Wandering Eyes

With its history now extending to 35 years, we’ve seen the Breeders’ Cup Classic arguably develop into the supreme test for the American dirt horse, especially when it attracts the crème de la crème of more than one age group. As such, it should also be the perfect testing ground for the next generation of stallions. So has this theory become reality? Of course, the high failure rate among the general population of stallions means that no race can claim to be a highly reliable pointer to stallion success, but the Classic is faring better than most. Inevitably there have been plenty of Classic winners which have faded into oblivion–think of Proud Truth, Ferdinand, Alysheba, Black Tie Affair, Concern, Skip Away and Cat Thief from the early Classic winners. On the plus side, the inaugural winner Wild Again did consistently well in Kentucky, with his GI winners reaching double figures. The 1989 winner Sunday Silence must be classed as the one that got away, but he reshaped the breed in Japan, to the extent that his blood ran through the veins of nearly all of the 18 runners in Sunday’s Mile Championship at Kyoto. Next came Unbridled, whose impact on the Triple Crown events has been considerable, and two years later it was the turn of A.P. Indy, a two-time champion sire who is grandsire of the three-time champion Tapit. There was a six-year wait for the next high-class stallion, in the form of Awesome Again, who numbered Ghostzapper, another winner of the Classic, among his four GI Breeders’ Cup winners. Needless to say, Ghostzapper has replicated his sire’s success at Adena Springs, where he will stand the 2019 season at $85,000. The dual Classic winner Tiznow has also been a prolific sire of GI winners, while the 2007 winner Curlin is now priced at $175,000, after giving us sons of the calibre of Palace Malice, Exaggerator, Good Magic, Keen Ice and Connect. The Classic’s roll of honor also features a couple of winners who, with better luck, might have made a similar impact. Saint Liam, the 2005 winner, left fewer than 100 foals, but one of them was the Horse of the Year-winning filly Havre de Grace. And who knows what the great Cigar might have achieved had he not been completely infertile. It is fair enough to expect some of the recent Classic winners, such as American Pharoah, Arrogate and Gun Runner, to follow in these top stallions’ footsteps, but I will admit that I wasn’t too sure about the prospects of 2013’s winner, Mucho Macho Man, when he joined the Adena Springs team in 2015, at a fee of only $15,000. Certainly he’d had a colorful career, but he had had to share the attention with his trainer and rider. Trainer Kathy Ritvo’s well-known story told how she became the first female trainer to win the Breeders’ Cup Classic, even though she had previously undergone heart-transplant surgery. And rider Gary Stevens was 50 years old and making a comeback when he managed to keep Mucho Macho Man’s nose just in front of Will Take Charge and Declaration of War in a thrilling finish at Santa Anita. Any recap of Mucho Macho Man’s career must start, as Julie Andrews would say, at the very beginning, a very good place to start. Bred by John D. and Carole A. Rio in Florida, the son of Macho Uno wasn’t born until June 15, 2008. Over the years I have noticed that American breeders seem less averse to a late foal than their European counterparts, perhaps because the racing season continues through the winter, whereas the Anglo-Irish season used to take a winter break of more than four months prior to the advent of all-weather tracks. Whatever the reason, quite a few colts have won the GI Belmont S. not long after their actual third birthday, good examples in recent decades being Touch Gold (May 26), Victory Gallop (May 30), Lemon Drop Kid (May 26), Birdstone (May 16), Afleet Alex (May 9) and Palace Malice (May2). Mucho Macho Man, though, was born more than two weeks later than any of these. Bearing in mind that he now stands 16.3 hands and is a tall and leggy individual, one could be forgiven for thinking that Mucho Macho Man had every right to be physically backward as a youngster. Perhaps it is relevant that his sire Macho Uno had been a champion at two, when he landed the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile, and that Mucho Macho Man’s sire Ponche