Wandering Eyes

After securing runner-up honors in the past two editions of the Phoenix Stakes (G2), Nakatomi will try to land top honors when he starts in the six-furlong sprint Oct. 3 at Keeneland.View the full article

After his father, Carlo, has continued his strong opposition to decoupling, Gulfstream Park informed first-year trainer Nick Vaccarezza that they will not accept his entries.View the full article

BBN Racing's Bracket Buster landed his first graded stakes victory in the Oklahoma Derby (G3) Sept. 28 at Remington Park. His trainer Vicki Oliver became the first female trainer to win the race. View the full article

On the Sept. 29 episode of BloodHorse Monday, Kenny McPeek discusses Mystik Dan's Lukas Classic (G2) win and Thorpedo Anna's upcoming start in the Spinster Stakes (G1) at Keeneland Oct. 5. Bob Ehalt recaps weekend racing in New York.View the full article

Bill Knauf is the president and general manager of the non-profit Maryland Jockey Club Inc., (MJC), which took over the management of Laurel Park and Pimlico Race Course this year. It's a time of tremendous transition in that state, with Pimlico currently being demolished and rebuilt with the goal of all commercial-track Thoroughbred racing in Maryland moving to the new Baltimore venue by 2027. Laurel will then close for racing and training, and a new training facility at Shamrock Farm in Carroll County will be built. Knauf updated TDN on those longer-term projects and on the current state of racing at Laurel. A transcript of the conversation follows, edited for brevity. TDN: Let's start, please, with an overview of the Pimlico project. BK: Pimlico is currently under demolition and has been for some time now. They're getting down to the final pieces of the building that remain, about a quarter of the building. All of the barn area is demolished, frontside and backside barns. Once they finish that they'll be moving on to cleaning up the site. The next phase that has already been approved by the Maryland Board of Public Works is the infrastructure and laying that throughout the facility. We've got the track all covered up and [its material] stored on the infield. It's exciting to see some progress, keeping it moving. Construction will keep going all through the winter. TDN: Is the goal for the grand opening still the 2027 GI Preakness Stakes? BK: That is the objective, yes. TDN: And at that point, all racing will shift to Pimlico, or do you envision a phased-in transition period? BK: For timelines, I don't think we have that set yet. If for some reason Pimlico is not completely ready, we'll utilize temporary structures [for the Preakness] just like the Preakness has always done in the infield, and then we would just come back to Laurel [to race] until the building is ready to be moved into. TDN: How about a progress report for the Shamrock Farm training center, which will be 20 miles from Pimlico and is projected to have 800 stalls? BK: Shamrock was officially purchased by the state about a week or so ago. The plans for that are still ongoing. The Maryland Stadium Authority [MSA] is in charge of those projects, and we're working with them and the horsemen's group on the layout of that still. The architects are working on a lot of the infrastructure right now. TDN: Shamrock Farm was the name of the property when it was founded by the Rooney family in 1948. Will the MJC be keeping that name or rebranding it? BK: The name Shamrock will stay. TDN: Are you envisioning any sort of construction delays related to the recently doubled tariffs on imported steel and aluminum? Even in projects where those materials are sourced domestically, the increased demand is forcing United States producers to raise prices, and general slowdowns and problems with in supply chains are routinely being reported throughout the construction sector. BK: I haven't heard of any, but I'm probably the wrong person to ask. The MSA is certainly better equipped to answer those types of questions. From my standpoint, we're here to support them on the horse racing infrastructure and programming questions. TDN: When you were an executive at Monmouth Park, you were instrumental in pulling off the 2007 Breeders' Cup there when the track was a first-time host of the event. Maryland has also never hosted a Breeders' Cup. Do you envision that the new Pimlico might be a candidate for hosting the championships? BK: I think it's very early for those types of conversations. However, I think it's hard not to think that we would be a good candidate for it. Going through that experience at Monmouth, I learned an incredible amount and got a flavor and taste of the event and for running it. I think Pimlico, with all the history that it's had, and certainly a great [sports and hospitality] city in Baltimore to host it, I actually think it would be a wonderful site for the Breeders' Cup in the future. I'm not sure when the right timing would be, but we would love it. TDN: In the meantime, you must be well into the planning stages for the 2026 Preakness to be held at Laurel. What can fans and horsemen expect? BK: The Preakness at Laurel will be run, as it was at Pimlico in 2025, with [former owner and operator] The Stronach Group running the event. We will assist them in operating it in all facets of the facility, so yes, we've had plenty of internal meetings to talk about it. Obviously, it's a new venue [for the Preakness], but for people who have not been to Laurel, it's a beautiful facility. It's a gorgeous, large racetrack, so I think there are going to be some really nice advantages for the Preakness to come here. We'll be taking advantage of the extra-wide turf course for undercard races and in the days leading up to it. But obviously, it is going to take a lot more planning, and there will certainly be some changes as it relates to gearing up for an event of that magnitude and size. TDN: On that topic, we have to ask the obligatory “Triple Crown race spacing” question, especially considering that Sovereignty (Into Mischief) won the GI Kentucky Derby and the GI Belmont Stakes this season without contesting the Preakness, and only three horses that ran in the Derby also ran in the Preakness. Any movement or thoughts on rearranging the races so there are more than two weeks between the Derby and the Preakness and/or three weeks between the Preakness and the Belmont? BK: We're still at the beginning stages of our media rights deal, and our board will be looking at everything. I think we enter these types of conversations with an open mind, but also certainly acknowledging the history of the Triple Crown. The short answer is we don't have any answer yet. TDN: The situation of Triple Crown race spacing often gets framed like this: Churchill Downs has no reason to move off the first Saturday in May. The various entities who have controlled Maryland racing over the past few decades seem willing to talk about changing the Preakness date because the second jewel is clearly the most adversely affected race of the three. The New York Racing Association is often portrayed as not being willing to budge off moving the Belmont from its early June date. Is that a fair characterization of what's going on? BK: Well, I haven't spoken to either [of the other host tracks] on it, really. So I wouldn't want to put words in anybody's mouth, because I'm not really sure what everybody's thinking. I think what we're focusing on right now is obviously the media rights portion of the Preakness. That's a long process, and we want to make sure we do it right. Obviously the date [of the Preakness] is a major factor in that, but we want to do it so it's a strong fit for the new MJC and everything we want to showcase. I think we're going to approach it first from our own viewpoint, and then once we have an idea where we would want to go, we'll talk to those [other tracks]. TDN: As the Laurel meet gets into the second month of its fall season, please give us a “state of the union” overview. BK: We started off the year at a slow gallop [laughs]. With the new organization taking over, there was a big transition in terms of putting messaging out there in terms of Laurel Park being back up and running after a little bit of a break from December to January. And we had some rough weather, some snow dates, which is very uncommon here. We had some really nice momentum around April and May. The Stronach Group had a really great Preakness, and then we had a really good June. Middle of the year we started to find a little bit of a groove. At that point we had some different marketing and media, some different personnel that we brought in, putting out messaging not only for on-site events but also for the gambling fan base around the country. July and August were interesting, because that was the first time [Maryland racing took an extended summer break]. That decision was made prior to me getting here, something that the horsemen and the [now defunct] Maryland Thoroughbred Racetrack Operating Authority made when they were here. But I thought it was a very good decision, getting a break while working with Colonial and Delaware, and paying some out-of-state bonuses so [Maryland] horsemen had opportunities to earn money. They ran pretty heavily at those two venues, and now we're circling back to Laurel. September is such a beautiful weather month, and our turf course is in great condition. That's where Laurel's bread-and butter is, this extra-wide turf course. I start to get excited when we see big fields and competitive racing. We're still trying to get the word out more around the country of what Maryland racing can put on. There's a lot of competition out there, which I recognize. But I think when bettors start playing our product, they're going to find that it's a good and consistent one. TDN: Right now Maryland is at a 120-date annual schedule. Will that be the norm for the foreseeable future? BK: We're taking it one year at a time. I think this is a learning curve for us and the horsemen, and we're certainly in this together, to sort of find that right balance. I would foresee us probably doing something similar for next year, and then as it evolves, we're going to learn what works each year and what doesn't. By the time we get to Pimlico, Pimlico will be prepared to do a similar schedule. But I couldn't comment yet. The idea is to have as much year-round racing as possible here, but we'll see how it goes. We're all going to keep learning. TDN: The Oct. 11 Maryland Million is the next major event on Laurel's calendar. This will be the 40th edition of that state-centric stakes festival, and Maryland was the first state breeding program to conduct and promote such an event at that scale. What sets Maryland apart? BK: I'm personally excited to see all of the energy and planning that goes into the day. When we get to Pimlico and can host a lot larger crowds, I feel like this is one of those events that should be a 10,000- to 20,000-attendance day that can really grow and grow. You get a lot of support from the breeders, obviously, but the state's entire horse community has always really targeted this event and turned out for it. We need to continue to work on ways to make sure that other breeders and horsemen around the country, who may not have thought of coming here to bring a broodmare or a stallion, know that you've got $500 million in facilities going in here, you've got a new non-profit [operator] that is geared toward the horsemen, and that Maryland is in a really good place racing-wise right now and moving forward. The post Q and A with Maryland Jockey Club’s Bill Knauf appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

