Wandering Eyes

Jamie Richards has copped the two extremes of the barrier draw for Wednesday night’s Happy Valley fixture but he was relieved to see Seasons Wit come out unscathed with the inside gate for the Class Three St George’s Challenge Cup (1,000m). His speedster has relished the drop back to the minimum distance in his past two starts after plying his trade over further for most of this campaign. All four of his wins have come over Wednesday’s course and distance and he returned to form with a bang when...View the full article

Harry Bentley heads to Happy Valley on Wednesday night in strong form and in the midst of one of his best months of the season after snaring Sunday night’s Sha Tin finale aboard Flying Fortress. Flying Fortress’ victory in a hot Class Three Amethyst Handicap (1,400m) was Bentley’s fourth for June and left him on the verge of breaking into the top 10 in the jockeys’ premiership with 29 successes for the season. “It was a great result. He’s been running well, obviously having won a couple of...View the full article

Former top United States miler Carl Spackler is expected to race one more time in Britain before starting a start in the Cox Plate (G1) in Australia.View the full article

Magic Cap Stable's Fort Washington will look for his third consecutive graded stakes win June 28 in the $500,000 Wise Dan Stakes (G2T) at Churchill Downs.View the full article

Following the announcement of D. Wayne Lukas stepping away from training, trainers Todd Pletcher, Steve Asmussen, and Kenny McPeek praised the Hall of Famer for changing the game.View the full article

