Wandering Eyes

Top Australian jockey Nash Rawiller has been banned for 15 months after Hong Kong Jockey Club stewards charged him with accepting money or gifts in return for race tips. The jockey was charged at a Jockey Club hearing at Happy Valley Racecourse on Wednesday morning and was given two 15-month bans that will be served concurrently. Rawiller was charged with having breached Rule of Racing 59 (2) and (3). Rule of Racing 59 (2) states that “no jockey shall accept or agree to any pecuniary or... View the full article

The last time Blizzard ran over anything further than 1,400 metres, he was four years old and undergoing the regular rite of passage for good horses of that age in Hong Kong, persevering his way through classic events that were not really his forte. He soldiered through bravely with placings in the Classic Mile and Classic Cup before failing in the Derby, then trainer Ricky Yiu Poon-fai switched him back to sprinting for his next 15 starts. So, with Blizzard coming off a solid fifth in the... View the full article

If there were any questions about Tommy Berry’s readiness to ride again after a trial fall on Tuesday, they were answered at Sha Tin trackwork on Wednesday morning as his Japanese mount in the Chairman’s Sprint Prize on Sunday answered some questions of his own. The jockey fell at Sha Tin when his mount, Agree, collapsed and died in a trial but Berry was confident there would be no interruption to his week as he heads towards Champions Day on Sunday with the sit on the talented... View the full article

