Wandering Eyes

The Thoroughbred Retirement Foundation (TRF) has secured a $50,000 matching gift from the Geoffrey C. Hughes Foundation (GHF) for its 2018 Hay Drive. The GHF will match every gift received by the TRF up to $50,000 for its Hay Drive campaign through the end of 2018. The TRF’s goal for the 2018 Hay Drive is $250,000 to cover the cost of hay for the 700 horses in their care throughout the winter of 2018-2019. “We are grateful to the Geoffrey C. Hughes Foundation for this generous gift and the leadership it represents,” said Kim Weir, Director of Major Gifts and Planned Giving for the TRF. “By doubling the impact each dollar given up to $50,000, we are hopeful that many new donors will be inspired to contribute to this critically important element of the TRF annual operations. The TRF Hay Drive is one of the most important campaigns for the organization providing rescue, sanctuary retraining and retirement for Thoroughbreds no longer able to compete at the racetrack.” The campaign will be conducted by direct mail, email and social media as well as one-on-one donation requests. To contribute, you may give online here. For more information, contact Kim Weir at 518-226-0028 x105 or kim@thoroughbredretirement.org or Jennifer Stevens at 518-226-0028 x106 or jennifer@thoroughbredretirement.org. View the full article

Two-time Eclipse Award-winning broadcaster Tom Hammond and the late Eclipse Award-winning cinematographer Joe Burnham have been selected to the National Museum of Racing’s Joe Hirsch Media Roll of Honor, the museum announced Tuesday. Hammond, one of television’s most respected and versatile talents, began his racing coverage with NBC Sports in 1984 and was the network’s main racing host until 2017. Hammond’s horse racing coverage has included the Kentucky Derby, Preakness, and Belmont Stakes, as well as Summer at Saratoga and the Breeders’ Cup. He has also called figure skating, college basketball, Notre Dame football and NFL games for the network. Burnham (1923-1994), a native of Norfolk, Va., was one of the most esteemed cinematographers and television producers in Thoroughbred racing history, winning an Eclipse Award in 1972 for film achievement and being recognized by the National Turf Writers Association with the Joe Palmer Award in 1991. Burnham filmed the sport of Thoroughbred racing in person through five decades and was instrumental in organizing and archiving decades of historical racing footage. He served as the producer for the Eclipse Awards for 17 years and director for the Thoroughbred Racing Associations Champions Film from 1960 through 1966. The Joe Hirsch Media Roll of Honor Committee is comprised of Edward L. Bowen (chairman), president of the Grayson-Jockey Club Research Foundation; retired Jockey Club vice president of corporate communications Bob Curran; National Museum of Racing trustee Ken Grayson; retired turf publicist Jane Goldstein; and Dan Smith, senior media coordinator of the Del Mar Thoroughbred Club. View the full article

David Cohen–who is enjoying a banner season after resuming his promising riding career following an injury-induced hiatus spanning almost four years–is the recipient of JockeyTalk360.com’s Comeback Jockey of the Year Award, presented by Red Brand Fence. Cohen will receive the award during the Jockeys’ Guild Assembly luncheon Tuesday at Top Golf located adjacent to the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. Irad Ortiz will be honored as JockeyTalk360 Turf Jockey of the Year and Drayden Van Dyke will be recognized as JockeyTalk360 Breakthrough Jockey of the Year. The JockeyTalk360 awards are in addition to the honors handed out at the luncheon by the Jockeys’ Guild at their annual assembly. The 34-year-old Cohen has won 109 races and almost $6.5 million in 2018 purse earnings through Friday, according to Equibase statistics, including taking the GII Hill Prince on Have At It (Kitten’s Joy) and the GIII Matron on Lonely Road (Quality Road). Cohen was among the sport’s rising stars when he was kicked in his lower right leg by his mount in the paddock at Aqueduct Feb. 1, 2014. His badly fractured fibula and tibia required surgery involving a plate and six screws to repair. “It was never a matter of ‘if’ but a matter of ‘when’ I was going to return,” Cohen said. “If you’re not right mentally, it’s going to show. I wouldn’t do that to people trusting me with the horses and giving me an opportunity if I wasn’t 100% ready, not just physically but the mental state as well. It was just wanting to do it the right way.” View the full article

If you want to put a gun to my head, I think I am going to vote for Justify, but with reservations. There is the brevity of his career, two of the tracks that he won over were a little gimmicky and the class of the horse he beat wasn’t much. I’m not one of those people who always knock the 3-year-old crop, but you couldn’t help but notice how little this group, outside of Justify, accomplished. It turns out that there was no depth in the Triple Crown races. I guess that 1882 and an undefeated Triple Crown winner has to trump a horse who had a very good list of accomplishments over a greater period of time. You had to beat this out of me because I’ve really been unsure. You look at a body of work and Accelerate really did put together a good body of work. He came East and he finally got the trainer off the duck in the Breeders’ Cup. He’ll be champion older dirt horse, but it really is a shame that it looks like he’s not going to be Horse of the Year. John Pricci is an Eclipse Award voter View the full article

After clearing a Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee Monday by a 13-0 vote, a New Jersey bill that would guarantee a five-year, $10 million annual purse subsidy for Monmouth Park could be up for a full Senate vote as early as Dec. 17. In addition, the State Assembly and Governor Phil Murphy still have to approve SB 2992 before it becomes law. The proposed bill would authorize the New Jersey Racing Commission to split a $20 million annual allocation from the state’s general fund equally between the Thoroughbred and Standardbred industries as follows: “Of the funds allocated to the Thoroughbred industry, 100% will be allocated to Monmouth Park overnight purses. Of the funds allocated to the Standardbred industry, 60% will be allocated to Meadowlands overnight purses; 16% to Freehold overnight purses; 12% to the New Jersey Sire Stakes purses; 6% to purse bonuses for New Jersey-sired horses; and 6% for breeders awards purses.” Dennis Drazin, who heads Darby Development LLC, which operates Monmouth Park, told the Asbury Park Press that he was “extremely pleased” to see the legislation move forward. “It’s something that we’ve been working very hard on over the course of the year and Monday was a significant step forward towards solidifying a revenue stream tied to the purse account,” Drazin said. The timing of the bill comes seven years after New Jersey’s racing industry lost a $17 million annual purse supplement paid for by Atlantic City casinos, and six months after Monmouth became the first racetrack in the nation to open a newly legalized sports bet-taking operation. View the full article

