Wandering Eyes

NBC Sports Group and Ascot Racecourse have reached a six-year agreement to extend NBC Sports Group's exclusive United States media rights to Royal Ascot until 2025. View the full article

The European yearling market is positively booming. That’s the inescapable conclusion when we examine the returns this year and compare them to the results going back as far as 2010. And it’s not just the top of the market that is carrying the whole show, either. At every level from the elite end to the very bottom, there has been extraordinary growth. It is the kind of growth that would be the envy of almost any other industry. Year-in and year-out, vendors will always be disappointed not to get their yearlings on the right final lists and will often cite the fact that only the elite yearlings are making proper money. That will always be the case–that’s how most markets work. But they can at least console themselves with the fact that investment in yearlings in Europe–at all levels–is most definitely progressing in the right direction. The top 10% of the market is undoubtedly very lucrative. The average price in this segment was £234k this year, up from £212k a year ago. That represents an increase of 9.4%. In fact, the top segment has risen every year since 2010, when the average price was less than half what it is now. But it’s the same story with every other segment in the market as well. The sixth decile, which is just below the middle market, shows just as much growth–up 14.3% on last year and 100% on 2010. That’s £19k to £37k in less than 10 years. Even the bottom 10% is up 12% on 2017 and nearly 100% on 2010. The growth is all the more impressive when we take into account the supply side of the equation. The number of yearlings offered at European sales this year looks very much like it did in 2010, but there is an upward trend in the period: in 2011 just over 6,000 yearlings were offered for sale, compared to over 7,100 last year. Clearance rates are also at their highest in recent years at around 79%. Remarkably, the growth in stud fees in the same period for those sires with 10 or more yearlings sold looks comparatively subdued at 11%. View the full article

Showcasing (GB), who has stood for £35,000 at Whitsbury Manor Stud the past two seasons, will get a significant fee hike to £55,000 for 2019. The son of Oasis Dream has enjoyed another productive year both on the racetrack and in the sales rings: he added a Group 1-winning juvenile in Advertise (GB) in addition to four new Group 2 winners including Soldier’s Call (GB). In the ring, his yearlings made up to 650,000gns. “This reflects his fantastic results at the sales and the considerable interest we have already had, whilst continuing our plan to limit his book,” said Whitsbury Manor’s Ed Harper. G1 Flying Five S. winner Havana Grey (GB) (Havana Gold {Ire}) will stand his first season at £8,000. “After a clean sweep of Group 1, Group 2 and Group 3 wins over five furlongs, he can rightly claim to be the fastest horse from the Galileo sire line, which allows the perfect cross for the majority of speed-bred mares,” Harper said. “He continues our strong tradition of standing fast, commercial stallions and I can’t wait to show him off to breeders, as he has the physique to match. A select number of breeding rights will be made available.” The Whitsbury Manor roster is rounded out by Adaay (Ire) (£5,000), who has his first foals this year, and Due Diligence (£4,000), with currently his first yearlings. View the full article

Kessaar (Ire) (Kodiac {GB}-Querulous, by Raven’s Pass), the winner of this year’s G2 Mill Reef S. and G3 Sirenia S., has been retired from racing and will stand at stud at his birthplace, Tally-Ho Stud, in 2019. A 100,000gns yearling purchase by Hugo Merry for Mohammed Al-Qatami and Khalid Al-Mudhaf, Kessaar was John Gosden’s first 2-year-old runner this year when finishing second at York on May 17. He broke his maiden at third asking at Windsor on July 30 and in the space of two weeks in September took the Sirenia and the Mill Reef. “We are delighted that Kessaar, one of the best 2-year-olds sired by Kodiac, will be returning to Tally-Ho as a stallion,” said the stud’s Roger O’Callaghan. “He’s a good-looking, tough horse with the juvenile speed so typical of his sire and we look forward to him contributing to Kodiac’s legacy.” Khalid Al-Mudhaf added: “From the moment we saw Kessaar as a yearling at the sales we thought that he was an exceptionally good-looking colt with correct conformation, and very athletic. He’s never taken a lame step, always had a good mind and has proven himself versatile ground-wise, winning on good to firm, soft and the all-weather. We have retained an interest in Kessaar and will obviously be supporting him with our broodmares.” View the full article

Addressing your thoughts, questions and statements about Hong Kong racing. Have something to say? Send a tweet to @SCMPRacingPost Grant van Niekerk’s first Happy Valley victory! Catch me if you can Little Bird – @nicklasyip You only needed to see the South African’s celebration – which started about 50m before the line – to understand what the win meant to him. While enjoying plenty of success at Sha Tin, Van Niekerk has struggled to adjust to the vagaries of the... View the full article

Jockey Alberto Sanna has vowed to push through the pain barrier and return to riding in record time after shattering his hip in a freak cycling accident. Even with an 18cm rod and screws holding his surgically reconstructed hip in place, Sanna says his recovery is more of a mental game and expects to be back in the saddle by the end of the year. The Italian jockey, who is renowned for going to extreme lengths to be the fittest jockey in Hong Kong, fell off his road bike last month while... View the full article

Korea Sprint runner-up Fight Hero returns to the races at Sha Tin on Saturday as trainer Me Tsui Yu-sak sets the horse on what shapes as a precarious path to the Dubai World Cup on March 30. Fight Hero far exceeded Tsui’s expectations with a gallant second on the sand in Seoul in early September, giving him confidence the seven-year-old can shine under the bright lights of Meydan. “This performance was far better than I could have expected, I honestly thought that to win would be... View the full article

