Wandering Eyes

Derma Louvre, the points leader among Triple Crown nominees in the Japanese prep races, is targeting the Kentucky Derby Presented by Woodford Reserve (G1) View the full article

MUCHO (c, 3, Blame–Extent, by Pulpit) had to work a bit more for it than his 1-2 odds suggested he might have needed to, but the ‘TDN Rising Star‘ kicked off his sophomore season on a winning note Friday at Gulfstream. Second on debut at Belmont last June, the homebred aired by 9 3/4 lengths in fast time to don cap and gown at Saratoga in August. He’d last been seen finishing a close second to Mind Control (Stay Thirsty) as the favorite in the Spa’s Sept. 3 GI Hopeful S., but exited that event with an ankle issue. Mucho had fired three straight bullet breezes at trainer Bill Mott’s Payson Park base for this, but broke a half-step slow from the rail and was briefly shuffled back before pilot Jose Ortiz pushed him through to sit third. Impressive debut winner Lutsky (Yes It’s True) showed the way with Releasethethunder (More Than Ready) in hot pursuit, but by midway on the turn Mucho had caught up to that pair while three deep. They hit the quarter pole in :45.53, and Mucho began to inch away from his rivals in the lane, ultimately crossing the wire about 1 1/4 lengths to the good of Releasethethunder in 1:10.35. Lutsky held on for third. The winner is a half to fellow Mott trainee Size (First Samurai), GSW, $212,453, the 2-year-old colt Extreme (Speightstown); and a yearling colt by Curlin. His dam, who hails from deep female family that includes the likes of Nureyev, Archipenko and Mucho’s sire Blame himself, was barren to Ghostzapper last breeding season. Lifetime Record: GISP, 4-2-2-0. O/B-Claiborne Farm & Adele B Dilschneider (Ky). T-William I Mott. View the full article

U S S MICHIGAN (c, 3, War Front–Photograph, by Unbridled’s Song) Lifetime Record: 2-1-1-0, €11,813. O-Susan Magnier, Michael Tabor, Derrick Smith & Joseph Allen; B-Joseph Allen, LLC (KY); T-Aidan O’Brien. Out early with time to catch up on, having been sidelined since finishing such an encouraging second on debut in a Curragh maiden over this six-furlong trip at the end of June, U S S Michigan was quickly away from his widest draw to race in second. In front when lugging right with 1 1/2 furlongs remaining, the 2-5 favourite stayed on to record a comfortable 2 1/2-length verdict over Royal Court (Ire) (Zoffany {Ire}). “He’s a very big, strong horse and he’s going to get better throughout the year,” jockey Ryan Moore commented. “He’s going to be a real progressive horse and he did everything right, so you’d have to be happy with that start.” Joseph Allen’s grey is a full-brother to the G3 Prix de Guiche scorer War Dispatch, who had the stamina to be third in the G1 Prix du Jockey Club behind New Bay (GB) (Dubawi {Ire}) and Highland Reel (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}). View the full article