Nick Zito has started only a handful of horses at Oaklawn Park, but that figures to change in 2019 after the trainer said Friday afternoon that he will "probably" have 20 horses on the grounds when the scheduled 57-day meet begins Jan. 25. View the full article

Toronto-based Ivan Dalos, who exclusively races homebreds and campaigns a stable of 32 primarily at Woodbine Racetrack, is quietly putting together a career year as an owner/breeder. Entering the final week of racing at his hometown track, Dalos has won a personal best 23 races from 104 starts in 2018, and has averaged nearly $1.2 million in earnings in each of the past five seasons. Dalos, a construction executive whose company specializes in flooring, has bred Thoroughbreds under the banner of Tall Oaks Farm for the past four decades. He keeps a band of broodmares roughly equal in number to his racing stock split between farms in Ontario and Kentucky, and he has also developed four homebred stallions–a trio who service mares north of the border and the recently retired Ami’s Flatter (Flatter), who will stand at Ocala Stud in Florida for 2019. At last year’s Sovereign Awards, Dalos hauled home hardware for owning and breeding the Canadian champion older female and champion female sprinter Ami’s Mesa (Sky Mesa), whose dam, Victorious Ami (Victory Gallop), was also crowned the country’s outstanding broodmare. Tall Oaks also bred Johnny Bear (English Channel), Canada’s champion male turf horse (who raced for different connections). Dalos now has a few months to create additional space in his trophy case for the 2018 Sovereign Awards that will be announced in April. In addition to being in the mix for individual owner and breeder awards, he appears to be a lock for accepting the award for 2-year-old champion Canadian colt that is likely to be bestowed upon Avie’s Flatter (Flatter), a two-time black-type winner at Woodbine whose only loss from four starts this year was a trip-troubled fourth against deep, open company in the GI Summer S. “I’m sort of semi-retired from work right now, and this is what I love to do,” Dalos said via phone. “I’m 77 years of age, and it’s time to take it a little easier. I wanted to spend more time with the horses, to be honest. So the construction business is now on my other people, and I can concentrate on my four-legged friends.” Dalos claimed his first racehorse in the late 1970s after being introduced to racing by a business acquaintance. He undertook a “learn by doing” course of self-study after being instantly fascinated by the intricacies and history of Thoroughbred bloodlines. “I kind of fell into the sport, and the only way I could figure it out was to read as much as I could, different breeding theories and ideas,” Dalos said. “And as I started reading about different opinions, I started forming my own ideas. The primary purpose of my breeding is to create a racehorse, the best I can. And I am constantly trying to create more and better bloodlines for my future breeding.” It took about 20 years before Tall Oaks transformed theory into a brush with greatness: In 1994, Dalos mated a Vice Regent mare he had raced with Cryptoclearance, an affordable stallion option who was cycling out of fashion at the time. The following year, Victorious Lil produced Victory Gallop, who sold as a $25,000 KEESEP yearling before running second in both the 1998 GI Kentucky Derby and GI Preakness S. and winning the GI Belmont S. “Over the many, many years I’ve found I’ve had pretty good luck breeding to ‘oldies and goodies,'” Dalos said. “When I bred Victory Gallop, I bred to Cryptoclearance when he was sort of on his last legs as a stallion. To this day, I still believe that some of these older horses still have it.” Dalos explained that his over-arching goal is to ensure a profitable racing operation, which in turn feeds his passion for patiently honing multi-generational bloodlines. “Obviously, I want to create future broodmares and future stallions, but the only way you can do that is to race them and to be successful,” Dalos said. “The ones that we sell, we don’t sell until they’re yearlings and we see what they look like. If they are exceptionally good-looking, and the opinion is that we can get some decent dollars for them, then I’ll put them in the sale. Other than that, I’ll keep them and try to create my own future racehorses, broodmares and stallions. “I used to breed almost exclusively in Kentucky until the last couple of years. I now stand three stallions in Ontario of my own,” Dalos continued. “So in order to support Amis Gizmo (Giant Gizmo), Ami’s Holiday (Harlan’s Holiday), and Gamble’s Exchange (Exchange Rate) here at home, I’ve started breeding to them quite a bit. And I have Ami’s Flatter standing in Florida now, so I’ll be sending some mares there to support him as well. The rest of them I breed in Kentucky.” Several of Dalos’s top distaffers who hit the winner’s circle during the past several seasons will be transitioning over to the breeding side of the operation as the calendar flips into 2019. MGSW Ami’s Mesa, who was second, beaten only by a nose in the 2017 GI Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Sprint, is retired and awaiting a scheduled mating with Distorted Humor. MGSW Gamble’s Ghost (Ghostzapper), a hard-hitting sort who won 10 of 21 lifetime starts, has also been retired. Dalos has not yet finalized her mating plans. Both of those mares are currently under the care of Nick Lotz at Briarbrooke Farm in Paris, Kentucky, where Dalos said he has enjoyed a good working relationship for 25 years. Victorious Ami, the 2017 Sovereign Award-winning broodmare, will be bred to Tapit. Avie’s Empire (Empire Maker), the dam of presumptive 2-year-old Canadian champion colt Avie’s Flatter, had a very late cover this year, so Dalos is unsure of her 2019 breeding plans. “I’m going to wait until she foals and decide at the last minute,” he said. And Avie’s Flatter himself? The colt has won Canadian-bred stakes at Woodbine on both the turf and the Tapeta all-weather surface, and is currently the early favorite for the 2019 Queen’s Plate, the first jewel of the Canadian Triple Crown. But Dalos is not ruling out taking aim at the Kentucky Derby, too. “I sent Avie’s Flatter down to Florida to give him a little bit of a break,” Dalos said. “He’s had four tough races, and I think it would be good for him to get a few weeks off. I’ll try to go the same route that I did [in 2015] with Ami’s Flatter, who came down to Florida and ended up running second in the [GII] Tampa Bay Derby and third in the [GI] Florida Derby. “If Avie’s Flatter handles the dirt–which of course, I don’t know at this point–I’ll try to go the same route with him and see if he’s good enough to go to the Kentucky Derby,” Dalos said. “And if not, we’ll go to the Queen’s Plate. Once I know how he handles all three of those surfaces, we can decide what he’s best suited for.” Dalos said Avie’s Flatter will rejoin trainer Josie Carroll at Palm Meadows Training Center to resume training just before Christmas. Any possible prep race prior to the Tampa Bay Derby “will be Josie’s call,” he added. Dalos said Colleen, one of his three daughters, is taking an active role in the family’s Thoroughbred endeavors, and she generally represents Tall Oaks at major out-of-town races. “She really is the only daughter who is very interested in racing and breeding,” Dalos said. “She wants to be part of this business, and I’m teaching her. Hopefully, she’ll continue in my footsteps. “I’m involved in racing and breeding because I enjoy it so much,” Dalos summed up. “And, of course, I do it because I dearly wish to create that one great racehorse that I think can be made, like a Victory Gallop that I managed to breed many, many years ago. Maybe Avie’s Flatter will be the one. You never can tell. What the future brings, who knows?” View the full article

