Wandering Eyes

France’s Classic protagonists re-emerge at ParisLongchamp on Sunday, but it is an overseas challenger who sets the standard in Chilean (GB) (Iffraaj {GB}) in the G3 Prix la Force. Impressive when capturing the Listed Ascendant S. at Haydock in September, Manton Estate Racing’s bay was sixth in the G1 Racing Post Trophy at Doncaster the following month but trainer Martyn Meade thinks he was below-par there. “I wasn’t really happy with his performance, I don’t think he was quite himself,” he explained. “To be quite frank, I’d have expected him to run a bit better than that and after that we put him away. I just don’t think he was in top form that day, so we’re hoping for better things.” Meade is planning a Classic campaign for Chilean, adding, “From there, we’ll decide which way he goes and whether he goes to the [G2] Dante–which could be a possibility–or alternatively the [G3] Classic Trial at Sandown. It will be one of those races once we see exactly how he gets on in France. The great thing is that he copes with soft ground, which gives us lots of options, but I think he’ll be alright on good ground as well.” The Niarchos Family’s colours always elicit excitement and they are adorned by Study of Man (Ire) (Deep Impact {Jpn}), a grandson of Miesque who beat the subsequent winner Near Gold (GB) (Dansili {GB}) in a mile debutantes race at Saint-Cloud in September. Godolphin have a duo in the once-raced maiden winners Magny Cours (Medaglia d’Oro) and Rashke (GB) (Redoute’s Choice {Aus}). Both were impressive scorers at Chantilly and the operation’s Lisa-Jane Graffard is hoping they can make an impact. “Magny Cours won his maiden very nicely at the end of his two-year-old year, but this is obviously a big step up on his seasonal return,” she commented. “He has wintered well and is an impressive-looking individual. The ground is a bit of an unknown factor, but progeny of Medaglia D’Oro seem to be pretty versatile and we hope that he can run well. Rashke was unraced at two, but won his only start impressively last month. We are slightly less confident over whether he can handle the ground, but we will find out if he can cope with testing conditions.” View the full article

ParisLongchamp opens its doors once more on Sunday, where the G2 Prix d’Harcourt takes centre stage as the first true test of some of France’s leading older horses. This renewal looks wide-open, with one of the least exposed being Juddmonte’s G2 Prix Eugene Adam winner Finche (GB) (Frankel {GB}) who like so many others was no match for Cracksman (GB) (Frankel {GB}) when third trying to put it up to that formidable rival in Chantilly’s G2 Prix Niel in September. Trainer Andre Fabre, who holds the record in this with 10 wins, also saddles Godolphin’s generally disappointing Soleil Marin (Ire) (Kendargent {Fr}) and Gestut Ammerland and Newsells Park’s Waldgeist (GB) (Galileo {Ire}). The latter ended up in 2017 with a fourth placing in the G1 Grosser Preis von Bayern over 12 furlongs at Munich in November, which may be as good as he is, but his earlier short-head second to Brametot (Ire) (Rajsaman {Fr}) in the G1 Prix du Jockey Club and fourth in the G1 Irish Derby suggest he is capable of taking higher rank with another winter behind him. Air Pilot (GB) (Zamindar) had six of these rivals in arrears when taking the 10-furlong G3 Prix Exbury on bottomless ground at Saint-Cloud Mar. 17, but is handed a three-pound penalty as a result while fellow British-trained raider Century Dream (Ire) (Cape Cross {Ire}) has it to prove on his first try in black-type company. Successful in four of his last five starts in handicaps, Abdullah Saeed’s progressive 4-year-old was last seen scoring over this trip at Newbury in October. View the full article