The folks who fought to preserve racing at the Northern California's remote half-miler in Ferndale deserve tremendous respect and credit for soldiering on to the bitter end. Make no mistake, the cessation of racing at the Humboldt County Fairgrounds in the coastal region of NorCal definitely rates as “bitter.” There is no sugarcoating this one like a sticky tuft of cotton candy from the midway of Humboldt County's charmingly rural fairgrounds, whose ties to the sport date to 1896. Advocates for racing at Ferndale (pop. 1,398), a Victorian village with an agricultural bent and an artistic vibe nestled between California's redwood region and its fabled Lost Coast, went down swinging at last Thursday's California Horse Racing Board (CHRB) meeting. For three consecutive months, proponents tried to convince commissioners to extend a lifeline in the form of a 2025 race dates allocation. Out-of-the-way Ferndale has traditionally been the most pastoral, yet vibrantly eclectic, stop on a regional circuit that, as recently as two years ago, was comprised of five seasonal racing fairs anchored by one commercial track, Golden Gate Fields. In recent months, backers of racing at Pleasanton and Fresno have been similarly rebuffed by the CHRB. None of the applicants who got shot down had wanted to go it alone. Rather, they were trying to hold together what remained of the NorCal circuit that toppled under the weight of the 2023 decision by The Stronach Group (TSG) to shutter Golden Gate. It wasn't just an issue of Ferndale wanting to race on six dates over three weekends in October (when the county fair itself wouldn't even be operational). That was the Ferndale backers' attempt at a calendar compromise at the June 19 meeting, because the CHRB had already shot down a request last month for Ferndale's traditional late August time slot, when its fair would be in full swing. The voting focused more on which entity–Ferndale or the Southern California tracks–would get to reap the simulcast-revenue privileges that go with any dates allotment that the CHRB grants. TSG also owns Santa Anita Park. That prominent SoCal track, along with Del Mar Thoroughbred Club and the Thoroughbred Owners of California (TOC), has lobbied hard for centralizing all of the state's racing and simulcast revenues in the South on a single circuit that also includes Los Alamitos Race Course. That plan, they argue, is the last, best hope to try and salvage statewide racing before California slides completely off the Thoroughbred grid. They allege that there aren't enough horses and that there is too little NorCal customer interest and money for purses to keep the two-tiered regional approach viable. NorCal supporters have cited the denial of dates to the last remaining tracks that want to cater to smaller outfits as a long-term blow to the overall health of the sport in the state and a possible death knell to the fairs themselves. They are firm in their belief that it's a mistake to concentrate the entirety of the state's racing in one, largely urban geographic area in the South, and they contend that if NorCal racing goes dark for good, the state's already thinning foal crop will dwindle even further, because the North is where the bulk of the breeding farms are. Additionally, NorCal proponents have articulated complaints that neither the statewide TOC nor the CHRB are representing their interests. Both sides raise valid, legitimate points. But considering what has happened in the past 12 months–Golden Gate Fields has closed; an entity called Golden State Racing failed to run a financially viable extended autumn meet at Pleasanton; the California Authority of Racing Fairs (CARF) shifted away from supporting any live meets at county fairs, and three willing NorCal fairs tracks backed by a new investment group, Bernal Park Racing, have all been denied dates applications–you wonder if TSG might be having second thoughts about pulling the plug on Golden Gate. Perhaps it's fair to state that the disintegration of the NorCal circuit was just a matter of time given the disheartening business trends that are driving other national racetrack closures. But, like a fateful losing move in a game of high-stakes Jenga, the circuit-toppling decision by TSG to end racing at Golden Gate put California racing more immediately in the path of peril. You can't really throw the CHRB under the bus for its role in the outcome, either. In each of the past three months that the NorCal agenda items have come up at the board's meetings, it was clear that commissioners were struggling with “damned if we do, damned if we don't” choices. All versions of the CHRB's votes on the NorCal meets at the May and June meetings came down to 4-3 decisions, and several commissioners expressed that they had a tough time figuring out what was the right thing to do. It remained fresh in the minds of commissioners that last year, the CHRB okayed a venture to greenlight what ended up being a fiscally disastrous Golden State Racing meet at Pleasanton. Larry Swartzlander, then in his capacity of