Wandering Eyes

Redoute’s Choice (Aus) (Danehill-Shantha’s Choice {Aus}, by Canny Lad {Aus}) was euthanised at Arrowfield Stud on Tuesday morning, the stud announced. The three-time leading Australian sire was 22. The bay sustained a loss of mobility that could not be restored despite the best efforts of Arrowfield’s veterinary and stallion teams and was humanely put down. “Redoute’s Choice is such a big part of all our lives, and right now it’s hard to imagine Arrowfield without him,” said Arrowfield’s John Messara. “He has given us so much, Arrowfield has been built on his back and he’s allowed all of us and many, many other people to fulfill our dreams and ambitions. I thank Muzaffar Yaseen for allowing us to buy into Redoute’s Choice almost two decades ago. Our partnership has always been amicable and it has achieved all that we could hope for, and more. I’m grateful to all my team, past and present, who are part of his story, especially those who have cared for and worked with Redoute’s Choice every day, and have ensured that he’s had the long and wonderful life he deserved. There are many tears being shed at Arrowfield today. I also thank everyone who helped us launch his stud career, his shareholders, and those who bred to him, and bought, raced, trained and rode his progeny. He has blessed us all.” A winner of the G1 Blue Diamond S. at two and the G1 Manikato S., G1 Caulfield Guineas and G1 C. F. Orr S. at three, the Rick Hore-Lacy trainee was named the Australian highweight from 7-9 1/2 furlongs during the 1999/2000 season, before going off to stud at Arrowfield in the fall of 2000. His first champion sire title was earned in 2005/2006, with another following in 2009/10 and the third 2013/14. A remarkable sire of sires and broodmare sire, he is currently credited with 163 black-type winners, 106 group winners and 34 Group 1 winners. The Autumn Sun (Aus) is his current standout performer this season and Redoute’s choice has also sired three A$1-million colts at this year’s Magic Millions Gold Coast Sale alone. Added Messara, “It is a great consolation to me that Redoute’s Choice leaves us at the top of his game, having sustained his greatness as a sire from start to finish, across the full span of his career. His legacy to Australian breeding and racing is immense, through his sire sons, his broodmare daughters, his final crops still to come and all the people he touched over the past two decades. Thank you Redoute’s, for everything.” More to follow… View the full article

Baertschiger's rising star ready to be Thrust into 3YO limelight View the full article

Strong Blizzard alert at Tuesday barrier trials View the full article

Two colts by the late Pioneerof the Nile are entered in The Gulfstream Sale, Fasig-Tipton's selected 2-year-olds in training sale held March 27. View the full article

An upset result in the Twinspires.com Louisiana Derby (G2) allowed By My Standards to crash the top 10, while Game Winner strengthened his position atop the National Thoroughbred Racing Association Top 3-Year-Old Poll this week. View the full article

A full rundown of horse racing television and radio for Florida Derby and Dubai World Cup Weekend. View the full article

By My Standards earned a spot in the May 4 Run for the Roses, collecting 100 points on the Road to the Kentucky Derby for owner Chester Thomas and trainer Bret Calhoun in the March 23 Twinspires.com Louisiana Derby (G2) at Fair Grounds. View the full article

The $700,000, grade 3 Kentucky Downs Turf Sprint has been selected for the 2019 Breeders' Cup Challenge Series, providing Kentucky Downs its first "Win and You're In" race as a launching pad to horse racing's global championships. View the full article

TACITUS (c, Tapit–Close Hatches, by First Defence) O/B-Juddmonte Farms, Inc. (KY). T-Bill Mott. Lifetime Record: GSW, 3-2-0-0, $253,000. Last Start: 1st, GII Tampa Bay Derby, TAM, Mar. 9 Next Start: Possible for GII Wood Memorial S., AQU, Apr. 6 Equineline PPs. KY Derby Points: 50. Before Hidden Scroll blossomed, Tacitus was considered the primary Juddmonte-bred Derby hopeful in trainer Bill Mott’s barn. He’s a large-framed runner who is light on experience (2-for-3), and this gray son of Tapit takes quite a while to uncoil and find his best stride in workouts and races. His first-time-Lasix win in the GII Tampa Bay Derby is a little tough to gauge considering no one else was truly firing in the final furlong. But Tacitus did everything he was asked, rating willingly, securing a nice midpack stalking spot, and responding to a rousing ride by slipping through an inside path through traffic. “He’s a big horse and when he made the lead, he didn’t keep going; he kind of waited a little bit,” jockey Jose Ortiz said after that win. “He does everything so easy and I don’t know if he’s given me 100% yet [in his three races].” The Apr. 6 Wood Memorial is likely next, although Mott indicated there’s an outside chance Tacitus could go in the same-date Blue Grass S. VIDEO PPS FINISH RACE 1st GII Tampa Bay Derby 1st Maiden 4th Maiden View the full article

