Wandering Eyes

Less than a week after tying Jerry Bailey's modern-day record of 660 graded stakes-winning rides, Hall of Fame jockey John Velazquez has three chances to surpass Jerry Bailey Sept. 27 on opening day of the autumn meet at Santa Anita Park. View the full article

Observations on the European Racing Scene turns the spotlight on the best European races of the day, highlighting well-pedigreed horses early in their careers, horses of note returning to action and young runners that achieved notable results in the sales ring. Friday’s Insights features a half-sister to $750,000 Jockey Club Oaks heroine Edisa (Kitten’s Joy). 4.06 Saint-Cloud, Mdn, €27,000, 2yo, f, 8fT EBAIYRA (Distorted Humor) is a half-sister to the recent Jockey Club Oaks winner Edisa (Kitten’s Joy) who debuts for the same His Highness The Aga Khan-Alain de Royer-Dupre partnership. She encounters another unraced filly in The Niarchos Family’s Andre Fabre-trained Light of Night (GB) (Dark Angel {Ire}), a daughter of former ‘TDN Rising Star’ Night of Light (Ire) (Sea the Stars {Ire}) whose own half-brother Highest Ground (Ire) (Frankel {GB}) also earned that status on Monday. The post Half to Edisa Debuts at Saint-Cloud appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

Joy Scott will be honored by the National Turf Writers and Broadcasters with its Bill Mooney Award for displaying courage in the face of tremendous adversity. Scott launched her career as a jockey in 1981 and won 537 races riding in Thoroughbred, Quarter Horse, Arabian and Mixed Breed events. She suffered severe injuries to her right leg in a five-horse accident at Los Alamitos in 2001, but returned to the saddle to ride races 14 months later. “I’m a winner again,” said Scott, who continues to battle back from injuries suffered in a morning-training accident in March 2013 at Santa Anita Park. “What an honor; I’m thrilled and overwhelmed.” Scott joins three prior Mooney winners–the award’s namesake who died after a long battle with cancer in 2017; retired jockey and owner Rene Douglas; and last year’s winner, horsewoman Martine Bellocq. “She is the walking (miraculously) embodiment of what the Mooney Award has come to represent,” Eclipse Award-winning Turf writer Jay Hovdey said in his endorsement of Scott this spring. “Her desire to remain a viable part of the sport kept her competing until it was no longer possible, and her nightmare struggles with recovery from serious injury is, sadly, more typical of others in her situation than we would like to believe. Yet she has soldiered on, raised a fine son as a single parent, and presents herself to the racing family with a positive outlook that is almost incomprehensible to those of us who have never faced such adversity.” Scott will be honored at the NTWAB’s 60th annual Awards Dinner at The Derby in Arcadia, California, Oct. 30. Also that night, the NTWAB will honor the late Rick Violette, Hall of Fame trainer D. Wayne Lukas, Caton Bredar, and Tim Wilkin. The post Joy Scott Earns Mooney Award for Courage appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

I am continually bemused by the way our racing authorities everwhere are barking up the wrong tree, or should I say aiming at the wrong targets. In the United States, they seem to be looking for any way they can find to avoid discussing bute and banamine, the only two drugs sufficiently pain-masking to provoke catastrophic breakdowns when the horse cannot respond to the pain barrier. In Britain, they are focusing on tildren, a beneficial treatment initially developed for humans with bone cancer, when there are much more serious issues to face. If shock waves or tildren could numb pain to the same degree as bute, or at all for that matter, it would be common knowledge. The fact is, it ain’t so. If ever there were two therapies who help horses on the way to good health, toward the top of the list you would have shock waves and tildren, both of which can break a vicious circle of self-perpetuating inflammation, and actually induce a virtuous one, setting a horse in chronic pain on its way to recovery, and thereby eventually less subject to breaking down. The published study is a self-fulfilling prophecy, and completely biased. Obviously the horses who receive shock waves (among other therapies) are also those with problems, and therefore that group will be more subject to breakdowns than the average population. This makes sense, if you just think about it objectively, doesn’t it? The conclusion of this study is akin to “discovering” that people who take paracetamol are more subject to headaches, or that those who receive insulin are more prone to diabetes…. How about a study of what percentage of the horses who had catastrophic breakdowns racing or breezing, were on bute or banamine? And compare that with the average of the breed? And then concentrate on the real problem: horses working at speed and racing on powerful analgesics. The post Letter to the Editor: David Powell appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

A battle between two of the top older horses in the country looms Sept. 28 at Santa Anita Park when McKinzie and Higher Power meet in the $300,000 Awesome Again Stakes (G1), a major steppingstone toward the Nov. 2 Longines Breeders' Cup Classic. View the full article

After earning her first stakes win in her previous start, North American Thoroughbred Horse Company's Amazonian will look for more success in her graded stakes debut Sept. 28 in the $100,000 Ballerina Stakes (G3) at Hastings Racecourse. View the full article

After splitting the first two legs of the FTBOA Florida Sire Stakes for 2-year-olds, Chance It and Liam's Lucky Charm will try to secure supremacy in the series that closes out Sept. 28 at Gulfstream Park. View the full article