executive director for CARF, had pushed hard for trying something new with that 2024 Pleasanton meet. He stoically absorbed his share of criticism for the failed venture when it didn't work out. Yet Swartzlander, who stepped away from CARF earlier this year after 27 years with that organization and is now working as the director of racing for the fledgling Bernal team, continued to champion NorCal fairs racing into 2025. Prior to Thursday's vote-down of the meets at Ferndale and Fresno, no stakeholders or commissioners disagreed with the veteran race-meet organizer when Swartzlander underscored that it was imperative to keep some semblance of racing alive in that region this year if there was to be any NorCal future to build upon for 2026. Swartzlander believed his plan was viable for 2025 because the proposal would have given NorCal a six-week block of dates that he estimated would attract roughly 350 out-of-state horses. Turf Paradise racetrack | Coady He said it was advantageous that the Fresno and Ferndale meets would fall on the calendar near the conclusion of the Emerald Downs meet near Seattle and other tracing fairs in the Mountain West region, but before Turf Paradise and Zia Park opened for late-fall racing in the Southwest. With what Swartzlander said was the backing of Santa Rosa and Pleasanton to once again host possible meets next summer, he explained that “in 2026, I would come back to you with a block of dates from mid-June to mid-October” based on a four-track circuit. California racehorse owner George Schmitt, who formed Bernal in partnership with another longtime in-state owner/breeder, John Harris, has repeatedly emphasized at CHRB meetings that by taking on the operational duties at the NorCal fairs that were recently abandoned by CARF, his entrepreneurial group was fine with shouldering the high risks of a long-shot venture. “Bernal Park Racing has the financial support behind it to take care of all the requirements up front,” Schmitt told the CHRB on Thursday. “And if the fairs don't make enough money to pay us back what we forward up for them to run their fairs, we'll take a loss. The state of California is no longer on the hook for anything with any of the fairs.” Let's put aside for the moment whether or not you think trying to kick-start NorCal again is a cogent or viable endeavor for California as a whole. Looking at the bigger picture, there's no escaping that Thoroughbred racing in America is mired in an era of contraction in which tracks, many of them corporately controlled, are either slashing race dates or attempting to completely get out from under the burden of subsidizing horses running around in circles. Just last week, 48 hours before the CHRB votes on Ferndale and Fresno, the sport's headlines were dominated by the news that the gaming company Churchill Downs, Inc. (CDI) had fairly quickly wrangled concessions out of Louisiana horsemen that included purse cuts for the upcoming 2025-26 meet at Fair Grounds. Those clawbacks were the result of CDI, on June 9, threatening to abandon racing at the historic New Orleans track because a series of recent gaming-related decisions in the Louisiana courts and legislature didn't go its way. Considering that CDI, in the past decade, has made good on threats to pull out of racing at two other high-profile tracks over alleged profitability issues, its intimidating tactics have become a familiar page out of the gaming company's corporate playbook that come with very real follow-through consequences. So what's the point with this digression? The chief takeaway is that at a time when corporations and conglomerates like CDI (which in the past 20 years has closed Arlington and Calder and unloaded Hollywood Park to the land developer that later razed it) and TSG (which has ended racing at Golden Gate and Portland Meadows and this year threatened to do the same at Gulfstream), are putting into place exit strategies, it's amazing that there are still individuals out there who want to make a go of running racetracks. You think there are problems now with the Ferndales and Fresnos of our racing ecosystem practically begging for a handful of race dates? What do you think it will be like when no one is willing to step up and take on the daunting gamble of giving horses a place to race? Last Thursday, after making his case to the CHRB and answering all questions that commissioners had for him, Swartzlander approached the microphone one final time to address the board with what he said was a “personal” comment. “My wife asked me last night, which many people do, 'Why do you do it?'” Swartzlander said. The retired lieutenant colonel who spent 21 years of service in the U.S. Army then paused, trying his best to keep his emotions in check. “Cause I love it,” Swartzlander said, his voice dropping to a barely audible whisper. “I want to put people back to work. To save racing in California,” Swartzlander said. The post Week In Review: Ferndale Sacrificed for the Hope of Saving California appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