HALLANDALE, FL – The under-tack preview of the Fasig-Tipton Gulfstream Selected 2-Year-Olds in Training Sale was held under brilliantly blue skies and temperatures reaching up to the high 70s in Hallandale Monday. Two juveniles shared the fastest furlong time of the preview, with a colt by Sky Kingdom hitting the :9 4/5 mark during the day’s second set and a filly by Uncle Mo reaching that mark in the day’s fourth of five sets. It was the first time in the auction’s five years at Gulfstream Park that a horse broke :10 for the furlong. The fastest quarter-mile of :20 3/5 was shared by a colt by Uncle Mo and a filly by Into Mischief. “It was a very productive day on the racetrack,” said Fasig-Tipton President Boyd Browning, Jr. “We saw a huge number of quality horses that worked over the racetrack today. There were some beautiful movers and there are some spectacular videos that we’ve already had a chance to see. I thought the track was very consistent from beginning to end and we were very, very pleased with the quality of horses that our consignors have brought to us. They had shown well earlier in the week and we felt very good about the physicals and they performed, for the most part, across the board on the racetrack today spectacularly.” The breeze show attracted a broad swathe of onlookers to the Gulfstream grandstand Monday, with trainers like Todd Pletcher, Steve Asmussen, Mark Hennig, Eddie Kenneally and Neil Drysdale in attendance. Among the bloodstock agents in the grandstand were Patti Miller, Kim Valerio, Shawn Dugan, Marette Farrell, Kerri Radcliffe, Donato Lanni, Deuce Greathouse, Patrick Lawley-Wakelin, Jason Litt, Jamie Hill, and Pete Bradley. Major operations were also represented, with Stonestreet’s Barbara Banke watching the works alongside John Moynihan, as well as Aron Wellman of Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners and Terry Finley of West Point Thoroughbreds. “The under-tack show was well attended,” Browning said. “There certainly seems to be a high level of interest and we are optimistic heading into the sale on Wednesday. It is a 2-year-old in training sale. There will be some polarization in the marketplace without any question because there are lot of evaluative tools that people go through, watching the video, stride analysis, hearts, veterinary scrutiny, so there are a number of factors that will come into play in making buying decisions, but I think we’ll see lively competition for a significant number of horses on offer.” Hip 155 was the first horse to shade :10 for a furlong work at the Fasig-Tipton Gulfstream sale when he covered the distance in :9 4/5 Monday. The dark bay is from the first crop of graded stakes winner Sky Kingdom (Empire Maker) and is out of the unplaced Truelladeville (Yes It’s True). He is consigned to the sale by Wavertree Stables. “He advertised himself as a good horse all year,” Wavertree’s Ciaran Dunne said. “We thought he would work really well, but you’re never thinking :9 4/5. But the good ones tend to show up.” Dunne purchased the colt for $115,000 at last year’s Fasig-Tipton July Yearling Sale. “Everybody at the sale wanted to buy him, it was just a question of who was going to be the last man standing,” Dunne recalled of buying the youngster last summer. “He’s just a gorgeous horse; they don’t make horses any prettier than he is. He is big, he’s strong, he moves good and we just took a shot.” Asked if he had any reservations about bringing a lesser-known pedigree into the boutique Gulfstream sale, Dunne said, “Not after that [work]. Physically he is as good as they come and he worked really well. I think if he had missed on either the physical or the way he worked, we would have been in trouble. But he will sell himself. He’s a bit special.” Wavertree sent out 15 juveniles to work Monday and Dunne said the track seemed consistent throughout the day. “We were really happy [with the results],” he said. “For the most part, they showed up like we thought they were going to. You always want them to go a tick quicker than they did, but I think the great thing about down here is, that while the bullet is the bullet, they are willing to forgive you a tick or two if they do it the right way and they gallop out. For the most part, these are big two-turn horses and they shouldn’t be expected to all go in :10 flat.” Late in the day, a daughter of Uncle Mo (hip 12) equaled the :9 4/5 work for the Hartley/DeRenzo Thoroughbreds consignment. The juvenile is out of Coin Broker (Montjeu {Ire}), a daughter of GI Breeders’ Cup Juvenile winner Cash Run (Seeking the Gold) and her third dam is Grade I winner Shared Interest (Pleasant Colony). She was purchased by Randy Hartley and Dean DeRenzo for $450,000 at last year’s Keeneland September sale. “She is a special filly,” said Hartley. “She has done everything right since the day I bought her. She has a demeanor that nothing bothers her.” Of the decision to work the speedy filly late in the day, Hartley explained, “When you have a small group of horses like these, it was hard to decide. So I thought, we’ll take two of ours and two of Chris [Baccari]’s and then our last two last. I think it shows that the track stayed consistent throughout the day, if you have the horse.” A son of Coolmore’s Uncle Mo (hip 82) shared the day’s fastest quarter-mile work of :20 3/5. Consigned by Hoby and Layna Kight, the $350,000 Keeneland September yearling purchase is out of Grade I placed Modification (Vindication) and is a half-brother to multiple graded placed Sawyer’s Hill (Sprint at Last). A daughter of Into Mischief (hip 139) matched that :20 3/5 quarter-mile time later in the preview. The bay filly is out of Specification (Empire Maker), a half-sister to Grade I winner Skimming (Nureyev). She is consigned by Tom McCrocklin as agent for Steve Gasparelli’s Slugo Racing and Scott Dowell’s Paymaster Racing which purchased her for $450,000 at last year’s Keeneland September sale. The Fasig-Tipton Gulfstream sale will be held Wednesday in the track’s paddock beginning at 2 p.m. View the full article

OMAHA BEACH (c, War Front–Charming, by Seeking the Gold) O-Fox Hill Farms, Inc. B-Charming Syndicate (KY). T-Richard Mandella. Sales History: $625,000 RNA Ylg ’17 KEESEP. Lifetime Record: GSW, 6-2-3-1, $521,800. Last Start: 1st, GII Rebel S., OP, Mar. 16 Next Start: GI Arkansas Derby, OP, Apr. 13 Equineline PPs. KY Derby Points: 37.5. After four narrowly beaten-fave tries, Omaha Beach finally blasted through the maiden ranks with a nine-length shellacking of his SoCal foes on Feb. 2, and bettors thought highly enough of that effort to make him the second choice behind 2-year-old champ Game Winner in the second division of the Rebel S. That showdown did, in fact, turn out to be a two-horse race, with the top two contenders in the wagering clearing of the rest of the overmatched pack by 8 1/4 lengths after a stirring length-of-stretch hookup. This War Front colt earned major style points by breaking alertly, rating to third on the clubhouse bend, then targeting and inhaling a 48-1 pacemaker while still having plenty left in reserve to throw down with a far more seasoned competitor while pinned on the inside for the better part of two furlongs. Omaha Beach displayed an admirable competitive streak when put to sustained pressure by the division leader, and he extended the effort well through his gallop-out after nosing out Game Winner at the wire. VIDEO PPS FINISH RACE 1st GII Rebel S. 1st Maiden 2nd Maiden 2nd Maiden 2nd Maiden 3rd Maiden View the full article

Surgery to repair a condylar fracture that sidelined top 3-year-old Gunmetal Gray went smoothly but the horse's prognosis for returning to competition is a long way from certain. View the full article

Nebraska-based trainer James R. Compton won his 1,000th race March 24 when Rulethenight pulled clear in a six-furlong claiming event at Fonner Park. View the full article

An upset result in the Twinspires.com Louisiana Derby (G2) allowed By My Standards to crash the top 10 while Game Winner strengthened his position atop the National Thoroughbred Racing Association (NTRA) Top 3-Year-Old Poll this week. View the full article

