Wandering Eyes

While he's currently on the outside looking in when it comes to the operations of track owner The Stronach Group, the founder of that company, Frank Stronach, outlined April 23 a plan that would protect tracks as a going concern. View the full article

Last year’s G1 St James’s Palace S. winner Without Parole (GB) (Frankel {GB}) is likely to step up to 10 furlongs this season. The 4-year-old was fifth behind Almond Eye (Jpn) (Lord Kanaloa {Jpn}) on his seasonal return in the Mar. 30 G1 Dubai Turf in only his second try beyond a mile. “He is in good form–I think he will go for something like the [G3] Brigadier Gerard at the end of May,” said trainer John Gosden. “I think it all happened a bit quick for him in Dubai, and I think he will be better over a mile and a quarter. He ran well in Dubai, though, and he has come out of that race in great order, which is the main thing.” Gosden also offered an update on multiple Group 2 winner and Group 1-placed mare Coronet (GB) (Dubawi {Ire}), who is back for another season at age five. “She is in good form. We probably won’t go for the [G1 Prix] Ganay and we will probably run her in the [G2] Jockey Club S. at Newmarket at the Guineas meeting.” Acknowledging the fact that the grey has placed in seven Group 1s, Gosden said, “The darling girl needs to win her Group 1. She is a lovely filly and is always there or thereabouts.” View the full article

1st-Chantilly, €25,000, Mdn, 4-22, unraced 3yo, f, 8fT, 1:40.19, g/s. FOUNT (GB) (f, 3, Frankel {GB}–Ventura {MGISW-US, GISW-Can & SW-Eng, $2,580,375}, by Chester House) occupied a forward role in third after the early exchanges of this unveiling. Coming under pressure approaching the quarter-mile marker, the 3-1 second favourite locked horns with Fonthill Abbey (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}) entering the final furlong and was ridden out to deny that rival by a head after a thrilling tussle. Half to the unraced 2-year-old filly Epigram (GB) (Dansili {GB}), the homebred bay becomes the third scorer for GI Just a Game S., GI Santa Monica H., GI Woodbine Mile and GI Matriarch S. heroine Ventura (Chester House), herself out of a MSP half-sister to four stakes winners including G1 Prix Royal-Oak runner-up Erudite (GB) (Generous {Ire}). Lifetime Record: 1-1-0-0, €12,500. Video, sponsored by Fasig-Tipton. 1ST-TIME STARTER. O-Khalid Abdullah; B-Juddmonte Farms Ltd (GB); T-Andre Fabre. View the full article

Last out G3 1000 Guineas Trial S. winner Lady Kaya (Ire) (Dandy Man {Ire}) is one of 24 fillies remaining for the May 5 G1 Qipco 1000 Guineas after the latest scratching stage. The filly who was unsold at €12,000 as a yearling at Tattersalls Ireland and now races in the silks of Joanne Lavery will be the first Classic starter for the owner’s aunt, trainer Sheila Lavery. “Lady Kaya came out of her Leopardstown race very well, I am very happy with her, and she now heads to Newmarket,” the trainer said. “She will be my first runner in a Classic and I’m just trying to get her there in one piece and trying not to think about it too much–if I do it makes me feel physically ill. “I like being the underdog and I think she is a wonderful story for racing. She was very inexpensive and it shows that there is a dream out there for everyone–everyone can buy the dream and for Joanne it has come true.” Lady Kaya has prior experience over the Rowley Mile, having finished sixth, beaten 2 1/2 lengths, in the G1 Cheveley Park S. in September. “I have taken advice from a number of people, including Pat Smullen, and we think that going over to England is the best option for her,” Lavery continued. “One of the reasons why we have chosen to send her to Newmarket is that we know she handles the track, having run on it in the Cheveley Park S. She only finished sixth that day but that was not her true form; it came too soon for her, less than two weeks after the Moyglare, and she ran flat. “I think Lady Kaya was fairly straight for her Leopardstown win, as she is naturally very fit, but I certainly hadn’t gunned her at home. Guineas Day will without doubt be the biggest moment of my training career and, without sounding big-headed, I have never been one to be scared by the opposition, as you just never know.” That opposition could include Lady Kaya’s prior Group 1 conquerors Skitter Scatter (Scat Daddy) and Fairyland (Ire) (Kodiac {GB}), who remain among the entries. With Too Darn Hot (GB) (Dubawi {Ire}) out and Persian King (Ire) (Kingman {GB}) on the fence, Fairyland’s stablemate Ten Sovereigns (Ire) (No Nay Never) heads the market for the G1 Qipco 2000 Guineas on May 4, and he is one of 30 still eligible. He could be joined by another stablemate in the G1 Vertem Futurity Trophy winner Magna Grecia (Ire) (Invincible Spirit {Ire}), while the first four home in the G3 Craven S. and the G3 Greenham S. winner Mohaather (GB) (Showcasing {GB}) also remain engaged. Advertise (GB) (Showcasing {GB}) and Calyx (GB) (Kingman {GB}) both provide plenty of intrigue having not yet raced this season. View the full article