9th-Monmouth, $51,975, Msw, 6-22, 3yo/up, 6f, 1:10.93, ft, 6 1/2 lengths. DRAGONITE (c, 3, Practical Joke–Snapdragon, by Super Saver), sent off the 7-5 choice for this unveiling, prompted 2-1 second chance Soar Richard (Omaha Beach) through an initial quarter in :22.24. Overtaking that rival approaching the quarter pole, the homebred drew off late to score by 6 1/2 lengths over Ripton's Music (Maclean's Music). Soar Richard was third. Snapdragon, who sold in foal to Oxbow at KEENOV in 2022, produced that colt in 2023 followed by a filly by the Calumet sire last season. Most recently, she foaled a colt by Greatest Honour this season. Lifetime Record: 1-1-0-0, $31,500. Click for the Equibase.com chart or VIDEO, sponsored by FanDuel TV. O/B-Calumet Farm (KY); T-Chad C. Brown. The post Practical Joke’s Dragonite Airs in Career Debut at Monmouth appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

Hall of Fame trainer D. Wayne Lukas, one of the most prolific trainers and influences in horse racing history, has been hospitalized in Louisville, Ky. and will not return to training, according to family members.View the full article

Sweet Seraphine (Quality Road) sounded the drum late and scored her first black-type in the Wilton Stakes at the Big A on Sunday afternoon. As a juvenile, the filly debuted in third at Ellis Park in early August before heading to the sidelines. The bay came off the bench to don cap and gown by a nose at Churchill Downs May 24. The 6-5 choice here took an awkward step at the start which put her several lengths off the speed up the backstretch. Chasing the pace into the far turn, you could surmise there was just too much work to do for the 3-year-old as a trio, which included Dry Powder (Gun Runner), vied for the lead. Unwilling to quit, Sweet Seraphine came with a giant run down the center of the course and she nailed Dry Powder at the wire. “She had the layoff and came back and broke her maiden,” said trainer Cherie DeVaux. “This race came up a little light and we were trying to get into a '1X', but this was an opportunity to get some black type and see where we're at with her. “She's bred to go two turns, so it was always in our plans to see her go two turns,” she said. “We'll get her back and see how she comes out of this and then we'll come up with a plan.” The winner's dam is responsible for 2-year-old filly Sonare (Curlin) and she foaled a filly by Uncle Mo Mar. 9. Out of GSW Moonlight Sonata (Carson City), Venetian Sonata is a full-sister to GSW Wilburn and SW La Appassionata. She counts as half-sisters GSW Beethoven (Sky Mesa) and the dam of MGSW Grand Sonata (Medaglia d'Oro). WILTON S., $121,250, Belmont The Big A, 6-22, 3yo, f, 1m, 1:35.94, ft. 1–SWEET SERAPHINE, 120, f, 3, by Quality Road 1st Dam: Venetian Sonata, by Bernardini 2nd Dam: Moonlight Sonata, by Carson City 3rd Dam: Wheatly Way, by Wheatly Hall ($900,000 Ylg '23 KEESEP). 1ST BLACK TYPE WIN. O/B-Stonehaven Steadings (KY); T-Cherie DeVaux; J-Irad Ortiz, Jr. $68,750. Lifetime Record: 3-2-0-1, $144,505. *1/2 to Moonlight d'Oro (Medaglia d'Oro), GSW, $222,670. 2–Dry Powder, 120, f, 3, Gun Runner–Tell All, by Broken Vow. ($525,000 Ylg '23 KEESEP). 1ST BLACK TYPE. O-Gold Square LLC; B-Corser Thoroughbreds LLC (KY); T-Chad Summers. $25,000. 3–Cat Chat, 122, f, 3, Flatter–Warm Sunshine, by Unbridled's Song. ($325,000 2yo '24 OBSMAR). 1ST BLACK TYPE. O-R. Lee Lewis, Ryan Lewis and Anthony Lewis; B-Machmer Hall (KY); T-Mark A. Hennig. $15,000. Margins: HD, 2 1/4, 1. Odds: 1.20, 4.90, 6.50. Also Ran: Pink Ruby, Mazayaat. Scratched: Liam in the Dust. Click for the Equibase.com chart or VIDEO, sponsored by FanDuel TV. Sweet Seraphine rallies to get her first stakes win in the Wilton Stakes for @iradortiz and @reredevaux pic.twitter.com/niqcGMuLmK — NYRA () (@TheNYRA) June 22, 2025 The post Quality Road Filly Sweet Seraphine Overcomes Early Trouble To Take Wilton Stakes appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

Hall of Fame trainer D. Wayne Lukas has been hospitalized in Louisville, Kentucky and will not return to training, according to Lukas family members. In a release sent out by Churchill Downs, the family shared that Lukas had been battling a severe infection that had worsened his condition, and has reportedly declined an aggressive treatment plan in favor of returning home to spend his remaining time with his loved ones. In a succession plan put in place by Lukas Enterprises, Inc., horses previously under Lukas's care have been transferred to his assistant Sebastian 'Bas' Nicholl. “Wayne built a legacy that will never be matched,” Nicholl said. “Every decision I make, every horse I saddle, I'll hear his voice in the back of my mind. This isn't about filling his shoes–no one can–it's about honoring everything that he's built.” “Wayne is one of the greatest competitors and most important figures in Thoroughbred racing history,” said Mike Anderson, president of Churchill Downs Racetrack. “He transcended the sport of horse racing and took the industry to new levels.” “The lasting impact of his character and wisdom–from his acute horsemanship to his unmatched attention to detail–will be truly missed. The enormity of this news is immense, and our prayers are with his family and friends around the world during this difficult time.” The post D. Wayne Lukas Hospitalized, Will Not Return to Training appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

Hall of Fame trainer D. Wayne Lukas, one of the most prolific trainers and influences in horse racing history, has been hospitalized in Louisville, Ky. and will not return to training, according to family members.View the full article

