Wandering Eyes

It’s been a long time between drinks for Sam Clipperton but the Australian jockey hopes a couple of old friends can help him return to the winner’s list for the first time since November 14. Rides have been hard to come by for the 24-year-old – he hasn’t had more than three at a meet since December 2 – and he heads to Sha Tin on Saturday with only two in his book, however they happen to be the source of his two most recent victories. Rule Thee steps out in the... View the full article

Karis Teetan was full of praise for Mr Stunning after giving him a final trial hit-out on Friday morning, saying he could remain at the lofty peaks he reached after collecting back-to-back titles in the Hong Kong Sprint. Mr Stunning went head-to-head with Hong Kong Sprint runner-up D B Pin in the trial where the pair cleared out and performed strongly in their final hit-outs ahead of the Group One Centenary Sprint Cup (1,200m) on Sunday week. “He came out nicely, relaxed and when I went... View the full article

Team Valor International's Bombshell will look to expand a two-race win streak from last year in the $150,000 Marshua's River Stakes (G3T) Jan. 12 at Gulfstream Park. View the full article

Peters and Thompson team up for big upset View the full article

Wecando does it from start to finish View the full article

Decreto too good in Class 4 race View the full article

Testing journey does not dim Gold Star View the full article

Horses' body weights January 11 View the full article

Track conditions and course scratchings January 11 View the full article

Early scratchings January 11 View the full article

LEXINGTON, KY – The Keeneland January Horses of All Ages Sale–which surged passed its total 2018 gross after its third session Wednesday–concluded Thursday with its highest gross since 2008 and with a record-setting average and record-equaling median. “This sale exceeded our expectations,” Keeneland President and CEO Bill Thomason said. “The desire of buyers to compete at the highest levels and their commitment to invest in breeding and racing stock continue to create the momentum that flows through these sales. It’s exciting for the entire industry.” Champion Abel Tasman (Quality Road) was the star of the January sale and set the tone for the auction when bringing a final bid of $5 million–a sale record for a broodmare prospect–from Coolmore during Monday’s opening session. The auction featured five horses to sell for $500,000 or over, up from two in 2018. “With Abel Tasman, obviously, we kind of anticipated that day one would be up from last year,” said Keeneland’s Director of Sales Operations Geoffrey Russell. “But if you take her out, it was still up considerably from last year. It’s just been a continuation of November.” Russell continued, “We were very fortunate this year to have some very nice mares in the first two days that attracted [major buyers like] the WinStars, the Spendthrifts, the Summer Winds and all of those, even if you take away Abel Tasman. But then you add in Abel Tasman and she was the queen of the day.” In all, 916 horses sold for $46,759,600–the sale’s highest gross since 1,493 head sold for $70,446,000 in 2008. The average of $51,048 was up 32.6% from last year and bested the previous sales record of $50,182 set in 1988. The median rose 66.67% from a year ago and, at $20,000, tied the sales record set in 2014. During the 2018 January sale, 909 head sold for $34,996,000. The average was $38,499 and the median was $12,000. The broodmare Mrs McDougal (Medaglia d’Oro) brought the auction’s top price of $1.6 million and was one of two seven-figure lots at the auction. The number of horses sold for $200,000 or more, which grew from 17 in 2017 to 28 last year, reached 47 in 2019 and the clearance rate for the auction improved from 74% last year to 78% this year. “It’s a very good market at the moment, and the depth of quality in this January Sale catalog generated brisk trade well into the final day of the sale,” Keeneland Vice President of Racing and Sales Bob Elliston said. “In particular, we saw an exceptional group of yearlings and fillies off the track, led by Abel Tasman, whose sale created early energy. Credit goes to our consignors for bringing these outstanding individuals to market and for setting realistic reserves on their offerings.” A competitive weanling market at the November sales led to strong demand for short yearlings at the January sale, according to Russell. “On the short yearling side of it, I think the pinhookers did not fill their orders in November, so they had no choice but to come here in January,” Russell said. “We knew that back in November because they kept asking us what was in January.” In 2019, 346 short yearlings sold for $13,950,600. The average was $40,320 and the median was $18,000. The top-selling short yearling at the auction was a colt by Union Rags who sold for $390,000 and was one of 39 sold for six figures. In 2018, 353 short yearlings sold at the January sale for a total of $13,786,100. The average was $39,054 and the median was $13,000. A colt by American Pharoah was the top-priced yearling, selling for $1 million. He was followed by another son of the Triple Crown winner who sold for $400,000. Those two colts were among the 38 yearlings to sell for $100,000 or over. “The yearling market through this whole sale has been very strong,” Hunter Valley Farm Manager Adrian Regan said. “We tried to buy plenty and got outbid a lot. When you bring up a nice foal, there is plenty of competition.” For the sixth straight year, Taylor Made Sales Agency was the auction’s leading consignor by gross with 116 horses sold for $10,832,400 and an average of $93,383. “We continue to see a trend where the very top of the market is healthy, and anything with quality–if there’s blue sky on the horizon that a mare or the foal she’s carrying can even have the possibility of being a six-figure horse–people really embrace that,” the agency’s Mark Taylor said. “When you get down to the ones in the bottom quarter to third of the market, you have to be very conservative with your reserves and you’ve got to know your product.” Demand for quality offerings remained high throughout the auction, with six horses bringing six figures during Thursday’s finale, led by Doug Scharbauer’s purchase of the broodmare prospect Classy Tune (Maclean’s Music) for $230,000. In all, 11 head sold for $100,000 or more during the two-session Book 2. Two hit that mark in the same section in 2018. Keeneland sold 451 head during Book 2 for a total of $7,902,300, an average of $17,522 and a median of $8,000. During Book 2 in 2018, 494 head sold for $6,694,000 for an average of $13,551 and a