During an evening that was as high in drama as it was short on specifics, Frank Stronach laid out Tuesday a broad pathway for what he said would help ensure the long-term survival of the sport: that his racetrack assets are placed into a trust controlled by industry stakeholders, like the trainers, owners, jockeys, breeders, and racetrack management. “I’ve said numerous times in public that I want to put the racetracks in a trust,” said Stronach, before an estimated 200-plus people–predominantly owners, trainers, and other industry figures–who were crammed into an austere conference room, deep in the heart of the Embassy Suites Hotel, Arcadia, in the shadow of Santa Anita racetrack. “What does that mean? It would mean they could never be developed,” Stronach said. “Yes, we could build some hotels, we could build some condos. But not so it impedes the racing. It should complement the racing.” Stronach acknowledged the one big stumbling-block to seeing his vision brought to life, however: that he and other members of his family are currently embroiled in a bitter legal tussle with his daughter, Belinda Stronach, who currently controls these assets. In October of last year, Frank Stronach dropped a bombshell lawsuit alleging that his daughter, Belinda, the current chairman and president of The Stronach Group (TSG) and the person he appointed to run his empire, has mismanaged the family’s chief assets and trust funds, and has strong-armed control of the business from her father. The suit seeks to remove Belinda from all corporate officer and trustee positions related to TSG, and demands $540-million (CDN) in compensation and damages. In January of this year, Belinda responded with a statement of defense and countersuit, alleging that her father’s erratic behavior and ill-advised “passion projects” have cost the family some $850-million (CDN), “with hundreds of millions of this amount likely being irretrievably lost.” “I was shut out of the process the last two years. But I thought I should come out here and speak to the people,” said Stronach Tuesday evening, one of a number of times he appeared visibly upset and frustrated with the current status quo regarding control of The Stronach Group’s (TSG) numerous assets. “I’m really the rightful owner. Presently, those are not the rightful owners.” Stronach announced the Tuesday meeting in an open letter in Sunday’s LA Times, catching the industry off-guard, including the TSG itself, which was quick to distance itself from the event. Tiffani Steer, the company’s vice president of communications, wrote, “the host of the proposed meeting has no involvement with or oversight of any of our tracks and does not speak on behalf of TSG or Santa Anita Park.” Interestingly, over the past seven weeks during which time seismic changes have ruptured the industry in the Golden State, Stronach has been a largely absent figure, at least publicly. Stronach made amends for that Tuesday, holding court at the front of the conference room, flanked on one side by owner William Deburgh, and on the other by Ron Finley, the self-professed “gangsta gardener,” who has brought urban gardening to deprived inner-city areas, including neighborhoods around the Stronach-owned Pimlico racetrack. In sometimes rambling fashion, Stronach interwove jokes and anecdotes and pointed criticism, the latter of which was aimed squarely at the feet of the current Stronach Group management. Indeed, when asked at one point by a member of the audience what he would specifically do to reduce catastrophic breakdowns, Stronach quipped, “hire new management.” Stronach spent the first portion of the evening laying the foundations for why he believes a shareholder-controlled trust is the best way of ensuring the industry’s longevity, using as an example the “corporate constitution” he first employed in his own company years ago. “A corporate constitution, its foremost principle was what we do with the profits,” he said. “Twenty percent goes to the shareholders, 10% to the workers, 7% goes to research, because research is the foundation. A company that doesn’t do research, it won’t be there in the future. And 2% goes to charity. The great thing, the company grew and grew and grew.” Nevertheless, Stronach prevaricated when it came to nailing down the specifics of what his proposed trust would look like, and how it would operate. Indeed in that regard, Deburgh offered the clearest outline of a possible plan. “Let’s take for example Santa Anita,” said Deburgh. “The assets that are necessary to operate racing into the future–for example, the grandstand, the racetrack, the training areas, the stabling, the key assets that are essential to horseracing–would be set aside…into a company, an entity, which then would be leased to the horsemen at a rate of return to the Stronach trust of say 4% to 5% yield, or return. That would be for a say, 20-year period, which would keep rolling.” At this point, Stronach interrupted to say that the horsemen would have the right to renew that contract “forever,” and that the basic principles of the arrangement “are laid down” at the beginning. Nevertheless, hovering in conspicuous fashion over the proceedings was the family’s bitter fued, and the lawsuit Stronach is using to try to wrestle back control of the company. When asked about his chances of winning the lawsuit, Stronach replied, “I think I have better than a fighting chance.” Nevertheless, the situation clearly rankles. Repeatedly throughout the evening, Stronach questioned the current TSG management’s motives when it comes to the long-term future of the sport. “Within management, we have forces who do not want to race,” Stronach said. “They want to see the tracks developed. I’m totally against that, and for the past few years, I’ve been outspoken about that.” The last hour of the evening devoted to questions from the audience didn’t bring much clarity either. Gary Hartunian of Rockingham Ranch, owners of the Peter Miller-trained Arms Runner, who was catastrophically injured on the Santa Anita downhill turf course Mar. 31, suggested a temporary boycott of the track. “Why don’t we just shut the track down and you compensate the people that are losing money while we do it?” Hartunian said, to loud disapproving groans throughout the audience. “I mean, he wants to take over, how’s he meant to do it with the conditions of the management in there now?” Hartunian added, in explanation. After the event, some of those present appeared to have conflicted emotions in response what they heard. “It gives you some indication of, when and if the lawsuit is completed one way or the other, as to what the direction is,” said Tim Cohen, of Rancho Temescal and Red Baron’s Barn. “But now would be the time to solidify what that really means. Why waste the time?” Trainer Matthew Chew said that he came in with a lot of questions, and still had a lot of questions afterwards. “I don’t understand the family feud, but it seems like both sides are trying to do the right thing,” he said. “When you talk to her, she’s trying to do the right thing. When you talk to him, he’s trying to do the right thing. It’s confusing being in the middle.” View the full article

