Wandering Eyes

Declaration of War is classified as a North American sire for the purposes of leading sires tables and he ranks ninth among North American second-crop sires by cumulative progeny earnings View the full article

TIMONIUM, MD – The Fasig-Tipton Midlantic 2-Year-Olds in Training Sale opened Monday in Timonium with figures largely in line with last year’s opening session of a record-setting renewal of the auction. A colt by More Than Ready (hip 204) brought the day’s top price of $750,000 when selling to trainer Simon Callaghan, bidding on behalf of an undisclosed client. Overall, Fasig-Tipton sold 172 juveniles Monday for a total of $12,066,000, compared to 162 grossing $11,537,500 in 2017. The average dipped slightly to $70,151, down 1.5% from last year’s figure of $71,219. The median fell 10% to $36,000 from $40,000 at last year’s opening session. From 300 head catalogued, 223 horses were offered and 51 failed to sell for a buy-back rate of 22.9%. It was 25% a year ago. “I think we have seen a fairly similar marketplace throughout the 2-year-old sales season,” said Fasig-Tipton President Boyd Browning, Jr. “There is still some polarization in the market, but there was certainly more diversity and depth, as you would expect with the larger catalogue and a wide variety of horses that were on offer today. There was plenty of interest and a huge crowd here today. It was a solid, solid day and that’s what you hope for in this marketplace.” Nick De Meric, whose De Meric Sales sold 13 horses Monday for an average of $87,731, was happy with the competition across the board. “I think it feels like a pretty good market,” de Meric said. “I think there seem to be shoppers at every level. And if you appraise your horse realistically, you can get them sold here.” The Midlantic sale concludes Tuesday with a session beginning at 2 p.m. More Than Ready Colt to Callaghan Fireworks broke out Tuesday in Timonium when bloodstock agent Ben McElroy, bidding alongside trainer Simon Callaghan, went to $750,000 to acquire a colt by More Than Ready (hip 204). The juvenile, who worked a co-fastest furlong in :10 1/5 last Wednesday, was consigned by Hartley/de Renzo Thoroughbreds, which purchased him for $500,000 at last year’s Keeneland September Yearling Sale. “I thought his breeze was pretty exceptional,” Callaghan, who purchased the colt on behalf of an undisclosed client, said. “He’s a really good-looking horse with a great attitude. He did everything right.” Hip 204 is out of Canadian champion Embur’s Song (Unbridled’s Song) and was purchased in utero for $900,000 by Bridlewood Farm. “More Than Ready is obviously a very proven stallion,” Callaghan said. “I thought this horse had a lot more substance than a lot of the More Than Readys. Some of them could run on turf, but I felt this was going to be a top-class performer on dirt.” Dean DeRenzo acknowledged the colt’s potential on dirt led to his appearance in Timonium. “We feel like the Unbridled’s Song gives him a lot of dirt,” he explained last Wednesday. “And More Than Readys have run on dirt, like Verrazano, so we brought him here with the dirt in mind.” Callaghan said he had seen the dark bay colt at the September sale, but felt the mark-up to purchase him as a 2-year-old was worth it. “He was obviously a very good yearling,” the California-based trainer said. “I remembered him and I liked him then. So to pay a little bit more than that after you’ve seen him breeze so well and vet and jump through all the hoops, I thought it made sense.” De Renzo was also satisfied with Monday’s result. “We are happy with that for a couple of reasons,” De Renzo said after watching the colt sell. “One is that now we get to watch him run right here in the United States. And that’s really important for us to build our client base–which happens when you sell good horses and they go to good trainers, like Simon Callaghan in California. Of course you always want more money for a More Than Ready, but [the $250,000 profit] works. You can’t do that in too many places. So, it works for us.” De Renzo paused before adding with a chuckle, “But I think they got a bargain, to be honest.” Speedy Mucho Macho Man Colt to Petersen The last time hip 278, a colt from the first crop of GI Breeders’ Cup Classic winner Mucho Macho Man, went through the sales ring, he RNA’d for $55,000 at the OBS March sale. The chestnut attracted significantly more attention after zipping a quarter-mile in a bullet :21 1/5 last week in Timonium and sold Monday for $625,000 to California owner Michael Lund Petersen. The youngster was consigned by Kip Elser’s Kirkwood Stables, which also consigned him at OBS two months ago. “He matured a little bit,” Elser said of the different sales results. “I thought he looked great here and other people agreed.” The colt worked a furlong in :10 flat over the synthetic Safetrack at OBS before moving to the dirt for his Timonium breeze. “I don’t think the surface makes a difference to him,” Elser said. “That’s the key. He was good on the Poly and he was spectacular on the dirt.” The colt, bred by Teneri Farm and Bernardo Alvarez Calderon, originally sold for $14,000 at the 2017 Keeneland January sale. He was purchased by S.R. Schwartz for $95,000 at the Keeneland September sale. Out of Itsagiantcauseway (Giant’s Causeway), the juvenile is from the family of Canadian champion Peaks and Valleys. Petersen, a founding shareholder in Pandora Jewelry, campaigned Grade I winner Mor Spirit (Eskendereya). Zacney Stays Busy in Timonium Chuck Zacney, who has enjoyed Classic success buying out of the Midlantic sales ring, stayed busy during Monday’s first session of the Fasig-Tipton sale, purchasing five juveniles for a total of $925,000. His highest-priced acquisition was hip 246, a filly by Bernardini out of Great Look (Giant’s Causeway)–a full-sister to multiple graded stakes winner Winning Cause–for $325,000. The filly was consigned by Paul Sharp. “I have to give [trainer] John Servis all the credit there,” Zacney said of hip 246. “He loved her from the beginning and I just did the bidding, to be honest with you. She was a well-balanced filly with a great work [:10 2/5] and from a good family. We were prepared to go to $500,000 for her.” Late in Monday’s session of the two-day sale, Zacney went to $220,000 to acquire a filly by Medaglia d’Oro (hip 285). The gray juvenile, consigned by Cary Frommer, is the second foal out of Grade I winner Joyful Victory (Tapit). She RNA’d for $335,000 earlier this year at the Fasig-Tipton Gulfstream sale. “I actually followed her at the Fasig-Tipton sale, but she didn’t sell,” Zacney said. “I saw her here and I thought she was going to go for over $300,000, so I was happy to get her.” Zacney, who purchased subsequent GI Kentucky Oaks winner Cathryn Sophia (Street Boss) out of the 2014 Midlantic Fall Yearling Sale and champion Afleet Alex (Northern Afleet) at the 2-year-old sale in 2004, acquired four fillies and one colt Monday, but he is not specifically targeting the fairer sex. “We are just looking for good horses,” he said. “We did get a couple nice fillies, but we also picked up a nice colt in hip 123. And we have our eyes on a couple nice colts tomorrow.” Overall, Zacney has been finding value at the two-day auction. “So far, so good,” he said. “I think we are buying really good horses for very reasonable numbers. So we are really happy.” Maclean’s Music to Young’s Ears A colt by Maclean’s Music became the second to reach the $300,000 mark Monday in Timonium when bloodstock agent Steve Young acquired him for that price on behalf of an undisclosed client. Hip 146, who shared the furlong bullet time of :10 1/5 during last Tuesday’s breeze show, was consigned by Scanlon Training & Sales, which purchased him for $70,000 at last year’s Fasig-Tipton July sale. “He was an awful nice horse that breezed good on the day and he’s from a fast family,” Young said after signing the ticket on the bay colt. “It was over the middle of the plate–I think he is pretty much a standout horse.” Hip 146 is out of Cheyenne Autumn (Indian Charlie) and his third dam is GI Test S. winner Missed the Storm (Storm Cat). Young, whose successful Midlantic graduates include graded stakes winner Malagacy (Shackleford), was quick to praise the Maryland auction. “I think this is one of the best sales in America, if not farther than that,” he said. “I think if you look back, 18-24 months from now, there are a lot of nice horses here. [The sale] is on dirt and it’s a place where, it’s like being in the middle of a boxing ring here, if you’re no good, they are going to find out.” He added with a laugh, “I’m sure if I never bought a horse here who could run, I wouldn’t like it. But we’ve done good here.” Uncle Mo Filly to Augustin Stables A filly by Uncle Mo (hip 106) will be joining George Strawbridge’s Augustin Stables after selling for $300,000 during Monday’s opening session of the Fasig-Tipton Midlantic sale. The dark bay filly was consigned by De Meric Sales, which acquired her privately after she RNA’d for $100,000 at last year’s Keeneland September sale. “We loved her athletic body type,” Nick De Meric said of the filly who worked a furlong last week in :10 2/5. “She was so streamlined, she was like a Cadillac if you watched her from the side. She was a very balanced filly. She looked precocious, being by Uncle Mo obviously, and she just looked like a perfect fit for a 2-year-old sale. We gave her the time to bring her up here and showcase her on a dirt track. I think it worked out fine.” Out of stakes winner Bisbee’s Prospect, the filly is a half to stakes-placed Kids Kooler (First Samurai) and from the family of stakes winners Taste the Passion, Stopshoppingdebbie, Shampoo and Smarty Deb. She was co-bred by Marette Farrell, Canice Farrell, Zoe Cadman, Tescha Von Bluecher and Shawhan Place and was purchased in utero by Marette Farrell for $60,000 from the Northwest Farms dispersal at the 2015 Keeneland November sale. Friesan Fire Colt Pops at Midlantic Again Two years ago, a colt by local stallion Friesan Fire set the Fasig Midlantic sale alight when selling for $825,000. That youngster is now Grade I winner Army Mule. While not quite as big a result, the stallion, who stands at Country Life Farm for $4,000, had another standout in Timonium Monday when hip 92 sold for $210,000 to bloodstock agent Gary Young, bidding on behalf of Michael Dubb. The result was a pinhooking score for Grassroots Training and Sales, which purchased the bay for $20,000 at last year’s Fasig-Tipton Midlantic October Yearling Sale. “He was a big, nice horse who showed up when we brought him here to breeze,” said Grassroots’ David McKathan. “He is a classy, long-striding horse who could go fast and that’s what people are looking for.” Out of Avani Force (Forestry) and from the family of graded stakes winner Jade Flush and Grade I winner Startac, the juvenile worked a furlong last week in :10 2/5. After Army Mule’s star turn in the Midlantic sales ring in 2016, it wasn’t until April 2017 that he became a ‘TDN Rising Star’ with an 8 1/2-length debut win at Belmont and he was absent the rest of the year. He has since added this year’s GI Carter H. to his resume. The lag time between sale and stakes success may have helped McKathan get a bargain last fall. “[Hip 92] was a big, good-looking horse then, but they were a little mad at Friesan Fire because the horse that they bought off Scanlon [Army Mule] had only run once,” McKathan said. “But he’s done really well, so now Friesan Fire is forgiven.” Pre-sale activity on the colt had McKathan confident in a good result Monday. “You get a feel for it in the barn, the clientele who are vetting the horse, and you get a feel that they’ll bring good money,” he said. “We had a lot of good players on the horse, so we knew he would do fairly well.” Alpha Continues Quick Start The first-crop juveniles of Grade I winner Alpha, who stands at Sequel Thoroughbreds in New York for $5,000, continued to be popular in the sales ring Monday in Timonium, with bloodstock agent Marette Farrell going to $150,000 to acquire a filly by the stallion on behalf of Ryan Exline and Justin Border’s Exline-Border Racing. The bay filly (hip 25) was consigned by Kenneth Lejeune, who purchased her for $35,000 at last year’s Fasig-Tipton October sale. She worked a furlong last week in :10 4/5 despite her rider losing his irons during the drill. “We thought she was phenomenal and unfortunately she was a little compromised in her work,” Farrell said. “But we really liked how she didn’t turn a hair with that. She stayed focused. She knew what her job was and she galloped out really, really well.” Farrell said the filly, a New York-bred, will join the Southern California barn of trainer Peter Eurton. “It’s a huge plus for us that she’s a New York-bred,” Farrell said. “Ryan Exline and Justin Border and their team already own Giant Expectations (Frost Giant), who is a graded stakes winner and a New York-bred and Ryan loves the angle of the New York-breds. But I think Peter might be tearing his hair out because he doesn’t know how he’s going to handle all this. We keep telling him he needs another division in New York.” Going into Monday’s opening session of the Midlantic sale, Alpha had had five juveniles sell this year for an average of $148,000. “A few of them have caught my eye at the sales and he’s very well-bred himself,” Farrell said of Alpha, a son of Bernardini. “I saw Alpha, he’s not very big. She’s not big either, but she has a bigger walk and I like that about her. And I loved her demeanor. It was the same every day.” In addition to last year’s GII San Antonio S. and GII Pat O’Brien S. winner Giant Expectations, Exline-Border Racing was co-owner of 2016 champion juvenile filly Champagne Room (Broken Vow). View the full article