median of $6,500. A daughter of Street Sense was the top-priced short yearling Thursday, selling to Reiley McDonald for $105,000. “I think the market has been generally good at the top end–which it always is,” McDonald said. “I think the middle and lower end mares have been very difficult, but I think the foal market has been incredibly strong.” Up next on the Keeneland sales calendar will be the April 2-Year-Olds in Training Sale which returns in 2019 after a four-year hiatus. “[Keeneland Director of Sales Development] Mark [Maronde] and [Keeneland relationship manager] Kyle [Wilson] will be going down to Ocala Monday to do the second run through there recruiting horses for the sale,” Russell said of preparations for the April sale. “The feedback has been very positive so far.” The 2-year-old sale will be held Apr. 9, with an under-tack show Apr. 8. Scharbauer Adds to Broodmare Band Douglas Scharbauer is intent on improving the quality of his broodmare band and Valor Farm general manager Ken Carson has been busy shopping for the Texas owner at Keeneland this week. Carson made his biggest purchases of the sale Thursday to take home the session’s top two-priced broodmare prospects. Leading the way was Classy Tune (Maclean’s Music) (hip 1427), a multiple stakes placed 5-year-old mare, who sold for $230,000 from the Eaton Sales consignment. “We are just improving our broodmare band and that was one of the ones that [Scharbauer] liked,” Carson said. “We’ll certainly be in Texas always. We stand stallions there and have a farm there. But we are going to increase our involvement up here [in Kentucky] because there really isn’t a great market in Texas right now. If that changes, we will change with it.” Classy Tune, a $135,000 OBS April purchase in 2016, was third in last year’s C.E.R.F. S., as well as this year’s Mizdirection S. for TNIP, LLC and trainer Simon Callaghan. “She is a gorgeous mare and she had real ability,” Eaton Sales’ Reiley McDonald said of Classy Tune. “She’ll make a lovely broodmare.” Scharbauer purchased Valor Farm in Pilot Point, Texas, from the estate of his late father Clarence Scharbauer, Jr. in 2016. The farm stands nine stallions, including Congaree, Eagle, Grasshopper and Too Much Bling. Scharbauer’s Kentucky mares are boarded at Hidden Brook. Earlier in the session, Carson went to $135,000 to acquire the unraced Rosalia (Orb) (hip 1278). The broodmare prospect was consigned by Mill Ridge Sales on behalf of Juddmonte Farms. “She is a beautiful filly, just absolutely stunning,” Carson said of the filly. Rosalia, purchased by Juddmonte for $450,000 at the 2016 Fasig-Tipton Saratoga sale, is a daughter of multiple stakes winner Miss Atlantic City (Stormy Atlantic) and a half-sister to graded stakes placed Miss Southern Miss (More Than Ready). She is from the family of Grade I winner Cotton Blossom and multiple graded stakes placed Vicarage. “She found a very good home with Doug Scharbauer,” Mill Ridge Sales’ Headley Bell said of the filly. “Obviously beauty still sells and she’s a very attractive filly and two people wanted her. We were not expecting that kind of money, but two people got together and they were determined.” Also through Mill Ridge’s January consignment, Juddmonte sold Dissipate (Frankel {GB}) (hip 702) for $200,000 to Chad Schumer. “We all know what Juddmonte is, it’s the cream of the cream,” Headley explained. “And [Rosalia] is a filly that, unfortunately, they tried to supplement to their program and she didn’t work out. And they move them on. Their culls are other people’s jewels, without question.” Also this week on behalf of Scharbauer, Carson purchased Touch of Bling (Tale of the Cat) (hip 979) for $80,000 and Vinaka (Sky Mesa) (hip 195) for $45,000. In total, the Texan purchased seven head for $547,000 and an average of $78,143. Of Scharbauer’s plans for his breeding operation, Carson said, “He doesn’t like to sell very much, but hopefully he’ll do both [race and sell].” Juddmonte Runners Prove Popular Late A pair of racing prospects from Juddmonte Farms proved popular late in Thursday’s Keeneland January finale, with bloodstock agent David Ingordo going to $140,000 to acquire Own Agenda (First Defence) (hip 1531). The 4-year-old has won two of eight starts in the Juddmonte colors for trainer Bill Mott, most recently finishing seventh in a Nov. 28 Aqueduct allowance. “I’ve been waiting around for that horse,” Ingordo said after signing the ticket on the dark bay colt, who will be joining the Florida base of his wife, trainer Cherie DeVaux. “Garrett [O’Rourke] at Juddmonte had told me he was alright and Bill Mott had mentioned him to Cherie. I bought him for her and for some friends of ours. We’ll see what happens.” The next horse through the ring was another Juddmonte racing prospect trained by Mott. The 4-year-old Westerland (GB) (Frankel {GB}) (hip 1539), most recently fifth in a Nov. 16 Churchill allowance, sold for $100,000 to Three Diamonds Farm. Ingordo, who purchased future Eclipse champion Stellar Wind (Curlin) privately after a maiden win in 2014, agreed finding race-ready prospects was increasingly difficult. “It is the hardest thing in our business to do right now, period, because the end-user, the people that want to win the big races, own them and there is not a lot of inventory out there of horses that you can buy,” he said. “My clients, they want to buy the horse and move it to their program. So for what we are trying to do, it’s very difficult. Someone will sell a piece, but they want it to stay with their trainer, with everything their way. But my client base, they have their own program, their own ideas. So finding the Stellar Winds in this day and age is hard to do. Finding something that can run is hard. We have babies, but you have to develop them. With something like this, he can go to the entry box sooner.” Street Sense Filly a Pinhook Prospect A filly by Street Sense (hip 1251) was first to break through the six-figure threshold during Thursday’s final session of the Keeneland January sale when bringing a final bid of $105,000 from Reiley McDonald as part of a pinhooking partnership. “I thought she was a great physical with a really beautiful top line,” McDonald said of the short yearling. “She looks very racy.” Bred by H & L Partners and consigned by Lane’s End, the bay is out of Peace Talk (Arch), a half-sister to multiple group placed Zaham (Silver Hawk). She followed her dam into the ring Thursday. In foal to Astern (Aus), the 9-year-old Peace Talk sold for $47,000 to Turkish owner Arif Kurtel. Kurtel was the most prolific buyer at the four-day January sale, purchasing 17 horses for $664,000 and an average of $39,059. View the full article