KILDARE, IRELAND – John Stewart made a welcome first visit to the Goffs Orby Sale on Monday and, despite taking a little time to acclimatise to the European style of bidding – with auctioneer Nick Nugent partly to blame – the Resolute Racing man spent €1,555,000 on four lots, headed by the sale-topping Blue Point colt at €675,000. Stewart rolled his sleeves up pretty early in the session. Sitting directly in front of Nugent in the seats below the rostrum, he spent €230,000 on the McCracken Farms-consigned Ghaiyyath filly [lot 10]. However, when the bidding was stalled at €205,000, Stewart tried to bid €20,000, with Nugent assuming the American-based buyer was trying to lob in a cheeky bid of €2,000. After a quick back forward between the pair, Nugent jokingly told Stewart to keep his hand in the air until he was willing to stop, to which the major owner duly obliged, eventually landing the half-sister to Best Solution (Kodiac) and El Bodegon (Kodiac) for just €5,000 more than he tried to bid initially. Stewart had come on for the run by the time Tom Whelan's [Church View Stables] Blue Point half-brother to Bay City Roller (New Bay) was sent through the ring. Bred by John Connaughton, winner of this year's small breeder of the year category at the ITBA Awards, the Blue Point colt sold for €675,000. Stewart commented, “Really good pedigree. We are really high on Blue Point – he rates really good on our system. [He is] one of the top colts that we had for today and we're really excited to get him. I felt like we got a good price on him as well so we are happy about that. It's a proven family and the dam is just going to improve. He will probably end up with Francis Graffard, who trains most of our horses here in Europe. This is my first time here at Goffs. It's good fun.” While Connaughton was not in attendance at Goffs, Whelan reported the 93-year-old to be delighted with the price the colt fetched, before describing himself to be in awe of the strength of the market in recent weeks. Whelan said, “I spoke with John on the phone. Unfortunately he couldn't make it today but he is delighted. We've had a great run, thank God. This is a fine horse. It's unbelievable, really.” Whelan went on to single Goffs out for praise, going as far as saying he believed his horses made the most they could conceivably make at Kildare Paddocks. “It's been easy for me,” he said. “I've only had two horses through the ring so far – one made €260,000 and the other made €675,000. Three horses of our own made over €100,000 at Fairyhouse as well. In fairness, we've had good stock but it's been an amazing couple of weeks. I can't complain.” He added, “I have been standing outside doors at sales for 45 years now and I can never remember the volume of people turning up to a sale as we had at Fairyhouse last week. We might not have the same volume here at Goffs but the majority of the big boys are here. If you have the horse, I don't see why you would need to sell it in Newmarket. It all boils down to bringing the right stock. Look at the two we've just sold. There would want to be some interest for them to sell for more abroad than they sold for here today. I just feel, if the horses are here, Goffs will get the people here to buy them. It's as simple as that. If you have a really nice horse, you will sell it the same here as anywhere else.” Resolute Racing went on to buy a Frankel colt from the Castlebridge Consignment for €550,000 and a €100,000 Camelot filly from Baroda Stud. The Blue Point sale-topper headlined a rock-solid opening session to the Orby Sale with 199 of the 227 horses offered selling at a clearance rate of 88%. The €26,218,500 turnover was up by 3% on last year while the €131,752 climbed 10% and the median climbed 25% to €100,000. Redvers's New Partnership Swoops For Daughter Of Irish Guineas Winner Hermosa Purchasing on behalf of a new unnamed partnership, David Redvers went to €625,000 to secure a Wootton Bassett filly out of Irish 1,000 Guineas winner Hermosa (Galileo) that was consigned by Baroda Stud. The Wootton Bassett filly is likely to be trained in France, according to Redvers, who purchased the filly whilst standing alongside Henri Bozo of Ecurie des Monceaux. Redvers said, “She has been purchased on behalf of a new partnership that includes Henri Bozo. We have found it increasingly difficult to buy broodmares. We put a partnership together to see if we could find some proper broodmares with a view towards having them with the upside of racing. What hasn't been said about the stallion and this family?” Redvers added, “She's babyish and will improve with time. She will come back to Tweenhills to get broken in and will go across the Channel where Henri can look after things from there.” €550k Sea The Stars Colt To Victorious Forever Billy Jackson-Stops has settled into his new role buying on behalf of Victorious Racing, which has now been rebranded as Victorious Forever to incorporate the amalgamation of KHK Racing's interests. The new buying team came up trumps at €550,000 for the Glenvale Stud-consigned Sea The Stars colt, who, according to Jackson-Stops, will join trainer George Scott. The bloodstock agent said, “He has been bought for Victorious Forever and he will go to George Scott. His Highness [Shaikh Nasser] was really keen on him and obviously it is a pedigree that everyone knows well. When we put the horse up to him this morning, he told us to push hard for him. We only have a very small number of horses on the list and that was one who really struck a chord with him. So, George will train the horse and he has already had a bit of success with Sea The Stars this year. Victorious Forever is a pretty exciting partnership so hopefully we have some nice horses to run next year.” Subplots Newtown Anner Stud swooped to land a sister to dual Group 1 winner Saffron Beach from Ballylinch Stud for €500,000. It was PJ Colville who signed the docket on behalf of Maurice Regan's operation. He commented, “We thought she was a bit of a collector's item. We will race her and hopefully breed her in time. Maurice [Regan] came in this morning to see her and he thought she was a very nice filly. A great outlook and a great step to her so we were keen to try and have her. She'll come back to mine to be broken and then we'll manage her from there. Whatever trainer Maurice is happy with on the day will get her!” Al Shira'aa Racing's Kieran Lalor showered Mehmas with praise after landing a filly by Tally-Ho Stud's superstar stallion who is bred in the purple. Out of Group 1 performer Beach Bunny, the Mehmas filly, who was bred by the late Lady O'Reilly, was knocked down for €400,000. Lalor said, “We've been very lucky at Goffs – we bought Jannah Rose and Ocean Jewel here. We've been very lucky with Lady O'Reilly's horses in particular and have bought some that she had in partnership with Henri Bozo.”This is a gorgeous filly by a fantastic sire – we have been trying to find one [by Mehmas] and this one has a fantastic pedigree. She is a lovely individual and the boss loved her so delighted to have her on board.” Speaking about plans for the future, Lalor added, “She will go to the farm, along with all of the horses we bought in France, and they will get a few months on the farm before going to Ian McCarthy of Grangecoor Farm for breaking in. She will probably stay in Ireland. Willie [McCreery] and Joseph [O'Brien] train for us in Ireland so I could see her staying here. She looks pretty precocious and the sire looks like he is going to keep on sky-rocketing. Eventually, I can see him coming up with Classic winners.” Kia Joorabchian's Amo Racing contributed to the bustling trade by spending €1,585,000 on four yearlings, headed by a €525,000 Frankel colt that was bred by Kirsten Rausing's Staffordstown Stud. Out of Madame Chiang, who David Simcock trained to win the G1 Champion Fillies & Mares Stakes at Ascot, the Frankel colt was described by bloodstock agent Alex Elliott as a long-term prospect for Amo Racing. He said, “David Simcock was there and he trained the whole family. He was a big supporter of the horse. The mare has been very good to him and, listen, when you convert it back to Sterling, it could look good value heading into next week. He will take plenty of time. He's a three-year-old type that could end up being a very good stayer. He's the type of horse who could take us to some very good races down the line.” Amo's spend was completed by a €400,000 Invincible Spirit filly and a €390,000 Sea The Stars filly from Airlie Stud along with a €160,000 Minzaal colt from Tally-Ho Stud. The strength of Bond Thoroughbreds, who struck gold at the Curragh on Sunday when the Paddy Twomey-trained Black Caviar Gold (Havana Grey) landed the G3 Weld Park Stakes, has been one of the major talking points throughout the sale season. Bidding through bloodstock agent Jason Kelly, Bond Thoroughbreds spent €1.32 million on four yearlings, headed by a €440,000 Frankel filly from Tally-Ho Stud and a €420,000 Wootton Bassett colt from Castlehyde Stud. Both horses will be trained by Christopher Head in France. Meanwhile, the Mehmas colt picked up from Church View Stables for €260,000 and the €200,000 Havana Grey colt from Pier House Stud will be trained by Twomey. Bond Thoroughbreds were represented by Phenomenal Filly in Saturday's Goffs Million. Not only did that filly scoop €35,000 for finishing fifth behind Coolmore and Aidan O'Brien's Dorset in the showpiece race, but she also picked up a €50,000 bonus for winning her maiden at Leopardstown back in July. Naturally, Charlie Bond described himself as a big fan of the Goffs Million series. He said, “It helps when we have won two of the [bonus] races. Paddy has won two of them, so that's €70,000 each time, which is a massive incentive. It's unbelievable how well we get treated by Goffs when we come here.” The sole Torquator Tasso yearling in the sale, a filly consigned by Kildaragh Stud, was well-received by the market with trainer Andy Slattery out-bidding BBA Ireland's Patrick Cooper at €140,000. That follows on from the very positive BBAG Yearling Sale the stallion enjoyed in his native Germany. Buy of the day State Of Rest appears to have been well-received by the market in recent weeks and lot 209, a filly by the multiple Group 1 winner, looked a bit of value at €55,000. Bought by Highflyer's Anthony Bromley and Joseph O'Brien, the State Of Rest filly is from a good family and boasted plenty of quality. In this market, she looks well-bought. Golden touch Take a bow Luke Bleahen. As if turning $3,000 into €90,000 with a colt by a stallion [Highly Motivated] hardly anyone at Tattersalls Ireland had heard of last week wasn't enough, the shrewd young pinhooker repeated the trick here on Monday when his €22,000 City Light colt rocked into €115,000 to Rabbah Bloodstock. “I'm pure delighted,” Bleahen said. “I'm so grateful to Mr Ryan and Mr Abdullah, to Mr Woods who underbid him, and to everyone else who bid – Tom Taaffe and a contingent from America, Edgar Byrne and his Scandinavian clients, Dermot Farrington with Ralph Beckett, and Anthony Bromley. “It was a great feeling, selling a horse with so many shrewd judges on him like that. Usually you're standing there waiting for the next bid, but they came thick and fast this time.I think the French premiums were a big draw, and he was the only lot by City Light in the sale. I have a Hello Youmzain colt tomorrow who's also the only lot by his sire here. Maybe being a little bit different helps sometimes.” He added, “Most of the credit goes to Wesley Hayes, who's at home with me and Dad every day of the week, and puts in hours of work. I've also got Calum Harte here doing his first sale for me, and he hasn't missed a beat in every show. I'm very lucky to receive all the help that I get. “I'm also grateful to Goffs for attracting so many international clients. Just look at the list of people on the City Light colt. He had eight vets and was popular all the way through.” Thought for the day Sale days can be pressure-cooker environments for anyone trying to buy a horse. Sometimes, emotions can run high and rumour has it that two foreign visitors succumbed to their urges over the past couple of days. Word on the street is that the star-crossed lovers turned the lunging ring at Goffs into a makeshift covering shed on Sunday morning. Let's hope it didn't go to the panel! The post Resolute Racing Bags Sale-Topping Blue Point Colt On Goffs Orby Debut appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