A colt by freshman sire Mucho Macho Man brought a $625,000 bid from Michael Lund Peterson late in Monday’s initial session of the Fasig-Tipton Midlantic sale in Timonium. Led through the ring as Hip 278, the colt out of Itsagiantscauseway (Giant’s Causeway) was consigned by Kirkwood Stables, Agent II. Bred by Teneri Farm and Bernardo Alvarez Calderon, the chestnut is from the family of Canadian Horse of the Year Peaks and Valleys. View the full article

Preditor anything but half-Done job for Baertschiger View the full article

Duric laps up sense of occasion with three solid Super Saturday rides View the full article

Kranji Mile tracknotes Tuesday May 22 View the full article

Hip 204, a colt by More Than Ready realized a final bid of $750,000 at Monday’s opening session of the Fasig-Tipton Midlantic 2yo in Training sale in Timonium, Maryland. Trainer Simon Callaghan bought the juvenile on behalf of an undisclosed client. Consigned by Hartley/de Renzo Thoroughbreds, the dark bay is out of Canadian champion handicap mare Embur’s Song (Unbridled’s Song). From the family of Preakness winner Exaggerator (Curlin), the Bridlewood Farm-bred colt covered an eighth in :10.1 during last week’s breeze show. He was a $500,000 purchase at the Keeneland September sale last fall. View the full article

