individuals acting in their official capacities for the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), is back before them again. That's because on June 30, 2025, the Supreme Court tasked the Fifth, Sixth and Eighth Circuit appeals courts with revisiting their older decisions in light of a newer Supreme Court ruling in a similar case involving the non-delegation doctrine, a precedent that didn't exist when any of those courts issued their original opinions as far back as three years ago. On Nov. 12, Chief U.S. Circuit Judge Jeffrey Sutton told attorneys on both sides that the Sixth Circuit lawsuit has been a “challenging case at every iteration.” The non-delegation doctrine, which bans Congress from delegating legislative power to federal agencies without an “intelligible principle” to guide the exercise of agency discretion, is central to all three HISA-related cases that the Supreme Court remanded. Attorney Lochlan Shelfer, appearing Wednesday on behalf of the states, told the Sixth Circuit panel that he wanted to start his argument with the “starkest example, which is the Authority's exclusive power to bring enforcement actions in federal court, over which the FTC has zero oversight.” Shelfer said precedent cases “have explained that the power to enforce federal law is the core provenance of the federal government [and] all of the myriad litigation choices that go into enforcement litigation are the sole provenance of the executive branch. So what the Act does is it flips that on its head, and it deprives the federal government of the power to enforce federal law and puts that entirely in the hands of the private Authority.” Backstretch worker giving a Thoroughbred a bath | Sarah Andrew Attorney Pratik Shah, representing the HISA Authority, tried to re-center the argument back to the legislation that Congress enacted three years ago to cure an alleged constitutional defect that had been identified in a different anti-HISA lawsuit (the Nov. 18, 2022, Fifth Circuit Appeals Court opinion). “After the [December 2022] amendment, we know Congress has given the FTC all the power it could hope to subordinate the Authority in every which way to Sunday,” Shah said. Although many parts of Wednesday's proceedings were dense with legalese (as federal-level oral arguments often are), Judge Sutton frequently stopped the lawyers mid-sentence to try and drill down their arguments to common-sense language. “One feature of case [that] I'm struggling with a little bit is just what 'private' means in this setting. I quite understand non-delegation principles. That's not that hard to get my head around,” Sutton said. Then the judge made the analogy that Shelfer himself is a private lawyer, “and here you are, standing on behalf of the state of Oklahoma. [In essence], you're Oklahoma right now….You're making decisions as we speak about the position of the state of Oklahoma, and as soon as this argument's done, you're back in your capacity as a private citizen.” Judge Sutton then asked rhetorically why this same line of reasoning about the way a state employs private lawyers shouldn't apply to how the HISA Authority operates under the auspices of the FTC. “I don't quite understand why [with] the Horseracing Authority, why you can't essentially say the same thing,” Sutton said. Judge Sutton continued: “I know there's a process to put people on the [HISA] board. They're not just regular old citizens when they hold meetings. They're not just regular old citizens when they decide to enforce or propose rules. They're trying to carry out this law. This is, of course, historically, the way most criminal law enforcement worked: You deputized private citizens, you gave them the badge, and they went and they had all these authorities…. “It happens all the time that governments rely on private entities to do things,” Sutton said. “So I'm trying to figure out just what is so bad about this when there's a process for appointing [the HISA board]. You're not making an appointment-clause challenge here, so presumably these people are all appointed correctly. And I assume they have obligations to act for the government and not their private interests. So just help me realize why this is so bad,” Sutton said. Shelfer started to respond by explaining that in the instance of an attorney like him acting on behalf of the states, the government is instructing a private party to carry out a specific task as an agent. But the judge interjected before the lawyer could finish his point. “There is always discretion,” Judge Sutton said. “Everybody knows there has to be discretion, ultimately. You're exercising discretion every second [by arguing a court case right now on behalf of the states]. This is the nature of delegations. There's going to be some discretion.” Sutton, a George W. Bush appointee, was the only judge of three that asked questions during Wednesday's arguments. The other two on the panel are U.S. Circuit Judge Richard Griffin (also appointed by Bush) and Senior U.S. Circuit Judge Guy Cole Jr. (appointed by Bill Clinton). The Fifth, Sixth and Eighth Circuit appeals courts have all agreed that HISA's rulemaking structure is constitutional. Only the Fifth Circuit has disagreed, in part, by opining that HISA's enforcement provisions are unconstitutional. The two cases that the Supreme Court remanded back to the Fifth and Eighth Circuit appeals courts have yet to reach the oral argument stage. The case in the Fifth Circuit involves an anti-HISA lawsuit spearheaded by the National Horsemen's Benevolent and Protective Association (NHBPA). A Fifth Circuit appeals court panel opined July 5, 2024, that even though HISA's rulemaking structure is constitutional, HISA's enforcement provisions are unconstitutional. Mornings at the track | Coady Media In the Eighth Circuit, the plaintiffs, led by Bill Walmsley, the president of the Arkansas HBPA, and Jon Moss, the executive director of the Iowa HBPA, are challenging a ruling out of a lower federal court in Arkansas denying a preliminary injunction the horsemen had sought to halt HISA and its Anti-Doping and Medication Control program. The new precedent that the Supreme Court now wants the Fifth, Sixth and Eighth Circuits of the U.S. Court of Appeals to consider involves a case titled Federal Communications Commission (FCC) vs. Consumers' Research. In that case, the Supreme Court justices, by a 6-3 vote June 27, 2025, rejected arguments that the funding mechanism for a service that provides subsidized telecommunications services for low-income customers, rural hospitals, schools, and libraries violated the non-delegation doctrine. In that opinion, the Supreme Court also shot down an allegation that the FCC delegated too much authority to a private company to administer the program. Once the appeals courts issue updated decisions in their respective HISA cases, if the losing parties don't agree with them, they can petition the Supreme Court anew. Going back to the Supreme Court again would likely add yet another year or two to the timetable for resolving the underlying HISA constitutionality lawsuits, two of which were initiated as far back as 2021. The post Sixth Circuit Judge On HISA: ‘It Happens All The Time That Governments Rely On Private Entities To Do Things’ appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

Both looking to make a mark on the competitive Kentucky circuit, trainer Joe Roberts and apprentice jockey Amanda Poston team up in the Claiming Crown with Empire's Best and Shotshell.View the full article