Sponsored by Alex Nichols Agency 8th-CD, $95K, Msw, 2yo, 6 1/2f, 4:21 p.m. ET CresRan homebred NEWSCASTER (Uncle Mo) makes his career bow in this spot for trainer Steve Hobby. Out of Grade III winner Sue’s Good News (Woodman), the bay is a half to Grade I-winning millionaire Tiz Miz Sue (Tiznow) and MSW Bulletin (City Zip), winner of the inaugural Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf Sprint last term. This is also the family of champion Cozzene (Caro {IrE}); English Highweight & MG1SW Hawkbill (Kitten’s Joy); and GISW Free Drop Billy (Union Rags). Dale Romans saddles another well-bred firster in Seven and Seven (Oxbow), who is out of champion Fiji (GB) (Rainbow Quest). Winchell Thoroughbreds and Willis Horton’s $450,000 KEESEP buy Silver State (Hard Spun), a son of SW & GSP Supreme (Empire Maker), makes his career bow for Steve Asmussen here. TJCIS PPs The post Sept. 27 Insights: Well-Related Uncle Mo Colt Debuts at Churchill appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

Newmarket The ITV racing team bring us four races from Newmarket on Friday, where Promissory looks the one to beat in the Princess Royal Stakes, the lightly-raced Cloak Of Spirits can regain the winning thread in the Rockfel Stakes. King Of Comedy could prove to be the class act in the Joel Stakes. Rosemary Stakes […] The post Newmarket Friday Preview – Comedy Can Have The Last Laugh In Joel Stakes appeared first on RaceBets Blog EN. View the full article

Jockey William Carson has been banned for six months after testing positive for a metabolite of cocaine. However, his suspension was backdated to start from Apr. 4–eight days after the sample taken from him at Lingfield was found to contain the banned substance benzoylecgonine. His ban runs through to Oct. 4–and as long as his riding licence has not expired and he receives clearance from the British Horseracing Authority’s medical team, he will able to resume his career next month. Carson, the 29-year-old grandson of five-time champion and multiple Classic winner Willie Carson, received confirmation of his punishment at a BHA disciplinary panel hearing on Thursday. Without a winner this year, Carson has not ridden since Apr. 1. His biggest career success to date came in the 2008 Ayr Gold Cup aboard Regal Parade (GB) (Pivotal {GB}). The post William Carson Banned for Six Months After Drug Positive appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

After a proposed mandate by The Jockey Club to cap stallion covers at 140 annually, we solicited comment from the industry, and published numerous replies. After our series ended, however, the replies continued to flood in, and we are including some of the additional responses below. JAMES KEOGH, GROVENDALE I have watched the stallion book limitation debate with much interest. I am opposed to placing a cap on stallion books. As a Central Kentucky resident for over 30 years, I have witnessed tremendous growth and development in this area of the country. Central Kentucky truly is the Thoroughbred capital of the world and one reason is that many of the best stallions in the world reside here. Caps placed on stallion books will significantly impact the amount of money a stallion master can pay for a potential stallion. In order to recover the investment a strong stallion market goes hand in hand with a strong yearling market. I’m in agreement with Mr. Arthur Hancock on two points only, that “the bull is half the herd” and that this will affect the DNA. Our competition in Japan should be thrilled with the prospects of implementation of a limited stallion book. With a cap in place, American stud farms will no longer be able to compete for the finest stallions in the world and could see stallions leave due to the restrictions. Free trade and open markets is what this country is based on. I urge the people behind this movement to reconsider their stance as it is counter-productive to producing world-class horses. Parochial thinking has no place in the world of international commerce. GEORGE ADAMS, HOUSATONIC BLOODSTOCK I think the proposed cap is a fantastic idea, and overdue. As has already been pointed out by numerous commentators, stallion owners will be able to limit the economic losses that they might incur from such a cap by simply increasing a horse’s stud fee. That will only aid that next tier of stallions who will end up being the beneficiaries of some of the “overflow” mares, with stallion owners likely able to raise the stud fees of those horses as well. Whether this next tier includes young stallions or proven stallions who, for whatever reason, have not quite achieved commercial super-stardom, there would be no dearth of worthy horses for mare owners to breed their mares to. The argument that genetic diversity will not aided by the 140-mare limit because breeders will simply turn to a stallion’s son if they get shut out from his book is a specious one. A breeder who has a mare that they were going to spend $150,000 on to send to Into Mischief, if forced to go elsewhere because of the cap, is not going to choose one of Into Mischief’s sons at a fraction of that price. They’re going to choose another stallion who is a good cross at or near that stud fee level because they’re breeding for the commercial market, or they believe that their mare is of such quality that she deserves to be bred at that level–to suggest that there are a plethora of breeders out there who would pay one-tenth of a six-figure sire’s stud fee to go to one of his sons instead simply to achieve that specific cross is just not credible. Having just brought a new stallion to Maryland in Force the Pass, we can only hope that the 140-mare limit might also result in a few regional breeders leaving their mares to be bred to stallions in those regional markets, rather than sending them back and forth to Kentucky for more “commercial” options. More mares to a broader swath of stallions, giving more stallions more chances to establish themselves and to therefore boost their regional programs, can only be a good thing–for the regional breeders, regional stallion owners, and therefore the industry as a whole. DIANE AKERLIND As a person who loves the racing and the history of the thoroughbred, I think it’s a good idea to limit the amount and give the lesser stallions more of a chance to make it instead of shipping it to another country. No one wanted Sunday Silence and look what he did for Japan. DAN VELLA I am a trainer in Canada for many years and lover of horse racing for just as many. I just want to ask The Jockey Club and the large breeders who control that end of our industry if they have thought about artificial insemination in our industry’s future. This type of breeding is done in all other horse industries and is 100% foolproof with the use of DNA testing when registering foals. I understand that it would be a huge change for us but I believe that if we can allow all breeders to have access to better and sounder stallions throughout North America, it would go a long way towards helping our major problems in our industry today–that being sounder animals that need less medication. We as a industry need to stop fighting among ourselves and work towards a strong future or we won’t have one and it starts with the powerful people making the right decisions from the way we breed to the way we race. I see a lot of breeders fighting against Lasix. Let’s start at home and allow people access to sound stallions that had no need for medication and that would be a huge step toward saving our industry. RYAN MCLEAN I think the breeding world should cap the stallion’s first three seasons at 100 mares, then open his book up after that. That would get the breeders’ focus on the best book mares for the stallion. Prices would be probably be higher for breeding fees and at sales because there wouldn’t be flooding in the market. We don’t need to find out four years after the stallion put out 400 foals on the ground that they aren’t worth the grass they are eating. We need to focus on quality with the diversity to keep our breed going in a positive direction. The post Letters to the Editor: More Reactions to JC Cap appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

