Wandering Eyes

International participation in this year’s G1 Lexus Melbourne Cup is sure to be even stronger with the news that a record A$7.3m in prize-money will be up for grabs at Flemington in November. This boost represents a rise of just under A$1-million and will see the winner take home A$4-million while those who finish between 6th and 12th will win A$150,000 each. European runners occupied eight of the top ten placings last year, headed by the Joseph O’Brien trained Rekindling (GB) (High Chaparral {Ire}) and 2018 represents the 25th anniversary of the first overseas winner of the race, the Dermot Weld trained Vintage Crop (GB) (Rousillon), who landed the race under Mick Kinane in 1993. Commenting on the prizemoney boost VRC chairman Amanda Elliott said, “The Lexus Melbourne Cup is the race that stops a nation. It is the world’s richest staying handicap and is backed by 158 years of history and tradition. 2018 is a milestone year for the VRC. Anticipation builds for the opening of our new world-class Club Stand and we will celebrate the 25th anniversary of the first internationally trained winner of the Cup in Ireland’s Vintage Crop. This year’s Lexus Melbourne Cup will have more eyes on it than ever before with the recent launch of the global digital platform, World Horse Racing, as we continue to expand our reach internationally. We simply can’t wait.” Significant increases in prize-money were also announced on Friday for a range of races across Victoria including the G1 Ladbrokes Cox Plate and the G1 Stella Artois Caulfield Cup, which have both received a 40% hike up to A$5-million. Australia’s oldest classic, the G1 AAMI Victoria Derby is also a beneficiary and will be worth an extra A$500,000 this year when run for A$2-million. Racing Victoria’s chief executive officer Giles Thompson commented, “The prize money increases announced today serve to reward our owners, trainers and jockeys while ensuring that Victoria remains a destination for the world’s best as we celebrate 25 years of international competition. Our vision is ‘Racing for All’ and there is something for all owners, trainers and jockeys within these prize money increases which stretch from the Melbourne Cup to the Burrumbeet Cup.” View the full article

Undefeated colt Saxon Warrior is poised to deliver Aidan O’Brien his seventh victory in the Group One Epsom Derby on Saturday. The son of Deep Impact looked terrific winning the 2,000 Guineas last month and he is clearly the one to beat in Great Britain’s richest race. Saxon Warrior is one of five runners for O’Brien and is the pick of leading jockey Ryan Moore, but being the stable elect does not guarantee anything, as last year’s race showed when 40-1 hope Wings Of... View the full article

Back-in-form Robin Hood steals the riches View the full article

Happy Saga brings the smiles back for Tan View the full article

Absolvido overcomes rawness to score second-up View the full article

King's Speech makes early statement on debut View the full article

Horses' body weights June 1 View the full article

Track conditions and course scratchings June 1 View the full article

Early scratchings June 3 View the full article

Curatolo nearing riding comeback View the full article

Moor new partner for Tannhauser View the full article

Early scratchings June 3 View the full article

Early scratchings June 1 View the full article

Delaware governor John Carney said that a handful of casinos in the state of Delaware, including Delaware Park, will be open to offer sports betting beginning June 5, essentially overhauling New Jersey as the first state to open its doors in the wake of the Supreme Court’s May 14 ruling. “Delaware has all necessary legal and regulatory authority to move forward with a full-scale sports gaming operation, and we look forward to next week’s launch,” Carney said Thursday in a statement. “We’re hopeful that this will bring even more visitors into Delaware to see firsthand what our state has to offer.” Delaware passed legislation in 2009 which allowed sports wagering on out-of-state teams, opening the doors for single-game wagers after the Supreme Court struck down a federal law barring wagering on team sports, opening the door for individual states to pursue legal sports betting at their discretion. View the full article