Lone Star Park has scheduled Steve Sexton Mile (G3) for April 28 and has added another $100,000 to the purse, raising it to $300,000. View the full article

Corey Nakatani isn't going through a typical jockey comeback story. Too much has happened, and too much needs to happen, before he ever gets back in the saddle again. View the full article

The GIII Steve Sexton Mile, re-named in 2017 as a tribute to the late racetrack executive, has been pushed forward on the Lone Star stakes schedule to take place Sunday, Apr. 28 and will be worth $300,000, up $100,000 from 2018. The Sexton Mile is the headline event on a 13-strong stakes schedule at the Dallas-area oval, which will conduct 44 days of live racing from Apr. 18 through July 21. The Sexton Mile has been used as a de facto prep for the GI Metropolitan H. by the latter race’s last two winners-Mor Spirit (Eskendereya) in 2017 and Bee Jersey (Jersey Town) in 2018. “Steve Sexton and myself shared a great sense of pride in Lone Star Park,” said Steve Asmussen, who trained Bee Jersey for owner/breeder Chuck Fipke. “The Sexton Mile has become a significant event on the racing calendar with the last two winners using it as a prep for the Metropolitan Handicap.” View the full article

In this series, we ask agents and others who book a lot of mares for their clients which sires might be flying slightly under the radar in this breeding season. Who might be getting overlooked in the rush for the new, hot thing? Read on. Jared Hughes: TWIRLING CANDY, Lane’s End, $25,000 When I think of under the radar stallions, I think of value. And when I think of value, I think of Twirling Candy at $25,000. He’s interesting because he’s so versatile. The mares that I plan matings for have a variety of end goals; breed to race clients, breed to sell in the commercial market. I like Twirling Candy because he can fit all of those bills. I think he can move up his mares physically and he puts a real athlete out there. They typically have a nice big walk, which is such an important part of the market now. A good physical seems to be the first thing that people want. He has an interesting pedigree being out of a Chester House mare, with Mr. P close up creating some inbreeding opportunities. Twirling Candy is very versatile in what type of racehorse he can produce as well. Horses like Gift Box (two turns dirt), Finley’sluckycharm (sprinting dirt), and Concrete Rose (two turns turf). I just feel a horse like that, with his biggest crops coming through, has a lot of upside. Twirling Candy is a stallion under the radar because of this upside. Click for Twirling Candy’s Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree or Race Record. View the full article

Medallion Racing, Keith Abrahams, and Sandra Lazaruk's Selcourt will run in a race over the weekend of Jan. 12-13, but which race she participates in will depend on the weather. View the full article

A total of 19 owner’s prize money bonuses will be offered by Weatherbys Racing Bank for qualifying races in 2019, Weatherbys announced on Thursday. Beginning at Huntingdon on Friday, the fixtures are split between seven Flat and 12 National Hunt races with £500 in additional prize money available to eligible owners. To qualify, owners must hold a new Weatherbys Racing Plus account which offers additional benefits and discounts including the option to have a debit card, and a 20% discount off the Weatherbys owner’s VAT return service. The full schedule of eligible fixtures are: Market Rasen (Jan. 17), Leicester (Feb. 14), Aintree (Apr. 5), Windsor (May 13), Thirsk (June 11), Bath (Aug. 21), Goodwood (Aug. 25), Ffos Las (Aug. 29), Doncaster (Sept. 12), Redcar (Sept. 17), Warwick (Sept. 24), Uttoxeter (Oct. 18), Newton Abbot (Oct. 31), Hexham (Nov. 8), Fakenham (Nov. 19), Newcastle (Nov. 30) and Wincanton (Dec. 5). “Through speaking with our clients there is clearly a demand for a more comprehensive banking service for their racing and bloodstock activities,” said Senior Manager Louise Norman. “It’s great that we can now offer this with the Racing Plus account, and equally exciting that we are offering the additional prize money incentives across a broad spectrum of race types.” View the full article

In this continuing series, Alan Carasso takes a look ahead at US-bred and/or conceived runners entered for the upcoming weekend at the tracks on the Japan Racing Association circuit, with a focus on pedigree and/or performance in the sales ring. Here are the horses of interest for this weekend running at Kyoto and Nakayama Racecourses. Horses of note on special holiday programs will appear in Sunday’s TDN. Saturday, January 12, 2019 4th-KYO, ¥11,400,000 ($105k), Newcomers, 3yo, 1400m TRIREGNUM (c, 3, Will Take Charge–Fiery Pulpit, by Pulpit), a $250K purchase out of the 2017 Keeneland September sale, becomes the first Japanese starter for his young sire in this elongated sprint. The April foal is kin to MSP Dypsy (Broken Vow), the dam of MSW & MGISP Edwards Going Left (Midnight Lute) and is out of a half-sister to the good GSW turf distaffer of the late 1990s, Clamorosa (Seattle Dancer). B-Taylor Bros Prop.LLC Pollock Farms Patrick Payne & Baysore Stables LLC (KY) 10th-NKY, ¥34,620,000 ($319k), Allowance, 4yo/up, 1200m The lightly raced EAGLE BAROWS (h, 5, Henny Hughes–Minny’s Niece, by Quiet American) gets the services of record-setting jockey Christophe Lemaire as he looks for a fifth consecutive victory dating back to 2017. A $20K KEESEP yearling turned $250K OBS April juvenile, the bay won both of his outings last season, including a smooth four-length victory off a six-month absence at Chukyo on the Champions Cup undercard Dec. 2 (see below, gate 13). B-C Kidder & N Cole (KY) Sunday, January 13, 2019 3rd-KYO, ¥9,550,000 ($88k), Maiden, 3yo, 1400m PIER CHIC (c, 3, Central Banker–Our Miss Jones, by Alphabet Soup) failed to handle the grass when well bet on his 1800m debut back in September, but he improved markedly with a switch to a dirt sprint, finishing a close third in mid-December. A $60K purchase out of the 2017 Fasig-Tipton NY-Bred Sale, the half-brother to SW & GISP Mr. Online (Silent Name {Jpn}) was the second most expensive of his sire’s two dozen first-crop juveniles to sell in 2018 when hammering for $180K at OBS March (breeze). B-McMahon of Saratoga Thoroughbreds LLC (NY) 4th-KYO, ¥13,720,000 ($127k), Allowance, 3yo, 1200m MONT PERDU (f, 3, Cairo Prince–Spanish Post, by Flatter) could scarcely have been more impressive in her lone racetrack appearance to date, leading virtually throughout to graduate by five eased-down lengths over this track and distance Nov. 17 (see below, gate 4). A $115K FTNAUG yearling purchase in 2017, she was knocked down to Katsumi Yoshida for $325K at last year’s FTFMAR sale after covering an eighth of a mile in :10 1/5. B-Bluewater Sales LLC & Three Diamonds Farm (NY) View the full article