Edited Press Release Hall of Fame trainer Mark Casse returned to Oaklawn Park last season, winning nine races–a single-season personal best in Hot Springs–led by GI Arkansas Derby hero Sandman (Tapit). Casse could make an even bigger impact during the coming split meets because several of his most prominent horses will ship for Oaklawn's 64-day season that begins Dec. 12. The trainer, who received 25 stalls, already has horses on the grounds. “They'll come in stages,” Casse said from his Florida base on Thursday. “But we're going to bring our big guns there.” His top talent includes Sandman, GISW Nitrogen (Medaglia d'Oro), MGISW La Cara (Street Sense) and unbeaten Kentucky Derby prospect & 'TDN Rising Star, presented by Hagyard', Ewing (Knicks Go). Casse said that the four horses are now at his training center in Ocala. Sandman was turned out after his last start in late August. The son of Tapit resumed training about three weeks ago and looking at the schedule Casse said his ultimate goal would be the GII Oaklawn Handicap Apr. 18. As for Nitrogen, the accomplished filly could make her 4-year-old debut in the GII Azeri Stakes Mar. 7 then be ready for the GI Apple Blossom Handicap Apr. 11. La Cara, who netted a pair of Grade I races this year, will point to the GIII Bayakoa Stakes Feb. 7. Ewing was scheduled to make his two-turn debut in the GI Claiborne Breeders' Futurity Stakes at Keeneland Oct. 4, but was scratched. “He had a minor injury,” Casse said. “We've taken care of that. We gave him some and he's just starting back.” Ewing's road to the Arkansas Derby Mar. 28 might begin with a January sprint. Casse's Oaklawn division is again being overseen by assistant Caden Arthur. The post Casse Makes Oaklawn Plans For Sandman And Other Stable Stars appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

Haran Thoroughbreds soared to the top of the Thoroughbred owner standings to earn their second straight leading owner title for the 23rd season of racing at Horseshoe Indianapolis.View the full article

Weeks after Jamaica sustained significant loss of life and damage caused by Hurricane Melissa, Caymanas Park outside of Kingston is set to resume racing Nov. 15. The weekend's cards will feature 19 races, each with fields of 10 or more horses.View the full article

Trainer Joe Roberts speaks about his two entrants for the Nov. 15 Claiming Crown at Churchill Downs: Empire's Best in the $100,000 Ready's Rocket Express and Shotshell in the $100,000 Iron Horse Kent Stirling Memorial.View the full article

While several tracks have experimented with lowering the takeout, none has gone as far as what Delta Downs has planned for two daytime cards, Nov. 25-26. On those days, the takeout will be 10% on all wagers, in all pools. Some tracks have slashed the takeout on certain wagers and Hawthorne offered an industry low takeout at its 2025 meet of 12% on all win wagers. But never before has a track lowered takeout on all pools or to anything near 10%. “Our Director of Racing Ops John Simon came up with the idea,” said Delta's Vice President and General Manager Steve Kuypers. “We are hoping to have more people watch Delta and get them excited about wagering on horse racing. We are hoping the bettors appreciate what we are trying to do and will enjoy the two days.” Delta normally runs at night and players might not watch a daytime card at the Vinton, Louisiana track, but the Delta team is hoping the 10% takeout gets their attention. Bettors will notice a significant increase in the winning prices. While the traditional takeout on Win, Place and Show bets is 17% at Delta, the takeout on the Trifecta, Superfecta, Pick Three, Pick Four and Pick Five is 25%. A winning Pick Four under the traditional takeout structure that would have paid $750 would now pay $900. None of this was accomplished without a great deal of effort. The takeout reduction had to be approved by both the horsemen and the Louisiana Racing Commission. Delta Downs grandstand | Coady Originally, Delta had planned to offer the promotion on six days of racing, all of the daytime cards run around the Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year's. But it recently cut back to just the two days. A possible reason is that the ADWs were not thrilled with such low takeouts, which will cut into their profit margins. But Kuypers said that isn't the case. “We wanted to try this for two days instead of six days to see how the bettors reacted,” Kuypers said. “The ADWs all thought it was a good idea.” It will be interesting to see how the CAW players will react. They tend to make up a much larger percentage of the pool at smaller tracks like Delta than they do at places like Keeneland, Del Mar and Saratoga. But they like bigger takeouts, because the bigger the takeout the larger their rebate is. It's not inconceivable that, if there is a significant drop in CAW play, the experiment could backfire. “We do not think so [that the CAW players will cut back on their handle],” Kuypers said. “Hopefully, they will realize we are trying to get more people to bet which will increase the pool sizes.” Just two days of reduced takeout at Delta should provide the entire industry with some much needed answers. Do horseplayers really respond to lower takeouts and will CAW play decline when a track lowers the takeout while trying to give a break to the everyday player? What can Delta learn and what can the racing industry learn from this? “We want to see if lowering the takeout will actually get more people watching and wagering on Delta,” Kupyers said. Fair enough. On Nov. 25 and 26, Delta Downs will offer the lowest takeouts in modern horse racing industry. It will be up to the horseplayers to show that they get it, that the lower the takeout the better chance they have of winning. The post Delta Downs Offering Early Holiday Present For Horseplayers appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