Miss Wilson (NZ) (Stratum {Aus}) saluted by a half-length in the G1 Fiber Fresh New Zealand Thoroughbred Breeders’ S. at Te Aroha on Saturday, her first top-level win. Forwardly placed when the gates sprung, she raced just off the shoulder of Ruud Not Too (NZ) (Bernardini) for the first 400 metres of the mile contest, but dropped back to third as Nicoletta (NZ) (Savabeel {Aus}) charged up to contest the lead. That duo dueled for the next 1000 metres, until midway down the straight, before Miss Wilson stuck her neck in front three deep 250 metres from the line. Wider still, the blaze-faced grey Thee Auld Floozie (NZ) (Mastercraftsman {Ire}) was letting down well several lengths behind. It was the last named who was the greatest danger to the John Bary trainee, but Miss Wilson had built up too much cushion and held firm. Nicoletta clung grimly to third, 1 1/4 lengths behind, besting Heni (NZ) (Towkay {Aus}) by a short head. Favoured Darscape Princess (NZ) (Darci Brahma {NZ}) showed little and finished 10th of 12. “It’s great for Richard and Liz [Wood],” winning trainer John Bary, who trained the mare’s half-brother Jimmy Choux (NZ) (Thorn Park {Aus}) for the couple to a New Zealand Horse of the Year title and multiple Group 1 wins, told NZ Racing.com. “They have been big supporters of the stable. This means a lot to me and my staff, they work long hours and this is as much about them as me. I learned from last year and she is much better fresh.” The 5-year-old, a winner of the G3 Cuddle S. at Trentham over this trip last March, ran fourth in this race a month later to end her season. Back in the winner’s circle third up in the spring with a 2 1/2-length win in the G3 Red Badge Spring Sprint at Hastings on Oct. 22, the bay was second in the G2 Tauranga S. on Nov. 18. Two unplaced runs in Group 1 company followed, and Miss Wilson was last seen in action in the Mar. 1 Karaka Million H., running third to Montoya Star (Aus) (High Chaparral {Ire}). Pedigree Notes… Miss Wilson is the sixth Group 1 winner for her late sire Stratum. Her dam, the unplaced Cierzo, out of MSW Gale (NZ) (Wild Rampage {Aus}), has an unraced juvenile colt named Solano (Aus) (Fastnet Rock {Aus}), and a yearling filly by that Coolmore Australia sire. She was barren to him last season. Under the third dam is Danamite (NZ) (Danasinga {Aus}), a MGSW in New Zealand, who was placed four times at the highest level. Click for the free Arion.com catalogue-style pedigree. Saturday, Te Aroha, New Zealand NEW ZEALAND THOROUGHBRED BREEDERS’ S.-G1, NZ$200,000, Te Aroha JC, 4-07, f/m, Open, 1600mT, 1:35.06, Dead. 1–MISS WILSON (AUS) , 57.0, m, 5, by Stratum (Aus) 1st Dam: Cierzo, by Centaine (Aus) 2nd Dam: Gale, by Wild Rampage (Aus) 3rd Dam: Imposing Choice, by Imposing (Aus) 1ST GROUP 1 WIN. O/B-Chouxmaani Investments Ltd (Aus); T-J G Bary; J-V A Colgan; NZ$125,000. Lifetime Record: 25-7-4-3, A$320,918. Werk Nick Rating: A+++. *Triple Plus*. Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree. 2–Thee Auld Floozie, 57.0, m, 6, Mastercraftsman (Ire)–Thee Auld Hussie, by Spinning World (USA). O-P D Craighead, L G Ford, S B Marsh, M C Roughead, Two Fat Cows Syndicate, J G & Mrs S K Young; B-J G Young, (NZ); T-S B Marsh; J-T N Harris; NZ$40,000. 3–Nicoletta, 57.0, m, 4, Savabeel (Aus)–Celtic Crown (USA), by Doneraile Court (USA). (NZ$90,000 Ylg 2015 NZB National Yearling Sale). O-Jml Bloodstock Ltd (Mgr L Petagna); B-Goodwood Stud Ltd, (NZ); T-M Baker & A Forsman; J-S T Collett; NZ$20,000. Margins: HF, 1 1/4, SHD. Odds: 9.60, 8.20, 22.60. Also Ran: Heni, Coldplay, Cote d’Or, Ruud Not Too, Montoya Star (Aus), Symphonic, Darscape Princess, Caprikosa, Adriatic Pearl. Click for the Racing Post chart. NZ Racing Video. View the full article

