Wandering Eyes

Draft Pick (Candy Ride {Arg}), winner of Santa Anita’s GIII Affirmed S. June 10, seeks his third straight victory in Saturday’s GIII Los Alamitos Derby. The streaking bay graduated at sixth asking in his prior trip to the post in Arcadia May 12. Blended Citizen (Proud Citizen), hero of Turfway’s GIII Jeff Ruby Steaks Mar. 17 and Belmont’s GIII Peter Pan S. May 12, looks to get back on track after a well-beaten ninth, beaten 51 3/4 lengths, in the GI Belmont S. June 9. Runaway Sir Barton S. victor Ax Man (Misremembered) dueled and tired to finish a distant third as the 1-2 chalk in Churchill’s GIII Matt Winn S. June 16. He has been favored in all five of his career starts. View the full article

Desperately unlucky when ninth on her racecourse bow at The Curragh June 29, Goddess who is part-owned by Hill ‘n’ Dale Farms founder John G. Sikura was sent straight to the front by Seamie Heffernan to avoid a repeat of her unfortunate debut. Opening up in impressive style straightening for home, the 1-2 favourite galloped out strongly despite running green to score by 10 lengths from Munees Gemini (Ire) (Australia {GB}). The winner is a half-sister to the stable’s 2014 G1 Irish Oaks heroine Bracelet (Ire) (Montjeu {Ire}) and her G2 Rockfel S.-winning sister Wading (Ire) (Montjeu {Ire}). Descended from Urban Sea (Miswaki), she is therefore connected to fellow TDN Rising Star and stablemate Just Wonderful (Dansili {GB}). GODDESS, f, 2, Camelot (GB)–Cherry Hinton (GB), by Green Desert. Lifetime Record: 2-1-0-0, €10,780. O-Susan Magnier & John G Sikura; B-Orpendale & Chelston (KY); T-Aidan O’Brien. Video, sponsored by Fasig-Tipton. . View the full article

Belmont Park Live will cover the GII Delaware H. and GIII Kent S. Saturday at Delaware Park, airing from 4-6p.m. Saturday will also mark the return of the Cross Country Pick 4, a 50-cent minimum wager that begins with the Kent, followed by race eight at Belmont, the Del ‘Cap and Belmont’s Forbidden Apple S. View the full article

A new award will be given at the 2018 Thoroughbred Makeover for the top-scoring Cal-bred, the Retired Racehorse Project announced Thursday. It is a $2,5000 award sponsored by the Georgia B. Ridder Foundation in honor of After the Finish Line, a California non-profit that funds Thoroughbred retirement and rescue organizations. View the full article

Australian Winx (Aus) (Street Cry {Ire}) remains on top of the Longines World’s Best Racehorse Rankings at 130, with U.S. Horse of the Year Gun Runner (Candy Ride {Arg}) one point below her when the rankings were released on Thursday. Poet’s Word (Ire) (Poet’s Voice {GB}) has moved up to a joint-third with Cracksman (GB) (Frankel {GB}) at 125, after he defeated that John Gosden-trained runner in the G1 Prince Of Wales’s S. at Royal Ascot with 121 Hawkbill (Kitten’s Joy) third. After U.S. Triple Crown hero Justify (Scat Daddy) and West Coast (Flatter) who are tied at 124, Benbatl (GB) (Dubawi {Ire}) sits in a joint seventh with Happy Clapper (Aus) (Teofilo {Ire}), Thunder Snow (Ire) (Helmet {Aus}), and Trapeze Artist (Aus) (Snitzel {Aus}) at 123. Following her Royal Ascot victory, Alpha Centauri (Ire) (Mastercraftsman {Ire}) is the highest rated sophomore filly in the world at 122 after winning the G1 Coronation S., the same score as MG1SW Harry Angel (Ire) (Dark Angel {Ire}), and Mendelssohn (Scat Daddy), as well as Saturday’s G1 Coral-Eclipse S. hero Roaring Lion (Kitten’s Joy) who beat G1 2000 Guineas winner Saxon Warrior (Jpn) (Deep Impact {Jpn}) (121). Blue Point (Ire) (Shamardal) is ranked a joint 22 with a score of 120 after landing the G1 King’s Stand S., also at Royal Ascot. View the full article

