Wandering Eyes

Autumn Glow cruising to victory in the Tea Rose Stakes. Photo: bradleyphotos.com.au Star filly Autumn Glow is set to miss this Saturday’s Group 1 Surround Stakes (1400m) at Randwick, with trainer Chris Waller confirming the daughter of The Autumn Sun is likely to resume in the Listed Darby Munro Stakes (1200m) at Rosehill on March 22. Chris Waller Racing posted a statement on his behalf which read: “After giving it a lot of thought, we have decided Autumn Glow isn’t quite at her peak fitness to be running first-up in the Group 1 Surround Stakes this Saturday,” said Waller. “She trialed well on Monday morning, however, Saturday’s race has come up too quickly to expect her to be running at her best. “She will most likely resume in the Darby Munro Stakes over 1200m on March 22. “Running in this race gives us time to possibly give her another exhibition gallop or even a trial prior to that first-up run” Autumn Glow was on the second line of betting at $5.00 with horse racing bookmakers prior to her withdrawal, while stable companion Lady Shenandoah holds the call at $1.70 in all-in markets. Horse racing news View the full article

Tony Cruz won the 2022 Hong Kong Classic Cup (1800m) with California Spangle. Photo: HKJC Tony Cruz will attempt to win a third Hong Kong Classic Cup (1800m) at Sha Tin on Sunday when he saddles Californiatotality and Stunning Peach in the second leg of the Four-Year-Old Classic series. With 1,543 wins as a trainer after notching 946 victories as a jockey in Hong Kong, Cruz’s ambition is undiminished and he is confident Californiatotality, who will be ridden by Alexis Badel, and Stunning Peach, who will be partnered by James McDonald, have the quality to contend strongly this weekend. Zoustar gelding Californiatotality is a five-time winner at Sha Tin from 1600m to 1800m and last start won under Brenton Avdulla, triumphing for the third time this season. “He’s already won at 1800m twice and I believe that he’s a middle-distance horse and he can go to 2000 metres as well. You need a class horse and I think Californiatotality is going to run a big race.” Cruz has twice won the Hong Kong Classic Cup, scoring with Floral Pegasus in 2007 and again in 2022 when Romantic Warrior’s unbeaten run was brought to a close by a brilliant front-running ride by Zac Purton on California Spangle. Neither Californiatotality nor Stunning Peach ran in the first leg of the Four-Year-Old Classic Series – the HK$13 million Hong Kong Classic Mile (1600m) won by My Wish for Mark Newnham and Luke Ferraris on 31 January. The HK$26 million Hong Kong Derby (2000m) on March 23 is the final leg of the HK$52 million series. Twice Hong Kong champion trainer, Cruz is hopeful Wootton Bassett gelding Stunning Peach can reclaim his best form after an indifferent season. “James McDonald will ride Stunning Peach and he’s also won over this distance at Sha Tin but I believe he could be even better at 2000m and above – 1800m might be a bit short for him,” Cruz said. “I believe he is a Hong Kong Derby chance.” Formerly trained by Joseph O’Brien, Stunning Peach was Group 1-placed in Ireland and France when he raced as Islandsinthestream. He finished seventh last start in the HK$4.2 million Group 3 Centenary Vase Handicap (1800m) behind Chancheng Glory, stoutly making ground from the home turn. The Hong Kong Classic Cup entry also features My Wish, Packing Hermod, Rubylot, Divano, Johannes Brahms, Mickley, Noisy Boy, Cap Ferrat, Packing Angel, Mondial, Steps Ahead and Sky Trust. Horse racing news View the full article

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Heart to Heart captured two consecutive runnings of the Canadian Turf Stakes (G3T) in 2016-17 at Gulfstream Park for owner Terry Hamilton and trainer Brian Lynch. Now Heart to Heart's top-earning son, Silent Heart, pursues Canadian Turf glory.View the full article

Runner-up in last year's Belmont Stakes (G1) and Haskell Stakes (G1), Repole Stable and St. Elias Stable's Mindframe returns to racing March 1 in the $215,000 Gulfstream Park Mile Stakes (G2).View the full article