GSW & GISP May Day Ready (Tapit) is reportedly being pointed toward a start in the GI Belmont Oaks Invitational during the July 4 Racing Festival at Saratoga. The GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf runner-up took her show on the road after that 2024 seasonal highlight, and tried her luck in the G1 Hanshin Juvenile Fillies in Kyoto, Japan as a cap for her 2-year-old season. While she finished 13th then, she returned to the States and made her '25 bow in the off-turf GIII Wonder Again Stakes June 7. MGSW Nitrogen (Medaglia d'Oro) ran off the screen by 17 lengths with only two others still in the race–including May Day Ready–after the rest scratched out, but trainer Joe Lee says that the choice to keep her in had been an intentional one. “I'm really happy with how she's doing,” said Lee. “Off the turf wasn't ideal, but the owners wanted to take a shot and get a race in her.” Lee continued, “If we already had a race in her, we could've scratched, but the goal was the Belmont Oaks, and we wanted to have something going into it, [as] opposed to straight off [the bench] about seven months then.” Out over the Belmont training track Saturday morning, the Tapit filly clocked four furlongs in :51.55 (105/114) in her first move at the venue since moving up to New York from Keeneland for the Wonder Again. Her last work in Kentucky had been a four panel breeze in :49 flat (10/29) after working consistently at that home base leading up to the Saratoga appearance. Since then, Lee believes that his charge has continued to improve. “She's definitely filled out. She is not a big, imposing type of horse, but she never was,” Lee said. “She is doing everything right, is really sound, great attitude, and she eats well–all indications that she'll hopefully improve from age two to three. That is always a question mark with fillies, but with her attitude, I'm hoping she does.” The post May Day Ready Eyes Tilt at Belmont Oaks Invitational appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

West Point Thoroughbreds and Jimmy Kahig's Cugino impressed his Hall of Fame-trainer Shug McGaughey with a winning 4-year-old debut in an optional-claimer going 1 1/16 miles on the inner turf at Aqueduct June 19.View the full article