Sprint or Mile a Gray area for Lim's Cruiser View the full article

Sky Rocket ready to explore new heights View the full article

Polytrack main hurdle to Aramco's bid for second Leg View the full article

CC Wong suspended two days View the full article

OCALA, FL–The Ocala Breeders’ Sales Company’s April Spring Sale of 2-Year-Olds sale got off to a good start Tuesday in Central Florida with steady trade and an increase in average and median over last year’s opening session. A total of 151 of the 210 juveniles offered sold for $15,083,000 compared to last term’s opening session, when 185 of 222 youngsters to pass through the ring sold for a gross of $15,675,700. The average was up 17.8% from $84,734 to $99,887 and the median increased 14.6% from $48,000 to $55,000. “We are off to a good start,” said Tom Ventura, OBS President. “I am very pleased with how the day went. There was a lot of concern about how the buyers would react to the day that was affected by the weather on Monday’s breeze show. The times were a little slower than the rest of the week. We do have a sophisticated buying base here and the results showed that. Our top five horses sold to five different buyers and there was good activity below that.” Fifty-nine 2-year-olds failed to sell for an RNA rate of 28.1%. At the close of business during the 2017 opening session, 53 horses failed to meet their reserves for a buyback rate of 23.9%, but after post sales were included, the buy-back rate fell to 16.7%. The session was topped by an $800,000 Quality Road filly (hip 95) purchased by Frank Fletcher Racing. She was consigned by Eddie Woods, who was Tuesday’s leading seller with 11 horses bringing $2,040,000. Alex and JoAnn Lieblong bought the day’s highest-priced colt in Hip 144, a $550,000 son of freshman sire Strong Mandate from the consignment of Randy Miles. “The market seems fine,” Miles said after the colt went through the ring. “I’ve had four horses sell so far and they all sold except for one. I think it is a good market. We’ve had some big ticket items sell, so it seems fine. We were a little worried early when we first got started. I’m having a good day so I’m not complaining.” Ten juveniles brought over $300,000 compared to 2017 when only five surpassed that number. Selling continues Wednesday through Friday with sessions beginning at 10:30 a.m. Fletcher Strikes for Quality Road Filly Arkansas businessman Frank Fletcher, who has been a major factor in absentia at recent OBS sales, was on hand to personally sign the ticket at $800,000 to acquire a filly by Quality Road during Tuesday’s first session of the April sale. “I’ve been buying colts down here for years and I decided I needed to get on the other side of the track a little bit and buy some ladies,” Fletcher said. “She looked very good.” The dark bay filly (hip 95) is out of Betty Brite (Medaglia d’Oro), who is out of a full-sister to Tiznow. She was consigned by Eddie Woods and worked a quarter during last week’s under-tack preview in :22 flat. Fletcher, whose business interests include the Fletcher Auto Group, purchased a colt by Into Mischief for $400,000 at last year’s OBS April sale and set a then-record at the June sale in 2015 when going to $575,000 for another son of the same sire. “I haven’t been here personally in two or three years, but I’ve bought a lot of horses here,” Fletcher said. “I haven’t been here since they started remodeling, but I love Ocala. This is a great place and hopefully I’ll be able to buy two or three more horses at the sale.” He continued, “We are excited. It’s always a gamble, it’s a gambling business. But it’s a fun business and I travel all over the country going to races–it’s what I do for fun.” Bred by John Gunther, Eurowest Bloodstock and Celebre Investments, hip 95 RNA’d for $190,000 at last year’s Keeneland September sale. After the buy-back, bloodstock agent Pete Bradley purchased a 50% interest in the filly from Gunther. “She just kept getting better all along,” Bradley said of the filly. “Eddie Woods and Angela did such a great job with her because she was backwards when we bought her. The frame was there and she had the natural talent, but they got her to be what she brought.” Of the filly’s final price tag, Bradley said, “We knew she would sell well, but that was more than we had expected.” Quality Road, sire of last year’s Eclipse champion 3-year-old filly Abel Tasman and champion 2-year-old filly Caledonia Road, was also represented Tuesday in Ocala by hip 127, a bay filly from the King’s Equine consignment who sold for $310,000 to Susan Moulton. —@JessMartiniTDN Lieblong Strikes For Strong Mandate Colt Alex Lieblong had his eye on Hip 144, a son of freshman sire Strong Mandate, before he ever stepped foot on the sales grounds and he was the last man standing at the end of a spirited round of bidding at OBS Tuesday to take the juvenile home for $550,000. “I liked everything about him,” the Arkansas native said. “Anyone that can work :10 flat in that wind is a big step above. Bo [Hunt] breaks a lot of my horses, so when I am buying something off Bo I have complete faith. He did a great job with him and I got to watch the horse train. They’ve done right by the horse all along.” As for the price, Lieblong said, “I’ll be honest with you, I thought he’d go a little higher, but I’m glad he didn’t.” Lieblong plans to send his new purchase to Ron Moquett, who was seated alongside the owner when he signed the ticket. “Ron will probably get that one,” said Lieblong, who campaigned Grade I winners The Big Beast (Yes It’s True) and Embellish the Lace (Super Saver) with his wife JoAnn. “I have to make sure I don’t hurt anyone’s feelings if I say that too quick. He’s had a little illness, but he is getting over that, so this might speed up his recovery.” Hip 144 is from the first crop of GI Hopeful S. winner Strong Mandate (Tiznow), whose offspring have proven quite popular in the sales ring. He was represented by an $825,000 filly at last term’s Fasig-Tipton Saratoga sale and a $775,000 colt at last month’s OBS March sale. “I love him,” Lieblong said of the young stallion. “He’s by Tiznow and I saw him when he won at Saratoga. For a Tiznow to be able to do that early, it pumps me up a little bit because I know the Tiznows are good later on, but when they start doing that early, it shows me a little more athleticism.” Consignor Randy Miles expressed similar sentiments about the Three Chimneys stallion. “We’ve had three at the farm this year,” he said. “They are all good, big, rugged horses and seem precocious. I like them.” Miles bought Hip 144 through his Royal Flush Racing partnership for $60,000 at last term’s Fasig-Tipton October sale. Bred by Robert Lail, the dark bay is out of Callous Effect (Majestic Warrior) and hails from the family of Grade I winner Pharma (Theatrical {Ire}). “We stretched to buy him as a yearling because we liked him so much,” Miles said. “We bought him from Brandywine at the October sale. We got him home and we have loved him ever since.” While Miles was not surprised by the colt’s final prize, he was shocked when he saw who the buyer was. “Bo works on these horses and Mr. Lieblong is a client of ours,” Miles said. “We had no idea he was going to buy this horse. He fooled us. He watched the horse on the farm and saw him here at the barn, but when I saw he was signing the ticket, I was shocked. It was a good surprise. It’s nice when your own people have faith in you, and he does. He has a lot of faith in what Bo does for him.” —@CDeBernardisTDN Daisy Dukes Produces for Eisamans Barry and Shari Eisaman enjoyed sales success as breeders Tuesday in Ocala when a colt by Big Drama sold to Klaravich Stable for $475,000. The Eisamans bred the juvenile (hip 245) under their Eico Ventures banner out of the mare Daisy Dukes (Ghazi). “We’ve had that mare since she was a weanling, so everything that she has done has been for us,” Barry Eisaman said. “She’s been a good mare. She’s retired now.” Daisy Dukes is also the dam of Japanese stakes winner Surplus Singer (Songandaprayer). Her Big Drama colt, who worked a furlong in :10 flat last week, was a standout, according to Eisaman. “He is an outstanding prospect,” Eisaman said. “They got a wonderful, wonderful race prospect. That was a generous amount of money, but I think Big Drama might have been something that would maybe have held some people back. But this is a superior athlete. He’s fast, healthy and correct.” —@JessMartiniTDN He’s Had Enough Juveniles Proving Popular The first crop of juveniles by He’s Had Enough (Tapit), runner-up in the 2012 GI Breeders’ Cup Juvenile, are turning heads in the sales ring this spring. Lane’s End Bloodstock, on behalf of West Point Thoroughbreds and Robert Masiello, went to $370,000 to secure hip 276 from the Grassroots Training & Sales consignment and about an hour later bloodstock agent Gary Young purchased a gray colt (hip 305) by the stallion for $320,000. “He’s had a bunch of good-moving horses,” Young said of He’s Had Enough, who stands at Woodford Thoroughbreds for $5,000. “I tried buying the one that Grassroots had earlier that was really nice and Ciaran Dunne had one at Barretts that was nice. The one that Ciaran had at Barretts and this one here were grays. The one that David McKathan [of Grassroots] had that I tried to buy about an hour earlier was chestnut. But they are good, long-striding horses. They don’t look like they are going to be 5 1/2 furlong horses.” Dunne’s Wavertree Stables sold a colt by He’s Had Enough (hip 40) for $160,000 at last month’s Barretts Spring Sale. Of hip 305, who worked a quarter last week in :21 3/5, Young said, “I just really liked this horse. He looks like Tapit. And He’s Had Enough looks like Tapit. We’ll see.” Consigned by Eddie Woods, the gray colt was purchased by Quarter Pole Enterprises for $40,000 at last year’s Fasig-Tipton July sale. He is out of Elizabits (Forestry), a half-sister to the dam of graded stakes winner Onlyforyou (Malibu Moon). Grassroots purchased hip 276 for $62,000 at the Fasig July sale. The chestnut, a half-brother to stakes wiinner Discreet Lover (Repent), worked a furlong in :10 flat last week. Asked if he was surprised to have to pay that much for a son of the young stallion, Young said, “Before the 2-year-old sales started I would have been surprised, but there are other people who can tell you, he throws a good-moving horse. He was a nice horse as a racehorse, but he throws a nice-looking horse and a nice-moving horse. I hope we get to prove that right in about five months.” —@JessMartiniTDN View the full article