Maiden Watch: Week of Feb. 17-23View the full article

A schedule, compiled by America's Best Racing, of this week's racing events on radio and television.View the full article

Frankly Speaking's homebred Dashman, winner of the William L. McKnight Stakes (G3T) in his 4-year-old debut, will look to build on that victory in the $215,000 Mac Diarmida Stakes (G2T) March 1 at Gulfstream Park.View the full article

Godolphin's First Resort (Uncle Mo), winner of the GII Kentucky Jockey Club Stakes last November, has been forced off the Triple Crown trail by a stress fracture in his left hind ankle, according to a report in Daily Racing Form. The colt was scratched out of the John Battaglia Stakes at Turfway Park Saturday when trainer Eoin Harty noticed stiffness in that leg following a work at Turfway Feb. 18. The injury is not expected to need surgery and Harty is hopeful the colt will be back for a summer/fall campaign. “He should be back as long as the X-rays are clean,” Harty told DRF's Dave Grening. “Just unfortunate timing.” A debut winner at Ellis Park last July, First Resort was second in the GII Saratoga Special Stakes and fourth in the GI Summer Stakes. He has not raced since his front-running victory in the Kentucky Jockey Club. The post Injury Forces First Resort off Triple Crown Trail appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

The 2024-25 Thoroughbred season at Delta Downs wrapped up Saturday and the leading horsemen awards were handed out during the 11-race program.View the full article

Observations on the European Racing Scene turns the spotlight on the best European races of the day, highlighting well-bred horses early in their careers, horses of note returning to action and young runners that achieved notable results in the sales ring. Wednesday's Observations features the return of a 'TDN Rising Star'. 7.30 Kempton, Cond, £60,000, 3yo, 8f (AWT) OPERA BALLO (IRE) (Ghaiyyath {Ire}) takes in this “European Road To The Kentucky Derby” Conditions Stakes which tends to have little or no bearing on that monument but which 12 months ago witnessed the ascendancy of a different Classic hero in Notable Speech (GB) (Dubawi {Ire}). Trained like that 2,000 Guineas winner by Charlie Appleby, the Godolphin homebred who cost €600,000 at Arqana Deauville August earned TDN Rising Star status with his 8 1/2-length debut success over this course and distance last month and tackles five rivals. They include Sheikh Ahmed Al Maktoum's Southwell debut scorer Saddadd (Ire) (Pinatubo {Ire}), a Roger Varian-trained half-brother to two black-type performers including last year's smart Listed Heron Stakes winner Almaqam (GB) (Lope De Vega {Ire}). The post Opera Ballo Stays On The “Notable Speech” Route appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

Looking to keep his hot start to the season going, trainer Dan Blacker saddles grade 3 winner El Potente for his toughest task yet March 1 in the $300,000 Frank E. Kilroe Mile Stakes (G1T) at Santa Anita Park.View the full article

Not to be overshadowed is the Australia-bred Uncorked, a daughter of Australian sire Pierro. Since coming to the U.S., 6-year-old Uncorked has finished in the top three 75% of the time with a 3-4-2 mark from 12 races.View the full article

Tim Thornton was the leading jockey and veteran conditioner Allen Landry was the top trainer at the Delta Downs meet which concluded Saturday. Thornton has now won five leading rider titles at Delta Downs dating back to the 2018-19 season, when he started a string of four consecutive titles before being unseated by Vicente Del Cid during the 2022-23 and 2023-24 seasons. Del Cid missed the first month of the 2024-25 meet, but quickly rose through the ranks to finish in the standings. Thornton won 85 races from 352 mounts at the 76-day meeting. The Louisiana native also led all jockeys by mount earnings with a total of $1,996,075. Landry's first leading trainer title at Delta Downs came after a season-long battle with Abel Ramirez-Rodriguez, who took over the barn of 13-time leading trainer Karl Broberg before the season began. Landry finished on top of the standings with 45 wins from 172 starts to Ramirez-Rodriguez's 42. His runners earned a season-leading $1,165,920. Broberg and Matt Johanson's End Zone Athletics won its 13th leading owner title at Delta Downs this year with 35 wins and $565,095 in total earnings. The post Thornton, Landry Top Delta Downs Standings appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