Industry veteran Grant Williamson will be joining the Fasig-Tipton staff effective June 11, the company announced Monday. He will join the auction team as a sales announcer, and will also serve as an Account Executive, participating in sales recruitment. Williamson is currently the Director of Stallion Nominations and Sales at Three Chimneys Farm. Prior to Three Chimneys, he worked for Adena Springs and Vinery, Ltd., in a variety of capacities, including stallion director. “Grant brings twenty-five years of experience in the Thoroughbred industry to Fasig-Tipton,” said Fasig-Tipton President Boyd Browning. “We are excited to add his talents to our team.” Williamson commented: “I am most appreciative to Three Chimneys for the chance to be involved with the farm at such an exciting time. This new chapter represents a once in a lifetime opportunity that I could not pass up.” View the full article

To nobody's surprise, undefeated dual-classic winner Justify remained a unanimous first-place choice in the latest NTRA Top 3-Year-Old Poll released May 21. View the full article

Friday’s Yulong Thoroughbred Sale, the first Thoroughbred sale ever held on the Chinese mainland, was topped by Embiran (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}) (lot 52) at 1.35 million RMB (US$211,171/ £157,485 /€179,415/¥23,445,670/A$279,100). The Yulong Jockey Club’s Horse of the Year in 2017 after winning six of his 12 starts, the 5-year-old won the all-weather, 1000-metre Irish Adult Sprinters S. on Saturday (Video). A homebred for His Highness the Aga Khan, Embiran ran third in the 2016 Listed Tetrarch S. before changing hands for €35,000 as a horse in training during the Goffs November Sale later that year. Out of the G3 Athasi S. heroine Emiyna (Maria’s Mon), Embiran counts English highweight Estimate (Ire) (Monsun {Ger}) under his third dam, the MSW & MGSP Ebaziya (Ire) (Darshaan {GB}). Overall, 41 horses of 71 catalogued sold for 13 million RMB (US$2,033,548/£1,517,013/€1,728,540/¥225,837,509/A$2,688,211) and a clearance rate of 60.6%. Inglis Director Peter Heagney was on hand to auction the first three through the ring, with Ms. Deng, a licensed auctioneer in mainland China, taking over until the end of the sale. The duo were assisted by Inglis Chinese representative Jin “Tony” Tian. For a replay of the first portion of the auction, click here. View the full article

With most of the posturing now complete and less than two weeks to go to the Investec Oaks and Derby, all that remains is the decision-making. While hope is still high that the Triple Crown dream will be upheld at Epsom, several horses have impressed within the last fortnight, with the very taking performance of Bernard Kantor’s Young Rascal (Fr) (Intello {Ger}) in the G3 Chester Vase lingering longest in the mind. It was impossible not to feel that the colt could pose a really credible threat to Saxon Warrior (Jpn) (Deep Impact {JPN}) as one watched him extricate himself from the melee at Chester which, admittedly, is a far cry from the Epsom Downs but every bit as quirky for such an unseasoned horse. He will have learned plenty from his second victory of the season and would be a worthy winner, not just for his owner whose firm has put so much into supporting the Derby meeting over the last decade, but also for the often unheralded Elisabeth Fabre, who bred Young Rascal and also plays such a key role in her husband’s training operation. Andre Fabre has already claimed his own slice of Derby history via the 2011 winner Pour Moi (Ire) (Montjeu {Ire}), who went on to sire last year’s victor Wings Of Eagles (Fr). Victory for Young Rascal would also be beneficial to two studs—Haras du Quesnay and Cheveley Park Stud—which have shared hosting duties for Intello since his retirement in 2014. The G1 Prix du Jockey Club winner is currently back in Newmarket and the day after Young Rascal lines up at Epsom, another of his sons, the Fabrice Chappet-trained Intellogent (Fr), looks likely to bid to emulate his father at Chantilly. Class In Abundance While William Haggas really had no decision to make for Young Rascal, the Oaks will be presenting the trainer with a bit more of a conundrum. The G3 Tattersalls Musidora S. winner Give And Take (GB) was another from the first crop of her young sire Cityscape (GB) to claim a Classic trial after Dan’s Dream (GB). Being out of a full-sister to Irish Derby winner Fame And Glory (GB) and to the dam of 1000 Guineas winner and Oaks runner-up Legatissimo (Ire), her pedigree suggests a mile and a half should be well within her range but her trainer is not convinced, citing the speed she shows in her homework as reason for doubt. On Saturday, Give And Take’s stablemate Sea Of Class (Ire) built on her encouraging Craven week debut to win the Haras de Bouquetot Fillies’ Trial at Newbury in an eyecatching last-to-first swoop. Crystal Hope (GB) (Nathaniel {Ire}), who had beaten Give And Take on their previous outing at Sandown, finished third in the listed contest behind Sea Of Class, laying down a telling form marker, albeit on much faster ground this time around. Maureen Haggas pointed to inexperience as a major drawback in considering Sea Of Class for the Oaks but the filly certainly looked to have more than enough ability to be deemed worthy of following to Epsom her sire, who won the Derby in 2009 and has already been responsible for an Oaks and a Derby winner in Taghrooda (Ire) and Harzand (Ire). Though Sea Of Class races in the same silks carried by Sea The Stars and his dam Urban Sea, she was not bred by the Tsui family. Instead she is the product of one of the dominant dynasties of the Italian turf. Bred by the Botti family’s Razza Del Velino, she is out of the Hernando (Ire) mare Holy Moon (Ire) who has already produced two winners of the Oaks d’Italia, Cherry Collect (Ire) (Oratorio {Ire}) and Final Score (Ire) (Dylan Thomas {Ire}). While the former also won the equivalent of the Italian 1,000 Guineas, Final Score went on the win the G1 Premio Longines Lydia Tesio, as did another half-sister, Charity Line (Ire) (Manduro {Ger}). Maiden No More There was a yawning green divide between Sun Maiden (GB) and her ten opponents in the Smith & Williamson Fillies’ Novice S. last Thursday as the Juddmonte filly romped home at Salisbury in glorious isolation. As a Frankel (GB) half-sister to six-time Group 1 winner Midday (GB) (Oasis Dream {GB}) she’s certainly bred to be very good and she could make only the third start of her life in the Oaks. Her sire and the most illustrious of her half-siblings overlapped in their time with Sir Henry Cecil, the pair winning the G1 Sussex S. and G1 Nassau S. within days of each other at a particularly Glorious Goodwood for Warren Place back in 2011. Sun Maiden was among the Juddmonte allocation to Sir Michael Stoute whose Freemason Lodge was once home to the young Cecil in the days when his stepfather Captain Cecil Boyd-Rochfort was the stable’s resident trainer and he later started his own training career from there. Sun Maiden was not the only extremely smartly bred Frankel filly in action last week. After making a winning debut on Apr. 19, Zarkamiya, his daughter out of Zarkava, was in action at Chantilly on Friday but could manage only a fourth-place finish behind Lady Athena (Fr). John Hutchins’s homebred winner will have provided some consolation and a little reflected glory for the team at the Aga Khan Studs as she was conceived there during the two-year stint of her sire Redoute’s Choice (Aus) and she has entries for the G1 Prix Saint-Alary and G1 Prix de Diane. A listed winner in Italy, Lady Athena’s dam Monblue (GB) (Monsun {Ger}) was bought at Arqana for €400,000 by Damon Gabeddy the year before she was covered by Redoute’s Choice. The Nays Have It With four stakes winners last weekend, two apiece in America and Ireland, including the Triple Crown winner-in-waiting Justify, there seems little left to say that hasn’t already been said about the late, great Scat Daddy. So let’s talk instead about his son No Nay Never. Wesley Ward’s former star recorded his first stakes winner on Sunday when Servalan (Ire) won the listed Fillies’ Sprint S., leading home a one-two for Jessica Harrington with Chicas Amigas (Ire) (Dragon Pulse {Ire}) finishing just over a length behind her stablemate. Bungle Inthejungle (Ire) is streaking ahead on seven winners but No Nay Never now heads the freshman sires’ table by earnings and is the first among his peers to notch a black-type winner. Equally impressive at the weekend was his son The Irish Rover (Ire), who has Royal Ascot written all over him following an emphatic win in a Newbury conditions race won in recent seasons by subsequent classy performers Birchwood (Ire) (Dark Angel {Ire}) and Mehmas (Ire) (Acclamation {GB}). Roaring Lyons The parting of ways between Qatar Racing and Ger Lyons was one of the biggest surprises of the week. Sheikh Fahad’s team has had a number of trainers during the course of its existence but none is more readily associated with the operation than Lyons, who provided Pearl Bloodstock, as it once was, with its first winner, Wade Giles (Ire) (Azamour {Ire}), and later first Group 1 winner, Lightening Pearl (Ire) (Marju {Ire}). Lyons has also trained the latter’s first two foals by Frankel (GB), Lightening Fast (GB) and Lightening Quick (GB), to win two races apiece. Lightening Quick, who was the trainer’s last winner for Qatar Racing when landing the G3 Athasi S. on her seasonal debut on May 7, has now switched to Johnny Murtagh’s stable and could well take on her erstwhile stablemate Who’s Steph (Ire) (Zoffany {Ire}) in the G1 Tattersalls Irish 1,000 Guineas this Sunday. For Lyons, however, despite the loss of ten horses, it could well be a case of ‘as one door closes, another opens’ when it comes to major owners. Who’s Steph, who has annexed a pair of Group 3 Classic trials on her only two starts this year, was bought privately between those two races by George Strawbridge, who has elected to leave the filly at Lyons’s Glenburnie Stables. The trainer had a career-best 82 winners last year and is currently in roaring form with eight winners in the last fortnight at a strike-rate of 21%, including three stakes victories. Not bad shape to be in ahead of Ireland’s first Classic weekend of the season. View the full article