The battle between top jockeys Zac Purton and Douglas Whyte in the Group Two Chairman’s Trophy at Sha Tin today might prove a highlight of the race, as well as the key to the winner. Whyte rides Hong Kong Mile and Queen’s Silver Jubilee Cup winner Beauty Generation, while Purton gets aboard Time Warp, whose two big wins have been the Hong Kong Cup and Gold Cup over 2,000m. Both horses have a similar style in that they roll forward in their races and then are very tough at the finish... View the full article

John Size’s sprint domination can continue in Sunday’s Group Two Sprint Cup when Mr Stunning sets out to build on his own stellar season with a win in the HK$4 million feature. Size has won five of the six Group races at 1,200m or less this season, Mr Stunning taking three of them with victory in the Group Two Premier Bowl, Group Two Jockey Club Sprint and Group One Hong Kong Sprint. Not only does Size have top-end talent with his sprinters, he has unprecedented depth, with Size... View the full article

Zac Purton’s frustration of another narrow Group One defeat on Oohood in Sydney was compounded by a careless riding suspension that will see the Australian miss the next two meetings after Sunday’s fixture at Sha Tin. Purton had to settle for second again after he went within a whisker of winning the Group One Sires’ Produce Stakes on Oohood but there was worse to come when Racing NSW stewards hit him with a careless riding from an earlier race. Purton was found guilty of not... View the full article