‘TDN Rising Star’ King of Comedy (Ire) (Kingman {GB}) looks to springboard to Champions Day at Newmarket on Friday as Lady Bamford’s homebred tackles the G2 Shadwell Joel S. Reverting to a mile after a latest fourth in the G1 Juddmonte International at York Aug. 21, the June 18 G1 St James’s Palace S. runner-up sets the standard despite meeting the smart older performers Benbatl (GB) (Dubawi {Ire}) and Zaaki (GB) (Leroidesanimaux {Brz}). Hugo Lascelles, racing manager to Lady Bamford, is taking nothing for granted. “We’re hopeful, but there are one or two good horses up against him so it won’t be a walkover, that’s for sure,” he said. “He’s working well and John is happy with him going into the race. He put up a decent performance at York and the stiff mile at Newmarket should suit him well. He hasn’t won a group race yet, so we’ll take it one step at a time, but if all goes well on Friday we hope he will then head back to Ascot for the QEII.” Fellow Rising Star Benbatl is making his belated seasonal debut in the Joel, having chased home Winx (Aus) (Street Cry {Ire}) in the G1 Cox Plate at Moonee Valley in October. He proved when successful in the G1 Dubai Turf, the G1 Grosser Dallmayr Preis and the G1 Ladbrokes S. last term that he is a top-class campaigner but his last win on English soil came in the 2017 G3 Hampton Court S. “His work has been good and he always shows his class in the mornings,” Saeed bin Suroor commented. “His last piece of work on the Watered Gallop on racecourse side was very good and we are very happy. A mile is a good trip for his first run and we will see how we go. I think he will need this race, but I’m hoping for a good run.” In the G2 Shadwell Rockfel S., Sheikh Nasser bin Hamad Al Khalifa’s Daahyeh (GB) (Bated Breath {GB}) looks the one to beat on the basis of her win in the June 21 G3 Albany S. at Royal Ascot and runner-up finishes in the G2 Duchess of Cambridge S. on the July Course here July 12 and the G1 Moyglare Stud S. at The Curragh Sept. 15. “Daahyeh ran great in the Moyglare on her first try at seven furlongs when she was coming back after a bit of a break,” trainer Roger Varian said. “It was a tight decision choosing between running her here or in the Cheveley Park Stakes on Saturday, but the long-term plan may include taking her over to the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf over a longer trip, so it seemed sensible to stick at seven furlongs instead of yo-yoing back down to six.” Sheikh Mohammed Obaid Al Maktoum’s impressive Ascot debut scorer Cloak of Spirits (Ire) (Invincible Spirit {Ire}) reverts to seven after running too free when sixth in the G2 May Hill S. over a mile at Doncaster Sept. 12, while Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed Al Maktoum’s Festival Day (GB) (Dubawi {Ire}) comes off a six-length Chepstow novice win 11 days previously. “It wouldn’t be something we usually do–throwing a horse in at the deep end so quickly–but this filly was showing enough early on to give her some entries at this sort of level,” Charlie Johnston explained. “Daahyeh sets a very good standard and will be a tough nut to crack. It’s a bit of a fact-finding mission for us, but we hope she’ll be competitive.” Newmarket’s card also features the G3 Princess Royal Muhaarar S., where Princess Haya of Jordan’s Promissory (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}) goes back against her own sex following a second to the subsequent G1 St Leger runner-up Sir Ron Priestley (GB) (Australia {GB}) in the G3 March S. over 14 furlongs at Goodwood Aug. 24. The two listed contests are intriguing affairs, with Sheikh Hamdan bin Rashid Al Maktoum’s Listed Pretty Polly S. winner Maqsad (Fr) (Siyouni {Fr}) taking on John and Tanya Gunther’s Sept. 7 Ascot handicap winner She’s Got You (GB) (Kingman {GB}) in the Rosemary and Ballydoyle’s G2 Beresford S. runner-up Mount Everest (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) looking for some momentum to his late-starting 3-year-old campaign in the Godolphin S. Click here for the complete group fields. The post King of Comedy Looking for Ideal Ascot Warm-Up appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