The Breeders’ Cup announced Thursday that 40 individuals are on the ballot for the election of 20 Breeders’ Cup Members. On June 6, the Breeders’ Cup Election website will open for the 2017 Breeders’ Cup foal and stallion nominators to begin the voting process. Of the 40 candidates on the ballot, 17 are incumbent Members standing for re-election. The 20 individuals receiving the most votes will each serve a term of four years. Members are elected every other year by Breeders’ Cup foal and stallion nominators through a proportional voting system based on the level of nominations paid to the organization. There are a total of 39 elected Breeders’ Cup Members. The Members meet each July for the election of individuals to the Breeders’ Cup Board of Directors, which oversees the activities of the organization. The 40 candidates for the Members election are: Joseph Appelbaum Gray Lyster Perry Bass Anthony R. Manganaro * Antony R. Beck * M.V. Magnier Gatewood Bell Pope McLean, Jr. Craig Bernick * Julio Menditeguy Carter Carnegie * Gavin Murphy Case Clay * Garrett O’Rourke * Alan Cooper Daisy Phipps Pulito Donald Dizney Mike Pons Everett Dobson Amanda Pope Bob Edwards Dan Pride * William S. Farish, Jr. * Hunter Rankin Sean Feld Dean Reeves H. Greg Goodman * Andrew Rosen Fred W. Hertrich III * Jaime Roth Roy Jackson * Tom Ryan * Bret Jones * Ben Walden Jak Knelman Bradley S. Weisbord * Michael T. Levy * David S. Willmot * Tom Ludt * Justin Zayat *Denotes Member standing for re-election View the full article

The $300,000 Beholder Mile (G1) features plenty of quality, but as talented as the group is, they're not immune to misfiring. View the full article

Japan's top milers, plus a Hong Kong invader, mix things up June 3 in the Yasuda Kinen (G1) at Tokyo Racecourse, an event usually key to determining the top miler of the year. View the full article