Prolific Japanese trainer Mitsuru Hashida and legendary jockey Yutaka Take have combined for countless wins in their homeland but the duo are yet to strike a blow together overseas.The pair is hoping to change that anomaly come Sunday when they take their classy mare Deirdre into the Group One FWD QE II Cup at Sha Tin.Hashida returns to Hong Kong with his five-year-old after running an unlucky second in December’s Group One Hong Kong Cup, which was won by tearaway leader Glorious Forever over… View the full article

The JLT Weanling Walk, organised by the Waikato Branch of the New Zealand Thoroughbred Breeders’ Association will take place this Sunday 28th April. The tour will visit six farms in the Waikato region showcasing up to ten weanlings by first season sires at each property. Tour participants will be able to view weanlings by Preferment, Vadamos, Tivaci, Tarzino, Telperion, and Puccini. “People will be able to see what the progeny of these stallions look like to help them make a decision on wher... View the full article

Westbury Stud have released the fees for their 2019 stallion line-up with Reliable Man and Tarzino heading the roster at $15,000 + GST. Reliable Man has sired several stakes winners over the past twelve months headed by his daughter Sentimental Miss winning the Gr.1 New Zealand Oaks (2400m) and Belle du Nord winning the Gr. 2 Cal Isuzu Stakes (1600m). His season looks far from over with the likes of Grinzinger Star, Nobu and Trusty Lad all aiming at Australian Group One features in the next few ... View the full article

The Richard Collett-trained Mercy Hill is a good chance of making it three successive victories when she contests the Rating 82 Bruce Amies Pharmacy Governor General's Cup (1600m) at Avondale on Thursday. The four-year-old mare has been installed a $2.60 favorite for the Anzac Day assignment and has won her past two starts over a mile at Counties and Avondale respectively. “The way she has won her last couple in that sort of company, she probably looks well-placed,” Collet... View the full article

Lightly raced mare Supera will have her final race of the season in the Gr.2 Travis Stakes (2000m) at the Cambridge Jockey Club’s meeting at Te Rapa on Saturday. The Sir Peter Vela-owned four-year-old kicked off the season with two dominant wins in Rating 72 company before adding a Group Two placing, Group Three win and a Group One second to her race record. “She’s come a long way in a short time,” Ken Kelso, who trains the mare in partnership with his wife Bev and Mark Donog... View the full article

Three generations will again combine when four-year-old gelding Rock On Wood contests Thursday’s Listed Manawatu ITM Anzac Mile (1600m) at Awapuni. The handsome galloper has fashioned a tidy record of four wins from eight starts and has only once finished further back than fourth for Levin trainer Leanne Elliot, who part-owns the son of Redwood with her mother Jill, while her son Ryan, the nation’s leading apprentice jockey, will again be in the saddle. “It is going to be his biggest test... View the full article