LEXINGTON, KY – Demand remained strong during Wednesday’s final Book 2 session of the Keeneland November Breeding Stock Sale in Lexington, with John Goodman’s Mt. Brilliant Farm making the day’s highest bid of $750,000 to acquire the Juddmonte mare Miss Exclusive (Unbridled’s Song) from the Mill Ridge Sales consignment. “I think we are at a very good spot,” Keeneland’s Director of Sales Operations Geoffrey Russell said at the close of business Wednesday. “I think Book 2 was a good, solid book from start to finish. Obviously, today was highlighted by a Juddmonte mare who was sought-after by several people. It’s good to see these local farms replenishing their stock, Mt. Brilliant, Stone Farm, Fred Hertrich, WinStar and Dixiana. So it’s good to see the success of the September sale has led to people reinvesting in broodmares. That is good and healthy for our industry.” During Wednesday’s session, 231 horses grossed $33,856,000 for an average of $146,563 and a median of $130,000. With 88 horses reported not sold, the buy-back rate was 27.59%. Through the two Book 2 sessions, 454 head sold for $68,798,000. The Book 2 average was $151,537 and the median was $125,000. A reformatted 2018 auction–which featured a single session Book 1–precludes direct comparisons to the 2017 sale, but last year’s Book 2 sessions saw 459 horses sell for $60,101,000. The average was $130,939 and the median was $100,000. The weanling market remained competitive Wednesday, with a colt by Tapit leading the way when selling to bloodstock agents Alex Solis and Jason Litt for $380,000. The youngster was one of seven to bring $300,000 or over during the session. “The quality of the foals was unbelievable,” Russell said. “Listening to buyers–or non-buyers–there is a little frustration. It was interesting today talking to several people who said, ‘I’m giving more than I thought I should give and I’m still not getting there.’ That again reflects on the health of the September sale. These people feel comfortable that the market is on the increase and they can buy with confidence that they will be able to sell next year.” The Keeneland November sale continues through Nov. 16 with sessions beginning daily at 10 a.m. Miss Exclusive Joins Mt. Brilliant Band John Goodman of Mt. Brilliant Farm admitted he has been trying to buy into a Juddmonte family for years and he finally got the job done Wednesday at Keeneland when purchasing Miss Exclusive (Unbridled’s Song) for $750,000. The 6-year-old mare, in foal to Noble Mission (GB), was consigned by Mill Ridge Sales as agent for Prince Khalid Abdullah’s operation. Bloodstock agent Marette Farrell signed the ticket for Mt. Brilliant. “We really liked her,” Goodman said. “We’ve been looking at her for a few days. We tried to buy some of the family from Juddmonte at Tattersalls the year before last, but we got outbid. So, we’ve wanted to be in the family for a long time and to get a mare like this out of this family for a long time. We’re excited to be able to get her.” Miss Exclusive (hip 898) is a daughter of champion grass mare Intercontinental (GB) (Danehill), who is out of Hasili (Ire) and is a full-sister to champions Dansili (GB), Banks Hill (GB) and Champs Elysees (GB). “She’s obviously from a lovely family and mares like that are collector’s items,” said Juddmonte’s Garrett O’Rourke. “We’re lucky enough to have enough of them to pass one on. We’ve got to get the numbers down, so that mares like that every now and again have to find another home. But it’s great when they go to very good homes and I’m delighted for people like the Goodmans to have a jewel like that.” Juddmonte, which enjoyed a two-win day on Breeders’ Cup weekend, also parted ways with Compression (First Defence) Wednesday at Keeneland. The 3-year-old broodmare prospect (hip 731) was purchased for $420,000 by bloodstock agent Steve Young. “We’re always trying to keep the quality at the highest level and not let any slippage,” O’Rourke said. “I think there are plenty of people out there trying to compete or unseat us, so I think we’ve got to keep the quality at the highest level possible in order to produce the quality of horses that we are constantly trying to produce.” Juddmonte’s colors were carried to victory last Saturday at Churchill Downs by the brilliant Enable (GB) (Nathaniel {Ire}) in the GI Breeders’ Cup Turf and by Expert Eye (GB) (Acclamation {GB}) in the GI Breeders’ Cup Mile. “I think it’s always our primary goal to keep Prince Khalid happy with the performance of his horses and, as long as they are winning, hopefully he is happy,” O’Rourke said. Of the farm’s success at the Breeders’ Cup, O’Rourke said with a laugh, “It just keeps the pressure on that we have to keep it up to those standards. We’ve got to perform.” @JessMartiniTDN Fennelly Building Broodmare Band When David Fennelly first came to the United States, he was working as a groom at Spendthrift. The Irishman has come a full circle of sorts and is now building his own commercial broodmare band at his Mountmellick Farm, 600 acres on the former Kentuckiana Farm in Georgetown. He added multiple graded stakes placed Theogony (Curlin) (hip 1030) to the band with a $500,000 bid at Keeneland Wednesday. The 8-year-old mare, in foal to Quality Road, was consigned by Hill ‘n’ Dale Sales Agency. “She is a beautiful mare,” Fennelly, who did his bidding in the pavilion while seated alongside bloodstock agent Terry Gabriel, said. “She is absolutely stunning. Her conformation is amazing. We love Quality Road and she’s by Curlin, one of the most accomplished stallions in the industry. So we really wanted this mare badly. And we are so happy to get her.” Fennelly left the Bluegrass for New Orleans and was originally in the coal transportation business before he and a partner purchased the fleeting and shifting company Turn Services in 1990. “We are relatively new to the area,” Fennelly said. “We are coming back around to full circle. I used to work for Spendthrift when I first came to the United States. That’s where the story began and now we are here at Mountmellick Farm.” Theogony, a daughter of multiple graded stakes placed Upcoming Story (Tale of the Cat), was Fennelly’s third purchase of the Keeneland sale. He acquired Featherspun (Hard Spun) (hip 773) for $125,000 and a weanling filly by Honor Code (hip 993) for that same price. “Right now, with today’s purchases, we have 12 mares, but we intend to increase significantly over a period of time,” Fennelly said. “We are just a commercial operation right now, but we are just getting back in and starting, so I’m not sure what we are going to do from here.” Just six hips after purchasing Theogony, Fennelly’s fledgling Mountmellick operation offered a weanling colt by American Pharoah out of Toast to Ashley (First Defence) as hip 1036. The bay RNA’d for $95,000. Through Scott Mallory’s consignment, Mountmellick sold a Liam’s Map colt out of La Milanesa (Mr. Greeley) (hip 857) Wednesday for $50,000. @JessMartiniTDN Homeland Security to Moyglare Moyglare