“Inside the Winner’s Circle, Presented by Keeneland” is a series showcasing graduates of the Keeneland September sale that have gone on to achieve success on racing’s biggest stages. While the proliferation of 2-year-old sales has created an emphasis on precocity in some areas of the Thoroughbred auction market, recent history has shown the benefits of buying horses and letting them develop more at their own pace. The last two 3-year-old male champions, Arrogate (Unbridled’s Song) and West Coast (Flatter) each began their career as sophomores, and, of course, this year’s near-certain champion Justify (Scat Daddy) famously didn’t start as a 2-year-old before capturing three Grade I’s, including two-thirds of the Triple Crown so far, in the span of six weeks this spring. More quietly, however, the early favorite for this year’s champion older male honors is also a runner who didn’t debut until his 3-year-old season. Hronis Racing’s Accelerate (Lookin At Lucky) opened his account April 17, 2016–ironically in the same race Arrogate premiered in–and took four starts to earn his diploma. But the chestnut has developed steadily over time since, and he is now peaking just in time for the big push to the Breeders’ Cup, producing his second dominant Grade I-winning performance in Saturday’s Gold Cup S. at Santa Anita. Oftentimes, horses who miss their freshman year do so because of one physical setback or another, but Accelerate was always going to be a late bloomer, at least according to bloodstock agent David Ingordo, who picked him out for Kosta Hronis and trainer John Sadler as a yearling at Keeneland September in 2014. In fact, because the horse, bred by Mike Abraham, was a May foal–born May 10, to be exact–Ingordo believes they were able to get him as a relative bargain at $380,000. “He was a late foal, but he had size and was really well-balanced,” Ingordo recalled. “John and Kosta are great where, if you see a nice horse that isn’t going to be an early-developing one, they still let you buy it if the price is right. He was a good-looking horse who still cost some money, but if he had an earlier foal date and more Triple Crown potential, he would’ve cost a lot more money. But he was very balanced, very athletic, was a well-raised horse, correct. He had everything you want to see in a yearling.” Ingordo, the stepson of John Shirreffs, goes way back with Sadler, one of the top trainers on the West Coast. The two have formed a partnership that, with a big assist from the backing of Hronis, has expanded the success of the barn nationwide. “John [Sadler] is like part of my family,” Ingordo said. “My father, who was a jocks’ agent and has since passed, showed John the ropes on the racetrack when he first came around the backside. My mother and John are like brother and sister to this day. I do a lot for “Uncle John” to help him stay current on what is going on outside of California, report on the babies being broken at Mayberry Farm in Ocala and arranging private purchases domestically or overseas. And through that, I’ve developed a great relationship with the Hronis family. John recommended that I be part of their team, and Kosta said, ‘Okay, cool, let’s do it.’ He has been a dream client.” Hronis, Sadler and Ingordo have already developed a champion in Stellar Wind (Curlin), 2015’s Eclipse winner for 3-year-old filly, who was a private purchase after breaking her maiden in dominant fashion at Laurel. Accelerate has been with them since the beginning of his track training, however, and their patience has now paid off tenfold. “We had him at Mayberry Farm and down there, the horse was always well-rated, always moved right, never had a bad day, but you could always tell he was a little bit immature compared to some of the other horses we had in that crop,” Ingordo remembered. “John gave him a little bit of time and it didn’t surprise me that he eventually did what he’s doing.” Graduating by 8 3/4 powerful lengths July 28, 2016, Accelerate quickly came to hand after that, repeating in the Shared Belief S. a month later. He followed that up with his first graded score in the GII Los Alamitos Derby before validating his true potential with a third-place effort against elders at 42-1 in the GI Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile that fall. “His race in the Los Al Derby tipped his hand that there were bigger things to come,” Ingordo said. “But until they face a top-level horse and field, you don’t know.” Accelerate went winless in his first four starts as a 4-year-old, but placed in three graded stakes among those efforts. His true coming out party came last summer, when he and three other rivals were completely overlooked in Del Mar’s GII San Diego H. That race marked the much-anticipated return of Arrogate–the gray’s first outing since overcoming a disastrous start to win the G1 Dubai World Cup with breathtaking ease. Arrogate never fired that day, finishing a well-beaten fourth, but Accelerate sure did, going wire-to-wire in an 8 1/2-length tour de force and announcing himself to the racing public. “He showed the world what we thought of him,” Ingordo said. “When he was moving down the backside, with how easy he was going, he has this trademark rhythmic stride and then he just kicks away. He closes the door on horses and really breaks horses’ hearts.” That finishing move was on display again in the Mar. 10 GI Santa Anita H., when Accelerate earned his first top-level victory with an emphatic 5 1/2-length tally. He suffered a slight setback when second by a neck to City of Light (Quality Road) in the GII Oaklawn H. Apr. 14, one which Ingordo chalks up to the dynamics of the track. “I was at Oaklawn and the post position got him beat,” he said. “You didn’t want to be on the inside and City of Light kind of got the jump on him.” That theory was borne out Saturday at Santa Anita, when Accelerate swooped past City of Light and eventual runner-up Dr. Dorr (Lookin At Lucky) just outside the eighth pole and powered clear to a no-doubt 4 1/4-length win. The effort earned him a career-best Beyer of 111 and perched him atop the ranks of the older-male division, at least for the time being. And the man who picked him out thinks there may not be a challenger to knock the 5-year-old off that pedestal, save a certain sophomore. “The way Accelerate’s going on numbers and performance, he’s a top handicap horse in the country,” he said. “Unless something jumps out of the woodwork or peaks, he’s going to be tough to beat. Except for maybe a Justify.” View the full article