8th-CD, $120k, Msw, 2yo, 6f, post time: 4:25 p.m. ET Travis Boersma's Flying Dutchmen gave $330,000 for PRIZE PICK (Tiz the Law) at last year's Keeneland September sale and watched the value of his acquisition appreciate markedly owing to the racetrack success of his year-older full-brother Tiztastic. Twice graded-placed at this venue in 2024, that dark bay colt came from well-back to win this year's GII Louisiana Derby. Also a half-brother to the stakes-winning and Grade II-placed Interpolate (Into Mischief), Prize Pick is pegged as a 6-1 chance on the morning line and drew the inside stall in a full field. TJCIS PPs 1st-WO, C$115k, Msw, 2yo, 1 1/16m (AWT), 4:30 p.m. ET TOLD (IRE) (Lope de Vega {Ire}) was bought back on a bid of €88,000 at the 2023 Goffs November Sale before improving into a €200,000 Goffs Orby purchase by Jacob West on behalf of his client Mike Repole. The Apr. 6 foal is the third produce for his dam Cartesienne (Ire) (Pivotal {GB}), a half-sister to American champion Modern Games (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}), winner in Europe of the G1 Lockinge Stakes and G1 Poule d'Essai des Poulains and whose three North American victories include the Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf, this track's Woodbine Mile and the Breeders' Cup Mile. Modern Games's half-sister Mawj (Ire) (Exceed and Excel {Aus}) went within a zop of winning the latter event and was also victorious in the G1 QIPCO 1000 Guineas and GI QE II Challenge Cup, while half-brother Modern News (GB) (Shamardal) was a listed winner and dual Group 3-placed in England. Given Modern Games's success, Cartesienne was offered with this colt in utero at the 2022 Goffs London Sale, but was unsold on a bid of £680,000 ($837,645). TJCIS PPs 4th-DMR, $60k, Msw, 3yo/up, 6 1/2f, 5:04 p.m. ET Lee and Susan Searing's C R K Stable went to $700,000 for SILENT WAY (McKinzie) at the 2023 Fasig-Tipton Saratoga sale about a month before acquiring another son of the Gainesway stallion, future Grade I winner Baeza, for $1.2 million at Keeneland September. While the latter is on a break, Silent Way gets his career started, albeit belatedly, and is a half-brother to SW & GSP Koala Princess (More Than Ready). Dam Koala Queen (Lonhro {Aus}) is a half-sister to Helena Bay (GB) (Johannesburg), whose son Collected (City Zip) won this track's GI Pacific Classic and was recently sold to continue his productive stud career at Rancho San Miguel in California. TJCIS PPs 6th-DMR, $60k, 2yo, f, 1m, 6:04 p.m. ET A pair of homebred Into Mischief fillies from the Bob Baffert barn kick off their careers over a mile here. Magnier, Tabor or Smith's LUCKIEST is the first foal out of former Baffert inmate As Time Goes By (American Pharoah), winner of the GI Beholder Mile Stakes and a daughter of three-time Grade I winner and tremendous producer Take Charge Lady (Dehere), herself the dam of champion Will Take Charge (Unbridled's Song), GISW Take Charge Indy (A.P. Indy) and the granddam of champion Take Charge Brandi (Giant's Causeway) and multiple Grade I-winning sire Omaha Beach (War Front). Juddmonte is represented by Consequent, the mount of go-to rider Juan Hernandez. The daughter of Cognitive (Uncle Mo) is a full-sister to SW Show Card and the deeper family includes GISW Dream Rush (Wild Rush), dam of GISW Dreaming of Julia (A.P. Indy) and second dam of champion Malathaat (Curlin). TJCIS PPs The post Tiztastic Full-Brother Lands Rail For Career Bow appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

Haras de Beaumont has announced a reduction in fee for its unbeaten Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe winner Ace Impact, who will stand at €30,000 next season, down from €40,000 in his first two years. En route to his victory in the Arc, Ace Impact set a new record when winning the Prix du Jockey Club – a race won in recent years by the likes of Shamardal, Lope De Vega, Le Havre, New Bay and Study Of Man. “Ace Impact was the highest rated three-year-old in 2023 and his ability to quicken was extraordinary. He has been very popular since retiring with us, covering more than 200 black-type mares or black-type producers in his first two seasons, and we are looking forward to his first foals selling soon,” said Mathieu Alex, manager of Haras de Beaumont. “Feedback from French and international breeders has been unanimously positive.” As he embarks on his fourth covering season, Sealiway, too, has been trimmed, to €10,000 from €12,000. He will be represented by more than 100 first-crop two-year-olds next season. Alex continued, “We eagerly await 2026, which will mark Sealiway's first two-year-olds on the track. He was an impressive winner of the G1 Prix Jean-Luc Lagardère at two, and there is every reason to believe that his progeny will be capable of excelling from the age of two. Next year will mark the arrival of the first foals of G1 Prix Jean Prat winner Puchkine. The son of Starspangledbanner remains at his opening fee of €8,500, while Intello, the sire of Group 1 winners Junko, Adhamo and Intellogent, has had his fee reduced slightly to €7,000. All stallions are advertised on Live Foal terms. “Puchkine, undefeated at two, won the G1 Prix Jean Prat in the second-fastest time ever. His sire Starspangledbanner has had a great season with his two-year-olds in 2025 and we're delighted to offer this sire-line, source of speed and precocity, to breeders, Alex added. “With Intello, we are delighted to offer breeders the opportunity to entrust their mares to a proven stallion. Winner of the G1 Prix du Jockey Club and boasting a remarkable pedigree, Intello is the sire of more than 50 stakes performers worldwide.” The team at Haras de Beaumont has recently been boosted by the arrival of Sylvain Vidal in the role of nominations and client relations. The post Ace Impact at €30,000 as Beaumont Fees Released appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

The four-day Irish Equine Veterinary Association (IEVA) held their 2025 IEVA Conference last week. Besides pre-conference wetlabs, workshops, presentations and talks, there was also a dedicated series of nutritional workshops, kindly sponsored by Connolly's RED MILLS. The curated programme provided plenty of time for engagement between veterinary students, recent graduates, established vet and nurses with delegates, exhibitors, speakers and industry stakeholders alike. During the conference's social gathering, namely the Gala Dinner on Friday night, the raffle raised €1,750. This figure was matched by IEVA and as a result, €3,500 was raised for the for the Irish Veterinary Benevolent Fund and Irish Veterinary Professions for Palestine. For more information on the conference, please visit the IEVA website. The post IEVA Conference 2025 Held In Co Kilkenny appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

The $3 million Pegasus World Cup Invitational (G1) will for the first time be included in the Breeders' Cup Challenge Series: Win and You're In, Breeders' Cup and 1/ST Racing announced Nov. 13.View the full article

Arqana Online's November Pop-Up Sale featured an 100% clearance rate, as eight lots sold for a gross of €782,000. The lone Thoroughbred offering was listed-winning jumper Nador (Gemix) (lot 1), who sold for €200,000 to Nicolas de Watrigant of Mandore International Agency. Successful in the Listed Prix Noirot over fences at Auteuil, the Noel George and Amanda Zetterholm offering sold with an entry in the G2 Prix Congress that takes place on Saturday, November 15. He is from the family of N'Avoue Jamais (Marignan), No Risk At All and Nickname. For the complete results, please visit the Arqana Online website. The post Listed Winner Nador Sells For €200k At Arqana November Pop-Up Sale appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