Ed DeRosa of TwinSpires.com takes on TDN’s Steve Sherack and Brian DiDonato as they handicap each prep race leading up to the GI Kentucky Derby. The three will make $100 Win/Place bets-highest bankroll after Arkansas Derby/Lexington day wins. DeRosa: GIII Southwest S. – Long Range Toddy was third. Bankroll: $680. GII Fountain of Youth S. – The easy part of handicapping the Fountain of Youth was figuring out who I don’t like. Neither Hidden Scroll as the favorite nor Code of Honor or Signalman as two of the public’s likely alternatives interest me. The hard part was figuring out which horse to make my top selection among the remaining top contenders—Boubon War, Vekoma, or Global Campaign. I decided on Vekoma because he is the fastest of my preferred trio by virtue of his 101 Brisnet.com Speed Rating when winning the Nashua last year at Aqueduct. He’s been off nearly four months since then and makes his two-turn debut upon returning, but does get Lasix for the 3-year-old bow. The presence of Hidden Scroll ensures a square price on a horse who might otherwise have been an underlaid favorite. Selection: #5 Vekoma (7-2). Sherack: GIII Southwest S. – Jersey Agenda’s race was pretty much over after the fiasco on the clubhouse turn, but man, much deserved props to DiDonato for landing on that impossible winner. Bankroll: $580. GII Fountain of Youth S. – This race couldn’t have come up any tougher, but I’ve really been looking forward to betting back Bourbon War since his visually impressive optional claiming win through traffic over this track and trip Jan. 18. The son of Tapit showed some talent to win first out going a one-turn mile at the Big A last fall, then probably came back a little too soon for his own good when fourth in the GII Remsen S. Would’ve like to have seen more out of Cutting Humor in the GIII Southwest S. (was a well-beaten second to Bourbon War last time), but Bourbon War really looks like a horse that could be peaking at the right time and should offer plenty of value to boot. Selection: #4 Bourbon War (10-1). DiDonato: GIII Southwest S. – That was certainly one for the handicapping highlight reel, as Super Steed (+$8320) made a big turn move and held on at 62-1. Let’s keep the rest of these preps nice and chalky now, please. Bankroll: $9170. GII Fountain of Youth S. – This is a race that I think we’ll know a lot coming out of, but it’s hard to formulate a super strong opinion going into it as there are tons of questions to answer. I just really liked the way #4 Bourbon War sliced through horses last time. The well-bred cold seems as logical as any and his experience over the strip can’t hurt. Selection: #4 Bourbon War (10-1). Click here for Fountain of Youth Ultimate PPs from Brisnet.com. View the full article

As a large core of owners and trainers continue to hold firm on their stance to boycott meetings at racecourses run by Arena Racing Company (ARC) between March 6-8, five horses originally entered for Lingfield’s meeting on the first of those days have been scratched by trainers before final declarations. After the entry deadline was extended and then four of the races were reopened for entries, a total of 35 horses remain engaged for six races. When entries closed on Friday for the meeting at Southwell on March 7, 61 entries had been received for six races, 19 of which were from Scott Dixon, who trains at the track. Furthermore, there will be a walkover at Sedgefield on Sunday, where just one runner has been declared for the 2m1f handicap hurdle. All prize-money ‘won’ by Wazowski (GB), who is owned and trained by Donald McCain, will be donated to Jack Berry House in Malton, which is run by the Injured Jockeys Fund. “I’ve been asked to support it [the boycott] and I have,” McCain said. “This not just a new thing. ARC haven’t been putting enough money into the game for many years—it’s shameful.” McCain, whose yard has only recently reopened after being quarantined with four cases of Equine Influenza, added, “I’m in a position where I need to run horses. I’ve been out of the game for a long time but this can’t carry on. “I’m an employee—I work for my owners. Luckily I’ve got a very good bunch of owners, but it’s hard to look them in the eye and say we’re going to run their horse in a particular race and even if they win, after all the expenses, it will probably pay for two weeks’ training. It’s appalling.” Despite an announcement on Thursday that ARC, which is owned by Reuben Brothers, would redistribute funds from more valuable races to ensure that extra Levy funding was unlocked for races falling below the prize-money threshold, many owners and trainers remain of the opinion that ARC was too hasty in its announcement of prize-money cuts ahead of the FOBT minimum stake reduction coming into force in April. Daniel Kubler, who trains in Lambourn, said, “An overwhelming majority of trainers are behind this stance and certainly owners are behind the trainers as a whole. It’s important as there are obviously going to be changes in the funding system in the longer term but ARC in particular—though they are not the only ones—need to work together with the horsemen to put on a good show. While this is a drastic measure, for too long ARC have taken the view that they are many and we are few, and we have been in a weak bargaining position. But we need to have an equal partnership for a mutually beneficial outcome, and I would like to see the BHA work better with the horsemen, too.” Kubler’s Newmarket-based colleague Charlie Fellowes concurs with this view. He said, “Unity has never been easy to come by in racing but I’m encouraged that enough people clearly feel so strongly about this that we’ve been pushed and pushed and pushed to do something. “We’ve seen trainers big and small, owners, jockeys and agents all coming on board. A three-day boycott is pretty unprecedented and I hope this sends a message that we’re not going to be trampled on. I don’t know why but I’ve had more success abroad than I have had in England and the huge prize-money on offer abroad has kept me afloat. The situation here is disheartening and I feel sure that there are plenty of young trainers out there looking at this situation and wondering if they would be better off training elsewhere.” While racing looks likely still to go ahead on the days of the proposed boycott, albeit with small fields, one problem for the owners and trainers engaged in those races could come in finding jockeys to ride for them. Agent Tony Hind, who represents nine jockeys in the UK said, “I will not be putting any one of my jockeys on any horse in any of those races until the trainers get a deal from ARC that they can accept.” His feelings were echoed by jockey Stevie Donohue, who said, “I’m not going to take up any engagements and I’ve spoken with a lot of other jockeys who feel the same way. We need to support the trainers and take a short-term hit to hopefully make things better down the road.” He added, “I can understand that some people might need to honour commitments to their stable or to a certain owner but on the whole we need to take a stand here. At the end of the day jockeys will be losing out on those days but this is for the greater good. I’m fully behind it and it didn’t take much to convince most of the lads to get behind this and stick together.” View the full article