Fresh from delivering Royal Ascot’s most impressive performance in the G1 Coronation S., ‘TDN Rising Star’ Alpha Centauri (Ire) (Mastercraftsman {Ire}) takes to Newmarket’s July festival on Friday to continue her dominion in the G1 Tattersalls Falmouth S. Leaping forward off her prior success in the G1 Irish 1000 Guineas at The Curragh on May 27, the Niarchos homebred smashed the track record as she surged to a six-length defeat of Threading (Ire) (Exceed and Excel {Aus}) at the Royal meeting on June 22 and jockey Colm O’Donoghue said he sees no reason to expect a dropping of her momentum here. “She came out of Ascot well, thank god, and seems in very good form so I’m very much looking forward to it,” he said. “I was always very comfortable throughout the Coronation, it was just a matter of how the race unfolded. She’d always shown us an immense amount of ability so I wasn’t surprised she could travel through it like that. Obviously because of how strong the field that she beat looked, it was really very impressive. She’s very mature now, Mrs Harrington has given her all the time in the world and it has stood her in great stead.” Interestingly, the last filly to win the Irish Guineas and Coronation and attempt to follow up here was Attraction (GB) (Efisio {GB}) in 2004 and she was turned over at 4-5 by Soviet Song (Ire) (Marju {Ire}). Her trainer Mark Johnston has no pressure this time as he saddles Threading, whose two below-par career efforts came here when seventh in both the G1 Cheveley Park S. behind Clemmie (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) and in the G3 Nell Gwyn S. on Apr. 19, and also the impressive May 27 G2 German 1000 Guineas winner Nyaleti (Ire) (Arch). “The Coronation S. was a great run by Threading, bar the fact that one horse absolutely trounced her,” he said. “There is some hope that Threading can improve upon her Ascot effort, but the main reason for declaring her is that one should never run away from one horse. It is obviously a concern that Threading’s two worst runs have been at Newmarket, albeit on the Rowley Mile rather than the July Course, and I have no idea why that might be. I don’t think that the form of Nyaleti’s win in the German Guineas was particularly strong and it may have been overrated. That said, I also think that many of Nyaleti’s other performances have been underrated, such as when she beat the Derby winner, Masar, at last year’s Royal Ascot, or when she finished half a length behind another Classic winner, Laurens. I will not be at all surprised if Nyaleti finishes in the first three on Friday and, in the longer term, this race fits nicely into her schedule en route to the [Aug. 11 GI] Beverly D S.” Supporting Cast… The younger fillies get their turn in the G2 Duchess of Cambridge S., with Saif Ali’s unbeaten Main Edition (Ire) (Zoffany {Ire}) met again by La Pelosa (Ire) (Dandy Man {Ire}) who got closest to her in the G3 Albany S. at Royal Ascot on June 22. That looks the strongest piece of juvenile fillies’ form around and the fourth and fifth Angel’s Hideaway (Ire) (Dark Angel {Ire}) and Pretty Pollyanna (GB) (Oasis Dream {GB}) are also in attendance. George Strawbridge’s progressive 3-year-old colt Wissahickon (Tapit), a John Gosden-trained half-brother to Rainbow View (Dynaformer), takes in the valuable 10-furlong handicap at the track, while at York Uncle Mo’s half-sister Could It Be Love (War Front) tries again during an industrious period dropping to six furlongs for the G3 Summer S. View the full article

Former three-time leading rider, Carol Cedeno set the record for most wins by a jockey on a single Delaware Park card by notching seven victories July 11. View the full article