The 2019 Kentucky Derby presented by Woodford Reserve (G1) Saturday, May 4, will be the richest in history as the purse for America's greatest race and first leg of horse racing's Triple Crown has been elevated to a guaranteed $3 million. View the full article

It took all of 1:35.88, but North America (GB) (Dubawi {Ire}) announced his return in a big way on Thursday, running off by nine lengths in the G2 Al Maktoum Challenge Round 1 at Meydan. Breaking from stall two, the Satish Seemar-trained bay assumed command a few jumps from the barriers and was allowed to get away with an :24.45 opening quarter with Heavy Metal (GB) (Exceed And Excel {Aus}) and Gold Town (GB) (Street Cry {Ire}) tracking him about a length behind. North American began to put daylight between himself and the field after five panels in :59.05, and it was all over from there, as he quickened away to post an easy score. Kimbear (Temple City), who enjoyed a ground-saving trip in midfield for the majority of the race, swung off the fence a quarter mile from home and was best of the rest, 1 3/4 lengths in front of Muntazah (GB) (Dubawi {Ire}) giving trainer Doug Watson the second and third home. 2018 G3 UAE 2000 Guineas hero Gold Town (GB) (Street Cry {Ire}), racing for Godolphin and trainer Charlie Appleby, was an equal distance back in fourth. “That’s the way he is,” said trainer Satish Seemar. “I was telling [Mullen] to let him do his thing. We had the right draw. If he pops out, just don’t stop him. I know when he’s in form like that, he’s so good. About 10 days ago, we jumped him out of the gate, just to wake him up and he did it exactly the same way. After [North America] broke like he did, I had no worries. He could have set a track record today, but no one was there to challenge him. He’ll go to [the Al Maktoum Challenge] Round 2.” “Unbelievable,” added hoop Richard Mullen. “I just said to the [Seemar] that there are not a lot of horses who give me goosebumps and he has done that. It was an incredible performance for his first run [this season]. He has such huge stride. I think anything that comes near, he has that much pace that he just kills them off. This is step one. There are a few to go, so let us not get carried away. There is potential for him to be better. He is only going to have four runs this year and he already has his program penciled out. He is very lightly raced and very well looked-after. They have the whole summer off, so seven is the new three or four in UAE terms.” The 7-year-old gelding broke his maiden in his first start on dirt at Meydan in November of 2016 and promptly won his next three starts, culminating in the G3 Firebreak S. in February of 2017. Only 10th in the G2 Godolphin Mile on Dubai World Cup night later that year, he was given some time off and returned to run third behind Heavy Metal (GB) (Exceed And Excel {Aus}) and subsequent G1 Dubai World Cup hero Thunder Snow (Ire) (Helmet {Aus}) in the 2018 edition of this race last January. Just a neck behind the latter in the G2 Al Maktoum Challenge Round 2 upped to 1900 metres on Feb. 8, North America tasted Group 1 glory in the Mar. 10 2000-metre Al Maktoum Challenge Round 3. A tardy break in the Mar. 31 Dubai World Cup threw the Ramzan Kadyrov runner off his game that evening and he could do no better than 10th before reappearing on Thursday. Pedigree Notes… North America is one of 38 Group 1 winners and 104 group scorers for his sire, who has 162 black-type winners to date. After North America, 2004 GI Hollywood Starlet S. third Northern Mischief has thrown the winners Make Mischief (GB) (Makfi {GB}) and Liquid Gold (Ire) (Nathaniel {Ire}), as well as the unraced 4-year-old filly Nourah (Ire) (Shamardal). The half-sister to champion older mare and MGISW Gourmet Girl (Cee’s Tizzy) has a yearling colt by Dandy Man (Ire) as her last reported foal and was covered by MG1SW and dual Guineas hero Churchill (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) last spring. Other group-level scorers that feature Yankee Victor as a broodmare sire are GI Santa Anita H. hero Melatonin (Kodiac Kowboy), G2 Norfolk S. heroine Shang Shang Shang (Shanghai Bobby), Canadian champion female sprinter and MGSW Youcan’tcatchme (The Daddy) and GSW Covey Trace (Stevie Wonderboy). Click for the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree. Thursday, Meydan, Dubai AL MAKTOUM CHALLENGE R1 SPONSORED BY MUBADALA-G2, $350,000, Meydan, 1-10, NH4yo/up & SH3yo/up, 1600m, 1:35.88, ft. 1–NORTH AMERICA (GB), 126, g, 7, by Dubawi (Ire) 1st Dam: Northern Mischief (GISP, $123,918), by Yankee Victor 2nd Dam: Rhondaling (GB), by Welsh Pageant (Fr) 3rd Dam: Touch of Class (Fr), by Luthier (Fr) (100,000gns Wlg ’12 TATFOA). O-Ramzan Kadyrov; B-Qatar Bloodstock Ltd (GB); T-Satish Seemar; J-Richard Mullen. $210,000. Lifetime Record: G1SW-UAE, 16-6-3-2, $777,017. Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree. Werk Nick Rating: A. 2–Kimbear, 126, h, 5, Temple City–Sky Dreamer, by Sky Mesa. ($30,000 Ylg ’15 KEESEP). O-Sheikh Rashid bin Humaid Al Nuaimi; B-John C Oxley (KY); T-Doug Watson. $70,000. 3–Muntazah (GB), 126, g, 6, Dubawi (Ire)–Rumoush, by Rahy. O-Sheikh Hamdan bin Rashid Al Maktoum; B-Shadwell Estate Co Ltd (GB); T-Doug Watson. $35,000. Margins: 9, 1 3/4, 1 3/4. Also Ran: Gold Town (GB), African Ride (GB), Dolkong, Etijaah, Masaarr, Heavy Metal (GB). Click for the Racing Post chart. Dubai Racing Club Video. View the full article