A $2,000 fine slapped on Javier Castellano was upheld by top regulators at the state Gaming Commission for a bumping incident during an August race at Saratoga Race Course won by the Hall of Fame jockey. View the full article

A new incentive scheme for MGSW & MGISP Time Test (GB) (Dubawi {Ire}-Passage of Time {GB}, by Dansili {GB}) was announced by The National Stud on Tuesday. For breeders who purchase a nomination to the 6-year-old for the 2019 season, if a 2-year-old winner is the result, they will receive a free return to Time Test. The stallion stood his first season at The National Stud this spring where he covered 22 black-type performers and 22-black-type producers in his first book. The bay also stands at Little Avondale Stud in New Zealand during the Southern Hemisphere breeding season. He is slated to stand for £8,500 for the second consecutive year at The National Stud in 2019. Time Test, who ran third in the G1 Coral-Eclipse S. and placed twice at the Grade I level Stateside, is out of G1 Criterium de Saint-Cloud heroine Passage of Time, herself a full-sister to Group 2 winner Father Time (GB) and SW Continuum (GB). She is also a half-sister to G1 Falmouth S. victress Timepiece (GB) (Zamindar). “Time Test is a stallion we have put a lot of faith in, he hails from an amazing family and was a very talented performer,” said The National Stud’s Tim Lane. “He was a winning 2-year-old, his dam was a Group 1 winning 2-year-old and his sire was a Group 1 winning 2-year-old, but above this he showed class throughout his career. We felt this was a way to reward breeders who support Time Test in a notoriously difficult year and we have strong confidence this incentive will pay dividends for the breeders.” View the full article

Observations on the European Racing Scene turns the spotlight on the best European races of the day, highlighting well-pedigreed horses early in their careers, horses of note returning to action and young runners that achieved notable results in the sales ring. Wednesday’s Insights features a full-brother to G1 Irish 2000 Guineas hero Awtaad (Ire) (Cape Cross {Ire}). 4.45 Kempton, Cond, £6,000, 2yo, 8f (AWT) Phoenix Thoroughbred Ltd’s AL BATTAR (IRE) (Dubawi {Ire}), who topped the sheets when sold for €1.55 million at last year’s Arqana August sale, is a son of G1 Falmouth S. victress Giofra (GB) (Dansili {GB}) and debuts for the Ed Vaughan yard. His rivals include Sheikh Hamdan bin Rashid Al Maktoum’s once-raced Alhaazm (GB) (Cape Cross {Ire}), a full-brother to G1 Irish 2000 Guineas-winning sire Awtaad (Ire), representing Sir Michael Stoute; Cheveley Park Stud’s Astrologer (GB) (Intello {Ger}), a homebred daughter of G1 1000 Guineas and G1 Coronation S. second Starscope (GB) (Selkirk), from the John Gosden barn; and Sheikh Ahmed bin Rashid Al Maktoum’s Elamirr (Ire) (Exceed and Excel {Aus}), who is a Roger Varian-trained son of G1 1000 Guineas victress Ameerat (GB) (Mark of Esteem {Ire}). 5.15 Kempton, Cond, £6,000, 2yo, 8f (AWT) Jaber Abdullah’s FIGHTWITHME (IRE) (Shamardal), a homebred son of G1 Falmouth S. victress Music Show (Ire) (Noverre), gets a third opportunity to shed maiden status after hitting the board in starts at Newmarket and Newcastle last month. His opponents feature Lord Lloyd-Webber-owned stablemate Trapani (GB) (Shamardal), who is kin to six black-type performers headed by MG1SW sire Jakkalberry (Ire) (Storming Home {GB}), G1 Derby Italiano hero Awelmarduk (Ire) (Almutawakel {GB}) and G1SW G2 Derby Italiano victor Crackerjack King (Ire) (Shamardal). View the full article

