Wandering Eyes

The John Size-trained Calculation has shown a liking for Sha Tin’s all-weather track and is the one to beat in Wednesday night’s Class Two Victoria Racing Club Trophy (1,650m). After arriving from Ireland with a victory on the polytrack to his credit, the four-year-old has now had two starts on the dirt in Hong Kong for a dominant win over this distance in March before a narrow second to the talented Pick Number One last start. That most recent run was over 1,200m, which is probably... View the full article

Trainer Frankie Lor Fu-chuen helped Derek Leung Ka-chun snap a mid-season slump at Sha Tin on Sunday and they combine again with Turin Redstar at Wednesday night’s all-dirt meeting. Leung endured a 55 race run of outs before Midnite Promise’s win in the opening race, going without a winner for a seven-meeting stretch that lasted more than a month. “There was a suspension in there too, so it seemed like longer,” Leung said. “That’s just how it goes in Hong... View the full article

Tony Cruz has ruled out a Royal Ascot trip for Pakistan Star, citing expenses and a quick turnaround, but the trainer confirmed Beauty Only would head abroad for a second shot at the Yasuda Kinen in Tokyo next month. Cruz floated a trip to England’s biggest race meeting after Pakistan Star’s resounding win in the Audemars Piguet QEII Cup on Sunday, but the trainer confirmed the wildly popular galloper would be staying put at Sha Tin. All is forgiven as the real Pakistan Star stands... View the full article

MULTIPLE Group I-winning trainer Robert Smerdon was in the habit of cheating amid a widespread practice of giving horses covert race-day treatments, an inquiry has heard. View the full article

Less than a week after Beckford won a Churchill Downs stakes sprinting on the turf to prep for a group 1 at Royal Ascot, Bucchero will look to do the same when the veteran is expected to face 10 rivals in the Twin Spires Turf Sprint Stakes. View the full article

Less than a week after Beckford (GB) won a Churchill Downs stakes sprinting on the turf to prep for a group 1 at Royal Ascot, Bucchero will look to do the same when the veteran is expected to face 10 rivals in the Twin Spires Turf Sprint Stakes. View the full article

West Coast sensation Gas Station Sushi will aim to keep moving forward in the May 4 Eight Belles Stakes (G2) for 3-year-old fillies on the Longines Kentucky Oaks (G1) undercard. View the full article

Always Dreaming will make his second start of the season May 4 in the $400,000 Alysheba Stakes Presented by Sentient Jet (G2) at Churchill Downs. View the full article

The G1 Poule d’Essai des Poulains (French 2000 Guineas) and the G1 Poule d’Essai des Pouliches (French 1000 Guineas) will be sponsored by the United Arab Emirates using the international title The Emirates for the May 13 Classics held at ParisLongchamp through 2024, France Galop announced on Monday. The prize money on offer has also been increased, to €600,000 for the colts’ race and to €500,000 for the filly equivalent. In 2021, the purses receive another boost to €650,000 and €550,000, respectively. The Poules return to ParisLongchamp after two years at Deauville, as renovations were undertaken on the Parisian course. Also on the programme is the President of the UAE Cup, an international Arab horses championship, endowed by the United Arab Emirates with €100,000. View the full article

The Kentucky Derby Presented by Woodford Reserve (G1) traditionally receives the most media coverage of any horse race in the world, and the upcoming 144th run for the roses on May 5 at Churchill Downs will be no exception. View the full article

LOUISVILLE, Ky – Fresh off the heels of notching his second career GI Kentucky Derby victory with Always Dreaming (Bodemeister), trainer Todd Pletcher’s troops were out in full force on a sun splashed and chilly Monday morning at Churchill Downs. Retired Hall of Fame jockey Pat Day held court (perhaps reliving Lil E. Tee’s memorable upset beneath the Twin Spires back in 1992) during the track renovation break shortly after 7 a.m. Bloodstock agent and e Five Racing Thoroughbreds advisor Mike Ryan made his way through the crowd on the backstretch-pretty large for this early of Derby week-to get a closer look at last year’s champion 2-year-old colt and $1 million KEESEP grad Good Magic (Curlin) as the 15-minute training window for Derby/Oaks horses, held an hour earlier than years past, was quickly approaching. Hall of Fame trainer D. Wayne Lukas, aboard his stable pony, and Calumet Farm homebred Bravazo (Awesome Again), led the cavalry charge as the floodgates opened at 7:30 a.m. Lukas was all smiles as he exchanged pleasantries with WinStar Farm’s Elliott Walden as his aforementioned former protege’s loaded quartet–all equipped with white bridles, of course–made their way out. All four showed great energy in their gallops, led by the unbeaten GI Arkansas Derby hero and ‘TDN Rising Star’ Magnum Moon (Malibu Moon), GI Xpressbet Florida Derby winner Audible (Into Mischief), GII Wood Memorial S. hero Vino Rosso (Curlin), GII Twin Spires.com Louisiana Derby winner and ‘TDN Rising Star’ Noble Indy (Take Charge Indy). They all had their final breezes at Churchill Downs Friday. Trainer Mark Casse stood on the track by the chute as his long-striding ‘TDN Rising Star’ Wonder Gadot (Medaglia d’Oro) continued her preparations for the Oaks. Casse will also be represented by the tenacious GII Toyota Blue Grass S. runner-up Flameaway (Scat Daddy) in the Derby. Keith Desormeaux exercise rider Peedy Landry, the regular morning partner of 2016 GI Preakness S. winner and Derby runner-up Exaggerator (Curlin), was aboard the stretch-running GIII Stonestreet Lexington S. winner My Boy Jack (Creative Cause) for his Monday morning gallop. Free Drop Billy (Union Rags), winner of last term’s Claiborne Breeders’ Futurity, had a nice bounce in his step as he jogged the wrong way. Combatant (Scat Daddy), fourth in the Arkansas Derby, was the lone Derby worker of the day, covering four furlongs for trainer Steve Asmussen in :49.60 (8/19). With the Derby/Oaks training period winding down, a large group of media flocked back to Barn 40 to get a closer look at the Pletcher runners as they were getting cleaned up. Bloodstock agent Jacob West was among the crowd keeping a close eye on Magnum Moon (he picked out the striking bay on behalf of the Lows for $380,000 as a KEESEP yearling) while Pletcher observed from inside his shedrow while chatting with Walden. View the full article