Whether its International racing or Uk and Irish action you are after we cover it all and have Daily Horse Racing offers available for you to get involved in. Check out today’s Horse Racing Offers below. UK Horse Racing Offer – Money Back All Losers if the Favourite Wins! On one race every day we […] The post Daily Horse Racing Offers – Saturday 2nd March appeared first on RaceBets Blog EN. View the full article

Back at Gulfstream Park, Tyler Gaffalione is scheduled to ride Epic Racing's Valedictorian one in the $150,000 Honey Fox Stakes (G3T). View the full article

Derma Louvre (JPN), the points leader among Triple Crown nominees in the Japanese prep races, is targeting the Kentucky Derby Presented by Woodford Reserve (G1) View the full article

Ryota Sensui, the senior manager of the Japan Racing Association's office in Stamford, Conn., says that Japanese owners and trainers are open to participating in the new races due to their summertime scheduling and large purses. View the full article

It was fantastic to have runners again this week and get back into the routine of racing. Obviously it has been a very tough time for everyone here at Bankhouse and I must thank all my staff who’ve been brilliant through it all. I was hoping that Constancio would win at Musselburgh yesterday but the […] The post Donald McCain Blog – Weekend Runners & More appeared first on RaceBets Blog EN. View the full article

The 3-year-old. Racing lays down its greatest challenges for the 3-year-old, the age when all the Classics are contested. It’s the most competitive time in a horse’s career when most are still racing and all have had adequate time to mature. Moreover, the modern bloodstock market demands at the very least that stallions produce talented offspring no later than at the age of three. So why don’t we see more stallion classifications for sophomores, just like we do for juveniles? Here we have such a list, but confined to young British and Irish sires to focus on some rising stars. The leaders on our classification are just the types to deliver Classic winners that will go on improving as they get older. Plenty are already recognisable for their endeavours, but there are a few surprises as well. Frankel (GB) needs no introduction. Armed with the very best mares, he’s certainly delivered statistically. The only gap–if you can even call it a gap–is the lack of more racehorses approaching the class of Cracksman. But with outstanding crops in the pipeline, that anomaly is sure to be taken care of in due course. Darley’s Farhh (GB), whose mare numbers are controlled to help his fertility, made a big impression with relatively few runners. His eight 100-plus rated from only 22 runners were produced at a far better rate (36%) that was expected from his mares, who have produced 13% Timeform 100-plus rated runners with other sires. Lope de Vega (Ire), meanwhile, is a bit of a surprise here, but only because his best-bred crop–produced on the back of the strong showing of his first 2-year-olds–is only three this season. His number of elite mares went from 35 in 2014 to 135 in 2015 and has stayed well over 100 ever since. We can expect even greater things from the son of Shamardal in the coming years. Like Farhh, he’s also outscoring his opportunities, as is Cheveley Park’s Intello (Ger), whose young career is epitomised by Young Rascal (Fr), who improved all year in 2018 to earn a Timeform rating of 125, the same mark as the Derby winner Masar (GB). Like Frankel, Sea The Stars (Ire) has enjoyed top-class patronage from the outset and he’s delivering the type of racehorse that perhaps only his half-brother Galileo (Ire) can do better: a top-class mid-season middle-distance 3-year-old that just keeps on improving. It should come as no surprise to see Nathaniel (Ire) feature prominently. Middle-distance runners were always going to be his game and they don’t come much better than the 134-rated Enable (GB). His number of elite mares covered rebounded significantly in 2018 and a fee rise for 2019 tells us all we need to know about the popularity of this 129-rated Group 1-winning son of Galileo. Coolmore’s Camelot (GB) is also a sire destined to thrive as his stock mature. He’s made such a positive impression with his first 3-year-olds that his number of elite mares in 2019 ought to get back to the levels of 2014 when he served no fewer than 105. But this son of Montjeu will see plenty of consistency with 99, 84 and 75 elite mares in crops two, three and four. It doesn’t take too much imagination to see the G1 2000 Guineas and G1 Investec Derby winner coming up with a tip-top performer or two in the coming seasons. If Farhh was a surprise entry on our table, then Cityscape (GB) certainly is. Standing at just £5,000, this 127-rated son of the top-class Selkirk clearly demands more attention after siring such good racehorses from limited opportunities. He covered only 12 elite mares in 2014, his first season at stud, compared to Frankel (122), Sea The Stars (77), Intello (73), Lope de Vega (35) and Farhh (27). In fact, all the sires on our list have had far greater access to elite mares. Like any sire with a future claim to greatness, Cityscape improves his mares no end. It’s a hugely significant effort on the part of the Overbury stallion. View the full article