Gary Carroll has admitted to still being on a high after landing the Coronation Stakes at Royal Ascot aboard Joe Murphy's Cercene (Australia) and revealed that the breakthrough success at the highest level was made even sweeter given it came for the Fethard-based trainer who has been one of the rider's biggest supporters down through the years. No trainer has supported Carroll quite like Murphy. The pair are operating at a 10 per cent strike-rate since they first teamed up together back in 2009. There have been 1,077 rides and 104 winners domestically since then. But scarcely has there been a day quite like what unfolded at Royal Ascot last Friday. “I'm still on a high and still getting messages about it,” Carroll shared. “It was absolutely magic. Going over there, I thought she'd run well and be in the first three or four anyway. The stiff mile at Ascot was always going to suit her and I'd a good draw so I was happy enough going there. To win it was a nice surprise.” Asked if breaking his Group 1 duck was made extra special by the fact that it came aboard one of Murphy's horses, he said, “Oh it does, definitely. As I said in one of the interviews after the race, if I ever was to ride a Group 1 winner, I am just delighted that it came for Joe because I have been riding for him since 2009. We've been working together for a long time now and he has been very good and very loyal to me. They put so much into the game so it's great to see them get a good horse. It's not a fluke, either. Every year, they seem to find one. They [Joe and his son Joe jnr] are well able to train them.” Cercene's Coronation Stakes was widely regarded as one of the feel good stories of the entire meeting. Here was a €50,000 yearling purchase [bought by Murphy himself from Baroda Stud at the Tattersalls Ireland September Yearling Sale] out-performing some of the biggest stables and outfits in the business. It was a real triumph for the smaller operator and one that resonated widely. The success was not lost on the rider, either. Carroll explained, “There are so many good horses being sold abroad so it's nice that Joe was able to keep one of them. It's becoming harder and harder to hang onto the good ones because it's business at the end of the day. Trading horses is how most trainers make their money. But it's no secret that the trainers who shop the sales hard are the ones who get rewarded at the track. I think it was Noel Meade who said, to win at the races, you need to win at the sales. That's very true. You need to keep on re-stocking and getting new blood into your yard and the Murphys have done a brilliant job on that.” He added, “I was beaten a half-length on Lily's Angel in a Matron, third in a Tattersalls Gold Cup aboard Euphrasia and placed in a Phoenix Stakes aboard Mick Mulvany's good horse, Tough As Nails, so there were plenty of near-misses prior to Friday. It's hard to get the rides in these races, not to mention winning them. “Ireland is a very tough country to be competitive in. There are a lot of jockeys competing in a very small circle and it's competitive to get the rides. There are very few big stables left and Gavin Cromwell is lucky to have a nice number to work with while Joe circles between 30 and 40 horses every year as well. I get my fair share out of Ger Lyons's as well. You have to work at it but days like Friday makes all of the hard work worthwhile.” Just 24 hours after teaming up to land that memorable Coronation Stakes success, Carroll and Murphy bagged the Ulster Derby at Down Royal, a prestigious contest in its own right, with the progressive Vorfreude. It capped a memorable couple of days for the trainer-jockey combination but the significance didn't end there as, like Cercene, Vorfreude was broken-in by Carroll. He said, “My wife [Joanne] and myself actually broke in Cercene for Joe. We did the same with Vorfreude (Bated Breath), who we won the Ulster Derby with together on Saturday as well, so it's great. It's something we've done over the winter in recent years so it's nice to see them go on and do well given they started out here. I mainly break in horses for Joe and Gavin but I've a couple of owners and small studs that send me horses as well. It's something I'd like to develop over the next few years. We're after building a new house just outside Summerhill in County Meath. We built a new barn so a gallop is the next thing to go in now. We've built it from the ground up.” Friday represented by far Carroll's most successful day in the saddle but lest we forget he has had something of the Midas Touch at the Royal meeting in recent seasons. After winning the Queen Mary in 2021 aboard Quick Suzy (Profitable), Carroll returned to the Royal Ascot winner's enclosure aboard Snellen (Expert Eye) after landing the Chesham Stakes in 2023. Both fillies were trained by Gavin Cromwell, who is second only to Murphy in the number of winners he has supplied Carroll [68 from 701 rides] with. He said, “Between Gavin and Joe, I've had a brilliant time of things at Royal Ascot. Obviously Gavin has had a lot of success there between Quick Suzy and Snellen. Gavin is really making a name for himself and is growing as a Flat trainer so it has been great to be associated with him as well.” Carroll added on Cromwell's influence, “Gavin is one of the most ambitious men I have ever met. All he wants to do is grow and win, basically, and we're just trying to keep up with him. He's extremely on the ball and is always thinking. We're on and off the phone to each other most days talking about races and horses. He's always thinking and he has improved me as a rider because I have to be on the ball. “He has a huge team of staff – the likes of Garvan Donnelly and Pat Martin are in there now and they were very good trainers in their own right. He has great help and support there and, while he's very good at delegating, he expects everyone to work as hard as he does. He improves people as well as horses. He's a great man to be associated with and I'm very lucky to have some brilliant people behind me.” The post Carroll: ‘Cercene Winning At Royal Ascot Was No Fluke – Joe Murphy Is Well Able To Train’ appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

Ellis Park will launch its 25-day summer meet July 3, headlined by record stakes purses, top racing connections, fan-friendly wagering menus, and a full calendar of community events both on and off the track.View the full article

Canterbury Park racing officials have canceled horse racing for June 22 due to projected heat indexes in excess of 105.View the full article

Former top United States miler Carl Spackler is expected to race one more time in Britain before starting his new career in Australia.View the full article