In this continuing series, Alan Carasso takes a look ahead at US-bred and/or conceived runners entered for the upcoming weekend at the tracks on the Japan Racing Association circuit, with a focus on pedigree and/or performance in the sales ring. Here are the horses of interest for this weekend running at Chukyo, Fukushima and Hakodate Racecourses, with a couple of nicely bred juveniles facing the starter for the first time. Saturday, July 14, 2018 5th-HAK, ¥13,400,000 ($119k), Newcomers, 2yo, 1200mT CHELSEA LION (c, 2, Malibu Moon–Tashzara {Ire}, by Intikhab), a $180K graduate of last year’s KEESEP sale, is a maternal grandson of Sun Shower (Ire) (Indian Ridge {Ire}), whose distinguished produce include treble G1SW and champion Excelebration (Ire) (Exceed and Excel {Aus}), recent G1 Tattersalls Gold Cup winner Lancaster Bomber (War Front) and MGSW Mull of Killough (Ire) (Mull of Kintyre). Chelsea Lion’s dam was acquired privately by Spendthrift after being RNAd for $385K in foal to Giant’s Causeway at KEENOV in 2014. B-Spendthrift Farm LLC (KY) 5th-FUK, ¥13,400,000 ($119k), Newcomers, 2yo, 1200mT LITTLE MONSTER (f, 2, Into Mischief–Pashmina, by Pentelicus) is a half-sister to the talented five-time stakes-winning sprinter Pashito the Che (Flatter) and to MSP Bling (Horse Chestnut {SAf}) and blossomed into a $375K KEESEP yearling after realizing $85K at the OBS Winter Mixed Sale. Her MSW & MGSP third dam Flying Heat (Private Account) produced GISW Pompeii (Broad Brush) and GSWs Ground Storm (Summer Squall) and Omi (Wild Again). B-Off the Hook Partners LLC & Farm III Enterprises LLC (FL) 10th-CKO, ¥28,600,000 ($254k), Allowance, 3yo/up, 1900m VIEL SPASS (c, 3, Kitten’s Joy–Mighty Renee, by Maria’s Mon) cost the Maeda family’s North Hills Co. Ltd. $180K as a KEESEP yearling in 2016, broke his maiden at second asking (gate 8) last fall and subsequently finished third to recent Japan Dirt Derby hero Le Vent Se Leve (Jpn) (Symboli Kris S) in allowance company a couple weeks later. Second in a listed event last October, the half to GSW Mighty Caroline (Stormy Atlantic) and MSW Cyclogenesis (Stormy Atlantic) returned with a solid fourth at that level May 20. The Maedas also campaign Kitten’s Joy’s Japanese GSW & G1SP Gendarme. B-Sierra Farm (KY) Sunday, July 15, 2018 10th-HAK, ¥28,600,000 ($254k), Allowance, 3yo/up, 2600mT Fresh off a 20-1 upset of allowance foes over 1800m at this track June 30 (video, gate 3), HOLIDAY MODE (c, 3, Point of Entry–Ski Holiday, by Harlan’s Holiday) goes right back to work over this staying trip. His SW & GSP dam was purchased by this breeder for $130K carrying this foal in utero at KEENOV in 2014 and his third dam Creaking Board (GB) (Night Shift) was Group 2-placed in France before winning the GI Hollywood Starlet S. in 1992. B-Shimokobe Farm (KY) View the full article

G1 Queen of the Turf S. winner Foxplay (Aus) (Foxwedge {Aus}) has been sold by Star Thoroughbreds to Yuesheng Zhang’s Yulong Investments, which is building up a significant breeding operation Down Under. Trained by Chris Waller for an all- womens’ partnership, Foxplay won the G2 Furious S. and G2 Tea Rose S. in the spring of her 3-year-old campaign. She returned as an autumn 4-year-old to win the G2 Phar Lap S. and the Queen of the Turf, and posted one of her most memorable performances when nearly holding off stablemate Winx (Aus) (Street Cry {Ire}) when second by a quarter length in the G2 Warwick S. last August. View the full article