Grade I winner Mo Forza (Uncle Mo–Inflamed, by Unusual Heat) was represented by his first winner when Mo Holland Drive won at Santa Anita last Sunday. The 9-year-old freshman sire stands at Rancho San Miguel in San Miguel, California. Mo Holland Drive is the first foal out of the multiple winner Awesome Drive (Summer Front). Bred by River Oak Farm LLC, the colt has earned $58,680 to date for the ownership group of Altamira Racing Stable, California Racing Partners, Ciaglia Racing LLC, Tom Kagele and Nathan McCauley. Through three seasons on the track, Mo Forza won eight of 15 starts–seven of those wins at the graded level–including the GI Hollywood Derby. He retired with earnings of $1,034,460. Mo Forza entered stud at Rancho San Miguel in 2022 with a bankroll of $1,034,460. He is California's leading stallion by number of mares bred in 2023 (102) and 2024 (90). Mo Forza's 2025 fee at Rancho San Miguel was $7,500. The post Freshman Sire Mo Forza Gets First Winner at Santa Anita appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

Oh, for a daughter to take the legacy forward! That was the late Marty Wygod's thought, year after year, when his dual Grade I winner Tranquility Lake (Rahy) persisted in stubbornly producing colts. True, her Storm Cats had served his program well: After Market and Courageous Cat both won Grade Is, while their brother Jalil made $9.7 million as a yearling. But then, finally, the mare delivered a filly–her very last foal, by Smart Strike. Emily Bushnell, his daughter, recalls ecstatically calling Wygod at 5 a.m. when the foetal test came through. They named her Meadowsweet, which flowered along Tranquility Lake on the family ranch in California, and she showed nice ability in a light career: won a couple, and ran a close fifth in the GI Del Mar Oaks. And then, as he began his final battle with illness last year, Wygod gifted Meadowsweet's Into Mischief colt to his daughter, along with longtime advisor Ric Waldman. Just days before Wygod lost that battle, when still in feisty and amusing form at the hospital, Resilience booked his GI Kentucky Derby gate by winning the GII Wood Memorial. The horse was very aptly named, and not just for the fortitude he imparted to grieving friends and family when briefly threatening to win at Churchill, ultimately fading into an honorable sixth. “It was really special,” Bushnell recalls. “It was going to be a hard time, no matter what, but I think the horse really helped us, changed how we all processed what we were going through. Grief is hard, but this was like being shown there was still a future to look forward to. My dad lived a long life, a great life, and here was a way of carrying that on.” And, in fact, Wygod had left with that same consolation. For he knew that he had a daughter worthy of the legacy. He had taught her well; taught her, in fact, resilience. Because with horses, as with life in general, success is a ladder scaled on rungs of disappointment. Sure enough, asked how she was raised, Bushnell shares a couple of instructive glimpses of the character that sustained not only an astounding business career but also a Thoroughbred program (operated alongside her mother Pam) that raised 124 stakes winners. The first goes back to when he was teaching her to ride. Wygod, remember, had always been a hands-on horseman, gaining his first experience as a 15-year-old walking hots at Belmont for Woody Stephens and Homer Pardue. “Whenever I would fall off, or the horse took off with me, it was always the same,” Bushnell recalls. “Yes, you should be as careful as you can, but it was all about getting straight back up and trying again. I think that was instilled into me from a very young age, to be determined, keep trying, work really hard. “And then, at the track, we did a lot of traveling together and of course, you always remember the big wins, and how exciting they were. But I'll also never forget when After Market was first or second choice at the [Monmouth] Breeders' Cup, and we had all that rain, and he didn't like soft turf. I was thinking, 'Oh, it's the Breeders' Cup, I can't believe we'll actually scratch.' But in his mind there was never a doubt. It was the right thing for the horse, and that was all you ever needed to think about. So I think that was also an incredibly important lesson, in how to approach those hard decisions that you're always going to face.” Already in girlhood Bushnell knew that she had inherited a passion. In New Jersey, there had been riding horses and racetrack lay-ups on the farm; and after moving to the opposite coast, father and daughter were constantly on the backside at Del Mar or Santa Anita, visiting the likes of Life Is Sweet and Sweet Catomine, both Breeders' Cup winners by Storm Cat out of the homebred Sweet Life (Kris S.). “They had the most incredible demeanor,” Bushnell recalls. “You could just go in and sit with them, they were such loves–but then such fierce competitors on the track. When you're lucky enough to have an emotional connection with horses like that, it's pretty powerful. Then, when I moved East, my dad would come out and I'd drive him out from the city to the track at 5 a.m. So horses were definitely the common ground between us, a special part of our relationship from an early age.” Wygod was always thinking ahead and, with Bushnell's brother Max also coming East for college, began to question the future of River Edge, the Californian farm where he had stood Pirate's Bounty and Benchmark. It was the latter, in fact, who had focused the River Edge manager, Russell Drake, on his half-sister Tranquility Lake as a yearling. Drake became a cherished mentor. “He was such a big influence in learning about horses and horsemanship,” Bushnell says gratefully. “How to take care of them, how to ask the right questions, make sure you have the right people looking after them. I believe he grew up in Arizona, and he was super old school. He had an incredible eye, and would really take his time with horses. Whenever he came to Kentucky, he would give everyone a hard time about how bad the grass looked, compared to California. But also just incredibly patient and kind. We'd spend a lot of time just squatting in front of horses, him pointing out what he's looking at and why. At the end of the day, I know we're all just making educated guesses, but this was really getting our hands on horses and seeing how each one is unique, and then doing the right thing for each one's plan.” As Bushnell grew up, her father began to measure the depth of her engagement. “I mean, he had impeccably high standards,” she says. “He'd expect everyone to think through every single angle–and the one thing you didn't think through will always be what he asks. But I think that's why he did so well, because he always was thinking of the next move. A mare would foal and next day he's asking what we're thinking, not even for that breeding season, but the following one. He was always a year ahead. And because he had started thinking about whether to keep the farm in California, and how involved I wanted to be, he started pulling me into the daily and weekly conversations.” When Wygod finally broke up River Edge, instead concentrating a band of quality broodmares at Lane's End, Bushnell bought a couple out of the Barretts dispersal and tested the water with her own little program. And, planner as he was, her father had long prepared her even for the poignant conversations that became inevitable in his final weeks. “I mean, for the previous 20 years he'd been like, 'If I go tomorrow, this is the plan with the horses; this is who you need to call; this is what I think.' And I'd be like, 'Okay, but you're fine and we're going to dinner tomorrow night: you need to relax!' Even after the Wood Memorial, in the hospital, he was saying, 'So you going to call the jockey's agent? You going to do this? Going to do that?' 'Yes, we've got it.' So I promise it was all very meticulously planned!” Sure enough, the dovetailed operation–now under the banner Tranquility Lake Farms LLC–could hardly have made a better start. At Saratoga last year, an Into Mischief colt out of Sweet Sting (Awesome Again) made $2.4 million, second highest price of the sale; and this time round a daughter of millionaire Paradise Woods (Union Rags) by Gun Runner was its top filly at $2.6 million. Naturally Bushnell isn't going to take all the credit for this culmination to decades of diligence. As just one example of a family developed by her father through five generations, Beauty Reigns (Tapit), third in the GI Test Stakes last month, boasts Sweet Life as third dam. “It's been wild,” Bushnell says of the way these dynasties have been received in the ring. “You feel so passionate, seeing your horses in the barn, about the bloodlines they represent. So just to have that confirmation-seeing them brought out and getting that sort of reaction-is incredible.” Not that she can afford to indulge sentiment unduly. Sweet Sting herself was moved on for no more than $385,000, carrying a sibling to her sales knockout, at Keeneland last November; along with her Not This Time filly for $250,000. “But I have her daughter by Empire Maker,” Bushnell explains. “That's kind of the goal, to make sure we're selling horses when, hopefully, they're peaking in value, or close to that, still with a lot of upside. I always wanted an Empire Maker broodmare, she's a great physical, and hopefully the family continues to produce great individuals and her value increases. “My dad always wanted to keep the best, to compete on the track. Only every now and then would he sell one. But I'm looking down the road and asking how can I make this sustainable for our family. So selling some of the best is going to be part of our business plan. We don't have big numbers, but we have great families that have been cultivated over generations, so being able to sell one or two a year makes a real difference to how we can operate.” Moreover the revenue freed her hand to add fresh blood to the program with a $1-million Tapit filly at the September Sale: a half-sister to GI Alabama Stakes winner Eskimo Kisses (To Honor and Serve), and granddaughter of none other than Winning Colors (Caro {Ire}). “My dad and I were underbidders on Eskimo Kisses,” Bushnell explains. “It's a family we'd gravitate towards, whenever we saw it in a catalogue, and we really loved her. Then last year at Tattersalls I saw Oujda (Fr) (Sioux Nation) [out of another granddaughter of Winning Colors] and loved her, too. She went past what we were willing to pay then [750,000gns], but when we came across this one at Keeneland, after the great sale in August, I was hopeful we might be able to bring her home-and was so excited when we did.” Bushnell is comfortable with the prospect of maintaining 15-20 mares, not just from an economic perspective but also to ensure that farm graduates can be properly tracked, and assisted if later reaching a difficult crossroads. She is also grateful, in this and many other ways, for the assistance of Kate Sheehan. They first met through horses when at adjacent colleges and, Drake having supported Sheehan early in her career, she became an ideal conduit for the transition from California to Kentucky. Ciaran Dunne, meanwhile, handles the education of the young stock in Florida. That yielded a bonus earlier this spring, when Dunne was looking to bring partners into an exciting filly Bushnell watched win on debut at Keeneland. Lennilu (Leinster) followed up in a Gulfstream stakes and then ran a close third of 23 at Royal Ascot. “That was so fun,” Bushnell says. “We don't usually have early 2-year-olds, and I'd never been before, but it was amazing. She's tough as nails and beat the boys at Gulfstream on Saturday so hopefully goes to the Breeders' Cup.” Perhaps that prospect will quicken the interest already being shown by Bushnell's children at just eight, seven and four. “My husband and I brought the kids up to Saratoga a lot this summer,” she says. “And my two oldest were getting up with me every morning at 5.30 and they're like, 'We want to go to the track!' 'You do? Okay!' So we'd all get on our bikes and ride over to Oklahoma. And they loved it, which I'm really excited about. “Obviously I really miss just being able to call my dad and talk about everything. But seeing so many things that we talked about come to fruition, it does make me feel really proud of what I'm continuing on.” The post Wygod Legacy in Tranquil Hands With Daughter Emily Bushnell appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