Two weeks ago, the Thoroughbred Idea Foundation (TIF) announced its formation with the goal of creating an open-to-all forum for the analysis and exchange of ideas to improve the racing industry (find it on Twitter here and here). Its board of directors are Craig Bernick, Lesley Howard, Corey Johnsen, Paul Matties, Justin Nicholson, Gary Stevens and Jack Wolf. The TDN spoke via phone earlier this week with Bernick, the president of Glen Hill Farm, to get a better understanding of the organization’s structure and goals. An edited transcript follows. TDN: Please give us the “elevator pitch” to sum up what TIF is all about. CB: I think we’re sort of a TED Talks meets FiveThirtyEight for the horse business, if you’re familiar with those websites. We look for ideas that come from participants in the horse business for ways that they think can help the business. We will study those ideas, and put some statistical analysis behind them, find opinions from people who may be at opposite sides of the issue, and then look to see if there’s any compromise or consensus, and we will try to explain to the industry as a whole why we think those ideas can help the business. TDN: How did concept come about and when/how did you decide to take it to a more formal level? CB: There are a ton of organizations in the horse business that have been around a long time that have done a lot of work. But I don’t think there’s an organization that represents the best of what gamblers, fans and owners want. We see those three constituencies as having a choice as to whether or not they want to participate in racing. In our industry, the two customers are the horse owner and the gambler. Everybody who takes care of a horse–whether they’re a breeder or a trainer, or if they drive a van or shoe a horse or work for a vet–they depend on an owner paying bills and buying horses. And everybody who works for a racetrack or and ADW or any industry organization essentially depends on people gambling. But we don’t really see the gamblers as a group as currently having enough representation in the industry. As an owner who handicaps and bets, I personally do both, and I think our board has a good understanding of the ownership side, the gambling side and the fan development side. So through a bunch of discussions, we decided to put the group together to see if we could help. TDN: The TIF’s inclusivity to gamblers is a refreshing stance. Can you expand upon why you feel they should have more say? CB: Although casino-supplemented purses are a nice thing, essentially the only guaranteed source of revenue for our business is gambling on horse racing. Gamblers really spearhead the whole sport. I think most times in the sport, people either think of it like having an “owner” or “gambler” hat on. But on most issues [where people think the industry needs improvement], those parties come to the same conclusions. But the two groups, they probably don’t interface enough right now, and they’re the two customers who really drive the sport. TDN: It’s also different that the TIF specifically states it will seek input from people with opposing viewpoints. CB: I think that’s important. People get together with others that they have strategic alliances with or people who they have common viewpoints with, and they just kind of reiterate their talking points as to why their side is right. That’s a problem not just in the horse business, but in society in general. TDN: Although you’ll be seeking online and social media input from people who want to give ideas, there will be an actual TIF headquarters in Lexington. Can you describe how the launch will roll out? CB: We’re not quite fully launching until the end of the summer. Our hope is to have a website through which anybody can present us with ideas that are open for public comment and debate. The ideas that look promising and generate the most interest, we’ll take a deeper look at and try to figure out if there’s a way we can sort of incubate the ideas for the industry. And if we find out there is some statistical validity behind those ideas, we’ll make the case to try to implement them in the industry. We’re actively looking for the best person to run this. We have some people in mind. I’ve started conversations. It will roll out gradually but we will be up and running toward the back end of Del Mar and Saratoga. We hope to present ideas that should help the industry as soon as we can. Right now we’re just looking for common themes, trying to gather our facts through surveys and polls and open-ended questions. And once the executive director comes on, they’ll be able to spearhead everything with our team and hopefully focus on different ways to try and help. TDN: What do you say to the argument that the racing industry is already brimming with ideas, but that the real problem is implementing them? CB: I agree. There’s no shortage of ideas. I get phone calls from people I respect almost on a daily basis with ideas that are very good. And if we could run with them and actually implement them, they would help the business. We specifically put a board together by calling upon people who have been able to put ideas into action in ways to help the horse business. Jack Wolf was the person who pulled everybody together to found the Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance. Justin Nicholson started the Equestricon fan convention with his own money. And Corey Johnsen with Kentucky Downs, that’s the one racetrack I can think of that has taken casino funding but also improved the racing product to where it’s great for gamblers and great for horsemen. It’s really a group that is able to understand the landscape of all the different silos that make up the horse business and work with people to try and implement the best ideas. It’s a board of people who are successful in the business and they participate at multiple levels. So the TIF board is not a group that is going to come up with some new idea, but I do think it’s a group that through our understanding of the business will have a good chance to actually get some stuff accomplished. It’s a group of self-starters that, despite the current environment, have been able to help the horse business. I think everybody who has ideas, they say, “If I were in charge, here’s what I would do…” But the system we have in the United States is we have tracks, we have regulatory associations and we have horsemen’s groups. And you need to work through those three entities to make anything happen. So we’re looking forward to that process of working with those existing groups. TDN: The TIF will be a not-for-profit business that funds horse charities and purses. Can you give us a ballpark scale of how much money you estimate this will cost and where will it come from? CB: We’re going to be a trade organization that supports the horse business. Our plan is to try and raise enough money for three years. And after three years we’ll see if we’ve made enough impact and improvement for us to keep going. The board is very busy. We’re all involved heavily in the racing business and in other endeavors. And I don’t think anybody needs another board to sit on and more work to do if there’s not significant impact and improvements being made. We specifically don’t want to get money from traditional sources, because we want to remain independent and we’re in a hurry. There are great people who sit around a lot of the industry’s boardroom tables. And if we can improve some of the information that they get to analyze, there’s a lot of smart people in the business who can take us to the right place. But a lot of those boards have huge numbers, they meet infrequently, and not enough gets done. I don’t think we want to do a lot of the work that other people are already doing, and quite frankly, we’re not looking for any sort of credit or to have our name on any of these ideas. We hope we can kind of focus the conversation, and we hope that our ideas get taken up by other industry groups and people try to improve things, because it’s needed. TDN: One of the core problems that the TIF has tasked itself with tackling is the availability of free, meaningful content and data for fans and handicappers and its role in growing the sport. Please provide specifics. CB: The pay model of expensive race replays, past performances, and all the costs involved with actually going to a racetrack, when you look at it from a consumer perspective, our business is way, way out of whack compared to other sports or entertainment businesses. It’s so much more expensive than other sports or consumer options that I think we’re kidding ourselves by 2018 standards. With legal sports gambling [now a reality], it now becomes imperative that our business modernizes content, improves wagering menus, and alters its pricing model. By way of comparison with legal sports gambling, as far as the transparency that those sports have regarding how they disseminate relevant information to people who want to bet on them, I think we’re way behind. People [want to] invest with confidence, whether it’s in the stock market or in gambling on sports. And people can invest with confidence when they’re given more, better information. Those are things that we’ll be analyzing. TDN: Even though the TIF is in its formative stages, are there some ideas that have already blown you away? What are they? CB: Probably the simplest thing that the business should be able to accomplish is the coordination of post times. That’s not an idea that we came up with, that’s an idea that has been out there forever. You’d think it would be good for everybody in the business. I think that’s a natural that we’d love to work on. From a marketing and customer education side, there’s a ton of interest in showing the day-to-day operations of horse racing to fans and new people. What’s a fly mask? How does a horse get trained to walk into the starting gate? Why do horses wear shoes? What does a vet do on a day-to-day basis? Those things might be elementary for those of us close to the business, but for people newly interested there’s a whole world on the backstretch and on farms that they have yet to experience. And getting people close to horses is a way to advocate for the sport and to establish strong public perceptions about horse racing. View the full article