The 18-race Smullen Series, targeting middle-distance 2- and 3-year-olds, was announced by the Irish European Breeders' Fund (Irish EBF) on Tuesday evening. Alongside that announcement, a record €3.1 million will be contributed by the Irish EBF to Ireland's overall prize-money in 2025. The Irish EBF is Irish racing's largest sponsor and it is funded by Irish stallion Farms. In addition, there are prize-money commitments of €150,000 to Irish EBF named races in the UK and for retired racehorses through Treo Eile, bringing the overall 2025 prize-money sponsorship amount to €3.25 million. Regarding the new Smullen Series, it will include a new 2-year-old listed race at Naas Racecourse in July named in honour of Pat Smullen, the Irish EBF Pat Smullen Stakes. The Spring Series of races originally designed for middle distance 3-year-old horses, including the valuable €200,000 Gowran Classic will become part of the overall Smullen Series that will provide trainers, owners and breeders of middle-distance horses valuable opportunities to race throughout the season. To boost prize-money and interest in nursery races there will be three Irish EBF nursery handicaps each worth €40,000 starting with one in August, followed by the Auction Series Nursery at Cork Racecourse in September and culminating with the traditional Birdcatcher Premier Nursery at Naas Racecourse in October. The aim is to encourage horses eligible for these races to compete in one or all three of the nurseries to avail of the €120,000 of prize money on offer. In addition, the Irish EBF can now confirm that all Curragh and Leopardstown 2-year-old EBF maiden races will each run for a minimum of €20,000 in 2025. All other 2-year-old Irish EBF maidens races in Ireland will be run for a minimum of €18,000. This compliments the €1.6 million of prize-money on offer for 2-year-olds in the successful Auction Series and the Median Sires Series which both include big race targets in the €120,000 Irish EBF Auction Series Final and the €200,000 Irish EBF Ballyhane Stakes. Joe Foley, Irish EBF chairman, said, “The combined spend from Irish Stallion Farms to the industry is an enormous €3.25 million, that is €3.1 million directly to Irish prize-money plus €100,000 to Irish EBF named races in the UK and €50,000 to prize money at Treo Eile supported events for retired racehorses. This amount equates to 10% of what the government will spend on Irish prize money this year and showcases how significant the funding from Irish Stallion Farms is to the industry. The Irish EBF has flourished in the last 10 years when the annual contribution to racing was €1.6m, now it is a staggering €3.25m, double the amount in 2015, which is a credit to each and every stallion farm who contribute to the scheme year after year.” Since the foundation of the Irish European Breeders' Fund in 1983, the overall contribution is over €63 million. All Irish EBF money is put directly into Irish Racing and encompasses nearly 500 races, both Flat and National Hunt, that will carry EBF conditions throughout the year. As previously announced the Irish EBF will be the flagship sponsor of the new Academy Hurdle Series which will commence October 2025. This sponsorship reinforces the support the Irish European Breeders' Fund have consistently given to Irish National Hunt racing, breeding and sales with the following highlights. Fifty percent of the National Hunt allocation targeted at mares' chases, hurdle and bumper races, Connolly's Red Mills Irish EBF Auction Hurdle Series worth nearly €400,000 with 16 qualifying races and a €75,000 final at the Punchestown Festival which is backed up by the Irish EBF Auction Bumper Series with six races worth €15,000 each over the season. Added Jonathan Mullin, Horse Racing Ireland, director of racing, “Today's announcement of a record sponsorship figure for 2025 is another reminder of the vital role that the Irish EBF play in Irish racing. This investment in prize-money from the Irish EBF comes from voluntary contributions from stallion farms all over Ireland and Horse Racing Ireland is hugely appreciative of this long-standing investment. “In 2024, the EBF and HRI targeted support towards later developing middle distance horses with higher value early season 3-year-old median auction maidens, and with the Irish EBF's help this strategy will be enhanced in 2025 with the advent of the Smullen Series. Named after an Irish racing hero, this series has as its ambition the promotion of horses bred for stamina and will see a new race enter the Pattern, the Pat Smullen Stakes for 2-year-olds over a mile at Naas in July, as well as increased values on a number of autumn 2-year-old maidens over a mile and a mile-plus. “I want to also acknowledge the Irish EBF's title sponsorship of the upcoming Irish EBF Academy Hurdle series in October and thank them for their enthusiastic support of this new initiative for Irish National Hunt racing.” The post New Smullen Series Launched By Irish EBF, Alongside Record €3.1 Million Irish Prize-Money Announcement appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

