Wandering Eyes

Del Mar's fall stakes schedule will include 20 stakes with 12 on turf. Eight stakes are in the closing two weeks of the meet as part of the track's highly favored Turf Festival.View the full article

Kentucky Downs has a huge card Sept. 7 including two Breeders' Cup "Win and You're In" qualifiers, the Kentucky Turf Cup Stakes (G2T) and the Ainsworth Turf Sprint Stakes (G2T).View the full article

It's about to be uber-busy season at Keeneland. The fall meet begins Oct. 4. But first there is the annual extravaganza that is the Keeneland September sale. That begins Sept. 9 and more than 4,000 horses are in the catalogue. The sale and the upcoming racing meet were among the topics of discussion when Keeneland CEO and President Shannon Arvin joined the TDN Writers' Room Podcast presented by Keeneland. Arvin is expecting that this will be a strong sale. “The economic indicators so far are really good,” she said. “We, obviously, watch closely the other yearling sales that precede ours, and we're thrilled to see how successful they were. Over the years, I have been told that the horse business follows the stock market. What? I've actually looked at the statistics. It's really not true at all, which could be good or bad, depending on the day and what it looks like on Sept. 9th and 10th. I think we've got a lot of excitement in the industry. This is always, as you said, kind of a stressful time for our breeders who are bringing their full stock to market for this massive yearling sale. But it's really exciting. And one of the best things about the September sale is that it's exciting from start to finish. You know, you can find gems all the way through the sale, and you have a lot of prominent buyers that shop all the way through the sale, and it pays off for them.” On the Wednesday prior to the Breeders' Cup, Keeneland will hold its first ever “Champions Sale” at Del Mar. Similar to what is done at the Royal Ascot meet, the sale will include horses that are entered in the Breeders' Cup. “We brainstorm a lot, “Arvin said. “The sales team sits around, says what would help the market, what would help the breeders, what would be fun? Sales and racing clearly go hand in hand. So this seemed like a great opportunity to try something different. The concept is that it's before the Breeders' Cup. Hopefully, we'll have entries that are either in Breeders' Cup races or on the undercard. It could also be shares or breeding rights to exciting stallions you might expect to see there, too.” Keeneland's racing meet has become so popular that all seats are sold out in advance. “The seats sell out in eight minutes,” she said. “So far as the general admissions go, we sell those out for our big days. We encourage everybody to get their GA tickets in advance. We used to report our attendance every race day, and I remember I'd get 10 emails a day with the attendance updates. We noticed all the scans, but we don't really report it anymore because we're not trying to pack in as many fans as possible. We really want it to be a good experience for the people that are here. So if you're in line for a hot dog, you can get a hot dog without waiting for 20 minutes.” In our breeding spotlight section, we took a look at the WinStar stallion Nashville. Elsewhere on the podcast, which is also sponsored by the Pennsylvania Horse Breeders' Association, West Point Thoroughbreds, WinStar, XBTV.com and Stonestreet Farm, the team of Randy Moss, Zoe Cadman and Bill Finley, reviewed the major races of the holiday weekend, including the GI Pacific Classic, the GI Travers S. and the GI Hopeful S. The list also included the GIII Nashville Derby, worth a cool $3.1 million, at Kentucky Downs. They wrapped up the Saratoga meet and sang the praises of Flavien Part and Dylan Davis, who both had strong meets. Moss weighed in on how disqualifications are handled in the sport and advocated for a system whereby the jockey can be fined or suspended, but the winning horse is not taken down. Click for the podcast video or audio only. The post Shannon Arvin Joins TDN Writers’ Room Podcast appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