An unusual but highly anticipated aspect of this year’s Tattersalls July Sale will be the opportunity to purchase a yearling by Galileo (Ire). The sales company has announced that The Castlebridge Consignment will offer six yearling fillies by the phenomenal Coolmore stallion at the mid-summer sale which takes place July 11-13. Among the sextet will be a half-sister to G2 Lowther S. winner Besharah (Ire) (Kodiac {GB}) and yearlings out of the Australian Group 1 winners Nechita (Aus) (Fastnet Rock {Aus}) and Sea Siren (Aus) (Fastnet Rock {Aus}), with the latter mare also being a stakes winner in Ireland when trained by Aidan O’Brien. In addition to progeny by Galileo there will also be a mare offered in foal to the him with Castlebridge set to consign South African Group 1 winner Cloth Of Cloud (SAf) (Captain Al {SAf}). Commenting on the entries, Tattersalls chairman Edmond Mahony said, “The Tattersalls July Sale is well established as Europe’s premier midsummer sale and this year’s sale is shaping up to be an outstanding renewal. The star South African mare Cloth Of Cloud presents a very rare opportunity to buy a young Group 1 winner in foal to the extraordinary Galileo and the six Galileo yearling fillies will add an extra dimension to a sale which already annually attracts a global audience.” View the full article

Dubai based Malih Al Basti is developing partnerships with numerous racecourses around the world through the sponsorship activities of his company Al Basti Equiworld and his already significant involvement with York is set to grow with the news that Al Basti Equiworld will sponsor both the G2 Dante S. and G2 Middleton S. at the Dante meeting next year. Al Basti has horses in training in both Ireland and Britain with the likes of Joseph O’Brien, Richard Fahey, David O’Meara and Sir Mark Prescott among others and in addition to already sponsoring the G2 Gimcrack S. at the Ebor Festival, Al Basti Equiworld has also backed the new Owners’ Welcome Building since it opened in 2015, as well as the main Owners and Trainers Restaurant and the Winning Connections Building. Commenting about the agreement, York Racecourse chairman, Lord Grimthorpe said, “The Dante is a race that regularly showcases a real equine talent, so it is very exciting news that Malih and the rest of the team at Al Basti Equiworld share my enthusiasm for this famous contest.” Explaining his increased support of York, Malih Al Basti said, “York Racecourse works hard to support horsemen and I share their commitment to owners, trainers, jockeys and racing staff so I was keen to back their efforts. The Dante and the Middleton are races that echo around the racing world and I am proud that they will now carry our name.” View the full article

For the second consecutive year, recent Hall of Fame inductee Steve Asmussen claimed the lion’s share of the $100,000 bonus offered by the Maryland Jockey Club to trainers for their participation in stakes races over Preakness weekend at Pimlico. Asmussen, who led with 82 points, earned the $50,000 bonus after annexing the Chick Lang S., GIII Maryland Sprint and James W. Murphy S. and was third with Tenfold (Curlin) in the GI Preakness S.Saturday. He also captured the Skipat S. on Friday’s Black-Eyed Susan Day program. Graham Motion finished second with 45 points, garnering a $25,000 bonus. Motion won the GIII Stella Artois Gallorette S. Saturday and the GIII Pimlico Special Friday. To be eligible, trainers had to have a minimum of five horses compete in the stakes races (15) during Preakness weekend. Points were accumulated for finishing first (10 points), second (seven), third (five), fourth (three) and having a starter (one) among the 15 stakes (eight graded), worth $3.7 million in purses. A $50,000 Bonus was also offered for trainers having the most points in non-stakes races contested over Preakness weekend, with points accumulated in similar fashion. New York-based Linda Rice finished first with 22 points, earning the top bonus of $25,000. Also collecting bonus money were Maryland-based trainers Mary Eppler (19 points, $10,000); James Lawrence (18 points, $7,500); Cal Lynch (16 points, $3,250); Dale Capuano ($16 points, $3,250) and Motion (15 points, $1,000). View the full article