Stud, which has had racetrack success buying such graded stakes winners as Discreet Marq (Discreet Cat) and Celestine (Scat Daddy) as racing/broodmare prospects at the fall breeding stock auctions, may be looking for similar results after purchasing Homeland Security (Smart Strike) (hip 816) for $460,000 Wednesday at Keeneland. Racing for Klaravich Stables and William Lawrence, the 4-year-old filly won the July 8 River Memories S. and Oct. 28 Zagora S. over the Belmont Park turf for trainer Chad Brown. “A 1 1/2-mile turf horse–that’s at least one thing we’re familiar with,” Moyglare’s Fiona Craig said after signing the ticket on the dark bay, who was consigned by Elite. “She is a very nice individual, by Smart Strike with a lovely pedigree that traces back well.” Discreet Marq, winner of the 2013 GI Del Mar Oaks, was purchased for $2.4 million at the 2014 Fasig-Tipton November sale and went on to add a win in the GIII Beaugay S. and a third-place effort in the 2015 GI Just a Game S. in the Moyglare colors for trainer Christophe Clement. Celestine was another Grade I winner before being purchased by Moyglare for $2.55 million at the 2016 Keeneland November sale. She added another graded score to her tally before retiring to the farm’s Irish-based nursery. “We will figure out what to do with [Homeland Security] along the way,” Craig said. “She may go down to Florida and try and win a couple more races. We’ll see how we get on.” One November acquisition already on her way south to join the Clement stable is My Arch Enemy (Arch) (hip 489), who was purchased Tuesday at Keeneland for $400,000. “My Arch Enemy is already on her way to Florida,” Craig said. “Eva [Maria Bucher-Haefner] would like to have a bit of fun, a little racing, and this is actually easier than buying yearlings or foals or broodmares. It’s quicker. Now we have a dual stakes winner and we can play with her a bit and see what we get to.” @JessMartiniTDN More Than a Spring Fling for Hunter Valley Hunter Valley Farm’s Adrian Regan admitted he was stretched to his limit when the operation acquired Spring Fling (Lemon Drop Kid), in foal to Into Mischief, for $195,000 at last year’s Keeneland November sale. That one-last-bid proved worthwhile Wednesday at Keeneland when the mare’s weanling filly sold for $360,000 to Spendthrift Farm. “We loved the mare last year,” Regan said after watching hip 995 go through the ring. “James Keogh was selling her and he thought well of her. But that was our final bid on the mare–thanks be to God no one bid against us after that.” The 5-year-old Spring Fling is out of multiple graded stakes winner Swept Away (Mystery Storm) and is a half-sister to graded stakes placed Cash Refund (Petionville). The Into Mischief filly was the mare’s first foal. “She has been beautiful the whole year,” Regan said of the filly who was co-bred with Pat Barrett. “She was a really quality filly the whole time she was here and she showed beautifully down in the barn.” Of the weanling’s final price tag Wednesday, Regan added, “She had a lot of action, but we never thought she was going to go to that. It’s been a good day.” Spring Fling remains in the broodmare band at Hunter Valley and she is back in foal to Into Mischief. Hunter Valley was also active as a buyer in the weanling market Wednesday at Keeneland. The farm purchased a colt by American Pharoah (hip 767) for $340,000 earlier in the session. “The weanling market has been very strong,” Regan said. “This is the way the weanling market seems to be every year. It’s very resilient. Everytime you go up and try to buy one, it’s very tough. Let’s hope it keeps going.” @JessMartiniTDN Buscar Stables Off to a Strong Start Joseph Wade grew up with a father who owned racehorses, and when he and his wife Anastasia were looking for something they could do together, Wade returned to his father’s pastime, horse racing. Starting as owners in 2013, they switched to breeding in 2016 and hit a homerun at Keeneland Wednesday when selling a Quality Road colt (hip 858) for $350,000 to Ben Glass, acting as agent for Gary and Mary West. “My dad had racehorses from the time I was 8-years-old,” Joseph Wade said. “When we got married, we were looking for something we could do together and horse racing seemed like something we both could enjoy.” The Los Angeles native turned Florida resident continued, “We bought our first mares with Mike [McMahon] and Jamie [Hill] in 2016 here, so this is our second sale back with the babies. We had a few years with the racing and now we switched to breeding.” The Wade’s purchased hip 858’s unraced dam Lazy Susan (Tiznow) with this colt in utero for $120,000 at this sale last year. The 6-year-old mare is a daughter of MGISW millionaire Lazy Slusan (Slewvescent) and a half-sister to Grade I winner Last Full Measure (Empire Maker). “Not a bad price considering we bought the mare for $120,000,” Wade said after congratulating Glass. The Wades currently have four mares, all of which reside at Hidden Brook under the care of Sergio de Sousa, who consigned this colt. The breeders were also represented by hip 1013, a Tapit colt out of SP Sweet Dreams (Candy Ride {Arg}), who is a half-sister to MGSW Strike Charmer (Smart Strike). The couple purchased the mare at the 2016 renewal of this sale for $180,000 in foal to Street Sense. They sold the resulting colt for $210,000 here last year and her 2018 Tapit colt summoned $380,000 from Alex Solis and Jason Litt Wednesday. “I think it is right about where our expectations were,” Wade said. “What’s nice about Sergio and Mike and Jamie is they keep our expectations level. This is our fourth horse we sold and is definitely [our biggest sale]. Tthis is a new high for us.” Solis credited his assistant Madison Scott with picking out the colt. “Madison called and said there is a Tapit you have to see,” Solis said. “She was right. He is a good horse. He is very balanced and very athletic. It is going to be a partnership.” “He was a beautiful horse and he is by Tapit,” Scott said. “He has a great walk and a great frame.” The Wades still have one more weanling to sell during Friday’s session, a filly by American Pharoah (hip 1726), but they are already looking towards the future. “We are looking to build a farm here with Sergio, maybe 10 or 15 mares,” Wade said. “We are probably going to come back in January and February and look [at mares]. Since this was our first foal cycle, we wanted to see how it went before we jump more into the mares.” —@CDeBernardisTDN Ballet Dress an International Success When Ballet Dress (Hard Spun) went through the ring at Tattersalls last December, James Keogh recognized her pedigree as one which would likely appeal to American buyers and purchased the then 3-year-old filly for 30,000gns ($42,456). The horseman was rewarded Wednesday at Keeneland when the mare, in foal to Mastery, sold for $240,000 to Frank Batten. “I bought her in Newmarket last year from the Godolphin draft,” Keogh said from the back walking ring. “She is a very, very pretty filly and