Double Doors Racing, LLC, owners of GII Twinspires.com Fair Grounds Oaks winner Chocolate Martini (Broken Vow), have agreed to donate 5% of any earnings from the filly’s run in the GI Kentucky Oaks to the Retired Racehorse Project. The funds will go toward helping the organization’s mission of increasing the value and demand for Thoroughbreds once they retire from racing. “Our love of horse racing stems from our love for the horses,” co-owner for Double Doors Racing Amanda DaBruzzo said. “As such, we recognize and appreciate that the real stars in horse racing are these tremendous athletes. Double Doors Racing is committed to ensuring that all horses, not just the champions, have a bright future after their time on the track. We hope that our commitment to the Retired Racehorse Project will further their mission and this cause.” View the full article

Trainer Todd Pletcher's four Kentucky Derby Presented by Woodford Reserve (G1) hopefuls arrived at Churchill Downs at 2:30 Monday afternoon with the trainer following a few hours later. On Tuesday morning, it was back to work. View the full article

In common with all European breeze-up sales this season, the Osarus sale, which takes place at La Teste de Buch racecourse today, has an increase in numbers catalogued. From 102 in the book and three supplementary entries, 15 had already been withdrawn at the time of writing but it’s still a rise from the 62 offered last year, when just 36 sold for a total of €645,000 at an average price of €18,156. Paul Basquin’s Haras de Saubouas has been the leading vendor at this sale since 2015 and last year sold the top two lots, headed by a Wootton Bassett colt at €77,000. At this ninth edition of the Osarus breeze-up, which moved to La Teste from Pornichet three years ago, Saubouas again has one of the biggest drafts, with 11 juveniles set to be tested in public for the first time. They include the sole lot in the sale by Reliable Man (GB), who recently transferred from Germany to France and is represented by a colt (lot 43) from the family of Anna Nerium (GB) (Dubawi {Ire}), who last week added victory in the listed European Free H. to her juvenile success in the G3 Dick Poole Fillies’ S. The largest consignment, however, is that from Haras de Saint-Arnoult and it’s not just numbers alone that will bring potential purchasers to Larissa Kneip’s boxes. Two of her offerings received a significant update a little over a fortnight ago when Barkaa (Fr) (Siyouni {Fr}) won the G3 Prix Vanteaux at the opening meeting of ParisLongchamp. Lot 57 is Barkaa’s half-brother and one of three juveniles in the sale from the first crop of Haras du Quesnay’s Anodin (Ire). Just four lots later (61), a Siyouni colt from a half-sister to Barkaa’s dam Dentelle (Fr) (Apeldoorn {Fr}) will go through the ring. A three-time provincial winner in France, Dentelle is also the dam of treble listed scorer My Old Husband (Fr) (Gentlewave {Ire}), whose 11 wins have come in France, Italy, Switzerland and Slovakia. Anodin’s fellow French freshman sires Joshua Tree (Ire) and Sommerabend (Ger) are also among those stallions with offspring catalogued, but the sole representative of Olympic Glory (Ire) has been withdrawn. The horses will breeze on the turf at La Teste from 8.30am and the sale is set to start at 1.30pm. View the full article

Frank Stronach, the founder and honorary chairman of The Stronach Group and a leading Thoroughbred owner and breeder, will be presented with the Dinny Phipps Award at the Belmont Stakes Charity Celebration on Thursday, June 7, at the Bryant Park Grill in New York City, the Grayson-Jockey Club Research Foundation announced Tuesday. Earle Mack, an active participant in Thoroughbred racing and breeding for more than five decades, created the award in 2017 to honor an individual or individuals who have demonstrated dedication to equine health. The Phipps family received the inaugural Dinny Phipps Award at last year’s charity celebration. All proceeds from the event benefit the ongoing research of the Grayson-Jockey Club Research Foundation to improve equine health for all breeds. “Frank Stronach has been committed to improving all aspects of the horse racing industry since entering the sport more than 50 years ago,” said Mack. “I am thrilled to bestow the Dinny Phipps Award to an individual who prioritizes the wellbeing of the equine in all areas from breeding to racing to racetrack management.” Dell Hancock, chairman of Grayson, added, “From his support of Grayson’s work to his efforts to ensure the highest standards of health and soundness for his horses and all horses that compete at his racetracks, Frank Stronach epitomizes the essence of the Dinny Phipps Award, and he is extremely deserving of this accolade.” Additional information about the Belmont Stakes Charity Celebration can be obtained by contacting Nancy Kelly at nkelly@jockeyclub.com. View the full article

Gronkowski (Lonhro {Aus}), ruled out of consideration for the GI Kentucky Derby with a minor infection, will resume training next week in preparation for a tilt at the GI Belmont S., owner Phoenix Thoroughbreds, Ltd., announced Tuesday. He has won four straight races, including the 32red Burradon S. “Gronkowski the horse is recovering very well from a small infection, ” said Tom Ludt, Vice President of equine operations for Phoenix Thoroughbreds. “He’s extremely strong and we are excited about getting him to the U.S. to compete at the Belmont.” The Phoenix race team also includes the dark bay’s namesake, New England Patriots all-pro tight end and two-time Super Bowl champion Rob Gronkowski. “This horse is a fighter and a winner,” Gronkowski said. “As an athlete, I understand the need for rest and recovery time. I’m glad that he’s recovering quickly, and I look forward to meeting him soon and taking some selfies!” View the full article