The power of the major owner-breeders on the European Turf is vividly measured by this year’s Investec Derby field, featuring only three that have been through an auction ring–one of which has ended up running in the silks of his breeder anyway. Here is our runner-by-runner guide to their origins: DEE EX BEE (GB) (Farhh {GB}) is home-bred out of Dubai Sunrise (Seeking The Gold), an unraced sister to champion Dubai Millennium. The family contains smart sprinters like Danzig’s sons Elnadim, Hamas (Ire) and Bianconi but this colt belongs to the first crop of a sire with a stout female line. B-Godolphin DELANO ROOSEVELT (IRE) (Galileo {Ire}) is out of the David Wachman-trained Again (Ire) (Danehill Dancer {Ire}), a dual Group 1 winner at the Curragh (Moyglare Stud S./Irish 1000 Guineas). Her dam was a half-sister to Montjeu, sire of a record-equalling four Derby winners and grandsire of another last year. B-Orpendale and Chelston HAZAPOUR (IRE) (Shamardal) is out of Hazafara (Ire) (Daylami {Ire}), a listed-winning half-sister to 2016 Derby winner Harzand (Ire) (Sea The Stars {Ire}). Their dam had been culled for 480,000gns when Harzand was a yearling; Hazarafa’s 4-year-old daughter Harrana (Ire) (New Approach {Ire}) likewise stands to boost her value after being sold to Tally Ho Stud for €150,000 at Goffs in February. B-HH The Aga Khan’s Studs SC KEW GARDENS (IRE) (Galileo {Ire}) is the seventh foal out of the G1 Moyglare Stud S. winner Chelsea Rose (Ire) (Desert King {Ire}), who was sold to BBA Ireland by Mrs A.J. Donnelly/Airlie Stud for €450,000 at the Goffs November Sale in 2012. At that time her son Thawaany (Ire) (Tamazyuz {GB}) had just started his career; he subsequently became a Group 3 winner and finished second in the G1 Prix Maurice de Gheest. B-Barronstown S. KNIGHT TO BEHOLD (IRE) (Sea The Stars {Ire}) was home-bred by Neil Jones out of an unraced sister to his Derby third Let The Lion Roar (GB) (Sadler’s Wells) and half-sister to his St Leger winner Millenary (GB) (Rainbow Quest), from an elite Ballymacoll family. Her previous foals include two group winners, one over two miles in Japan and the other of the Blue Wind S. B-Abergwaun Farms MASAR (GB) (New Approach {Ire}) is by an Epsom Derby winner out of UAE Derby winner Khawlah (Ire) (Cape Cross {Ire}). He is inbred 3×4 twice over: not just to Urban Sea, who is his fourth dam as well as the mother of New Approach’s sire Galileo, but also to Ahonoora (GB) (Lorenzaccio {GB}), who sired the dams of both New Approach and Cape Cross. B-Godolphin ROARING LION (Kitten’s Joy) has a rare distinction, in this field, in having changed hands at public auction. He was bought from the Taylor Made Sales Agency by David Redvers for $160,000 at the Keeneland September Yearling Sale of 2016, as the first foal of Vionnet (Street Sense) who was Grade I-placed over 10 furlongs on turf. Two of her half-siblings won Grade II races, also on grass, at a mile and nine furlongs; but their dam won her two Grade III prizes at just 6.5 furlongs. B-Ranjan Racing Inc SAXON WARRIOR (JPN) (Deep Impact {Jpn}) is the sensational outcome of an outcross experiment for Coolmore’s Galileo mares with the perennial champion sire of Japan. He is the second foal of G1 Moyglare Stud S winner Maybe (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}), whose dam Sumora (Ire) (Danehill) was a sprinter herself but is closely related to Oaks winner Dancing Rain (Ire) (Danehill Dancer {Ire}). B-Orpendale, Chelston & Wynatt SEVENNA STAR (IRE) (Redoute’s Choice {Aus}) gives the champion sire another footprint in the race, being out of his daughter Sevenna (Fr) (Galileo {Ire}), a Group 3 winner over 1m6f. That fits the profile of a sturdy German family, with a second dam who won the German Oaks, and this imposing colt will doubtless be able to extend the Danehill zip of his sire over this extra distance. B-Ammerland Verwaltung Gmbh & Co Kg THE PENTAGON (IRE) (Galileo {Ire}) was bred, like Kew Gardens, by Barronstown Stud. His dam Vadawina (Ire) (Unfuwain) was sold by the Aga Khan Studs at Arqana in December 2013, knocked down to Horse France for €600,000. She was highly accomplished in a brief racetrack career, winning the G1 Prix Saint-Alary, and has produced a number of stakes winners/performers. B-Barronstown Stud YOUNG RASCAL (FR) (Intello {Ger}) joins Kitten’s Joy as the only other runner to change hands at public auction. Moreover he emerges from the same sale as last year’s winner Wings Of Eagles (Fr) (Pour Moi {Ire}). Presented by Mezeray at the Arqana August Yearling Sale of 2016, he was purchased for €215,000 by Stroud Coleman Bloodstock. B-Ecurie Peregrine SAS ZABRISKIE (IRE) (Frankel {GB}) gives a different flavour to Ballydoyle’s entry, not being a Coolmore production. He was bred by the Niarchos family’s Flaxman operation from the unraced dam of two Group 1 winners in Bago (Fr) (Nashwan) and Maxios (GB) (Monsun {Ger}), herself a daughter of the brilliant Coup De Genie (Mr Prospector). Zabriskie did go through the ring as a yearling at the Goffs Orby Sale in 2016, when presented by Camas Park Stud and knocked down to BBA Ireland for €750,000, but races in the silks of his breeders. B-Flaxman Stables Ireland Ltd View the full article