Ireland will impose stricter whip rules following a significant rise in the number of offences last year. Whip offences in Ireland increased by 26% to 213 last year, and while the Irish Horseracing Regulatory Board hasn’t yet rolled out the new rules, it has said they will bring Ireland closer in line with Britain, where seven strikes are permitted on the flat and eight over jumps. Denis Egan, IHRB chief executive, said the number of offences last year were at levels last seen prior to 2013, when the last set of new rules were released. “The IHRB will be introducing more stringent whip rules in the coming months and for the first time there will be a restriction on the number of strikes allowed,” he said. “There will also be higher penalties for frequent offenders.” View the full article

Newbury Greatwood Veterans’ Handicap Chase This race like many of these veteran races is filled with fan favourites. The ex Irish horse Abolitionist heads the market following a runaway victory on his first for Dr Richard Newland. That was his first start in over a year and with Dr Newland giving his newest charge plenty […] The post Saturday Preview – Getaway To Trump Rivals At Kelso appeared first on RaceBets Blog EN. View the full article

Winx will run in Saturday’s Chipping Norton Stakes and, barring misfortune, seems assured of a world record 23rd Group One win and her 31st consecutive victory. View the full article

It was not until after entries came out on Monday that jockey Neil Callan received a call from left field asking him to ride one of the leading Hong Kong Derby hopefuls in his final hit-out on Saturday.The call came from champion trainer John Size, inquiring about Callan’s availability to ride Enrichment in the Class Two Lion City Handicap (1,800m).While the Irishman had prior engagements, he admits he was happy to accommodate Size and ride the last-start winner.“I think if you ask most people,… View the full article

John Moore’s Uncle Steve had to lug the proverbial weight of the Sha Tin grandstand on debut last month as legendary jockey Douglas Whyte’s last ever ride and performed admirably in what was a competitive field.With Whyte now overseas studying ahead of his transition to becoming trainer, the four-year-old returns to the races with Italian jockey Umberto Rispoli to ride.Rispoli saw first-hand that day what the European import was capable of when Whyte flew past him with a rails run, leaving him… View the full article

Hong Kong owners will have more opportunities to import previously raced horses, potentially at a lesser cost, after the Jockey Club reduced the minimum required rating from 70 to 68.The move comes as the Jockey Club opened the 2019 Horse Ballot on Friday morning with 440 permits up for grabs to members, 150 of them for Private Purchases (previously raced horses).The Jockey Club raised the minimum required rating for PPs from 65 to 70 in 2015-16, as well as removing the prize money criterion,… View the full article