Trainer Dan Blacker is pleased with the resiliency Straight No Chaser has shown in his travel as the target now focuses on the April 5 Dubai Golden Shaheen (G1).View the full article

A total of 346 lots have been catalogued for the Bloodstock South Africa National Yearling Sale on Apr. 10-11. Set for the TBA Complex in Germiston and beginning at 10 a.m. each day, the sale sees the majority of South Africa's top stud farms represented. Yearlings are by such sires as Gimmethegreenlight (Aus), Master Of My Fate (SAf), One World (SAf), Querari (Ger), Rafeef (Aus), Trippi, Vercingetorix (SAf) and What A Winter (SAf), as well as Harry Angel (Ire) and Lucky Vega (Ire), who stand outside of South Africa. There are also several Grade 1-winning mares with offspring represented in the sale, including Alboran Sea (Aus) (Rock Of Gibraltar {Ire}) with a colt by Hawwaam (SAf); a colt by What A Winter out of Nightingale (SAf) (Silvano {Ger}); Ash Cloud (SAf) (Black Minnaloushe)'s Futura (SAf) colt; Orchid Island (SAf) (Silvano {Ger})'s Rafeef filly is set to sell; Gimmethegreenlight and Pine Princess (SAf) (Captain Al {SAf})'s filly will be offered; and River Jetez (SAf) (Jet Master {SAf}) has a colt that will visit the ring. The post BSA National Yearling Catalogue Released appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

Byron King's Top 12 on the Road to the Kentucky Derby, presented by Spendthrift Farm.View the full article

From Bob Hutt Let me preface my remarks as President of the Pennsylvania Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association (PTHA) by saying I am humbled and honored that Smarty Jones was made a finalist for the Hall of Fame. Smarty Jones was the first horse unbeaten through the Kentucky Derby and Preakness since Seattle Slew in 1977. Justify and Seattle Slew are the only horses to win the Triple Crown while unbeaten. Smarty's run through the 2004 Triple Crown races compares very favorably with Triple Crown winners American Pharoah and Justify. In fact, Smarty Jones's Beyer figures for the Kentucky Derby and Preakness were better. Smarty got a 107 Beyer in the Derby and a 118 in the Preakness when he won by 11 1/2 lengths, the largest margin in the race's history. American Pharoah got a 102 in the Derby and a 105 in the Preakness. Justify got a 103 in the Derby and a 97 in the Preakness. In 2004, “Smarty Fever” was rampant as he was even nominated by Time magazine for Person Of The Year, its highest honor. He appeared on the cover of Sports Illustrated. Smarty Jones was so popular by the Belmont Stakes that a record 120,000 fans came to see him run that day at Belmont Park. What happened during the running of the race will be debated for decades. The bottom line was that Smarty ran a courageous race from the start and was just one length short of a perfect nine-for-nine/Triple Crown-winning career. The post Letter to the Editor: The Case for Smarty Jones appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

After conquering a third consecutive stop on the Road to the Kentucky Derby in the Feb. 23 Rebel Stakes (G2), Coal Battle surged into the third position in the National Thoroughbred Racing Association's Top 3-Year-Old Poll, released Feb. 25.View the full article