Boasting the best form after being second to Calyx (GB) (Kingman {GB}) in the G2 Coventry S. at Royal Ascot June 19, Phoenix Thoroughbred Limited’s Advertise (GB) (Showcasing {GB}) justified 11-10 favouritism in straightforward fashion under Frankie Dettori in Thursday’s G2 Arqana July S. at Newmarket. Held up with one behind early as Ballydoyle ensured a strong pace, the bay was delivered to lead approaching the furlong pole and readily assert for a two-length defeat of Konchek (GB) (Lethal Force {Ire}), with Charming Kid (GB) (Charm Spirit {Ire}) a neck away in third. “He’s a lovely horse and he won with a bit in hand,” his rider said. “He has a turn of foot and I was very impressed–the key to this horse is a strong pace and he got that today.” Trainer Martyn Meade added, “He’s done everything right at home since Ascot, but you never know until they get to the racetrack. He takes a bit of time to get going and we were tossing the idea around about going for the Superlative, as seven furlongs is his trip, but he can cope with this.” ADVERTISE (GB), 126, c, 2, Showcasing (GB)–Furbelow (GB), by Pivotal (GB). (£60,000 Ylg ’17 GOUKPR). O-Phoenix Thoroughbred Ltd 1; B-Cheveley Park Stud Ltd (GB); T-Martyn Meade; J-Lanfranco Dettori. £45,368. Lifetime Record: 3-2-1-0, £84,087. View the full article

It seems Joao Moreira is in an impossible position but Zac Purton knows his rival still has some tricks up his sleeve and won’t rest until it is mathematically impossible for the Magic Man to steal the 2017-18 jockeys’ championship from his grasp. Purton’s double at Happy Valley on Wednesday night pulled him four clear in the championship but because the Australian holds a clear advantage in the number of seconds – which will be used to separate the pair in the event of... View the full article

Fortune Anthem featured heavily in the stewards’ report but he looks like a horse worth following after his debut at Happy Valley on Wednesday night. The David Hall-trained three-year-old had shown some gate speed in all four of his barrier trials ahead of his first run, but with an expected strong tempo, connections were keen to find cover early from the outside barrier in the Class Four Kings Falcon Handicap (1,000m). Jockey Sam Clipperton settled towards the tail of the field, finding... View the full article

