Wandering Eyes

9th-GP, $50K, Msw, 3yo, f, 1 1/16mT A rare progeny of European super-sire Galileo (Ire) makes her debut for Summer Wind Equine in SHADOW PLAY going two turns on the Gulfstream lawn. The dark bay is a half-sister to 2014 GI Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf hero Hootenanny (Quality Road), while her dam, a $1.5-million purchase by Jane Lyon’s Summer Wind at Fasig-Tipton November in 2015, is a half to GISW Cat Moves (Tale of the Cat). Third dam Dance Teacher (Smarten) was a GISW as well. The Bill Mott pupil boasts a strong series of breezes at Payson Park, highlighted by a stamina-building seven-furlong turf work in 1:29 (1/6) Jan. 5 and a half-mile from the gate over the main track in :49 flat (2/31) Jan. 12. TJCIS PPs View the full article

Mexican Triple Crown winner is undeafeted in 14 starts View the full article

Since being established by Derek and Gay Veitch at the turn of the century, Ringfort Stud in County Offaly has grown to be one of Ireland’s premier nurseries and was among the leading vendors at both the Goffs and Tattersalls foal sales last year. For the last few years the farm has enjoyed stellar returns from one mare in particular, Indigo Lady (GB) (Sir Percy {GB}), whose first three offspring have grossed 1.255-million gns in the sales ring. The mare is owned in partnership by Derek Veitch and Paul Hancock and has been a massive success story for the pair since Veitch bought a 50% share in the mare six years ago. Last year a colt by Lope De Vega (Ire) out of Indigo Lady sold to Stroud Coleman on behalf of Godolphin for 500,000gns, while a year previously her filly foal by Dark Angel (Ire) made 600,000gns to Capital Bloodstock. “Indigo Lady is in foal to Churchill (Ire) and we have decided to send her to Roaring Lion this year,” Veitch said. “We considered a lot of different options for her but the value for money aspect is crucial for us. This mare is at an interesting stage in her career and it is important that at least one of her first three foals is a good horse. Her first runner [Expensive Liaison (Ire) (Camelot {GB}] was a winner but had a training accident and was killed before we found out how good she was going to be. The next two are very nice horses and the Dark Angel 2-year-old filly is called Indie Angel (Ire) and is in training with John Gosden and belongs to Cheveley Park Stud. The Lope De Vega colt is just a yearling so it will be a while before we know about him.” The decision to opt for another unproven sire with a high profile mare that has had only one runner to date may seem unusual to some, but a lot of thought and analysis went into the decision-making process. “Roaring Lion’s race performance was one aspect of it and we also did some work on pedigree analysis which suggested it could be a good match. Market trends were also a factor and thinking longer term we feel the Al Thani family could become very significant in the yearling buying market at a certain level. A mare like Indigo Lady could get into the top 20% of Roaring Lion’s mares and if her offspring do well on the track in the meantime she could well be even higher. She is not due to foal until early April so we have taken the view that next year’s produce will not be aimed at a foal sale; rather, we will hold off and offer it as a yearling. When planning a mating we have to think ahead and consider who might buy the product and we think Roaring Lion’s first crop will prove popular and they should also be well-promoted.” Whatever happens in the future with the mare and her progeny, Indigo Lady has already proved a game-changer for connections. She originally raced for Hancock and showed smart form as a juvenile when with Peter Chapple-Hyam, winning her maiden on her second attempt before finishing third in a Group 3 race in France. She failed to build on that as a 3-year-old and Veitch invested in a half-share when she failed to make her reserve at the Tattersalls December Sale in 2013. Recalling the early days Veitch said, “She came straight back to Ringfort with the intention of covering her soon after. However, she was so healthy and well we decided to do a bit of pre-training with her which went well so we decided to cover her and try her back at the track. So we covered her with Camelot and sent her to Willie McCreery. She seemed to improve a lot, whether it was down to the cover or the training but she regained the form she showed as a 2-year-old and managed to win a listed race at The Curragh for us. It was a brilliant start for the partnership and it has gone from strength to strength since.” The Veitch’s broodmare band has swelled in recent years and numbers approximately 50, so the farm is not just about Indigo Lady. African Moonlight (UAE) (Halling) is another deemed worthy of a mention by Veitch and the 13-year-old is the dam of four winners from four runners headed by the American GSW Syntax (Ire) (Haatef). Her latest foal brought to the market was a colt by Awtaad (Ire) who was bought by Shadwell for 140,000gns at Tattersalls last November. “African Moonlight is in foal to Dark Angel (Ire) and she will then be covered by Invincible Spirit (Ire),” Veitch said. “She has bred some good winners by lower tier stallions so it will be interesting to see what she can produce over the next few years now that we have upgraded her.” The 20-year-old Esterlina (Ire) (Highest Honor {Fr}) has been another grand servant to Ringfort breeding six winners, one being the stakes-winning and Group 1-placed Redolent (Ire) (Redback {GB}), and Veitch is still mulling over what to cover her with this year. Her now 2-year-old Kodiac (GB) colt made €125,000 as a foal in Goffs in 2017 and while she was barren this year, Veitch has a Mehmas (Ire) yearling filly out of her to look forward to. “We’re trying to decide the right thing to do with her as she is getting on in years. She has produced some good horses and it is a family I like. We have a lovely Mehmas filly out of her, we didn’t bring her to the foal sales last year as we are thinking of racing her. She would have been one of the nicest Mehmas foals on offer had we offered her for sale.” Veitch knows a thing or two about Mehmas foals as he actually sold the highest priced one in 2018, a colt out of Pardoven (Ire) (Clodovil {Ire}) who made 85,000gns at Tattersalls in November. “Pardoven actually had her first winner recently, a horse called Cabo Da Cruz (Ire) (Cape Cross {Ire}) who won in South Africa so hopefully she can kick on from there. She is in foal to Tamayuz (GB) and will go to Belardo (Ire), who I have a breeding right for. Her Mehmas foal was really nice and he could be the one to get her going.” A recent Ringfort mare purchase who has already proved a sound investment is the 8-year-old Miss Kenton (Ire) (Pivotal {GB}). She went through the ring at Tattersalls just over a year ago for 82,000gns carrying to Showcasing but it wasn’t until a month later that Veitch invested in a share of her. She delivered a filly at Ringfort last April and seven months later that filly made €110,000 at Goffs. “The foal sold for a lot more than we had to pay for the mare so it was a good start; it’s not often you get your money back on the first foal so that was great,” Veitch said. “The foal was actually bought on behalf of Andre Fabre as a present for his wife so I hope she turns out lucky for her.” Fabre actually trained Miss Kenton and despite not making the grade as a racehorse she obviously left a lasting impression on him. Miss Kenton’s new owners had the good fortune of seeing her first produce, a colt by Nathaniel (Ire) develop into the smart 2018 Richard Hannon trained juvenile Floating Artist (GB). They can look forward to her delivering a foal by Highland Reel (Ire) this year and have penciled in a potential date with Caravaggio following that. While the Veitchs have enjoyed some great days in the sale ring over the last few years those days are necessary to run the business and make up for the inevitable losses that are incurred by other mares and their stock. Veitch and his wife are commercial breeders and are very cognisant that the market is extremely unforgiving to many in the business at the moment. “We’ve been very lucky and we got through what, for a lot of people in bloodstock, has been a difficult year, very well,” Veitch said. “The business is very tricky at a certain level and there are a lot of people out there trying to breed horses with a view to making money at a level which is nearly impossible to do at the moment.” Far from looking to build on recent success, Veitch is starting to think of a future with fewer horses and more free time. “We both turned 60 last year and are at the stage where we are now planning on consolidating. None of our kids have any real interest in taking over the farm, the three of them have professional jobs and while they have an interest in what goes on here I don’t think its sufficient for them to do the job full time, despite my best efforts at exposing them to the lifestyle and the ups and downs.” He continued, “We plan to start reducing the numbers and ideally we’d like to end up with 10 or 15 quality mares. The last six or seven years have been an expansion programme and we have more yearlings this year than ever before. But from now on the focus will be to consolidate and maintain mares of the calibre of the ones discussed today, who are very hard to find. You might have to have 10 mares through your hands to find one of that quality, so that is the plan because we would still like to have a draft of eight or 10 foals to offer at the sales each year. We’re both keen to adopt a better work-life balance and we think we have the foundations in place to allow that to happen in the next few years.” We all know the significant amounts of blood, sweat and tears that go into breeding and rearing horses and that often the least well looked after individuals on the farm are the owners. Having poured their life and soul into Ringfort for the last 20 years, the Veitchs can now look forward to having more time to enjoy following their many successful graduates and even get in the odd bit of fishing, if Derek has his way. View the full article