By Dave Di Somma, Harness News Desk When it comes to Mighty Looee’s highlights reel one race is streets ahead of any other. The Sweet Lou eight-year-old, owned by Robyn Hellaby and co-trained by partner Robert Dunn, has been retired from the race track after notching up 17 wins in a 104-start career from 2019 and is now being re-educated for his Life After Racing. And looking back there is a clear stand out. “It was that Country Cup championship at Addington,” says Hellaby, “what a race!” To relive it still gives the couple goosebumps. It was the $90,000 Hydroflow New Zealand Country Championship over 3200 metres at Addington on May 12, 2023. Off the equal back mark of 20 metres, Mighty Looee added to his handicap by breaking badly at the start. He settled a long and lonely last for driver Korbyn Newman. Against a high quality and capacity field they were still trailing the field with a lap to go before getting onto the three wide train. The then six-year-old continued to make headway before charging to the lead inside the final 200 to beat Wheels Of Fortune and Get Up N Dance by over a length. At 15/15 in the betting Mighty Looee paid $73 for the win. “It was the run of his life,” says Dunn, who trained Mighty Looee along with daughter-in-law Jenna Dunn. Hellaby wasn’t on course to see it – she was on family-minding duties in Auckland! “My son Andrew had had twin boys and there we were with these tiny two month old babies and we saw him (Mighty Looee) coming through and we couldn’t yell out cause the babies were asleep,” says Hellaby, “so we were going ‘Go Looee’ very quietly and then when he won we went ‘yeah!’ – it was ridiculous.” “We were so quiet but so excited,” says Hellaby. At the time commentator Matt Cross could scarcely believe what had happened. “Mighty Looee has won it – what a massive performance.” “It was so great for Korbyn,” says Hellaby, “he took a shine to Looee right from the start and did so much with him.” Mighty Looee also had four wins in Australia in 2021-22. “He used to over race and that was his only downfall really,” says Dunn, “he could pull don’t you worry – he’d get real keen!” “And that’s why we sent him to Menangle, we thought the mile racing would suit but he didn’t relax, he was on the nickel all the way.” He then came back to New Zealand. His last win was the 2024 Methven Cup and the decision was made to retire him after two seventh placings at Alexandra Park in August. For Hellaby Mighty Looee was her first foray into standardbred ownership. Dunn had bought him at the sales for $20,000 in 2018 and thought he’d had him sold, only for the deal to fall through A car ride later and Hellaby had been persuaded by Dunn to get involved, and she was Mighty Looee’s new owner. “I didn’t even know who Sweet Lou was,” she laughs. Right now Mighty Looee is being re-educated to saddle as part of HRNZ’s HERO (re-homing and re-educating) programme. “He’s with Jo Ferguson and will be with her for four to six weeks,” says Hellaby. “I’m shocked Jo has got him to trot so quickly,” says Dunn, “he just paced everywhere with me and he’s cantering as well. He takes ponies on the lead and he’s learning very quickly.” Wherever he gets re-homed Hellaby is keen to stay involved. “He’s very kind and intelligent – I just love that horse,” she says. View the full article

Forever Young will get his warmup for the Breeders' Cup Classic (G1) in the Nippon TV Hai Oct. 1 at Funabashi Racecourse in Japan.View the full article

In his first meet at Churchill Downs since returning from a broken ankle, jockey Tyler Gaffalione earned his 14th overall riding title at the Louisville, Ky., track.View the full article

Kentucky House Bill 8, passed during the 2024 General Assembly, has allocated $250,000 of annual funding to the Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance (TAA) from the Commonwealth of Kentucky, the TAA announced Monday. The funding will go directly to accredited aftercare facilities in Kentucky that play a critical role in ensuring the wellbeing of horses beyond their racing years. The TAA will award the funds to the accredited organizations and facilities where they can have the greatest impact. “We are grateful to the Kentucky legislature, the Governor and everyone involved in this process for recognizing the importance of aftercare and for providing this essential support,” said Walt Robertson, president, Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance. “This investment is a step that strengthens the foundation of aftercare in Kentucky, and we hope it serves as a model for other states to follow.” The post Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance Receives Funding from Commonwealth of Kentucky appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