With her sea legs under her, Rushing Fall is expected to be even more formidable May 4, when she heads a field of 11 for the $200,000 Edgewood Stakes Presented by Forcht Bank (G3T) at Churchill Downs. View the full article

2nd-WDS, £7,400, Cond, 4-30, 2yo, 5f 21yT, :59.95, gd. EMARAATY ANA (GB) (c, 2, Shamardal–Spirit of Dubai {Ire} {SW-Eng}, by Cape Cross {Ire}), sent off at 12-1, was marginally in front of the recent course-and-distance winner Blown By Wind (GB) (Invincible Spirit {Ire}) throughout the early stages. Mastering that rival once and for all inside the final furlong, the homebred asserted to win by 2 1/4 lengths. “He did it very nicely and showed professionalism–he couldn’t have done better,” jockey Tom Queally said. “It was a likeable performance and one he can build on, as he has a good pedigree and ticks a lot of the right boxes.” The useful dam, who won the mile-and-a-half Listed Princess Royal S., is all about middle distances as a half to the G3 Prix de Flore and G3 Prix Corrida scorer Trumbaka (Ire) (In the Wings {GB}). Also connected to the Italian champion and sire Antheus, she has a yearling filly by New Approach (Ire). Lifetime Record: 1-1-0-0, $6,598. Video, sponsored by Fasig-Tipton. O-Mr Ahmad Abdulla Al Shaikh; B-Rabbah Bloodstock Limited (GB); T-Kevin Ryan. View the full article