The National Turf Writers and Broadcasters will present Joy Scott, who battled back from multiple serious injuries during her career as a jockey, with the Bill Mooney Award for displaying courage in the face of tremendous adversity. View the full article

TCI's Jon and Joel analyze the first major weekend of final Breeders' Cup preps, including several likely divisional favorites racing coast to coast. View the full article

If $600,000 Fasig-Tipton Florida graduate and ‘TDN Rising Star’ Gouverneur Morris (Constitution)’s runaway debut win in the Saratoga slop Sept. 2 was any indication, Team Valor International’s Barry Irwin may have a difficult time staying away from the 2-year-old in training sales for such a long time again. Co-owned by WinStar Farm LLC and trained by Todd Pletcher, the flashy gray is currently being aimed at the GI Claiborne Breeders’ Futurity at Keeneland Oct. 5. “I don’t like the 2-year-old sales,” Irwin dead-panned. “I don’t like how they treat the horses. The number of people that I have personally encountered that do the right thing are few and far between. It’s just too much heartbreak, so I stopped going. I think the last 2-year-old colt that I bought in America was a minimum of a dozen years ago.” So what lured Irwin back to the ring? Enter recent Team Valor hire Jessica Berry, a graduate of the Godolphin Flying Start program. “She wanted me to take her to a 2-year-old sale for a learning experience–just to look at some horses and basically give her my opinion on things,” Irwin said. “I went out there with no intention of buying the horse or bidding on anything.” Gouverneur Morris’s move in :10 1/5 was one of only a couple of breezes at the under-tack show to pique Irwin’s interest. While taking a closer look at Hip 174 at the Eddie Woods consignment at Barn 24, Irwin ran into Pletcher, who also trained the colt’s freshman sire to wins in the 2014 GI Besilu Florida Derby and 2015 GI Donn H. “I saw Pletcher standing out there and I said, ‘Did you look at this horse?,'” Irwin said. “He goes, ‘Yeah, he looks just like Constitution did at that same age.'” A well-timed, single bid of $600,000 by Berry and Gouverneur Morris was Team Valor’s. WinStar came in for a quarter interest shortly thereafter, per Irwin. Gouverneur Morris was the most expensive of 41 juveniles to switch hands by Constitution in 2019. Previously a $200,000 KEESEP yearling graduate, Gouverneur Morris was bred in Kentucky by Machmer Hall, Carrie and Craig Brogden and James F. Miller. One of a leading 15 winners for his first-crop sire, he is out of the stakes-placed Unbridled’s Song mare Addison Run. The Feb. 23 foal hails from the extended female family of champion Midshipman (Unbridled’s Song) and MGISW Frosted (Tapit). You don’t need a master’s degree in history to appreciate the story behind this horse’s name. The two-legged Gouverneur Morris, of course, was a founder and writer of the Preamble to the U.S. Constitution. Team Valor partner Ed Barker, who also owns 25% of Centennial Farms’ GI Woodward S. winner and GI Jockey Club Gold Cup entrant Preservationist (Arch), gets all the credit, Irwin said. “As soon as I bought the horse, I sent out an email and he was the first guy to call and asked if he could name him if he bought in,” Irwin said. “I said, ‘Buy 10% and I’ll let you name him.’ He’s a real history buff and he sent me a whole bunch of stuff on who he was and what he did. Oddly enough, he used to go to the races in France, too.” Gouverneur Morris has posted two workouts since his ultra-impressive unveiling, which earned him a very solid 83 Beyer Speed Figure. He shared the bullet for five furlongs in 1:00.88 (1/12) at Belmont Park Sept. 20 with fellow Pletcher ‘Rising Star’ Alpha Sixty Six (Liam’s Map). “Pletcher decided that the two-turn experience of the Futurity was worth going there for,” Irwin concluded. “I’ve had horses with Todd for many years and I’ve never heard him carry on to the extent that he has on this horse.” The post In Sharper Focus: Gouverneur Morris appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