By Brian Sheerin and Emma Berry As the entries for the Betfred Derby were announced on Tuesday, Aidan O'Brien has admitted that it would be no surprise to see another of his colts take a major step forward this spring to rival current favourite The Lion In Winter (Ire), a son of the 2009 Derby winner Sea The Stars (Ire). “Being realistic, The Lion In Winter won his maiden very nicely and then went and won a Group 3 at York [Acomb Stakes]. They were two very good runs but obviously he was meant to go to the Dewhurst but didn't make it,” he said. “He's had a good long winter off and is back cantering again. Is he the number one? Who knows? “Everything hinges around his form at York and you can interpret that run whichever way you want. It was only a Group 3 but the Justify horse of Charlie Appleby's [Ruling Court] is well regarded and he finished third. The Lion In Winter is by Sea The Stars so going the Derby trip has always been on his agenda and we are very happy with him. Having said that, some horses develop and progress at this time of year and we'll know a lot more when the trials have been run.” Asked to nominate some horses who were perhaps open to above-average progression at three, O'Brien responded, “Well, there are a lot of horses there. Delacroix (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}), who was second in the Futurity at Doncaster, is one of them. Then there are a lot of horses who ran well or won maidens who we like a lot. Acapulco Bay (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}) is one of those horses who could progress. He had a lovely run first time up and then he won his maiden at the Curragh. But when he won his maiden, he never even rose a gallop—he was in front the whole way and was like a horse who was never on the track before. That maiden that he won was absolutely no reflection of what he could be capable of at all.” The man who has won the Derby a record 10 times, including in the last two seasons with Auguste Rodin (Ire) and City Of Troy, continued, “That's what makes the Derby and the Classics so intriguing and we can't wait for when the trials start to see what's going to happen and what way horses have progressed and how much they've learned. Some horses mature differently physically and mentally and, to be honest, that's what makes us all dream around this time of year.” He added, “The Derby is always very open and anyone who thinks differently is only kidding themselves. Some horses go back in the springtime, others go forward and the rest will stand still. The Derby is the ultimate test of the thoroughbred—no matter what anybody else thinks—over the distance and the track. If you think you have an outstanding horse, you can never be sure until they come through the Derby test on the day, because it is the ultimate test of the Thoroughbred.” Ninety colts have been entered for the Epsom Classic on June 7, 31 of which are trained in Ireland, with another two from America and one from France. Graham Motion, the British-born trainer based in Maryland, USA, is at this stage represented by Amerman Racing's Test Score, a son of the GI Preakness Stakes winner Lookin At Lucky “It would be a tall order but we got to thinking about it last year after Trikari won the American Turf at Churchill, which was a 'win and you're in' for the Derby, which I think is a good concept but I think it would be asking a lot of him,” Motion said. “I'm big on international travel but I would want to be sure it's the right thing.” Along with automatic entry for the winner of the Blue Riband Trial at Epsom on April 22, a runner from the GII American Turf Stakes, which is run on the Kentucky Derby undercard on May 4, will receive an entry and a travel incentive to run in the Derby. The post O’Brien Relishing ‘Ultimate Test’ as Derby Entries are Revealed appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

Jim Benes, Cheryl McIntyre, and Rich Nilsen have been voted by their peers for induction into the NTRA National Horseplayers Championship Hall of Fame, the National Thoroughbred Racing Association (NTRA) announced Tuesday. These decorated handicappers represent the 11th class of NHC Hall of Fame inductees and will be recognized during the NHC Champions Dinner held Sunday, March 16 following the conclusion of the 26th NTRA National Horseplayers Championship (NHC) at the Horseshoe Las Vegas. “This is a huge honor,” said Benes. “The Hall of Fame didn't exist when I started betting horses so it was never a thought. Now that it does and I'm in it, it is unbelievable. The NHC has to be on any horseplayer's bucket list, as what is better than a room filled with all horseplayers competing?” “I was the first woman horseplayer to win the Tour and I was very proud of that achievement,” said McIntyre. “It was a lot of really hard work and dedication and traveling because it required me to play at many different venues and tournaments to get to the top and stay there. But it was also very satisfying and rewarding. I enjoy every minute of playing in the NHC in Las Vegas and hopefully can continue to do so for another few years. It's hard work sometimes, but I enjoy every minute of the journey.” “Being voted into the NHC Hall of Fame by my peers is a great honor,” added Nilsen. “I'm blessed to have made a lot of friends on the tournament circuit over the past two decades, so getting in through their votes is very humbling.” The post Benes, McIntyre, Nilsen Lead NTRA National Horseplayers Championship Hall Of Fame Class appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