Those American prospectors sufficiently resourceful–in every sense of that word–to mine some genetic gold at the European breeding stock sales generally fall into two camps. For some, an expanding and ever more lucrative grass (and synthetic) schedule in North America will offset the commercial distrust of turf bloodlines in their homeland. But others may also recognise that Thoroughbreds are more versatile than we typically allow them to be, hoping to emulate the impact on dirt of bloodlines imported from Europe by outstanding breeders of the last century. Both agendas have been repeatedly satisfied in the forthcoming auctions at Goffs, Tattersalls and Arqana. “The Tattersalls December Mares Sale has for decades been a focal point for North American buyers looking to source the very best of European bloodlines and find their foundation mares for generations to come,” says Jason Singh, head of marketing at Tattersalls. “Many transatlantic buyers are also looking to buy top-class race fillies, something that has become more prevalent in the last few years: recent Stateside successes include the GI Beverly D. winner Fev Rover (Ire) (Gutaifan {Ire}), the multiple graded stakes winner Pipsy (Ire) (Kodiac {GB}) and the exciting Village Voice (GB) (Zarak {Fr}), winner of the GIII Waya Stakes on her U.S. debut for Chad Brown and Resolute Racing. “This year's catalogue for Europe's premier breeding stock sale looks an outstanding collection of top-class race fillies and broodmares and it's a great privilege to be asked to offer four fillies of the calibre of Porta Fortuna (Ire) (Caravaggio), Barnavara (Ire) (Calyx {GB}), Tamfana (Ger) (Soldier Hollow {GB}) and Choisya (GB) (Night Of Thunder {Ire}) in the Sceptre Sessions-four fillies that any stable or stud farm would love to have. They are among 82 lots offered in the fourth year of the Sceptre Sessions, and are sure to be in great demand; as are the drafts from ever popular owner-breeders such as Juddmonte Farms and Godolphin.” But Singh stresses that vale can be found at all levels of the market. “This sale offers something for everyone,” he says. “This is illustrated perfectly by the Group 1 winners Ombudsman (Ire) (Night Of Thunder {Ire}), Via Sistina (Ire) (Fastnet Rock {Aus}) and Wise Approach (Ire) (Mehmas {Ire}), whose dams were purchased for 25,000gns, 36,000gns and 42,000gns respectively. Those are just three of the 25 individual Group 1 winners worldwide this year out of fillies and mares purchased at the Tattersalls December Mares Sale.” Typically, then, an American shortlist of mares with “paper” potential might be little different from that compiled by a domestic shopper. But there does remain one further opportunity, marginal but potentially rewarding: the American pedigree that slips through the cracks. Via Sistina (pictured) winning the G1 Champions Stakes. Her dam sold for 36,000 gns at Tattersalls December Sale | Bronwen Healy Photography On the one hand, for most Americans it would defeat the object of the exercise to import blood already widely available on their home market. They are instead devoting a lot of time and expense to the hope of introducing something different to their programs. European shoppers, equally, tend only to risk American pedigrees at the 2-year-old sales, where nerveless pinhookers have demonstrated a horse's functionality before their very eyes. Both sides, then, may overlook some mares of blatant American potential catalogued in Europe over the coming weeks. Those at Tattersalls (December 1-3) tend unsurprisingly to reflect the work of one European program, in particular. Because when their own broodmare band became saturated with the blood of Galileo (Ire), John Magnier and his partners at Coolmore taught a culpably parochial generation of Europeans to respect such names as War Front, Scat Daddy and now Justify. If anything, the latter has been too sensationally successful in Europe for his own good, when it comes to the American yearling market. It's a paradoxical state of affairs, when Justify appears a dirt paragon in physique. But the Triple Crown winner's six daughters in this catalogue could not offer a more cosmopolitan blend, divided as they are between American, Irish, British and even Australian backgrounds. You could hardly seek a better example of the kind of outcross just discussed than Mayfair (Ire) [1732], a 4-year-old by Justify out of Clemmie (Ire)–especially because the latter herself represents another trademark Coolmore strategy. For as it became clear that Galileo was putting a ton of staying power into his stock, he was increasingly paired with mares that had exhibited exceptional speed on the racetrack. Clemmie proved the ultimate vindication, as the first among Galileo's countless Group 1 scorers over just six furlongs, in the G1 Cheveley Park Stakes. That was consistent with her own breeding: her dam Meow (Storm Cat) just missed in the G2 Norfolk Stakes at Royal Ascot, while granddam Airwave (GB) (Kyllachy {GB}) was herself an earlier winner of the Cheveley Park. Clemmie is sibling to serial group performers and/or producers, notably champion juvenile and Classic winner Churchill (Ire) (Galileo). One of three starters to date for Clemmie, and full-sister to listed winner Unless, Mayfair showed enough when second in maidens this spring to start just 4-1 for the G3 Musidora Stakes. Whatever her problem was that day, it saw her promptly dispatched for a cover that now serves as icing on the cake, by none other than Wootton Bassett (GB)–whose tragic loss has made collectors' items of all his remaining stock. One way or another, this Coolmore cull looks like a precious opportunity to tap into that operation's very best work. Justify -filly-out-of-Clemmie-1_Coolmore_072425_Sara-Gordon-1.jpg" alt="" width="632" height="459" /> Clemmie and her 2025 Justify filly | Sara Gordon A second Justify whose page makes you drool is the stakes-winning 4-year-old Miss Justice (GB) [1450], who failed by just a neck to add a group prize at Newmarket last month and is duly offered as a horse-in-training. She's out of an unraced sister to G1 Falmouth winner Timepiece (GB) (Zamindar), whose Group 1-winning half-sister Passage Of Time (GB) (Dansili {GB}) takes us into Juddmonte gold, with many elite performers clustering around and below her. Another 4-year-old, Foolish Love (Ire) [1290], managed only a single start but she's out of a sister to Classic-placed So Wonderful (War Front) out of Classic-placed Wonder Of Wonders (Kingmambo). The next dam All Too Beautiful (Ire) (Sadler's Wells), also Classic-placed, was sibling to a horse called Galileo-and his half-brother Sea The Stars (Ire)! Foolish Love arrives with a cover by rookie Auguste Rodin (Ire). Justify's sire Scat Daddy has three daughters in the catalogue, notably the Classic-placed Group winner Qabala [1730]. Her first two starters both won at a decent level, stimulating demand for her Wootton Bassett yearling, who made 2.2 million guineas in this ring last month. Qabala, out of a daughter of Empire Maker and GI Kentucky Oaks winner Flute (Seattle Slew), arrives with another prestigious cover in Too Darn Hot (GB). Another outcross given a good name in Europe through the enterprise of Coolmore, War Front, has half a dozen daughters going under the hammer here. Along The Beach [1289] is an 11-year-old with a patchy production record, but arrives in foal to Paddington (GB) and her third dam is Urban Sea herself. Surely somebody will roll the dice: she's a half-sister to G1 Criterium International winner Twain (Ire) (Wootton Bassett {GB}) and G2 Rockfel winner Just Wonderful (Dansili {Ire}), so this is a flourishing corner of one of the great families. Seven-year-old Elizabethan is sister to two of War Front's top performers in Europe, triple Group 1 winner Roly Poly and champion juvenile U S Navy Flag, their dam being Classic winner Misty For Me (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}). She comes with the bonus of a cover by Camelot (GB) and, while she did not herself build on a maiden success, the page has been newly decorated this fall by two Group 1 juvenile scores for Puerto Rico (Ire) (Wootton Bassett {GB}), who is out of a sister to Misty For Me. Solo Solitaire (Ire) was an undistinguished performer but surfaces in the Sceptre Sessions [1757] as a Violence half-sister to Brooch (Empire Maker), the dual Group winner in Europe best known in the U.S. as dam of GI Kentucky Derby winner Mandaloun (Into Mischief). Brooch, remember, is out of a stakes-winning sister to Emulous (GB) (Dansili {GB}), a Group 1 winner herself and meanwhile the dam of G1 Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe winner Bluestocking (GB) (Camelot {GB}) and shock G1 Sussex Stakes winner Qirat (GB) (Showcasing {GB}). Other familiar broodmare sires represented in the catalogue include Bernardini, Blame, Giant's Causeway, Medaglia d'Oro, More Than Ready and Street Cry (Ire); while many families are also represented that could be profitably restored to Kentucky. The Listed-placed 4-year-old Where I Wanna Be (Ire) (Camelot {GB}), for instance, arrives as Hip 1736 with a maiden cover by Night Of Thunder (Ire): her dam is a Street Cry (Ire) half-sister to Eight Belles (Unbridled's Song). …And Goffs Also Worth a Browse En route to Tattersalls, American prospectors can take in the November Breeding Stock Sale at Goffs (November 21-22). But they should get there promptly, with the opening session featuring the 7-year-old Cleopatra's Gift (American Pharoah) [1030]. Herself unraced, she's out of an unraced half-sister to none other than Uncle Mo, and had a timely update the other day when her first foal Needle Match (GB) (Night Of Thunder {GB}) won on debut at Newbury. Unfortunately, she missed to his sire this time round, but had meanwhile delivered colts by Palace Pier (GB) and Cracksman (GB), so is just getting started. Several mares in this catalogue are by American sires who tapped into seriously classy families, albeit some may require a degree of courage in terms of age and/or production records. But there are also several younger mares that would offer plenty of domestic traction on “repatriation.” The 4-year-old Melodiam (Ire) (No Nay Never) [1078], for instance, showed nothing in a light track career but represents Juddmonte royalty: her dam is sister to Filimbi (Mizzen Mast), the Grade II winner who ran Tepin (Bernstein) to half-a-length in the GI Just A Game Stakes. Filimbi's son Dragoon Guard (Arrogate) emerged as a leading sophomore last year, suggesting that next dam Flute (Seattle Slew) is successfully recycling the genes that won the GI Kentucky Oaks. (This is duly the same family as Qabala, noted above at Tattersalls.) Similarly the limited racetrack profile of the 7-year-old Mystical Beauty (Ire) (Camelot {GB}) [1097] does not alter the fact that she is a half-sister to Rising Tornado (Storm Cat), dam of one of the most important females in Juddmonte's American division in Close Hatches (First Defence): a champion herself and meanwhile responsible for the Tapit trio Tacitus, Batten Down and now Scylla. This young mare's first starter Turty Tree (Ire) (New Bay {GB}) shaped extremely well on debut at Newmarket last month. First and foremost, however, both these sales are a goldmine of European bloodlines. The same will apply at Arqana next month, of course-and we'll be examining that catalogue in due course, too. For anyone whose Turf education was in the Old World, browsing these sales is tremendously evocative: page after page renews the memory of great racehorses, great families; and, for any overseas investor of due enterprise, great opportunities to change things up. “The Goffs November Sale is unmissable for quality and value,” argues Group Chief Executive Henry Beeby. “It is the source of many of the best and deepest Irish bloodlines each year, all conducted from the most user-friendly sales complex in the world. “The Breeding Stock Sale features stunning drafts from some of the world's leading breeders. It has proved the starting point for many major performers with the dams of Group 1 winners Precise (Ire) (Starspangledbanner {Aus}), Romantic Warrior (Ire) (Acclamation {GB}), Excellent Truth (Ire) (Cotai Glory {GB}), Lush Lips (GB) (Ten Sovereigns {GB}) and so many more all bought at the sale for less than €100,000. Goffs November is truly unmissable, and U.S. visitors will experience a welcome that only be found in Ireland-mighty craic-and a sale that delivers.” The post European Mares Tempt Various American Agendas appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