Officials at Churchill Downs have announced that the purse for this year’s 145th running of the GI Kentucky Derby has been raised from $2 million to a guaranteed $3 million, making it the second-richest Derby in the world. The Derby winner will receive a $1.86-million payday in addition to the gold trophy. The runner-up receives $600,000, with $300,000 to third, $150,000 to the fourth home and $90,000 to the fifth-place finisher. The Derby purse was $1 million from 1996-2004 before being raised. Citing strong early returns from state-of-the-art historical racing machines at Derby City Gaming, Churchill Downs Incorporated’s $65-million facility that opened last September, officials also announced that the purse for the GI Old Forester Turf Classic would be doubled to $1 million, while the GI Kentucky Oaks will see its purse raised by a quarter-million dollars to $1.25 million. The Oaks was a $500,000 until its purse was doubled in 2011. “Our recent investment into historical racing machines is paying immediate dividends to Kentucky horsemen,” said Churchill Downs Racetrack President Kevin Flanery. “It’s extremely gratifying to meaningfully raise the purse of the iconic Kentucky Derby and other important racing fixtures on our stakes schedule as we continue to advance the overall racing program at Churchill Downs. Our steady growth in available prize money is truly exciting for the Kentucky horse racing and breeding industry.” The Derby and Oaks anchor a 34-race stakes program worth a record-setting $12.03 million. More than $30 million in purse money is expected to be distributed during this year’s spring meet. In the spring of 2018, Churchill offered 32 stakes races worth $8.4 million. Total purses paid over the course of the 372-race meet were $22.2 million. A total of 15 races will receive purse hikes for 2019, including the GI Humana Distaff ($300,000 to $500,000), while the $600,000 GII Stephen Foster S. is one of four races to be increased by $100,000. The others, each worth $400,000, are the GII Longines Distaff Turf Mile, the GII American Turf and GIII Pat Day Mile. The Churchill Downs S., recently accorded Grade I status, will carry purse money of $500,000, as will the GI La Troienne S. on the Oaks undercard. In other changes to the schedule, the Foster, GIII Mint Julep S. and GIII Louisville S. will no longer be run under handicap conditions. View the full article