TDN is proud to partner with the Keeneland Library and the Nunn Center for Oral History at the University of Kentucky Libraries in a very special new collaboration: the Keeneland ‘Life’s Work’ Oral History Project, a series of filmed interviews by TDN columnist Chris McGrath with significant figures in the Thoroughbred industry. The second of these, with John Phillips of Darby Dan Farm, appears here. His grandfather’s greatest achievements, on the Turf, were all about looking outward; about opening minds and dismantling boundaries. Listening to John Phillips, however, you realize that the impetus for the whole adventure–for the mutual enlightenment, either side of the ocean, achieved by sending Roberto and Ribot in opposite directions–could not have been more definitively American. Because as Phillips says himself, the story of John Galbreath might have been written by Horatio Alger. A kid raised in a large, poor family in the Ohio back country, whose dynamism and imagination generated a fortune from the steepling transformations of postwar real estate. Happily, as it is, the man charged with sustaining Galbreath’s legacy at the storied Darby Dan Farm proves no mean Alger himself, as reflective as he is eloquent. “Grandfather was very proud of being an American,” explains Phillips. “That notion of rugged individualism. And if you studied his family–his uncles, his father’s father, and the like… classic Americans going all over the country making fortunes, losing fortunes, [with] a very entrepreneurial, ‘go for it’ attitude. He was never afraid of failure. Some things did fail for him, but he never looked back.” Sure enough, Galbreath was equally at home with all ranks of society, from farmers in their fields to the boardroom. And it was his faith in American values that prompted him to hire Branch Rickey–the man who brought Jackie Robinson to Major League Baseball–to run his Pittsburgh Pirates. “He felt that the United States needs to be a meritocracy in everything we do, including sports,” Phillips explains. “So although Branch Rickey was past his prime, it did set the tone for the Pittsburgh Pirates. And they ended up recruiting a lot of minority players with tremendous talent.” One of these, in the rookie draft of 1954, was an African American from Puerto Rico with very little English: Roberto Clemente. Through the turbulent years of the Civil Rights movement, Clemente’s Hall of Fame career became a powerful symbol for Galbreath. “The relationship really took a decade to develop, because there was a huge cultural gap between a farmer in Ohio and somebody raised in Puerto Rico,” Phillips recalls. “Nonetheless Roberto Clemente became a close friend. He was a very sensitive, very committed human being.” In 1970, Galbreath decided to name the most athletic of his yearlings, a Hail to Reason colt, for Clemente; and it was the equine Roberto that farm manager Olin Gentry picked out as most eligible to be sent, on a pioneering mission, to Vincent O’Brien in Ireland. “And off he went, with a ridiculous notion that some American could just pick out one horse, go off to Europe, and actually win the English Derby,” says Phillips. “But that was Grandfather.” To read the rest of this story, watch the video, and hear the podcast, click here for the TDN Look. The post Keeneland Life’s Work Oral History Project #2: John Phillips appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