Look through the Derby field and you’ll see the name WinStar on four of the entrants. While that would be a great year for any entity, it’s more remarkable still for the fact that the central Kentucky nursery bred and race one (Noble Indy) with a stallion they stood, bred and sold one as a yearling (Bolt d’Oro), bought another as a yearling (Justify), and bought the fourth as a 2-year-old (Audible). We sat down with WinStar’s CEO, Elliott Walden, at the farm this week to talk about their remarkable 2018 Derby lineup. TDN: Have you taken a moment to sit back and realize the enormity of this achievement? EW: There’s not much time to sit back and do anything around here. It’s always go, go, go, but we’re not one to really rest on our laurels. The thing that we are–that I do remind myself of–is just to be grateful for the opportunities that we have. You know, we have a great owner in Kenny Troutt and he provides us with a tremendous amount of resources. A lot of people don’t have that opportunity. So we’re very blessed to have a great owner who gives us the chance to do what we love. TDN: You have said that Bolt d’Oro was the best of the crop that you raised here on the farm that year. Did you realize right from the start? EW: Yeah, he was always a very good looking foal. He’s by Medaglia d’Oro, so he’s by a stallion that’s considered one of the best three or four or five stallions in the business. He’s out an A.P. Indy mare named Globe Trot. He was always bred to be special. And it doesn’t always work out that you get a great physical when you do these matings, but he was always a horse that stood out at whatever juncture of his career. He was a good physical. TDN: And yet, you offered him for sale. EW: Our philosophy here is build around sustainability for the farm. Sometimes that means that we sell horses as yearlings. Typically, we’ll sell 90 to 95% of our yearlings. And a lot of people have the misconception that we try to keep our best and then sell the rest, but two things with that. One, we’re selling 95%, 90%. We sold 95 yearlings last year. So, we sell most everything. Bolt d’Oro was a horse that we had identified as a special colt and decided to take him to Saratoga and he was more mature than some and we felt like he would stand out very well at Saratoga. And I thought he was a horse that could sell extremely well and, like I said, our goal is sustainability around here for the farm so that we can be here 10, 20, 30 years later. Sometimes, to do that, you have to sell your best. That was the reason he was in the sale and he sold great. We were very happy with the whole process and excited to see him turn out and be a Grade I winner. TDN: Take us through your purchase of Justify at the Keeneland September sale as a $500,000 yearling. EW: He was a $500,000 yearling very early in the sale. I think he was hip 50. Really, the team that we have that looks after the buying is built around, from a WinStar perspective, David Hanley, who helps me a great deal with buying the horses. He has a great eye for a horse, he’s a tremendous horseman, and we make a lot of the decisions together. Michael Wallace from the China Horse Club and Tom Ryan from SF Bloodstock also are involved. He was a colt that just everybody loved. David and Michael and Tom were especially taken with him. He was just a horse that every time we talked about the horses that were the best in the sale, he was at the first of the list. We were pleased to get him for what we got him for. We valued him somewhere between five- and six-hundred thousand. We were fortunate to get him. TDN: You also spent $500,000 for Audible as a 2-year-old at the Fasig-Tipton Gulfstream Sale. What did you see in him at Gulfstream that day? EW: We had watched him work. I’d been down in Florida a couple weeks watching him prep breeze and I thought he breezed very well before the day that he breezed. Again, David and Michael and Tom were down at the sale and he was a horse that we liked both physically and on the racetrack as well. So he was a horse that we had identified as a possibility and it’s easy to look back now and say, “Oh, we knew he was a great horse.” But any time you buy yearlings or 2-year-olds, you’re taking a risk and it’s a lot easier on the 20-20 vision in hindsight than it is on the front side. We liked him, we liked the chance of getting him in the fold and he was a horse that we felt like ticked a lot of boxes for us. We look for a horse with some physical presence. We look for a horse with some pedigree and kind of look through it with a lens of: if they can run, what will they look like if we get them over to the stallion barn. So, that’s the question we ask ourselves when we’re looking and putting horses in training. TDN: So, when the time comes, you must be looking forward to standing top-class sons of Scat Daddy and Into Mischief? EW: Well, we don’t have Scat Daddy anymore; unfortunately, he died at an early age so it’s really exciting to get a really good son of Scat Daddy, especially one that looks like Justify and also runs on the dirt because a lot of his offspring have been turf-inclined. So, we’re really excited about that day when it comes, but right now, we’re focused on the Kentucky Derby. TDN: WinStar bred and offered Noble Indy, who failed to sell at Keeneland. Best RNA ever? EW: Well, he might be the best RNA ever if he wins the Kentucky Derby. But up until now, he’s just a very nice horse. He was a horse that we took up in book three, I believe, and he was by a young freshman sire named Take Charge Indy. It was his first crop and I think people are a little bit unsure of first-crop sires. Sometimes people get in a real momentum thing and people start talking about a particular horse and they carry on and have a great sale. Other times, people talk middle-of-the-road. So much of buying a horse at a horse sale is about emotion and about what you hear somebody else say. Noble Indy was a very nice colt, and we felt very confident that he would sell when we brought him up there. We put a reserve of $50,000 on him so we didn’t think that was unreasonable. We got him back for $45,000, at that point because of the fact that we have a racing stable, we’re not afraid to put him in the racing stable and see what happens. He’s just exceeded our expectations at that point and I’m really excited about running him against the likes of a Justify or an Audible or a Mendelssohn. I think he’s a horse that’s flying under the radar a little bit and hopefully will give a good showing on Saturday. TDN: Is this year’s Derby a good representation of WinStar’s diversity and full portfolio of services? EW: It is gratifying to the team and every facet of the farm is involved in this year’s Kentucky Derby. Noble Indy is by Take Charge Indy, who we stood here, sold to Korea and so Larry (McGinnis) and the stallion barn had a play in that. We bred two colts that are in the Kentucky Derby in Bolt d’Oro and Noble Indy. So our broodmare team, Jeff Danford and his team, touched them along the way. Bolt d’Oro was a horse that went through our yearling program and was sold at the sale. He is another colt that grew up through the farm. So it is exciting and gratifying that everybody on the farm is involved. And there’s a real excitement from every division. View the full article

B. Wayne Hughes' Spendthrift Farm announced April 30 that it will stand grade 1-winning juvenile and Kentucky Derby Presented by Woodford Reserve (G1) contender Free Drop Billy at the end of his racing career. View the full article