de Leona had won four of her six juvenile starts, including the Anoakia S. at Santa Anita. With their input, the 2-year-old Mucho Macho Man proved much more forward than could reasonably have been expected. Mucho Macho Man made his debut over six furlongs at Calder on July 17, when just a month past his actual second birthday, and showed plenty of promise in finishing a length second to the subsequent GIII winner Gourmet Dinner. Two months later, on his third start, he won decisively over an extended mile at Monmouth to earn a shot at Graded company. He progressed again to chase home To Honor And Serve in a pair of GIIs at Aqueduct, notably running him to two lengths in the Remsen S. Those efforts earned him a weight of 115 on the Experimental Free Handicap, which had to be considered an excellent achievement for a colt born as late as June 15. There was every chance that Mucho Macho Man would continue to improve long after some of the more mature members of his year group had shown the full extent of their abilities. He duly won the GII Risen Star S. on his second sophomore start, followed by a third in the GII Louisiana Derby, to earn a shot at the Kentucky Derby, I may be laboring the point when I mention that he was still 39 days short of his actual third birthday when he ran on to take third place at Churchill Downs, beaten by the March-foaled Animal Kingdom and February-foaled Nehro. Maybe this was asking too much too soon of Mucho Macho Man, as he didn’t run nearly so well in either the Preakness or the Belmont, but he returned refreshed after 151 days off to round off his three-year-old campaign with a smart win over a mile at Aqueduct. Predictably his next two years on the track proved much more rewarding, with his highlights at four featuring GII wins in the Gulfstream Park H. and Suburban H. and a very creditable second in the Breeders’ Cup Classic. The five-year-old Mucho Macho Man won the GI Awesome Again S. in addition to his success in the Classic, but he managed just two starts at six, when he recorded his second win in the Florida Sunshine Millions Classic. By July, his retirement had been announced, with Kathy Ritvo explaining that he was showing some signs of minor wear and tear and that he was being retired because he had nothing more to prove. It was appropriate that he retired to Adena Springs, which also stands Macho Uno and Macho Uno’s half-brother Awesome Again. It seems that I wasn’t the only one unsure about Mucho Macho Man’s prospects as a stallion. He attracted 99 mares in his first season, for around 70 foals, but his book was down to 72 mares in his second season and then to only 35 in 2017, even though his fee had been reduced to $10,000. Fortunately, his popularity revived earlier this year, when he covered 96 mares. This revival no doubt owed a lot to the 2018 2-year-old sales, which showed Mucho Macho Man’s progeny in a new light. Mucho Macho Man was arguably at his most impressive when on the move, with his long stride, and his breeze-up horses were also impressive, selling for such good prices as $625,000 and $575,000, for an average of over $170,000. Now several of his youngsters have shown that they have inherited plenty of his talent, including those two high-priced colts. Each of them was named a ‘TDN Rising Star’ after making a successful debut, the $625,000 Mucho Gusto at Los Alamitos and the $575,000 Fortin Hill at Belmont. Incidentally, these two colts were also born quite late, Mucho Gusto’s birthday being Apr. 26 and Fortin Hil’s May 2. Mucho Gusto has become his first Graded stakes winner, with his success in the GIII Bob Hope S. over seven furlongs at Del Mar. Mucho Macho Man’s daughter Belle Laura has also run creditably at Graded level, finishing third in the GII Jessamine S. prior to her seventh in the GI Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf. There can be little doubt that Mucho Gusto–a late-April foal– will eventually stay a mile and a quarter, as his first two dams are daughters of Giant’s Causeway and Seeking the Gold, two stallions who finished a close second in the Breeders’ Cup Classic. The second dam, Countervail, was a half-sister to Canadian Horse of the Year Peaks And Valleys, a dual GI winner over a mile and an eighth despite being a son of the sprinter Mt Livermore. View the full article