JAMES DOYLE is firmly established as one of the best and one of the most sought-after riders in the weighing room. The Godolphin jockey already has a string of big-race successes to his name and will be seeking to add more to that list at Newmarket’s July festival, including on Dreamfield in the July Cup on Saturday. We spoke to Doyle about his rides this week and got an update on some of the star names he has been associated with in 2018. The three-day July festival kicks off on Thursday. What is it like riding close to home at Newmarket? It’s handy for us as it’s just up the road and we tend to arrive there nice and fresh as there’s no travelling involved. A lot of the jockeys, trainers and horses are more relaxed during the week as a result. It’s a straightforward course to ride with the Dip not being as big as it is at the Rowley Mile. It’s an easy track and a good meeting to ride at. Your biggest ride of the week is on Dreamfield in the July Cup. He was narrowly beaten in the Wokingham last time as the hot favourite, what did you make of that performance? He was pretty impressive even though he was beaten at Royal Ascot. Both myself and Mr Gosden made it clear we thought he was a ridiculously short price, and he nearly made us look quite silly as he ran a mighty race. He did very well to get so close. He was drawn on the unfavourable part of the track on the far side and he had to race alone for much of the race as he had so much more speed than the other horses around him. He was inexperienced at the end and drifted over for some company, so he’ll have improved for that experience which should help him at Newmarket. It was a helluva run in the Wokingham, I thought. The Wokingham is a handicap, the July Cup is a Group 1. How do you think he will handle the transition? He needs to raise his game, on ratings anyway. Blue Point sets a very high standard and he’s the one we’re all going to have to try and beat. In our favour is the fact Mr Gosden is prepared to pitch him into a race like this. That suggests he’s seen something from him at home. It’s interesting and it’s exciting. On Saturday you are also riding Blown By Wind in the Superlative Stakes. What do you make of his chances? He ran well in the Coventry having got a bit further back than ideal. He was a good second, albeit a distant one, to Calyx on our side. He was okay when he won at Pontefract last time and I’ve spoken to his rider that day, Franny Norton, who felt the quick ground maybe wasn’t what he really wanted. That’s obviously a bit of a worry given we’ve had so little rain in Newmarket. I do think the step up in trip is going to be helpful to him. Main Edition, who you won the Albany on, looks an exciting ride. Do you think she is the one to beat in the Duchess of Cambridge Stakes on Friday? I’m really looking forward to her. She had to do it all her own way at Ascot and she did it really well. La Pelosa had a good crack at her but we had plenty up our sleeve and won nicely in the end. I thought it was a good performance and I think she goes into Friday’s race as the one to beat. You start the meeting off on Thursday with Caliburn in the Bahrain Trophy. How do you think he will get on? The race fell apart for him the last day but he won really well and he gave me a nice feel in the process. He’s a lovely, straightforward horse and he showed me that he got the trip well that day. It’s a marginal step up so that’ll be fine as all he did was keep galloping on. He needs to step up on what he’s done but I think he can. And of your other rides this week, who are you most looking forward to? I think Roussel’s (3.00) an interesting runner on Thursday. He ran a nice race in the Commonwealth Cup when he was only beaten just over four lengths. He obviously drops down in grade for this so I think I can see him running a very good race. He’s always shown us a good bit at home. While we have you, can we get your thoughts on some of your recent big-race winners – starting with Poet’s Word. What did you make of his Royal Ascot victory? Things weren’t in Cracksman’s favour that day but we both drew a long way clear of Hawkbill in third, and he’s a dual Group 1 winner. I don’t see why he can’t go on and make a real impact in other big races through the rest of the season. He was knocking on the door in those sort of races before the breakthrough and he looks to have stepped forward again, as Sir Michael Stoute’s horses so often do. We have not