In the hours following the news that highly respected horseman William E. “Bill” Graves passed away at the age of 70 in Lexington Wednesday, many members of the Thoroughbred community offered remembrances and reflections on the life and legacy of the long-time Fasig-Tipton senior vice president. Graves, who passed away after a short illness, died Wednesday with his family by his side, including his son Brian Graves, director of public sales for Gainesway Farm. Visitation will be held at Kerr Brothers Funeral Home at 463 East Main Street in Lexington on Saturday, June 2, from 5:00 to 7:00 p.m. ET. A celebration of life will be held at the sales pavilion at Fasig-Tipton in Lexington Monday, June 4 at 2:30 p.m. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance. Below is a collection of reflections from friends, colleagues and other industry figures: Why does it hurt so much? I am sure many of you, like me, are asking that question. We lost a great horseman, mentor, cheerleader and friend. Bill enjoyed a great relationship with virtually everyone at Fasig-Tipton and everyone he met within the Thoroughbred industry. Each relationship was unique and different–varied from person to person. That is why it hurts so much. He cared about us. We cared about him. Over the coming days, weeks and months, we will all suffer and grieve our loss. There is no “right way” or “right time” to grieve. The process is personal–what is important is that we all support and help each other during the difficult times. I am comforted by the fact that Bill embraced life with great energy and passion for over 70 years. Although we all wish he had more time with us, he certainly had a profound impact on us and many others. We will cherish and share many wonderful memories and times in the coming days. We will support Brian and his family with all of our love. We have watched Brian grow from a 16-year-old teenager to a wonderful man and great father. Bill’s legacy will continue with Brian. In addition, Bill’s legacy will continue with each of us as he touched and shaped our lives. Tomorrow we begin a different chapter at Fasig-Tipton. The company is SO MUCH stronger and better positioned than it was in March 1992 when he joined us. It is impossible to quantify the difference he made. He was so proud of the company and the people he worked with. We will honor him by continuing to work together and use the many lessons he taught us. Thank you, Bill, for all you have done for me. I loved you like a brother and will miss you. –Boyd Browning Bill Graves: Mentor and Legend Strong words for sure, yet unlike so many opinions in this game, I think this one will be unanimous among the people around the world reading this today. Writing this is difficult, alternating between tears and smiles, but this man deserves the effort. Bill loved balance. Horses, trees, dogs, art. Mikey, look at the neck on that filly. Gun barrel hind leg. Look at the head on that beautiful bastard. Look harder, there is a horse there. Echoes which will never go away for me and so many others. He was a perfectionist in a good way. He wanted it just right. From the mane, to the bridle, to the perfect set up on a yearling stance. Presenting and selling horses was an art form to Bill, and he loved it so much when it all came together. If Bill Graves liked your horse, then you really thought you might have something. It has been said, you judge a man by what he leaves behind. Billy, you win that one in a gallop. –Michael T. Levy Bill Graves was the first true “hard boot” I met when I arrived in Lexington in 1982–except he had basically just arrived from Virginia himself and I’d never seen him be a hard man in dealing with life or people during all the years I’d come to know him as a mentor and pal. He always had a wink in his eye and smile on his face, but if he didn’t you knew he was reacting to something that was just wrong. His son Brian was about 10 years old when I first met him and everyone knew he was heading to the big time then, and his late wife Michelle was also a jewel. We have lost a sincere person, a great horseman, and a friend. Rest, Bill. –Robert D. Fierro View the full article