OCALA, FL – The Ocala Breeders’ Sales Company’s April 2-Year-Olds In Training Sale opened Tuesday with a steady session and figures largely in line with last year’s opening day of the auction. A colt by Hard Spun (hip 207) attracted the day’s highest price when selling for $430,000 to trainer Timothy Hills, bidding on behalf of owner Patrick Welsh. In all, 148 horses sold Tuesday for a total of $14,243,500. The average of $96,240 ticked up 1.7% from the 2018 figure of $94,667 and the median rose 12.5% to $58,500. With 63 horses failing to sell, the buy-back rate, before the addition of post-sale transactions, stood at 29%. It was 28.1% at the same time in 2018. “The numbers are very similar to last year,” said OBS Director of Sales Tod Wojciechowski. “I think it was a good, solid start. We still have three good days left with a lot of horses left to sell.” Tuesday’s topper was one of three to bring $400,000 or over on the day. The top price at last year’s opening session was $800,000 and there were five over $400,000. Twelve juveniles sold for $250,000 or more Tuesday, compared to 13 a year ago. The April sale has again attracted its typical broad buying bench with plenty of international participation. “I think [the results] demonstrated the international importance of the sale,” Wojciechowski said. “You see buyers from all over, Korea, Japan, the Middle East, as well as domestic buyers. I have been impressed with the wide variety of buyers from all over the world.” The first session of last week’s under-tack preview of the April sale got off to a slow start as the horses battled a heavy headwind. The auction itself got off to a similarly tepid beginning. Ciaran Dunne, whose Wavertree Stables consigned Tuesday’s top-priced colt, saw a correlation. “Whether people want to admit it or not, it’s all about time,” Dunne said. “Maybe at the end of the day, if you go fast and don’t move good, they are not going to buy you. But if you go slow and move good, they sure aren’t going to buy you. It’s understandable, if you’re an agent or a trainer and you’re trying to sell a horse to someone, it’s hard to explain to them why you want to buy one that went in :21 4/5 when there is one down the shedrow who went in :20 1/5. So I would say, those horses [who worked Monday] were at a huge disadvantage.” The sale picked up steam throughout the day and Dunne is expecting that trend to continue throughout the week. “Today was about like we expected,” he said. “Unfortunately for those horses who sold earlier, they had to deal with that headwind on the first day. And with the change in the schedule, I think people got a little behind. People who came in late, almost bypassed the day, with a combination of the times the horses worked and the time they had to do their work. I think the sale is just going to get stronger as it goes. Obviously, we’re seeing a little bit of it now with the horses who breezed the second day and worked quicker. They are starting to sell quicker. So the day was about as expected.” The April sale continues through Friday with sessions beginning daily at 10:30 a.m. Hard Spun Colt Headed for the Jersey Shore A colt by Hard Spun will be heading to Monmouth Park after trainer Timothy Hills purchased the youngster for $430,000 at OBS Tuesday on behalf of longtime client Patrick Welsh. “Patrick Welsh is expanding his stable,” Hills said after signing the ticket on hip 207. “He said, ‘Go buy me some horses and I don’t want to finish second in the bidding.’ I was slowing down, but my wife kept elbowing me to bid one more.” Asked if the advertised high purses at the upcoming Monmouth meet helped him continue bidding, Hills said, “Absolutely. It sure does. Maybe we can justify what we’re paying here.” The juvenile is out of stakes winner Katerbug (Pulpit), a half-sister to stakes winner Outplay (Bernardini) and to Raconteur (A.P. Indy) and from the family of Clear Mandate. He worked a quarter-mile during the second session of the under-tack preview in :21 flat. “He’s very athletic, with a great walk and a great attitude,” Hills said of the youngster’s appeal. Also Tuesday on behalf of Welsh, Hills purchased a colt by Girolamo (hip 135) for $130,000. At the Fasig-Tipton Gulfstream sale, he purchased a colt by Flatter (hip 102) for $350,000. “I’ve trained for him for 20 years and he’s a wonderful guy,” Hills said of Welsh. “He bought one at Miami for $350,000 and he said, ‘Let’s go get some more. I’m going to bump up what I can spend. How can I do that?’ I told him don’t worry, just make the phone call.” Hip 207 was consigned by Ciaran Dunne’s Wavertree Stables and was purchased by Dunne’s Red Wings pinhooking partnership for $105,000 at last year’s Keeneland September sale. “He worked great and he’s a beautiful horse,” Dunne said. “But we didn’t see that [result] coming. It was one of those pleasant surprises for a change.” @JessMartiniTDN Uncle Mo Colt Headed to Japan A colt by Uncle Mo proved to be one of the most popular on day one of the OBS April Sale, selling for $425,000 to Emmanuel de Seroux, who was acting on behalf of Japan’s Katsumi Yoshida. “We liked everything,” said de Seroux, who did his bidding out back, standing along Riki Takahashi. “He was a beautiful horse and a great mover. He has class coming out of his head, he has good bone and has a lot of potential. He is also very good in his mind. We have high hopes for him.” Consigned by Niall Brennan Stables, Hip 169 breezed in :21 4/5 during a breeze show that was affected by a strong head wind. When asked if he thought the slower times brought on by the wind affected prices, de Seroux said, “Yes, which is good for us. We were there and saw it, so we can take it into consideration.” Bred by Flaxman Holdings and Airlie Stud, Hip 169 is out of SP Isobel Baillie (GB) (Lomitas {GB}), who is also the dam of MGSW Isabella Sings (Eskendereya), SW & GSP Alaura Michele (Arch) and SW Tobacco Road (Quality Road). The bay colt RNA’d for $275,000 at Keeneland September. —@CDeBernardisTDN Red Oak & Newtown Anner Partner on Tiznow Colt The Brunetti family’s Red Oak Stable went to $420,000 to secure a well-related son of Tiznow and the colt’s breeder, Newtown Anner Stud, decided to stay in