LONG RANGE TODDY (c, Take Charge Indy-Pleasant Song, by Unbridled’s Song) O/B-Willis Horton Racing, LLC (KY). T-Steve Asmussen. Lifetime Record: GSW, 7-4-1-1, $851,125. Last Start: 1st, GII Rebel S., OP, Mar. 16 Next Start: GI Arkansas Derby, OP, Apr. 13 Equineline PPs. KY Derby Points: 53.5. Despite a 4-1-1 record from seven starts that includes three stakes wins (and never losing by more than two lengths) Long Range Toddy is a capable, under-the-radar sort who has a pedigree to run well at Classics distances. His winning trip in the first division of the Rebel S. was pretty impressive: This Take Charge Indy homebred broke on top, settled comfortably at the rail to concede the lead, and held his position well while the pack shifted outside of him. Then in the stretch he adeptly shifted, two, three, and eventually four paths wide to avoid getting caught on heels while finishing with purpose to gun down 2-5 fave Improbable. He has a decent foundation of five two-turn races, but is likely to start at another underdog price (he’s never been favored) when he goes in the Arkansas Derby. VIDEO PPS FINISH RACE 1st GII Rebel S. 3rd GIII Southwest S. 2nd Smarty Jones S. 1st Remington Springboard Mile S. 1st Clever Trevor S. 1st Maiden 4th Maiden View the full article

Japan’s 2018 Horse of the Year and Triple Tiara victress Almond Eye (Jpn) (Lord Kanaloa {Jpn}) trotted a half-mile before cantering another 1400 metres over the Meydan dirt at 5:00 a.m. on Monday. The Silk Racing colourbearer will contest the G1 Dubai Turf on Dubai World Cup night, Mar. 30. “She lost a bit of weight while traveling, but not more than we expected,” said assistant trainer Keisuke Miyata. “She has settled in and is eating well now.” A winner of six of her seven starts, the 4-year-old has won four Group 1s in a row, with a victory in the G1 Japan Cup at Tokyo on Nov. 25 sealing her Horse of the Year title. However, the $6-million 1800-metre contest will be her first start on foreign soil. “I had considered the Dubai Turf first as it is a one-turn race and will be easier on her since it will be her first start back,” trainer Sakae Kunieda told Kate Hunter of the Meydan notes team on Monday. “Even I don’t know where her limit is yet. She means a lot to me, giving us this opportunity to travel with her. She is a really special filly.” Silk Racing Co. president Masashi Yonemoto added, “We took Mr. Kunieda’s suggestion for her and since horses like 2014 Longines World’s Best Racehorse Just a Way (Jpn) (Heart’s Cry {Jpn}) have won this race and it is so highly rated each year that it would be a good option for her. She has run so well from 1600m to 2400m that 1800m will be a good distance for her.” Another Dubai World Cup night headliner, G1SW North America (GB) (Dubawi {Ire}) who is the likely favourite for the $12-million Dubai World Cup, worked 800 metres at trainer Satish Seemar’s Zabeel Stables on Monday morning. The Ramzan Kadyrov-owned 7-year-old has won the Jan. 10 G2 Al Maktoum Challenge R1 and the Feb. 7 G2 Al Maktoum Challenge R2 in succession this campaign. “He had his final workout this morning,” said Seemar. [He] went over 800m and did it nicely. Richard [Mullen] was happy with him and everything is good. We just have to get through the next five days. The horse will have an easy day tomorrow and then just do little hacks for the rest of the week.” View the full article

Surgery to repaid a condylar fracture that sidelined top 3-year-old Gunmetal Gray went smoothly but the horse's prognosis for returning to competition is a long way from certain. View the full article

At its March 25 meeting, the gaming commission adopted a new regulation without comment, aimed specifically at backstretch housing at NYRA tracks, which has nearly 2,300 beds at its tracks for backstretch workers. View the full article

Dual G1 Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe heroine Enable (GB) (Nathaniel {Ire}) is pointing toward a start in the May 31 G1 Coronation Cup S. as her first port of call in 2019. The 5-year-old’s end-of-season goal is claiming her third consecutive Arc at ParisLongchamp in October and she was last seen in action winning the GI Breeders’ Cup Turf at Churchill Downs last November. “She has started cantering again and you would be hopeful she would be running in something like the Coronation Cup,” trainer John Gosden said from his Newmarket base on Monday morning of the Juddmonte colourbearer. “There wouldn’t be any point starting her earlier. If you are trying to get to the Arc, you don’t want to be starting in the middle of April and there aren’t really the races for those older ones until later on in the year. She is in great order. She is even bigger and stronger again, so it is fingers crossed with her. She has enjoyed the winter and is loving her exercise. We are pointing towards the Coronation Cup, but it is all about gearing her towards the first weekend in October in Paris.” Gosden also had an update on champion 2-year-old colt and G1SW Too Darn Hot (GB) (Dubawi {Ire}), who is targeting the Apr. 13 G3 Greenham S. at Newbury as his next intended appearance. Gosden said, “He is training nicely and we are pleased with him. Frankie [Dettori] sat on him at the weekend, was very pleased with his development from two to three and we are building towards the Greenham with him. He is a bundle of energy. He really enjoys his exercise and is very playful. He is like a very hyperactive, ‘I want to get on with it’ kid. He is a guy with a lot of energy and I don’t want him to go and have to do a racecourse gallop, he would be much happier going down to Newbury, running over seven and just getting the cobwebs out the way.” View the full article