Oaklawn Racing and Gaming announced Monday plans to build an expansion project in excess of $100 million that includes the construction of a high-rise hotel, multi-purpose event center, a larger gaming area, and additional on-site parking. The project, targeted for completion in January 2020 for the gaming expansion and late 2020 for the hotel and event center, is one of the largest hospitality investments in the history of Arkansas. “This historic announcement represents a new chapter in the rich 114-year history of Oaklawn,” said Louis Cella, president of Oaklawn Jockey Club. “As we enhance the entertainment experience for our customers, we will also further elevate thoroughbred racing and help make Arkansas and Hot Springs even stronger regional tourism destinations.” The yet-to-be-named hotel will be seven stories with 200 rooms, including two presidential suites. Amenities will include an outdoor swimming pool, a luxury spa, fitness center and restaurant. “The hotel will offer a unique vantage point for our patrons in that it will overlook the track. Imagine the spectacular view as the horses are heading down the stretch,” said Cella. “Our goal is to achieve 4-star status.” Adjacent to the hotel will be a 14,000 square-foot multi-purpose events center that will accommodate up to 1,500 people for various events such as concerts, meetings, banquets and weddings. The project also includes the addition of approximately 28,000 square feet of gaming space and significantly expanded parking. Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson lauded the expansion. “The state of Arkansas is grateful to Louis and his family for their commitment to growing their business right here at home,” said Gov. Hutchinson. “This project, which will be financed exclusively with private funds, not only represents one of, if not the largest, tourism-related expansion projects in our history, it will also rank among the state’s largest economic development projects in 2019.” Construction on the project will begin in May immediately following completion of the 2019 racing season, which runs from Jan. 25 to May 4. “The Cellas helped found Oaklawn in the early 1900’s,” said Wayne Smith, general manager of Oaklawn. “As they have for more than a century, the family continues to make significant investments in Arkansas. This will be the third major project at Oaklawn since 2008.” View the full article