Since the untimely death of Scat Daddy at the end of 2015, the hunt has been on to find a son-successor to the prominent stallion, who sired just eight crops before passing away before the 2016 breeding season. No Nay Never has achieved early success as the leading first-crop sire in Europe in 2018, and this season, of course, Justify and Mendelssohn will attempt to stake their claim in America. But Taylor Made is the only farm to land a proven sire son with their acquisition of Daddy Long Legs, the Champion First-Crop Sire in Chile. From his one crop (now midway through their 3-year-old season in the Southern Hemisphere), Daddy Long Legs has already sired five stakes horses and two stakes winners, including two graded winners and one Group 1 winner, the Chilean Champion 2-Year-Old Colt Fallen From Heaven (Chi). We caught up with Duncan Taylor at the Keeneland January Sale to talk to him about the new acquisition. TDN: Can you start by telling us just about Daddy Long Legs, and how he has come to stand at Taylor Made? DT: We were looking at Daddy Long Legs and thinking about maybe actually brokering him to Europe, and that was just sort of an interest level, saying that he has Apalachee on the bottom, the second dam is by Apalachee. And Apalachee goes back to Moccasin, who is a full sister to Thong, the third dam of Sadler’s Wells. Then the opportunity came up with Phoenix Thoroughbreds. They were thinking about buying the horse. We said, “Well, we’d like to stand him.” Scat Daddy makes all kinds of sense with what’s going on with No Nay Never, Start Now and Justify. You couldn’t have a hotter sire line right now than Scat Daddy, and Daddy Long Legs is a big, good-looking horse. He has a good race record. He won a Group 2 in England when he was two years old. And then he went on and won the UAE Derby. His race record is quite a bit like Mendelssohn’s, but there’s not really a horse in his range–and he’s already started throwing winners and stakes winners and Grade 1 winners in Chile. We said, well, it’s a lot like his daddy. It’s a good place to take a shot and I think breeders would like to have a horse like this, because there aren’t any more Scat Daddy’s coming along. {"id":3,"instanceName":"Articles No Playlist","videos":[{"videoType":"HTML5","title":"Daddy Long Legs Arrives in KY","description":"","info":"","thumbImg":"","mp4":"https://player.vimeo.com/external/310594511.sd.mp4?s=4895f5351a5ef30d9c2ba680fc71b74ffe7de813&profile_id=165","enable_mp4_download":"no","prerollAD":"yes","prerollGotoLink":"prerollGotoLink","preroll_mp4_title":"preroll_mp4_title","preroll_mp4":"https://player.vimeo.com/external/304448542.sd.mp4?s=d1145e13d97cb5d064960591f050c735ad0443bc&profile_id=165","prerollSkipTimer":"5","midrollAD":"no","midrollAD_displayTime":"midrollAD_displayTime","midrollGotoLink":"midrollGotoLink","midroll_mp4":"midroll_mp4","midrollSkipTimer":"midrollSkipTimer","postrollAD":"no","postrollGotoLink":"postrollGotoLink","postroll_mp4":"postroll_mp4","postrollSkipTimer":"postrollSkipTimer","popupAdShow":"no","popupImg":"popupImg","popupAdStartTime":"popupAdStartTime","popupAdEndTime":"popupAdEndTime","popupAdGoToLink":"popupAdGoToLink"}],"instanceTheme":"light","playerLayout":"fitToContainer","videoPlayerWidth":720,"videoPlayerHeight":405,"videoRatio":1.7777777777778,"videoRatioStretch":true,"videoPlayerShadow":"effect1","colorAccent":"#000000","posterImg":"","posterImgOnVideoFinish":"","logoShow":"No","logoPath":"","logoPosition":"bottom-right","logoClickable":"No","logoGoToLink":"","allowSkipAd":true,"advertisementTitle":"Ad","skipAdvertisementText":"Skip Ad","skipAdText":"You can skip this ad in","playBtnTooltipTxt":"Play","pauseBtnTooltipTxt":"Pause","rewindBtnTooltipTxt":"Rewind","downloadVideoBtnTooltipTxt":"Download video","qualityBtnOpenedTooltipTxt":"Close settings","qualityBtnClosedTooltipTxt":"Settings","muteBtnTooltipTxt":"Mute","unmuteBtnTooltipTxt":"Unmute","fullscreenBtnTooltipTxt":"Fullscreen","exitFullscreenBtnTooltipTxt":"Exit fullscreen","infoBtnTooltipTxt":"Show info","embedBtnTooltipTxt":"Embed","shareBtnTooltipTxt":"Share","volumeTooltipTxt":"Volume","playlistBtnClosedTooltipTxt":"Show playlist","playlistBtnOpenedTooltipTxt":"Hide playlist","facebookBtnTooltipTxt":"Share on Facebook","twitterBtnTooltipTxt":"Share on Twitter","googlePlusBtnTooltipTxt":"Share on Google+","lastBtnTooltipTxt":"Go to last video","firstBtnTooltipTxt":"Go to first video","nextBtnTooltipTxt":"Play next video","previousBtnTooltipTxt":"Play previous video","shuffleBtnOnTooltipTxt":"Shuffle on","shuffleBtnOffTooltipTxt":"Shuffle off","nowPlayingTooltipTxt":"NOW PLAYING","embedWindowTitle1":"SHARE THIS PLAYER:","embedWindowTitle2":"EMBED THIS VIDEO IN YOUR SITE:","embedWindowTitle3":"SHARE LINK TO THIS PLAYER:","lightBox":false,"lightBoxAutoplay":false,"lightBoxThumbnail":"","lightBoxThumbnailWidth":400,"lightBoxThumbnailHeight":220,"lightBoxCloseOnOutsideClick":true,"onFinish":"Play next video","autoplay":false,"loadRandomVideoOnStart":"No","shuffle":"No","playlist":"Off","playlistBehaviourOnPageload":"opened (default)","playlistScrollType":"light","preloadSelfHosted":"none","hideVideoSource":true,"showAllControls":true,"rightClickMenu":true,"autohideControls":2,"hideControlsOnMouseOut":"No","nowPlayingText":"Yes","infoShow":"No","shareShow":"No","facebookShow":"No","twitterShow":"No","mailShow":"No","facebookShareName":"","facebookShareLink":"","facebookShareDescription":"","facebookSharePicture":"","twitterText":"","twitterLink":"","twitterHashtags":"","twitterVia":"","googlePlus":"","embedShow":"No","embedCodeSrc":"","embedCodeW":720,"embedCodeH":405,"embedShareLink":"","youtubeControls":"custom controls","youtubeSkin":"dark","youtubeColor":"red","youtubeQuality":"default","youtubeShowRelatedVideos":"Yes","vimeoColor":"00adef","showGlobalPrerollAds":false,"globalPrerollAds":"url1;url2;url3;url4;url5","globalPrerollAdsSkipTimer":5,"globalPrerollAdsGotoLink":"","videoType":"HTML5 (self-hosted)","submit":"Save Changes","rootFolder":"http:\/\/wp.tdn.pmadv.com\/wp-content\/plugins\/Elite-video-player\/"} TDN: What do you think American breeders might find appealing about his race record? DT: To win a Group 2 as a 2-year-old in Europe, that’s a tough task. There’s 14, 15, sometimes 20 horses in those races, so you’ve got to be a good racehorse to do that. And then to be shipped as a 3-year-old over to Meydan and win the same race as Mendelssohn, the UAE Derby, I think that shows the horse is versatile. I think it’s something that the American breeders will appreciate. Of course, if he won a six-furlong race on race on the dirt going 1:08, they like that a lot better. But he has shown he has precocity, and that he’s a nice horse as a 2-year-old and followed through with it at three, so that’s where everybody’s looking for. TDN: Tell us about his conformation and the reaction he’s getting since arriving at the farm. Are people happy with what they’re seeing from him? DT: They are. He’s a big, strong, stout horse. He got a good walk. Meadowlake was one of the best-looking horses in Kentucky and he’s out of a Meadowlake mare so I think he gets a lot of his looks from Meadowlake. TDN: You mentioned his early run that he’s had with his first crop in Chile–he’s done very well there. DT: About three-quarters of his starters have won, and he’s had five stakes winners, two graded stakes winners, and one was a champion. That’s from his first crop, and you’re looking at the racing in the Southern Hemisphere, so they just turned three in the middle of 2018. They’re still in their 3-year-old year, and a lot more could happen, but he’s done plenty for a horse starting out. And his winners have been on dirt and turf, so we like that, also. TDN: What has the interest been from breeders so far? DT: It has been really good. We’ve had a lot of calls, a lot of people coming out to look at him. We’ve been surprised; you know, with any stallion nowadays, there’s just so many of them out there at the low prices, so it’s very competitive. But we still have interest and people are booking to him and he’s one of the most popular that we have, so I think the sire line is really helping us a lot and that he’s a proven stallion at the price level he is. I think we’re blessed to have him. View the full article