The Australian bloodstock industry is a more commercial one than its counterparts in Europe and America, in the sense that a greater percentage of the better-performed horses in a given crop are put on the market. This is backed by figures produced by Aushorse earlier this year that showed that 67% of Group 1 winners in Australia in 2014, 2015 and 2016 were offered at public auction before their Group 1 win; that percentage was 61% in the U.S. and 46% in Europe. A large percentage of the fields for some of Australia’s most important races have passed through a sales ring (for instance, 17 of the 20 runners in this year’s G1 Golden Slipper had gone under the hammer), and that gives us an opportunity to look at what segment of the market these top horses are coming from. The Golden Slipper winner, Estijaab (Aus) (Snitzel {Aus}, out of the dual Group 1 winner Response {Aus}, by Charge Forward {Aus}) cost Emirates Park Stud A$1.7-million at Easter last year, and was the second-most expensive filly and fourth most expensive yearling sold at the sale. Naturally, she leads last year’s Easter graduates by earnings and is the lone Group 1 graduate of that Easter crop at this very early stage (just three Group 1s for juveniles have been staged thus far this season). Last year’s Slipper winner, She Will Reign (Aus) (also out of a mare by the Red Ransom stallion Charge Forward), had cost just A$20,000 at Inglis’s Classic sale the year prior, thus giving proof to the theory that top-class winners emanate from all levels of the market. The only other stakes winner so far from last year’s Easter sale also comes from the lower market: China Horse Club’s Irish Bet (Aus) (Smart Missile {Aus}), winner of the Listed Restricted Inglis Nursery on debut in December. Mick Flanagan, who signed the sales ticket on Irish Bet, told the TDN after that win, “Irish Bet was a cheap, good-looking horse and the other cheap one I bought at that sale a few years ago was Vanbrugh [cost A$100,000 and won the G1 Spring Champion S.].” China Horse Club has spent aggressively on colts at this sale in recent years, and its efforts were rewarded this season with dual Group 1 winner Russian Revolution (Aus) (Snitzel {Aus}), a A$320,000 purchase, retiring to Newgate Farm as one of the more popular new sires for 2018. Irish Bet wasn’t a rare buy at the middle to lower end of the market. Flanagan said, “We bought a couple of those cheaper ones last year in New Zealand and Australia. He wasn’t the only one, and we’ve done that in America and Europe a bit as well. We bought eight or nine yearlings in Europe and they didn’t really go more than 300,000, and there were a few in there for less than 100,000 as well.” Last year’s Easter sale has yielded three stakes-placed horses: the A$100,000 Cristal Eyes (Aus) (All Too Hard {Aus}), bought by Echo Beach Bloodstock and in training at Lindsay Park; Canyonero (Aus) (Pierro {Aus}), a A$130,000 purchase by trainer Mark Newnham; and the Team Hawkes-trained Wild Planet (Aus) (Animal Kingdom {Aus}), a A$280,000 buy. Three of those five black-type 2-year-olds, including Estijaab, were offered by Arrowfield Stud. Last year’s A$2.5-million top lot, Melik (Aus) (Redoute’s Choice {Aus}), is in training with Peter and Paul Snowden for Sheikh Mohammed bin Khalifa al Maktoum and was third in a trial on Feb. 12. Meticulous (Aus), the A$2.4-million son of Medaglia d’Oro split between the likes of Coolmore, Nordic Racing and Breeding, Stonestreet and Aquis, is in the same stable but is yet to trial. The A$1.8-million filly Al Naifa (Aus) (Redoute’s Choice {Aus}) won at second asking on Jan. 21 also in the colours of Sheikh Khalifa for trainer Tony McEvoy. Looking at the 2016 Easter sale results naturally allows for a clearer picture, and that sale is thus far performing admirably in comparison to 2015, with so far 17 group-winning graduates (equal to 2015) and seven Group 1 winners (one more than 2015). With the exception of the Golden Rose winner Trapeze Artist (Aus) (Snitzel {Aus}), who was passed in at A$250,000, Coolmore Stud offered the two least expensive of those Group 1 winners: Eclipse Thoroughbreds’s VRC Oaks winner Pinot (Aus) (Pierro {Aus}) (A$200,000) and the Blue Diamond winner Catchy (Aus) (Fastnet Rock {Aus}) (A$220,000). Three of those seven Group 1 winners are by Fastnet Rock and those also include the New Zealand Group 1 winner Age Of Fire (Aus) (A$400,000) and the G1 Coolmore Stud S. winner Merchant Navy (Aus) (A$350,000), who will eventually stand alongside his sire at Coolmore. The priciest of those Group 1 winners was Shadwell’s South African Group 1 winner Mustaaqeem (Aus) (Redoute’s Choice {Aus}) at A$1.75-million, and he is the lone black-type winner thus far from the nine seven-figure yearlings sold at the sale. Summer Passage (Aus) (Snitzel {Aus}), another NZ Group 1 winner, cost A$800,000. The remaining group-winning graduates of the 2016 Easter sale include one purchased for under A$100,000 and three apiece bought in the brackets of A$100,000 to A$250,000, A$251,000 to A$500,000 and a half-million to A$850,000. Gai Waterhouse bought the two top-priced lots at Easter 2016. The A$2.3-million Boulder City (Aus) (Snitzel {Aus}), a half-brother to Winx (Aus) (Street Cry {Ire}), is unraced and untrialed, while the A$1.8-million Regal Stage (Aus) (Redoute’s Choice {Aus}), a full-brother to champion sprinter Lankan Rupee (Aus), has trialed once, a third in November. Five of the nine millionaires from the sale are winners and one of those, the listed-placed Siege Of Quebec (Aus) (Fastnet Rock {Aus}), topped Thursday night’s Chairman’s Sale – Racing Prospects at A$1-million, with Aquis Farm buying into him with trainers Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott. Q: Where do go horses come from? A: Everywhere. All the more reason for buyers to do their homework across the board this week at Easter. View the full article