Jockey Zac Purton has switched his allegiances between top Tony Cruz-trained stayers Time Warp and Exultant ahead of Sunday’s Group Three Centenary Vase (1,800m). The champion jockey partnered Time Warp to two Group One victories but has elected to ride Exultant instead after they won the Hong Kong Vase together last month. Talking after the switch, Purton declared Time Warp was “at the crossroads” after being disappointed with his performance earlier this month in the January... View the full article

First-season jockey Grant van Niekerk has delved deep into the form guide in search of some inspiration for his Classic Mile mount Heavenly Thought. The Australian import was able to beat home current Hong Kong Derby favourite Dark Dream less than 12 months ago in the Group Three Grand Prix Stakes (2,200m) at Doomben before the tables were turned in the Group One Queensland Derby (2,200m) two weeks later. Now with both horses under the care of trainer Frankie Lor Fu-chuen in Hong Kong, they... View the full article

Turning for home in his first try at two turns in the $150,000 Smarty Jones Stakes, frontrunning Gray Attempt was flanked by a pair of game runners trained by Steve Asmussen, but the determined son of Graydar proved up to that challenge. View the full article

It is no mean feat for a horse sourced from Europe to win on its first start in Hong Kong. Adjusting to life in cosier quarters, as well as a new climate and routine, can naturally affect some significantly more than others. In Ka Ying Star, however, owner Leung Shek Kong looks to have found himself a horse that has slotted into life at Sha Tin with consummate ease. Formerly trained by Andrew Balding at the picturesque Park House Stables in rural Kingsclere, Ka Ying Star (formerly... View the full article

A decision to be closer to his family led to a training career out on his own, and Michael McCarthy has reached the top levels of racing in just five years. View the full article

Few equine athletes fit the "trier" moniker more than Margoth's Gunnevera, who will continue his quest for grade 1 glory in the $9 million Pegasus World Cup Invitational (G1). View the full article

A decision to be closer to his family led to a training career out on his own, and Michael McCarthy has reached the top levels of racing in just five years. View the full article

Turning for home in his first try at two turns in the $150,000 Smarty Jones Stakes, front-running Gray Attempt was flanked by a pair of game runners trained by Steve Asmussen, but the determined son of Graydar would prove up to that challenge. View the full article

A decision to be closer to his family led to a training career out on his own, and Michael McCarthy has reached the top levels of racing in just five years. View the full article