as a partner. “We just loved the colt,” said Red Oak Stable’s racing and operations manager Rick Sacco. “He checked all of our boxes. He breezed great, galloped out great, scoped clean, vetted clean. He was a beautiful individual and a great-moving colt.” “That’s what we were hoping would happen,” said Nick Sallusto, an advisor to Newtown Anner Stud. “He was the kind of horse that revealed himself every step of the way. He came here and breezed the way we hoped he would breeze. He showed himself well all week. He is a really classy horse.” He added, “The Brunetti family and Sacco family have been longtime friends of mine and we are currently involved with them, through another client, in a really nice horse named [GISW] Mind Control (Stay Thirsty). We are looking forward to campaigning the horse with them.” Sallusto and his partner Hanzley Albina purchased Hip 208‘s unraced dam Kateri (Indian Charlie) for $167,000 carrying a foal by Paynter at the 2016 Fasig-Tipton February Sale. She is a half-sister to Grade I winner Tiz Miz Sue (Tiznow) and undefeated Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf Sprint victor Bulletin (City Zip). “We liked the mare,” Sacco said. “They have a Curlin behind it that is a beautiful individual. We are on a lot of horses so we decided to partner up on a few horses that we really liked, the high-end ones.” Consigned by Brick City Thoroughbreds, Hip 208 breezed in :21 2/5. The bay colt RNA’d $275,000 at Keeneland September and $175,000 at the Fasig-Tipton October sale. “For a big horse like himself to breeze that fast at this point in his life is a difficult thing to do and he came out with good energy,” Sallusto said. “He has a really big two-turn pedigree and that is what everyone wanted.” —@CDeBernardisTDN Twirling Candy Filly Trades One Partnership for Another A filly by Twirling Candy, pinhooked by a group of five partners, was purchased for $335,000 by the newly formed racing partnership Belladonna Racing midway through Tuesday’s first session of the OBS April sale. Bloodstock agent David Ingordo signed the ticket on the bay (hip 109) who worked a quarter-mile during the first session of the under-tack show in :21 flat. The juvenile will join the barn of trainer Cherie DeVaux. “She was my pick of the day of the fillies,” Ingordo said. “It’s a whole family we’ve had–my stepfather trained Mr. Commons (Artie Schiller) and I love Twirling Candy. I think he is the next Lane’s End stallion who is going to go up the flagpole. And this is a beautiful filly.” The filly is out of Henley (Corinthian), a half-sister to the John Shirreffs-trained multiple graded stakes winner Mr. Commons and to graded placed Jungle Fighter (Wild Rush). Machmer Hall purchased Henley with this foal in utero for $31,000 at the 2016 Keeneland November sale. Hip 109, co-bred by Machmer Hall and D + J Racing Stable, sold for $62,000 to De Meric Sales at last year’s Keeneland September sale. “[Tristan and Valerie] de Meric had 25%,” Machmer Hall’s Carrie Brodgen said. “They bought her off of us as a yearling and then we partnered her out. I had 12 1/5% and my co-breeder had 12.5%. It’s just split up like that.” Brogden’s partners on the filly also included Gus Schoenborn, Gus King, and Stacy and Joe Amaismeier. “I love shepherding new people into the industry and people who are passionate,” Brogden said. “Two of the five people just started doing the yearling to 2-year-old pinhooking last year.” Henley produced a filly by Exaggerator last year who is expected to head to this year’s Keeneland September sale, according to Brogden. The 2-year-old filly completed her quarter-mile work last Monday during a under-tack session which was hampered by significant head winds and slower times. “It’s confusing, so people are just trying to work through it,” Ingordo said of analyzing workout times from that first session of the breeze show. “We’ve been here a long time and I think by being here, we had a little bit of an advantage. The track was a little fairer to the sellers as time went on. The day these horses breezed wasn’t fair to the sellers. The horses that breezed on that first day and showed talent, like this filly, I think you’ll be hearing about them. I’d say they’ll be high-quality horses.” The filly’s final price tag was just at Ingordo’s limit, he said. “It was the top end of what I was going to go to,” Ingordo said. “She’s for a new partnership, basically all new people in the industry, and that was the top end of our budget. We are going to try to buy five or six like her, but I was a little worried I wasn’t going to get her.” @JessMartiniTDN Roden Hoping Fate Strikes Twice At last year’s OBS June Sale, bloodstock agent Alistair Roden purchased a colt by the late Scat Daddy for $360,000 on behalf of Canadian owner Peter Redekop. The handsome bay, now named Anothertwistafate, is twice graded placed and, while he missed out on making the GI Kentucky Derby field, he is expected to start next in the GI Preakness S. Roden was back in action at OBS Tuesday to secure Anothertwistafate’s half-brother by Hard Spun for $180,000, also for Redekop. “Obviously, the brother has been awful good to us and we have a sentimental attachment,” Roden said after signing the ticket on hip 150. “But this horse is similar to him in a lot of ways. He’s a little immature the way Anothertwistafate was, but I liked what I saw and he’s a good mover. He had a tremendous breeze (:21 4/5) and I think he may move even a little more fluidly than Anothertwistafate.” The colt, out of Imprecation (First Defence), was consigned by Wavertree Stables on behalf of his breeder Pursuit of Success. “I think we got him just about where the consignor was willing to sell him and what we were wanting to pay,” Roden said of the juvenile’s final price tag. Anothertwistafate earned an automatic berth into the Preakness with his win in the El Camino Real Derby. “He might not get into the Derby, but we have the free berth into the Preakness, so it kind of made sense to go that way rather than divvying $50,000 for the Derby just three weeks after we ran [in the GIII Lexington S.]. So I think the Preakness made a little bit more sense.” @JessMartiniTDN View the full article