Into its second year under a new format, the Goffs November Foal Sale got off to a lukewarm start on Monday. The opening few lots suggested we could be in for a vibrant day of business but trade soon became patchy throughout the session with the clearance rate being the principal casualty. 145 or 59% of foals offered changing hands paints a picture of a highly selective buying bench and that scenario naturally contributed to a reduced aggregate of €2,685,000, down significantly on last year’s figure of just over €4 million. Both the average and median also dipped a few points on last year to €18,517 and €15,000, respectively, however there were positives to take from proceedings. The top price paid on the corresponding day last year was €85,000 for a son of No Nay Never and it was the same Coolmore stallion, off the back of a fantastic first season with his progeny on the track, that provided Monday’s top-priced foal which sold for €125,000. Offered by Kilmore Stud on behalf of breeder Audrey F. Thompson as lot 157, the April-born colt is out of Celestial Dream (Ire) (Oasis Dream {GB}), who has a perfect breeding record to date being the dam of five winners from five runners. Bidding on the colt was frenetic and it soon boiled down to what appeared to be a match between Ciaran ‘Flash’ Conroy and Tony O’Callaghan. The foal seemed destined for Tally-Ho Stud when Conroy shook his head after O’Callaghan bid €120,000 only for Brendan Morrin of Pier House Stud to play his hand late with a bid of €125,000. That was enough to see the hammer fall in favour of Morrin and the grandson of Lochangel (GB) (Night Shift) may well be back in this ring next autumn. “We thought he was the standout colt here today, the stallion has made a fantastic start and this foal has a lot going for him,” said Brendan Morrin, who was accompanied by his brother Ger. “He will be offered for sale as a yearling, probably back here at the Orby Sale.” Tally-Ho stud had earlier made the first of no doubt multiple purchases this week when snapping up lot 73, a filly by Footstepsinthesand (GB) offered by Hill House for €62,000. The filly’s appeal was bolstered by the exploits this year of her 2-year-old half-brother Inverleigh (Ire) (Excelebration {Ire}). The Ger Lyons-trained colt backed up an impressive debut success at Leopardstown in August with two solid stakes placings and he remains a smart prospect for next year. The O’Callaghans later added a Kodiac (GB) filly, lot 182 to their squad for €58,000. The bay was offered by Milltown House Stud out of the ex-Godolphin mare Escapism (Ire) (Iffraaj {GB}), whose first yearling, a full-brother to this filly, made 80,000gns at Tattersalls last month. Rathbarry Stud have certainly gotten behind their young stallion Kodi Bear (Ire) and the farm’s Paul Cashman won the battle for the first colt offered in the sale by the first-crop stallion son of Kodiac (GB). Cashman was pushed to €66,000 to secure lot 130 from Awbeg Stud after which he indicated he would hopefully be back for resale next year. “He is very like his father, a real active type with a great step and a lovely temperament,” Cashman said. “We will aim to offer him as a yearling, perhaps back here next September. He came from a very good farm in Awbeg Stud and he is just a real good sort of foal with a lot of presence.” Another first-crop stallion to make a decent start was Bucklands Farm & Stud resident Pearl Secret (GB) whose first offering, lot 227, was knocked down to Tally-Ho for €40,000 while a filly (lot 180) from the first crop of Darley’s The Last Lion (Ire) sold to Luke Barry of Manister House Stud for the same price. Elsewhere foals by Cheveley Park Stud’s Twilight Son (GB) and Whitsbury Manor Stud’s Adaay (Ire) were also well received with their early produce into the ring making €33,000 (lot 215) and €31,000 (lot 127), respectively. Ballylinch Stud have transferred Lawman (Fr) to stand at Haras de Grandcamp alongside his former stallion colleague Dream Ahead and it was a Lawman filly offered by Ballylinch Stud as lot 46 that made the early running in the sale. The March-born foal is the first produce out of Royal Razalma (Ire) (Lope De Vega {Ire}) who won the G3 Dubai Cornwallis S. when trained by Jonathan Portman and it was Eddie O’Leary’s Lynn Lodge Stud who signed the docket at €40,000. O’Leary added a Fast Company (Ire) colt to his haul not long after when buying lot 66 for €36,000. It wasn’t a huge surprise O’Leary purchased the Oghill House Stud-consigned son of Shama’s Song (Ire) (Teofilo {Ire}), as Lynn Lodge Stud had sold her yearling colt by Night Of Thunder (Ire) for €105,000 at the Orby Sale here last month having pinhooked him for €40,000 in the same ring 11 months previously. Harry Sweeney of the Japan-based Paca Paca Farm made the trip back over to his native Ireland worthwhile when securing a pair of foals including a Zoffany (Ire) colt, lot 161, from Moorpark Stud that cost €50,000. A filly by Starspangledbanner (Aus) caught the eye of Grove Stud’s Brendan Holland as lot 115. The filly eventually went Holland’s way after a successful bid of €42,000 and the filly was offered by Collegelands out of Zain Art (Ire) (Excellent Art {GB}), who is a half-sister to multiple stakes winner Battalion (Ire) (Authorized {Ire}). The €50,000 mark was also reached later in the session when a son of Teofilo (Ire) from Glacken View (lot 241) was purchased by Stroud Coleman. Ten lots from the end, Joe Foley went to €55,000 to secure lot 266, a daughter of his stallion Dandy Man (Ire) consigned by Galbertstown Stud. Action resumes at 10 a.m. local time on Tuesday when trade is expected to crank up a notch. View the full article