MGSW Blueskiesnrainbows (English Channel) has been moved to Sallisaw, Oklahoma, the home base of owner Kelly Mitchell’s Bad Boy Racing, to stand the 2019 breeding season. Commanding a $2,500 stud fee, he will stand at Dr. Marcinda Mitchell’s Sunlight Farm. “We are really excited to move Blueskiesnrainbows to Oklahoma to be a part of their excellent state-bred program,” said Dr. Mitchell. “He formerly stood in Indiana and his first foals will hit the track this year as 2-year-olds. His foals are looking fantastic and should prove themselves very soon.” For more information, visit http://blueskiesnrainbows.com/. View the full article

Stonestreet Stables' Dawn the Destroyer handled the return to stakes company with aplomb, running down Sower in deep stretch and surging to the wire to win the rescheduled $100,000 Interborough for older fillies and mares Jan, 25 at Aqueduct. View the full article

HALLANDALE BEACH, FL.–For the most part, the days where a horse showed up to every marquee racing event are gone and it is even rarer to see one who not only runs in each of those major events, but also performances consistently well. D. Wayne Lukas was known for turning out many of those types of horses in his hay day in the 90s, such as Thunder Gulch, Serena’s Song and Tabasco Cat. The Hall of Famer has a modern-day version of those hearty racehorses in MGISP Bravazo (Awesome Again), who will, of course, be in the gate for Saturday’s GI Pegasus World Cup. “He is a little bit like Thunder Gulch,” Lukas said as he stood against a fence supervising Bravazo as he grazed outside of Barn 5 at Gulfstream. “Thunder Gulch made all of the dances. Even after the Belmont, when most people would put them away, he went out to Hollywood Park and won the Swaps S. out there and came back to run in the [GI] Haskell [S.] and the [GI] Travers [S.]. You don’t see many of them like that, but we had two of them for sure. This one and Thunder Gulch are very similar.” Victor of the GII Risen Star S. 11 months ago, Bravazo has been winless in nine starts since, but has hit the board five times. The dark bay was the only horse besides Justify (Scat Daddy) to compete in all three legs of the Triple Crown and ran in the Haskell, Travers, GI Pennsylvania Derby and GI Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile, where he finished a respectable third behind a powerhouse performance from the re-opposing City of Light (Quality Road). He concluded his sophomore campaign last term with a runner-up effort against his elders in the GI Clark H. Nov. 23. “He always makes sure we have enough money to get home even if we don’t win,” Lukas said, looking towards his charge with a fond smile. “He shows up every time and you always wonder if there is going to be a crack in the armor a little bit, but I think he has a toughness about him that you don’t see in many horses. There is one out there with his name on it.” The Hall of Famer added, “He has had a little break from the Clark, but he has had more recency than most of the field. We are looking for a good effort. He seems to have adapted well here.” Bravazo has drawn the rail for Saturday’s $9 million event in which he will face 11 opponents, including new champion Accelerate (Lookin at Lucky), the aforementioned City of Light and GI Florida Derby hero Audible (Into Mischief). “At first blush, I thought the post was not a good deal,” Lukas said. “But, the more I looked at it with the big sweeping turns and the configuration of the racetrack, I’m not too sure that it isn’t okay. You could win from this one. If you were in the Preakness or the Derby or something, I would say, ‘Well, I don’t want the one-hole.’ But here, when it first came out, I thought, ‘oh boy,’ but now that I looked at it and analyzed it a little bit, I think it might be alright. We were going to let him run early anyhow.” Gulfstream’s leading rider Luis Saez climbs back aboard Bravazo Saturday. The red hot jockey piloted the colt to runner-up efforts in both the GI Preakness S. and GI Haskell Invitational S. “The thing about it is we have got the rider that is just unbelievably hot here,” Lukas said. “Luis Saez just owns the place. Everyday he keeps coming with one win right after another. He has a good feel for it and the horse has good speed, so I think we will just turn the two of them loose.” When asked what might be next on the well-traveled Bravazo’s schedule, the Coach said, “I know Mr.[Brad] Kelley would like to go to Dubai, but I think we need to make a good showing here.” View the full article