Another weekend of preps for the GI Kentucky Derby is in the books, and favorites continue to stumble through March without posting authoritative victories that match their odds. But the calendar from here on out is loaded with nine-furlong opportunities, perhaps providing some separation between the true contenders and the early spring pretenders. 1) GAME WINNER (c, Candy Ride {Arg}—Indyan Giving, by A.P. Indy) ‘TDN Rising Star’. O-Gary & Mary West. B-Summer Wind Equine (KY). T-Bob Baffert. Sales History: $110,000 Ylg ’17 KEESEP. Lifetime Record: MGISW, 5-4-1-0, $1,646,000. Last Start: 2nd, GII Rebel S., OP, Mar. 16 Next Start: GI Santa Anita Derby, SA, Apr. 6 Equineline PPs. KY Derby Points: 45. This week ‘TDN Rising Star’ Game Winner re-inherits the kingpin spot atop the Top 12 rankings that he occupied during the earlier part of the season. But considering that the top five horses on this list are all coming off explainable “learning experience” defeats, the juvenile champ does not hold as domineering a lead as he once did. This $110,000 KEESEP Candy Ride (Arg) bay lost the slightly (.07 seconds) faster division of the GII Rebel S. by a head bob, but you’d have to think based on both his pedigree and the way he finished that Game Winner is in line to improve at nine furlongs and beyond. We saw from the Rebel that even after a stutter-step start, he can comfortably slip into midpack stalk mode while rating willingly, and he tipped out for a prolonged bid 4 1/2 furlongs from the wire while gradually winding up for a far-turn attack. Approaching the quarter pole, it was a bit startling to see jockey Joel Rosario pumping and driving on Game Winner while Omaha Beach (War Front) kept gliding along under hand encouragement, but Game Winner determinedly closed the gap, responding to vigorous urging like he knew that’s part of the job. It was only in the final few jumps that he alternated nods with the resolute Omaha Beach, but the effort as a whole (8 1/4 lengths clear of everyone else) likely gave him what needs to uncork a more polished performance next time out in the GI Santa Anita Derby. 2) HIDDEN SCROLL (c, Hard Spun–Sheba Queen, by Empire Maker) ‘TDN Rising Star’ O/B-Juddmonte Farms, Inc. (KY). T-William I. Mott. Lifetime Record: 2-1-0-0, $50,600. Last Start: 4th, GII Fountain of Youth S., GP, Mar. 2 Next Start: GI Florida Derby, GP, Mar. 30 Equineline PPs. KY Derby Points: 5. ‘TDN Rising Star’ Hidden Scroll will be a very dangerous and legitimate favorite in Saturday’s GI Florida Derby. This Hard Spun-sired Juddmonte homebred has paired a freakishly fast maiden romp with a too-keen GII Fountain of Youth S. fourth. But his two-turn stakes debut was much better than it looks on paper considering he prevailed in an overly ambitious speed duel, then rebuffed both first and second runs on the turn before giving up ground without caving in deep stretch. Trainer Bill Mott’s primary purpose since then has been schooling Hidden Scroll behind workmates to “eat dirt” while still finishing up into the bridle, and Mott told XBTV after a bullet five-eighths in 1:02.40 (1/7) on Friday that he is satisfied with the results. “I think this horse is fine in behind horses. I think he’s fine on the lead if the pace is such that he needs to be on the lead,” he said. “Some horses will tend to kind of fall apart on you after a real hard race, but he seems like he’s done well. He’s just one of those horses that gets better with the work. He’s got a really good hindquarter on him. He’s not a big, heavy horse in front, which is to his advantage. I think it’s good not to be [too] bulky. He’s really a streamlined sort of horse. He’s got a good hip, a lot of power, yet not so heavy that it’s going to work against him.” 3) SIGNALMAN (c, General Quarters–Trip South, by Trippi) O-Tommie M. Lewis, David A. Bernsen, LLC & Magdalena Racing (Sherri McPeek). B-Monticule (KY). T-Kenneth G McPeek. Sales History: $32,000 Ylg ’17 FTKOCT. Lifetime Record: GSW & MGISP, 6-2-2-1, $452,990. Last Start: 7th, GII Fountain of Youth S., GP, Mar. 2 Next Start: GII Blue Grass S., KEE, Apr. 6 Equineline PPs. KY Derby Points: 18. I’m betting that Signalman will run big in his final test before the Derby, the GII Blue Grass S. at Keeneland Apr. 6. It really seemed like that was his main target prep race all along, and when you consider all the variables from his uncharacteristic seventh in the Fountain of Youth S.–a very deep race on paper, the admission by trainer Ken McPeek that Signalman wasn’t trained tightly enough off the layoff, his losing a shoe at some point in the race–this $32,000 FTKOCT General Quarters colt now seems poised to build on the prowess he displayed at the end of his 2-year-old season. McPeek has touted Signalman as a strong horse with speed and smarts, and his prolonged up-the-rail move against 13 rivals on a sloppy Churchill Downs surface to win the Nov. 24 GII Kentucky Jockey Club S. still stands out as one of the more visually impressive juvenile stakes from last year. He also finished within 3 1/4 lengths of Game Winner in the Breeders’ Cup, and has been in the money in all three Churchill starts (two over wet tracks). 4) IMPROBABLE (c, City Zip—Rare Event, by A.P. Indy) ‘TDN Rising Star’. O-WinStar Farm LLC, China Horse Club International Ltd. & Starlight Racing. B-St. George Farm LLC & G. Watts Humphrey Jr. (KY). T-Bob Baffert. Sales History: $110,000 Wlg ’16 KEENOV; $200,000 Ylg ’17 KEESEP. Lifetime Record: GISW, 4-3-1-0, $419,520. Last Start: 2nd, GII Rebel S., OP, Mar. 16 Next Start: GI Arkansas Derby, OP, Apr. 13 Equineline PPs. Caulfield on Improbable. KY Derby Points: 25. ‘TDN Rising Star’ Improbable checked the “overcomes adversity” box by turning in a credible second in his division of the Mar. 16 Rebel S. Considering the change-of-plans shipping experience, crowded Oaklawn indoor paddock, outside post, and getting hung four wide on both turns, it’s obvious that this $200,000 KEESEP City Zip chestnut got something useful out of the race. And yes, he became a touch unfocused in mid-stretch when he hit the lead and had his big, white blaze cocked to the grandstand. But