it’s one of the most important pedigrees in the American stud book. It’s the female family of Althea and Courtly Dee. It really really appealed to me and there is a lot going on under the first dam, sisters being very well-bred.” Bred by Godolphin, Ballet Dress (hip 689) is a daughter of 2004 GI Frizette S. winner Balletto (UAE) (Timber Country). Her third dam is Althea, a daughter of blue hen mare Courtly Dee. Ballet Dress sold carrying a foal from the first crop of unbeaten Grade I winner Mastery (Candy Ride {Ire}), who was the covering sire of 18 mares sold at Keeneland so far this week for an average of $206,389. “I am a big Mastery fan,” Keogh said of the covering sire. Of Wednesday’s result, Keogh said, “I’m thrilled and delighted. She is a ‘Nothing but Net.'” @JessMartiniTDN Frosted Weanlings Prove Popular at Keeneland Weanlings from the first crop of MGISW Frosted (Tapit) were in high demand during Keeneland November, with seven babies selling for an average of $205,00 and a gross of $1.435 million. The handsome gray stands at Darley’s Jonabell Farm for $50,000. “We definitely were very impressed with what we had seen all spring and summer from the stallion,” said Godolphin Sales Manager Darren Fox. “He is a horse with an impeccable physical himself and he has been passing that on to his progeny. We have been seeing one good Frosted foal after another and have been receiving rave reviews from the breeders. We are thrilled.” The highest-priced Frosted of the sale was hip 990, a colt out of the Medaglia d’Oro mare Spanish Gold, who sold to Cavalier Bloodstock for $310,000. McMahon and Hill Bloodstock purchased the most expensive Frosted filly, a $240,000 New York-bred (hip 836). “She is a New York-bred and by a first crop sire that is a hot Darley horse, which is nice to resell,” McMahon said. “I really wanted to buy a Frosted for our group and Jamie [Hill] did, too. She is the nicest one we have come across so far. I am impressed by him. I have a couple of mares in foal to him and I am really happy about that.” As for the price, he said, “I thought that was a great price for her. I didn’t think that was too much at all. I thought she was really, really good. I think she will look good selling in New York next summer. I think she was well bought.” —@CDeBernardisTDN Runhappy Offspring Live Up to the Hype The first foals by champion sprinter Runhappy (Super Saver) were well advertised, creating a lot of buzz on the sales grounds, and they lived up to the hype with eight weanlings selling for $1.53 million with an average of $191,250. “We are thrilled with the way they are selling,” said Walker Hancock, whose Claiborne Farm stands Runhappy for $25,000. “We saw the quality at the farm and were very high on him. He has been stamping the foals just like himself. They are very athletic, very uniform and have a very racy look. I think they appeal to pinhookers, end users and maybe even Europeans too because he raced on no Lasix.” Spendthrift took home the most expensive colt (hip 480) by the multiple Grade I winner for $240,000 and Peter O’Callaghan’s Cavalier Bloodstock snapped up the highest-priced filly (hip 954) for $215,000. “We thought she was very nice, very classy and full of quality,” O’Callaghan said. “She is really athletic. She is the one we wanted of the ones we saw by him so far.” He continued, “I thought we would get her for less than $200,000. We were really at our outer limit there. If somebody else had bid again, they would have had her. She was expensive, but she is lovely and we just have to hope it works out.” Claiborne had success with another one of their young stallions at Keeneland in Mastery, whose first foals are due to hit the ground in 2019. Eighteen mares in foal to the undefeated, Grade I-winning son of Candy Ride (Arg), who stands for $25,000, sold for an average of $206,389 and a gross of $3.715 million. “He has been doing very well,” Hancock said. “He doesn’t have as high a stud fee as some of these other stallions in their first year, but he had the highest average as of Tuesday [and was second-highest after Wednesday’s session]. I think people are excited to see what the foals look like. He is a very good-looking sire. He retired with a lot of buzz, winning all those races by open lengths, and he appeared to be one the best of his crops. We thought he was.” —@CDeBernardisTDN Tapwrit Partners Busy at Keeneland Gainesway, Bridlewood Farm and Mandy Pope, who partnered to stand GI Belmont S. winner Tapwrit (Tapit), kept busy during Book 2 of Keeneland November, purchasing mares to support their young stallion in his first season at stud. “We have an endeavor to make Tapwrit a very successful sire,” Gainesway’s Michael Hernon said. “He has all the attributes. He was a $1.2-million yearling, has a great physical, is out of a Grade I winner at two who won the Spinaway and is by Tapit, which speaks for itself. He won a stake at two, set a new stakes record at Tampa Bay and won the all-important Belmont S.” He continued, “He’s got the pedigree, the physical, the performance and now we are going to support him. There is a big groundswell of demand for him and we are purposely buying mares suitable to him in partnership with our co-owners, namely Bridlewood Farm and Mandy Pope, and of course Gainesway and Antony Beck are behind the whole deal pressing the buttons.” The partnership bought a total of five mares for Tapwrit in Book 2 for $505,000. Pocket of Aces (Harlan’s Holiday) (hip 938) topped the group at $160,000. The partnership also purchased Spangled Banner (Tiz Wonderful) (hip 578) for $120,000; Secret Return (Put It Back) (hip 555) for $105,000; Abbreviate (Harlan’s Holiday) (hip 657) for $65,000; and Cashconsiderations　(Super Saver) (hip 316) for $55,000. “We are looking for quality mares that are well conformed and have good speed in their pedigree,” Hernon said. “That is basically the formula: give them a good opportunity, put numbers on the ground, give them representation and then it is up to the progeny. They will perform. The gene pool is there. We are highly optimistic of his chances.” He continued, “Some of those will be put on the market next year pregnant to him so we can disperse some of the first year product, sell mares fairly and give good representation. We’d like to put those mares into various state programs and position the horse to succeed right out of the gate.” Team Tapwrit is looking to buy 35 to 40 mares for the Classic winner, who will breed between 175 and 200 mares total this season. The 4-year-old will stand for $12,500 LFSN in 2019. “I would say in these days of bigger numbers and focus on quality with some polarization,” Hernon said. “I think we will approach 175 to 200 with him assuming all goes well. He has shown good interest in mares. He will be test bred in January and we will see how it goes. We will put good numbers underneath him, but we won’t spoil the position by making it too heavily supplied. We have to look after the horse.” —@CDeBernardisTDN View the full article