GI Kentucky Derby contender Free Drop Billy (Union Rags–Trensa, by Giant’s Causeway), winner of last year’s GI Claiborne Breeders’ Futurity, will stand at Spendthrift Farm at the end of his racing career, the nursery announced Monday. The sophomore is owned by Albaugh Family Stables, which also campaigned Brody’s Cause (Giant’s Causeway), who now stands at Spendthrift. “We are delighted to be working with the Albaugh family again to stand Free Drop Billy,” said Ned Toffey, General Manager at Spendthrift Farm. “He’s a great-looking horse who’s proven to be talented, precocious and consistent and he’s from a proven sire’s family. He’s a very complete stallion prospect, and he’ll make a great addition to our roster.” Free Drop Billy was second in the GIII Sanford S. and GI Hopeful S. at Saratoga last summer before his four-length victory in the Breeders’ Futurity. Second behind Audible (Into Mischief) in the Feb. 3 GII Holy Bull S. and third behind Enticed (Medaglia d’Oro) in the Mar. 10 GIII Gotham S., he was most recently third behind champion Good Magic (Curlin) in the Apr. 7 GII Toyota Blue Grass S. On the board in seven of eight starts for trainer Dale Romans, the chestnut colt has two wins to date and earnings of $625,220. “We are thankful for the opportunities Free Drop Billy has afforded us,” said Jason Loutsch of Albaugh Family Stable, “and we are extremely excited about his future stallion career at Spendthrift. Since his debut win, we have saddled him seven times in graded stakes competition across multiple tracks and he hit the board in six of those starts. He is the most honest and workmanlike horse we have ever owned. He just loves to train and always gives a big effort.” Out of graded stakes placed Trensa, Free Drop Billy is a half-brother to Group 1 winner Hawkbill (Kitten’s Joy). He was purchased for $200,000 at the 2016 Keeneland September Yearling Sale. View the full article

Monomoy Girl landed in the far outside post of the 14-horse field entered for the Longines Kentucky Oaks (G1) but was still installed as the 2-1 morning-line favorite to take the signature test for 3-year-old fillies. View the full article

In his first timed move since running fourth in the Arkansas Derby (G1), Combatant put in a typical week-of-the-race move for trainer Steve Asmussen, rolling through a solo four-furlong breeze in :49 3/5 Monday morning. View the full article

Spendthrift Australia will add two new stallions to their roster for 2018 in Overshare (Aus) (I Am Invincible {Aus}) and Gold Standard (Aus) (Sebring {Aus}). Trained by team Hawkes, Overshare was a juvenile winner and proved quite smart at three winning the G3 Zeditave S. and the Listed McKenzie S. both over 1200m. “We cannot wait to get him to the farm for breeders to see because we feel that he ticks all the boxes,” said Spendthrift Australia’s general manager Garry Cuddy. “He’s by a champion sire, he’s a multiple stakes-winning sprinter, and he definitely looks the part.” Purchased as a yearling for A$320,000 at Inglis Easter, Overshare is being offered on Spendthrift Australia’s ‘Share the Upside’ program at a fee of A$15,400 Inc. GST for a one-time only payment on live foal. He will also stand for A$11,000 Inc. GST on live foal terms. Also retiring to the farm this year is Group 2-winner Gold Standard (Aus) (Sebring {Aus}). Bred in Victoria by Mr. Robert Crabtree and acquired by the Waterhouse/Bott Stable from the Inglis Melbourne Premier Sale, Gold Standard finished second on his only start at two, and returned at three to win the G2 Stan Fox S. at Rosehill, leaving a number of future Group 1 winners in his wake, before finishing fourth in a very competitive running of the G1 Golden Rose S. “Sebring is a sire that we have a lot of time for and we are very excited to offer breeders his well-performed son,” said Cuddy. Gold Standard will be offered on the Share the Upside program for A$7,700 Inc. GST for a one-time only payment on live foal. He will also stand for A$5,500 Inc. GST for breeders wishing to breed on live foal terms. The two rookies join the existing team of Jimmy Creed, Warrior’s Reward, Swear (Aus) and Hampton Court (Aus). View the full article