A bill that would authorize fixed odds betting on Thoroughbred and greyhound racing was filed Monday in the West Virginia Senate. If enacted, 5% of each licensee's adjusted gross wagering receipts from fixed odds wagering would go to a fund to supplement purses for Thoroughbreds and greyhounds. The money bet via Thoroughbred fixed odds would go to Thoroughbred purses; the greyhound revenue would be earmarked for greyhound purses. According to the text of Senate Bill 576, “Any content authorized for fixed odds wagering on horse races from West Virginia, or fixed odds wagering on dog races from West Virginia, to be offered for wagering by a licensed operator, licensed gaming facility, or management services provider, shall require the consent of the host racetrack and recognized horsemen's group for horse races.” The legislation was filed by Republican Senator Jason Barrett. The bill has been assigned to the Finance Committee, which Barrett chairs. The post Fixed Odds Wagering Bill Filed In West Virginia appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

All-American National Champion gymnast Olivia “Livvy” Dunne along with Major League Baseball star Jayson Werth will host meet-and-greets in Sports Illustrated's Club SI at historic Churchill Downs during the 151st runnings of the GI Longines Kentucky Oaks and GI Kentucky Derby presented by Woodford Reserve Friday, May 2 and Saturday, May 3, respectively. Club SI, a multi-year exclusive partnership between Churchill Downs Racetrack and Sports Illustrated, debuted at last year's Kentucky Derby and offers guests a modern, sophisticated race day experience as part of the racetrack's recent $200 million reimagined Paddock Project. As part of his Derby Week activities, Werth will also record an episode of his podcast, Off the Rail with ICON Racing, from Club SI, bringing fans exclusive insights and behind-the-scenes coverage of horse racing's biggest weekend. Affording guests an unparalleled behind-the-scenes experience, Club SI offers luxury dining with an immersive view of the Paddock and Paddock Runway. The interior design of Club SI showcases iconic Sports Illustrated magazine covers and editorial featuring past Kentucky Derby races, and a sneak peek into Sports Illustrated's new SI Resorts vertical. Club SI is open on select premium race days throughout the year at Churchill Downs. Guests have the option to book dining tables, indulge in gourmet dishes from the curated Chef's Table Buffet, visit dedicated wagering windows and private bars, and enjoy outdoor trackside viewing for live races. Steps from the club, guests are treated to the SI Enclosure which delivers a front-row experience of the Paddock with covered outdoor dining tables. The post Olivia Dunne And Jayson Werth To Host Oaks, Derby Festivities In Sports Illustrated’s Club SI appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