HALLANDALE BEACH, FL.–With the two Pegasus races just around the corner, the Gulfstream backstretch was busier than usual with owners, trainers and plenty of media from around the world on site to get their final looks at the GI Pegasus World Cup and GI Pegasus World Cup Turf contenders on a cloudy and cool Friday morning. The gloomy sky and temperatures hovering in the low 60s had many wondering if we were in for rain. While trainer Marcus Vitali’s request to Siri for a weather report rendered news of a rain-free, but cloudy Friday, it also announced a 70% chance of rain for the big day Saturday. This forecast will have some connections doing a happy dance–or rain dance–and others in a gloomy mood that mirrors the weather report. Just like Thursday morning, Audible (Into Mischief), who is already a winner over this track and trip in last term’s GI Florida Derby, was first to hit the track as it opened for business with Turf runner Catapult (Kitten’s Joy) not far behind. Audible put in a good run to be third in a muddy renewal of the GI Kentucky Derby, so a wet surface for the Pegasus should not phase him or trainer Todd Pletcher. The newly crowned champion older male Accelerate (Lookin at Lucky) was also up and at ’em early despite what was surely a late night of celebrating for his trainer John Sadler and the Hronis family, who were named owner of the year at Thursday night’s Eclipse Awards. Gunnevera (Dialed In) and Seeking the Soul (Perfect Soul {Ire}) followed soon after. City of Light (Quality Road) kept to his consistent 6a.m. training slot, as did the Chad Brown-trained pair of Patternrecognition (Adios Charlie) and Bricks and Mortar (Giant’s Causeway), whose conditioner took home the hardware for top trainer for the third straight year. In keeping with the previous day’s schedule, D. Wayne Lukas led Bravazo (Awesome Again) onto the track as soon as the tractors cleared out following the first break at 7:40a.m. The Hall of Famer was all business aboard his buckskin Quarter Horse Starbuck as he supervised his equally professional-looking charge. While not an imposing or eye-catching animal, Bravazo has his head in the game every time he steps hoof on the racetrack–whether it be the morning or afternoon–and continues to show up in each of his races no matter what the competition or track conditions. Stronach representative Something Awesome (Awesome Again) cantered by a few moments later. He also did not turn a hair at the flurry of activity, moving gracefully over the track with his neck arched, ears up and eyes bright and alert. ‘TDN Rising Star’ Delta Prince (Street Cry {Ire}), the final offspring of blue hen Delta Princess (A.P. Indy), jogged counter-clockwise alongside a pony just before 8a.m. The muscular dark bay galloped by on his own a few minutes later, looking more than ready to go. Mexican sensation Kukulkan (Mex) (Point Determined) was also out during the Pegasus frenzy. Easy to spot with a big white blaze, he is on the smaller side, but he glides easily over the Gulfstream surface and gives the impression he is both quick and agile. Aidan O’Brien’s Pegasus Turf contender Magic Wand (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) was joined by stablemate and GIII William L. McKnight S. contender Hunting Horn (Ire) (Camelot {GB}). The pair jogged the wrong way in unison before turning around and galloping individually in the correct direction. Magic Wand has been one of the physical standouts of the week, which is no surprise given the barn she hails from. Recent GII San Gabriel S. victor Next Shares (Archarcharch) was on the muscle, galloping by strongly, and he fought his rider as he turned the dark bay around and attempted to pull him up. The gelding reluctantly broke to a jog, but continued to tug at his pilot as they exited the track. True Timber (Mineshaft) continued to give off good vibes as he came by minutes later. He was followed by the Bill Mott-trained pair of Turf runners Yoshida (Jpn) (Heart’s Cry {Jpn}) and Channel Maker (English Channel), who were escorted by their Hall of Fame conditioner and his assistant aboard their ponies. While they both looked in fine form, Channel Maker was a bit wide-eyed, looking around somewhat nervously, while Yoshida was calm, cool and collected with and without his red roan pony. There was plenty of activity off of the Hallandale Beach main track with the Gulfstream Park team putting in the final preparations for the big day. The LIV Stretch Stage is set, which will play host to Snoop Dogg and Mark Ronson after racing concludes and everywhere you look Pegasus barriers are set up. With nine stakes on the card, featuring three of racing’s newly crowned champions and headlined by a pair of multi-million-dollar Grade Is, Saturday promises to be an exciting day of racing, rain or shine. View the full article