he stayed on pretty well through the final furlong given he hadn’t raced in three months and was intentionally not fully cranked to peak in mid-March. He’ll be a tighter contender with a touch more demanding training under his belt between now and his next planned start in the Apr. 13 GI Arkansas Derby. But part of what trainer Bob Baffert wanted to avoid this spring with his top sophomores was multiple shipping excursions, and if Improbable starts in both another Oaklawn race and the Kentucky Derby, that will make for three separate trips east from California within a seven-week span for this colt. 5) WAR OF WILL (c, War Front—Visions of Clarity {Ire}, by Sadler’s Wells) O-Gary Barber. B-Flaxman Holdings Limited (KY). T-Mark Casse. Sales History: $175,000 RNA Ylg ’17 KEESEP; €250,000 2yo ’18 ARQMAY. Lifetime Record: MGSW, 8-3-1-1, $501,569. Last Start: 9th, GII Louisiana Derby, Mar. 23 Next Start: Possible for GI Kentucky Derby, CD, May 4 Equineline PPs. Caulfield on War of Will. KY Derby Points: 60. Almost everyone agrees that War of Will’s loss in the GII Louisiana Derby is a throwout because of his scary slipping/loss of action leaving the starting gate. The big question is will the reportedly strained ligaments in his right hind leg prevent him from training purposefully up to the Kentucky Derby? Trainer Mark Casse can be expected to err on the side of caution, so as long as this $298,550 ARQMAY War Front colt remains aimed for the Derby, he still belongs with the top half of the pack in these rankings based on his well-constructed resume of dirt victories since transitioning from equally impressive grass starts. Prior to Saturday’s botched effort at Fair Grounds, he has consistently run well in crowded fields as an aggressive stalker who can make his own breaks, and his previous two New Orleans stakes wins were among the most authoritative prep race victories of 2019. If he’s not deemed ready for the main-track rigors of the Triple Crown, War of Will would be the logical favorite for the New York Turf Triple series, which commences July 6. 6) OMAHA BEACH (c, War Front-Charming, by Seeking the Gold) O-Fox Hill Farms, Inc. B-Charming Syndicate (KY). T-Richard Mandella. Sales History: $625,000 RNA Ylg ’17 KEESEP. Lifetime Record: GSW, 6-2-3-1, $521,800. Last Start: 1st, GII Rebel S., OP, Mar. 16 Next Start: GI Arkansas Derby, OP, Apr. 13 Equineline PPs. KY Derby Points: 37.5. After four narrowly beaten-fave tries, Omaha Beach finally blasted through the maiden ranks with a nine-length shellacking of his SoCal foes on Feb. 2, and bettors thought highly enough of that effort to make him the second choice behind 2-year-old champ Game Winner in the second division of the Rebel S. That showdown did, in fact, turn out to be a two-horse race, with the top two contenders in the wagering clearing of the rest of the overmatched pack by 8 1/4 lengths after a stirring length-of-stretch hookup. This War Front colt earned major style points by breaking alertly, rating to third on the clubhouse bend, then targeting and inhaling a 48-1 pacemaker while still having plenty left in reserve to throw down with a far more seasoned competitor while pinned on the inside for the better part of two furlongs. Omaha Beach displayed an admirable competitive streak when put to sustained pressure by the division leader, and he extended the effort well through his gallop-out after nosing out Game Winner at the wire. 7) CODE OF HONOR (c, Noble Mission {GB}—Reunited, by Dixie Union) O/B-W. S. Farish (KY). T-Shug McGaughey. Sales History: $70,000 RNA Ylg ’17 KEESEP. Lifetime Record: GSW & GISP, 4-2-1-0, $384,820. Last Start: 1st, GII Fountain of Youth S., GP, Mar. 2 Next Start: GI Florida Derby, GP, Mar. 30 Equineline PPs. KY Derby Points: 54. Code of Honor got shuffled back a bit in this week’s rankings (from No. 4), largely because of my perception that this first-crop Noble Mission (GB) homebred benefitted greatly from a ground-saving gift trip and pace meltdown in his Fountain of Youth S. win. In a sense, he’s going to have to prove himself again in the Florida Derby, and even after that there will be lingering questions about his lighter physical frame and the fact that he’s a May 23 foal. But on the plus side, Code of Honor is a very nimble mover whose efficient stride could be a plus in a 20-horse race like the Kentucky Derby, and he has been able to handle the more assertive conditioning that trainer Shug McGaughey has thrown his way over the past several months. 8) ROADSTER (c, Quality Road–Ghost Dancing, by Silver Ghost) ‘TDN Rising Star’. O-Speedway Stable LLC. B-Stone Farm (KY). T-Bob Baffert. Sales History: $525,000 Ylg ’17 KEESEP. Lifetime Record: GISP, 3-2-0-1, $106,200. Last Start: 1st, Allowance/Optional Claiming, SA, Mar. 1 Next Start: GI Santa Anita Derby, SA, Apr. 6 Equineline PPs. KY Derby Points: 0. ‘TDN Rising Star’ Roadster remains on the Derby periphery largely because of how highly hyped he was last summer at Del Mar. But with a lone 2019 allowance win serving as his comeback race off of surgery to fix a displaced soft palate, this $525,000 KEESEP Quality Road gray is on the outside looking in with zero qualifying points. He’s scheduled to start next in the Santa Anita Derby and will likely require a first- or second-place finish to earn a points berth, and that will mean going head to head against stablemate Game Winner. That’s ironic, because last September when Roadster was considered the top 2-year-old in the Baffert barn, it was the eventual divisional champ who beat him in the GI Del Mar Futurity. Roadster currently isn’t scaring away any competition, but considering who trains him and how mercurial the entire crop has been so far this season, he’s just one explosive race away from vaulting into contention as a plausible play on the first Saturday in May. 9) BOURBON WAR (c, Tapit–My Conquestadory, by Artie Schiller) O-Bourbon Lane Stable & Lake Star Stable. B-Conquest Stables (KY). T-Mark Hennig. Sales History: $410,000 Wlg ’16 KEENOV; $525,000 Ylg ’17 KEESEP. Lifetime Record: GSP, 4-2-1-0, $155,100. Last Start: 2nd, GII Fountain of Youth S., GP, Mar. 