To See is to believe – Joseph is back View the full article

With two races decided by a nose and one by a neck, the opening four races in this year's Mid-Atlantic Thoroughbred Championships series delivered a memorable opener April 20 at Laurel Park. View the full article

Equine veterinarian Dr. Dionne Benson has been appointed as the Chief Veterinary Officer for The Stronach Group, it was announced Tuesday evening. For the past seven years, Dr. Benson has been the Executive Director and Chief Operating Officer for the Racing Medication and Testing Consortium (RMTC) in Lexington, Ky. “We are thrilled to have Dr. Benson join our team,” said Belinda Stronach, Chairman and President of The Stronach Group. “Dr. Benson has a proven track-record of advocating for the health and safety of racehorses and she is at the forefront of guiding the implementation of racing standards that are grounded in medical science. In this extremely important time of reform and modernization in the Thoroughbred racing industry, Dr. Benson brings both unique expertise and an unparalleled reputation.” The creation of the position of Chief Veterinary Officer, originally titled Director of Equine Welfare, was part of the initial enhanced protocols and procedures plan put forth by The Stronach Group in March. The position will include directing safety and welfare, as well as veterinary research initiatives for all of The Stronach Group facilities across the country including, California’s Santa Anita Park and Golden Gate Fields, Gulfstream Park in South Florida, and Pimlico Race Course and Laurel Park in Maryland. “I am excited to join The Stronach Group in this new role at this important moment in time for the sport of Thoroughbred horse racing in the United States,” said Dr. Dionne Benson. “The organization has demonstrated a clear commitment to prioritizing the health and safety of horses that race at their tracks, and I look forward to continuing to implement world-class practices that reflect medical science while supporting their efforts to drive systemic change throughout the sport nationally.” View the full article

With two races decided by a nose and one by a neck, the opening four races in this year's Mid-Atlantic Thoroughbred Championships series delivered a memorable opener April 20 at Laurel Park. View the full article

With two races being decided by a nose and one by a neck, the opening four races in this year's Mid-Atlantic Thoroughbred Championships series delivered a memorable opener April 20 at Laurel Park. View the full article