The sun is shining as brightly on Will Farish’s Lane’s End in Versailles as it does at his winter base in Boca Grande, Florida. “We’re trying to keep things chugging along,” said Bill Farish, who was stationed back at the farm in Kentucky and overseeing operations when I called on Tuesday, a wintry and cold day that had the younger Farish longing for the end of the week when he’d also be in the Sunshine State for the Eclipse Awards on Thursday and the Gl Pegasus World Cup at Gulfstream Park Saturday. Of his father, who co-bred Horse of the Year and leading sire A.P. Indy and stood so many other standouts, including the top Mr. Prospector sons Fappiano, Kingmambo, and Smart Strike, he said: “He’s very excited. You know, we talk a whole lot, and he’s thrilled with everything.” He ought to be. The farm’s Quality Road (Elusive Quality) is sizzling and has entered the elite realm–his $35,000 advertised stud fee in 2017 doubled to $70,000 in 2018 and more than doubled to $150,000 this year. Candy Ride (Arg) (Ride the Rails) sired the 2017 Horse of the Year and 2018 Pegasus World Cup winner Gun Runner and came right back last year with undefeated Grade l winner and champion 2-year-old colt Game Winner. Union Rags (Dixie Union) already has four Grade l winners through three crops and threatens to have another with the Will Farish-bred Catalina Cruiser, an undefeated multiple Grade ll winner from only four starts before running off the board in the Gl Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile last year for trainer John Sadler and newly crowned Eclipse-award winning owner Kosta Hronis’s Hronis Racing. Meanwhile, the farm has a promising quartet of young sires in Honor Code (A.P. Indy), Liam’s Map (Unbridled’s Song), Tonalist (Tapit), and Mr Speaker (Pulpit) ready to unload their first 2-year-olds this year. And its 2019 recruiting class is just as top notch: Hronis Racing’s champion older horse and 2018 Gl Breeders’ Cup Classic winner Accelerate (Lookin At Lucky); Gary and Mary West’s 2017 champion 3-year-old colt West Coast (Flatter); and Mr. and Mrs. William K. Warren Jr.’s multiple Grade l winner and 2018 Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile winner City of Light (Quality Road). Both Accelerate and City of Light will end their careers in the $9-million GI Pegasus World Cup Invitational before beginning new ones at Lane’s End, where they, along with West Coast, are already booked full for the season. Bill Farish’s Woodford Racing partnership also will be represented on Saturday with multiple Grade ll winner and Gl Breeders’ Cup Mile runner-up Catapult (Kitten’s Joy) in the inaugural Gl $7 million Pegasus World Cup Turf. It’s a potentially big day for the Lane’s End team, its partners, and the syndicate members of Accelerate and City of Light. Catapult, a winner of $961,384, and Accelerate, with $5,792,480 in earnings, were both selected at auction by bloodstock agent David Ingordo, who famously bought Zenyatta as a yearling for only $60,000. He paid more for the two colts. Catapult was a $235,000 Keeneland January short yearling who was wheeled back by Lane’s End at Keeneland September for $350,000, and Accelerate was a $380,000 September buy for Hronis from the Bluewater consignment at the same yearling sale. Ingordo is part of the team at Lane’s End, and both horses are trained by Sadler, an “uncle” to Ingordo. “When John came on the racetrack, he was 21, and my father was a famous jocks’ agent, and my dad took him around and took him under his wing. John Sadler has known me since I was in a bassinet–maybe three months old. So, I’ve always called him ‘Uncle John,'” Ingordo said. “No one could figure out why we’re always so inseparable on business. Everybody tries to go up and under and over, I mean, partly because we succeed. But my mother’s one of his best friends, you know, and all that, so we’re all very close. We’ve been very loyal to each other. I basically, with few exceptions, do all the buying and selling for John Sadler.” When Sadler got Hronis as a new client about eight years ago, it was Ingordo who delivered the goods in with private purchase Lady of Shamrock (Scat Daddy), a subsequent multiple Grade l winner of $950,400 in 2012. She was Hronis Racing’s first major winner, and she was sold later through Lane’s End as a broodmare prospect for $2 million at Keeneland November in 2013. “And ever since then we’ve been on the team and it’s like a family deal. Everybody’s loyal to each other. We’ll give each other the best shots,” Ingordo said. There have been many other successes since, including private purchase Stellar Wind (Curlin), a multiple Grade l winner of $2,903,200 who was subsequently sold, also through Lane’s End, for $6 million to Coolmore at Keeneland November in 2017. She made her career swan song for her new owners in last year’s Pegasus, finishing sixth at 40-1. Accelerate This year, Hronis and Sadler have “The Daddy” in the race in Accelerate, whose main competition figures to be City of Light. That gives Lane’s End full coverage. Bill Farish said the relationships between Lane’s End and the Accelerate camp gave the farm the inside track to land the horse. “We were obviously watching him very closely because of our relationship with Kosta Hronis and Sadler and David Ingordo,” he said. “As he kept winning Grade l races, we got more and more interested. The conversation was kind of ongoing all year, and we just said when the time is right, we’re ready, willing, and able to get involved, and so we did. He’s just had a phenomenal 2018.” Farish noted that he and his father were pleased that Accelerate was loudly included in Horse of the Year discussions against a Triple Crown winner. “Any other year, he wins,” Farish said. Accelerate, who is from Awesome Again’s multiple stakes-producing daughter Issues, was originally syndicated into 40 shares for $75,000 a share but Farish said that “with kickers,” the price ended up at $100,000 a share with a stud fee of $20,000–still very much a bargain for the combination of race record, pedigree, and physical that Accelerate brings to the table. Had he been a son of Smart Strike instead of by his son Lookin At Lucky, Accelerate would have stood for twice as much. Farish acknowledged this but said, “Lookin At Lucky is one of the most underrated stallions around, I think. From our standpoint, he is that line. It’s a line that we’ve had a lot of luck with, not just with Smart Strike, but Mr. Prospector in general. The fact that he’s a grandson of Smart Strike–you know, when Curlin moved, we lost our best son of Smart Strike; and we had English Channel, another Smart Strike, too, and he left–makes us feel very fortunate” to have Accelerate. Accelerate’s pedigree has similarity to Curlin’s as well. The latter is by Smart Strike from a Deputy Minister mare while the former is a grandson of Smart Strike from a granddaughter of Deputy Minister. This structure will allow breeders the chance to copy patterns from some of Curlin’s successes, including inbreeding to Deputy Minister. Moreover, because Accelerate is a half-brother to two Scat Daddy stakes winners, mares by that sire should suit him as well. His own sire has two Southern Hemisphere Group 1 winners from Scat Daddy mares to date, and the greater Curlin/Storm Cat cross is responsible for eight non-restricted black-type winners so far, four of them graded winners. Accelerate is inbred 5×5 to the top broodmare Smartaire, his fifth dam and the dam of champion 2-year-old filly Smart Angle and graded stakes winners Quadratic and Smarten. The latter is the broodmare sire of Smart Strike. There’s been a bit of a trend lately for farms to stand accomplished horses by stallions that aren’t “big names.” WinStar’s Tiznow (Cee’s Tizzy, by Relaunch) and Lane’s End’s Candy Ride (Ride the Rails, by Cryptoclearance, by Fappiano) are older successful examples of this, but recent ones include Taylor Made’s California Chrome (Lucky Pulpit, by Pulpit) and Hill ‘n’ Dale’s Bayern (Offlee Wild, by Wild Again). Accelerate fits with this group. His physicality is also a big plus, Ingordo said. “He’s about 16.1 1/2 [or] 16.2. He’s a big, stretchy, imposing horse. A little bit of a throwback on his looks. He has all the good qualities of the Smart Strike line,” Ingordo said, and he noted that as a $380,000 yearling he was his sire’s top price that year when the Lookin At Lucky yearlings averaged $99,312. Sent to the Mayberrys in Ocala for early training, Accelerate “never had a bad day” despite being a May foal. “He’s such a cool horse and I’m excited about him as a stallion because I’ve known him through all these different stages of his life. He’s always been good, and I think horses like that will reproduce. I think he’ll imprint that genetic dominance that way. You know, he’s as sound as can be. He’s correct. He’s had no surgeries that I’m aware of or anything like that. I mean, horses like this are really what a lot of people are looking for.” SF Bloodstock on Board Accelerate is what SF Bloodstock, a global entity and the owner of a powerful international broodmare band, was looking for. The company also takes positions in stallions and had a 15% stake in Justify’s breeding rights before the Triple Crown winner was sold to Coolmore. SF has now taken a significant position in Accelerate, according to SF’s Tom Ryan, and will support the horse with at least 12 mares, “including the dams of Grade l winners California Chrome, Wild Dude, and Denman’s Call; others include dams of graded stakes winners My Boy Jack and Miss Sunset.” Ryan added, “When you look at his body of work paired with his physical, he fit perfectly into our portfolio. Our preparedness to support is only a reflection of our belief in his ability and this sire line. Lookin At Lucky is really making people pay attention. I remember back when Smart Strike was getting going, selling a season in February for $15,000 live foal and another in December of the same year for $75,000 NG. We’re excited to be involved.” SF’s participation in Accelerate is new for Lane’s End, Farish said. “Our relationship was just starting, and we’re happy to have them involved and welcome their support. They support stallions, and that’s a prerequisite for us. We want breeders in [the syndicate] that will breed mares and not just investors for the stallion shares.” Farish said that SF’s and others’ strong support the first year would allow Lane’s End the luxury of having the firepower to keep some of its own mares slotted for the stallion’s second and third books to ensure uniform quality before his runners hit the track. Farish said the books of each of the new stallions would be limited to about 165 mares. It’s that type of strategizing with the right types of horses and the right relationships that has kept Lane’s End in the deep end of the sire business since it opened its stallion division in 1985, and the future for the farm and for Will and Bill Farish certainly looks as bright as its past. Sid Fernando is president and CEO of Werk Thoroughbred Consultants, Inc., originator of the Werk Nick Rating and eNicks. View the full article