THE owner of The Cliffsofmoher, the horse that died at the Melbourne Cup on Tuesday, has revealed how heartbroken he is over the tragic event. View the full article

Woodford Racing's Jefferson Cup Stakes winner Hot Springs tops a competitive field of seven 3-year-olds that were entered for the $100,000 Commonwealth Turf Stakes (G3T) Nov. 10 at Churchill Downs. View the full article

'Secret Win peaked too early': Meagher View the full article

Boss aiming to strike Gold again with King Louis View the full article

Early scratching November 11 View the full article

Moor's fractured hand may need longer time to heal View the full article

What once seemed like an impossibility–that Triple Crown winner Justify (Scat Daddy) would not be named 2019 Horse of the Year–now seems at least slightly within the realm of possibility. In the most comprehensive poll of Horse of the Year voters released so far, the NTRA’s Top 10 Thoroughbred poll, GI Breeders’ Cup Classic winner Accelerate (Lookin at Lucky) received 24 first-place votes to 19 for Justify. Enable (GB) (Nathaniel {Ire}), the winner of the GI Breeders’ Cup Turf, received the remaining three first place votes, but is not considered a serious candidate for Horse of the Year. “I was voting Justify at No. 1 all the way up until the Breeders’ Cup,” said Accelerate voter Debbie Arrington of the Sacramento Bee. “Accelerate won four Grade I’s at a mile-and-a-quarter this year, and swept the ‘California Triple.’ He did what Lava Man (Slew City Slew) did but then took it one step further and went to the East and won the Breeders’ Cup Classic. Accelerate had a bad post in the Breeders’ Cup and he did it. With Justify, if you look at the horses he beat and what they accomplished, they haven’t done a whole hell of a lot. It may not have been the best crop. I was always a believer that if you win the Triple Crown you should be Horse of the Year, but when I compared what the two horses did I had a change of heart. It’s ‘Horse of the Year’ and not just the ‘Horse of May and June.'” While reserving the right to change his mind, Gene Kershner from the Buffalo News, also thought Accelerate’s overall body of work was a factor that could not be ignored. “Justify won races that were restricted to 3-year-olds and I don’t know yet how to measure the crop of horses he ran against,” he said. “I know people are saying are we really going to diminish the accomplishment of winning the Triple Crown, truly the one thing in horse racing that the non-racing fan cares about? But I have to look at Accelerate’s overall body of work. He won the three major Grade I’s in California for his division and the Breeders’ Cup Classic. That’s quite an accomplishment.” While Accelerate’s lead in the NTRA poll should give his camp hope that he can wrest Horse of the Year away from Justify, who made his last start in the GI Belmont S., it is far from a foregone conclusion that they will win. Only 46 votes were cast in the NTRA poll and last year 250 votes came in for Horse of the Year. That means the NTRA poll represents only about 18% of eligible voters. In addition, some of those taking part in the NTRA poll do not have an Eclipse Award vote. Also, NTRA voters have different interpretations on what horses belong in the poll. Some will drop a horse entirely once they have been retired or drop them down their list, believing that only active horses should be included. Four of the NTRA voters, including Jill Byrne, the senior director of industry relations for the Breeders’ Cup, did not include Justify in their Top 10. “Since it’s a weekly poll, I just vote for active horses,” Byrne said. “There’s no criteria when it comes to who is eligible for a vote and maybe there needs to be.” So who will she vote for? “I keep going back and forth,” she said. “Put me down as 50-50. It’s tough not to vote for a Triple Crown winner. Justify was an amazing animal. At the same time, it’s difficult to overlook what Accelerate did. He was a very fast horse, solid all year, had a terrific year and topped it off with a win in the Classic.” Even though voter Tony Palmisano had Accelerate on top in the poll, he said he would vote for Justify for Horse of the Year. “I dropped Justify down in the poll because he was out of sight out of mind,” Palmisano said. “Justify is my Horse of the Year. If they had ever met I don’t think there’s any doubt that Justify would have beaten Accelerate or that Accelerate would have even gotten close to him. That’s something I always consider, who is the better horse.” Elliott Walden, the president and CEO of WinStar Farm, one of the co-owners of Justify, does not have a vote and is obviously partial, but he made a strong case for the Triple Crown winner being named Horse of the Year. “Not every year do you get a Triple Crown winner-there have been 13 in 150 years, while there have been 35 Breeders’ Cup Classic winners,” Walden said. “Justify broke the ‘Apollo Curse’ and did things the experts said could not be done. He was undefeated. He won the Derby after battling through early fractions of :22 1/5 and :45 3/5. He did win four Grade I’s out of six starts. It’s not like he just won one race. Then you have to consider the horses he’s being compared to, Seattle Slew, Affirmed. That puts him in a very elite category. Accelerate had a great year. It’s unfortunate he came along the same year as Justify. It’s just that Justify did something very special.” Eleven of the 12 previous Triple Crown winners were named Horse of the Year. The exception is 1935 Triple Crown winner Omaha, who lost out to Discovery. Discovery, who was four in 1935, won 11 of 19 starts, many of which are race no longer held. The difference may have been that in their lone meeting in 1935, Discovery trounced Omaha in the Brooklyn H., beating his rival by 12 lengths. In what was his first start after the Belmont, Omaha finished third as the even-money favorite. View the full article

Gulfstream Park played host to 75 students over the past several weeks from West Broward High School and its unique Vet Assisting Program. The students were given a tour of the backstretch and received information on morning training, exercise regiment, daily diet, and equipment and farrier practices. The students also visited the barns of trainer Henry Collazo and Natalie Fawkes before being brought to the paddock to meet with Dr. Robert O’Neil, Director of Equine Health and Safety for The Stronach Group. “I was really impressed with their enthusiasm to learn about the care these animals receive and also their interest in their sport of Thoroughbred racing,” O’Neil said. “This has been a wonderful opportunity for our students to see many of the topics we study being used in real-world applications,” said Tara Terribile of West Broward’s Vet Assisting Program. “It has also given them the chance to see the many different jobs that are part of the equine industry and the important role of horses in the veterinary world.” Gulfstream General Manager Bill Badgett said: “It was great seeing so many students at our facility with such a great interest in the care, health and treatment of these great Thoroughbreds. Gulfstream and The Stronach Group is committed to giving back, and we continue to expand our commitment in the local community through visits and tours like this, our American Dream Scholarship with Broward College and reading programs in local schools.” View the full article

Observations on the European Racing Scene turns the spotlight on the best European races of the day, highlighting well-pedigreed horses early in their careers, horses of note returning to action and young runners that achieved notable results in the sales ring. Thursday’s Insights features MG1SW Sajjhaa (GB) (King’s Best). 5.15 Chelmsford, Cond, £7,400, 2yo, 8f (AWT) Sheikh Ahmed Al Maktoum’s NABBEYL (IRE) (New Approach {Ire}), a son of G1 Jebel Hatta and G1 Dubai Duty Free heroine Sajjhaa (GB) (King’s Best), gets a second chance to shed maiden status and returns off an Oct. 26 debut fifth at Doncaster. Rivals to the Roger Varian trainee includes Sheikh Mohammed bin Khalifa Al Maktoum’s hitherto untested Dubai Warrior (GB) (Dansili {GB}), who is a John Gosden-trained full-brother to this term’s G3 Diamond S. victor Mootasadir (GB) out of South Africa’s G1 Golden Slipper heroine Mahbooba (Aus) (Galileo {Ire}), and Never Say Die Partnership’s fellow newcomer Battle of Pembroke (Declaration of War), who is a son of G3 Blue Wind S. victress Beauty O’ Gwaun (Ire) (Rainbow Quest), from the David Simcock stable. View the full article

Multiple grade 1 winner Bolt d'Oro has been retired and will stand the 2019 season for an advertised fee of $25,000, Spendthrift Farm general manager Ned Toffey said Nov. 7. View the full article