The only rule is that there are no rules. Some of our most expensive freshmen are entering precisely the end game that drove their purchase: Arabian Knight (Uncle Mo) and Muth (Good Magic) cost $2.3 million and $2 million respectively, as juveniles; Prince of Monaco (Speightstown) was a $950,000 yearling. Yet the GI Kentucky Derby remains as likely to be won by a $30,000 claim like Rich Strike (Keen Ice) or, most recently, a son of the $10,000 cover Goldencents. Last week, we saluted the advent of a $2,500 yearling by Preservationist on the Derby trail and now we find a colt topping the leaderboard by a stallion available at $2,000. Like Preservationist, the sire of Coal Battle had launched only a second crop of juveniles when packing his bags for a fresh start outside of Kentucky this spring. Coal Front was the overlooked fifth prong of Spendthrift's 2020 assault on the stallion market, the other four duly dominating the 2023 freshman title with much larger books: Mitole with 148 named foals, Maximus Mischief 128, Vino Rosso 162, and Omaha Beach 121. Coal Front had just 44, conceived at $5,000–yet his two stakes winners that year were a match for all his neighbors bar Maximus Mischief, with three. The cream has since risen to the top, Omaha Beach justifying his status as priciest of the five by heading the cumulative table on nearly all indices. Yet Coal Front's five black-type winners (62 starters) represent a higher percentage of named foals than any stallion in the intake. In fairness, he's hardly typical of the ridiculous predicament in which so many young stallions find themselves today, having never benefitted even from the customary stampede from one new stallion to the next. His slide from a debut book of 89 to 51 mares last spring is nothing like as steep as that experienced by another from the same intake (on a different farm), from 221 to 34! But those who brought Coal Front to Louisiana deserve congratulations for recognizing that if you truly believe in a stallion, the time to double down is when everyone else is nervously moving on. The question now is whether Coal Battle is equipped for more searching tests ahead. For his success in the GII Rebel Stakes, over a barely extended mile, hardly diminished the sense that he's primarily a dasher. Coal Front himself won the GIII Razorback Handicap over a similar distance on the equivalent card in 2019, before adding the GI Godolphin Mile, but his previous graded wins had come over 6f/7f. Aside from this colt, he has produced Haulin Ice to romp the one-turn Azalea Stakes at Gulfstream, and dual 6f stakes winner Xtreme Diva. The oddity is that Coal Front's pedigree is loaded with Classic influences, notably Seattle Slew–whose son A.P. Indy accounts for both grandsire Bernardini and damsire Mineshaft, and who also sired Coal Front's third dam. Coal Front's sire Stay Thirsty now has an even more blatant sprint type at stud in Mind Control. It would be edifying, if a little unexpected, if this speed-oriented pair could extend a Bernardini male line to complement his remarkable legacy as a broodmare sire. Coal Battle may not get much assistance, in terms of stamina, from his maternal family–even though his dam Wolfblade (Midshipman) introduces three additional strains of Seattle Slew! (Her sire is out of a mare by his son Avenue of Flags, while the sires of her first two dams are out of mares respectively by Seattle Slew and his son Capote.) While Midshipman channels some sturdy Classic brands, and has had good stayers in Chile, his principal footprint as a broodmare sire is Golden Pal (Uncle Mo)–and the fact is that Wolfblade herself won eight times over 4.5f at Charles Town. Admittedly she operated under tags as low as $4,000, obtaining her solitary black-type amongst West Virginian state-breds. She's out of another sprinter, Venice Queen (Latent Heat), a half-sister to graded stakes winner Easy Time (Not This Time) with a couple of minor stakes placings to her name; while the next dam is an unraced Cape Town half-sister to GIII Iowa Oaks winner He Loves Me (Not For Love). Eventually the line tapers to the important mare Enchanted Eve, via her champion daughter Tempted. Overall, however, physique probably contributed more than page when Coal Battle realized $70,000 as a yearling, a top 10 price at the 2023 Texas Thoroughbred Association Sale. Bravo to Coal Battle's breeders Hume Wornall and Jay Adcock for raising a Derby colt, at the first attempt, from a mare anyone could have claimed for even less than her chosen partner's fee. (Adcock, incidentally, heads the partnership that brought Coal Front to his Red River Farm.) The placed horses Sunday cost $650,000 and $1.2 million respectively. So while nobody knows