seen Addeybb since he was beaten in the Lockinge Stakes. How are things with him? The ground was against him at Newbury and there was a massive draw bias against him as well. I’d put a line through that performance and he’s shown how good he can be when the ground has some ease in it. Something like the QEII on Champions Day would be right up his street. And, finally, what is the plan with Young Rascal, who was well-fancied but ultimately well-beaten in the Derby? He wasn’t 100 per cent after the race but there wasn’t enough wrong with him to explain his performance entirely. We were caught quite wide and when you’re three horses wide and the others are close to the rail it makes life pretty difficult. He got stuck and didn’t get his act together, which was a surprise given how professional he was at Chester. I can’t wait to ride him again though. I’m not sure what the plan is with him – whether he goes for the Great Voltigeur next or the St Leger – but he’s a very talented horse. The post James Doyle previews the Newmarket July Meeting appeared first on RaceBets Blog EN. View the full article

The Group 2 Duchess of Cambridge Stakes is the first black type race on day 2 of the July meeting, where Mark Johnston’s Main Edition looks likely to start favourite. The daughter of Zoffany is unbeaten in three racecourse appearances including when a game winner of the Albany. Charlie Appleby’s Le Pelosa was the victim of Main Edition success in the Albany when going down by a mere neck. Bearing in mind that this was only her second racecourse appearance, with was a run full of merit. The daughter of Dandy Man has also previously clashed with Chaleur who she beat by 3 lengths on debut at Kempton. Ralph Beckett’s Chaleur has since franked the form by comfortably winning a Leicester novice event. It will be intriguing to see if Le Pelosa can frank the form with the well-bred Kalud Abdullah owned filly. Others of note are the Aidan O’Brien trained Gossamer Wings along with Albany fourth and fifth Angel’s Hideaway and Pretty Pollyanna. Selection: Le Pelosa A competitive 1m 2f handicap breaks up the two Group races and once again it’s a race that Mark Johnston has a prolific record in having won three of the last four renewals. It’s hardly surprising given his enviable record with three-year-olds. Poet’s Voice and Communique are his two representatives this year and will have the able assistance of Joe Fanning and Champion jockey Silvestre De Sousa respectively. Both disappointed when last seen at York and in truth need to show improved form to feature. The ante-post mover in the race has been Sir Michael Stoute’s Zaaki, he finished a close up third behind Hunting Horn when last seen in the Hampton Court Stakes at the Royal meeting. Hunting Horn didn’t hurt the form when running well in Belmont last weekend and he must be a threat to all concerned. Wissahickon is the current favourite for the race and John Gosden’s inmate justifiably heads the market. The American bred colt is three from four on his career and seems to be on a real upward curve following a snug victory last time out at York. Selection: Zaaki The Group 1 Falmouth Stakes is the feature race and has been won by some Queens of the turf over the years including dual winner Soviet Song, Goldikova and more recently Roly Poly. Seven horses are set to emulate some of these greats, with the field headed by Godolphin’s outsider Arabian Hope. The red-hot favourite for the race is Jessica Harrington’s 1000 Guineas and Coronation Stakes winner Alpha Centauri. The manner in which she won the Coronation Stakes was so impressive and she broke the track record in the process. She has her favoured quick underfoot conditions again on Friday and it’s very hard to see past her. Threading who was trailing in the wake of Alpha Centauri in the Coronations Stakes re-opposes here but I really can’t see her over-hauling a six-length margin. In reality, the biggest threat to Jessica Harrington’s stable star could come from Clemmie. Aidan O’Brien’s filly was the Champion European two-year-old last season following victory in the Group 1 Cheveley Park Stakes. She’s been beaten on both starts this season behind Alpha Centauri but if she could recapture some of the top tier form that she showed last season, she may just be the surprise package. Selection: Alpha Centauri The post Newmarket July Meeting Preview – Day 2 appeared first on RaceBets Blog EN. View the full article