2 Next Start: GI Florida Derby, GP, Mar. 30 Equineline PPs. KY Derby Points: 21. The most intriguing aspect of Bourbon War’s most recent Derby prep isn’t reflected in his past performance line: He surged past Fountain of Youth winner Code of Honor a jump after the wire, and his gallop-out was stronger and longer than the winner’s. Nine furlongs in Saturday’s Florida Derby seems within his scope, but questions about his ability to excel in A-level races center on whether or not he requires a favorable pace setup to rally into. This $525,000 KEESEP colt’s trainer, Mark Hennig, has indicated that Bourbon War can sit closer to the lead if need be, and it’s worth noting that this colt won his one-turn mile maiden by stalking in third, about a length off the leader. “He’s made great progress. I think that first race really woke him up a lot. He’s a horse that was never really enthusiastic as a training horse prior to running,” Hennig said of that Nov. 14 Aqueduct debut. “Once he ran, the light came on for him. It’s been quite a wake-up for him. He’s a typical Tapit that was bored of all the training and was ready for some race experience.” 10) LONG RANGE TODDY (c, Take Charge Indy–Pleasant Song, by Unbridled’s Song) O/B-Willis Horton Racing, LLC (KY). T-Steve Asmussen. Lifetime Record: GSW, 7-4-1-1, $851,125. Last Start: 1st, GII Rebel S., OP, Mar. 16 Next Start: GI Arkansas Derby, OP, Apr. 13 Equineline PPs. KY Derby Points: 53.5. Despite a 4-1-1 record from seven starts that includes three stakes wins (and never losing by more than two lengths) Long Range Toddy is a capable, under-the-radar sort who has a pedigree to run well at Classics distances. His winning trip in the first division of the Rebel S. was pretty impressive: This Take Charge Indy homebred broke on top, settled comfortably at the rail to concede the lead, and held his position well while the pack shifted outside of him. Then in the stretch he adeptly shifted, two, three, and eventually four paths wide to avoid getting caught on heels while finishing with purpose to gun down 2-5 fave Improbable. He has a decent foundation of five two-turn races, but is likely to start at another underdog price (he’s never been favored) when he goes in the Arkansas Derby. 11) VEKOMA (c, Candy Ride {Arg}—Mona de Momma, by Speightstown) O-R. A. Hill Stable & Gatsas Stables. B-Alpha Delta Stables, LLC (KY). T-George Weaver. Sales History: $135,000 Ylg ’17 KEESEP. Lifetime Record: GSW, 3-2-0-1, $188,850. Last Start: 3rd, GII Fountain of Youth S., GP, Mar. 2 Next Start: Likely for GI Blue Grass S., KEE, Apr. 6 Equineline PPs. KY Derby Points: 10. The farther down the pecking order of Derby contenders you get, the more dependent next-race prep choices tend to be based on matchups of who else is going where, and that seems to be part of a realistic game plan for Vekoma. “Right now we’ve got three options on the table,” trainer George Weaver said last Friday. “We’re looking at the Florida Derby, the [GII] Wood [Memorial S.], and the Blue Grass.” This $135,000 KEESEP Candy Ride (Arg) colt didn’t duck any heavy hitters when Weaver entered him in the very deep Fountain of Youth S., and although Vekoma was once again green through the lane, he never packed it in or stopped trying when it was clear he wouldn’t win. “We thought he ran well in his comeback race,” Weaver said of the third-place try. “I thought it was a solid effort and he’s been training forwardly since then. He was a May 22 foal, so he’s really been starting to fill out and you can see the maturity he’s gained over the winter and he’s continuing to grow.” 12) TACITUS (c, Tapit–Close Hatches, by First Defence) O/B-Juddmonte Farms, Inc. (KY). T-Bill Mott. Lifetime Record: GSW, 3-2-0-0, $253,000. Last Start: 1st, GII Tampa Bay Derby, TAM, Mar. 9 Next Start: Possible for GII Wood Memorial S., AQU, Apr. 6 Equineline PPs. KY Derby Points: 50. Before Hidden Scroll blossomed, Tacitus was considered the primary Juddmonte-bred Derby hopeful in trainer Bill Mott’s barn. He’s a large-framed runner who is light on experience (2-for-3), and this gray son of Tapit takes quite a while to uncoil and find his best stride in workouts and races. His first-time-Lasix win in the GII Tampa Bay Derby is a little tough to gauge considering no one else was truly firing in the final furlong. But Tacitus did everything he was asked, rating willingly, securing a nice midpack stalking spot, and responding to a rousing ride by slipping through an inside path through traffic. “He’s a big horse and when he made the lead, he didn’t keep going; he kind of waited a little bit,” jockey Jose Ortiz said after that win. “He does everything so easy and I don’t know if he’s given me 100% yet [in his three races].” The Apr. 6 Wood Memorial is likely next, although Mott indicated there’s an outside chance Tacitus could go in the same-date Blue Grass S. On the Bubble (in alphabetical order) By My Standards (Goldencents): On to Louisville after 22-1 pick-up-the-pieces Louisiana Derby upset. Country House (Lookin At Lucky): Could have a dark-horse shot to redeem Louisiana Derby fourth if he goes in the Arkansas Derby. Cutting Humor (First Samurai): Track-record GIII Sunland Derby win gives trainer Todd Pletcher an interesting late-blooming Derby chance. Haikal (Daaher): Wide and driving GIII Gotham S. winner “hopefully won’t have to have a hot pace” in front of him to repeat in Wood Memorial, per trainer Kiaran McLaughlin. Harvey Wallbanger (Congrats): Last-to-first upset winner of Holy Bull S. will be another big price yet again in Florida Derby. Instagrand (Into Mischief): Veil of next-race secrecy continues to shadow this colt, who is reportedly training toward an early April start. Will it be the Santa Anita Derby or something less ambitious? Mucho Gusto ( Mucho Macho Man): Made the pace but couldn’t sustain it when third as fave in Sunland Derby, which dropped him out of the Top 12. Spinoff (Hard Spun): Credible second in Louisiana Derby earned him 40 qualifying points; his light 2019 schedule so far still allows for a start in Arkansas Derby if Pletcher deems it necessary. View the full article