Observations on the European Racing Scene turns the spotlight on the best European races of the day, highlighting well-pedigreed horses early in their careers, horses of note returning to action and young runners that achieved notable results in the sales ring. Wednesday’s Insights features a daughter of MGISW Ventura (Chester House). 3.52 Chantilly, Debutantes, €25,000, 3yo, f, 8fT FOUNT (GB) (Frankel {GB}) is the product of two renowned and outstanding Juddmonte celebrities, with the dam Ventura (Chester House) taking four Grade Is in North America. Andre Fabre saddles the bay, who encounters another blueblood in His Highness The Aga Khan’s Rosyea (Fr) (Invincible Spirit {Ire}), an Alain de Royer-Dupre-trained daughter of the G1 Prix Marcel Boussac winner Rosanara (Fr) (Sinndar {Ire}). 5.40 Dundalk, Mdn, €15,000, 2yo, 6f (AWT) FORT MYERS (War Front) bids to make it three-from-three for Ballydoyle with their juveniles in 2019 and is equipped to do so as a son of the operation’s G1 Irish 1000 Guineas heroine Marvellous (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}). The relative of Gleneagles (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) encounters six rivals as he takes to a Polytrack surface which has received much criticism of late. View the full article

Live Thoroughbred racing returns to Belmont Park April 26 for its 48-day spring/summer meet, featuring 59 stakes races worth $18.4 million, and runs through July 7. View the full article

Charlie Appleby is considering bypassing the G1 QIPCO 2000 Guineas with Line Of Duty (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) in favour of an outing in the G2 Al Basti Equiworld Dubai Dante S. on May 16. The Newmarket handler is leaning towards testing the son of Galileo, who spent the winter out in Dubai, over an extended mile and a quarter for the first time in the York contest. After winning his final two starts in Britain last season, Line Of Duty completed a hat-trick on his final outing of the year with victory in the GI Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf at Churchill Downs in November. Appleby said, “The Guineas is shaping up to be quite open, but we are going to do what we feel is right in respect towards the Derby as we always said he was going to be our Derby horse. It is often said the Guineas is the best Derby trial, but this is a horse we saw has his best results on a turning track, so we might just take the Dante route as he wants to go up in trip. We still have a few calls to make, but at the moment I’m looking more at the Dante route than the Guineas.” Prospects of Zakouski (GB) (Shamardal) lining up in the 2000 Guineas appear to be slim with Appleby looking at dropping him back in trip following his defeat in last week’s G3 Craven S.. Appleby added, “I’d say that Zakouski is unlikely to run in the Guineas. We will probably drop him back to seven furlongs for the King Charles II S. You could put a bit of a line through his last run as he did get wound up at the start and I don’t think that was his true running. He is from an Australian sprinting family, so I think he will be better dropping back in trip.” Jalmoud (GB) (New Approach {GB}) looks set to contest a Derby trial on his next start after making a winning return at Newmarket last week–a route which stablemate and ‘TDN Rising Star’ Al Hilalee (GB) (Dubawi {Ire}), who was last sighted winning a listed race in France, is also likely to take. “Jalmoud could go back for the Newmarket S. or the Lingfield Derby Trial. He has come out of his last race well. Al Hilalee could go to the Newmarket S. while he also has a Dante entry as well. He is doing well and will fly back from Dubai this week. We will get him back and then take stock.” View the full article

Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance intern Kayla Sheets was named Outstanding Intern during the University of Kentucky’s Ag Equine Program Internship Showcase Apr. 18. “I am so thankful for the opportunity I had to intern for the TAA,” Sheets said. “They have been so welcoming from the start and it was an honor to win this accomplishment with their support.” Sheets interned with the TAA during the spring 2019 semester and graduates in May with a Bachelor of Science in Equine Science and Management. After graduation, she will work at a feed company as an equine nutritionist. View the full article