It’s Show Day and that means four Group 1s and two $500,000 slot races at Addington Raceway. Can Merlin win the New Zealand Pacing Free For All again against Leap To Fame and co and who will prevail in the battle of the three-year-olds – will be it Marketplace or Got The Chocolates? Butcher with key Show Day drives By Michael Guerin Leading New Zealand driver Zachary Butcher says the hard edge the Australians are bringing to Cup week at Addington could actually help him today. Today’s Show Day twilight meeting features six black type races including the superstars of pacing and trotting backing up from the New Zealand Cup and Dominion on Tuesday into their respective Free-For-Alls. But the meeting also boasts the two $500,000 slot races and two major juvenile events and Butcher will find himself starting on the back foot in a few of them. He partners defending champion Merlin (R12, No.10) in the $200,000 Allied Security Pacing Free-For-All, in which he is the only horse drawn on the second line, while favourite Meant To Be starts on the unruly, the outside of the second line, in the $500,000 Majestic Horsefloats THE ASCENT. Which is where Butcher hopes the aggression the Australians have shown dominating this week so far actually plays into his hands. “They have really made Cup week, even though I’d like to see the Kiwis winning a few more races,” says Butcher. “It has made the racing harder to predict and rather than sometimes here when you think you know your opposition or what the driver may do, it has been more unpredictable. “I reckon for a horse like Meant To Be that could be a real factor and maybe even a positive. “In a lot of his races here he has been able to work and get parked or lead and still be too good but that might not be the case this time. “But that could work in his favour. We have had to be really aggressive on him sometimes but I think he could be potent driven for one run. “If a couple of those horses up front get rolling like the Aussies can I think he could sit off then, get into a nice rhythm and show some real speed at the end.” Meant To Be has the motor to overpower his local rivals but the two Australians in the three-year-old trot, Gatesys Gem and Tracy The Jet, are both high class fillies. On their recent Victorian form Tracy The Jet is going to be awfully hard to run down if she leads. Merlin bounced out of the New Zealand Cup to win the Free-For-All sitting parked last year but Butcher says that won’t be happening from one on the second line tonight. “I was stoked with him in the Cup and we know he loves the short course racing but from one on the second line I will have a decision to make,” says Butcher. “There is a lot of gate speed from the really good horses out wide and if they come straight across one of them will likely lead and I am not sure we can run them down from three or four back on the markers. “But if they go hard then we might get a shot at them late.” Leap To Fame is favourite even from barrier 8 as he was enormous in Tuesday’s Cup even after sitting parked and of course his conqueror then Kingman isn’t in today’s field. Much like in the Cup, Leap To Fame’s chances could be determined by what Republican Party does inside him. If Republican Party leads again and stays there Leap To Fame can still win but becomes vulnerable again whereas is Leap To Fame rolls to the front early it is hard to imagine him being attacked and he should win. Butcher partners Greased Lightnin in the $500,000 Velocity for three-year-old pacers as he tries to defend the title trainers Barry Purdon and Scott Phelan, with Butcher in the sulky, won with Better Knuckle Up last season. “I have a good horse with an okay draw but we all know how well Got The Chocolates and Marketplace have been racing,” says Butcher. “The race shape will come down to whether Marketplace wants to stay in front or hand to Got The Chocolates but I think rather than burning early and undoing my horse I am better floating across to parked, hopefully taking a sit on Got The Chocolates and getting the last shot at them.” Butcher has his own mare Mantra Blue (R8, No.8) in the Bob McArdle Classic, a race he’d love to win because of a close family connection while he finally gets a good draw with the talented War Cry (R9, No.2) in the Dunstan Sires’ Stakes Final. It’s Marketplace vs Got The Chocolates again in THE VELOCITY By Michael Guerin Marketplace has been woken up for the richest race of his career at Addington tonight. The glamour boy of our classic pacing crop has a few dents in his crown after arch rival Got The Chocolates has beaten him in their last two clashes, once when Marketplace trailed him but more painfully when Got The Chocolates sat parked outside him at Ashburton last start. “Got The Chocolates was awesome last start and I didn’t think he could do that,” says Marketplace’s trainer Regan Todd. “I don’t think our horse is going any worse but Got The Chocolates has improved and the gap has closed.” So Todd has reached for the turbo buttons by applying blinkers to Marketplace for today’s $500,000 slot race the Hill, Lee and Scott THE VELOCITY as well as removing his usual earplugs. “We think that will get him keener and we think he can handle that because he is such a laid-back horse. “I’d like to think it will have him up and running early and keep him keen.” While that could raise concerns for some horses about them over-racing the reality is today’s sprint trip is likely to be run hard anyway so Marketplace will be close enough to his top end of his cruising speed for much of the race. “It is all about the next two weeks now,” says Todd. “This race and the Derby next week are what he has been set for and I think we have him peaking.” As talented as Marketplace is, Got The Chocolates has gone to another level and he can still win even though he is likely to have to sit parked. One way or the other we should know who New Zealand’s best three-year-old pacer is by 7.45pm tonight. View the full article