The Hong Kong Jockey Club’s new racecourse in Conghua, China offers trainers a plethora of facilities above and beyond what is available at the Club’s two Hong Kong racecourses: four racetracks together with a 1100-metre uphill gallop; 20 spelling paddocks; a world-class veterinary hospital equipped with an X-ray unit, an exam room and operating suites, and a rehabilitation unit that includes salt-water spas and an aqua treadmill to treat injured horses. The Hong Kong Jockey Club has invested HK$3.7-billion (almost US$500-million) into Conghua Racecourse, which is situated in the Guangdong Province in Southern China about 200 kilometres from Hong Kong–three hours’ ride by car. Spread across 150 hectares, Conghua racecourse can house more than 660 horses in its stables. The racecourse was built with the vision to take Hong Kong racing to the next level and to create a more spacious and relaxed training environment. Land is sacred in Hong Kong, and the Club spent almost 20 years searching for suitable land to build such a training ground without much success. Conghua Racecourse was officially opened on Aug. 28, 2018 and nine trainers in Hong Kong, including former champions Tony Cruz and Dennis Yip, are now training horses out of both Conghua and Hong Kong. Horses are shipped to Sha Tin at least two days before running. The movement of horses across the border between Hong Kong and Mainland China means that maintaining strict biosecurity is a top priority. The Club and the government veterinary services of Hong Kong and China have established strict regulations and procedures to prevent outbreak of infectious diseases, and specific measures have been established for visitors. All visitors–including owners, trainers, jockeys and training staff–must go through the biosecurity entry point, wear a protective overcoat and have their hands and shoes disinfected to minimize the risk of contamination. The Club also maintains a strict no same-day entry policy where all the visitors must sign a declaration form stating that they have not visited any other equine facilities in Mainland China for 24 hours prior to visiting Conghua. “Conghua Racecourse is the largest strategic investment since the racetrack in Sha Tin was opened 40 years ago, when at that time only the Happy Valley Racecourse was available. The decision to expand to Sha Tin was similar to our decision to go to Conghua today,” says Winfried Engelbrecht-Bresges, chief executive officer of the Hong Kong Jockey Club. “Without the Sha Tin racecourse, we would only contain ourselves to Happy Valley. Conghua is necessary for the long-term growth of Hong Kong racing. “Conghua Racecourse also creates a perfect environment for injured and nervous horses to rest and take a break. For example, they can rehabilitate in the spa, and that will help them re-integrate before going back to racing in Hong Kong.” Although it has officially been in operation less than six months, the Club’s investment in Conghua is already seeing positive results in Hong Kong racing. As of today, 25 winners for the season have been trained in Conghua. These included the John Size-trained Special Stars and Country Star in last week’s International Jockeys Championship, as well as the Danny Shum-trained Regency Legend on the day of the Longines Hong Kong International Races. “In the early stages there were a little bit of reluctance among owners and trainers about training horses between Conghua, because of the distance between Conghua and Sha Tin,” says Bill Nader, director of racing business and operations of the Hong Kong Jockey Club. “And the early results have been so encouraging that people now not only accept Conghua as a world-class training centre, but they also embrace it.” The Hong Kong Jockey Club will next invest approximately HK$1.5-billion into the Sha Tin stables to bring the facilities up to the same standard as Conghua, Engelbrecht-Bresges said. View the full article

As expected, the dispersal of the breeding operation of Simon Munir and Isaac Souede dominated the final day of the Arqana Breeding Stock Sale, which brought the curtain down on the bloodstock trading season in Deauville with increases in both turnover and average. Nine of the 12 most expensive lots of the day hailed from the dispersal draft, which was presented on the owners’ behalf by Haras du Lieu des Champs. As befitting their former celebrated status on the racecourse, the headliners Ma Filleule (Fr) (Turgeon) and Gitane Du Berlais (Fr) (Balko {Fr}) shared the honours at the head of the leaderboard after they each sold for €220,000. Offered as lot 932, the 10-year-old grey Ma Filleule slipped her foal by Martaline (GB) several weeks in advance of the sale but she has a colt foal on the ground by the Haras de Montaigu sire after being barren to him in her first year at stud. She is likely to remain in France for the short term to be covered next season. Ultimately, however, she will join the elite band of National Hunt mares owned by Newbury Racecourse chairman and Champion Hurdle-winning breeder Dominic Burke, which board at Richard and Sally Aston’s Goldford Stud in Cheshire. “Dominic and [his wife] Val were over for the weekend but had to go home before today,” explained Richard Aston, who bought Ma Filleule on their behalf. “She was the one we wanted before the sale and we didn’t see anything to put us off once we got here. We all hugely admired her over the years but never thought we’d have the chance to buy her—when a chance like this comes up you have to take it.” One of the best jumping mares of the modern era, Ma Filleule was thoroughly tested in open company, winning at up to Grade 2 level over hurdles, as well as landing the G3 Topham Chase over the Grand National fences and finishing runner-up to Uxizandre (Fr) in the G1 Ryanair Chase at the Cheltenham Festival. In 30 career starts, she won eight races and was placed a further 12 times, earning a career-high rating of 163. Aston added, “She hasn’t had the best start to her breeding career so we hope all her bad luck is behind her. If she can produce a foal to replicate her own performance it would be terrific. She’ll stay in France to be covered. There are plenty of high-class jump stallions in the country who don’t cover huge books, which is particularly appealing. Sadly Martaline will not be available but Doctor Dino (Fr), Authorized (Ire) and Kapgarde (Fr) are all being considered. We’ll let the dust settle before we make a final decision.” Peter Molony of Rathmore Stud in Ireland has solid dual-purpose credentials in the bloodstock world, both as a valued member of the buying team for Qatar Bloodstock and as a National Hunt pinhooker in his own right, with the Cheltenham Gold Cup winner Bobs Worth (Ire) among his successes. Given the job of selecting a top-class broodmare on behalf of an unnamed client, he opted for the Grade 1-winning chaser Gitane Du Berlais (Fr) (Balko {Fr}). The 8-year-old (lot 934) is another to have made repeat visits to Martaline and has a filly foal on the ground as well as being back in foal to him. Her first offspring is a yearling filly by Kapgarde. “She’ll head first to the UK and will then come back to me at Rathmore to foal and be covered in the spring,” Molony said. “She’s been bought with the intention of breeding to race. My client wants to build up a decent selection of National Hunt broodmares and this mare has the whole package: she has the looks, she’s a Grade 1 winner in foal to a good stallion and she’s young. Mares like this just don’t come on the market very often.” Trained by Willie Mullins after winning over hurdles in France for Robert Collet and being bought privately by Munir and Souede, Gitane Du Berlais went on to win six more races in Britain, Ireland and France including the G1 Scilly Isles Novices’ Chase. Anthony Bromley had already played his part in assembling this high-class band of jumpers for Munir and Souede during their racing days and on behalf of other clients of his Highflyer Bloodstock agency, he and partner David Minton stepped in again to buy the G1 Prix Maurice Gillois winner Utopie Des Bordes (Fr) (Antarctique {Ire}) (lot 938), who is in foal to Balko, for €120,000. They also went to €85,000 for Une Artiste (Fr) (Alberto Giacometti {Ire}), winner of the G3 Fred Winter Juvenile Hurdle at the Cheltenham Festival, who was sold as lot 938 in foal to Martaline. All told, the 21 horses sold through the Munir and Souede Dispersal accounted for €1,287,500 giving a significant boost to the final-day aggregate of €3,032,500 for 121 horses sold, which was up by 42% on last year. The session’s average was €25,062 (+34%) and the median rose from €13,000 to €15,000. The only sector in which there was a reduction was the clearance rate, which dropped from a solid 80% 12 months ago to 71%. For the four-day Breeding Stock Sale as a whole, turnover improved by 6% to €33,504,700 for 682 horses. The clearance rate of 76% was down by three points, while the average of €48,757 represented a rise of 7% and the median dropped slightly to €18,000. View the full article