When I reviewed Camelot’s pedigree for the TDN in October 2011, following the first of his four Group 1 victories, I mentioned that several colts with names linked to the Arthurian legend had occasionally matched their namesakes’ fame. Sir Gallahad III had become America’s champion sire on four occasions, while Sir Tristram was champion sire in Australia five times in a six-year period. Of course Round Table was the name of America’s 1958 Horse of the Year and champion sire of 1972. It’s still too early to suggest that Camelot is also destined to become a champion sire, but the signs are distinctly promising for this three-time Classic winner, who became Montjeu’s only Classic winner over a distance as short as a mile, when he landed the G1 2000 Guineas. Camelot was already leading the European second-crop sires before he enjoyed a sustained run of success with his 3-year-olds last week. Friday saw the useful Merlin Magic take the competitive Esher Cup H. over a mile in a manner which suggests he has made plenty of progress from two to three. Then the Naas winner Hunting Horn finished a respectable third to Sevenna Star in the G3 Classic Trial at Sandown. Sunday was even more rewarding. The Italian equivalents to the 2000 and 1000 Guineas saw Wait Forever win the colt’s race, the G3 Premio Parioli, while Stella di Camelot’s third in the G3 Premio Regina Elena suggests she could do even better in the Oaks d’Italia. Over at Longchamp, Camelot enjoyed further black-type success when the progressive Naturally High came from last to first to snatch victory in the Listed Prix de Suresnes over a mile and a quarter. The Prix du Jockey-Club is now on Naturally High’s agenda and the Deutsches Derby must surely be the target for Alounak, Camelot’s third black-type winner of 2018. This colt landed the Listed Derby-Trial at Dusseldorf by six lengths and should be very much at home over a mile and a half. Other notable members of Camelot’s first crop are Alhadab, who was beaten only a head in the G3 Prix Noailles over an extended mile and a quarter on his 3-year-old debut, and Fighting Irish, who made great strides at two, when he ended his campaign with victory in the G2 Criterium de Maisons-Laffitte. There’s also the group-placed King of Camelot. It appears that the foundations are being laid for an informative season from the Camelot 3-year-olds, which number nearly 150. I always had my fingers crossed that Camelot, who went so close to becoming the first British Triple Crown winner since 1970, would prove a worthy replacement for his exceptional sire, who was responsible for the magnificent total of four Derby winners. Montjeu’s legacy also featured such stars as St Nicholas Abbey, Hurricane Run, Leading Light, Fame And Glory and Jukebox Jury, but today’s breeding industry doesn’t always take kindly to sons of a stallion who was responsible for two winners of the Gold Cup, three winners of the St Leger, three winners of the Grand Prix de Paris, plus winners of the Irish St Leger, Prix Royal-Oak and the Melbourne Cup. The Racing Post credits Montjeu’s progeny of an average winning distance of 11.8 furlongs, compared to Galileo’s 11.2 furlongs. Coolmore reads the market better than most and they didn’t even attempt to woo flat breeders to use Scorpion, Fame And Glory and Leading Light, who were retired directly to Coolmore’s National Hunt division, which now also features Montjeu’s Derby-winning son Pour Moi and his Derby runner-up Walk In The Park. It seems harsh to say it, but Camelot’s task as a stallion hasn’t been made any easier by Montjeu’s first three Derby-winning sons. Although the 2005 winner Motivator found lasting fame as the sire of the brilliant Treve, and also sired the Group 1-winning Ridasiyna, his fee went from an initial £20,000 to as little as £5,000 in 2012, before Treve provided him with a boost. Similarly, the 2007 winner Authorized started out at £25,000 in 2008 but by 2013 he stood for £7,000 and was then transferred to France. Like Motivator, he had had his moments, thanks to the Australian Group 1 winner Hartnell and those very smart fillies Ambivalent and Seal of Approval. Of course he also sired the multiple Grade 1-winning hurdler Nichols Canyon and the recent Grand National hero Tiger Roll. Montjeu’s 2011 Derby winner Pour Moi had already fallen from grace when his son Wings of Eagles added to Montjeu’s impact on the Derby by winning last year’s edition. Of course, Camelot enjoyed a distinct advantage over his three predecessors, simply because he managed to win the 2000 Guineas prior to his victories in the Derby and Irish Derby. This extra speed could be attributed to Kingmambo and Danehill, the sires of his first two dams. Even so, it is noticeable that many of the breeders who used Camelot in his first year, in 2014, were intent on adding more speed to the mix. His 2-year-old group winner Fighting Irish has a dam by the top sprinter Pivotal and last weekend’s stakes winners Naturally High and Wait Forever, are respectively out of daughters of Grand Slam (a dual Grade I winner at two years) and Holy Roman Emperor (another who won a pair of Group 1s as a juvenile). You will also find the likes of Acclamation, Elusive City, Danehill Dancer and Storm Cat among the broodmare sires of his winners. While this type of strategy may help attract attention in the sales ring, it may not be necessary if the objective is simply to breed a good winner by Camelot. The promising German colt Alounak has a dam by Rail Link, a winner of the Grand Prix de Paris and the Arc. In the rush to try to inject speed, breeders mustn’t forget that Montjeu owed some of his highest-rated winners to mares by the major mile-and-a-half winners Shirley Heights, Saumarez, Law Society, Slip Anchor and Darshaan. This is especially important in view of the initiatives being introduced to breed and own horses which thrive over the longer distances. And remember too that Fame And Glory (out of a Shirley Heights mare) was a Group 1 winner at two, as was Authorized (out of a daughter of Arc winner Saumarez). Indeed Montjeu sired four winners of the Racing Post Trophy, plus several other two-year-old Group 1 winners, so there is good reason for thinking that Camelot should be capable of siring leading juveniles in the latter part of the season, even from mares which stayed quite well. View the full article