Happy Clapper (Aus) (Teofilo {Ire}) continued an excellent campaign and recorded an overall third Group 1 win with a score in Saturday’s A$3-million G1 Doncaster H. The gelding won the G1 Epsom H. in the spring and took the G1 Canterbury S. at Randwick on Mar. 10 before finishing second to Winx (Aus) (Street Cry {Ire}) two weeks ago in the G1 George Ryder. Battling with Arbeitsam (Aus) (Snitzel {Aus}) through the opening furlongs before dropping back to stalk on the fence, jockey Blake Shinn opted for the inside route as they turned for home and Happy Clapper, runner-up in this the last two years, would not be denied this time, hitting the line two lengths to the better of Criterion (NZ)’s half-brother Comin’ Through (Aus) (Fastnet Rock {Aus}) and Arbeitsam. Pedigree Notes… Happy Clapper is a half-brother to this season’s G2 VRC Sires’ Produce S. winner Not A Single Cent (Aus) (Not A Single Doubt {Aus}), who failed to factor when 10th in Saturday’s G1 Sires’ Produce S. on the same card. The dam, Busking (Aus) (Encosta de Lago {Aus}), has a yearling full-brother to Not A Single Cent. View the full article

Last season’s The Everest winner Redzel (Aus) (Snitzel {Aus}) was hot favourite to make it Group 1 win number two in Saturday’s G1 TJ Smith S., but he instead had to settle for second behind another son of his reigning champion sire, the G1 Golden Rose S. winner Trapeze Artist (Aus). While Redzel bounced out on top and set the pace, Trapeze Artist raced without cover about two lengths off the speed. Wound up straightening for home, Trapeze Artist used most of the stretch to grind down the game Redzel and ultimately won by a snug two lengths, with a further four lengths back to the third In Her Time (Aus) (Time Thief {Aus}). Pedigree Notes… Trapeze Artist, who also featured on this card last year when bringing up the third of a trifecta for his sire in the G1 Sires’ Produce S., is the second living foal for Treppes (Aus) (Domesday {Aus}), a half-sister to the G1 Stradbroke H. winner Crawl (Aus) (Dr. Grace {Aus}). The mare’s yearling colt by Zoustar (Aus) died, and she has a filly foal by Wandjina (Aus). View the full article

Happy Clapper (Aus) is the leading earner worldwide for Darley shuttler Teofilo (Ire), and the 7-year-old gelding widened the gap by a significant margin on Saturday when taking the A$3-million G1 Doncaster H., the headliner of a four Group 1 card on the opening day of The Championships at Royal Randwick, taking his bankroll past A$5.8-million. Happy Clapper, who was claiming his third Group 1, became Teofilo’s second winner of this mile showpiece, with Kermadec (NZ), who stands alongside the sire at Darley’s Kelvinside Stud, having won it in 2015. Teofilo, who will stand Southern Hemisphere time for A$44,000 this year, has sired five Group 1 winners Down Under and is in his sixth season with runners. The sire taking the honour of most winners on the card was I Am Invincible (Aus), whose progeny took out three of the first four races on the card. Last year’s Magic Millions 2YO Classic winner Houtzen (Aus) (I Am Invincible {Aus}) won for the first time this prep when taking the G3 PJ Bell S., while the 2-year-old Paquirri (Aus) (I Am Invincible {Aus}) was a 51-1 winner of the opening G3 Kindergarten S. I Am Invincible was unlucky to not have four winners on the card, his 2-year-old filly Oohood (Aus) placed in yet another Group 1 when missing in a photo finish with the 81-1 shot El Dorado Dreaming (Aus) (Ilovethiscity {Aus}) in the G1 Inglis Sires’ S. There have now been three juvenile Group 1s staged in Australia this season and Oohood, amazingly still a maiden, has hit the board in all three: she was also third in the G1 Blue Diamond S. and second in the G1 Golden Slipper. El Dorado Dreaming’s small-time trainer Ben Smith wrapped up what was a productive day when his Group 1-winning mare In Her Time (Aus) (Time Thief {Aus}) finished third in the Doncaster. As can nearly be expected at the Saturday races in Australia, Snitzel (Aus) also made an impact, siring the quinella in two races, including the G1 TJ Smith S. Last season’s The Everest winner Redzel (Aus) set the pace and was brave to the line, but was run down late by last season’s G1 Golden Rose S. winner Trapeze Artist (Aus), trained by Gerald Ryan, who also trained the sire. Snitzel had earlier on the card delivered the quinella in the G3 Carbine Club S. for 3-year-olds when the TDN Rising Star Muraaqeb (Aus) led home Jadeskye Racing and partners’ progressive Dissolution (Aus). Damion Flower of Jadeskye raced Snitzel. Snitzel’s sire, Redoute’s Choice (Aus), also gained plaudits on the day as the broodmare sire of the first three home in the G1 Australian Derby. Snitzel and I Am Invincible currently sit one-three on the general sires’ table and have 64 and 41 yearlings, respectively, catalogued for this week’s Inglis Easter sale. They are split in the sires’ standings by the much-missed High Chaparral (Ire), who nearly got a Group 1 win on the board himself on Saturday when his G1 Victoria Derby winner Ace High (Aus) was nosed out by Levendi (Aus) in the Australian Derby. The winner is a new Group 1 winner for Pierro (Aus) (Lonhro {Aus}), who stands at High Chaparral’s former home, Coolmore Australia. A 2-year-old Triple Crown winner who was also a mile Group 1 winner at three, Pierro is shaping up into a very valuable outcross for Australian breeders, being free of Danehill and Danzig. The current wide-margin leading second-season sire is also responsible for the G1 VRC Oaks winner Pinot (Aus), as well as Group 3-winning sprinters Tulip (Aus) and Pierata (Aus), both Group 1-placed. View the full article