William Perry, the longtime prominent East Coast trainer best remembered as conditioner of two-time grade 1 winner Formal Gold, died at age 71 Dec. 6 in Naples, Fla. View the full article

Another Triple Crown winner broke from the starting gate Dec. 8 at Gulfstream Park, though this one falls into a different category than Seattle Slew, Affirmed, and Justify. View the full article

Zac Purton came crashing back down to earth on Sunday night after stewards suspended the star jockey for three meetings following his two stunning Group One victories, but the Australian is hoping to put that behind him on Wednesday night. The reigning champion jockey will take seven rides into the meeting, including a number of strong chances and will be looking to add to his winning total before his enforced holiday begins after Sunday’s card. Purton will team up with Happy Valley... View the full article

A week is a long time in Hong Kong racing so a year would feel like an eternity for Ricky Yiu Poon-fai with his galloper Spring Win. It has been 12 months since the six-year-old won two races on the trot at Happy Valley before moving up in grade and racing uncompetitively since. However, jockey Neil Callan – who was aboard for both wins – believes a year of pain could amount to some gain with his rating finally returning to a “winning mark”. After only riding the horse... View the full article

A well-established fixture in the lead up to the Triple Crown, trainer Todd Pletcher is attempting to secure a record 16th training title during Gulfstream Park’s 2018-2019 championship meeting, while diligently working to unearth another jewel who can join his roster of five prior Classic victories. As recently as 2017, the seven-time Eclipse Award winning trainer employed his South Florida base of Palm Beach Downs as a launching pad for a pair of Classic wins: Always Dreaming (Bodemeister; GI Kentucky Derby) and Tapwrit (Tapit; GI Belmont S.). The TDN caught up with Pletcher, who provided a glimpse into his success at Gulfstream Park and offered a closer look into the development of the stable’s youngest and brightest racing talent. TDN: Why do you think Gulfstream Park suits your program so well? TP: Well, Gulfstream traditionally has a lot of 3-year-old races, and now that it starts in December. With 2- and 3-year-old racing, we emphasize that program. I think because of the timing and the calendar, it’s allowing the later developing 2-year-olds and early developing 3-year-olds to get ready. We’ve been fortunate enough over the years to have had five GI Florida Derby winners, so timing wise it works well for us. I also think that the speed-favoring nature of the main track plays in how our horses generally run. They’re generally into the race early on, and show some pace. So I think that suits them as well. {"id":3,"instanceName":"Articles No Playlist","videos":[{"videoType":"HTML5","title":"Todd Pletcher Talks Gulfstream","description":"","info":"","thumbImg":"","mp4":"https://player.vimeo.com/external/305605504.sd.mp4?s=0c5c2e7ed1f692f74df9512b7323b9ae043fbd39&profile_id=164","enable_mp4_download":"no","prerollAD":"yes","prerollGotoLink":"prerollGotoLink","preroll_mp4_title":"preroll_mp4_title","preroll_mp4":"https://player.vimeo.com/external/281449967.sd.mp4?s=b7485f32ab2c8512189fee9b10e4f87b059d2ea3&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: You mentioned the Florida Derby, and it is a stop that you have used with success in the past. You used it with Always Dreaming, who won the Kentucky Derby in 2017. In terms of its timing, why do you think that works so well for you? TP: I love the spacing of the Florida Derby–five weeks out from the Kentucky Derby. It’s ideal. We’ve also gone elsewhere– Super Saver won the GI Arkansas Derby three weeks out–so it’s not mandatory. The good thing about it is, if you’re fortunate enough to have some decent 3-year-olds, there’s so many good options everywhere. Generally, every weekend there’s a significant prep race being run somewhere. But the Florida Derby, I think, where it’s positioned on the calendar is ideal, and that’s why we’ve seen it as a very successful prep in the past. TDN: Now that you have a couple of Kentucky Derby wins under your belt and you’ve seen what it takes to win it firsthand, what are you looking for with your 2-year-olds turning three? What is the ideal progression that you want to see with a young horse? TP: Well, you know it just depends. You have some that you know what their established form is, so you’re sort of targeting some prep races early. Then you have some other ones that are just getting started and that you’re trying to figure out where they are. But in Always Dreaming’s case, even though he was still a maiden at this time, we had high hopes for him based on his 2-year-old form, so we were kind of laying down a program for him. Occasionally, you’ll have some step up and surprise you and, hopefully, you’ve already got a line on a few others from early summer and fall that you’ve been laying out plans for. It’s an exciting time of the year, you’re obviously hoping to see them physically develop and make that transition from two to three. TDN: Do you currently have any 2-year-olds that you think might be the type to potentially join the Triple Crown trail? TP: Well, we’re hopeful. We don’t have any obvious standouts at this point on the dirt, and I think [Red Oak Stable’s] King for a Day (Uncle Mo) ran a better-than-looked fourth in the [GII] Kentucky Jockey Club. He’s one that we have high hopes for, even though it’s only his third start. We’ve got a few other ones we’re getting ready to run, so the next 60 days are a really key period of development. View the full article