Compiegne’s Prix de Verberie threw up a TDN Rising Star on Tuesday as Michael Tabor’s Ballet Russe (Ire) (Camelot {GB}) made light work of a confidence-boosting maiden outing laid on by Andre Fabre. Having already caught the eye when coming home strong to be runner-up on his racecourse bow over 10 furlongs at Saint-Cloud Mar. 30, the bay was unhurried early by Pierre-Charles Boudot showing keenness towards the rear. Cruising to the leaders without turning a hair and taking control with 300 metres remaining, the 3-5 favourite who was a 300,000gns Tattersalls October graduate sauntered clear under hand riding to record a facile four-length success from Reliable Son (Fr) (Reliable Man {GB}). The Juddmonte-bred dam Seatone (Mizzen Mast) was a 5 1/2-furlong maiden winner at Dieppe for Criquette Head-Maarek before being sold for just 115,000gns at the 2011 Tattersalls December Mares Sale. Her family is an outstanding one that Fabre knows well, having trained the G3 Prix Corrida-winning second dam Diese (Diesis {GB}) and her illustrious champion G1 Dewhurst S. and G1 Prix de la Salamandre-winning half-brother Xaar (GB) (Zafonic) and fellow sire sibling Masterclass (The Minstrel). Fabre also initially handled Diese’s daughter Speak in Passing (Danzig) before she went Stateside and captured the GIII San Simeon H., while another of her daughters Cochin (Swain {Ire}) produced Permit (GB) (Dansili {GB}) who was also with the master of Chantilly in his formative period–and won at this track–prior to going on to G2 Schweppes Chairman’s H. success in Australia. Diese’s most notorious produce was Juddmonte’s GI United Nations H. and GI Clement L. Hirsch Memorial Turf Championship-winning sire Senure (Nureyev), one of a total of four stakes performers, with one of her descendants being the recent listed scorer Still Standing (Ire) (Mastercraftsman {Ire}). This is of course the dynasty of the matriarch Monroe (Sir Ivor), the Phoenix S. runner-up who is a sister to the champion Malinowski and fellow sire Gielgud and a half-sister to the Kentucky Oaks heroine Blush with Pride. There are an abundance of high-class performers in this pedigree including the Juddmonte sires Cityscape (GB) (Selkirk), Bated Breath (GB) (Dansili {GB}) and the spectacular Close Hatches (First Defence). Seatone’s first foal was the stakes-placed Australian export Romanesque (Ire) by Camelot’s sire Montjeu (Ire), while her 2-year-old colt Victory March (Ire) (Zoffany {Ire}) was snapped up by M V Magnier for 220,000gns at Tattersalls October. She also has a yearling filly by Zoffany to follow. 3rd-Compiegne, €25,000, Mdn, 4-23, 3yo, c/g, 12fT, 2:40.37, gd. BALLET RUSSE (IRE), c, 3, by Camelot (GB) 1st Dam: Seatone, by Mizzen Mast 2nd Dam: Diese, by Diesis (GB) 3rd Dam: Monroe, by Sir Ivor Sales history: 300,000gns Ylg ’17 TATOCT. Lifetime Record: 2-1-1-0, €17,500. Click for the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree. Video, sponsored by Fasig-Tipton. O-Michael Tabor, Derrick Smith & Susan Magnier; B-Lynch-Bages Ltd & Camas Park Stud (IRE); T-Andre Fabre. View the full article

• Trainer Blaine Wright said via text Tuesday morning that Peter Redekop’s Anothertwistafate (Scat Daddy), runner-up in the GIII Lexington S. at Keeneland Apr. 13, would be flying back to his home base at Golden Gate in Northern California and train there for the GI Preakness S. Anothertwistafate earned a berth in the Preakness by winning the El Camino Real Derby at Golden Gate Feb. 16. • Serengeti Empress (Alternation), heroine of the GII Rachel Alexandra S., fired a five-furlong bullet in :58.20 (1/30) at Churchill Tuesday morning. She was vanned off after finishing a distant seventh as the 1-5 favorite in the GII Fair Grounds Oaks Mar. 23. “She bled through the nostrils after the Fair Grounds Oaks,” said trainer Tom Amoss outside his barn, minutes after an endoscopic exam showed her lungs following a five-furlong workout were clear. Amoss added, “We’re a go, as long as she looks good tomorrow, and trains correctly, we’ll run in the [GI] Kentucky Oaks.” View the full article

JACK Thistledown Racino kicks off its 2019 racing season Monday, April 29. This will be the first of 100 days of live Thoroughbred racing at the historic Cleveland-area track that first opened its gates in 1925. View the full article

Ahead of the two-day ‘Race and Taste’ Festival at Cork Racecourse Mallow beginning on Friday, May 10, the new Matchbook Straight Seven course was trialled successfully at the course on Tuesday. Work began in 2017 to extended the existing six-furlong sprint track, and the €500,000 development project was funded through the Horse Racing Ireland (HRI) racetrack improvement scheme as part of the overall Capital Development Scheme. Horses were allowed to gallop over the course for the first time on Tuesday, with the surface being hailed as a success. It is one of two seven-furlong straight courses in Ireland. “It’s something really exciting,” said trainer Aidan O’Brien. “We never had a seven-furlong track like this in Ireland before, it’s a flat, fast seven furlongs, horses don’t miss a beat down there, the ground was beautiful.” Added Matchbook CEO Mark Brosnan, “We are delighted to be sponsoring The Matchbook Straight Seven, the new seven-furlong course at Cork Racecourse Mallow. This will be a unique addition to Irish racing and hugely positive development for Cork Racecourse. As a result of this very innovative and historic sponsorship agreement we will be title sponsors for the majority of races run on the Matchbook Straight Seven including the Listed Mid-Summer S. over the course of the season and we look forward to the opening meeting on Friday, May 10.” View the full article