In anticipation of rainy weather in Southern California, Del Mar has moved up the post time by half an hour for its Nov. 14, card to noon PT and canceled racing Nov. 15, the track announced on social media.View the full article

Many of the best Irish-based stallions will be on display next year as over 30 stallion farms will open their doors for the 2026 Irish Thoroughbred Marketing (ITM) Irish Stallion Trail on January 16 and 17. A free event, visitors can simple register for the studs they wish to visit at ITM's website. Due to high demand, those wishing to visit Coolmore Stud must register for a specific date and time slot. The popular Mark O'Hanlon Memorial Quiz will also be held to coincide with the ITM Irish Stallion Trail. The team-based, racing-themed quiz is free to enter and will take place at 9 p.m. on Friday, January 16, 2026 at The Lord Bagenal Inn in Leighlinbridge, Co. Carlow. The winners will take home the Perpetual Mark O'Hanlon Cup. ITM CEO Charles O'Neill, said, “Irish stallions are recognised among the global elite, producing winners at the highest level both on the Flat and over jumps. In 2026, Ireland's stallion roster will be stronger than ever, featuring proven producers, emerging stars, and exciting new additions to suit every breeder and budget. The ITM Irish Stallion Trail is always a highlight of the year for the industry and we're grateful to all participating farms for opening their doors. We look forward to welcoming everyone on the Trail and celebrating Ireland's world-class breeding tradition.” The post Over 30 Stallion Farms To Participate In 2026 ITM Irish Stallion Trail appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

The $3-million GI Pegasus World Cup Invitational will for the first time be included in the Breeders' Cup Challenge Series: Win and You're In, Breeders' Cup Limited and 1/ST announced Thursday. The Breeders' Cup Challenge Series is an international series of 94 stakes races in 15 countries whose winners will receive automatic starting positions and fees paid into a corresponding race at the 2026 Breeders' Cup World Championships, scheduled to be held Oct. 30-31 at Keeneland Race Course in Lexington. As part of the global series of automatic qualifying races for the $7-million GI Longines Breeders' Cup Classic, the Pegasus World Cup Invitational, which will be held on Saturday, Jan. 24, 2026, at Gulfstream Park, will offer the winner an automatic starting position along with pre-entry and entry fees paid (a $150,000 value). Additionally, the nominator of the winning horse will receive a $10,000 award. All Breeders' Cup Challenge winners receive travel benefits to the World Championships: $10,000 for starters based outside of Kentucky in North America $40,000 for international starters based outside North America Since its debut in 2017, six of the nine Pegasus World Cup champions have also won a Breeders' Cup race. “The Breeders' Cup Challenge Series is designed to celebrate and connect premier racing on a global stage,” said Drew Fleming, President and CEO of Breeders' Cup Limited. “Including the Pegasus World Cup is a perfect fit–it's a first-class event that now becomes part of an elite journey to the Longines Breeders' Cup Classic.” “This partnership connects two of the sport's most powerful stages,” said Aidan Butler, President, 1/ST. “The Pegasus World Cup Invitational's 10th anniversary will serve as a true gateway to the Breeders' Cup Classic – linking our passionate fans, horsemen and international audience in a new and meaningful way.” The 2026 Pegasus World Cup, presented by 1/ST, will be broadcast live from 4:30pm – 6:00pm (ET) on NBC and Peacock. For more information and tickets to the 2026 Pegasus World Cup, visit www.pegasusworldcup.com or follow on socials @pegasusworldcup. The post Pegasus World Cup Joins Breeders’ Cup Challenge Series appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