Faced with conditions sounder than ideal, Bateel (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}) nonetheless entered Monday’s G2 Prix Corrida with much the best form on offer and justified majority support at the tills with a commanding performance in her seasonal return. The bay enjoyed a fruitful apprenticeship with David Simcock until last year, winning four of eight starts for the Newmarket-based conditioner, before relocating to Francis-Henri Graffard and posting wins in Haydock’s June 10 G3 Pinnacle S., Deauville’s Aug. 6 G2 Prix de Pomone and Chantilly’s Sept. 10 G1 Prix Vermeille. She closed the campaign with a second to Hydrangea (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) in Ascot’s Oct. 21 G1 British Champions Fillies & Mares last time. The eventual winner was gradually shuffled back through the pack to sit fifth at halfway after breaking sharply and racing handy initially. Slipping one more spot on the home turn and nudged along at the top of the straight, she quickened smartly to challenge with 300 metres remaining and ran on strongly for continued urging in the closing stages to register a fifth black-type triumph. “I knew she was well and fit enough to do herself justice in this first run of the year,” Graffard said. “She was fresh and a little keen, but still managed to win in very good style. She’s a classy mare and we’ll see how she comes out of this before making a decision about what to do and where to go next. I imagine the locigal step would be to bring her back here for the [July 1 G1] Grand Prix de Saint-Cloud.” Bateel is the leading performer produced by G2 Pretty Polly S. second Attractive Crown (Chief’s Crown) and she is a half-sister to Listed Prix Charles Laffitte victrix Basemah (Fr) (Lemon Drop Kid). Her second dam is Listed Prix des Lilas heroine and G3 Prix de Sandringham runner-up Attirance (Fr) (Crowned Prince), whose other descendants include MSW Scandinavian champion Angel Light (Swe) (Most Welcome {GB}). Attirance is herself kin to G1 Prix Lupin runner-up and G2 Prix Greffulhe-winning sire Arokar (Fr) (Akarad {Fr}) and to Listed Prix Le Fabuleux victress La Tirana (Fr) (Akarad {Fr}), who in turn is the second dam of G3 Prix Exbury scorer Court Canibal (GB) (Montjeu {Ire}). Attractive Crown’s last known produce is the 4-year-old colt Maqari (KSA) (Dutch Art {GB}), who won once in Saudi Arabia last year. Monday, Saint-Cloud, France PRIX CORRIDA-G2, €130,000, Saint-Cloud, 5-21, 4yo/up, f/m, 10 1/2fT, 2:10.88, gd. 1–BATEEL (IRE), 130, m, 6, by Dubawi (Ire) 1st Dam: Attractive Crown (GSP-Ire), by Chief’s Crown 2nd Dam: Attirance (Fr), by Crowned Prince 3rd Dam: Arosa (GB), by Silver Shark O-Al Asayl Bloodstock Ltd; B-Sheikh Sultan bin Khalifa Al Nayhan (IRE); T-Francis-Henri Graffard; J-Pierre-Charles Boudot. €74,100. Lifetime Record: G1SW-Fr, GSW & G1SP-Eng, 14-8-3-0, €640,449. *1/2 to Basemah (Fr) (Lemon Drop Kid), SW-Fr. Werk Nick Rating: A+++ *Triple Plus*. Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree. 2–Bebe d’Amour (Fr), 123, f, 4, Montmartre (Fr)–Prudence Royale (Fr), by Loup Solitaire. O/T-Jean-Yves Artu; B-Jean-Yves Artu, Damien Artu & Mlle Marie Artu (FR). €28,600. 3–Navaro Girl (Ire), 126, f, 4, Holy Roman Emperor (Ire)–Neele (Ire), by Peintre Celebre. O-Stall Nizza; B-Jurgen Imm (IRE); T-Peter Schiergen. €13,650. Margins: 1 1/4, NK, SNK. Odds: 1.50, 8.80, 49.00. Also Ran: Gaining (GB), Kitesurf (GB), Golden Legend (Fr), Listen In (Ire), Haggle (GB). Click for the Racing Post result or the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree. Video, sponsored by Fasig-Tipton. View the full article