The Fasig-Tipton Midlantic Fall Yearlings Sale, featuring a catalogue of 225, will be held in one session beginning at 11 a.m. Tuesday at the Maryland State Fairgrounds in Timonium. “This sale has been good to a lot of people and it is on their calendar as a sale that they are not going to miss,” said Fasig-Tipton Midlantic sales director Paget Bennett. “We had a person last year that was up at the sale and they brought the horse back in the May sale and they were very successful, so they were already asking during the May sale about the October sale. It's a feel good story when you have that much support.” The $165,000 top-priced lot at last year's Midlantic Fall sale, Project Maximus (City of Light), romped by seven lengths in his Aug. 20 debut at Parx, while, at $125,000, the sale's third-highest priced offering, Vekomasan (Vekoma), debuted with a wire-to-wire victory at Colonial Downs Sept. 10. The auction produced its latest stakes winner when Live Stream (Long River), a $2,000 purchase last fall, won the Fitz Dixon Jr Memorial Juvenile Stakes at Presque Isle Downs. The sale has also rewarded pinhookers. Scanlon Training and Sales purchased the auction's second-highest priced offering, going to $150,000 for a yearling by Nyquist, who resold for $1 million at this year's OBS March sale. “Some people are looking for the Kentucky sires and other people are looking for athletes to take to the races,” Bennett said. “We've had a win-win for both categories this year.” The Maryland State Fairgrounds is situated at the crossroads of several racing jurisdictions, making the sale attractive to buyers from multiple regional markets. Looking to capitalize on the auction's proximity to Pennsylvania, Crane Thoroughbred Services is bringing a group of five homebreds, led by colts by Independence Hall (hip 53) and Complexity (hip 105), to Timonium. “We prefer to sell them in Maryland so they are more likely to stay in the region and run in Pennsylvania, so we can collect breeders awards,” said Clovis Crane. “When we sell them in Kentucky, a lot of times those horses don't come back. If Fasig doesn't have [this sale], I'm going to build a sale somewhere. I think it's vital to the industry in Pennsylvania and Maryland, so you can sell these regional horses.” The success of the Crane Thoroughbred Services-bred Morning Matcha (Central Banker), who sold $18,000 at the 2020 Midlantic Fall sale, led the operation to reinvest in its Pennsylvania-based breeding program. “Morning Matcha has done so well for us,” Crane said. “She has made $1.1 million at this point. She has made us a huge amount of money in breeders awards, so it prompted us to buy more mares and have more babies.” The Midlantic Fall sale was shortened to one session last year when its catalogue fell from 412 yearlings in 2023 to 284 in 2024. There are 225 horses catalogued for this year's auction. “The whole Maryland foal crop has changed so much over the years, we don't have that many breeders left,” Bennett said of the decline in numbers. “It's sad really, but I hope the people who believe in [the Maryland program] and believe in their product, will be rewarded. Hopefully Maryland racing will get going again and they will be rewarded with good breeder awards.” With the demolition and rebuild of Pimlico Race Course underway, the state of racing in Maryland could also impact buyers, according to Bennett. “It's a little tough right now because of the whole Maryland racing being a little uncertain, folks aren't loading their barns full of horses,” she said. “I am hoping more people will jump in and get back in it, but there is a lot of uncertainty in Maryland. We are still in the tear down process, but once they see Pimlico being rebuilt, I think it will give people something to be hopeful for.” Pinhookers will also have more to consider when putting their short lists together this year. In July, Fasig-Tipton announced it was eliminating timed works at its Midlantic May 2-Year-Olds in Training Sale next spring. “I will be honest with you, everybody is kind of up in the air on what will happen,” Crane, who annually offers a 2-year-old consignment in Timonium, said. “Sure, it changes a little bit of what you can buy and what you should buy to resell, but the verdict is still out. This is what I do for a living and I don't know exactly what I should or shouldn't buy differently. I know a little cracker jack who can go really fast probably won't work as well as it has in years past, but at the end of the day, those horses win races. All I know is that if you buy a good, solid horse, everything will be all right. Find the right horse and the rest of it will work out.” Demand has been high at the previous yearling sales this year and buyers who were shut out at earlier sales may be shopping harder in Timonium this year. “From what I am hearing, a lot of the agents have a lot of people that they are buying for, so they need to make all the stops at the sales,” Bennett said. “There are people who reached out looking for help with hotels, names that don't normally frequent our sale.” Asked if he thought the strength of previous sales will help bolster results in Timonium Tuesday, Crane said, “Absolutely, that's going to have a trickle down effect. It will have a trickle down effect in the whole industry. I think it will effect the sales in Europe and everywhere. Horses are just valuable. There are not enough of them. There is still lots of racing and people need horses to get in the starting gate. That was another catalyst for us to be breeding more. I think this is the first time–in my lifetime at the very least–that owning a broodmare, as a whole, can have a positive outcome.” The post Fasig-Tipton Midlantic Fall Yearlings Sale Tuesday in Timonium appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

Aidan O'Brien looks set to saddle Los Angeles (Camelot) and Minnie Hauk (Frankel) in Sunday's G1 Qatar Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe at ParisLongchamp, with the latter expected to be supplemented later this week to join the current cast of 17 contenders for Europe's richest race. Minnie Hauk has enjoyed a faultless campaign so far and will make her first trip to France following three consecutive Group 1 wins in the Oaks at Epsom, Irish Oaks at the Curragh and Yorkshire Oaks at York. Coral make her the 4/1 joint-favourite alongside last year's Arc runner-up Aventure (Sea The Stars), with Croix Du Nord (Kitasan Black) next in the list at 8/1 to provide Japan with an elusive first success in the race. Speaking at the weekend, O'Brien said, “Everything has gone well with them since their last runs. Christophe [Soumillon] rode Minnie Hauk during the week and he was very happy.” Los Angeles was beaten less than three lengths when finishing third in last year's Arc and O'Brien is confident that the four-year-old is returning to his best as he seeks a first victory since winning May's G1 Tattersalls Gold Cup at the Curragh. “Los Angeles has made great improvement since his last run and, if the ground gets soft, it would bring him right into it – he's a big powerhouse,” O'Brien told Racing TV. “The Arc was his plan all year. It went a little bit wrong at Ascot and he had a hard race. We had to back away and because of that he was a little bit behind for his first run back at the Curragh. But we felt he came forward well from there to France the last day [when finishing fourth in Prix Foy]. We felt he was going to move on again, so hopefully this run will be better than his last run. His work has been very nice.” Other potential challengers from Ireland include Jessica Harrington's Hotazhell (Too Darn Hot) and John Murphy's White Birch (Ulysses), while the three remaining British-trained contenders following Monday's forfeit stage are Marco Botti's Giavellotto (Mastercraftsman), the David O'Meara-trained Estrange (Night Of Thunder) and Kalpana (Study Of Man) from Andrew Balding's yard. Croix Du Nord is one of three Japanese hopefuls, together with Alohi Alii (Duramente) and Byzantine Dream (Epiphaneia), while Christophe Ferland's Aventure is joined on the home team by significant runners for each of Andre Fabre and Francis-Henri Graffard. Fabre is set to saddle both Cualificar (Lope De Vega) and Sosie (Sea The Stars) as he seeks a record-extending ninth success in the Arc, while Daryz (Sea The Stars), Gezora (Almanzor) and Quisisana (Le Havre) make up the potential challenge from the Graffard stable. Finally, Jean-Claude Rouget is also set to be double-handed in 2025, having won two of the last five editions, with his Arrow Eagle (Gleneagles) and Leffard (Le Havre) completing the list of possible contenders. On Monday morning, France Galop reported a going stick reading of 7.2, which equates to good to soft ground, and there is little to no rain forecast for the rest of the week. The post Seventeen Arc Contenders Remain, with O’Brien Poised to Supplement Minnie Hauk appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

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What Tatura Races Where Tatura & Shepparton Racing Club – 161 Ross St #157, Tatura When Tuesday, September 30, 2025 First Race 1:30pm AEST Visit Dabble A competitive eight-race program is set down for decision at Tatura on Tuesday as horse racing in Victoria heads to the state’s north. With perfect spring conditions forecast, the Good 4 rating should stick true throughout the afternoon, with the rail in its true position ensuring an ideal day for racing. The Tatura races on September 30 will commence at 1:30pm AEST. Best Bet at Tatura: Factually Factually returned with a sharp second over 1000m at Echuca and can go one better second-up. He draws wide, but Neil Farley can stalk a strong speed and angle into the better lanes late in the home straight. With race fitness on the rise and a handy weight, Factually looks poised to blouse the leaders down the outside in the penultimate event. Best Bet Race 7 – #9 Factually (11) 6yo Gelding | T: Charles Cassar | J: Neil Farley (57.5kg) Next Best at Tatura: Poetic Storm Classy mare Pacific Storm will return for the Robbie Griffiths yard and looks well placed at the 1100m at Tatura. Drawn perfectly in barrier four for Brad Rawiller, the five-year-old mare looks poised to land in the top three and considering she owns strong F&M figures at this trip, she will take some holding out with an economical run in transit. If she presents in clear air, her turn of foot should prove decisive at this grade. Next Best Race 8 – #2 Poetic Storm (4) 5yo Mare | T: Robbie Griffiths | J: Brad Rawiller (63kg) Best Value at Tatura: Tosen Impact Tosen Impact is a hard-fit stayer who keeps running well and finds a very winnable BM56 at 1980m. From gate six, Mitchell Aitken should have him parked just off a modest tempo before building momentum from the 600m. His recent figures at 2000m-type trips rate on top for this, and a Good 4 suits his grinding pattern. He gets every chance to put them away late at an each-way price with horse racing bookmakers. Best Value Race 5 – #2 Tosen Impact (6) 6yo Gelding | T: Vincent Malady | J: Mitchell Aitken (61kg) Tuesday quaddie tips for Tatura Tatura quadrella selections Tuesday, September 30, 2024 2-3-4-5-6-7 1-2-3-5-7 7-9-14 1-2-9 Horse racing tips View the full article