The Fair Hill Thoroughbred Show awarded more than $20,000 to beneficiaries and $2,000 in scholarships to individuals this year. Beneficiaries included Ryerss Farm for Aged Equines, the Retired Racehorse Project, the Foxie G Foundation and the MidAtlantic Horse Rescue. Scholarships of $500 were awarded to Kaitlyn Nicely-Harvey of Woodbine, Md., Alison Chubb of Unionville, Pa., Regina Salzer of Washington Crossing, Pa. and Kim Nevitt of Southhampton, Pa. based on submitted essays from young people who have taken on the challenge of retraining and providing homes to horses. “The Fair Hill Thoroughbred Show was founded to encourage the re-homing and retraining of off-the-track Thoroughbreds,” said Lisa Demars, President of the FHTHS. “The prize money is meant to reward the people who are dedicated to the welfare of these wonderful horses.” View the full article

The National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame’s Foal Patrol, a one-of-a-kind collection of live cameras following the daily activities of in-foal mares, will return for season two in late December after a successful inaugural run. LNJ Foxwoods’s With Honors (War Front) will headline the roster of featured horses for the season, which will debut online at foalpatrol.com. A granddaughter of champion Dreaming of Anna, the bay captured the Del Mar Juvenile Fillies Turf S. in the summer of 2016 and was runner-up in that fall’s GI Chandelier S. at Santa Anita before closing her career with a third in the GIII Jimmy Durante S. back at Del Mar. With Honors is in foal to Tapit with an estimated foaling date of Feb. 25, 2019. Three Chimneys Farm’s Love and Pride (A.P. Indy), Old Tavern Farm’s Comme Chez Soi (Empire Maker) and Edition Farm’s Hot City Girl (City Zip) will also be featured, and four more horses will be announced weekly during the next month. The first season of Foal Patrol had more than 1.6 million views from December 2017 through September 2018. View the full article

With Arkansas voters earlier this month approving a full casino at Oaklawn Park and three other locations in the state, the track will waste no time in upgrading its facility. View the full article

The connections of Enable (GB) (Nathaniel {Ire}) have announced the two-time G1 Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe heroine will remain in training in 2019 with a defense of her Arc title her main goal. The Juddmonte homebred would become the first three-time winner of the ParisLongchamp showpiece. Successful in the GI Breeders’ Cup Turf at Churchill Downs after her second Arc title was safely in the bag, the 4-year-old raced only three times in 2018, after sustaining a training setback in early May. The bay returned to the races with a facile score over Kempton’s all-weather in the G3 September S. prior to her Arc heroics. “I think Prince Khalid wanted time to reflect on the Arc and Breeders’ Cup and time to enjoy it before he started to think about the following year,” said Prince Khalid Abdullah’s racing manager Lord Teddy Grimthorpe. “Obviously it was important that she was in good shape when she came back. She checked out really well, so from that point of view it gave us the encouragement to go on.” As it stands, Enable is one of eight dual winners of the Arc in its illustrious 98-year history, and Grimthorpe is under no illusions about what a third triumph would represent for the John Gosden-trained filly. He added, “A third Arc would certainly be a challenge to say the very least, but that’s what racing is all about–taking these challenges. I think if we’d had a full year this year, it would be hard to say what might have happened, but she only had one race as a 2-year-old, a full season at three and then just three runs this year, so there are not too many miles on the clock. She still enjoys her racing, so she will be given her chance to make a bit of history.” Enable’s campaign will be geared around another trip to France next October–but Grimthorpe underlined the team are not mapping out her route back to Paris just yet. He said, “Obviously the main mile-and-a-quarter and mile-and-a-half races would be what we are looking at, but the Arc remains her primary target.” Regular rider Frankie Dettori told the Daily Mirror, “It’s made my day. She showed what an incredible filly she is this year–the horse of a lifetime. It’s easy for horses to show their best when everything is going for them, but she had to miss most of the season with injury and to come back and do what she did was very special.” View the full article

Online voting is now open for the ninth annual winner of the Secretariat Vox Populi Award. Created by Secretariat’s late owner Penny Chenery, the Vox Populi, or “Voice of the People,” Award recognizes the racehorse whose popularity and racing excellence best resounded with the public and gained recognition for the sport during the past year. This year’s star-studded nominees span the globe: GI Breeders’ Cup Classic hero Accelerate (Lookin At Lucky), G1 Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe and GI Breeders’ Cup Turf heroine Enable (Nathaniel {Ire}), Triple Crown winner Justify (Scat Daddy), GI Breeders’ Cup Distaff winner and presumptive 3-year-old filly champion Monomoy Girl (Tapizar) and Australian superstar Winx (Street Cry {Ire}). “We are thrilled to present such a fine field of nominees. Their talent and competitive spirit have excited fans both here in the U.S. and abroad,” said Kate Chenery Tweedy, daughter of Mrs. Chenery. “Mom loved a good matchup, and she would have been delighted with nominees who have turned in such remarkable performances and achieved such a broad range of successes at the highest levels of racing.” Inaugurated in 2010 with Zenyatta as the winner, the Vox Populi has been handed out to stars like American Pharoah and California Chrome and last year was bestowed on hard-knocking turf sprinter Ben’s Cat. Fans can vote in the online poll, which can be found at Secretariat.com. Voters also have the option to write in a racehorse of their choice. The poll is open through Nov. 30, and a public presentation to the 2018 Vox Populi winner is planned for Jan. 12, 2019 at Santa Anita. 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. Tuesday’s Insights features a pair of Kitten’s Joy colts for Shadwell. 3.10 Lingfield, Cond, £5,800, 2yo, 8f 1y (AWT) Sheikh Hamdan bin Rashid Al Maktoum’s $450,000 Keeneland September yearling DAWAAM (Kitten’s Joy) is kin to this term’s GIII Indiana Oaks runner-up Figarella’s Queen (Medaglia d’Oro) out of GI American Oaks dead-heater Nereid (Rock Hard Ten). Rivals of the Owen Burrows trainee include fellow Shadwell newcomer Khuzaam (Kitten’s Joy), who is out of a winning half-sister to three top-level performers headed by G1 1000 Guineas and G1 Coronation S. heroine Ghanaati (Giant’s Causeway), representing Roger Varian; and China Horse Club International’s twice-raced Originaire (Ire) (Zoffany {Ire}), who is a half-brother to G3 Anglesey S. victor Final Frontier (Ire) (Dream Ahead) and G3 C L & M F Weld Park S. and GIII Commonwealth Oaks runner-up Lola Beaux (GB) (Equiano {Fr}), from the William Haggas barn. View the full article