Draft Pick could be well positioned to capitalize in lucrative stakes races in the East, but first comes a start at home in the $150,000 Los Alamitos Derby (G3) July 14. View the full article

No Horseshoe luck at the barriers for Le Grange View the full article

Curatolo believes Lightning can strike twice View the full article

Emirates Singapore Derby post position draw reactions View the full article

Peters hopes Golden Horseshoe fits for Mr Hooper View the full article

Emirates Singapore Derby 2018 Post Position Draw View the full article

What is The Thoroughbred Idea Foundation (TIF)? According to the press release announcing its formation, it has been established to create an active forum for the exchange and curation of ideas which will improve the overall prospects for the Thoroughbred industry, its stakeholders, and fundamentally, the horse. Those are huge goals and the person running the ship will be Patrick Cummings, formerly the executive manager of public affairs for the Hong Kong Jockey Club. He will be the executive director of TIF and starts his new job August 1. Cummings was a recent guest on the Thoroughbred Daily News podcast, brought to you by Taylor Made. Excerpts from that podcast appear below. TDN: Many people don’t know what the Thoroughbred Idea Foundation is, how it will work or what its goals are. Can you please explain? PC: There is a reason for that, because we are truly just getting started. This is the brainchild of Craig Bernick, who wanted to start something that is completely different. He has sat on many of the boards of the industry organizations that are out there, he’s been in the meetings and was of the opinion that the complex ideas–and even the simple ones–aren’t getting completed. The sport is not improving as it should be. It should be growing and it should be more innovative. It got to the point where Craig said the heck with it, I’m going to start something on my own. He assembled a tremendous board of nine people coming from all areas of the industry. Too often like-minded people in racing go to their like-minded corner and talk about like-minded topics and reiterate those same talking points. We have people coming from many different areas. For example, we have Paul Matties, who is a significant bettor. The extreme opposite is Gary Stevens. It’s a very diverse board and the goal is to bring together active people who want to change the sport for the better. What we won’t be doing is talking about the pie in the sky or these lofty issues that are seemingly impossible to fix. The goal for us is to take issues that can be tackled and work within racing’s existing infrastructure. For us, the state of North American Thoroughbred racing can be summed in three main statistics over the last decade or so: handle is down roughly 20%; foal crops are down almost 40%; the number of races being run is down about 25%. If you take those three big factors and say what has happened, you have to ask yourself what are we doing to stop this? We’re starting from scratch. We want to take this venture from nothing to try to inspire the industry and advocate for change. I’m very excited to be coming home to do it. TDN: It sounds like this will be a horse racing think tank. You want good ideas that will help the industry. Where will they come from? How will they be formed? PC: You hit the nail on the head. Our new website will be racingthinktank.com. The ideas are not just coming from the board or from me. We are going to solicit input from anyone, industry stakeholders, fans, gamblers. A good idea can come from anywhere in this sport, just like a good horse can come from anywhere. But it’s about time that we started to curate those ideas and work together. A lot of people criticize what goes on in the social media landscape, but there are a lot of good ideas out there that get tossed about. It’s just that very little gets done. What we’re hoping to do is take some of these ideas, curate those ideas, have people submit ideas through racingthinktank.com and go from there. One of the heartening things about this is that once it was announced that I was coming back from Hong Kong to lead the organization, I had four different racing executives–and two from particularly big tracks–reach out and say how can we work with you? I think the industry is ready for this. A lot of people are exhausted and there is a lot of industrial malaise when it comes to talking about these very large issues, like Lasix, medication rules and state regulations. Those are not the types of things we are interested in tackling. We are looking for some simple solutions, for some broken windows and certainly some bigger fixes. The thing is, they’re out there. TDN: Perhaps coming up with good ideas isn’t even the hard part. If you come up with something innovative and positive, will people in a sport that is notorious for not changing listen to you? Does that worry you? PC: Yes. Horse racing is full of losers. By that I mean, there are far more losers in horse racing than in any other sport. It’s significantly different than any team sports that are out there. In the team sports, one team loses, one team wins. Half of the people, half of the fans, half of the sides are gratified; the other half are not. On any race day, the majority of people walk away as losers. You have to deal with a lot of losing in horse racing. So when topics arise where there is no easy way to win, people just fight. People fight tooth and nail to come up with any victory that they can–even when it’s obvious that changing something is vital. I keep going back to the numbers. Handle down, foal crops down, total races run down. Can we afford to keep doing the same thing and not try something different? We really have to. We’re going to approach this positively and very inclusively and see if changes can’t be derived. Frankly, we just have to try. We know most people want to reject change in racing, but we just can’t afford to anymore. TDN: If I wanted to bet on tonight’s Yankees/Orioles game, there is a wealth of information available to me about the teams, the pitchers, how they match up, who can and cannot hit left-handed pitching, on-base percentages, etc.. And it’s all free. Not only does racing not have nearly as much data available, but whatever data is available is not free. In fact, it’s quite expensive. How can racing compete with other forms of gambling that give data away when we charge an arm and a leg for ours? PC: This is an important point and something we want to tackle. We want to work with Equibase to come to a resolution and advocate for players as a whole. Of course, Equibase is partially owned by the racetracks and you would think the racetracks would want their customers to have as much information as possible. But it seems they more want the money that comes from the data more than they want people to have free access to it. Free access to the information could potentially yield greater play. You have to try some things first to see if that would work. I agree wholeheartedly that other sports are doing a far better job than what we are doing in America from a racing perspective. There are so many statistical programs and analytics experts out there. I would have to think a lot of people would like to get their hands on racing data, but they don’t have the opportunity to do so in an easily accessible format. There’s so much more that racing could have. I understand that there are limits and there are expenses associated with acquiring that data. Call me crazy but I could go to a racetrack and I could sit there in the stands and chart the races myself. The fact that any particular horse ran first, second or third doesn’t seem to me to be proprietary information that someone should pay for. It almost seems like it’s a public event that has taken place. I could chart the races myself, but Equibase does it for us. But the basic results should be widely available and they aren’t. That’s very frustrating to the modern player who is looking for as much information as possible. I’d like to posit maybe the opposite. What would happen if we unshackled the data and invited teams from universities to come in and have at it? Let people run wild with it and see what they can come up with on their own and then see what the impact on handle would be. Try to invite people to come in. The opportunity would be fantastic to take this age of analytics and apply it to racing. Let’s take the shackles off. View the full article