Friday, Bahrain Turf Club, Kingdom of Bahrain, post time: 19:40, BAHRAIN INTERNATIONAL TROPHY-G2, $1,000,000, 3yo/up, 2000mT Field: Bright Picture (Fr) (Intello {Ger}), Calif (Ger) (Areion {Ger}), Galen (GB) (Gleneagles {Ire}), Lion's Pride (GB) (Roaring Lion), Military Order (Ire) (Frankel {GB}), Persica (Ire) (New Bay {GB}), Royal Champion (Ire) (Shamardal), Pride Of Arras (Ire) (New Bay {GB}). TDN Analysis: With the withdrawal of Group 1 winner Tornado Alert (Too Darn Hot), Godolphin only has the G3 Winter Derby scorer Military Order set to start for Charlie Appleby in this lucrative contest. However, he is not a lock, as there are plenty of worthy challengers gunning for this Group 2 prize and Karl Burke's G2 York Stakes scorer and G1 Irish Champion Stakes third Royal Champion is signed on here. Andre Fabre will saddle G2 Prix Eugene Adam hero Bright Picture. That luminary ran third to First Look (Lope De Vega), with subsequent G1 Grosser Preis von Bayern hero Bay City Roller (New Bay) second, in the G2 Prix Dollar on Arc weekend. Group 1 winner Calif is hoping to finally find the winner's circle after a fruitless hunt this term, and the Gosdens have entered multiple listed winner Lion's Pride. The blowout winner of the Listed Godolphin Stakes at Newmarket in September could break his group duck in style on Friday. Representing the three-year-old brigade is G2 Dante Stakes/G2 Great Voltigeur Stakes victor Pride Of Arras for Ralph Beckett. Saturday, Krefeld, Germany, post time: 14:30, GROSSER PREIS DER RONDO FOOD GMBH & CO. KG – HERZOG VON RATIBOR-RENNEN-G3, €55,000, 2yo, 8 1/2fT Field: Lommi (Ire) (Churchill {Ire}), Zuender (Ger) (Amaron {GB}), Abachi (Ger) (Japan {GB}), Nariman (Ire) (Gleneagles {Ire}), Nitaro (GB) (Oasis Dream {GB}), True Lion (Ger) (Amaron {GB}). TDN Analysis: Standard-setters Lommi and Zuender are at an instant disadvantage, with their extra kilo for placing behind the country's generation leader Gostam in the G3 Preis des Winterfavoriten and G3 Zukunfts-Rennen, respectively. The former was further away from their exciting peer in the Cologne feature, with Zuender going on to run second in Italy's G3 Gran Criterium. Of the others, Abachi has a Listed placing having run second in Hanover's Youngster Steher Cup and drops back in trip. [Tom Frary]. Click here for the complete fields. The post Black-Type Analysis: Desert Calling For Military Order appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

There is a new horse atop the latest Longines World's Best Racehorse Rankings, though it is not Forever Young, winner of the Nov. 1 Breeders' Cup Classic (G1) at Del Mar. It's Calandagan, who took the Oct. 18 Champion Stakes (G1) at Ascot. View the full article

G2 Prix Saint-Alary heroine Birthe leads four other wildcards for Arqana's Vente d'Elevage catalogue, which takes place from December 6-9. The daughter of Study Of Man, also second in the G2 Prix de la Nonette, will sell as lot 248E. All five will sell during the first session on Saturday, December 6. Samibaya (Wootton Bassett) (lot 248B) is a half-sister to dual group winner and Classic hopeful Samangan (Blue Point), as well as listed winner Simeen (Lope De Vega). The trio's dam is a half-sister to G1 Prix de Diane, G1 Prix Saint-Alary and G1 Grand Prix de Saint-Cloud heroine Sarafina (Refuse To Bend). G3 Prix de Conde third Shandana (Sea The Moon) will sell as lot 248C. Her granddam is G2 Prix Chaudenay victress Shankardeh (Mizzen Mast), third in the G1 Prix Royal-Oak. The fourth wildcard is the winning Persian King filly Valzeina (lot 248D). A daughter of listed winner Vertana (Sinndar), she was third in the G3 Preis der Winterkonigin. This is the extended family of Group 1 winner Vespone (Llandaff). Broodmare Honey Cake (248A), in foal to Golden Pal, is the fifth wildcard. By Siyouni, she is from the family of Group 1-winning stallions Oasis Dream, New Bay and Kingman. The post Saint-Alary Heroine Birthe Leads Wildcards For Arqana’s Vente d’Elevage appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