Goffs has coined its 2019 Orby Sale lineup as a “Classic collection” in its latest advertising campaign, and when examining the catalogue in conjunction with the sale’s proven track record of churning out Classic winners, that claim looks very much on the mark. The Goffs Orby Sale, which takes place at the Kill Paddocks on Oct. 1 and 2, rides the momentum of a second consecutive Oaks winner in 2019, with the G1 Prix de Diane winner Channel (Ire) (Nathaniel {Ire})-an €18,000 yearling pinhooked for €70,000 at two-following the 2018 G1 Investec Oaks winner Forever Together (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}), who represented the other end of the spectrum when bought by MV Magnier for €900,000 in 2016. Forever Together’s full-sister (lot 262)-and also a full-sister to the G1 Fillies’ Mile winner Together Forever (Ire) and last year’s Orby Sale topper, the €3.2-million filly Do You Love Me (Ire)-is one of two full-sisters to a Classic winner in the catalogue, the other being the full-sister to this year’s G1 Irish Derby winner Sovereign (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) (lot 213). Tally Ho Stud sends out a half-brother to this year’s G1 Irish 2000 Guineas winner Phoenix of Spain (Ire) from the first crop of another winner of that Classic in Awtaad (Ire) (Cape Cross {Ire}) (lot 345), while lot 301 is a Le Havre (Ire) colt who is the first foalout of G1 Irish 1000 Guineas winner Jet Setting (Ire) (Fast Company {Ire}). Popular sire Kodiac (GB) provides a half-brother to G1 Poule d’Essai des Pouliches victress Elusive Wave (Ire) (Elusive City) (lot 388). Naturally, these are far from the only standouts in the book of 472, and the class of 2019 has a big task ahead of them to build on the success of last year’s Orby sale. Last year’s catalogue was given a decisive trim-from 468 in 2017 to 419-in order to tighten up on quality. The result was a 6.8% rise in aggregate despite 46 fewer horses sold; a 22% climb in average to €132,948 and a 23% jump in the median to €80,000. The clearance rate was 89%-the highest of any of Europe’s select yearling sales last year. “We were delighted with last year’s sale,” said Goffs Group Chief Executive Henry Beeby. “I have to say going into last year’s sale I was slightly concerned, because I thought, ‘how could we match, with a smaller catalogue, what we had the year before?’ Whether we can match that this year remains to be seen. Notwithstanding Brexit there is a lot of uncertainty in the world. We have an expanded catalogue so maintaining an average and a median that was 22% and 23% up last year is a challenge in itself. Even if we’re down 10% on average and median we’d still be up 12% from two years ago, but you’re only judged against last year’s sale. So we have to take another step forward. “Last year we tightened the catalogue to 419, and that was a conscious decision. We thought we’d slightly increase the numbers but we were quite taken aback by how much support we got off of last year,” Beeby added. “So we’ve ended up with 472. We didn’t set out to increase the catalogue by that much; it naturally happened because of the success of last year.” And Beeby insisted the same standard of quality has been maintained. “Genuinely when we were putting together a short list for our team to go to Saratoga and start talking to people before the catalogue had been published, the short list turned into a long list quite quickly,” he said. “And that’s not just a line; we said we’d pick out the world-class pedigrees and make a list and say, ‘there you are.’ Five years ago I might have had six on the list. This year I had 29. And they were horses that each one in their own right could go into any sale anywhere and attract attention.” Another accomplishment the Orby sale will try to emulate from last year is selling the two most expensive yearling fillies in the world. Keeneland’s $8.2-million daughter of American Pharoah and Leslie’s Lady (Tricky Creek) makes that feat more challenging this year, but Orby certainly brings the right ammunition with full-sisters to last year’s two sale toppers, the Galileo sister to Forever Together being joined by another full-sister to three-time Group 1 winner Alice Springs (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) and last year’s second-top lot, Glenvale Stud’s €2-million daughter of Galileo and Aleagueoftheirown (Ire) (Danehill Dancer {Ire}) (lot 127). The catalogue boasts nine Galileos in total, those aforementioned fillies being joined by the likes of lot 155, a colt out of G2 Ribblesdale S. winner Banimpire (Ire) (Holy Roman Emperor {Ire}). There are a pair of Dubawis set to be offered: lot 188, a half-brother to G1 Queen Elizabeth II S. winner Persuasive (Ire) (Dark Angel {Ire}) and lot 440, a filly who is the third foal out of dual Group 3 winner Purr Along (GB) (Mount Nelson {GB}). Persuasive’s ever-popular sire Dark Angel has 20 catalogued, including a full-sister to champion sprinter Harry Angel (Ire) (lot 156)-also a half-sister to last weekend’s G2 Mill Reef S. victor Pierre Lapin (Ire) (Cappella Sansevero {Ire})–and a colt out of dual Group 1 winner La Collina (Ire) (Strategic Prince {Ire}) (lot 317). The full-sister to Harry Angel is consigned by Baroda Stud on behalf of breeder China Horse Club, and Baroda’s David Cox said, “the full-sister to Harry Angel, who was once rated the world’s best sprinter, is out of a mare who is herself a half-sister to a Group 1 winner, so she has a great pedigree and the looks to match it. She has been very straightforward since she was born, a lovely attitude and takes everything in her stride. It’s great to have a filly with a pedigree and physical to match. She will also be a lovely broodmare in a few years’ time, but she looks like she is going to be a racehorse first. The mare was covered by Justify this year so that’s something for potential buyers to keep in mind, thinking more long-term.” There are eight chances to secure a yearling by the red-hot Kingman (GB), including lot 258, a filly out of a half-sister to Horse of the Year Golden Horn (GB). Fellow second-crop sire No Nay Never has 10 catalogued, including a half-brother to last year’s G1 Moyglare Stud S. winner and champion 2-year-old filly Skitter Scatter (Scat Daddy) (lot 205). Leading French sire Siyouni (Fr)’s haul includes lot 228, a half-sister to the dam of listed winner Edisa (Kitten’s Joy), winner of the $750,000 Jockey Club Oaks since the catalogue was published. “The catalogue speaks for itself,” Beeby said. “We’ve been really pleased, and I suppose it’s a continuing evolution of the sale. More and more Irish breeders are saying ‘we’ll send you, if not our best, a share of our best,’ and plenty are now sending us their best. Our constant challenge in Goffs has always been people wanting to go to England for traditional reasons, currency reasons, because they thought there were more people there. Happily, more and more people are deciding to spread their risk. We’re not getting the second-raters; we’re getting a good share, if not all, of the best.” Beeby was speaking from the grounds of Keeneland September, where he spent three days pounding the pavement and promoting the Orby sale to the buyers assembled for America’s largest yearling sale, and Beeby admitted Goffs has invested heavily in buyer recruitment. “We specifically took Tom Taaffe onto our team last year as well as Hayley O’Connor to go out and get more buyers and spread the word about what we have,” Beeby said. “There are only so many places one person can go so we have our existing team-our global agents–and on top of that we’ve invested quite heavily in making sure we have more and more people in recruitment. The Orby sale is only two days long; we’re keeping it very tight so we can stand behind it and if we’re in Kentucky, Japan, or Australia we can say, ‘just give us two days, you will not be disappointed.'” That strategy seems to be paying off, with the Orby sale last year having eight different buyers spend in excess of €1-million cumulatively. “I think what we’ve seen at the Orby Sale as opposed to some other sales in recent years is that we’re not as reliant on one group of buyers,” Beeby said. “We’ve had a broad spread. There are more buyers per numbers catalogued at Goffs than anywhere else. I would expect that to happen again this year, and we expect to have the big buyers back. It was wonderful last year to have Sheikh Mohammed there for the first time in 13 years. We’re very grateful for his support and we’re very hopeful he’ll come back again. Of course Coolmore, it’s their local sale and they’re very much involved. They were underbidders on the top two lots last year, so they bid €5-million on those two alone and didn’t get either horse. There’s a very broad buyer base and we look to expand that each year.” With a handful of major yearling sales already in the books for 2019-including Goffs UK’s Premier and Silver Sales at Doncaster-Beeby and his team have some evidence to draw on to make market predications. “The over-used word this year, as ever, is going to be polarization,” he said. “That was very evident in France and very evident in England. For our part at our Doncaster sale we were delighted with the top of the market, including a new record price of £440,000 for a Kingman which was great and beat last year’s record price of £380,000. There were multiple buyers at the top of the market and a lot of interest. “The middle market was ok and beneath that it was a lot of work. The Silver Sale, which has an £8,000 to £10,000 average, was very hard work. We were disappointed with a 60% clearance rate at the Silver Sale, but I’d be surprised if at the end of the autumn we don’t look back and see that very much reflected across the market. I think the further down you get you’ll see clearance rates lower than the top of the market. That augurs well for the Orby sale, and the Sportsmans Sale will be more of a challenge; we think there are a really nice bunch of commercial horses in the Sportsmans Sale, but later on it will be hard. If you don’t tick a certain number of boxes, you don’t meet a certain amount of criteria, it’s going to be hard work.” In the meantime, those scouring the Goffs grounds in the days prior to Oct. 1 and 2 are sure to find plenty of reasons for optimism. The Orby sale begins at 10 a.m. on Tuesday and Wednesday and is followed by the two-day Sportsmans Sale on Oct. 3 and 4. The post A Classic Collection Assembled For Orby appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