Starlight Racing has acquired an interest in Yoshida (Jpn) (Heart’s Cry {Jpn}), the 5-2 favorite for Saturday’s GI Pegasus World Cup Turf Invitational, from WinStar Farm, which campaigns the versatile MGISW along with China Horse Club and Head of Plains Racing. Starlight co-owned 2018 Triple Crown winner and Horse of the Year Justify (Scat Daddy) with the same powerful ownership group, and is also partners on GI Pegasus World Cup Invitational contender Audible (Into Mischief). Starlight had a lease-for-racing deal with SF Bloodstock for both Justify and Audible, and will also take no ownership in Yoshida’s breeding rights. Starlight campaigned Yoshida’s speedy dam Hilda’s Passion (Canadian Frontier). Just a $4200 weanling RNA, she’d go on to win eight of 14, including the 2011 GI Ballerina S., before selling to Katsumi Yoshida for $1,225,000 at Fasig-Tipton November that fall. “She was one of the most brilliant horses I’ve ever been around,” Starlight principal Jack Wolf said of the dam. “[WinStar President and CEO] Elliott [Walden] offered us a piece of [Yoshida] right after he bought him in Japan [for approximately $765,000 as weanling. At the time, I thought it was a bit too much to pay for the horse. Obviously I was wrong.” View the full article

Justify delivered a dominating performance in earning Eclipse Awards as champion 3-year-old male and Horse of the Year, but racing's 13th Triple Crown winner didn't have the coattails when it came to many of his human connections. View the full article

Trainer D. Wayne Lukas is in his second iteration of adding to iconic Calumet Farm's legacy. He's hoping the next chapter comes with the homebred 4-year-old colt Bravazo in the $9 million Pegasus World Cup Invitational Jan. 26 at Gulfstream Park. View the full article

Since riding in his last race in 2017 at Gulfstream Park, Juan Leyva has made a quick and highly successful transition from jockey to assistant trainer in Southern California. View the full article

The Pegasus Preview Show with Jason Blewitt and Acacia Courtney welcomes international champion jockey Frankie Dettori and the Saratoga Special's Tom Law. View the full article