Never mind Emmanuel Macron. France has a new president and he’s not one who has parachuted into his position of power in the blink of an eye. In February, French racing lost its doyenne, Criquette Head-Maarek, whose retirement saw her yard sold to rising young trainer Henri-Francois Devin. Her responsibilities as the president of the French trainers’ association, however, have been passed on to fellow long-serving Chantilly trainer Nicolas Clement, whose statesmanlike demeanour and 30 years with a licence stand him in good stead to represent his colleagues. “Criquette was president for 20 years and I was part of the board for 15 years so she asked me to take over,” says Clement during a pause between lots on one of the first warm mornings of the year in Chantilly. “Obviously my priority is training my horses but sometimes you have to get involved and there’s a good team behind me, some young blood like Francis Graffard and Mikel Delzangles in Chantilly, and good people from the country like Philippe da Cruz and Etienne Leenders.” The giant magnolia tree in Clement’s immaculate garden is struggling back into bloom, just as the 70 horses in the yard on the other side of the house are surrendering the last of their winter coats, both processes encouraged, finally, by the appearance of the sun. “It’s a big continuity game, training,” says Clement. “I love to see the offspring of stallions and mares we’ve previously trained. We’re fortunate that four or five years ago we had some very nice Classic colts, like French Fifteen (Fr) who was second to Camelot (GB) in the Guineas, then [Poule d’Essai des Poulains winner] Style Vendome (Fr) came a year later, which was very satisfying as we bought him with Tina at the sales from Haras de Colleville for one of our longest standing owners, Comte Andre de Ganay.” ‘Tina’ is the trainer’s partner, the effervescent bloodstock agent Tina Rau, a graduate of the first Darley Flying Start course and German by birth but impressively multilingual, like Clement himself. The pair work closely at the sales and Rau’s valuable input closer to home is clear as she tours the boxes, reciting the pedigrees of the horses within and their progress to date. Among the current intake are several youngsters by the aforementioned Style Vendome, the son of Anabaa now standing at Haras de Bouquetot with first 3-year-olds this season. That debut crop includes the Al Shaqab-bred Talbah (GB), who made a winning debut at Deauville in March before returning a month later to take third in the G3 Prix Imprudence. “Talbah seems very promising,” says her trainer. “She was great after her race but we won’t go for the Guineas as she’s only run twice. We’ll try to go an easier way with a listed race in early May then the Prix de Sandringham in June at Chantilly, which is a Group 2 over a mile. Let’s hope she lives up to expectations.” Representing the first crop of the Gestut Fahrhof-based Maxios (GB) is another 3-year-old who appears to have a bright future in Woodmax (Ger), an expensive purchase by Mayfair Speculators from the BBAG Yearling Sale who became one of his sire’s first winners last season when saluting at Evreux and following up that success with a metropolitan win at Maisons-Laffitte. The neat dark brown colt ended his season with a fourth-place finish in the G1 Prix Jean-Luc Lagardere just behind recent wide-margin Craven S. winner Masar (Ire) (New Approach {Ire}) but struggled in his seasonal debut at Longchamp in the G3 Prix Djebel. Clement says, “You need to write off Woodmax’s race the other day as the ground was too heavy and he probably blew up, but he showed that he was very close to the top in the Lagardere. It’s the same thing for him really. We’re tempted to go for a listed race at the end of April then decide if we go for the French Guineas, or we might be tempted to go for the German Guineas. He might also be a good horse to travel. There are very good purses in America and a race like the Belmont Derby might be ideal for him, but we’ll take one race at a time.” Clement, who trains from the yard previously run by his late father Miguel, has particularly close links to America though his brother Christophe, who eventually settled thousands of miles away from his Chantilly home and now has teams based primarily at Belmont Park in New York and Florida’s Payson Park. The brothers liaise regularly, particularly on the subject of filtering horses to each other’s stables. “Christophe and I speak twice or three times a week, sometimes more depending on runners that I might have sent him or the other way round. We’re very close and he tries to come here once or twice a year and I try to do the same,” says Clement. The older brother by two years, Nicolas Clement briefly entertained the idea of an alternative career before setting out on the path already trodden by his father and becoming, in 1988, the youngest person ever to hold a training licence in France. Prior to that, he put flesh on the bones of his experience with stud farm stints at Haras de Clarbec and Taylor Made in America, where he went on to work for a young John Gosden and then on to Gosden’s former mentor, Vincent O’Brien. Eventually returning home, he studied at the hand of his father’s old friend Francois Boutin, whom he describes as “a great trainer but an even better man”. He says, “At 18 I was going to be a vet but I lasted only two months at vet school because I got bored, there wasn’t enough action. I wanted to be a trainer, I guess.” Clement continues, “I’ve been doing this for 30 years now but it seems like it was only yesterday that I started. There used to be an age limit of 25 to have a training licence in France but we had special authorisation for me to take it a year early and after that it went down to 21. I had the passion to train so I thought I’d give it a go and fortunately I love what I do. I still have the drive and the energy—I’m always looking towards the next runner or the next winner.” Just two years into his training career, a colt arrived in his yard from Henry Cecil’s stable who would give him the start every young trainer dreams about. Saumarez (GB) (Rainbow Quest) was in the process of switching ownership between Charles St George and Bruce McNall, and thanks to Clement’s bravado, ended up winning the G1 Grand Prix de Paris and G1 Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe. “I was very fortunate, thanks to Narvick International and Emmanuel de Seroux, who bought the horse for Bruce McNall, as he was supposed to move to Charlie Whittingham but as he was working so well I begged them to supplement him for the Grand Prix de Paris,” he recalls. “It wasn’t an easy thing for a young trainer to convince some senior owners and managers but they listened to the young trainer and the horse won by six lengths with Steve Cauthen. That got me going. Then he went on to win the Arc in the autumn.” Clement is a walking promotional tool for Chantilly, clearly still under the magical spell of France’s premier training centre as he describes the benefits of the place he has called home for most of his life. Situated between the town of Chantilly and its neighbouring training hub of Lamorlaye, Clement has the best of both worlds, his horses being able to gain easy access to the gallops on Les Aigles and Les Lions. “We’ve seen some changes here over the years but one thing that has not changed is that Andre Fabre was starting to lead the table when I first set up and he’s still leading the table. We have to praise him because he’s broken all the records in longevity and he’s still teaching us a few things,” Clement says with a smile. “French racing has gone a step higher in the quality of horses. We have some very good trainers and some good ambassadors, the likes of Goldikova (Ire) going to the Breeders’ Cup and also Talismanic (GB), but also horses like Dunaden (Fr) winning the Melbourne Cup and in Hong Kong, and Vazirabad (Fr) winning in Dubai. You can train at a very high level in this country, particularly in Chantilly, which is close to the airport for shipping the horses. But in the south there are some very capable trainers too, like Jean-Claude Rouget. It’s a tough circuit.” The subject of travelling horses is one to which Clement, with a varied international client base, frequently returns. And it’s not just America in his sights. “Racing has gone global. Our purse structure is good in France but sometimes it’s better abroad for certain horses,” he says. “With my close links with my brother sometimes I can send him some nice horses and target some US races but I would also be very keen to run in Australia. The Melbourne Cup is a race with a great reputation and it’s a big aim for me. Year after year we’ve seen European horses do well there. I think in Chantilly we train horses to develop at a later stage. Of course you can train a 2-year-old here but they are given a bit more time here and in Britain and you end up with a horse like Gailo Chop (Fr) who is still doing well in Australia [at age seven]. We are building up an athlete. The 2-year-old year is important but we are looking ahead and ensuring that they can have a longer career.” Wit an eye on the long term, the trainer is not afraid to trade when the time is right, whether it’s to give a horse an opportunity to race in another country or under a different code. Only last week at Fairyhouse, the steady preparation of a Clement stable graduate was seen to good effect when Saglawy (Fr) (Youmzain {Ire}) won the G2 Juvenile Hurdle for Willie Mullins, having previously been listed-placed on the Flat in France. “I’m pretty open to ideas and I went to visit Willie Mullins last year which really opened my eyes,” says Clement. “I think you have to be open and progressive in your training. You should never say ‘that’s wrong’. There are many ways to train a racehorse. Some people canter four furlongs, five furlongs, interval training, others will go long. You have to take the best of everything and try to have a bit of a scientific approach and try to understand why something is working or not working. There’s a lot of common sense needed in our game. The wellbeing of the horse is most important, making sure they are happy. I guess it’s a bit of an instinct, and observation is a key thing, when to step up and when to step down.” He adds, “The time I spent in America was very good experience because you see so many different things, the leg work, the work pattern, which is very different to Europe. Wherever you are in the world around racehorses you can always learn.” No matter one’s level of experience, a willingness to keep learning is paramount for success, but Clement has plenty to teach, too. His training colleagues in Chantilly and beyond appear to have found the perfect man to represent them, both at home and abroad. View the full article