By Mike Love Wavewatcher’s fourth win brought up milestone win number 50 or Oamaru trainer Eion Latimer at Phar Lap Raceway in Timaru yesterday. “It took me twelve months to get it! The voice was a bit sore,” said Latimer. The five-year-old Downbytheseaside gelding Wavewatcher and driver Olivia Thornley were able to secure the trail for the entire trip behind race favourite McKendrick before executing the passing lane to full effect, wearing down McKendrick to win by half a head at the line with a four-length margin back to Betterthanbabe in third. “We’ve struck some bad tracks lately. He just can’t go when it’s wet. We put a hood on him to wake him up a bit.” Wavewatcher has been a long-term project, being somewhat of a rogue in his earlier years. “Robbie Holmes broke him in and I got him back as a three-year-old. “He was a bit of a handful but he’s really matured a lot recently. He raced as a two-year-old then got hurt.” Raced by Eion and his daughter Jacqui, Wavewatcher has always shown a lot of ability and the win provided a very satisfactory moment for the Latimer family. “We hardly work him. We race on a weekend, take two days off and just jog the rest. “In one of his earlier starts for me we ran fourth behind We Walk By Faith at Oamaru and set a track record.” “We will go to Oamaru next on the 19th.” Latimer has held a trainer’s licence since 1985 with a few years away between 1995 and 2000, with usually a small team. His most memorable moment to date was with war horse Motu Speedy Star’s victories in the 2011 Waimate Cup and the 2012 Kurow Cup. “The Waimate Cup was especially good because he paid $100! He only paid $50 when we won the Kurow Cup,” laughed Latimer. Motu Speedy Star won 10 races under the guidance of Latimer. Latimer trains from his Oamaru base just next to the Oamaru Racecourse with daughter Jacqui keeping a close eye on things. “Jacqui does all the feeding up and ground work. On race day she gears them all up and I just sit back and watch. “Her and I go to Australia every year for the Miracle Mile.” Thornley’s victory with Wavewatcher brought her driving win total to 99. Meanwhile, Hadron Collider provided an emphatic victory in the Tyre General Timaru Summer Cup for Amanda and Hayden Cullen, capping off a successful weekend for the training pair. Earlier in the day, Samantha Ottley had a story to tell when she was tipped out of Zoom X after 100 metres in race 7, the Empire Hotel Social Club Handicap Pace. Soon after the start, Clonakilty galloped, veering sideways into Ottley, who was subsequently tipped out. The race was called off, then rerun with Ottley and Zoom X going on to win from Clonakilty and Carter Dalgety, who dead-heated for second with Riptide. Jonny Cox, who caught the loose Zoom X after the first attempt, also had a very successful day, driving and training two winners – the promising trotter Prestigious winning the first, and Ideal Conqueror going back to back for Cox at just his third start for the barn. View the full article

Blue September ambassadors have produced a strong finish to round out the 2025 campaign in style. Down south Nathan Williamson added four more wins to the cause at Gore yesterday while Jonny Cox (with two wins), Blair Orange and John Dunn all added to the tally in Timaru. Their success followed five wins at Addington on Friday night, thanks to Dunn (2), Orange, Williamson and Robbie Close. In total during the month the 11 ambassadors won 53 races, with Dunn leading the way with 12, one ahead of Orange. The provisional total for Blue September is $36,175 though donations are still being accepted and the campaign doesn’t officially end until tomorrow. Total : 53 wins John Dunn 12 Blair Orange 11 Nathan Williamson 9 Matty Williamson 6 Harrison Orange 5 Jonny Cox 3 Sam Thornley 2 Robbie Close 2 Tony Cameron 2 Josh Dickie 1 This is the fifth year of HRNZ’s involvement in Blue September, the annual New Zealand Prostate Cancer Foundation campaign to raise awareness of the disease and funds for research. Money is raised every time an ambassador wins a race, thanks to individual sponsorships and money donated from clubs and HRNZ ($100 per win). HRNZ would like to thank all the drivers, the sponsors and the many people who have donated to the cause during September. Your time and generosity is very much appreciated. Anyone wanting to donate can do here View the full article

By Jonny Turner A host of feature races await To The Moon And Back following his outstanding victory at Gore on Sunday. The progressive trotter repaid the faith his team have had in him when dispatching his opposition despite sitting parked for driver Kerryn Tomlinson. To The Moon And Back was bred by Lex Williams who races the three-year-old with a group of enthusiastic owners. Trainer Brad Williamson and the ownership group can target a host of lucrative group races for three-year-old trotters, with To The Moon And Back’s manners catching up with his untapped ability in his recent victories. And it has led to the trotter now being a part of the richest of those upcoming feature races in Australasia – the $500,000 The Ascent. “Lex and the owners have been able to get him into the slot race, which is pretty exciting,” Tomlinson said. “We have always liked him but he has been a work in progress.” “Most of the other three-year-olds all raced as two-year-olds and have had a lot of mobile racing.” “Whereas, we only saw the mobile for the first time at the trials the other day.” “He was pretty green when he first started racing but he has kept learning with every race he’s had.” “He’s getting better all the time, so hopefully by the time he races the better three-year-olds his ringcraft will be pretty good.” Some of To The Moon And Back’s early placings before he broke maidens were among the biggest efforts seen in Southland this season, suggesting the trotter has the motor to compete at Group level. Those efforts were marred by errors, but there were no signs of mistakes in the three-year-old’s Gore victory. “Once he is going along he is great and he was like that today,” Tomlinson said. “He hung a little bit, probably just with the tighter track and the windy conditions.” “But he was really happy out there and it was a nice win.” With his great recent form, To The Moon And Back has put himself right in Harness 5000 contention. The three-year-old is eligible for one of the $60,000 finals of the inaugural series at Ashburton in December with his Gore outing completing his five starts needed during the qualifying period. View the full article

Jenna McLeod got a massive thrill when watching the latest generation of her family’s breed score at stakes level at Te Rapa on Saturday. Group 2 Hawke’s Bay Guineas (1400m) victor Magic Carpet hails from the same lineage that has been in her family’s care for nearly 70 years, and she is delighted to continue that legacy. “The original mare was bought by my great-great-grandfather in 1957 at the Trentham sales,” she said. “My grandfather, Gerald Shand, has raced and bred a number of this family and my parents, Phil and Jackie (Rogers), have raced a number of this family, and now myself and Dane, my husband, are racing and breeding from a number of the family as well. “It is really neat and the horses have done really well over the years. That has made us feel confident about continuing. We do it for the love of it – we love breeding and racing horses. “It is the side hobby away from the dairy farm, all of us are involved in the dairy farm.” One of the family’s more notable graduates, Group One winner Stolen Dance, was bred by McLeod and her husband, along with her brother Brian. The McLeods initially raced the mare out of David Greene’s Te Rapa stable, for whom she won the Group 3 Eagle Technology Stakes (1600m), Group 2 Cal Isuzu Stakes (1400m), and was runner-up in the Group 1 Zabeel Classic (2000m), Group 1 Thorndon Mile (1600m) and Group 1 Herbie Dyke Stakes (2000m). She was subsequently sold to Shand and joined Murray Baker and Andrew Forsman’s Cambridge barn and won the Thorndon Mile at her final start. “Stolen Dance was the first horse Dane and I bred ourselves, and the first time we had friends come into the ownership with us,” McLeod said. “You don’t get many like her that come along every day. “She was an absolute gem and David (Greene, trainer) and Heidi (wife) did such a great job with her from a young age because she was always a fiery wee thing. “Gerald purchased her off us for a broodmare and she went on to win the Thorndon Mile. Gerald has just turned 90, so we help him out with the matings, we all work it in together.” While the family typically breed to race, last year McLeod decided to send a couple of yearlings to New Zealand Bloodstock’s yearling sales, including Magic Carpet. By Rich Hill Stud shuttle stallion Satono Aladdin, Magic Carpet is out of Tavistock-winning mare From Eden, a half-sister to Group Two winner The Fuzz and Songbird, the dam of Stolen Dance. McLeod was impressed with the colt from the day he was born and placed him through Nick Fairweather and Nicole Brown’s Carlaw Park draft at New Zealand Bloodstock’s Book 1 Yearling Sale, and he subsequently sold to trainer Stephen Marsh and Dylan Johnson Bloodstock for $320,000. “The mare did really well with him and he was a lovely foal. He has always been quite a good-looking chap right from the get-go,” McLeod said. “He was born at Windsor Park and then came home. He always had a great temperament, did everything right and was an absolute breeze. “Generally, we are a breed to race family and it took a little bit of convincing for my Mum and Dad to go to the sales. “We sold two that year, the Satono Aladdin (Magic Carpet) and the other one was by Proisir (Rose Symphony, $150,000). They are the right stallions for the sales and they were nice types as young horses. “They developed the right way and Nick and Nicole did a fantastic job with them.” Magic Carpet carries the silks of majority shareholder, Bourbon Lane Stables, but McLeods parents have retained a share in the colt, and they are enjoying the ride he is taking them on, having placed in his two prior starts to Saturday’s triumph. “Stephen (Marsh) has always been such a big fan of Magic Carpet,” McLeod said. “We always wanted to keep a share in one or both (of the yearlings), and we were lucky enough to keep a share in him with Stephen.” McLeod said her family are breeding from seven mares this season, and while their ownership varies amongst the mares, they all work as a cohesive unit. “We are breeding from seven mares this year and even though there are different ownership with the horses, we all do it together,” she said. “They all stay at our home farm in Taupiri.” While they continue to enjoy racing their own horses, McLeod said they will try and replicate their past success at the sales when they head to Karaka next year with three yearlings. “Three of our yearlings got accepted for Book 1 at Karaka, so that was really exciting,” she said. “We are selling a Profondo-Songbird filly, an Almanzor-Just Dance filly, and a Noverre-Finest Wine colt. They are all with Carlaw Park.” View the full article