Kaleem Shah's Bellafina delivered a strong, half-mile workout Dec. 10 at Santa Anita Park and the two-time grade 1 winner convinced trainer Simon Callaghan she's on schedule for a seven-furlong tilt for 3-year-old fillies Jan. 6 at Santa Anita Park. View the full article

The Iowa Thoroughbred Breeders and Owners Association is currently conducting an online auction of seasons to more than 180 stallions from 16 states. Proceeds from the online auction will fund three stakes races for all 2020 offspring of stallions whose seasons are sold at this auction: the 2022 Stallion Futurity and two 2023 Stallion Stakes races for 3-year-olds, one for colts and one for fillies. The auction began Dec. 8 and closes Dec. 17 at 7 p.m. CDT. A list of the stallions donated and details of the auction are available at http://www.thoroughlybred.com/sites/itboa. Since 2008, the Stallion Futurity and Stallion Stakes have each averaged more than $90,000 in purses and, in 2015, a race for 3-year-old fillies was offered for the first time. The three races in 2018 had total purses of just over $280,000. A $5,000 bonus will be paid to the winner of any of the three races if the foal is conceived from a breeding season purchased at the auction. Stallion donations are still being accepted. Contact the ITBOA office at itboa@msn.com to donate or visit iowathoroughbred.com. View the full article

Renovation on the one-mile dirt racetrack at Indiana Grand Racing and Casino is currently underway and the $700,000 project is expected to be completed in March 2019 when the barn area opens for training. Gerry Porcelli, former track man for the New York Racing Association for more than 40 years and Butch Lehr, who served as track man for Churchill Downs for more than 45 years, are working in conjunction with Indiana Grand’s track superintendent Roy Smith on the project. “We are right on schedule,” said Smith. “We’ve been busy taking all the existing cushion off down to base and have been working with GRW from Lexington, who have done a lot of design work on racetracks across the country. We are receiving all new drawings and have shot elevations for the existing surface on both tracks. Once that is completed, then we will begin laying a new limestone cap over the existing base, which will take place before Christmas.” Smith continued, “In a project like this, everything is weather related. The stage we are at now with the renovation, the cold weather actually helps us. We will lay the new cushion down the last of February or the first of March when we get a window of decent weather.” The track renovation was identified as a priority of capital investments by Caesars Entertainment, who assumed ownership in July 2018. In addition to the track renovation, Caesars is also replacing the existing exterior stair wells on the grandstand, which will be completed before racing resumes in April 2019. “We are very appreciative of Caesars willingness to step up and tackle both of these capital projects during our off-season of racing,” said Jon Schuster, vice president and general manager of racing. “It really shows the company’s commitment to ensuring safety is at the forefront of their business, and improving the track at this level is a major plus for our entire racing community.” The 17th season of Thoroughbred and Quarter Horse racing will resume Apr. 16 and the 120-day racing meet will run through Nov. 6. View the full article

The third day of trade in Deauville saw mares in-foal to young sires prove the most popular and all indices improve over 2017’s numbers. Topping Monday’s session of the Arqana December Breeding Stock Sale was the listed-placed bay Lykea (Ire) (Oasis Dream {GB}) (lot 660) from the consignment of Haras du Logis Saint Germain. Out of the listed winner and G3 Prix Eclipse third Alyzea (Ire) (King Charlemagne) and in-foal to Tweenhills resident Charm Spirit (Ire) (Invincible Spirit {Ire}) who has his first juveniles this term, the 8-year-old was knocked down for €55,000 to Elizabeth Ribard. Her second dam is a SW half-sister to G1 Prix de la Salamandre heroine Maximova (Fr) (Green Dancer), who is also ancestress of top U.S. stallion Malibu Moon (A.P. Indy). The second of three lots to breach the €50,000 barrier on the day was lot 534, Listed Balanchine S. heroine Seeharn (Ire) (Pivotal {GB}). Part of the Haras de Castillon reduction sale, the 10-year-old was snapped up by JK Thoroughbred and brought €53,000. In foal to G1 Prix Jacques-le-Marois hero Al Wukair (Ire) (Dream Ahead) who was standing his first season at Haras de Bouquetot this spring, the bay’s dam is a half-sister to G1 Golden Jubilee S. victor Malhub (Kingmambo) and Grade III winner Dhaamer (Ire) (Dubai Destination). Anna Sundstrom’s Coulonces Sales consigned the two-time winner Brigh (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) (lot 773). Carrying to Group 2 victor Balios (Ire) (Shamardal), the 8-year-old caught the eye of Chris Richner Bloodstock for €52,000. One of six winners out of SW and GII San Clemente H. third La Vida Loca (Ire) (Caerleon), herself a half-sister to MGSWs Crimson Tide (Ire) (Sadler’s Wells) and Pharatta (Ire) (Fairy King), Brigh also counts Irish highweight Shahrastani (Nijinsky II) under her third dam. Two lots brought €45,000 apiece-Haras d’Ombreville’s dual winner Epouville (Fr) (Footstepsinthesand {GB}) (lot 634) and Monday’s highest priced foal, a colt (lot 818) by Haras de Bouquetot’s MG1SW Shalaa (Ire) (Invincible Spirit {Ire}). Oceanic Bloodstock purchased the former, whose second dam is responsible for top-class stayer and MG1SW Vazirabad (Fr) (Manduro {Ger}). Howson & Houldsworth Bloodstock were in action for the dark bay colt who is out of a winning half-sister to two stakes winners including Grade III runner-up Willard Straight (Lion Cavern). Compared to 2017, 211 lots sold from 267 offered (79%), up 5%. The gross was €2,075,500, and the average was up 2.9% at €9,836. Rounding out the positive results, the median also rose to €6,500 (+8.3%). The final session of the Arqana December Breeding Stock Sale begins at 11 a.m. local time. View the full article