The Breeders’ Cup has announced the election results to Board of Directors by the 44 Breeders’ Cup Members. Elliott Walden, WinStar Farm; Gavin Murphy, SF Bloodstock; Barbara Banke, Stonestreet Stables and Walker Hancock, Claiborne Farm were each elected to serve a four-year term. Banke and Walden were re-elected as Directors. William S. Farish, Jr., Lane’s End Farm and Alex Solis II, Solis/Litt Bloodstock were each elected to serve a three-year term. Farish was re-elected as a Director. Dan Pride, Godolphin, was re-elected and will fill a one-year term. The terms were filled in descending order based upon the number of votes cast for each candidate. Following the election, the Board of 14 Directors is as follows: Barbara Banke, Stonestreet Stables; Antony Beck, Gainesway Farm; William S. Farish, Jr., Lane’s End Farm; Craig Fravel, President & CEO of the Breeders’ Cup; Walker Hancock, Claiborne Farm; Fred Hertrich (Chairman), Watercress Farm; Bret Jones, Airdrie Stud; Anthony Manganaro, Siena Farm; Clem Murphy, Coolmore Stud; Gavin Murphy, SF Bloodstock; Dan Pride, Godolphin; Mike Rogers, The Stronach Group; Alex Solis II, Solis/Litt Bloodstock and Elliott Walden, WinStar Farm. “We welcome new Directors Walker Hancock, Gavin Murphy and Alex Solis II to the Breeders’ Cup Board and congratulate Barbara Banke, Bill Farish, Dan Pride and Elliott Walden on their re-election,” said Fred Hertrich III, Breeders’ Cup Chairman. “On behalf of all of us, we also extend our great thanks and appreciation to Craig Bernick, Bobby Flay and Roy Jackson for their commitment to the Breeders’ Cup during their time as Directors.” View the full article

Unknown to most of the racing world heading into a sweltering mid-June night at Churchill, Thomas Conway’s King Zachary (Curlin) announced his arrival emphatically under those Twin Spires with a 4 3/4-length score in the GIII Matt Winn S. Under the lights once more this Saturday at Indiana Grand, the pricey chestnut will look to solidify his credentials as a dangerous second-half sophomore when going postward as the likely favorite in the GIII Indiana Derby. Bought for $550,000 as a Keeneland September yearling, King Zachary broke his maiden by 7 3/4 lengths third out Mar. 18 at Gulfstream, but was a non-factor sixth when stepped up into the GII Wood Memorial Apr. 7 at Aqueduct. Narrowly victorious in a sloppy Churchill allowance May 5, he ran away with the Matt Winn at over 12-1. “He’s a good horse, just coming into his own,” trainer Dale Romans told the Indiana Grand notes team. “I think the Matt Winn is going to be his breakthrough race. He came out of there training like a man, like he’s figured the game out. I think he’ll just keep moving forward. I look for him to run a huge race.” The third and fourth-place finishers from the June 23 GIII Ohio Derby return in this spot. Brinley Enterprises’ Trigger Warning (Candy Ride {Arg}) broke through at the stakes level in the Tom Ridge S. May 21 at Presque Isle and nearly pulled off a shocking upset at Thistledown, leading into deep stretch at 86-1 before just succumbing to be third. Charles Fipke’s Title Ready (More Than Ready), not particularly fancied that day either at 15-1, also hung in through the lane to be fourth, beaten just 1 1/2 lengths for the money. Sharon Alesia, Mike Burns, Ciaglia Racing and Robin Christensen’s Dark Vader (Tale of Ekati) is a progressive sort who merits attention. Third as a maiden at 36-1 in the GIII Robert B. Lewis S. over the winter, the $150,000 OBS March pickup earned his diploma with a 95 Beyer May 11 at Santa Anita, and validated that effort with a narrow third in the Easy Goer S. last out June 9 at Belmont. Calumet Farm’s Funny Duck (Distorted Humor) will look to turn the tables after finishing a well-beaten fourth behind King Zachary in the Matt Winn. Prior to that, the chestnut scored a near 40-1 shocker in the GIII Pat Day Mile May 5 at Churchill. View the full article

Grade 2 winner Untamed Domain will try to secure his first win of the season July 14, when he starts at Delaware Park for the first time in the $200,000 Kent Stakes (G3T), a 1 1/8-mile turf race that has attracted nine 3-year-olds. View the full article

Grade 2 winner Untamed Domain will try to secure his first win of the season July 14, when he starts at Delaware Park for the first time in the $200,000 Kent Stakes (G3T), a 1 1/8-mile turf race that has attracted nine 3-year-olds. View the full article