Boosted by the 2016 and 2017 triumphs of high rankers and subsequent Group 1 performers So Mi Dar (GB) (Dubawi {Ire}) and Cracksman (GB) (Frankel {GB}), respectively, this event has been elevated to listed status for the first time and attracts an enticing cast for the latest incarnation, which offers a free ticket to the main event in June. The John Gosden and Frankie Dettori bromance has dominated recently with Christophermarlowe (Tapit) initiating the hat-trick in 2015, and the duo team up again with Khalid Abdullah’s recent Kempton conditions winner Crossed Baton (GB) (Dansili {GB}) seeking a third-straight success having closed last term with victory in a Sandown novice event in September. “Crossed Baton is in good form at home, he has come out of his win at Kempton in good shape and has had a straightforward time of things since that run,” revealed racing manager Teddy Grimthorpe. “It was a nice performance last time out and this is another big step up for him. This is a nice race for him to go for and it fits in well in the calendar. He has been progressive in all three of his starts and his form has worked out strongly so we’ll see how he gets on.” Aidan O’Brien, who has yet to join the contest’s honour roll, saddles two with Ryan Moore taking the mount aboard Leopardstown maiden winner James Cook (Ire) (Galileo (Ire), a full-brother to G1 Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe, GI Breeders’ Cup Turf and G1 Prix Marcel Boussac heroine Found (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}), and Seamus Heffernan booked for Tipperary maiden scorer Zabriskie (Ire) (Frankel {GB}), who returns off a last-of-eight finish in October’s G3 Autumn S. at Newmarket, undergoing a wind operation since that latest outing. Mark Johnston’s Permian (Ire) (Teofilo {Ire}) forced Cracksman to pull out all the stops in last year’s edition and he is represented by Dee Ex Bee (GB) (Farhh {GB}), who follows the same route as that ill-fated former stablemate and goes postward off a placed effort in the October’s Listed Zetland S. at Newmarket. View the full article