Comeback mare Pride Of Jenni has given Trelawney Stud a number of reasons to look forward to the spring after a dashing victory in the Gr.2 Feehan Stakes (1600m) on Friday night. Pride Of Jenni was crowned Australia’s Racehorse of the Year in the 2023/24 season after claiming three Group Ones, but was thought to be retired after finishing back in the Gr.1 Doomben Cup (2000m) in May. Her breeders Brent and Cherry Taylor had an idea that she might return as an eight-year-old and couldn’t have been prouder to see her return with a vengeance at The Valley. “It was just fantastic,” Cherry Taylor said. “Obviously Tony (Ottobre, owner) had initially said that she would go to stud, but he sent us a message saying that he didn’t think she wanted to be a broodmare, she was loving her work and life back in the stable so he would give her another go. “They’ve all done an amazing job to get her back to that form, and to beat Treasurethe Moment, who had beaten an absolute champion in Mr Brightside last start, we were just thrilled.” The Taylors sadly lost Pride Of Jenni’s half-sister, a foal by Hello Youmzain, last spring, but are hopeful of another filly out of her dam Sancerre in the coming weeks. “She went back to Hello Youmzain because it was such a good foal, and we are waiting for this one to be born,” Taylor said. “We’re excited and hoping it’ll be a filly again.” As they did to produce Pride Of Jenni, the Cambridge nursery continue to reap the rewards of bringing Australian blood into their breeding programme, with the latest example a rising star in Astoria Brooke. The progressive four-year-old carried their silks to victory when resuming in a competitive Rating 75 contest over 1400m on Saturday at Te Rapa, continuing to build on a record that now includes four wins from just nine starts. Astoria Brooke was the second foal out of stakes winner Astor, who was purchased off the track before being sent to Coolmore sire American Pharoah. “We bought Astor off the track when she retired from Gary Harding’s (owner),” Taylor said. “We often send our maiden mares to Australia to get a bit of that blood into New Zealand, usually between three and six mares if they are good, well-performed stakes horses. We get them in foal, they are foaled down, then bring them back in foal with a foal at foot and go to New Zealand stallions after that. “We sell the colts as yearlings, or if they go on to be geldings after that. We typically try to retain two or three fillies out of each family, and being the first out of the mare, we kept her (Astoria Brooke).” Astoria Brooke winning at Te Rapa on Saturday. Photo: Kenton Wright (Race Images) Like her dam, Astoria Brooke is trained by Matamata horseman Cody Cole, who has managed her through soundness issues. “Cody has done a fantastic job because she hasn’t been easy, she’s had little niggles and growing pains along the way,” Taylor said. “To get her winning first-up on a heavy track was great, he’s done a great job and we’re very impressed by him and the mare. “Any horse that can string together three in a row has got ability and she’s now a four-win horse. I think you will see her go through the grades now. “We’ll still get some sting out of the tracks before Christmas so hopefully she can get a stakes performance on the board before then. I think she’ll feel the hard tracks, but if we can get her up to that before then, which I think we can, that’s great, then she can come back in the autumn.” Trelawney sold her half-brother by Sword Of State for $400,000 at the Karaka Yearling Sales in January, but that was their last progeny on the farm, after selling Astor to Highview’s Kurtis Gillovic. “We try to keep all of our mares at the top end and while her first foal by American Pharaoh was a winner, he had a couple of issues mentally, so we decided to sell Astor,” Taylor said. “Kurtis Gillovic bought the mare and now Astoria Brooke has come along, she ran in a stakes race as a three-year-old and has come up since then. “We’re absolutely thrilled for Kurtis, he’s a young man in the industry that now has a nice, young mare that he can continue to breed from. He’s getting a lot of fun out of watching Astoria Brooke racing, we saw Brent (Gillovic) at the races after she won and congratulated Kurtis, we’re so rapt for him.” View the full article

Comeback mare Pride Of Jenni has given Trelawney Stud a number of reasons to look forward to the spring after a dashing victory in the Gr.2 Feehan Stakes (1600m) on Friday night. Pride Of Jenni was crowned Australia’s Racehorse of the Year in the 2023/24 season after claiming three Group Ones, but was thought to be retired after finishing back in the Gr.1 Doomben Cup (2000m) in May. Her breeders Brent and Cherry Taylor had an idea that she might return as an eight-year-old and couldn’t have been prouder to see her return with a vengeance at The Valley. “It was just fantastic,” Cherry Taylor said. “Obviously Tony (Ottobre, owner) had initially said that she would go to stud, but he sent us a message saying that he didn’t think she wanted to be a broodmare, she was loving her work and life back in the stable so he would give her another go. “They’ve all done an amazing job to get her back to that form, and to beat Treasurethe Moment, who had beaten an absolute champion in Mr Brightside last start, we were just thrilled.” The Taylors sadly lost Pride Of Jenni’s half-sister, a foal by Hello Youmzain, last spring, but are hopeful of another filly out of her dam Sancerre in the coming weeks. “She went back to Hello Youmzain because it was such a good foal, and we are waiting for this one to be born,” Taylor said. “We’re excited and hoping it’ll be a filly again.” As they did to produce Pride Of Jenni, the Cambridge nursery continue to reap the rewards of bringing Australian blood into their breeding programme, with the latest example a rising star in Astoria Brooke. The progressive four-year-old carried their silks to victory when resuming in a competitive Rating 75 contest over 1400m on Saturday at Te Rapa, continuing to build on a record that now includes four wins from just nine starts. Astoria Brooke was the second foal out of stakes winner Astor, who was purchased off the track before being sent to Coolmore sire American Pharoah. “We bought Astor off the track when she retired from Gary Harding’s (owner),” Taylor said. “We often send our maiden mares to Australia to get a bit of that blood into New Zealand, usually between three and six mares if they are good, well-performed stakes horses. We get them in foal, they are foaled down, then bring them back in foal with a foal at foot and go to New Zealand stallions after that. “We sell the colts as yearlings, or if they go on to be geldings after that. We typically try to retain two or three fillies out of each family, and being the first out of the mare, we kept her (Astoria Brooke).” Astoria Brooke winning at Te Rapa on Saturday. Photo: Kenton Wright (Race Images) Like her dam, Astoria Brooke is trained by Matamata horseman Cody Cole, who has managed her through soundness issues. “Cody has done a fantastic job because she hasn’t been easy, she’s had little niggles and growing pains along the way,” Taylor said. “To get her winning first-up on a heavy track was great, he’s done a great job and we’re very impressed by him and the mare. “Any horse that can string together three in a row has got ability and she’s now a four-win horse. I think you will see her go through the grades now. “We’ll still get some sting out of the tracks before Christmas so hopefully she can get a stakes performance on the board before then. I think she’ll feel the hard tracks, but if we can get her up to that before then, which I think we can, that’s great, then she can come back in the autumn.” Trelawney sold her half-brother by Sword Of State for $400,000 at the Karaka Yearling Sales in January, but that was their last progeny on the farm, after selling Astor to Highview’s Kurtis Gillovic. “We try to keep all of our mares at the top end and while her first foal by American Pharaoh was a winner, he had a couple of issues mentally, so we decided to sell Astor,” Taylor said. “Kurtis Gillovic bought the mare and now Astoria Brooke has come along, she ran in a stakes race as a three-year-old and has come up since then. “We’re absolutely thrilled for Kurtis, he’s a young man in the industry that now has a nice, young mare that he can continue to breed from. He’s getting a lot of fun out of watching Astoria Brooke racing, we saw Brent (Gillovic) at the races after she won and congratulated Kurtis, we’re so rapt for him.” View the full article