Godolphin has bolstered its already strong roster of Classic contenders by purchasing half of ‘TDN Rising Star’ Persian King (GB) (Kingman {GB}), according to Racing Post. Trained by Andre Fabre for breeder Dayton Investments, Persian King broke his maiden at second asking by six lengths going a mile at Chantilly on Sept. 1, and followed up two weeks later with a conditions win over the same track and trip. He capped off his 2-year-old campaign with a win over subsequent Group 1 winner Magna Grecia (Ire) (Invincible Spirit {Ire}) in the G3 Autumn S. at Newmarket. “Godolphin have bought 50% of Persian King and he will run in our colours this year,” Godolphin representative Lisa-Jane Graffard told Racing Post. “He is obviously a very exciting horse to join the team. We haven’t discussed which route he’ll take yet but we have total faith in his trainer and we will leave it up to him.” View the full article

With a full-service Thoroughbred nursery, stallion roster, student program and racing club to oversee, Irish National Stud Chief Executive Officer Cathal Beale has a lot on his plate. He also has an opportunity to see the Thoroughbred business from numerous perspectives, and the TDN‘s Kelsey Riley caught up with him at Keeneland’s January sale in Lexington, Kentucky this week to talk about some hot-topic industry issues. KR: What brings you to Kentucky this week? CB: I’m here trying to source some new stock for the Irish National Stud, trying to find some nice mares to support our stallions, and it’s always good to get out to meet people and let people know we’re here. We’ve purchased two mares for the stud: we got lot 130 [for $60,000], she is a stakes-placed winner at two and in foal to California Chrome, so that’s quite exciting. We got another mare for $20,000 [lot 308] and we’re very happy with her; she’s a half-sister to some stakes horses and nicely bred in foal to a good stallion in Dialed In. It’ll be interesting to see how the market receives those yearlings in a couple years in Europe. KR: Your flagship stallion is of course Invincible Spirit. How is his 2019 book coming together? CB: He’s nearly completed. He’ll be limited again to in and around 100 mares for longevity, to try to keep him going for as long as we possibly can, but we’re delighted with his book. He had such a fantastic year last year with three Group 1 winners, two of those being 2-year-olds, and 19 stakes winners. It was a fabulous year for him on the track so people will continue to support him. Limiting the book is something we do in particular with him because of his age [22]. We don’t want to over face him at this stage of his career but he’s been remarkably fertile and we want to keep him that way. We haven’t covered Southern Hemisphere and we just try to get him to peak in the four months of the season when we really need him, and the other eight months are his own time. It’s the decision we made to cover no more than two mares per day with him to give him every chance. Last year his fertility was exceptional again so it’s great that he can keep going. KR: Two others you have on the roster are Decorated Knight and Free Eagle, who were both very top-class middle distance runners. Both have been featured as TDN value sires in recent weeks, but support of breeders hasn’t exactly been strong; Decorated Knight covered 66 mares last year, and Free Eagle 58. Is it concerning that these types of sires are struggling to get a chance? CB: I think it’s part of the bigger picture. You have to take a step back to look at the entire model. The biggest problem [the Thoroughbred industry] faces is we’re in a very competitive market for people to be interested in what we do. There are new sports coming along all the time and sports that are reinventing themselves. MMA [Mixed Martial Arts] didn’t exist 10 years ago, in Europe certainly, and now it’s a big sport. So there’s such competition to be relevant and stay on the pages of the daily newspapers. Ultimately as an industry, we have to unite under the banner that we have to make ourselves as relevant as possible to Joe Public. In doing that, we have to make the return on investment attractive for people coming into the game. We know it’s attractive in terms of fun, but we need to make sure it’s attractive from a monetary sense as well, or as attractive as we can possibly make it. What we have to do is pull everybody together and face in the same direction and make the case to those who pull the purse strings. If we do that, that then has the knock-on effect of making racehorses more attractive than just something you have to sell as a foal. Breeders are at the pin of their collar at the moment because they’re trying to breed to sell a foal because that’s where the incentive is for them, to sell as a foal, rather than retain the horse themselves and race it, which has been the model for the past 200 years. So they’re choosing what you might deem faster [sires], six or seven furlong horses, for that result. So until we can incentivise breeders to retain their fillies or actually try to race the stock themselves, until we get to the point where it’s affordable for breeders to be able to do that, we’re going to see a fall-off on those sorts of middle distance horses, I think. Having said that, the markets that are opening up for flat racing especially are global. And the majority of these markets are looking for 10-furlong horses. Hong Kong, Australia, Singapore and all of these emerging Eastern markets are looking for the 10-furlong horse. I think over the next two or three years there might be a migration back towards that sort of horse, and I certainly hope there is because ultimately the Thoroughbred is about the piece of wood at Epsom, as Tesio said. I think that’s the ultimate thing we’re trying to breed so I think if we can get back to that, that’s a positive thing. KR: When you announced your 2019 stud fees, you said you were lowering a number of them to “reflect the current market sentiment.” Can you expand upon that? CB: It’s no secret that breeders are under pressure, and certainly commercial breeders have had a tough year. We’ve been listening to people in the barns as we go around and we felt we had to respond to that. We’re in the business of trying to give people a chance to make money on our stallions, because that’s why they come back the following year. It’s a business decision as much as anything else and it’s the right decision in this climate, where breeders are really struggling at the foal sales, particularly this year, to make end’s meet. I felt we had to respond to that by dropping the fees on what we might call our middle-market stallions. We reduced Free Eagle, Decorated Knight, Dragon Pulse, National Defense, Gale Force Ten, and we maintained Invincible Spirit. That was a conscious decision we wanted to make. KR: You’ve already alluded to the polarisation at last year’s breeding stock sales, and it was probably at an unprecedented level. How do you think this worrying trend can be corrected, and is there a way to stimulate spending at lower levels of the market? CB: It comes back to that big picture thing. Everybody keeps beating on about prize money and I think that’s logical, but it’s not just prize money: the bigger thing is the return on investment. Prize money is the biggest return you can get but there’s also a big return if you can get a good horse and sell it to a foreign market. You add that up on the plus side, and then you have the costs on the negative side. The VAT increase is an issue in