Champion Caledonia Road (Quality Road), heroine of last term’s GI Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies, will be sold publicly at auction either at the end of this year or next year. The filly’s managing partner, Luc Paiement, who runs under the Zoom And Fish Stable banner and owns Caledonia Road along with Charlie Spiring and Newtown Anner Stud, told TDN there are two factors for the eventual sale. “You saw at the [Fasig-Tipton November] sales last year Songbird (Medalia d’Oro) sold for $9.5 million and Stellar Wind (Curlin) for $6 million [at Keeneland November] and Tepin (Bernstein) for $8 million [at Fasig-Tipton November],” Paiement said. “It’s highly likely that I will sell her either at the end of this year or the end of next year. I will not keep her as a broodmare. She is worth too much for me to keep, and I don’t want to be in the breeding business. I like to buy yearlings and I will sell them when I think the price is right. Paiement, Executive Advisor of the National Bank of Canada, has been in the horse racing business for 40 years with Thoroughbreds and Standardbreds. He and Spiring, Chairman/Founder of Wellington-Altus Private Wealth, became partners in horses a few years ago after previously having interests in Team Valor horses. They bought Caledonia Road for $140,000 as a KEESEP yearling and sold a one-third interest in the filly after her second start to Maurice and Samantha Regan’s Newtown Anner Stud. The deal included that the filly would run every third race in Newtown Anner Stud’s colors. Caledonia Road, a winner in her seasonal debut in an optional claimer at Belmont Apr. 29, is slated to run in the GI Acorn S. at Belmont June 9. A combination of surgery to remove a chip from her right front ankle last fall and a virus this year forced her to miss some training time since her big win at Del Mar. “We really want to go to Saratoga in top shape,” Paiement said of future plans. “Ideally we’d like to win two Grade Ones and go to the Breeders’ Cup in November. That would be our main goals.” View the full article

The son of Old Forester heads into the six-furlong main track event for trainer Robert Tiller off yet another impressive performance, a thoroughly dominant 6-1/4 length victory in the New Providence Stakes May 13. View the full article