Tributes have been paid to Hugh Mulryan after his tragic death at the age of just 25, with BBA Ireland's Adam Potts describing his three years as Mulryan's housemate as “the best years of my life”. The son of owner-breeder Liam Mulryan, Hugh had carved out a promising career of his own in racing and bloodstock, having spent time under the wing of trainers such as Denis Hogan and Sir Mark Prescott, as well as working on the farm and at the sales for Baroda Stud. The County Galway native had recently relocated to Britain to take up a new role with Adrian Keatley in Ryedale, North Yorkshire. “We're all devastated and it's hard to come to terms with,” said Potts, who also traded a number of horses with Mulryan in recent years. “He lived with me for three years and they were the best years of my life. He was well-read, a deep thinker, and asked the big questions. Often, he'd come home having spotted either an angle in the sales, a new brunch spot, one lined up for a gamble or some African jazz musician no one had ever heard of, so there was always something to be getting stuck into! “He loved racing, but more importantly he loved horses and horses loved him. He'll be dearly missed.” Earlier this month, Mulryan signed for one of the top lots at Part 2 of the Goffs Arkle Sale, in tandem with trainer Terence O'Brien, whose County Cork stable has housed many of the horses raced by Mulryan's father in recent years. Paying his own tribute, O'Brien said, “It's a huge tragedy and I'm just absolutely gutted that he's been taken so early. It's been a massive shock to everybody. I feel hugely sorry for his dad, his mum and the rest of the family. It's an absolute shame. “I knew him kind of superficially for the last five years, but I got to know him a bit better over the last 12 to 18 months. We bought a horse together last year and through that association I was talking to him on a kind of weekly basis. He came over a few times and I went out to lunch a few times with him. I met him at the sales again this year and we bought another horse together. “I was hugely impressed with his knowledge of pedigrees and conformation. He did a lot of homework and any horse that he picked out we'd definitely have a look at. For a young lad he was very impressive and he wasn't afraid to ask for advice from anybody. I wasn't much good to give him advice, but I told him to get as much experience as you can, because he was thinking about maybe training horses as well. “He was his own man and highly intelligent. He probably didn't show it off but, the more I got to know him, the more impressed I was with him. That was the truth of it.” The team at Baroda Stud, led by David and Tamso Cox, also spoke fondly of Mulryan and their time working with him. “Incredibly sad news came on Monday that Hugh Mulryan died in the UK,” read a statement posted on Facebook. “Hugh worked with us on the farm and at the Consignment a few times over the last number of years. Such a great chap, very smart, studied Law, loved horses and had a great interest in all aspects of the industry. “David, Tamso, Brian [Delahunt] and all the team in Baroda were so sad to hear the news, we only saw him last week. Our deepest sympathy to his father Liam, his mother Christina and all his family and many friends.” To Mulryan's family and friends, the team at the TDN would also like to offer its sincere condolences. The post ‘He Loved Horses and Horses Loved Him’ – Tributes Paid to Hugh Mulryan appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

Endo Botti's Klaynn completed a Classic double with her victory in Sunday's G2 Oaks d'Italia Tattersalls at San Siro Racecourse, running her 12 rivals into the ground with a dominant front-running performance. Cristian Demuro, riding the daughter of Make Believe for the first time, charted a wide course throughout and gradually increased the tempo in the straight, with his mount responding generously as she forged clear in the closing stages to register a wide-margin win. Last seen finishing fourth when taking on colts in the G2 Derby Italiano, Klaynn was unbeaten in five starts prior to that valiant effort, notably having won the G3 Premio Regina Elena (Italian 1,000 Guineas) at Capanelle Racecourse back in April. Lifetime Record: 7-6-0-0. O-Teruya Yoshida. B-Allevamento Le.Gi. SRL Societa' Agricola (Ire). T-Endo Botti. The post Make Believe’s Klaynn Completes Fillies’ Classic Double in Oaks d’Italia appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

Vahva returned to form with a victory in the Chicago Stakes (G2) June 21 at Churchill Downs, a win that snapped a three-race losing streak that dated back to her victory in last year's edition of this seven-furlong sprint for older fillies and mares.View the full article

One of Hong Kong’s old warhorses helped Brenton Avdulla celebrate a new arrival at Sha Tin on Sunday night, with Beauty Joy taking out the Group Three Premier Plate (1,800m). Not long after welcoming baby boy Kobe to the family, Avdulla landed his second Group victory aboard the notoriously difficult Beauty Joy. “He’s probably got as much head noise as I did when I was 18 years old. We seem to get along very well,” said Avdulla of the Tony Cruz-trained eight-year-old. “He was good to me last...View the full article

Keagan de Melo celebrated his first Hong Kong Group win when $26 outsider Copartner Prance led them a merry dance in the Group Three Premier Cup (1,400m) at Sha Tin on Sunday evening. The South African has not hit any great heights this season and his success aboard Francis Lui Kin-wai’s Copartner Prance, who also landed a Group-race breakthrough, was a much-needed tonic. Copartner Prance sat on the shoulder of Victor The Winner for the first part of the race, but De Melo took the outright lead...View the full article