Kirsten Rausing has long been hailed as one of Britain’s greatest breeders. From her Lanwades Stud in Newmarket she has sent out countless winners both domestically and internationally and has garnered many stallion careers. With two of her graduates, Time Warp (GB) (Archipenko) and Glorious Forever (GB) (Archipenko), who are also full-brothers, due to compete in the G1 Longines Hong Kong Cup, TDN and GBRI spoke with Kirsten about the brothers as well as the early careers of two of the stallions in her care. TDN: How would you sum up the 2018 season for Lanwades? Kirsten Rausing: We’ve had a good year so far, we have bred 107 winners. That is to say the winners of 107 races across the world, including of course, two group races in Hong Kong. Those were both courtesy of Time Warp. And we hope, maybe, that his brother Glorious Forever can add to that. One always aspires to something better and higher every year. People who work with horses will tell you, and everybody else, that it is not an easy game, and because you have success one year doesn’t necessarily mean you can extrapolate that in the future. Things happen with horses. One tries one’s best to identify risks and take measures to avoid same risks. That is what stud management is about. TDN: Their family has been one that you have long been associated with. Can you tell us how you came to breed Time Warp and Glorious Forever? KR: I’ve been associated with this family since 1976, and I have owned the two brothers’ fourth dam since circa 1990. She was very kind to me. She repaid me by giving me four filly foals in four years, and one of them was the third dam of Time Warp and Glorious Forever. Another branch of this family has also given me Madame Chiang (GB) (Archipenko) who is, of course, a Group 1 winner. TDN: What do you think of the Hong Kong racing industry? KR: I think racing in Hong Kong, certainly the top layer of racing in Hong Kong, is recognized the world over as being absolute top class and anyone who can breed a winner of a group race in Hong Kong has every right to be proud of such an achievement. So, I am delighted to have bred these two good horses, the full brothers. {"id":3,"instanceName":"Articles No Playlist","videos":[{"videoType":"HTML5","title":"Q and A With Kirsten Rausing","description":"","info":"","thumbImg":"http://www.thoroughbreddailynews.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/KR-Thumb.jpg","mp4":"https://player.vimeo.com/external/301558390.sd.mp4?s=e6b98effd41acf6cb36c1781eeaa4463efce0ca7&profile_id=165","enable_mp4_download":"no","prerollAD":"yes","prerollGotoLink":"prerollGotoLink","preroll_mp4_title":"preroll_mp4_title","preroll_mp4":"https://player.vimeo.com/external/300270047.sd.mp4?s=9704e842c0d121b98b279c15d8d24835ef4929fe&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: Sea The Moon (Ger) (Sea The Stars {Ire}) has made an impressive start to his stallion career. Tell us about his achievements this year. KR: See the Moon won the German Derby by an astonishing 11 lengths and was favorite for the [G1] Arc de Triomphe that Treve (Fr) (Motivator {GB}) eventually won. Unfortunately, he injured a knee when pulling up after having won the Derby. I was very, very fortunate that his owner/breeders Gestut Gorlsdorf allowed us to purchase part of him and he was later syndicated, and he is now here for the last four or five years. His first crop are of course 2-year-olds of this year and I think it’s fair to say that he has exceeded most people’s expectations in a major way. He has, so far, sired 16 individual winners of 21 races, including two Group 3 races and another four black-type performers, including a Group 2 second in Italy. He is quite astonishing in producing all these 2-year-old winners, because many of them are from mares that went a mile-and-a-half themselves and would not necessarily be expected to produce 2-year-old winners. TDN: Were you expecting him to make such a good start? KR: Well I was certainly expecting him to have a good crop of 2-year-old winners, but I think it is fair to say he’s done better than even I expected. Of course, I, together with his breeders, Gestut Gorlsdorf, we are probably his very biggest fans of all, but he has certainly made a tremendous impact. I think the breeding industry, certainly of Europe, has taken note of his incredible impact this year. TDN: Another young sire in your care is Bobby’s Kitten (Kitten’s Joy). What made you want to stand him? KR: Bobby’s Kitten is an interesting horse, and I hope the industry will share my belief and optimism in him. I was fascinated by the development of Kitten’s Joy, how Mr. and Mrs. Ramsey of Ramsey Farms had, in effect, made Kitten’s Joy through their own efforts. And so Kitten’s Joy has now of course realized the very height of his career, particularly this year with Roaring Lion and others. Bobby’s Kitten was really a miler, a specialist miler who could also sprint, and the only time he ran over six furlongs, 1200 metres, was in fact, in the Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint. He came from nowhere, from last in the field, to beat none other than No Nay Never (Scat Daddy), which seems pretty pertinent in these days. I’ve had some good support for Bobby’s Kitten from, in particular, Irish mare owners and some French mare-owners as well, so the horse has been fully booked his first two years. He’s got some very nice foals on the ground, and of course mares in foal. TDN: You mentioned he has first foals on the ground and a few of them are going to the sales. What should we expect to see from these foals? KR: There are four of his foals at Goffs November Sale and 25 of his foals are at Tattersalls. I haven’t seen all of them, but I have to say those that I have seen are very nice, racy individuals with particularly good athletic walks. They are pretty correct and they seem to have very nice, cooperative temperament, as does he himself. I have two very nice Bobby’s Kitten colts and I hope that the market will like them as much as I do. View the full article