Musing, I tweeted this from @sidfernando last Sunday, after Japanese-bred Wagnerian (Deep Impact–Miss Encore, by King Kamehameha) won the GI Tokyo Yushun, the 2400-meter Japanese Derby equivalent: “It’s possible that Deep Impact, who got his fourth Japanese Derby winner today, could also have the winners of the Epsom Derby, Irish Derby, and French Derby.” It’s not far fetched to imagine this scenario unfolding with well-fancied sons of Deep Impact contesting the Epsom Derby and its French equivalent, the Prix du Jockey Club, this weekend. However, it will require some racing luck and all the classic stamina that Deep Impact can impart for this to take place. If it does happen, the burgeoning international reputation of the Shadai-based son of Sunday Silence will enter the stratosphere. It will also be historic. Never before has a Japanese-conceived horse won a major European Derby, although Japanese-bred Karakontie did win a Guineas. Japanese-bred Saxon Warrior (Deep Impact–Maybe, by Galileo) will be the favorite at Epsom on Saturday to add the 12-furlong Derby to his 2000 Guineas victory and keep alive the publicity machinery of a Triple Crown bid. Irish-bred Study of Man (Deep Impact–Second Happiness, by Storm Cat) is as low as 4-1 behind favorite Olmedo (Declaration of War) in the 2100-meter French race at Chantilly on Sunday. Either or both sons of Deep Impact could come back in the Irish Derby at the Curragh on June 30. Saxon Warrior is owned by the Coolmore triumvirate of Derrick Smith, Mrs. John Magnier, and Michael Tabor and was bred by another Coolmore-affiliated partnership, Orpendale, Chelston, and Wynatt. Study of Man is a homebred for Flaxman Stables, the Niarchos family’s entity. They, along with some other select breeders such as the Wildensteins, Maktoums, Wertheimers, and Sheikh Fahad al-Thani in Europe and Canadian Charles Fipke in North America, have sent mares to Deep Impact in Japan and have been at the forefront in recognizing the quality of the stallion, the Japanese Triple Crown winner of 2005 who also finished third in the 2006 Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe Arc before a DQ. In the cases of Saxon Warrior and Study of Man, Coolmore and Flaxman sent Deep Impact sharper mares on the classic spectrum, perhaps because of the impression in the West that he’s a legitimate source of 12-furlong-and-up stamina and the Japanese program in which he thrives is based on more stamina than speed. The Japanese Guineas, for example, is contested at 2000 meters and the St. Leger equivalent is at 3000 meters– farther than their European counterparts. But Japanese racing is also characterized by flat, firm, and fast turf courses, and the 2400 meters in Japan may be easier to get than 12 furlongs in Europe over undulating ground with give in it. Perhaps that’s why Deep Impact was tested in the Arc and why Orfevre, another Japanese Triple Crown winner from the Sunday Silence line, was twice second in the race over soft and heavy ground. So far, Deep Impact’s lone European classic winner is the GB-suffixed Wildenstein homebred Beauty Parlour, who won the French Guineas in 2012 on good to soft ground. Stepped up next out to the 2100 meters of the Prix de Diane, the Oaks equivalent, the filly was second to Valyra over similar going. The first son of Sunday Silence to get a European classic winner was Japanese-bred Divine Light, whose French-bred daughter Natagora won the 1000 Guineas at Newmarket over good to firm going. She was ambitiously sent to the 2100-meter French Derby in her next start and ran well but was third behind Vision d’Etat after getting cut down after hitting the front. The soft ground that day no doubt tested her stamina. Saxon Warrior Saxon Warrior is a big physical specimen, undefeated in four starts, and has shown as much grit as talent in his career to date. This was clearly on display in the GI Racing Post Trophy over a mile at Doncaster last year. In the latter stages of the race, US-bred Roaring Lion (Kitten’s Joy) veered sharply left into Saxon Warrior and passed him, but Saxon Warrior fought back, took the lead again, and won by a neck from Roaring Lion over good to soft ground. In his first two starts, Saxon Warrior had also shown the ability to handle yielding and soft ground, and in his last start, he won the 2000 Guineas by a length and a half on good ground, with Roaring Lion two-and-a-half lengths away in fifth. The Derby, however, will test Saxon Warrior’s bloodlines despite the hoopla of Triple Crown talk. On the face of it, his pedigree sounds bulletproof for the trip as a son of Deep Impact from a Galileo mare. But that mare is Maybe, an undefeated seven-furlong Grade I winner at two from five starts. At three, she placed in the Guineas, was fifth in the Oaks at 12 furlongs, and failed to win in her subsequent two starts. Stamina was not her forte. Maybe was a product of the Galileo/Danehill cross, a combination that has proven to be exceptionally potent for class but was designed to sharpen some of the stamina of Galileo. It’s of course the same cross as Frankel, a brilliant miler who won at 10 furlongs but only later in his career. By my count, there are 12 Group I winners by Galileo from Danehill mares, and only three of these–Tapestry, Noble Mission, and Highland Reel–won at the top level at a trip of 12 furlongs or more. And in Noble Mission’s case, his was on a DQ. Maybe got her speed from both Danehill and her dam, Sumora, who in turn was from a mare by the sprinter Indian Ridge. Sumora won two of 12 starts, both at two, and both at five furlongs. Sumora’s dam, Rain Flower, was a three-quarter sibling to Epsom Derby winner Dr Devious, which does point to some classic heft under the third dam, and it’s fortified by such sires as Alleged and Northern Dancer farther back. Still, Aidan O’Brien, the trainer of six Derby winners, will have to showcase his extraordinary skill and strategy to get Saxon Warrior home in front. The colt drew a disadvantageous post in stall one and will also have to deal with softer ground over a longer trip, which will test his reserves. O’Brien has four other runners in the race, and some of them will be used to make conditions as easy as possible for the stable star, who will become a valuable and iconic stud prospect for Coolmore should he prevail. Incidentally, the last and only time a stallion was represented by the winners of the Epsom Derby and the Japanese equivalent in the same year was 2010, when King’s Best had British-bred Workforce and Japanese-bred Eishin Flash. Study of Man Pascal Bary trained the previously mentioned Natagora and he trains Study of Man, a physical contrast to Saxon Warrior. Study of Man is a smaller and neater horse more in the mold of his sire, and like his sire he has outstanding acceleration when called upon to produce, something he showcased in his last start in the 2100-meter GII Prix Greffulhe at Saint-Cloud. Bary opted to take the lightly raced colt–he’s won two of three starts–to the French Derby over the same trip rather than try the mile and a half at Epsom, and he cited in press reports the colt’s shorter pedigree and preference for firm ground as reasons. Study of Man is from the family of Flaxman’s classic winner Miesque–one of the best European milers, period. It’s a family renowned for producing homebred classic-winning milers, too, including such as Kingmambo and more recently Japanese-bred Karakontie and this year’s Irish 1000 Guineas winner Alpha Centauri. If he gets the ground he likes, Study of Man may be a better bet at Chantilly than Saxon Warrior at Epsom, but both colts are outstanding examples for their sire, whose international appeal will only grow. It’s just a matter of time before Deep Impact will be represented by a top-class son or sons in Europe, and these two figure to be the pioneers of that inevitability. Sid Fernando is president and CEO of Werk Thoroughbred Consultants, Inc., originator of the Werk Nick Rating and eNicks. View the full article