Jockey Umberto Rispoli says it is simply the power of positive thinking that has him ready to race just days after shattering his collarbone. Oh, and there is that plate and nine screws in his shoulder plus a daily regime of physiotherapy, exercise, stretching and standing near-naked in a sub minus-110 degrees Celsius cryogenic chamber for three minutes each day. Whether it be willpower or the wonders of modern sports science, Rispoli’s effort to be cleared to ride so soon after a... View the full article

After some time off following surgery to remove an ankle chip, the highly regarded Gas Station Sushi is back racing in the $150,000 Beaumont Stakes Presented by Keeneland Select (G3) April 8. View the full article

After some time off after surgery to remove an ankle chip, the highly regarded Gas Station Sushi is back racing in the $150,000 Beaumont Stakes Presented by Keeneland Select (G3) April 8. View the full article

Analyze It remained unbeaten and virtually untested in three starts when he notched a 5 1/4-length victory in the Kentucky Utilities Transylvania Stakes (G3T) over the Keeneland grass course April 6. View the full article

Analyze It remained unbeaten and virtually untested in three starts when he notched a 5 1/4-length victory in the Kentucky Utilities Transylvania Stakes (G3T) over the Keeneland grass course April 6. View the full article

Analyze It remained unbeaten and virtually untested in three starts when he notched a 5 1/4-length triumph in the Kentucky Utilities Transylvania Stakes (G3T) over the Keeneland grass course April 6. View the full article

Lady Shelia Stable's Holiday Disguise closed late to best her rivals in the $150,000 Distaff Handicap (G3), her graded stakes debut, April 6 at Aqueduct Racetrack. View the full article

Karl Watson, Mike Pegram, and Paul Weitman's Hoppertunity, the "barn favorite" in Barn 5 on the Santa Anita Park backside, has run all over the country and twice overseas, but he will try something different April 8. View the full article

As the Road to the Kentucky Derby heats up, each week we will take a look at three things to watch from the 3-year-old division as they head into the weekend's respective prep races. View the full article