Johnnie Jamison has been hired as track superintendent, Canterbury Park racing officials announced today. View the full article

Addressing your thoughts, questions and statements about Hong Kong racing. Have something to say? Send a tweet to @SCMPRacingPost Harmony Victory an unlikely winner until the final three strides. He was idling most of the way. Fourth from last and hemmed in. Boy, he’s desperate – @myles23thomas Danny Shum Chap-shing looks to have a strong hand for the 2019 Hong Kong Derby if Sunday’s Class Two BOC Life Handicap (1,800m) is anything to go by. Not only did Shum saddle up the... View the full article

Chad Schofield knows it is do or die on Wednesday night if he wants to compete in his first International Jockeys’ Championship next month. The 24-year-old has worked hard to establish himself in Hong Kong with three seasons already under his belt, but he would love to put himself in the hunt for IJC riches this year after missing out in previous years. With Wednesday night’s meeting at Happy Valley the cut-off date for qualification, Schofield needs one winner to put himself level... View the full article

Joao Moreira’s decision to leave Hong Kong for Japan in July was heavily scrutinised and just as many are analysing his return, but for the man himself and his family it’s pretty simple. After failing to obtain a full-time Japan Racing Association licence, the Magic Man signed a six-month contract to ride as John Size’s stable jockey starting on December 9 and plans on staying in Hong Kong beyond the expiry of that deal on June 9. “My family is very happy to be coming... View the full article