The Thoroughbred Retirement Foundation, working in partnership with the authorities and several other horse rescue organizations, has taken in four horses from an equine neglect case in New York’s Hudson Valley. Three geldings and one mare, all with body condition scores of under three, have been transported to TRF’s Saratoga Summer Farm where TRF has taken custody and control. In a collaborative effort with ReRun Thoroughbred Adoption, New York Thoroughbred Horsemen’s Association, the New York Breeding and Development Fund, Thoroughbred Charities of America’s Horses First Fund, the Unbridled Foundation, Akindale Thoroughbred Rescue, TRF has been working to ensure the safe placement of the Thoroughbreds. Other service partners providing assistance include Lukens Horse Transport, McMahon of Saratoga Thoroughbreds, Mullis Farrier Service, and Dr. Rod Stewart. “Our mission at TRF is always to support Thoroughbred horses in need; we do that whenever possible. Cases like this are the reason that TRF exists. For over 35 years we are, and have been, an organization that steps up for the horses in dire situations like this.” says TRF’s CEO John P. Roche. Donations are needed for special food, support and medical care for these horses and can be made here. View the full article

The first thing that greets you outside Maunby House Stables is a pair of miniature cannon. Purely decorative, David Barron explains genially. Nonetheless, there is something pleasingly apt about the way they point out at the world beyond this quiet nook of Herriot Country. For here is a trainer long celebrated for the precision of his aim, and for knowing the optimal range of his horses. Over the years, there have been times when bookmakers’ ramparts have duly been reduced to rubble. But however shrewdly Barron plays his hand, he has always played it perfectly straight. And those patrons who enjoyed going for the odd touch did so with a smile: win, lose or draw. He remembers one of them putting banknotes in a trouser-press overnight, to squeeze more ammunition into his pockets for a hurdle race at Uttoxeter. But Barron’s smile, describing the mountains of cash his owners were able to count in the car home, is barely less wistful when he recalls their reaction when a beaten horse was led in. No recriminations, no inquests. “Mmm,” one would say. “Makes your mouth go dry, doesn’t it?” And that would never be too hard a problem to solve. So when you see the name T.D. Barron next to one of the favourites for the Unibet Lincoln H. at Doncaster on Saturday, it is like seeing a lighthouse across a stormy sea. Half a century after he took out a permit to train the odd jumper on farmland near Thirsk, you can still take your bearings from a man whose first breakthrough came in this same, historic overture to the Flat season: Amenable, in 1991. Barron had won five all-weather races with Amenable that winter and, knowing that he needed a penalty to get into the Lincoln, even risked running him in a claimer—albeit for a tag that would have seemed intimidating to anyone judging the horse from the outside. The Lincoln is a different race nowadays, and Kynren (Ire) (Clodovil {Ire}) has instead earned his berth with solid performances—without winning—in top handicaps last year. Barron feels that things were never quite ideal, the ground too firm or the distance too far, and won’t run him unless conditions are suitable. Even then, a modern Lincoln will always contain an unknown quantity like Auxerre (Ire) (Iffraaj {GB}), who has hurtled to a rating of 100 in just four starts for Charlie Appleby. “I remember Billy Nevett [rider of the north’s last Derby winner, Dante] telling me how they used to have 56 line up for the race when it was still run at Lincoln,” Barron recalls. “In those days you could get in with your 7st horse and your 7lbs claimer. Nowadays you need to be rated very nearly 100 to get a run. So the days of setting one up are over. I suppose the only thing you can do is what William Haggas did last year, or John Gosden did in the Cambridgeshire, and have a group horse in a handicap.” He speaks advisedly, having won the Stewards’ Cup at Goodwood and the Ayr Gold Cup in 1996 with the freakishly fast Coastal Bluff, whose dead-heat in the Nunthorpe the following year remains Barron’s solitary Group 1 success to date. Barron had found Coastal Bluff at Doncaster for just 2,700gns: the one and only proper runner by Standaan (Fr). “I don’t know where his ability came from,” Barron says. “I just liked the horse when I saw him, thought I’d have a bit of a punt, and it came up. I’ve bought a hell of a lot of horses over the years that I liked every bit as much and they’ve been useless. But oh, they didn’t know what I had that year.” He chuckles happily at the memory. Between going to Goodwood and Ayr, Coastal Bluff put in one of the most celebrated workouts of modern times, down the road at Thirsk racecourse. Barron put senior jockeys on two of his most accomplished sprinters and instructed them just to go as hard as they could. He then told Coastal Bluff’s rider to give them a 10-length start. “And he came past them with his lugs up!” recalls Barron. “Then the other two went to the Portland [H., at Doncaster]. And one won it up the stands rail, and the other was first up the far side. So what did I have in hand at Ayr? Forget the 9st 10lbs. They couldn’t beat him.” Barron is adamant that Coastal Bluff was never the same again, Nunthorpe or no Nunthorpe. Poignantly, in fact, the most prestigious success of his training career turned into a traumatic, rather bitter experience. For Coastal Bluff would surely have won outright at York but for the bit snapping, something that has never happened to any other horse in Barron’s care, on or off the track, in all these years. As a result the horse finished up loose on the Knavesmire, and by the time they had managed to get Kevin Darley weighed-in the winner’s enclosure had emptied. Coincidentally, the horse who shared the dead-heat was ridden by Alex Greaves, who thereby became the first female rider to win a Group 1 in Europe. And it had been Barron who first got Greaves started as an apprentice, recognising her allowance as a priceless head-start round the all-weather circuits. (Priceless, in particular, when it came to the betting market’s lack of enlightenment regarding female riders.) That was a typical instance of Barron’s independent cast of mind. He has always ploughed his own furrow. His gallop, unlike so many these days, is perfectly flat. (It actually follows a section of the dismantled branch line to Bedale.) And his horses are by no means ridden out daily. Never having worked for anyone else, Barron simply found his own way, by trial and error, to a system that suited his horses and facilities. “The main ingredient with a racehorse is ability,” he says with a shrug. “If he has ability, we can all muddle by. I don’t care how good your facilities are, if he’s no damned good, he’s no good. But if you get a horse that can run, then hopefully you have facilities where you’re not going to break him, but you can get him fit.” It was that same instinct, for working an angle of his own, that prompted Barron for many years to dredge the closing books of Keeneland for yearlings. “We only packed that in when the exchange rate went against us,” he says. “For a time you were talking maybe $4,000 to get them home, when you were getting $2 for £1. We had some tremendous times there. Every time you went over, you knew you weren’t going to draw a blank. And we’d only arrive when all the proper buyers were leaving. I bought Dim Sums the last hour on the last day, with only me and the cowboys left.” Dim Sums (Repriced) reeled off four wins as a juvenile, including the valuable Redcar Two-Year-Old Trophy. But sometimes Barron almost feels a victim of that kind of success: by turning up so many bargains, he has found himself pigeonholed as a trainer of cheap horses. “But if we had to wait until we get orders, I’d never buy any horses,” he admits. “So you just get on and buy some, and hope to sell one or two. That’s been hard work, this time. But if you do come up with a couple of good ones, it will put the job right. That’s why, when we buy a horse, we always try to think: ‘Could I sell him again? Can I ship him to Hong Kong, or the States?’ So we don’t put up with too many faults, conformation-wise. If he has a bent leg when you buy him, he’ll have a bent leg when you’re trying to sell him. And if you didn’t see it first time round, believe you me, you will when you’re trying to sell.” Barron’s reputation as a trainer of sprinters is equally self-fulfilling, in that he has no choice but to concentrate on the sharper type. Every now and then, however, he gets to demonstrate his versatility with a horse like Sirvino (GB) (Vettori {GB}). A 3,000-guinea yearling, he completed a five-timer in the John Smith’s Cup at York in 2009, the handicapper computing his improvement at 36lbs. “Starting his 4-year-old career, oh, he had a lot in hand,” Barron reflects. “But we had to wait for him. And I worked out a long time ago that I’m not going to win a Derby. We can’t afford the pedigrees. You can look at an individual, and think: ‘That’ll gallop.’ A horse can be quick regardless of his pedigree. You just get the fluke that can wing it. And buying on spec, of course, you need horses that can tell you quick what you’ve got. But that’s changed as well, to an extent. Too many people out there now can see a nice horse.” Having rather meandered into his vocation, from farming, Barron has unquestionably been helped by a stockman’s eye—one evidently inherited by daughter and assistant Nicola. (Son Tim meanwhile manages the farm.) It was Nicola, for instance, who found Kynren as a 25,000gns Book II yearling. “Yes, the first time that horse walked in the yard was the first time I’d seen him,” Barron says. “Nic’s been beside me at the sales since long before she left school and now does the biggest part of the work, pedigree-wise. I suppose we’ve always been involved with livestock, and I think that helps you understand what you’re looking at. Because you can either do that or you can’t. You can’t learn it from a book. “She knows what I like, and what I’ll put up with. We never speak to each other when we go round looking at horses, don’t stand and have a conference when we’ve pulled one out. We just look, walk away, get on with the next one. By the time you go back through them, you know full well you’re going to be on the same wavelength.” Someday Nicola will take over the reins. But all the old acuity still glints in her father’s eyes. Last year was a slower one, but then the juveniles weren’t as sharp as usual. There were a few bigger animals Barron decided to wrap up by midsummer, and these are evidently showing the benefits now. “Some would say I’ve been around too long, probably,” Barron says wryly. “The business probably would benefit if someone younger was up front. You get to the point where you think, ‘Well, if they haven’t been with me up to now, the chances are they’re not going to come at all.’ But I’m enjoying the job still. I feed them every morning myself, feed them every night myself. I walk around first thing when no-one’s around, and everything’s quiet. And if there’s a problem, you don’t even need to go in the box to see it. And I still get a buzz. Especially this time of year. I like having the new ones around, the youngsters. And I suppose I’ve got a fairly thick skin on me by now. So I can put up with quite a lot.” View the full article