where Coal Battle may reach his ceiling, in distance or class–well, that's the whole point. Maximum Security | Sarah Andrew Maximum Misfortunes Secure Sympathy Except, of course, there are actually a whole bunch of rules. Just ask Maximum Security. There were the ones his rider was deemed to break in the 2019 GI Kentucky Derby; and then there were those flagrantly breached by his trainer, Jason Servis, who was jailed in 2023. Five years ago, Maximum Security was the inaugural winner of the G1 Saudi Cup, but his contentious disqualification (despite zero test abnormalities) was only confirmed last summer. In the meantime, the poor horse has been trying to shake free of this welter of misfortune and launch a stud career. When Coolmore bought into the horse, they knew that a son of New Year's Day might not work for everybody. But the functionality of his genes appeared evident: he was about to be anointed crop champion, a single horse having finished in front of him in nine starts; and would later win the GI Pacific Classic for his new trainer. Through no fault of horse or owners, however, Maximum Security would suddenly become a hard sell. He did muster 135 mares for his debut, at $20,000, but last year was down to 54 at $7,500. Of 51 first-crop starters last year, 17 winners were highlighted by just one stakes-placed horse and this spring Maximum Security was trimmed again to $5,000. How timely, then, was the succor he found last weekend, showing what he might yet do given a chance. Presumably he can't have received many more accomplished mares than GI Ruffian Handicap/GI Lady's Secret Stakes winner Tough Tiz's Sis (Tiznow). True, she appeared to have peaked as a producer with her first foal, GII Bayakoa Stakes winner Tiz Midnight, albeit the latter has since produced triple graded stakes scorer Midnight Memories (Mastery), while her Tapit half-sister came up with GIII Holy Bull winner Rocket Can (Into Mischief). But Tough Tiz's Sis is booked straight back to Maximum Security after the 'TDN Rising Star' debut of their son Tiz Secure, homebred by Karl Watson and Paul Weitman, at Santa Anita. With Maximum Promise third in the John Battaglia Stakes on the same day, perhaps Maximum Security is starting to turn things round. On the face of it, his dam introduces no more glamor than his exiled sire, as a $2,200 yearling by Anasheed. But she was a half-sister to triple Group 1 winner Flat Out (Flatter), while Anasheed's overall failure doesn't alter the fact that he filters some of the best blood in the book. Who knows, perhaps Tiz Secure will prove the straw in the wind that allows Maximum Security to prove himself a victim, and not a beneficiary, of human vice. Honor A.P. | Sarah Andrew Not Just Vekoma Deserving Honor The stallion in Maximum Security's intake who's kicking on unmissably is Vekoma, whose promoters couldn't dream of a G3 Saudi Derby winner named more obligingly than Golden Vekoma. After shading a desperate race for the freshman title, Vekoma's sophomores are consolidating fast. He produced five stakes winners among his first juveniles, a tally matched by Tiz the Law and Complexity; but already has four in 2025, while Complexity remains his only peer with even two. Golden Vekoma is a half-brother to Midshipman's Dance (Midshipman), who won the Mockingbird Stakes last year. Their dam, Remington Park Oaks winner Sticks Wondergirl (Stevie Wonderboy), was the sole daughter of a Quiet American half-sister to a splendid producer in Choreograph (Dynaformer). The latter's serial stakes performers and/or producers for the exemplary Ramona Bass program include Goliad (War Front), who won a couple of graded stakes at seven last year. But don't overlook the sire of Heart Of Honor (GB), who had chased home Golden Vekoma on their previous start and again flew late when failing by just a head in his local prep for the UAE Derby last Friday. Sold as a weanling after his dam was exported to Britain, Heart Of Honor made €160,000 at the Arqana Breeze-Up and is hinting that Honor A.P. does not deserve to be swamped by the big numbers fielded by Vekoma and his pals at the top of the table. I remain convinced that Honor A.P. was the most talented of his crop and, while his slow-burning profile hardly promised a ton of precocious sprinters, he nonetheless included a couple of single-turn stakes winners among his first juveniles. The progress of his overseas flagship now confirms this beautiful horse ($850,000 yearling) as exactly the type to be supported by any breeders inclined to quell the witless trends currently putting the whole stallion scene in crisis. The post Breeding Digest: Can He Keep Piling On The Coal? appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article