Champion sire Captain Al (SAf) provided the three top-priced lots during the first of three sessions of Bloodstock South Africa’s National Yearling Sale in Johannesburg on Tuesday. Leading the way was Mauritzfontein Stud’s colt who is the second produce of the champion 3-year-old filly Cherry On The Top (SAf) (Tiger Ridge). Lot 113 was bought by Jehan Malherbe’s Form Bloodstock for R4,750,000 ($385,248/£275,699/€314,909). The Hong Kong Jockey Club, fresh off busy stints buying horses for its International Sale in Australia and Europe, swooped for the second top-priced lot on Tuesday, Klipdrif Stud’s Captain Al colt (lot 63) out of the stakes-winning Valor Red (SAf) (Western Winter), for R3,330,000. Kerry Jack Bloodstock signed for the session’s priciest filly, Riverton Stud’s daughter of Captain Al (lot 150) who is a half-sister to five winners including a stakes-placed horse. Her price tag was R2,900,000. Also siring lots in excess of R2-million on Tuesday were fellow champion sires Dynasty (SAf) (2) and Silvano (Ger), as well as Silvano’s son and first-crop sire Vercingetorix (SAf), winner of the G1 Jebel Hatta at Meydan in 2014. Statistics will be provided upon the conclusion of the sale on Thursday. View the full article