‘TDN Rising Star’ Eight Rings (Empire Maker) was heavily favored in the GI Del Mar Futurity Sept. 2, but ducked in shortly after the break, dumping jockey Drayden Van Dyke and bumping into Storm the Court (Court Vision), causing him to lose his rider as well. Adding blinkers this time around, the Bob Baffert pupil looks to make amends Friday in the GI American Pharoah S. at Santa Anita, which grants the winner a spot in the gate for the GI Breeders’ Cup Juvenile. Prior to that incident last time, the $520,000 KEESEP purchase romped by 6 1/4 lengths in his Aug. 4 unveiling at Del Mar. Storm the Court, a debut winner in SoCal Aug. 10, also returns in this spot. Del Mar Futurity winner Nucky (Ghostzapper) will see if he can take down Eight Rings this time as he looks to double up. Prior to his top-level score earlier this month, the dark bay earned his diploma by 10 1/2 lengths at fourth asking while in for a $100,000 tag at Del Mar Aug. 21. Futurity third-place finisher Defense Wins (Flatter), who is still a maiden, seeks his diploma here. Also exiting the Futurity is fifth-place finisher Fore Left (Twirling Candy), who captured Belmont’s Tremont S. June 7. Steve Asmussen ships ‘TDN Rising Star’ Shoplifted (Into Mischief) in from the East Coast for this one. An impressive winner at first asking at Saratoga July 27, the $800,000 FTFMAR buy split his stablemates when second in the Spa’s GI Hopeful S. Sept. 2. Undefeated Collusion Illusion (Twirling Candy) makes his first top-level attempt here. Opening his account with a half-length success over Defense Wins at Del Mar July 21, the bay followed suit with a win in the GII Best Pal S. there Aug. 10. Express Train (Union Rags) looks like he could be any kind as he steps up from the maiden ranks here. Runner-up to Eight Rings in their mutual 5 1/2-panel debut Aug. 4, the $500,000 KEESEP purchase demolished the field by 14 1/4 lengths next out going a mile at Del Mar Aug. 28. American Theorem (American Pharoah) is another making a big class jump here after winning his career bow at Del Mar Aug. 31. The post Eight Rings Looks to Make Amends in American Pharoah appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

After winning a Breeders' Cup Challenge Series race, Acclimate is scheduled to make his final prep for the World Championships in the $200,000 John Henry Turf Championship Stakes (G2T) Sept. 28 at Santa Anita Park. View the full article

Baoma Corp’s Bast (Uncle Mo) broke her maiden in style last time in the GI Del Mar Debutante S. Aug. 31 and she looks to make it two in a row Friday at Santa Anita in the GI Chandelier S., a “Win and You’re In” event for the GI Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies. Second on debut behind $850,000 OBSMAR buy Inspiressa (The Big Beast) going 5 1/2 panels at Del Mar Aug. 11, the $500,000 FTSAUG buy proved second time’s a charm with an 8 3/4-length demolition of the Del Mar Debutante. Inspiressa was second that day and GIII Schuylerville S. heroine Comical (Into Mischief), who also returns here, was third. Comical’s trainer Doug O’Neill will saddle a second runner in this test in Buyer’s Remorse (Liam’s Map), who was run down late and forced to settle for second in her Del Mar unveiling Aug. 18. KMN Racing’s Been Studying Her (Fast Anna) puts her unbeaten record on the line here. A debut winner at Sacramento July 20, she captured the Generous Portion S. at Del Mar Aug. 28. K P Dreamin (Union Rags) enters off a second-out graduation at Del Mar Aug. 29. Rounding out the field is Leucothea (Mishipman), who won by 14 1/2 lengths at second asking in a $62,500 maiden claiming event at Del Mar Aug. 15 and was a well-beaten eighth in the Debutante. The post Bast Seeks Second Grade I in Chandelier appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