16:30 Kempton Arch My Boy won by eight lengths at Nottingham last month and a similar run today could see him tough to beat, although there is no guarantee that he will prove as effective on this surface or over this shorter trip so for these reasons I would be happy to look elsewhere. Quicksand was third to Lah Ti Dar on racecourse debut and was a course and distance winner when last seen in September. After only two runs he is open to further improvement and is capable of making his presence felt. Silver River won well over course and distance last time out, stepping up from his debut third to justify favouritism and win by just over a length. Another open to further improvement, he is unlikely to be too far away. Confederate was only sixth on debut, finishing six lengths behind Silver River, but made up a fair bit of ground in the final couple of furlongs and would have learnt a lot from that performance. James Doyle has a great record at the course and a 30% winning strike rate when riding for the trainer so his booking could make the difference. Confederate (WIN) Hereford 12:45 – Shows Over (WIN) 13:15 – Giving Glances (WIN) 13:45 – Embole (WIN) 14:15 – Commander Miller (WIN) 14:45 – Zoffany Bay (WIN) 15:20 – Love The Leader (WIN) 15:50 – Dancingwith Storms (WIN) Kempton 16:00 – Invincibella (E/W) 16:30 – Confederate (WIN) 17:00 – Highlight Reel (WIN) 17:30 – Bredon (E/W) 18:00 – Magellan (E/W) 18:30 – Sunblazer (WIN)* 19:00 – Black Isle Boy (WIN) Plumpton 12:30 – Commanche Red (WIN) 13:00 – Chosen Path (WIN) 13:30 – Kristal Hart (WIN) 14:00 – Winter Spice (WIN) 14:30 – Mr Raj (WIN) 15:05 – Bermeo (WIN) 15:35 – Lamh Ar Lamh (WIN) The post Picks From The Paddock Best Bet – Monday 19th November appeared first on RaceBets Blog EN. View the full article

Grade 1-winning owner/breeder and Broadway producer Jerry Frankel died Nov. 17, according to the Hollywood Reporter. View the full article

The vintage Solid Wager made an appearance Nov. 18 at Del Mar in the $100,000 Cary Grant Stakes. View the full article

Brad Cox was pretty anxious to get his 1,000th victory, but the two-time defending leading trainer at Fair Grounds Race Course & Slots finally reached that milestone in the fifth race Nov. 18 in New Orleans with Play On. View the full article

Powell suspended for two months View the full article

Early scratchings November 20 View the full article

Jockey and apprentice jockey licences for 2019 Singapore racing season View the full article

Zaki, Shafrizal suspended View the full article

LeRoy Neiman’s Black Lab topped a lively session of bidding at the sixth annual Sporting Art Auction, a collaboration between Keeneland and the Cross Gate Gallery of Lexington, Sunday at Keeneland. The print sold for $149,500, contributing to a total of $2,046,540 in gross sales at the auction. Among the highlights of the auction was the sale of items belonging to Triple Crown winners American Pharoah (Pioneerof the Nile) and Justify (Scat Daddy) that raised $67,850 in support of the Ann Hanley Parkinson’s Research Fund. A halter worn by 2018 Triple Crown winner Justify sold for $31,050. Horseshoes worn by Justify and 2015 Triple Crown winner American Pharoah, framed with two Sports Illustrated magazines featuring both horses and signed by Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert and Triple Crown-winning jockeys Mike Smith and Victor Espinoza, brought $36,800. Baffert donated both items. An oil on canvas painting of Jane Fowler Bassett foxhunting in the Maryland countryside, signed and dated by American artist Franklin Brooke Voss, fetched $97,750 to be the afternoon’s second-highest-priced piece. British artist John Sargent Noble’s Passion and Patience, an oil on canvas signed and dated 1863, brought $63,250. Keeneland’s portion of proceeds from the auction, which featured 177 lots representing fine sporting art, will benefit its non-profit initiatives. View the full article

Ivan Dalos' Avie's Flatter delivered the biggest win of his career Nov. 18 when he outkicked his competition to take the $225,000 Coronation Futurity over 1 1/8 miles on the all-weather track. View the full article

Francis Paolangeli's homebred Gold for the King left his mark on the field of the $125,000 New York Stallion Series Stakes Thunder Rumble Division Nov. 18 at Aqueduct Racetrack, running away to a 9 1/4-length score under jockey Joel Rosario. View the full article