This season, results of the progeny of mares purchased at the Magic Millions National Sale have spoken for themselves. In 2015, Katsumi Yoshida purchased Response (Aus) (Charge Forward {Aus}) for A$1.5 million carrying this year’s G1 Golden Slipper winner Estijaab (Aus). A year earlier, Sheikh Fahad’s Qatar Bloodstock had spent A$650,000 on another Charge Forward mare, Solar Charged (Aus). Mated later that year to their stallion Zoustar (Aus), she would produce this year’s Magic Millions 2YO Classic winner Sunlight (Aus). Last year, Olly Tait shelled out A$170,000 for Lipari (Aus) (Redoute’s Choice {Aus}), and that figure looked like a mighty bargain when her 3-year-old colt Levendi (Aus) (Pierro {Aus}) won the G1 Australian Derby this year at The Championships. And it looked like a very mighty bargain just this past Saturday when her 2-year-old Marcel From Madrid (Aus) (Sepoy {Aus}) stayed unbeaten when winning the G3 National S. The Broken Shore (Aus) (Hussonet) was not cheap when bought for A$1.9 million at Magic Millions by Dean Hawthorne from the Teeley dispersal in 2014, but the Fastnet Rock foal she was carrying at the time went on to become this season’s triple Group 1 winner Shoals (Aus), whose full-brother topped this year’s Inglis Easter yearling sale at A$2.3 million. These are just a few in a long line of success stories to emanate from the National sale, and those stories also include international chapters. In 2014 Barbara Banke bought the G1 Blue Diamond S. winner Miracles Of Life (Aus) (Not A Single Doubt {Aus}) for A$900,000, and she went on to win another Group 1 and two Group 2s before joining the Stonestreet broodmare band. From that same Teeley dispersal, John Sikura bought Drifting Cube (Aus) (Encosta de Lago {Aus}) for A$1.1 million. Expatriated to the U.S., she was bred to War Front and produced a colt that was the joint top-priced weanling at Keeneland November in 2016. Magic Millions Managing Director Barry Bowditch, who recently spent a week in Kentucky to take in the GI Kentucky Derby, said, “Most people worldwide are pretty encouraged by what happens here in Australia. They like our bloodlines, they like our speed, and we have a good culture for racing. Wherever you go in the world you feel as if the clientele are engaging in Australia. The world has never been smaller from the point of view of being able to view everything that’s going on in the world racing wise, and they’re engaging in what’s going on down here and they’re liking what they see.” It is hard to imagine potential buyers not liking what they see when they flip open the catalogue for this year’s edition of the National Sale, which begins on Thursday with the two-day weanling sale and continues through June 7 with the National Broodmare Sale, National Yearling Sale and National Racehorse Sale. The crown jewel of the lot, the broodmare sale, contains four Group 1-winning mares off the track: the Schweppes Oaks winner Abbey Marie (Aus) (Redoute’s Choice {Aus}), also a full-sister to dual Oaks winner Absolutely (Aus) (lot 606); triple Group 1 winner (including the Caulfield Cup) Jameka (Aus) (Myboycharlie {Ire}) (lot 1606); Vinery Stud S. winner Montoya’s Secret (Aus) (High Chaparral {Ire}) (lot 736); and William Reid S. winner Silent Sedition (Aus) (War Chant). Coolmore offers two New Zealand Group 1 winners on their third covers: Costa Viva (Aus) (Encosta de Lago {Aus}) in foal to Pride of Dubai (Aus) (lot 979) and Diademe (NZ) (Savabeel {Aus}) carrying to Vancouver (Aus) (lot 1007). G1 Tattersalls Tiara winner Miss Cover Girl (Aus) (Monashee Mountain {Aus}) is offered on her first cover to Capitalist (Aus) (lot 1217), and G1 Oakleigh Plate winner Shamal Wind (Aus) (Dubawi {Ire}) is offered on her third cover, in foal to Redoute’s Choice (Aus) (lot 1644). Beneath those top-flight mares, there are an additional 47 Group 2 or 3 winners catalogued, and 60 listed winners. Thirty-one percent of those are straight off the track, and the sale will begin with a session for those fillies directly off the track on May 29. “There are so many stakes winners off the track that people can come to market and buy with confidence,” Bowditch said. “The syndicators, the owners and trainers see this as the go-to sale to–at the end of the racing season prior to the breeding season–offer their stock. And some of them have a bit of racing left in them; their buyers can race them on for a few more months before mating them to the stallion of their choice.” “We have a lot of mares on their first, second, third covers; good strong, solid mares, group-quality mares that we feel should be popular in the market. There’s a lot of elite stock that we’re very lucky to have whether they’re in foal on their first cover or if they’ve produced a nice horse to start with. It’s not only about the elite stuff; we find at all levels of the market the catalogue is young, strong and diverse. Whether there’s a buyer that has a very small budget or a big budget, I think we’ve got plenty of stock there that will fit the bill.” One of the more anticipated first-crop covering sires with mares in foal at the sale is the American Triple Crown winner American Pharoah. He has 12 mares in foal catalogued including two-time Group 1 producer Better Alternative (Aus) (Flying Spur {Aus}) (lot 911); the regally bred Bossypants (Aus) (Redoute’s Choice {Aus}) (lot 922), a full-sister to Beneteau (Aus); and triple group winner Sabatini (Aus) (Street Cry {Ire}) (lot 1363). “Some of our best in-foal mares at the sale are in foal to American Pharoah,” Bowditch said. “Breeders have supported him down here. He was a phenomenal athlete, he is a beautiful horse to look at and I’m glad the breeders down here have seen it that way and have supported him with some of their best mares. We’re excited to be offering a good number of quality mares in foal to him.” Off the back of another strong yearling sale season Down Under, Bowditch said he thinks there is every reason to believe breeders will reinvest at the National sale. “We’ve had great increases across the board at all our sales, so we’re putting money back into the vendors pockets at all ends of the market,” he said. “We’d like to think those breeders that have benefitted from our good yearling sale season will reinvest and renew their product.” The same goes for those who will be shopping the National Weanling sale, including pinhookers who enjoyed a good yearling sale season. Bowditch said an attraction of the National Weanling Sale is that a number of vendors offer all their stock there, instilling confidence that what is in offer is their best. “There are a handful of vendors that sell all their stock as weanlings, namely Burnewang North, Kambula and Kingstar, so when you’re selling everything it creates a very real market, and they’re selling their best. I think that adds confidence to the market, and a lot of vendors are seeing this sale as a serious sale to bring good weanlings to. They’re seeing good trade. The pinhookers have benefitted from good results this season but also the vendors see this as a viable option to get money early.” The National Sale series wraps up with the two-day yearling sale on June 5 and 7, the last day also including the National Racehorse Sale. “The Gold Coast is an amazing place to be this time of year, with blue clear skies, 25 degrees every day,” Bowditch said. “The Gold Coast is looking forward to sharing a fantastic vibe and getting into the sale.” View the full article

There was little evidence in the previous efforts of Ancient Spirit (Ger) (Invincible Spirit {Ire}) that he was going to pull off some serious pryotechnics in Monday’s G2 Mehl-Mulhens-Rennen, but none were left in any doubt afterwards that Cologne’s German 2000 Guineas had gone to the best colt by far. Twice caught late on in maidens over 6 1/2 furlongs here on debut in September and over seven at Hannover Apr. 2, the bay had been a non-threatening distant fifth in the G3 Preis des Winterfavoriten over this track and trip in October and notably workmanlike when getting off the mark in the Furstenberg-Rennen also over seven furlongs at this venue last time Apr. 24. There was a moment at the business end of that conditions event, as he pulled an unlikely victory out of the bag, that suggested the homebred had more ability than he was willing to show and he was sporting blinkers for the first time here with Jean-Pierre Carvalho seeking to unlock that potential. Within two furlongs, jockey Filip Minarik knew the headgear was releasing something different as the 21-1 shot was impossible to contain and he duly allowed him to circle the entire field and take control at the head of affairs. Clear entering the straight, he was chased hard by the British raider Fajjaj (Ire) (Dawn Approach {Ire}) but it was the Ancient Spirit show all the way as he maintained a relentless gallop to inflict a 4 1/2-length defeat on that useful challenger, with 1 1/2 lengths back to fellow Brit and solid yardstick Fighting Irish (Ire) (Camelot {GB}) in third. ANCIENT SPIRIT (GER), c, 3, Invincible Spirit (Ire)–Assisi (Ger), by Galileo (Ire). O-Stall Ullmann; B-Gestut Schlenderhan (GER); T-Jean-Pierre Carvalho; J-Filip Minarik. Lifetime Record: 5-2-2-0, €110,900. View the full article