Leofric (Candy Ride {Arg}–Lady Godiva by Unbridled’s Song), winner of the 2018 GI Clark H. at Churchill Downs in his career finale, will stand his first season at stud as the property of a syndicate at Rockridge Stud in Hudson, New York. Originally a $330,000 KEESEP yearling purchase, he was aquired by Steve Landers for $100,000 as a horse of racing age at the 2016 KEENOV Sale. The gray also has wins in last term’s GII Hagyard Fayette S. and GIII West Virginia Governor’s S. and a third-place finish in the GI Woodward S. on his resume. Bred in Kentucky by Peter E. Blum Thoroughbreds, Leofric retires with a record of 14-8-1-3 and earnings of $951,040. He was produced by the unraced Unbridled’s Song mare Lady Godiva, a half-sister to MGSW Multiple Choice (Mt. Livermore). This is the extended female family of GISWs Well Chosen (Deputy Minister) and Telling (A.P. Indy). The post Leofric Retired to Rockridge Stud appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

Runner-up to Molatham (GB) (Night of Thunder {Ire}) in Doncaster’s Listed Flying Scotsman S. Sept. 13, Ballydoyle’s Wichita (Ire) (No Nay Never) was ruthless in Friday’s G3 Tattersalls S. at Newmarket. Always close up under Ryan Moore, the 10-11 favourite took control 2 1/2 furlongs from home and drew away up the hill to score by seven lengths from Persuasion (Ire) (Acclamation {GB}). WICHITA (IRE), 126, c, 2, No Nay Never–Lumiere Noire (Fr) (SW-Ger, $107,446), by Dashing Blade (GB). 1ST BLACK-TYPE WIN; 1ST GROUP WIN. (140,000gns Ylg ’18 TAOCT). O-Derrick Smith, Susan Magnier & Michael Tabor; B-W Maxwell Ervine (IRE); T-Aidan O’Brien; J-Ryan Moore. £28,355. Lifetime Record: 3-2-1-0, £44,123. The post No Nay Never’s Wichita Dominates the Tattersalls appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

In conjunction with Tom Hall's Look Back feature in BloodHorse Daily, BloodHorse.com each Thursday will present historic race stories from the pages of the magazine. View the full article

Preparing for a spring carnival is as much of a physical battle as it is a mental one. View the full article

Sprinter Faatinah will make a third attempt to win the Group One Moir Stakes at The Valley. Faatinah has the outside barrier against a quality field in the Moir Stakes but champion trainer David Hayes believes the gelding is still being underestimated in the Group One sprint. Seven-year-old Faatinah has finished sixth in the past two editions of the Moir (1000m) at The Valley and heads to his latest attempt off a recent win in the Group Two McEwen Stakes over the course and distance on September 7. That improved Faatinah’s impressive first-up record and while his second-up statistics are not as flash, Hayes and his Lindsay Park co-trainers have tried to keep him fresh for Friday night’s Moir. Hayes lamented barrier 15 for Faatinah but hoped the race could still pan out for the gelding who was a $31 chance on Thursday. “It is one of those races where I reckon there’s a lot of speed and a lot of swoopers and I’m hoping he might be able to get one of those lucky runs on the back of the speed, in between the slow ones and the fast ones,” Hayes said. “I think the market has got him totally wrong because the two at the top of the market (Nature Strip and Sunlight) are coming off failures and he’s coming off a good win. “Not like the horses at the head of the market, his last run was nearly a career-best. “So he’s an in-form horse. “He nearly won it two years ago. He got stuck on the fence. “Last year he ran free on the pace and emptied out. “I think he’s going better than last year.” Nature Strip and Sunlight ran in the Concorde Stakes in Sydney where Nature Strip over-raced and finished fourth and Sunlight fifth. Nature Strip has barrier one. “Obviously, there is going to plenty of speed on here,” his trainer Chris Waller said. “We won’t be taking away the speed from him. We will simply let him jump and be as settled as he possibly can be without over-racing, which was our intention last start, but when the pace slackened it left us in a very tricky position.” Sunlight’s trainer Tony McEvoy insists the star mare has tightened up and expects a strong showing but is also wary of barrier 10 and 1000m. “I’m very pleased with her. I’m nervous for her with how she maps in the race from the barrier,” McEvoy said. “I’m sure she’ll run a heck of a race and be very, very competitive because we’re going to get beautiful ground and that’s what she likes.” The post Faatinah ready for third crack at Group 1 Moir appeared first on BOAY Racing News. View the full article