Anothertwistafate (Scat Daddy) may have disappointed in his first racetrack appearance at Santa Anita last month, but the juvenile made amends with an effortless four-length maiden victory at his home base of Golden Gate Fields Sunday. “I was actually relieved,” trainer Blaine Wright said of the win Monday. “He didn’t show a whole lot the first time we ran him, but that was probably my fault. Yesterday, he showed us the kind of horse we thought he was all along.” Bidding on behalf of Canadian owner Peter Redekop, bloodstock agent Alistair Roden purchased Anothertwistafate from the Wavertree Stables consignment for $360,000 at this year’s OBS June Sale. The colt, who worked a furlong in :10 1/5 was the fourth-highest priced offering at the auction and went through the OBS sales ring just seven days after Justify, another son of Scat Daddy, sealed his Triple Crown championship in the GI Belmont S. Anothertwistafate trained at Wright’s Golden Gate base before shipping south for his six-furlong debut at Santa Anita where he was ninth, beaten 15 lengths, Nov. 3. “I probably never should have sprinted him,” Wright said. “Obviously, for us training at Golden Gate and taking him to Santa Anita, he took dirt in his face for the first time. Training on the synthetic, we don’t get any kickback. And he got a little green down the backside on my rider and kind of backed away from it. The only encouraging thing that we saw was, once he got clear in the lane, he did start making a move. The chart didn’t do him much justice on the race, but he did finish up pretty good and galloped out strong. I just chalk it up to trainer error. I probably should have run him a week before going a mile on the turf. He’s always shown he’s more of a stayer than a sprinter. Maybe in the end it will end up being a good thing getting some race experience.” Stretched out to 1 1/16 miles and back on his home track, Anothertwistafate was never challenged in a wire-to-wire victory (video) Sunday. “He galloped the whole way other than the last sixteenth of a mile,” Wright said. “He got just a touch green before that and he kind of veered in to the rail and Juan [Hernandez] straightened him out. Then from the sixteenth to the wire was the only time he really pushed on him. He never hit him with the stick. I think he really galloped until then.” Bred by Bryant Prentice’s Pursuit of Success, Anothertwistafate is out of Imprecation (First Defence). Out of Media Nox (GB) (Lycius), the mare is a half-sister to multiple Group 1 winner Nebraska Tornado (Storm Cat) and graded winner Mirabilis (Lear Fan). While the colt’s pedigree might indicate his future is on the grass, Wright thinks his charge is versatile enough to perform on any surface. “We probably will try the turf with him at some point,” Wright said. “But I don’t think surface is going to be an issue for this horse. He trains like gangbusters on the synthetic. He’s bred for turf. He’s been on dirt for the training sales and at Santa Anita. He got over the dirt well, he just didn’t handle it in the race real well. But I think going a route of ground, he’s got natural speed and he won’t be behind a :21 and change pace going a route on the dirt.” Wright said he was keeping all options on the table for Anothertwistafate’s next start. “We’ve got some good races at home at Golden Gate that will obviously be on our radar,” Wright said. “Most of the time those guys don’t come north to run on the synthetic track, so sometimes you can dodge the big guys in those races. We’re not going to be in a rush to jump back in with the wild boys real quick. We’ll just see how our horse comes out and trains good and see what happens. So there is no definite race picked out yet. The first-condition allowances are tough to get to fill in Northern California and we would probably entertain a first-condition allowance or a minor stakes on the turf at Santa Anita should that come up. But honestly, I haven’t opened the condition book to even look at anything yet.” Wright, leading trainer at this year’s Emerald Downs race meet, annexed a pair of Southern California graded races with Alert Bay (City Zip). The dark bay gelding carried Redekop’s colors to victory in the 2014 GII Mathis Brothers Mile and 2015 GII City of Hope Mile S. and was recently third in the Lure S. in Arcadia. Wright is hoping Anothertwistafate is able to follow in that veteran’s footsteps. “We’ve got our fingers crossed that he has a bright future,” Wright said of Anothertwistafate. “Hopefully we have another one that can take us down south.” View the full article

A $700,000 renovation project on the one-mile dirt racetrack at Indiana Grand Racing and Casino is running on schedule and is expected to be completed in March 2019 when the barn area opens for training, the track announced Dec. 10. View the full article