Ireland now; it’s gone up to 13.5%. It seems from a breeder’s perspective that the costs keep creeping up and the prize money keeps-while everyone is doing their best efforts to push it forward, the return on investment of the whole package together really needs to be more competitive. Other markets like Australia in particular have done a great job making conscious decisions to increase return on investment by increasing prizemoney, and we in Europe have to respond to that and make ourselves as competitive as possible for new entrants to enter the market. A new entrant will come and take a look and they’ll want to see what the economic return is on their investment. It’s really important for us to make sure that is as attractive as we can possibly make it. We need to put forward a very clear case to government, or whoever is in charge of making those decisions, that investment in our industry is going to return three, four, five, six times what they put into it in terms of jobs, exchequer returns-we need to stress the fact that we’re extremely good at this in Europe. In Ireland, England, France, Germany, Italy, in particular, we have the land, the people to do these things. It’s an investment worth making for government and it’s up to us to keep making sure we make that case, that it’s not a handout we’re looking for-it’s an investment. Investing in our industry is going to return massively to government and it’s getting that case and making that point. Everything filters down from that. With the issues that are out there at the moment-breeders are struggling, people are struggling to find staff; trainers, if they have more prize money to aim at, can then make more money and pay their staff more. It trickles down; it’s a filter system from the very top and it’s about getting that funding system correct and attractive as possible. Everything else filters down from that. KR: Are there industry stakeholders making that case to government? CB: Absolutely. It’s something we have to keep doing and keep trying to improve upon. It’s really about making sure that the case is being made and being made so they can understand what we’re doing. It’s important for us to put it in layman’s terms, to say, for every Euro you put in, here’s what the return on the investment is. And it’s extremely significant. I can only talk about Ireland on this, but there are 30,000 jobs directly and indirectly as a result of horse racing, and if they continue to invest more, there will be more jobs and there will be greater returns to the exchequer if companies are making profits and they’re getting taxed on those profits. If we can convince them of the benefits of that, everything else flows back. KR: Brexit is a massive concern at the moment too, but we don’t yet have much of an idea of how it will affect our business. Are you seeing any affects of potential repercussions in any parts of your business? CB: I think people are always inclined to be cautious when there’s uncertainty, but having said that we need to just keep going. There are no prizes for sitting on your laurels and not doing anything, so it’s business as usual to a degree and continuing to push forward and hoping they come up with a solution. There’s a significant amount of work going on behind the scenes in terms of getting the HHH [high health horse] protocol [maintained post-Brexit], and that is absolutely vital not just for the Irish industry but the English and French industries as well. Being able to bring our horses and people across the borders without checks is vital. There is a lot of work going on in Europe at the moment to make that case and get that deal over the line, and that’s a vital piece of legislation to come. Without that we’re probably in a bit of trouble, but I’m cautiously optimistic we can get that done, which will alleviate most of the fears we have with Brexit. KR: You’re now about a year and a half into your role as CEO of the Irish National Stud. How is it going so far? CB: It’s just the most fantastic opportunity because no day is the same. We have a stallion business to run, a boarding business, a consignment business, we’re selling our own stock, we have a lot of clients, but we also have an education piece, and a tourism piece. It’s incumbent on us to be at the forefront of explaining these things to government and to allow people an opportunity to get as close to a horse as they actually can, whatever level they’re at. Whether that’s as a tourist that’s paying €12 to get into the stud and see a horse and they may never have seen a horse in their lives before, or whether that’s somebody who has a keen interest in racing, to set up a racing club like we have will allow them to come in and participate in some really nice horses to take them not just to the big days but the small days; get them to every racetrack across the country if we can over the course of the next couple of years with INS racing. There are various levels, and we try to pitch an option to somebody at every level. That’s the tourism for €12, the INS Racing for €399 or the mares syndicate for €16,000 for a share, or nominations from €1,000 to €120,000; to try to pitch something there at every level so people can take the next step, whatever that may be, and have a good experience and nearly through osmosis learn a bit more about racing and maybe set off a little spark in someone that they want to come back. What we’re really here to do is get people closer and get people a little more involved in racing. KR: You mentioned the Irish National Stud’s Breeding Course, and you yourself as well as many others in top positions in the industry worldwide came through that course. The course must be something the Irish National Stud is quite proud of? CB: It’s another way of getting people further along the road in whatever they’re doing. We have 30 students coming in this year and it’s been running for 48 years. I’ve met so many guys here in Kentucky this week who did the course and came out here 20, 30, 40 years ago. It’s still so highly regarded among them and they continue to send people back to us. They’ll suggest someone go to the National Stud and do the course, so we’re excited the 30 are starting next Monday for our 48th year. It’s the oldest and biggest network of people in the bloodstock industry so we’re very proud of it. View the full article

Walking Thunder (c, 3, Violence-Street Show, by Street Boss) posted his third straight open-length victory to remain unbeaten in an eye-catching performance in Meydan’s UAE 2000 Guineas trial going a mile on the dirt on Thursday. Fast from the gates, Walking Thunder and jockey Connor Beasley sat off the flank of Power Link (Data Link) down the backstretch. Pulling even with that rival rounding the bend, the hooded dark bay pulled clear with a few slaps of the whip at the top of the straight and was soon about 10 lengths clear and winning geared down. Manguzi (Fr) (Planteur {Ire}) was second, and the G1 Jean-Luc Lagardere winner Royal Marine (Ire) (Raven’s Pass) checked in a tame fourth, not appearing overly enthusiastic about his first try on the dirt. A 5 1/4-length debut winner at Meydan going 1400 metres on Nov. 1, Walking Thunder added to that with a 4 1/2-length score over this track and trip on Dec. 12. He was a $42,000 OBS April purchase by trainer Ahmed bin Harmash, signed for by his assistant Alessandro Marconi from Q Bar J Thoroughbreds. This was the first carnival winner for the Phoenix Ladies Syndicate, an affiliate of Phoenix Thoroughbreds. View the full article