Castellar, who was just over three lengths off the winner when an Oct.25 debut fifth going one mile here in her sole juvenile start, opened this campaign with a Mar. 22 two-length tally tackling the same trip at Fontainebleau and lined up for this black-type bow returning off a second, again going one mile, at ParisLongchamp last time Apr. 19. Racing in fourth until inching into second at halfway, she made smooth headway in the straight to challenge at the quarter-mile marker and was driven out once seizing control with 300 metres remaining to hold the subsequently demoted Luminate (Ire) (Lawman {Fr}) for a career high. “I was disappointed when she was beaten last time as I really thought she would win,” admitted trainer Carlos Laffon-Parias. “However, we learned that she needed further than a mile and that we should not employ exaggerated waiting tactics, and that is thanks to [jockey] Oliver Peslier. If she had won that race then I would have run her in the [G1 Poule d’Essai des] Pouliches, but that would have been a mistake. We are now on the right path with her and will bring her back in the [June 17 G1] Prix de Diane [at Chantilly].” Castellar is the second pattern-race winner for Highphar (Fr) (Highest Honor {Fr}), with the other being this month’s G2 Prix du Muguet hero Recoletos (Fr) (Whipper), who annexed last term’s G2 Prix Greffulhe and G3 Prix du Prince d’Orange and ran third in the G1 Prix du Jockey Club. Her granddam Pharatta (Ire) (Fairy King) landed the GII Garden City Breeders’ Cup H. and also features as the second dam of G3 Premio Verziere victrix Cartaya (GB) (Singspiel {Ire}). Pharatta is also a sibling of G2 Premio Ribot and G2 Grosser Preis von Dusseldorf hero and sire Crimson Tide (Ire) (Sadler’s Wells), G3 Give Thanks S. victress Tamarind (Ire) (Sadler’s Wells) and Listed Claire Marine S. winner Arosa (Ire) (Sadler’s Wells). The third dam Shademah (Ire) (Thatch) is kin to the G1 Grand Prix de Saint-Cloud hero Shakapour (Ire) (Kalamoun {GB}) and is also the dam of the G1 Epsom Derby and G1 Irish Derby hero Shahrastani (Nijinsky II). Highphar’s youngest progeny is an as yet unraced 2-y-o filly by Whipper named Villalar (Fr). Monday, Saint-Cloud, France PRIX CLEOPATRE-G3, €80,000, Saint-Cloud, 5-21, 3yo, f, 10 1/2fT, 2:11.70, gd. 1–CASTELLAR (FR), 123, f, 3, by American Post (GB) 1st Dam: Highphar (Fr), by Highest Honor (Fr) 2nd Dam: Pharatta (Ire), by Fairy King 3rd Dam: Sharata (Ire), by Darshaan (GB) 1ST BLACK-TYPE WIN; 1ST GROUP WIN. O/B-SARL Darpat France (FR); T-Carlos Laffon-Parias; J-Olivier Peslier. €40,000. Lifetime Record: 4-2-1-0, €63,000. Werk Nick Rating: A+. Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree. 2–Amazing Lips (Ire), 123, f, 3, Camelot (GB)–Athenaire (Ire), by Duke of Marmalade (Ire). (€130,000 Ylg ’16 BBAGS). O-Mayfair Speculators SARL; B-Stall Parthenaue (IRE); T-Nicolas Clement. €16,000. 3–Beagling (Fr), 123, f, 3, Wootton Bassett (GB)–Turfontein (Fr), by Kahyasi (Ire). O/B-Mulungu Bloodstock (FR); T-Fabrice Chappet. €12,000. Margins: (SNK, 3/4, 3). Odds: 7.80, 13.00, 32.00. Also Ran: Enchanting Skies (Ire), *Luminate (Ire), Hello Princess (Fr), Princesschope (Fr), Velma Valento (Fr), Berea (Fr). Click for the Racing Post result or the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree. Video, sponsored by Fasig-Tipton. *Luminate was demoted from second to fifth. View the full article

With viewers perhaps sensing a special horse in undefeated Kentucky Derby Presented by Woodford Reserve (G1) winner Justify, overnight ratings for NBC's Preakness Stakes (G1) increased 12% compared with last year's broadcast. View the full article

Following a career best effort when second in the G1 the Emirates Poule d’Essai des Poulains at ParisLongchamp the James Tate trained Hey Gaman (GB) (New Approach {Ire}) appears unlikely to attempt to go one better in the Irish version, the G1 Tattersalls Irish 2000 Guineas at The Curragh this Saturday. Despite being beaten just a neck by Olmedo (Fr) (Declaration Of War) on May 13 Tate is not ruling out a step up in trip sooner rather than later to take on that Jean Claude Rouget trained winner again in the G1 QIPCO Prix du Jockey Club at Chantilly on June 3. “That was his first run over a mile but looking at that, we’d have to consider the French Derby along with the St James’s Palace Stakes at Ascot.,” Tate said. “We just thought he got out-speeded a bit. The O’Brien horse [US Navy Flag] went hard early and then stacked them up and the French horses came at him with a customary turn of foot.” Ground conditions will also play a part in where Tate decides to go with Sultan Ali’s colt next. “What he doesn’t want is really fast ground. If it was good to soft at Ascot that would be perfect, but we are tempted by the French Derby so we’ll just have to see,” he added. View the full article

Irish veterinary surgeon Tim Brennan is to face a BHA Disciplinary panel in July over allegations he passed on inside information to his brother Michael Brennan for betting purposes. Brennan has worked as a vet to trainer Willie Mullins for a decade and the allegations surround suspicious betting patterns on the Mullins trained Faugheen (Ire) (Germany) prior to the gelding’s withdrawal from the 2016 Champion Hurdle at Cheltenham for which he had been trading at odds on to win. In February of that year Faugheen was ruled out for the season due to a ligament injury but before the information was made public, Michael Brennan is alleged to have placed a number of lay bets on Faugheen with the intention of profiting from the information he allegedly received from his brother Tim. Neither Mullins nor any of his staff are involved in the case and the BHA’s chief regulatory officer Brant Dunshea said, “We cannot comment further on the specifics of the charges against Timothy Brennan as this matter is still to be heard by the independent Disciplinary Panel. However, we can confirm that Michael Brennan, who was a person of interest in this investigation, has been excluded from the sport as a result of his failure to cooperate with the investigation. This failure to comply has resulted in the investigation process taking longer than it otherwise would have done. However, it has ultimately not prevented us from bringing charges and has also seen the individual ejected from the sport in Britain.” Tim Brennan came to prominence in Ireland last year when he was charged with and found guilty of possessing unauthorized animal medications when his car was inspected by Department of Agriculture officials during a routine inspection at Willie Mullins’s yard in 2015. Brennan escaped a penalty owing to infringement being at the lower end of the scale and due to the fact that the medications were therapeutic rather than performance enhancing. View the full article

Trainer Ciaron Maher is hopeful his Group 1 winner Aloisia (NZ) (Azamour {Ire}) will still line up in Saturday’s G1 Queensland Oaks at Doomben despite a recent setback. Last year’s G1 Schweppes Thousand Guineas winner took ill after a flight from Adelaide to Brisbane but her trainer reported she made a swift recovery and it is all systems go pending a gallop on Tuesday. “Just when she got off the plane, she had a little bit of an upset tummy,” Maher told Racing.com on Monday. “The team up there took her to the vets and she was fine the next day. It is not the smoothest prep but she seems fine now and she’ll gallop tomorrow and if all is good, she’ll take her place on Saturday,” he added. Aloisia has not enjoyed much good fortune on the racetrack in her recent efforts. A third place finish is the best she has achieved in her last four starts which have all been in Group 1 company, the most recent being a sixth place finish, beaten only a length and a half, in the G1 Schweppes Oaks at Morphettville May 5. “She’s been really unlucky her past couple,” Maher said. “She can’t draw a gate and Mark [Zahra] he ended up being forward last start and then ended up being shuffled back but then she had some really good sectionals late so I think she’s been going great but just had no luck at all so hopefully that will turn around.” View the full article

The Tony Millard-trained Attention deserves plenty of it after an impressive Hong Kong debut at Sha Tin on Sunday and he is definitely one to stick with going forward. The gelding enjoyed a good career in Australia when trained by Peter and Paul Snowden, winning at Group Two and Group Three level, while also being beaten less than a length by Black Heart Bart when he captured his fifth Group One in the Futurity Stakes in February 2017. His form tailed off in his last Australian campaign, which... View the full article

Thou Shall Sing has shown promise at the trials and that is yet to translate into a victory on race day, but he gets his chance to break through in the Class Four Deauville August Yearling Sales Handicap (1,000m) at Happy Valley on Wednesday night. The Chris So Wai-yin-trained three-year-old jumped as a $2.80 favourite when he made his debut down the Sha Tin straight in January – all off the back of four impressive trials. He finished second that day, a neck behind Lucky Volatility, and... View the full article