The excitement of seeing the old Longchamp racecourse for the first time almost 20 years ago, on the morning of Sagamix’s Arc, is still imprinted clearly on my mind. Finally dropping down away from the lanes of traffic on the Peripherique and inching ever closer to the races along the leafy lanes of the Bois de Boulogne, a gap in the trees appeared approaching Longchamp’s famous windmill to reveal the almost bleached white cavernous stands, every bit as grand as the history of the course’s most famous race. Many happy first Sundays of October have been spent there among bustling crowds since that day, and a fair few spring weekends among not much more than a handful of racing diehards attending the French Guineas meeting. Whatever the crowd numbers, I’ve never had a bad day at Longchamp so it was with some trepidation that I set forth early on Sunday morning for a first glimpse of the racecourse’s reincarnation as ParisLongchamp. Less than five hours after leaving home in Newmarket, our small band of travellers swept past that clearing once more, the view at once familiar but so very different. There’s been much debate about the colour of architect Dominique Perrault’s modern grandstand—perhaps now less grand than it once was but which in places, delightfully, has been built around ancient trees, their trunks rising up through its tiered structure. Murky green from a distance, once up close the it is more muted gold, even without the benefit of the sun. And what it offers, with its timber steps and scaled down internal spaces, especially on a grey spring day, is a feeling of warmth that the old stand could lack on those quiet meetings outside the Arc weekend. Amid constant attempts to attract a wider, younger audience, those charged with running racing in various jurisdictions have a struggle on their hands not to alienate the existing, often traditionalist, supporters while seeking ways to be innovative. The rebuilding of a racecourse isn’t innovative as such but in the case of this much-loved Parisian icon, the inclusion of party areas and rooftop terraces so close to the centre of the capital are a necessary sideshow to the main event, which in Longchamp’s case is the regular provision of the very best racing in France. A similar set-up exists at Hipodromo de la Zarzuela in Madrid, albeit on a much smaller scale but one borne of much more difficult circumstances. In trying to recapture an audience after the racecourse was closed for a decade between 1996 and 2006, Gerardo Torres and his team pulled off a delicate balancing act between sporting and party venue with great success. The same scenario is being attempted at ParisLongchamp, its new name an indication, it is hoped, that here now is a racecourse with a difference. Just as in Madrid, the Thursday night summer meetings will be accompanied by a DJ in the hope of encouraging the young Parisians to come racing before partying. DJ The Avener was in attendance on Sunday, though we were already hurtling north towards the Channel Tunnel by the time the party started. For racing fans, however, there was more than enough entertainment provided than by the triumphant reappearance of Anthony Oppenheimer’s Cracksman (GB). To have Europe’s top-rated racehorse in attendance for the official curtain-up was close to being a gift from God to France Galop, even if He didn’t also bless the occasion with good weather. France Galop president Edouard de Rothschild lamented the poor forecast ahead of the ParisLongchamp inauguration but in hindsight the dank day perhaps offered a true reflection of what for many people was a first impression of this grand new facility. It’s easy to enjoy oneself when the sun is shining but to feel the same way in bad weather takes a good setting and excellent entertainment. Thanks to the efforts of France Galop and Cracksman we had both on Sunday. I can’t wait to return. Gosden Gears Up… As the Flat season shifts into top gear, Cracksman may have been the highlight of the week gone by, but as he and Enable (GB) look set to reign over the older-horse ranks in Europe this season, plenty of their younger associates have reminded us of the strength in depth of horsepower at John Gosden’s Clarehaven Stables. It’s been a busy spell for the trainer. While many of his big-name counterparts aren’t spotted at minor meetings, Gosden and his son Thady were at Yarmouth on Tuesday, where the second division of the John Kemp 4×4 Novice S. proved to be an uncommonly strong affair, with John and Tanya Gunther’s Without Parole (GB) (Frankel {GB}) streaking away from his rivals to win by six lengths. The Glennwood Farm homebred is one of 17 colts remaining in the reckoning for Saturday’s 2000 Guineas, giving the Gunthers a logistical dilemma of whether to stay in the U.S. to watch Glennwood graduates