Comeback mare Pride Of Jenni has given Trelawney Stud a number of reasons to look forward to the spring after a dashing victory in the Gr.2 Feehan Stakes (1600m) on Friday night. Pride Of Jenni was crowned Australia’s Racehorse of the Year in the 2023/24 season after claiming three Group Ones, but was thought to be retired after finishing back in the Gr.1 Doomben Cup (2000m) in May. Her breeders Brent and Cherry Taylor had an idea that she might return as an eight-year-old and couldn’t have been prouder to see her return with a vengeance at The Valley. “It was just fantastic,” Cherry Taylor said. “Obviously Tony (Ottobre, owner) had initially said that she would go to stud, but he sent us a message saying that he didn’t think she wanted to be a broodmare, she was loving her work and life back in the stable so he would give her another go. “They’ve all done an amazing job to get her back to that form, and to beat Treasurethe Moment, who had beaten an absolute champion in Mr Brightside last start, we were just thrilled.” The Taylors sadly lost Pride Of Jenni’s half-sister, a foal by Hello Youmzain, last spring, but are hopeful of another filly out of her dam Sancerre in the coming weeks. “She went back to Hello Youmzain because it was such a good foal, and we are waiting for this one to be born,” Taylor said. “We’re excited and hoping it’ll be a filly again.” As they did to produce Pride Of Jenni, the Cambridge nursery continue to reap the rewards of bringing Australian blood into their breeding programme, with the latest example a rising star in Astoria Brooke. The progressive four-year-old carried their silks to victory when resuming in a competitive Rating 75 contest over 1400m on Saturday at Te Rapa, continuing to build on a record that now includes four wins from just nine starts. Astoria Brooke was the second foal out of stakes winner Astor, who was purchased off the track before being sent to Coolmore sire American Pharoah. “We bought Astor off the track when she retired from Gary Harding’s (owner),” Taylor said. “We often send our maiden mares to Australia to get a bit of that blood into New Zealand, usually between three and six mares if they are good, well-performed stakes horses. We get them in foal, they are foaled down, then bring them back in foal with a foal at foot and go to New Zealand stallions after that. “We sell the colts as yearlings, or if they go on to be geldings after that. We typically try to retain two or three fillies out of each family, and being the first out of the mare, we kept her (Astoria Brooke).” Astoria Brooke winning at Te Rapa on Saturday. Photo: Kenton Wright (Race Images) Like her dam, Astoria Brooke is trained by Matamata horseman Cody Cole, who has managed her through soundness issues. “Cody has done a fantastic job because she hasn’t been easy, she’s had little niggles and growing pains along the way,” Taylor said. “To get her winning first-up on a heavy track was great, he’s done a great job and we’re very impressed by him and the mare. “Any horse that can string together three in a row has got ability and she’s now a four-win horse. I think you will see her go through the grades now. “We’ll still get some sting out of the tracks before Christmas so hopefully she can get a stakes performance on the board before then. I think she’ll feel the hard tracks, but if we can get her up to that before then, which I think we can, that’s great, then she can come back in the autumn.” Trelawney sold her half-brother by Sword Of State for $400,000 at the Karaka Yearling Sales in January, but that was their last progeny on the farm, after selling Astor to Highview’s Kurtis Gillovic. “We try to keep all of our mares at the top end and while her first foal by American Pharaoh was a winner, he had a couple of issues mentally, so we decided to sell Astor,” Taylor said. “Kurtis Gillovic bought the mare and now Astoria Brooke has come along, she ran in a stakes race as a three-year-old and has come up since then. “We’re absolutely thrilled for Kurtis, he’s a young man in the industry that now has a nice, young mare that he can continue to breed from. He’s getting a lot of fun out of watching Astoria Brooke racing, we saw Brent (Gillovic) at the races after she won and congratulated Kurtis, we’re so rapt for him.” View the full article

Comeback mare Pride Of Jenni has given Trelawney Stud a number of reasons to look forward to the spring after a dashing victory in the Gr.2 Feehan Stakes (1600m) on Friday night. Pride Of Jenni was crowned Australia’s Racehorse of the Year in the 2023/24 season after claiming three Group Ones, but was thought to be retired after finishing back in the Gr.1 Doomben Cup (2000m) in May. Her breeders Brent and Cherry Taylor had an idea that she might return as an eight-year-old and couldn’t have been prouder to see her return with a vengeance at The Valley. “It was just fantastic,” Cherry Taylor said. “Obviously Tony (Ottobre, owner) had initially said that she would go to stud, but he sent us a message saying that he didn’t think she wanted to be a broodmare, she was loving her work and life back in the stable so he would give her another go. “They’ve all done an amazing job to get her back to that form, and to beat Treasurethe Moment, who had beaten an absolute champion in Mr Brightside last start, we were just thrilled.” The Taylors sadly lost Pride Of Jenni’s half-sister, a foal by Hello Youmzain, last spring, but are hopeful of another filly out of her dam Sancerre in the coming weeks. “She went back to Hello Youmzain because it was such a good foal, and we are waiting for this one to be born,” Taylor said. “We’re excited and hoping it’ll be a filly again.” As they did to produce Pride Of Jenni, the Cambridge nursery continue to reap the rewards of bringing Australian blood into their breeding programme, with the latest example a rising star in Astoria Brooke. The progressive four-year-old carried their silks to victory when resuming in a competitive Rating 75 contest over 1400m on Saturday at Te Rapa, continuing to build on a record that now includes four wins from just nine starts. Astoria Brooke was the second foal out of stakes winner Astor, who was purchased off the track before being sent to Coolmore sire American Pharoah. “We bought Astor off the track when she retired from Gary Harding’s (owner),” Taylor said. “We often send our maiden mares to Australia to get a bit of that blood into New Zealand, usually between three and six mares if they are good, well-performed stakes horses. We get them in foal, they are foaled down, then bring them back in foal with a foal at foot and go to New Zealand stallions after that. “We sell the colts as yearlings, or if they go on to be geldings after that. We typically try to retain two or three fillies out of each family, and being the first out of the mare, we kept her (Astoria Brooke).” Astoria Brooke winning at Te Rapa on Saturday. Photo: Kenton Wright (Race Images) Like her dam, Astoria Brooke is trained by Matamata horseman Cody Cole, who has managed her through soundness issues. “Cody has done a fantastic job because she hasn’t been easy, she’s had little niggles and growing pains along the way,” Taylor said. “To get her winning first-up on a heavy track was great, he’s done a great job and we’re very impressed by him and the mare. “Any horse that can string together three in a row has got ability and she’s now a four-win horse. I think you will see her go through the grades now. “We’ll still get some sting out of the tracks before Christmas so hopefully she can get a stakes performance on the board before then. I think she’ll feel the hard tracks, but if we can get her up to that before then, which I think we can, that’s great, then she can come back in the autumn.” Trelawney sold her half-brother by Sword Of State for $400,000 at the Karaka Yearling Sales in January, but that was their last progeny on the farm, after selling Astor to Highview’s Kurtis Gillovic. “We try to keep all of our mares at the top end and while her first foal by American Pharaoh was a winner, he had a couple of issues mentally, so we decided to sell Astor,” Taylor said. “Kurtis Gillovic bought the mare and now Astoria Brooke has come along, she ran in a stakes race as a three-year-old and has come up since then. “We’re absolutely thrilled for Kurtis, he’s a young man in the industry that now has a nice, young mare that he can continue to breed from. He’s getting a lot of fun out of watching Astoria Brooke racing, we saw Brent (Gillovic) at the races after she won and congratulated Kurtis, we’re so rapt for him.” View the full article

Rich Hill Stud’s Group 1 stallion roster was the dominant force at Te Rapa’s premier meeting with their progeny claiming a feature race double. Proisir’s son Waitak was back to his brilliant best to score in the Gr.1 Howden Insurance Mile (1600m) while Satono Aladdin three-year-old Magic Carpet reigned supreme in the Gr.2 Hawke’s Bay Guineas (1400m). Associate sire Ace High was also to the fore with Bak Da Angel impressively claiming an 1100m sprint on the undercard to complete a treble for resident Rich Hill stallions. The performance of the Stephen Marsh-trained Magic Carpet highlighted the remarkable Australasian statistics of the progeny of Satono Aladdin. From 96 runners to date, he has sired 12 individual stakes winners, equating to 12.5 per cent stakes winners-to-runners. “Satono Aladdin’s first three Southern Hemisphere foal crops averaged just 48, which means at this stage his stakes winners-to-foals is running at an incredible 8.3 per cent, plus he’s running at 12.5 per cent stakes winners-to-runners,” Rich Hill’s John Thompson said. “These are world class statistics. With a two-year-old crop of 122 well-bred colts and fillies and his current yearling crop of 127 following, the next few years are going to be very exciting for Satono Aladdin’s many supporters.” The winners continued to flow throughout the weekend, with a trio of stakes performances by Rich Hill sires at other venues. Chris Waller produced Group 1 performer Firestorm (Satono Aladdin) for a fresh-up third in Gr.2 Golden Pendant (1400m) at Rosehill and his Group 1 winner Molly Bloom (Ace High) looked to be coming back to top form with a brave first-up third placing in the Gr.2 WH Stocks Stakes (1500m) at Moonee Valley. Talented Shocking four-year-old Scary finished a close second in Sunday’s Listed RM Ansett Classic (2415m) at Mornington while Proisir’s lightly raced son Tyga Taste scored over 1350m at Strathalbyn for trainer Michael Hickmott. Meanwhile in Hong Kong, Satono Aladdin’s son Speedy Smartie triumphed in the opening event over 1200m at Sha Tin to give ex- South African trainer Brett Crawford his first Hong Kong winner. View the full article