As we embark on a new year full of hope and promise, ’tis the season for early mornings, sleepless nights and seemingly endless anticipation for those in the breeding industry. Those tasked with helping the next generation of equine athletes enter this world go to great lengths to be on-hand when each foal is born and do everything they can to ensure a successful delivery, or to call a veterinarian if any problems arise. The foaling process is broken down into three stages. Stage 1 being early signs of labor; stage 2 is when the water breaks and the actual delivery of the foal; and stage 3 is the expulsion of the placenta. Once a mare progresses to stage 2, it is imperative the foal be delivered within 30 minutes or less to avoid hypoxia (oxygen deprivation), which can lead to brain damage or death of the foal. While regularly checking mares throughout the day and night is recommended as they near their due date, it is often a game of minutes versus hours. Horses have evolved from foaling in the wild and needing to deliver a foal and stand in quick succession to protect themselves and their newborn. By nature, stage 2 of equine labor (water breaks and foal is delivered) happens rapidly and can be explosive. That explosive nature also means that when things go wrong, they go wrong quickly. “I’d say 80 to 85% of deliveries go routinely, but those 10 to 15% that don’t are why it’s so important for someone knowledgeable to be present.” said Dr. Bob Schwartz, a veterinarian with Midland Acres in Bloomingburg, Ohio. Schwartz and his team foal out more than 200 mares a year. “An experienced attendant will know issues they can deal with themselves, when they need to call a vet and when it’s bad enough that a mare needs to go immediately to the clinic.” While there are numerous brands and makers of foal alarms on the market today, they can generally be organized into two main categories: externally worn sensors and perineal monitoring systems. Systems with Externally Worn Sensors There are several devices on the market that utilize sensors affixed to the head or body of a mare to react to classic presentations in a mare that typically signal birth. EquiFone/EquiPage, Birth Alarm and Breeders Alert systems, for example, utilize a device affixed to a mare’s halter or to a monitor connected to a girth strap that senses when the mare is in the prone position (i.e. lying flat out on her side–the typical position for labor). The device transmits a signal to either a phone or a pager to alert the person(s) on call that the mare is in foaling position. Michele Graves of Hickory Hill Farm Thoroughbreds in Fort Edward, New York near Saratoga Springs uses the EquiPage system for her farm, which foals out 25 to 35 mares each year. “With the EquiPage [system], we know the mare is going into labor before the water breaks [due to being alerted to her movements]. We also use it on the mares in the weeks after they give birth because so much can go wrong then as well,” said Graves. “We use it for other scenarios too, such as horses that have just shipped long distances or those that showed signs of colic during the day because they offer the same presentations when they are colicking that a mare would–the looking at their belly, getting up and down, yawning. You do get some false alarms, but those are worth it to know when a horse is in distress.” Nightwatch takes this one step further, monitoring a horse’s vital signs and behaviors via sensors embedded in the padded leather crown piece of the halter. Real-time data can be accessed via a Smartphone, tablet or computer and an alert is sent when the system signals a horse in distress due to foaling, colic or being cast. Perineal Monitoring Systems Another group of foaling alert systems involve affixing the sensor to the mare’s perineal area or within the vagina. One popular model is Foalert, in which a transmitter containing a magnet is sutured into the vulva lips one to two weeks prior to a mare’s due date. When the vulva lips are opened due to the foal’s front hooves protruding as delivery begins, the magnet dislodges from the transmitter, activating a signal to alert foaling attendants, either via telephone/pager or by sounding an alarm within close proximity to the transmitter. “I’ve used the Foalert for years, both on my own mares and on client mares, and I find them very reliable. You don’t get the false alarms you can get with some other system that attach to the halter or girth area when a mare lays down or turns to itch,” said Dr. Joan Tennant, DVM, an equine practitioner based in Ocala, Florida. “I find the alarm goes off when the amniotic fluid bubble is expelled, so you get the alert even in the case of a dystocia that prevents the foal from protruding.” The Birth Alert system uses a tampon-like sponge that is inserted into the mare’s vagina in the weeks leading up to her due date. When the mare’s water breaks, the device is expelled and the change in temperature activates the device to send a signal to the foaling attendant that the mare is in labor. The only disadvantage, according to Schwartz, is the possibility of the sponge and sensor being dispelled unintentionally and offering a false-positive. “I think these systems have a lot of merit for those who don’t have full time attendants through the night,” said Schwartz. “There is less chance of false alarms with these types of systems, but if the foal is breech or otherwise malpositioned, you may not get an alarm.” For these and similarly invasive systems, a sterile application is key. It is recommended that a veterinarian apply/insert the device to prevent infection or irritation. Video Monitoring Closed-circuit video feeds can also play an important role in monitoring mares as they near their due date, especially when used on conjunction with foaling alert systems. “We’ve used NightWatch for the last six years or so and we also have cameras on all of the mares. The key for us is the audio that goes along with it,” said Braxton Lynch of Royal Oak Farm in Paris, Kentucky. “In my opinion, you can’t beat eyes and ears on a mare prior to foaling.” There are also smartphone apps available, such as Foal App, which allow users to monitor your mare via video and movement and will alert those whose phones are connected to the app if the mare lays down for a prolonged period. While technology has afforded the luxury of many types of birth alarms, no device is 100% effective. All birth alarms should be used in conjunction with good horsemanship and monitoring practices, including regularly checking each mare every 30 to 60 minutes when foaling is imminent. “What works for a large farm probably wouldn’t work well for a small one and vice versa. If a farm with a large number of mares had monitors on each, they’d be getting false positives constantly, but they can afford to have staff on-hand around the clock,” said Graves. “For a smaller operation that can’t afford night staff, foaling alarms are a good solution.” Added Schwartz, “You can’t watch them 24 hours a day–you have to sleep too–so for smaller operations, foaling alerts can be an important tool to help keep mares and newborn foals out of trouble.” View the full article