In the aftermath of Election Day, the gambling landscape shifted significantly overnight in three states. But the results are mixed in terms of how the measures will affect Thoroughbred horse racing. In Arkansas, Oaklawn Park won the right to add full casino gaming and sports betting to its existing wagering menu of pari-mutuels and electronic gaming. The vote percentage was 54-46. In Idaho, historical horse racing (HHR) video gaming at tracks was defeated by a 53-47 margin, putting the state’s already tenuous Thoroughbred future in even more of an endangered flux. Florida voters banned greyhound racing by a 69-31 margin, with a 2020 sunset date but a provision to keep other forms of gaming at those tracks. A separate Florida measure that passed by a 71-29 margin mandates that any future changes to casino gambling have to be approved through statewide citizen-initiated ballot measures, and not the Legislature. All tallies in this story cited are listed in rounded percentages, and are according to results posted as of 2 p.m. Wednesday on Ballotpedia.com. Arkansas In Arkansas, the passage of Issue 4 amended the Arkansas Constitution to grant four casino licenses in specified locations. Oaklawn in Hot Springs and the Southland greyhound/gaming venue in West Memphis were granted “automatic licenses” for expansions “at or adjacent to” their existing operations. Both tracks already offer electronic games of skill under a 2005 state law. Additionally, one casino license will be up for bid in both Pope County and Jefferson County. As part of the Arkansas measure, “casino gaming shall also be defined to include accepting wagers on sporting events.” The ballot initiative also included a tax revenue distribution plan that mandates “17.5% to the Arkansas Racing Commission for deposit into the Arkansas Racing Commission Purse and Awards Fund to be used only for purses for live horse racing and greyhound racing by Oaklawn and Southland.” Idaho The defeated Proposition 1 was designed to once again legalize HHR video terminals at tracks in Idaho, where seven fairs circuit tracks raced short meets in 2018. The measure would have granted HHR gaming rights to any track that cards eight calendar dates annually, and passage would almost certainly have meant the re-opening of Les Bois Park, formerly Idaho’s only commercial track. Idaho had briefly legalized HHR in 2013 but the law was repealed in 2015. When the state pulled the plug on HHR, Les Bois, which was one of three locations that had the machines, shut down. Les Bois spent heavily to support Proposition 1, and reportedly had several hundred HHR machines still on the property ready to resume operation, along with live racing. Florida Florida’s two approved ballot measures might end up raising more questions than they answered in an already confusing state for gambling. The Amendment 13 ban on dog racing actually had the support of some of the state’s 11 greyhound track operators, who saw it as a de facto way of attaining “decoupling” from less-profitable pari-mutuels while retaining lucrative gaming rights. Some “What happens next?” scenarios could include horse tracks angling for similar decoupling rights based on this precedent. And with greyhound racing mandated to end, animal rights activists might now more closely focus on horse racing. Carey Theil, the executive director of GREY2K USA, one of the leading backers of the ban, told the Orlando Sentinel that the vote appears to mean the greyhound industry will likely be “swept away in the night” and that “the historical consequences of this are incredibly significant.” Amendment 3, which took control of future casino gambling decisions out of the hands of the Legislature, was proposed by Voters in Charge, a political committee largely financed by the tourism-centric Walt Disney Co. and the Seminole Tribe, which operates existing gaming facilities. According to published reports, that committee spent more than $31 million on the effort to transfer future casino decisions to voters. According to a post-vote analysis in the Tampa Bay Times, “While the amendment, in theory, gives voters the power to expand gambling, it could actually make the process more difficult. Changing anything by voter decision is a long process, and would therefore keep competition low for the Seminole Tribe and ensure a more ‘family friendly’ tourism environment here, to Disney’s benefit.” The Miami Herald recapped the vote this way: “Opponents to the amendment—like NFL teams, online betting sites like FanDuel and DraftKings and dog and horse tracks—have argued that it is unclear what affect the initiative would have on previously authorized gambling sites across the state.” United States Congress Two U.S. Representatives in positions to have an impact on Thoroughbred racing both won re-election bids Nov. 6. Andy Barr (R-KY) and Paul Tonko (D-NY) are co-chairs of the Congressional Horse Caucus. They are also co-sponsors of HR 2651, the Horseracing Integrity Act of 2017, which was first introduced in a different form in 2015. Its revised version has not had any legislative action since a June 22 subcommittee hearing. Barr won by a 51-48 margin. Tonko’s winning margin was 68-32. Lexington Mayor Linda Gorton bested Ronnie Bastin by a 63-37 margin in the Lexington, Kentucky, mayoral race. In a profile published the week prior to the election, Gorton told TDN that “I have a long history of working with the equine industry here. I know many of the horse farm owners and managers. I understand their concerns…. That’s important for me, to have people understand that I have worked with this industry for many, many years, and have great experience in doing that.” View the full article

Charles Fipke’s homebred Seeking the Soul (Perfect Soul {Ire}), runner-up in last weekend’s GI Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile, is being aimed for a title defense in the upcoming GI Clark H. at Churchill Downs Nov. 23. “There’s a title out there to defend,” trainer Dallas Stewart said. “He bounced out of the Dirt Mile in great shape and we’re definitely going to point towards the Clark. I just wish he would’ve had his shot to try the Classic. I think he would have been right up there with those horses going 1 1/4 miles.” A six-time winner, Seeking the Soul captured the GIII Ack Ack S. at Churchill in his previous trip to the post Sept. 29. “One thing we know for sure is this horse loves it here at Churchill Downs,” Stewart said. “He’s run some of his best races over this surface.” View the full article

Just days removed from scoring a landmark win for Godolphin in the G1 Melbourne Cup with Cross Counter (Ire) (Teofilo {Ire}), trainer Charlie Appleby was looking ahead and, unsurprisingly, still aiming high. “My ambitions are to carry on and to try to be successful and do the best we can for Godolphin and his Highness Sheikh Mohammed and having international winners,” said Appleby, who also gave the Ruler of Dubai his first Epsom Derby winner in his Godolphin silks this year with Masar (GB) (New Approach {Ire}). Both Masar and Cross Counter are homebreds. “Every time we do that I feel that’s a sense of achievement.” “To do that you have to have the momentum going,” he said. “On Jan. 1 we start at zero again. We’ve got to build away. We’ve given ourselves a bit of a path to maintain, let alone go above.” Appleby said the races high on his wish list include the GI Kentucky Derby and G1 Dubai World Cup. “The Kentucky Derby is of course on everybody’s lips. It’s not been done [by Godolphin] and to win a Dubai World Cup for myself would be great,” he said. “Saeed [bin Suroor] has won plenty [eight] and I would like to get involved if I can.” “The Dubai World Cup and a Kentucky Derby would be high on the agenda and I imagine for His Highness Sheikh Mohamed’s point of view he’d like to win the Kentucky Derby as well.” “As an Englishman our pinnacle is the Derby. It had never been won in Godolphin blue colours. That is always going to go down as the most memorable day of my career, but to come here [Australia] and do what we’ve done and see what it means to everybody and to Sheikh Mohammed is great. We’ve tried for over 20 years to win in this race and to do it is a huge sense of achievement, but most importantly it shows the passion and the drive His Highness and Godolphin have.” View the full article