Danny O’Brien had his sights on starting Grinzinger Belle (NZ) (Shamexpress) in the Gr.1 Tattersall’s Tiara Stakes (1400m) at Eagle Farm for some time, but he knew there was a caveat on this plan as she was to be sold at the Chairman’s Sale in May. Luckily for O’Brien, after Yulong Investments purchased the mare for $1.45 million from her owner John Wheeler, they elected to leave her with him and allow him to fulfil his plan. Now the O’Brien stable is hoping they can impress the behemoth ownership group by winning the final Gr.1 race for the season. O’Brien’s racing manager Jack Howard said they were hoping it was going to be the start of a long and fruitful relationship. “We were lucky enough to get her back and hopefully we can get a result for them, which will hopefully continue the relationship going forward,” Howard said. Grinzinger Belle won the Gr.2 Sunline Stakes at The Valley two starts ago, and she followed that with a seventh placing in the Gr.1 Queen Of The Turf Stakes at Randwick on April 12. Howard said after that O’Brien set his sights on the Tatt’s Tiara Stakes knowing Grinzinger Belle fires when she is fresh. “She’s definitely ready to go. She has a good fresh record over that trip and hopefully we can get a result for Yulong. She probably deserves a good race,” Howard said. “She’s done enough work. She had a jumpout here before and she went along as one of Gai’s really went along.” “We’re hoping for rain as it assists her and detracts from the others.” After the Tatt’s Tiara, Howard said they will discuss Grinzinger Belle’s future with Yulong. “She’s been extremely consistent throughout her whole career. There’s plenty of good races she can target through the spring and the autumn.” Grinzinger Belle is an $11 chance with Sportsbet and will be ridden by Tim Clark. O’Brien will also have a last-start winner in two-year-old colt Brave Design, who won the Listed Oxlade Stakes (1200m) on June 14, at Eagle Farm and he will run in the Listed Tattersall’s Stakes (1400m) on Saturday. “Hopefully we can continue the good strike-rate up in Queensland as he’s been our only other runner there.” View the full article

French star Lazzat broke Japanese hearts as he downed Satono Reve in a pulsating international finish to the Group One Queen Elizabeth II Jubilee Stakes (1,200m) at Royal Ascot on Saturday. The Jerome Reynier-trained four-year-old enjoyed a fast break and landed in the lead early under Wathnan’s top jockey, James Doyle. From there, the writing was firmly on the wall, with the Territories gelding being a top-level winner over the 1,800m distance. The pair kept on galloping relentlessly and...View the full article

Driver Penalties J Dickie | Auckland 20 June; use of whip; fined $450. K Bublitz | NZ Metropolitan 22 June; careless driving; fined $300. Trainer Penalties R Green & N Delany | Waikato Bay of Plenty 19 June; late gear notification; fined $50. L Bond | Forbury Park 19 June; incorrect gear; fined $100. C & C Dalgety | NZ Metropolitan 20 June; failed to scratch runner by required time; fined $200. Horse Penalties BOMBAY GLACIER | Forbury Park 19 June; late scratching after causing 2 false starts; must complete mobile start trial. DOWNTOWN ORLANDO | Forbury Park 19 June; broke in running; must complete trial. POPNROCK | Forbury Park 19 June; broke in running; must complete trial. ALICE IN DREAMLAND | NZ Metropolitan 20 June; bled; stood down for 30 days with veterinary clearance including endoscopic examination required and must complete trial. HIGGY | NZ Metropolitan 20 June; late scratching when lame in preliminary; veterinary clearance required. ULTURA | NZ Metropolitan 22 June; bled; stood down for 30 days with veterinary clearance including endoscopic examination required and must complete trial. OKIWI BAY | NZ Metropolitan 22 June; lame; veterinary clearance required. SPEED WRITER | NZ Metropolitan 22 June; late scratching on veterinary advice; veterinary clearance required. The post 16-22 June 2025 appeared first on RIB. View the full article