After being closed since 9 a.m. Monday morning, the main track at Santa Anita re-opened Thursday and there were no incidents or reports of serious injuries during training hours. Yesterday also marked the return of racing to Santa Anita after three regularly scheduled dark days and the races were also concluded without any reported incidents. The track has been closed so tests could be taken to see if experts could find any specific problems with the racing surface. Nineteen horses have died at Santa Anita since Dec. 26, either during races or during training hours. The most notable horse among the group was 2017 GI Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile winner Battle of Midway (Smart Strike). The green light was given to resume training after the track was inspected by a team headed by racetrack surface expert. Mick Peterson, the director of the University of Kentucky’s Agricultural Equine Program. “Things went well during training,” Peterson said. “Everything is progressing positively and everything looks good. Santa Anita management is being proactive and they’re not taking this lightly. That’s when I get worried, when a track has been complacent and that isn’t the case here at all.” Retired jockey Alex Solis, who doubles and as an exercise rider and a Member of the Board of Directors of the California Horse Racing Board, echoed Peterson’s sentiments. “It went very well this morning,” Solis said.. “I thought they did a great job. I was very satisfied with the track and with the way the horses were moving this morning. We’re all trying to find solutions. I worked two horses around the racetrack and I galloped two others and was very satisfied with it. At this point, you don’t sense that there’s anything wrong with the track. Before it was inconsistent because they had to seal the track and open it up because of all the bad weather we’ve had. You never know what’s going to happen when that happens.” Trainers did not appear to shy away from normal work schedules as there were 45 recorded works on the main track. Bob Baffert sent out two of his better horses. GI Starlet S. winner Chasing Yesterday (Tapit), worked six furlongs in 1:12.40 (video). Mucho Gusto (Mucho Macho Man), who is among Baffert’s top contenders for the GI Kentucky Derby, also worked, going a half-mile in :47.60 (see related story). Peterson, who has done extensive tests, has not been able to find anything wrong with the track. “We’re not seeing anything wrong,” he said. “The comparison here is what they do with the National Traffic Safety Administration. We’ll put all our material together, we’ll give it to the California Horse Racing Board and they’ll combine that with the necropsy data. If we have an unusual pattern of injuries, that begins to raise questions about all sorts of issues that have nothing to do with the track. We have to look at everything.” Peterson will continue to study the track over the next few days and see if he can come up with some answers as to why its condition may have led to so many fatalities. So far, he has already tested the composition of the soil and compared it to similar tests done in October. He also used what he calls “ground penetrating radar” to take and study images of the base, the cushion and the pad. “The weather has been unusual so that makes it a lot more challenging, but we really aren’t seeing anything wrong at this point,” he said. Many believe that an unusual run of wet and cold weather might have played a role in whatever possible problems there have been with the track. Peterson agreed that could be a factor. “One of the most important things we have to look at is moisture and how we respond with the maintenance to the rain and then the drying out,” he said. “That’s all part of the puzzle that we’re looking at. I think we should be fine, but until we’ve had a few more days of racing and training that are safe I don’t think anybody is going to be complacent.” If Peterson is not able to find any answers, perhaps the California Horse Racing Board will, as it is in the process of performing necropsies on each of the horses who have died. California State Equine Medical Director Rick Arthur said it may take as long as a month before all the necropsies are completed. Arthur is of the opinion that pre-existing injuries are what normally lead to catastrophic breakdowns and said these sorts of problems are never just about the racetrack. “I don’t find it surprising that the track is good now,” he said. “Nobody was on it for a couple of days and we’ve had fairly good weather here for 10 days or so. We certainly know from past experience that it takes 10 days to two weeks for a track to get back to good condition after a hard seal. I don’t want to blame the track, but I’m not going to take a position that the track was not a factor. Trainers get upset at me when I point out that 85 to 90% of the time, horses have pre-existing pathology at the site of the fatal injury. On the other hand, they want to blame the track for everything. What we really need to do is address this as an industry and use science.” View the full article

Early scratchings March 1 View the full article

Murray looks to Kranji to get career back on track View the full article

Promising sort Grand Koonta scores second-up View the full article

Derby on radar after Glasgow explodes away to impressive win View the full article

Van der Merwe gets off the mark with Loving You View the full article

Galvarino shows true colours when not in sightseeing mood View the full article

Horses' body weights March 1 View the full article