‘TDN Rising Star’ Analyze It (Point of Entry) looks to take his perfect record to four-for-four as the heavy favorite in Saturday’s GIII Pennine Ridge S. at Belmont, which is the local prep for the GI Belmont Derby July 7. Graduating by 6 1/4 lengths in his career bow in Elmont Oct. 28, the bay followed suit with a front-running score in the GIII Cecil B. Demille S. Nov. 26 and kicked off this term with another daylight victory in the GIII Transylvania S. at Keeneland Apr. 6. The Chad Brown trainee will try to run away with it early as the lone speed of the race. Catholic Boy (More Than Ready) returns to the turf after competing on the GI Kentucky Derby trail for the first half of his sophomore season. Winner of the grassy GIII With Anticipation S. at Saratoga in August and fourth in the GI Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf Nov. 3, the bay romped in his main track debut in the GII Remsen S. at Aqueduct in December. Runner-up in the GIII Sam F. Davis S. Feb. 10, he could only manage fourth behind subsequent GI Kentucky Derby-third Audible (Into Mischief) in the GI Florida Derby Mar. 31. Winner of last term’s GII Summer S. and runner-up to Mendelssohn (Scat Daddy) in the GI Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf Nov. 2, Untamed Domain (Animal Kingdom) seeks his first success of 2018 in this spot. Third as the favorite in the GIII Dania Beach S. at Gulfstream Feb. 3, the ‘TDN Rising Star’ was sixth when trying dirt in the GII Tampa Bay Derby Mar. 10 and came running late for second behind GII Penn Mile favorite Maraud (Blame) in the GII American Turf S. at Churchill on the First Saturday in May. View the full article

The New York-based Maraud (Blame) and native New Yorker Therapist (Freud) appear to be the ones to beat in Saturday’s GII Penn Mile, a race that has been won by the likes of Canadian Horse of the Year and MGISW filly Catch a Glimpse (City Zip); GI Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint hero Bobby’s Kitten (Kitten’s Joy); and GI Belmont Derby victor Force the Pass (Speightstown). Kicking off this term with an optional claimer victory on the lawn at Gulfstream Jan. 13, Maraud followed suit with a win in the GIII Palm Beach S. Mar. 3, but could only manage sixth behind ‘TDN Rising Star’ Analyze It (Point of Entry) in Keeneland’s GIII Transylvania S. Apr. 6. The bay returned to winning ways beneath the Twin Spires on the First Saturday in May, capturing the GII American Turf S. over a yielding course. Therapist opened his account with a trio of wins, including the Laurel Futurity S. and the Awad S. last fall. Third in the Palm Beach, the chestnut enters off a win in Gulfstream’s Cutlet Bay S. Mar. 31. ‘TDN Rising Star’ Hawkish (Artie Schiller) followed his impressive debut win in Hallandale Jan. 6 with a fourth in the Palm Beach, but scored a decisive 4 3/4-length victory in an Aqueduct optional claimer last time Apr. 15. The bay is cross-entered in Belmont’s GIII Pennine Ridge S. Saturday. Another runner of interest at a price is Live Oak Plantation’s He’s Bankable (Arch). The Mark Casse pupil enters off back-to-back wins in the state-bred Sophomore Turf S. at Tampa Mar. 25 and the English Channel S. at Gulfstream May 5. View the full article