Justify (Scat Daddy) and Vino Rosso (Curlin) take each other on in the Kentucky Derby or fly to Newmarket to see their colours carried on the Rowley Mile. A day later Juddmonte’s Crossed Baton (GB) (Dansili {GB}) put down a marker for a different Classic when winning the Investec Blue Riband Trial, the fourth year in a row that the Epsom contest has fallen to a Gosden runner, following Christophermarlowe (GB), So Mi Dar (GB) and Cracksman. The Newmarket trainer wasn’t finished there, however. Come Friday, it was the turn of Gestut Ammerland homebred Sevenna Star (Ire) to shine when narrowly prevailing in the G3 Bet 365 Classic Trial at Sandown. The colt hails from the second and final European crop of Redoute’s Choice (Aus), sired during the Australian former champion’s short stint at Haras de Bonneval. He is also yet another stakes winner from a Galileo (Ire) mare, his dam Sevenna (Fr) having won the G3 Lillie Langtry S. in Dietrich von Boetticher’s colours when trained by Sir Henry Cecil. She has made an eyecatching start to her broodmare career with all four of her runners being black-type winners. Sevenna is also the dam of G3 Prix de Royaumont winner Savanne (Ire) (Rock Of Gibraltar {Ire}) and listed winners Sassella (Ire) (Lope De Vega {Ire}) and Samurai (Ire) (Shamardal). Stallions On The Up… Dietrich von Boetticher’s Gestut Ammerland in Bavaria is best known as the breeder of the Arc and King George hero Hurricane Run (Ire) (Montjeu {Ire}), who in his Classic season was beaten by Shamardal in the Prix du Jockey Club before going on to win the Irish Derby. Hurricane Run died at Ammerland in December 2016, having returned home three years earlier following six years at Coolmore Stud. His Jockey Club conqueror clearly made an impression on Boetticher as in Shamardal’s first season at Kildangan Stud, the breeder sent him his Group 3 winner Lady Vettori (GB) (Vettori {Ire}). From that mating she produced Lope De Vega (Ire), who emulated his father by becoming a dual French Classic winner and is one of five black-type performers for the mare. Now well established at Ballylinch Stud, Lope De Vega has enjoyed a good start to 2018 and currently ranks sixth on the European sires’ list for worldwide earnings. He is represented later today in a small field for the G3 Prix Penelope by the Satoshi Kobayashi-trained Tosen Gift (Ire), winner earlier this year of the listed Prix Rose de Mai at Saint-Cloud. An Alduino Botti-trained clean sweep in Sunday’s G3 Premio Parioli (Italian 2000 Guineas) saw Lope De Vega’s son Pettifogger (Ire) take third, finishing a length and a half behind Wait Forever (Ire), the second stakes winner of the day for Camelot (GB) after Naturally High (Fr) in the listed Prix de Suresnes. The Coolmore stallion is now out in front in the second-crop sires’ table with three black-type winners this year and four in total from his first crop. Camelot’s G2 Criterium de Maisons-Laffitte winner of last season, Fighting Irish (Ire), lines up for the G3 Merriebelle Stable Pavilion S. tomorrow (Wednesday) at Ascot for Harry Dunlop, while the Aidan O’Brien-trained Hunting Horn (Ire), who was third to Sevenna Star in the G3 Bet365 Classic Trial, could be seen next in the G2 Dante S. Crystal Clear… John Gosden hasn’t had things completely his own way this week. His cricket-loving Newmarket neighbour Sir Michael Stoute bowled a few fast balls of his own on Friday, sending out two members of the same family to win important contests at Sandown. Crystal Ocean (GB) (Sea The Stars {Ire}) is lightly raced but has hardly put a foot wrong throughout his seven-race career to date, and prior to Friday was last seen finishing half a length behind Capri (Ire) in a vintage renewal of the St Leger. His subsequent victory in the G3 Gordon Richards S. gave hope that Crystal Ocean could become the type of older top-class performer for which his stable is famed, following in the footsteps of half-siblings Crystal Capella (GB) (Cape Cross {Ire}) and Hillstar (GB) (Danehill Dancer {Ire}), who is now standing in Ireland at Garryrichard Stud. There was extra cheer for his owner-breeder Sir Evelyn de Rothschild of Southcourt Stud later on the card when another of Crystal Ocean’s half-siblings, Crystal Etoile (GB) (Dansili {GB}), supplied the winner of the fillies’ novice contest. Making just her second start and her seasonal debut, the 3-year-old Crystal Hope (GB) beat what had seemed a classy field on paper. Physically she looks still to be quite immature so her three-length victory over Oaks entrant and previous winner Give And Take (GB) (Cityscape {GB}) can be regarded as highly encouraging, and she is another exciting prospect for her sire Nathaniel (Ire), who was bred and raced by Lady Serena Rothschild, the wife of Sir Evelyn’s cousin. View the full article