The Super Derby at Louisiana Downs, which lost its Grade III status for 2017 when it was switched to the turf, has been reinstated as a Grade III for 2018 by the American Graded Stakes Committee after it was announced that it would return to its previous dirt surface. “The committee has reviewed this change from 2017, and has determined that because the race will be reverting to its historical conditions after only one year as a turf race and has run under those historical conditions in two of the last three years, the race’s Grade III status will be reinstated for 2018,” a release explained. View the full article

In a race where multiple graded stakes-winning sprinter Limousine Liberal is slated as the 6-5 morning-line favorite, the $250,000 Commonwealth Stakes (G3) at Keeneland April 7 could prove to be a step forward for Godolphin's Westwood. View the full article

ANALYZE IT (c, 3, Point of Entry–Sweet Assay, by Consolidator) was bet down to 4-5 favoritism to remain perfect in Keeneland’s GIII Transylvania S. and did just that with a dazzling victory. Running in a joint third as loose-on-the-lead longshot Beer Pressure (Silent Name {Jpn}) clocked a half-mile in :48.83, the bay ranged up outside that rival turning for home and quickly did away with him in the stretch, charging clear to an impressive 5 1/2-length score. The final time was 1:45.60. Captivating Moon (Malibu Moon) prevailed for second in a blanket finish. Tabbed a ‘TDN Rising Star’ after romping by 6 1/4 lengths on debut at Belmont Oct. 18, Analyze It followed suit with a decisive score in the GIII Cecil B. Demille S. at Del Mar Nov. 26. Lifetime Record: 3-3-0-0. O-William Lawrence; B-Headley & Nancy Bell and NATO (KY); T-Chad Brown. View the full article

Ogden Phipps II has been appointed to the New York Racing Association Board of directors effective Apr. 4, filling the seat made vacant by the resignation of Bobby Flay. Flay, a celebrity chef and prominent horse owner and breeder who has campaigned the likes of Grade I winners Creator, Her Smile and More Than Real, was appointed to the NYRA Board of Directors in 2012. “The NYRA Board of Directors extends its profound appreciation to Bobby Flay for his many years of service to the NYRA Board,” said Michael Del Giudice, Chairman of the NYRA Board. “Through his focus on the integrity of the sport, and willingness to speak to the concerns of the next generation of racing fans, Bobby has distinguished himself as an ambassador for the sport. We wish him all the best.” Mr. Phipps, son of the late former NYRA Chairman and The Jockey Club President Ogden Mills “Dinny” Phipps, hails from one of the most prominent racing and breeding families in American history. A fourth-generation horseman, the 40-year-old co-owns and manages Phipps Stable, and is a co-founding partner of the New York City-based private equity firm Snow Phipps. He serves on a number of corporate boards, and is a trustee of the Bessemer Trust, Bessemer Securities, Wake Forest University and New York-Presbyterian Hospital. “Our family has always felt so fortunate to have enjoyed a long history with the New York Racing Association,” said Ogden Phipps II. “NYRA plays a central role in driving the future of horse racing, and sets the industry example when it comes to constantly improving both the guest experience and quality of racing. I’m honored to be able to add my voice to this accomplished board and to play a direct role in bettering a sport that means so much to so many people.” Del Guidice added, “Few families have contributed more to the fabric and history of thoroughbred racing in New York and throughout the country than the Phipps family,” added Del Giudice. “Ogden Phipps II carries on that legacy through his passion for breeding and racing, commitment to the Phipps Stable and appreciation for NYRA’s history and vision moving forward. We are pleased to welcome him to the NYRA Board and look forward to his contributions in the years to come.” Click here for more on the NYRA Board of Directors. View the full article

Karl Watson, Mike Pegram, and Paul Weitman' Hoppertunity, the "barn favorite" in Barn 5 on the Santa Anita Park backside, has run all over the country and twice overseas but will try something different April 8. View the full article

In the aftermath of World Approval's defeat in the March 10 Frank E. Kilroe Mile Stakes (G1T), trainer Mark Casse said he hasn't seen the same energy from the champion gelding and is debating whether to start him in the Maker's 46 Mile (G1T). View the full article