The catalog for Keeneland’s April Horses of Racing Age Sale, featuring 81 horses and scheduled for Tuesday, Apr. 9 at 2 p.m. ET, is now available for viewing online. The digital catalog features Daily Racing Form past performances, Thoro-Graph and Ragozin sheets. Sellers also have the opportunity to submit professional walking and/or conformation videos and professional photography of the horses to accompany this information. A print version of the Horses of Racing Age Sale catalog will be available Monday, Apr. 1. The April Sale to date has cataloged 72 juveniles in addition to the horses of racing age. Keeneland will host a Preview Day featuring breezes by cataloged 2-year-olds over both the dirt track and turf course Monday, Apr. 8, beginning at 11 a.m. Keeneland will continue to accept supplemental entries for the April Sale. View the full article

The $700,000 Grade III Kentucky Downs Turf Sprint S. has been selected for the 2019 Breeders’ Cup Challenge Series, providing Kentucky Downs its first “Win and You’re In” race as a launching pad to the World Championships, the track announced Monday. As part of the Challenge Series, the Kentucky Downs Turf Sprint winner will get an automatic berth and waiver of the $30,000 in entry fees to the $1 million GI Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint Nov. 2 at Santa Anita. “We’ve aggressively pursued getting a Breeders’ Cup Challenge Series stakes the past couple of years, and this is a very big deal for us,” said Ted Nicholson, Kentucky Downs’s senior vice president and general manager. “Having the Kentucky Downs Turf Sprint as a ‘Win and You’re In’ for the Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint provides great incentive for horsemen to run here in addition to the huge purse we are offering. We look forward to working with the Breeders’ Cup to recruit European horses and to make this an exceptional event for all participants, coming on a day when the eyes of the racing world will be on Kentucky Downs.” This year’s Kentucky Downs Turf Sprint will be run Saturday, Sept. 7 as part of a five-stakes card at the Franklin oval. View the full article

The board of directors of Grayson-Jockey Club Research Foundation has authorized expenditure of $1,338,858 to fund eight new projects at seven universities, nine continuing projects, and three career development awards to fund veterinary research to benefit all horses. This is the fifth straight year that more than $1 million has been approved. “We thank our generous donors who recognize the value of veterinary research for enhancing equine health and wellness,” said Jamie Haydon, president of the foundation. “From studying a racehorse’s stride to predict injury, to testing an intrauterine antibiotic treatment, we are excited to see the results of these studies and how they may help horses of all breeds in the future.” The 2019 slate of research brings Grayson-Jockey Club Research Foundation’s totals since 1983 to more than $27.5 million to underwrite 366 projects at 44 universities. Additionally, Oaklawn Park and WinStar Farm will each be donating $50,000 in 2019 to sponsor research projects pertaining to health in racehorses. They are participants in Grayson’s new corporate membership program, whereby organizations can contribute to Grayson-funded projects. Those interested in the program should contact the foundation. For details on the new projects, click here. View the full article