Insurance executive R. Alex Rankin’s introduction to the Thoroughbred business came in 1982 when he bought a single broodmare and founded Upson Downs Farm in Goshen, Kentucky. On Apr. 24, 2018, he took the helm as the newly elected chairman of the board of directors of Churchill Downs Inc. (CDI), the largest racing-related corporation in America. In the three-plus decades in between, Rankin became increasingly involved in the industry, including serving as president and board member of the Kentucky Thoroughbred Association, president and director of the Kentucky Derby Museum, director of Breeders’ Cup Limited, and director of Kentucky Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders. He has been an independent director at CDI since 2008, and was voted into The Jockey Club in 2016. Rankin recently spoke via phone with TDN to detail his aspirations for Churchill Downs, the GI Kentucky Derby, and CDI’s other Thoroughbred properties. Rankin also discussed the corporation’s image, and how he envisions his role in changing some Thoroughbred industry perceptions about it. An edited transcript follows. TDN: That’s a great story about how you started as a one-horse farm. How might your experience in building a breeding and racing operation from bottom up dovetail into your new corporate role? AR: Learning the farm business from the bottom up, and knowing what it takes to have employees that love horses, I think will be of benefit. We’ve always felt if you’ve got happy employees, you’ve got happy horses, and that sort of thing can transfer over. And then getting into working as a director of the Kentucky Thoroughbred Association gave me valuable experience in understanding horsemen’s issues, which is an offshoot of the breeding business. And I’ve seen a lot of horse insurance and farm insurance, so it’s kind of a full circle. CDI’s business appears to be a top-down business. But it’s really bottom-up if you think about it. TDN: What is the biggest upside to the corporation and what are the biggest challenges it faces? AR: The biggest advantage right now is we have an incredible and exceptional management team that has been with the company for a number of years and understands racing as a core activity. And the Kentucky Derby is obviously an iconic asset that is very unique to a public corporation. We have diversified the business over the last 15 years through great acquisitions and great sales of businesses, and now we’ve kind of come back to the core. The challengers are those that face any public corporation. As a public company, we need to continue to grow and find new ways to be efficient while striving to have an entertainment product that is second to none. So that’s the day-to-day challenge in our business–maintaining a great culture and a momentum of growth, not only in financial results, but in the results of how our patrons and all our constituencies perceive us. TDN: To many people in the sport, there are things they believe to be sacrosanct about the Derby that should never change. But in order to avoid being left behind in any endeavor there has to be change. Can you give examples of both that are important? AR: We’ve recently made changes with the qualifying points system and the European and Japanese invites to try to bring the international eye on the Derby and to also try to capture some of the wagering opportunities in those markets. So those could be viewed by traditionalists as maybe a little “out there.” But I think more to your point, you have to change the event in the context of 2018 and beyond, because you can’t keep running the event like it was when it began. Matt Winn [who ran Churchill Downs from 1902 to 1949] was an innovator in his time, and we want to be innovators in our time. Our management team thinks about that all the time, that “push and pull” with what do we change at the margins so the event continues to be relevant and exciting. TDN: One shift that doesn’t seem too far off is a prime-time Derby under the lights. Will it be a reality any time soon? AR: I don’t think that is a front-of-mind issue right now. I think night racing on its own has been a great thing for our meets, and also for the Breeders’ Cup. But for the Derby today, I would say that’s not on the docket to consider. TDN: Since 2000 CDI has put north of $125 million into its flagship plant, and the $60 million historical racing facility Derby City Gaming is set to open later this year. Please detail the short- and long-term visions for the Louisville properties. AR: We just purchased a lot of property on the perimeter of the racetrack and expanded the footprint immensely all the way around, which should allow us to change the experience from a parking perspective and coming in and going out on big days. It’s going to be more fan-friendly. We’ve expanded the property adjacent to the backstretch, which is going to give us all sorts of options, although we don’t yet have any explicit plans. And then Derby City Gaming is on the old Sports Spectrum property, which before that was the old Louisville Downs harness track, about three miles away. We think that’s going to be an incredibly productive facility. The purse allocations that it will generate for Churchill Downs will allow us to close the gap [compared to other gaming-enhanced tracks]. We need more quality racing, and good purses draw quality, as you know. TDN: How about other Thoroughbred holdings? As CDI has expanded its portfolio, it’s been accused of acquiring racetracks merely to gain footholds in the gaming industry, then the racing aspects are treated like a necessary evil. Are these valid criticisms? AR: There obviously have been times when that criticism has been louder than others. But I think that today, my sense is–and I’m a pretty accessible person who likes to talk to people at all levels of the business–that the perception of Churchill Downs in the Thoroughbred industry today is as good as it’s been in a number of years, and I credit the management team for creating a culture that drives that. There has been an emphasis on making certain that we are out in the industry on a full-time basis dealing with perceptions and what the concerns are, and I think that we are better positioned as a company for those efforts. TDN: But what about the situation at a place like Calder Race Course? There are plenty of angry Florida horsemen who feel like they worked in unison with CDI to gain casino rights, then CDI leased the racing to a competitor while demolishing the grandstand and stables. What would be your message to them? AR: That was a tough situation. We had two racetracks in close proximity to each other. When Gulfstream decided to run basically year round, eventually the racing product in Florida was going to be damaged significantly [if Gulfstream and Calder raced head to head], and I think any horseman would agree to that. The solution was really to decide where racing should be conducted or consolidated, and that decision got made after a long period of negotiations. The Calder casino still makes purse supplements to racing, so that has not changed. But if both racetracks [had opted to] run at the same time, it becomes a really tough business model for both. TDN: Please give a status update for CDI’s other Thoroughbred tracks. AR: Arlington Park is a wonderful facility. But racing in Illinois is under some pressure right now. The real regulatory potential is gaming at horse tracks. Unfortunately we have not been able to accomplish any help in that respect from the state of Illinois. But Arlington is performing very well under some tough conditions. There’s always the hope that we can get the regulatory situation straightened out to become competitive with all the venues that now have casino gaming. At the Fair Grounds, we feel it’s one of the top East Coast places for the winter horse population to go. We had a good meet there. We’re doing some work on the turf course now. Obviously, the ability to have casino gaming there has helped that operation. The Fair Grounds is doing fine, and I think we’ve seen some resurgence in interest from a horsemen’s perspective. Presque Isle Downs in Pennsylvania will be a good addition to our racetrack lineup, and obviously it has the gaming aspect as well. I can’t give you a lot of information right now until we close on the pending sale [likely in the fourth quarter of 2018]. TDN: Should CDI be considered in acquisition mode for other tracks right now? AR: I would say that with the management team that we have, and the way that they view the world, we’re always going to have in our DNA the ability and desire to look at opportunities. It is part of our growth model, and organic growth in our business is very difficult. So I would continue to think it’s something we would be active in. TDN: You’re a member of The Jockey Club, which is one of principal driving forces behind the proposed Horseracing Integrity Act that’s been kicking around the federal legislature for three years now. A number of major racetracks have indicated their support for independent drug testing and oversight, but CDI is conspicuous in its absence from supporting H.R. 2651. Where do you personally stand on this issue? AR: I’ve got an individual hat and a Churchill Downs hat, and they’re aligned. We are continuing to work with all our constituents in the industry on this subject. We’ve made some headway in identifying kind of a list of best practices. And I think that we have been in communication and want to be in continued communication with The Jockey Club on this particular effort. But Churchill Downs is a racetrack. Fair Grounds is a racetrack. Arlington is a racetrack. And we don’t feel like it’s our role to set policy. Our role is to listen to our constituencies, and try to help with gaining consensus on this issue. There’s no question on anybody’s mind at Churchill Downs, or in my mind as a breeder and owner, that integrity and medication uniformity is a good idea. It’s just getting to the ‘How,’ and that’s where we are. TDN: You get the last word to bring up any topic you’d like to close out the interview. AR: I just want to get back to the question you had about the perception of Churchill Downs within the industry. I think that we as a company understand that we are lucky and honored to have the Kentucky Derby as an asset of the corporation. And this asset is a unique and awesome responsibility, [and we have to] continue to do the right thing by it. And I think that some people have been worried that we are too focused on [the Derby] and not on the industry as a whole. We know that the Derby does not happen in a vacuum. There are prep races, there are 2-year-old races, there are breeders that supply the horses. A lot of things have to happen to get 20 horses in the starting gate at Churchill Downs on the first Saturday in May. So hopefully, our efforts with being more accessible to the industry and being willing to listen are going to be positives. And I think that’s a huge shift in intentionality for our company, because we do not want that perception [of being a corporate behemoth], and we feel we do not deserve that. What the board wants and what management wants is for us to be more accessible and to be a listener and to understand the problems and not be isolationists. But–we’re not always going to do everything everybody wants all of the time. We’re probably going to make decisions that people perceive negatively by virtue of us being a public company. But we do think now, in depth, about how these decisions are going to affect the industry as a whole, not just whether they’re going to be good for Churchill Downs. It’s a two-sided coin for us. One of the things that we feel very strongly about is this whole idea of having a core open-door policy about how we deal with pretty much the entire Thoroughbred industry. The gaming industry is not coming to us and asking for that. But [horse industry people] do, and they deserve to have somebody to talk to, and they deserve to get their questions answered. And I think it’s a big deal. I really do. 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. Wednesday’s Insights features a half-sister to G1SP Ertijaal (Ire) (Oasis Dream {GB}). 3.00 Catterick, Cond, £7,900, 3yo/up, f/m, 7f 6yT Sheikh Hamdan bin Rashid Al Maktoum’s homebred TALAAQY (IRE) (Dansili {GB}) is a daughter of Listed Atalanta S. victress Shabiba (Seeking The Gold) and thus a half-sister to MGSW dual G1 Al Quoz Sprint placegetter Ertijaal (Ire) (Oasis Dream {GB}) and Listed Rockingham S. runner-up Odooj (Ire) (Pivotal {GB}). Returning off a six-furlong debut score for William Haggas at Yarmouth last October, she faces one dozen rivals including Clipper Logistics’ hitherto unraced Angels (Dark Angel {Ire}), who is a half-sister to MGSP four-time stakes winner Magic Eye (Ire) (Nayef), representing the Tim Easterby yard. View the full article