Lope de Vega (Ire) (Shamardal), who has been enjoying a great year as a sire with such standouts as GI Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf heroine and ‘TDN Rising Star’ Newspaperofrecord (Ire) among his seven stakes winners and the Classic-bound colt Phoenix of Spain (Ire), will stand for €80,000 at Ballylinch Stud in 2019. He commanded a €60,000 fee in 2018. French highweight and G1 Prix du Jockey Club hero New Bay (GB) (Dubawi {Ire}) sees his first yearlings in 2019, and he will hold court for €15,000. A stallion with his first runners in 2019 is fellow French highweight and G1 Poule d’Essai des Poulains victor Make Believe (GB) (Makfi {GB}) at €12,000. Irish highweight and MG1SW Fascinating Rock (Ire) (Fastnet Rock {Aus}) at €7,500 and Beat Hollow (GB) (Sadler’s Wells) at €5,000 round out the Irish roster. Standing at Haras de Grandcamp in France are veteran sires Lawman (Fr) (Invincible Spirit {Ire}), who has sired four GSWs in 2018 and is standing his first season across the Channel at €15,000, and Dream Ahead (Diktat {GB}), with a trio of Group 1 performers, at €12,000. View the full article

With the major European yearling sales having been and gone, Amy Lynam caught up with seven bloodstock agents to get their highlights of the past few months. Having bought at all levels of the market in multiple countries, they take a moment to reflect on the yearling action before looking ahead to the foal and breeding stock sales. What was your favourite yearling that you purchased this year? Eamon Reilly (BBA Ireland): A Camelot (GB) filly I bought at the Goffs Orby Sale for Gerrardstown House Stud (lot 277). She was a beautiful filly; very correct and a good walker. Her dam is a half-sister to Distant Music (Distant View), so it’s a lovely Juddmonte family. Geoffrey Howson (Howson & Houldsworth Bloodstock): The Brazen Beau (AUS) filly out of Royal Blush (GB) (Royal Applause {GB}), whom we bought for £100,000 at the Doncaster Premier Yearling Sale (lot 203). Now brilliantly named Spurofthemoment (GB), she is a half-sister to group performer A Momentofmadness (GB) (Elnadim), whom we also bought as a yearling, and is now the winner of eight races, including the Portland Handicap. This filly reminded us of her half-brother at the same age. She was bought on behalf of lovely clients, was out of a mare that I had originally bought for her breeder, the underbidder was one of the shrewdest in the game and my mobile went dead during a vital stage of the bidding. All she has to do now is win races. Grant Pritchard-Gordon (Badgers Bloodstock): Our favourite yearling of the year was lot 308 at Tattersalls; a Kodiac (GB) colt out of Coolnagree (Ire) (Dark Angel {Ire}) from Lodge Park Stud. We were lucky enough to be able to buy him, but had to pay our largest outlay of the year of 525,000gns. Kodiac is emerging as a great stallion over all distances and this colt is closely related to the excellent Hong Kong galloper Lucky Nine (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}). Kevin Ross: The Acclamation (GB) colt I bought from Rathbarry Stud at Tattersalls Ireland. He was a forward type, with a great walk and lovely attitude. Laurent Benoit (Broadhurst Agency): The Wootton Bassett (GB) colt out of Hasturianita (IRE) (Dubawi), which I bought at the Arqana August Yearling Sale for €130,000 (lot 310). He was a well-balanced individual, with good length and size–the only thing wrong was that he was a bit too expensive. I like the sire very much; I think he did particularly well with the quality of mares he covered at the beginning of his stallion career. Peter Doyle (Peter & Ross Doyle Bloodstock): The Kodiac filly out of Dhuma (GB) (Falco), who we bought for 120,000gns at Tattersalls Book 1. She’s gone to Richard Hannon and reminded us a lot of Tiggy Wiggy (Ire). She was typical of Kodiac; sharp, strong and a good walker. Shawn Dugan: Can we revisit this question next year? [laughs] The thing is, you can spend a lot of money on a gorgeous yearling, but then they may not have the heart, but then an average-looking yearling can blossom into a phenomenal racehorse. It happens time and time again. We’re trying to buy an athlete, so we look for black-type in the first or second dam. Next, you have to hope that they come at a reasonable market value, and finally, you have to be the last man standing. Thankfully, we were able to buy a number of yearlings that fit this criteria this year. What was the yearling that got away (purchased by someone else)? ER: The top lot at Tattersalls Ireland. A Kodiac own-brother to Adaay (Ire), he was a very attractive colt and looked precocious, despite his late-April birthday. GH: Lot 33 in Tattersalls Book 1–a chestnut colt by Lope de Vega (IRE) out of Peut Etre (IRE) (Whipper). Other than his colour, he was a ringer for Phoenix of Spain (Ire)–our best yearling buy of 2017. He fetched 550,000gns from Stroud Coleman. GPG: I think that the team were most upset to miss out on lot 463 at Tattersalls; the Wootton Bassett colt from Rathbarry Stud that eventually went to Godolphin via Stroud Coleman. KR: The Camelot colt (lot 232) from Ballybin Stud at the Goffs Orby Sale. He was a lovely individual and, of course, Camelot is doing very well. He unfortunately made too much for us. One I think was very well-bought was a Dream Ahead colt (lot 76) out of a Galileo (Ire) mare bought by Patrick Cooper at Tattersalls Ireland. LB: My pick of the Arqana August Yearling Sale was the Lope De Vega (Ire) colt out of Black Dahlia (GB) (Dansili {GB}), who MV Magnier bought for €900,000 (lot 94). Bred by SF Bloodstock and offered by Ecurie de Monceaux, he was a stunning individual and out of a black-type mare, whose 2-year-old has done very well for Mark Johnston. PD: It would be dangerous to name one–I don’t like to tempt fate. SD: We got completely blown out of the water on quite a few, as always; you need deep pockets for the special horses. A few spring to mind, though. We weren’t even underbidder on the No Nay Never filly (lot 100) who sold to MV Magnier for €700,000 at Goffs–she was a rockstar, and unfortunately, we weren’t the only ones who fell in love with the gorgeous Camelot filly (lot 295) Godolphin bought there for €500,000. We knew we were in deep yoghurt with the Dubawi filly (lot 389) from Newsells Park Stud at Tattersalls Book 1, so we just watched her sell. What progeny of the new stallions impressed you? ER: I bought a couple of fillies by Make Believe (GB) that I really liked; they were attractive types and he, himself, was a very good racehorse. I saw some cracking colts by Free Eagle (Ire); nice, correct individuals, though they might need a bit of time. GH: Muhaarar (GB) would be my tip for leading first-season sire next year. The Brazen Beau horses, in addition to the aforementioned yearling purchase, looked like early 2-year-old types. The Gleneagles (Ire) colts sold by Newsells Park at Doncaster and Whatton Manor at Tattersalls Book 2 were lovely, as was Rathbarry’s Golden Horn (GB) colt at Book 1. Anjaal (GB) could prove similar to his stud-mate, Bungle Inthejungle (GB). GPG: The Hong Kong Jockey Club team did not buy any progeny of first-season sires, but the progeny of Free Eagle regularly caught the eye, while there were some very good-looking progeny of Gleneagles. The year of the eagle? KR: The Night Of Thunder (Ire) yearlings were very strong, correct horses and good walkers. We didn’t buy any but did bid on one- the relation to Prince Bishop (IRE) (Dubawi) at Tattersalls Ireland. LB: I liked the stock of Gleneagles–he has stamped them well as racey, well-balanced horses with a nice quality about them. The yearlings by Night Of Thunder were powerful types and I like that he, himself, is by Dubawi and out of a Galileo mare. I bought a very nice colt by Gleneagles, but given that I have a small number of yearlings to buy, I tend to stick with proven sires- they would make up about 85% of my purchases. I do like looking at their first crop, though, as it helps with planning matings. PD: We saw some very nice stock by Gleneagles; they were good walkers with a nice outlook. We bought a lovely colt by him at Baden-Baden, which is heading to Wido Neuroth in Norway, and a nice filly at Goffs for Thurloe Thoughbreds, who have been clients of ours for over 25 years. I hope they are as fast as he was. SD: The yearlings by Gleneagles stood out; they were athletic types with a lot of presence. Those by Muhaarar were also very athletic and sold well, while we also liked the Gutaifan (Ire) yearlings–we bought a very good-looking filly by him from Baroda & Colbinstown Studs at Tattersalls. Which stallions do you consider to be under appreciated? ER: I think Mastercraftsman (Ire) has been under-rated, though Alpha Centauri (Ire) showed us what he is capable of this season. Dawn Approach (Ire) may now be underestimated, looking at Kevin Prendergast’s exciting 2-year-old, Madhmoon (Ire). He was such a talented racehorse that I still believe he is capable of siring some good horses. GH: Oasis Dream (GB), Holy Roman Emperor (Ire), Tamayuz (GB) and, from personal experience, Zoffany (Ire). GPG: We are amazed how sometimes yearling prices do not reflect racecourse success. Camelot has had an outstanding year on the racecourse and also produced some very athletic yearlings-as our team are focused on buying sprinters, we were not in a position to buy any. However, we consider that the market has very much under-appreciated Camelot, who is a very exciting new stallion for the future. KR: Champs Elysees (GB) may now be aimed at the National Hunt market, but he’s still able to get some very good horses on the flat. He sired a Guineas and Cesarewitch winner this season. LB: Zoffany had a flying start to his stallion career, siring Royal Ascot winners in his first crop. He now has bigger crops from better mares on the way and I think the best is yet to come. I’m a big fan of Dansili (GB) and I think Zoffany could be one of the leading sires in Europe in the next few years. PD: We’ve been very luck with Footstepsinthesand (GB) over the years, the best of our buys probably being Larchmont Lad (Ire). He won a Group 3 for Hannon before being sold to Cheveley Park Stud, for whom he won a Group 2 this year. He always has lovely yearlings, which tend to be very athletic and racy. SD: Under-rated is a very relative term, but if you look at a stallion’s covering fee and see that he’s producing winners at the highest level, there’s a few who stand out. Nathaniel (GB) stood for £20,000 in 2018 and he sired Enable–one of the best mares we’ve seen in Europe in a long time, plus she’s a stunning individual to boot. Camelot has come through this year and I assume his 2018 fee of €30,000 will rise next season. Nicolas Clement’s 2-year-old filly, Wondermont (Ire), who won the G1 Criterium de Saint-Cloud, was bought for just €60,000. Camelot’s success makes sense, given that he was a brilliant racehorse and beautiful individual. View the full article