DEAUVILLE, France-With the major Flat mares having taken their turn in the ring as the Arqana December Sale opened on Saturday, the curtain will be brought down in Deauville today with some classy National Hunt stock. The traditional jumping theme to the final day of trade has been given an extra boost this year by the inclusion of a dispersal of 22 broodmares and horses in training owned by the successful partnership of Simon Munir and Isaac Souede. Among the major National Hunt owners in Europe, Munir was notable in his willingness to race fillies and mares long before the racing programme was enhanced in a bid to persuade others to do so. With his racing partner Souede, Munir has amassed an array of talented mares who have since become well-credentialed breeding prospects, but the duo has taken the decision to reduce significantly their breeding interests, which have boarded in Normandy at Richard Powell’s Haras du Lieu des Champs since that side of their operation began. “The numbers have got quite big and that’s actually the reason this sale is happening,” said Anthony Bromley of Highflyer Bloodstock, who buys horses for the partners. “They are primarily racehorse owners and the breeding side of it has mushroomed so they’ve drawn a line and said that from next year there will be no more foals, though they will race all the progeny currently in the fields.” He added, “Some of the fillies have been withdrawn as they are still racing prospects and have won in the last week, but they will be sold eventually.” Among those remaining in the draft, which has been reduced to 22 from 28 catalogued, is the 8-year-old Gitane du Berlais (Fr) (Balko {Fr}) (lot 934), whose seven victories include the GI Scilly Isles Novices’ Chase, and who is now carrying her third foal by Martaline (GB). She is joined by another Grade 1 winner, the comparatively diminutive, at least by jumping standards, but no less talented Utopie Des Bordes (Fr) (Antarctique {Ire}) (lot 942). The 10-year-old is carrying to Balko, while the Cheltenham Festival winner and AQPS-bred Une Artiste (Fr) (Alberto Giacometti {Ire}) is another in foal to Haras de Montaigu’s Martaline and will be sold as lot 938. One of the real head-turners of the draft is the statuesque grey Ma Filleule (Fr) (Turgeon {GB}) (lot 932), a top-class steeplechaser in her day who still very much has a spring to her step, though she unfortunately slipped the foal she was carrying this year. “It’s bittersweet in some ways,” admitted Bromley. “I bought all the horses and planned their careers, and Richard has had them at the stud. Isaac and Simon ended up breeding because they had so many good racemares. It seemed the logical next step, and in fact the breeding programme has been working. Raffles Sun (Fr) has won a Grade 3 at Auteuil and was Grade 1-placed recently, and this is just the first bunch of 4-year-olds.” Despite the dispersal, it may well not be the end of the association of Bromley and his Highflyer partner David ‘Minty’ Minton with some of the stock. He continued, “I feel proud to be associated with such a nice bunch of horses and fingers crossed they sell well for the boys. Minty and I do like a lot of these mares. They are all here for sale, it’s a proper dispersal, but we have other clients and we will be bidding on some of the horses.” Richard Powell, who is well known as a consignor of both Flat and National Hunt horses, and whose father David has had a long-running association with Bromley and Minton as the French advisor for Highflyer Bloodstock, added, “From a consignor’s point of view, it is a privilege to offer such a high-class draft. These horses have been with us for some years now and they are not just horses they are friends, so it’s a bit sad, but that’s the way it is and we’re looking forward to some new adventures in the future. “This a lovely opportunity for National Hunt breeders to buy a treasure, a mare you would keep for a lifetime.” View the full article

The New York State Gaming Commission (NYSGC) voted by unanimous voice vote Monday to tweak a claiming price rule enacted in 2012 that had aimed to dis-incentivize owners and trainers from entering lame or uncompetitive horses in lower-level races that had been bolstered by gaming-inflated purses. The new rule will allow for some flexibility in setting claiming prices that are below the required 2:1 standard mandated by the NYSGC. It reads as follows, with the new language that was added to the existing rule highlighted in bold: “The minimum price for which a horse may be entered in a claiming race shall not be less than 50% of the value of the purse for the race, unless the commission approves a request from a franchised or licensed corporation conducting thoroughbred racing for a lower minimum price for all or a portion of a race meeting. The commission shall not approve such a request unless the track has implemented increased measures required by the commission to ensure close examination of the competitiveness, soundness and safety of each horse entered in such race.” When the proposal first came up in September, NYSGC equine medical director Scott Palmer, VMD, had advocated for the rule change, underscoring that he supported allowing flexibility in claiming prices because other protective measures have since been successfully incorporated to try and cut down on injuries and fatalities. According to a brief written by NYSGC general counsel Edmund Burns that was included in the informational packet for the Dec. 10 meeting, “various interested parties have requested the Commission to consider adding flexibility to the existing rule, identifying neighboring jurisdictions who have experienced safe racing with higher purse-to-claiming-price ratios. “The proposal would allow a Thoroughbred racetrack operator, with the approval of the Commission, to depart from this limitation under certain circumstances,” Burns continued. “The Commission has added the requirement that its approval to depart from the limitation will not be granted unless the track implements enhanced measures to ensure close examination of the competitiveness, soundness and safety of each horse in such races.” The new claiming ratio rule takes effect immediately. Two other proposals were advanced to the 60-day public commentary period, both by unanimous voice vote. One would set forth standards for backstretch housing at state-licensed Thoroughbred and harness tracks. “The proposed rule, which would provide, among other things, standards for buildings and residential rooms, sanitary, water, garbage removal and pest control, is generally modeled after the New York Department of Health’s Migrant Farmworker Housing regulations,” Burns wrote. “Staff from the New York Department of Health and New York Department of Labor provided significant input in the development and refinement of the proposal.” According to the NYSGC, of the 2,512 beds currently located on racetrack backstretches statewide, 2,261 (90%) are at facilities operated by The New York Racing Association. A separate proposal that advanced to the public commentary stage involves updating safety standards for helmets and vests at Thoroughbred tracks. Most notably, the proposed new rule would increase the maximum weight of the safety vest from two to four pounds “to permit the wearing of newer vest models, which provide enhanced safety,” Burns wrote. In addition, the proposal also expands the requirement to wear a safety helmet to apply to any person mounted on a horse, plus members of the starting gate crew, including the starter and all assistant starters. View the full article