The Racing Appeals and Disciplinary Board will hear the charges against Robert Smerdon, with the former trainer having failed in his bid to challenge the hearing’s jurisdiction. Smerdon, who faces 115 charges related to bicarb doping as part of the Aquanita Racing scandal, turned in his training license in March and announced he would not attend the Aquanita hearing, but Racing Victoria judge John Bowman deemed that because Smerdon was licensed at the time of the consequences, he would be tried as an industry participant. View the full article

Hip 95, a filly by red hot sire Quality Road, sparked a lively round of bidding at OBS April, selling for $800,000 to owner Frank Fletcher, who was seated alongside bloodstock agent Donato Lanni. Breezing in :22 flat for consignor Eddie Woods, the bay RNA’d for $190,000 at Keeneland September. Bred by John Gunther, Eurowest Bloodstock & Celebre Investments, Hip 95 is out of Betty Brite (Medaglia d’Oro). She hails from the family of Horse of the Year and top sire Tiznow and MGSW Betty’s Bambino. View the full article

Jockey Irad Ortiz, Jr. and trainer Chad Brown wrapped up the Aqueduct season with respective three-win days April 22 to secure top honors for the spring meet at the Big A. Seth Klarman's Klaravich Stable emerged as leading owner for the 13-day meet. View the full article

"Return" is the theme of JACK Thistledown's 2018 race meet that opens Monday, April 30, as Thoroughbreds and horsemen come back for live racing and a celebrated racing series makes a stop in Cleveland. View the full article

Last year’s G2 Royal Lodge S. winner Roaring Lion (Kitten’s Joy), third as the favourite in last week’s G3 Craven S., looks likely to bypass the May 5 G1 2000 Guineas, with trainer John Gosden telling At The Races, “The way he trains, it looks like the Dante/Prix du Jockey Club will be a smart move for him.” The G2 Dante S. will be staged at York on May 17, and the G1 Prix du Jockey Club is at Chantilly on June 3. Owned by Qatar Racing, Roaring Lion was also beaten a neck by Saxon Warrior (Jpn) (Deep Impact {Jpn}) in last year’s G1 Racing Post Trophy. View the full article

The American Horse Council (AHC)’s Economic Impact Study published earlier this month found that New York State’s equine industry has grown by $1.1 billion and added nearly 10,000 new jobs since the New York Horse Racing and Agriculture Industry Alliance conducted a parallel study in 2012, it was announced Tuesday. With over 154,000 horses stabled in New York–39,000 of which are Thoroughbreds–the state’s equine industry is the second largest agribusiness in the state, generating $5.3 billion in economic impact, a 26% increase over the last five years and a 121% growth rate since a study was conducted in 2005. The study found that Thoroughbreds account for the largest segment of the state’s horse population. “We are a labor-intensive industry,” said Joe Appelbaum, president of the New York Thoroughbred Horsemen’s Association, which represents more than 4,000 Thoroughbred owners and trainers. “That is particularly true of the racing industry, which boasts 80 jobs for every 100 racehorses. Horses are an invaluable asset for New York, and a thriving equine industry is vital to the state’s economy.” The racing sector of the equine industry accounted for a total economic impact of $3.08 billion on the New York economy while supporting 19,704 jobs. The numbers take into account direct expenditures, such as breeding, maintenance, training, transportation and veterinary work, as well as indirect/induced economic expenditures, such as wagering infrastructure, broadcasting, concessions and track maintenance. The study found that New York’s racetracks offered purses of $289 million and generated $3.4 billion in handle annually. “Once a confidence level was reached by Thoroughbred breeders and owners regarding our purses and incentive awards, our state-bred program positioned itself ahead of the rest of the national landscape,” said Jeffrey Cannizzo, Executive Director of the New York Thoroughbred Breeders. “New York-breds are in demand in the marketplace, farms have reopened across the state and people are investing again in New York. This renaissance is creating hundreds of jobs and injecting needed revenue into communities across our state of New York.” The AHC study also examined the size of the state’s foal crop, finding that the 1,705 Thoroughbred foals on the ground in 2017 represented a 4.7% increase from 2016 and a 40% increase since 2011. “The AHC Economic Impact Study clearly demonstrates that the investment made in Thoroughbred racing and breeding through our share of VLT revenue has borne fruit,” said Appelbaum. “We thank Governor Andrew Cuomo, Senator John Bonacic, Assemblyman Gary Pretlow and all of our representatives for their support, which has helped to make our industry strong.” The complete break-out report from the AHC Equine Industry Economic Impact Study can be found here. View the full article

Fresh off Monday’s news that Trapeze Artist (Aus) (Snitzel {Aus}) will remain in training as a 4-year-old, the triple-Group 1 winner has been snapped up by Aquis Farm for its Everest slot this October. Second choice in the wagering behind last year’s inaugural winner Redzel (Aus) (Snitzel {Aus}) in the A$13-million 1200-metre race, the Gerald Ryan trainee just landed the G1 All Aged S. on Saturday. “I’m delighted to get a slot in The Everest with Aquis,” owner/breed Bert Vieira told The Sydney Morning Herald. “I want to race him and show him off to the world and to get a spot in The Everest is the first part of that dream. Knowing Shane McGrath, the Aquis CEO, from his Coolmore days made the negotiations very easy and smooth and to be sharing this experience with Aquis will only make it better.” View the full article