One of the most exciting young stallions in Europe is on his way to Yeomanstown Stud after Gay O'Callaghan struck the winning bid for the sire of Group 1 winner Time For Sandals at a Tattersalls Ireland silent auction. Sands Of Mali has been at the centre of a legal dispute between Steve Parkin of Clipper Logistics and Ballyhane Stud boss Joe Foley, who has managed the career of the 10-year-old stallion since he joined the roster back in 2021. In that time, the Group 1 winner has confirmed himself one of the hottest young stallions around with Commonwealth Cup winner Time For Sandals, Windsor Castle Stakes hero Ain't Nobody and Group 3 scorer Copacabana Sands just some of his notable flagbearers. O'Callaghan has labelled Sands Of Mali as a stallion who “has done it all” and has already put a covering fee of €22,500 on his head for the 2026 breeding season. He said, “We bought the horse and we're delighted to have him. He will fit in very well with us. He's very much a proven stallion and he turned up with another two-year-old maiden winner [the Stephen Thorne-trained Alissam] at Dundalk on Wednesday. That horse won first time up in a field of 15 and this is a stallion who has already had his Group 1 winner. He's done very well from relatively small chances.” From the moment news broke last week that Sands Of Mali would be sold at a silent auction, Yeomanstown Stud were put forward by many people within the industry as one of the front-runners to lure the horse from Ballyhane Stud. O'Callaghan has never hidden his admiration for the horse and even underbid a €58,000 yearling filly by the stallion that went the way of BBA Ireland at the Goffs Autumn Yearling Sale. Asked what it was that left him so convinced that Sands Of Mali would make the perfect addition at Yeomanstown Stud, O'Callaghan simply said, “His results. He is definitely punching above his weight for the calibre of mares that he has covered. Like, even the two-year-old winner he had at Dundalk, that was only a €2,000 yearling. We'd be hoping that we can hopefully make some improvement with the mares we can supply him with and maybe we can even make a lot of improvement.” He added, “For us, the beauty of Sands Of Mali is that a lot of the risk factor has already been eliminated. He's a proven stallion and there is no worry about his fertility. Above all else, there is no worry about him producing quality racehorses. He's already produced a Group 1 winner – he's done it all.” The Yeomanstown roster is completed by Dark Angel, Mill Stream and Supremacy, and O'Callaghan is in little doubt that Sands Of Mali has just the right profile to lead the stud into the future. He concluded, “I think he will complement Dark Angel and the rest of our stallions very well. As the fella says, you pay your money and you take your chance. We're just delighted to have secured him and he'll stand for €22,500.” The post Yeomanstown Buys ‘Proven Group 1 Stallion’ Sands Of Mali – Fee Set At €22,500 appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

With inclement weather affecting much of the country, Del Mar announced on X Thursday that it will cancel the entirety of its card on Saturday, Nov. 15. Friday's 8-race card is expected to proceed as scheduled, however, first post has been moved up to 12 p.m. The post Del Mar Cancels Saturday Card Due to Weather appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

Aga Khan homebred Calandagan (Gleneagles) triumphed in the G1 Champion Stakes on QIPCO British Champions Day and is now rated the best horse in the world in the Longines World's Best Racehorse Rankings. Rated 130 from 125, the gelding defeated G1 Prince Of Wales's Stakes/G1 International Stakes hero Ombudsman (Night Of Thunder) (128), group winner Almaqam (Lope De Vega) (122) and G1 Eclipse Stakes victor Delacroix (Dubawi) (126) last month. The G1 King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes and the G1 Grand Prix de Saint-Cloud both went his way in his two previous starts. Sharing third in the rankings is the 127-rated Forever Young (Real Steel), who won the GI Breeders' Cup Classic defeating last year's Classic winner Sierra Leone (Gun Runner) (126), the 125-rated Fierceness (City Of Light) and GI Preakness Stakes winner Journalism (Curlin). Also at 127 is Arc hero Daryz (Sea The Stars), Classic winner Field Of Gold (Kingman) and the GI Kentucky Derby/GI Belmont Stakes hero Sovereignty (Into Mischief). At the same level as Delacroix are the 126-ranked Hong Kong superstars Ka Ying Rising (Shamexpress) and Romantic Warrior (Acclamation). Notable Speech (Dubawi) improved his rating to 122 after his win in the GI Breeders' Cup Mile, Ethical Diamond (Awtaad) is now rated 121 after taking the GI Breeders' Cup Turf. Shisospicy (Mitole)'s mark is 120 after a win in the GI Breeders' Cup Sprint. Japan is also in the mix with Masquerade Ball (Duramente) ranked at 121 after taking the G1 Tenno Sho (Autumn) and Mikki Fight (Drefong) is at 120 on the back of a victory in the JBC Classic. The post Calandagan Officially Rated Best In The World After Champion Stakes Score appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

by Dane McLeod/TTR AusNZ The strength and influence of the Hong Kong buying bench continued throughout Day 2 of the sale, with a high proportion of 2-year-olds destined for that racing jurisdiction. Hong Kong buyers accounted for 41.45% of the total spend across the two days, purchasing 75 horses for NZ$17,195,000. Among them was prominent owner KM Yeung, well known for campaigning Galaxy Patch (Wandjina), the champion four-year-old in Hong Kong. Yeung purchased 13 horses on Day 2, including the sale-topper, lot 374, a Zoustar colt out of Hijack Hussy (Hussonet) from the KB Bloodstock draft. The colt boasts a close link to Yeung's stable star, being related to Wandjina, the sire of Galaxy Patch. Yeung also purchased three lots on Day 1, bringing his total to 16 horses and cementing his position as the leading buyer at the Ready to Run Sale for the third consecutive year. His total spend reached NZ$3,570,000, averaging NZ$223,125 across Wednesday and Thursday. Kit Brook's KB Bloodstock presented lot 374, a big, strong son of Australia's reigning champion sire Zoustar, who became the new top lot for this year's sale at NZ$825,000 when sold to Yeung. “He [KM Yeung] has got a very nice superstar in Hong Kong that ran second in a Group race last time [Patch Of Theta]. So he's looking for another superstar. He loves this one,” said Willie Leung of Magus Equine, speaking on behalf of Yeung. “He looks big and strong, so it's likely we'll take him to Hong Kong earlier. And his half-brother in Hong Kong is doing very well.” The colt is the fourth foal out of his four-time winning dam who was successful in the Listed Lexus Hybrid Plate and placed in the G3 Vo Rogue Plate and the Listed Mode Plate. It wasn't just Yeung making his presence felt. On Day 2 alone, 21 separate buyers secured horses bound for Hong Kong, underlining the market's ongoing strength and appetite for quality New Zealand bloodstock. With 265 horses sold across the two days, the aggregate was NZ$41,407,500, which compared favourably to 2024 when 254 horses sold for NZ$38,593,500. Overall the average for the sale, which was NZ$156,255 for the two days, which was slightly up from 2024's average of NZ$151,943 The median increased to NZ$100,000 from NZ$90,000 in 2024. The clearance rate of 75% was a slight decrease on 2024's clearance rate of 78%. The leading vendor by sales was Riversley Park with 34 horses sold for NZ$6,525,000, while the leading buyer was Hong Kong's KM Yeung, who purchased 16 horses for NZ$3,570,000. Riversley Park have been the top vendors by aggregate for nine consecutive years. The post Hong Kong Buyers Busy At Karaka appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article