A smaller catalogue and increases across most key categories were hallmarks of Wednesday’s single-session Goffs Autumn Horses in Training Sale. Dual listed hero Twilight Payment (Ire) (Teofilo {Ire}) (lot 690), who has been knocking on the door of a group win with seconds in both the Aug. 25 G3 Comer Group International Irish St Leger Trial and in the G3 Loughbrown S. in September, hammered at €200,000 to Kerr & Co Ltd, agent. Consigned by Glebe House Stables, the 5-year-old gelding is a half-brother to G2 Debutante S. bridesmaid Bandiuc Eile (Ire) (New Approach {Ire}), while his dam is a half-sister to star MGSW Banimpire (Ire) (Holy Roman Emperor {Ire}). Second on the board was lot 671, the 3-year-old filly Mazzuri (Ire) (Raven’s Pass) from Rathbride Stables. The listed-placed daughter of SP Essexford (Ire) (Spinning World) attracted a winning bid of €120,000 from Peter and Ross Doyle and A Perrett after the sale proper. Young sire and European champion sprinter Muhaarar (GB) (Oasis Dream {GB}) is nestled under the third dam. Admirality (GB) (Mount Nelson {GB}) (lot 703) sat third on the leaderboard after being snapped up for €80,000 on the bid of Colm Sharkey, agent and Roger Fell. The 4-year-old gelding hailed from the Fox Covert Stables’ draft and is a winner at the handicap level this year. Overall, the clearance rate rose steeply to 85% after 79 of the 93 lots offered found new homes, an increase of 9% on 2017. The gross inched upward to €1,466,100, and the average rose 11% to €18,558. The biggest increase was the median category which registered at €9,000 (+50%). “Today’s Horses in Training Sale has demonstrated yet again that we can and consistently do deliver the best prices for that category,” said Goffs Group Chief Executive Henry Beeby. “Indeed this is a sector of the market in which we think we have so much more to offer but lack the numbers to attract a bigger group of buyers. That said, we have sold horses to the Gulf Region and across Europe today which will only serve to inspire us to redouble our efforts to grow the catalogue in 2019, following a sale that has returned growth in every statistic. For now, we extend our thanks to each vendor and every purchaser, and wish them luck with their latest Goffs graduates.” View the full article

Tim Naylor, who joined the British Horseracing Authority permanently as Head of Regulation in March of 2017, has been appointed as the new Director of Integrity and Regulation, the BHA announced on Wednesday. Naylor will be responsible for managing the BHA’s integrity, disciplinary and compliance functions with oversight of licensing, monitoring and investigation as well as the case management of matters which go before the independent Judicial Panel. Previously a barrister at QEB Hollis Whiteman Chambers in London, Naylor was instructed by the BHA on a number of Disciplinary Panel and Licensing Committee cases from 2013 onwards. “I’m thrilled to be taking up my new role as Director of Integrity and Regulation and am looking forward to ensuring that British Horseracing is seen as an international leader in racing integrity and ensuring the highest standards of regulation in order to build confidence within the sport,” said Naylor, who, reports to Chief Regulatory Officer Brant Dunshea and is part of the BHA Executive Team. “Tim was appointed after a competitive application process which drew in some highly qualified individuals with a wide range of experience,” said Dunshea. “Given his extensive legal career and knowledge of the BHA’s regulatory and investigative functions, he was an ideal candidate and I look forward to continuing to work with him in the future.” View the full article