Sporting press rooms around the world have lost a bit of both joie de vivre and gravitas with the passing of Hugh McIlvanney OBE at the age of 84. McIlvanney, who retired in March 2016, was born in Ayrshire, Scotland, in February 1934 and started his working life with the Kilmarnock Standard before moving to the Scottish Daily Express. He is, though, most synonymous with two of Britain’s most respected Sunday newspapers, The Observer and The Sunday Times. He was the principal sports writer for the former for 30 years before occupying the same role with the latter for 23 years. The only sports journalist ever to have been voted Journalist of the Year in Great Britain, McIlvanney was an authority and a passionate devotee of all sports, and published critically acclaimed books on three: McIlvanney on Boxing (1982), McIlvanney on Football (1994) and McIlvanney on Horseracing (1995, co-written with Sir Peter O’Sullevan). Of all the sports, though, one got the impression that racing was his first love. To sum up the magic of McIlvanney’s writing, one could pick from any one of several hundred articles. One, though, springs particularly to mind. ‘QIPCO British Champions’ Day’ is actually British racing’s second attempt at holding a showpiece autumn fixture at Ascot, following the Ascot September Meeting becoming ‘The Festival of British Racing’ in 1989. At the time this was a very big deal, and a commemorative booklet, Sport Of Kings, was published to mark the occasion. The best racing writers contributed, including Peter Willett, Joe Hirsch, Ivor Herbert, Ian Wooldridge, Paul Haigh and Howard Wright, but McIlvanney’s piece was the icing on the cake. Under the headline ‘In Pursuit of a Punter’s Paradise’, McIlvanney’s golden prose walked the reader through the author’s lifelong love affair with the turf. He recited a litany of great sporting occasions into which he had been able to insert an unscheduled day at the races, starting with the Moscow Olympics in 1989, during which he managed to sneak away from the business in hand to sample the delights of the Moscow Hippodrome. “Emptying our pockets seemed to be official policy. The fact that the lady who took our wagers did her reckoning on an abacus was disconcerting enough but it was much more disturbing to discover that selecting winners was almost irrelevant as far as the prospects of profit were concerned. We hit three in a row and were still just marginally in front. We did not investigate the details of the tax applied to our bets in that far-off era before glasnost and perestroika but it had to be on a scale to make the Levy Board drool. Still, even that inconvenience was a tolerable penalty to pay for the pleasures of the afternoon. Next day Seb Coe, Steve Ovett or some of the other great athletes who enabled the Olympics of 1980 to rise above their problems (which, you will recall, included little aggravations like a U.S. boycott) might be enthralling us again. But for the moment we were glad to be away from de Coubertin’s Games and back at the punting game. “I have made similar defections in many corners of the globe, slipping away from a touring England football team in Australia to scuffle with the bookmakers at the Warwick Farm course in Sydney, interrupting coverage of Super Bowl preparations in San Diego to cross the Mexican border and engage the enemy at Agua Caliente in Tijuana, briefly deserting the World Cup in Argentina to sample the Buenos Aires equivalent of Sandown, using a heavyweight championship fight in Caracas, Venezuela, as an excuse to visit a track which offered breathtaking views but not a glimpse of a winner. And, of course, dozens of assignments in the States have encouraged me to play truant at Aqueduct and Belmont, Santa Anita, Hialeah, Gulfstream, Churchill Downs, Saratoga and those two smaller Maryland battlegrounds, Laurel Park and Bowie.” The article ends with McIlvanney explaining the greatest sporting omission of his life: he was in New York on Saturday June 9, 1973, the day that Secretariat won the Belmont S., but he was in an office in Manhattan, rather than at Belmont Park, when the race was run. He thus enjoyed the glorious but agonising delight of seeing the greatest racing performance of all time live on television from a spot only a few miles away from the action. “As a result, I had a direct, contemporaneous experience of watching what Secretariat did that afternoon. Yet, though that in itself was unforgettable, it wasn’t at all the same as being one of the 68,000 who watched the big red horse in the flesh while he surged through what may well have been the greatest mile-and-a-half ever galloped by a Thoroughbred. “In June of this year I was in the Press Box for the 121st running of the Belmont, and seeing Easy Goer win by eight lengths in the second-fastest time the race has produced was a tremendous thrill, especially as it came only four days after witnessing Nashwan’s pulverising brilliance at Epsom. But to appreciate how miraculous Secretariat’s run was we need only remember that in annihilating his nearest challenger by 31 lengths he covered the 12 furlongs in 2 minutes 24 sec. dead, two full seconds inside Easy Goer’s time, and shattered the world record out of recognition. The official account from 1973 tells us that the wind was against Secretariat in the backstretch. The wind should have known better. For a couple of minutes at least, he was a greater force of nature than it was. “None of us can ever expect to see the like of that again. But let’s go on climbing up into the stands, just in case.” Recent generations of readers have been very fortunate that Hugh McIlvanney did indeed go on climbing up into the stands and then sharing his wonder at what he saw. He was a titan of sports reporting, and racing was truly blessed that he loved the sport so dearly. View the full article

Fresh on the heels of being crowned champion female sprinter of 2018 at the Eclipse Awards at Gulfstream Park Thursday night, Conrad Farms’ Shamrock Rose (First Dude) will have the opportunity to extend her four-race win streak into 2019 when she goes postward in a competitive renewal of the GIII Fasig-Tipton Hurricane Bertie S. at the Hallandale oval. Shamrock Rose catapulted herself to the forefront of her division with an impressive second half of the 2018 season, which included a convincing score in the Oct. 20 GII Lexus Raven Run S. and a furious last-to-first rally in the GI Breeders’ Cup Filly and Mare Sprint Nov. 3. While both of those victories came at the Hurricane Bertie’s seven-furlong distance, the Mark Casse trainee finds herself in a spot with significantly less confirmed early speed signed on, perhaps necessitating a slight change in tactics. Cleber J. Massey’s Blamed (Blame) appears to be the likely pacesetter, having set a pressured tempo en route to a runner-up finish behind Shamrock Rose in the Raven Run prior to wiring the field in the GIII Comely S. over nine furlongs at Aqueduct Nov. 23. The filly, who began her career competing in New Mexico for trainer Joel Marr before being transferred to the barn of Hall of Famer Bill Mott, has never finished out of the exacta in eight career starts. Once-beaten ‘TDN Rising Star’ Dream Pauline (Tapit) enters off a victory in the Dec. 15 GIII Sugar Swirl S. over a sloppy local track–a race in which she struck the front at the quarter pole and had enough gas left to hold off the reopposing Stormy Embrace (Circular Quay) by a neck. A Stonestreet Stables homebred, Dream Pauline will make her first start at a distance beyond six furlongs Saturday. View the full article