The Federation of Bloodstock Agents (FBA) has announced that secretary general Andrew Mead has decided to stand down after being in office for more than 20 years. He will be replaced in this role by former Thoroughbred Breeders’ Association chief executive Louise Kemble. FBA chairman Oliver St Lawrence said, “Andrew has worked tirelessly in support of the federation, and the council is indebted to him as he leaves the FBA in good financial health and order. In advance of the FBA AGM on Thursday, 3 May, I wanted to take this opportunity to thank him on behalf of the members for all his support and to welcome his successor Louise Kemble.” Kemble, who now runs The Elms Stud in Northampton, will provide part-time administrative support for the FBA, which has also welcomed new council member Matt Coleman of Stroud Coleman Bloodstock, who has been co-opted to the board in place of Mead. “Matt’s knowledge of Flat and National Hunt racing and breeding makes him ideally suited to ensuring the council retains its balanced representation,” added St Lawrence. View the full article

The National Thoroughbred Racing Association (NTRA) announced today that Churchill Downs, home of the world's most famous horse race, the Kentucky Derby, has earned reaccreditation from the NTRA Safety & Integrity Alliance. View the full article

Thanks to my Irish heritage I am a sucker for tradition; just ask my family when the subject of removing turkey from the Christmas dinner menu is raised. But having been fortunate to travel the world and be challenged on various facets of my mindset, I have become more accepting of the idea that perhaps the Irish and British racing model is outdated and in need of reform. I love racing in these isles, from the Classics to the 2-year-old maidens. I love the characters and stories that arise from each winner, and I love that a good racehorse can come from anywhere, but when I hear stories of trainers who can no longer make their business viable it leaves my despondent. Often it is a lack of resources that inevitably leads trainers to remove themselves from the ranks. Trainers rely on owners because owners bring with them horses, but with a shrinking pool of owners to go round it is no wonder that trainers are finding it harder to survive. With first-hand experience of a family-run operation that would benefit from Britain and Ireland falling in line with other parts of the world when it comes to training partnerships, I have been seriously wondering how both nations could reap the rewards of this concept, which also serves to give a leg-up to assistant trainers who can’t afford to go it alone but desperately want to take out a licence. Co-trainers is a concept that works exceptionally well in Australasia, with some of the elite partnerships including Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott, Lindsay Park’s David Hayes, Ben Hayes and Tom Dabernig, and Murray Baker and Andrew Forsman, while in Europe the same is true for father-and-son team Carlos and Yann Lerner in France, and previously for brothers Guiseppe and Alduino Botti in Italy. So I ask, why don’t we have co-trainers in Britain and Ireland? Of course there is the question of who is accountable in the eyes of the stewards should something untoward take place, but surely the regulators could find a way to instigate legislation for that purpose. Weighing up the pros and the cons to this situation, the list of positives is certainly longer. I can think of a number of trainers who credit their assistants with the success of their yards, and there are plenty of family-run yards who could utilise training partnerships, such as Richard Hannon Sr. and Jr., Dermot and Chris Weld, Mark and Charlie Johnston, or for that matter, Mark and Deirdre Johnston. In my view, an alliance between trainers can only be good for the industry. Strengths could be augmented, weaknesses counteracted, resources such as staff, horses, facilities and owners could be pooled, and with the sharing of roles, trainers could enhance the overall ownership experience in a bid to draw more people in. Australia’s racing product has often been touted as one of the best in the world. The prize-money is superior, the general public’s interaction with the sport is greater and the number of owners involved, either through syndicates or sole ownership, is far higher than in European countries. The strength of the Australian product is unparalleled so isn’t it time we took a leaf out of the Australian playbook? View the full article

As the only 20-horse race in the country, post position matters far more in the Kentucky Derby than in any other race. Entries will be taken for the 2018 Derby Tuesday, and except for the moment when the gates fly open next Saturday, the most nerve-wracking moment for the connections of the Derby runners will be the post-position draw. Every owner, trainer, and jockey will be holding their breath when the number one pill is pulled, crossing their fingers that their horse’s name isn’t called. It doesn’t have to be this way. In car racing, the driver with the best qualifying time gets pole position. In the NCAA basketball tournament, teams are seeded from one to 16–teams with better resumes getting better seeds. In swimming, the fastest qualifiers start from the center lanes where there is less turbulence and they can easily see all of their competition. In each of these sporting events, the top qualifiers earn a better starting position. Let’s do the same thing with the Kentucky Derby. From 1998 to 2009, Churchill Downs used a two-tiered draw which allowed connections of Kentucky Derby horses to choose their post positions, but the order of selection was based on a random draw. I think Churchill should go back to the “choose your own post” system, but they should use the Derby points standings to determine the order in which connections get to choose. The horse with the most points gets to go first, the #20 horse goes last. The draw could be televised live on NBC Sports Network and it would be a lot more interesting than the traditional “pill pull” draw. This year, top qualifier Magnum Moon (Malibu Moon) would have first choice, and, barring any other defections from the top 20, Instilled Regard (Arch) would have 20th choice and would likely end up in post one. The one-hole would almost certainly be the last post position chosen each year, as it has been a clear disadvantage in recent years with 20-horse fields due to bumping from outside horses trying to get over to save ground. The last horse to win from post one was Ferdinand in 1986 (there were only 16 horses in the Derby that year) and the last horse to finish in the top three from post one was Risen Star in 1988. Since 2000, the best finish for a horse breaking from the one was Sedgefield, who finished fifth in 2007. The lowest post position to win the Derby since 2000 was Super Saver from post four in 2010. Some might argue that this new system would push trainers to race their horses more often leading up to the Derby in search of more points, but would that be such a bad thing? And some will say it’s unfair for the lowest horse in the points standings (who would likely be a longshot already) to have their odds further diminished by being in the one-hole. But that’s how other sports do it. Someone has to be in the one, so it might as well be the lowest qualifier. That would make more sense to me than taking the chance that the favorite could have their Derby dreams virtually eliminated by drawing the one–which is exactly what happened to Lookin At Lucky in the 2010 Derby when he finished sixth as the favorite after suffering a terrible trip. Obviously there would be a few things to sort out with this system, such as where the European and Japanese Road to the Derby horses would fit in the rankings, and how to break a points tie (unrestricted stakes earnings?), but I think altogether it would be a better way to assign post positions for our country’s most famous race. View the full article