It's easier to identify the phenomenon of a broodmare sire than to account for it. But we certainly have a modern marvel of the genre in Bernardini, whose posthumous consolidation of what had been an exceptionally precocious emergence in this sphere reached a fresh peak as the Saratoga summer drew to a close. On Saturday, one of his daughters produced Immersive (Nyquist) to win the GI Spinaway Stakes; and on Monday another Bernardini mare gave us Chancer McPatrick (McKinzie) to achieve a reciprocal status among the crop's colts in the GI Hopeful Stakes. Moreover the final weekend at the Spa also showed how distaff influence will continue to expand long after a sire's exit. Because Awesome Again, another resonant broodmare sire, was not only responsible for the dam of GI Jockey Club Gold Cup winner Highland Falls (Curlin), but also provided the granddams of both Immersive and the filly who ran so well against her, Quietside (Malibu Moon). Between them, Awesome Again and Bernardini respectively attest to the tendency of noted broodmare sires either to produce sons who excel in the same capacity, or daughters who themselves deliver broodmare sires. Into the latter bracket we can place Quiet American, whose debut crop of just 32 foals included Cara Rafaela, the dam of Bernardini, and Quiet Dance, dam of one Horse of the Year in Saint Liam and granddam of another in Gun Runner. Saint Liam obviously had limited opportunity to recycle his legacy, but from his single crop produced the dam of Sharp Azteca (as well as a champion female runner in Havre de Grace). We'll have to see whether more recent sons of Quiet American mares, like Charlatan and the globetrotter State Of Rest (Ire), can also excel at the family trade. Awesome Again, meanwhile, has extended a male line that has achieved particular celebrity through its parallel production. His half-brother Macho Uno, who sadly left us only this week, leaves no conspicuous legacy as a broodmare sire. But Awesome Again is one of several sons of Deputy Minister to have excelled in this capacity. Dehere found no male heir but produced the dams of City of Light, Midnight Lute and Will Take Charge. (Midnight Lute, incidentally, is the damsire of Ferocious, the Hopeful runner-up.) French Deputy is damsire of 98 stakes winners, while a daughter of Touch Gold has given us a rising sire in Upstart. Awesome Again, himself damsire of Accelerate and Keen Ice, did sire an outstandingly macho runner in Ghostzapper, but while the latter has been a very good stallion overall, his principal legacy will surely be as damsire of Justify. Another Ghostzapper mare has since produced Up to the Mark, and while Mystic Guide or Loggins may yet prove capable of extending the male line, in the meantime you wouldn't mind keeping one of their daughters. Bernardini's own prospects of salvaging a male succession were tragically diminished by the loss last summer of Art Collector, who had a berth reserved at Claiborne when succumbing to laminitis—the same condition that had claimed his sire two years previously. Stay Thirsty has offered Bernardini a couple of grandsons trying to get established at stud, in Coal Front and now Mind Control. But there's no question that Bernardini's principal legacy is in the hands of his daughters, who have already produced 92 stakes winners. What makes a great broodmare sire? Might they even deal in some kind of physiological inheritance, perhaps one as practical as helping the embryo or nursing foal to thrive? More probably these stallions, while often not especially competent at replicating those genetic attributes most adapted to athletic performance, have tended to be sent mares of good family—and ultimately something seems to percolate down from them. The outstanding example is Secretariat, who notoriously failed to establish a male line but whose daughters have had an immense influence through the likes of A.P. Indy, Storm Cat and Gone West. To me, a well-sown family represents a far sounder foundation than the alchemy so widely proposed between tapering sire-lines. Okay, so daughters of Bernardini have produced Maxfield and Speaker's Corner for Street Sense, and now Immersive as well as Nysos for Nyquist. But three of those four examples emerged from the home herd, with all due insight into the right physical match and so on. And the bottom line is that depth across a pedigree means that is won't matter which strands of the mesh ultimately come through, because it's all good stuff. True, there do appear to be prepotent sires that exalt ordinary mares. Yet the most dominant sire-lines seldom retain any coherent character, instead owing their reach to versatility. These are quite fundamental questions, seldom admitting definitive answers. All I know is that we often see clusters of distaff influence: the sires of Urban Sea and Toussaud, for instance, are both out of Buckpasser mares. And how many elite horses have mined their maternal ore from names like Princequillo, his daughter Somethingroyal, her sons Secretariat and Sir Gaylord, and the latter's sons Sir Ivor, Habitat and Drone? Bernardini's sire A.P. Indy was as influential as broodmare sire as in every other capacity. But his daughters, in their prolific success as producers, may well have drawn particularly on his storied dam Weekend Surprise as a combination of the ultimate distaff brands of the era: she was by Secretariat out of a Buckpasser mare, whose own dam was by Secretariat's half-brother Sir Gaylord. And, who knows, maybe Bernardini has done the same. Wheels within wheels, no doubt, but one way or another the one left by Bernardini is going to keep spinning for many a year yet. RIPPLES SPREADING FROM THE POND There's been something for everybody among the fillies to have so far emerged from the current juvenile crop. We've had the $1.8 million OBS sale-topper Miss Nooni (Win Win Win) flying high in California, and we've had the $3,500 Fasig October yearling The Queen's M G (Thousand Words) win the first two of the three big Saratoga prizes in this division. But her bid to complete the sweep ended in the slop last weekend when the GI Spinaway Stakes was instead dominated by two fillies that had never been anywhere near a sale ring. Immersive's dam Gap Year (Bernardini), herself homebred, has duly made some amends for the relatively modest production record of her own mother Dubai Escapade (Awesome Again), at least relative to the covers earned by the latter as a Grade I-winning half-sister to Madcap Escapade (Hennessy). But these breed-to-race programs call for immense patience, besides other more tangible resources. Godolphin's other homebred Grade I winner over the closing weekend of the meet, Highland Falls (Curlin), has duly continued a steep climb in the yield eventually resulting from Sheikh Mohammed's investment of $5.75 in her dam, GI Breeders' Cup Distaff winner Round Pond, on her retirement back in 2007. For a while this family seemed to hit a flat spot. With hindsight, admittedly, Round Pound's dam Gift of Dance (Trempolino) had been given limited opportunity besides the mating with Awesome Again that produced her champion. But Gift of Dance herself failed to win in 10 starts, while her siblings Pennekamp (Bering {GB}) and Black Minnaloushe (Storm Cat) essentially failed to live up to expectations at stud. Round Pond, naturally, was given covers commensurate with her value. Two of her seven foals never made the track, but we have already dwelt on why both could remain precious commodities, as daughters of Bernardini. Sure enough, one is Tyburn Brook, the dam of Speaker's Corner and his promising but fragile half-brother Knightsbridge (Nyquist). Of Round Pond's five starters, meanwhile, Long River (A.P. Indy) was seven when he became a surprise Group 1 winner in Dubai, while the Dubawi (Ire) filly Lake Lucerne persevered to six to gain her black-type win in the Albert M. Stall Memorial last year. Unsurprising, then, that the slow-burning fires of the great Curlin have made Highland Falls something of a work in progress. But his emphatic success in such a storied race puts him squarely among the leading older horses heading into the fall. Sometimes, whether on the track or off it, the long game will pay. McKINZIE SEIZES HIS BIG CHANCE As for Chancer McPatrick, he's obviously a massive boost to his sire McKinzie. Given how few freshman sires will ever again receive another book to match their first, in quality or quantity, it stands to reason that they need to get rolling quickly or face a ruthless turn of the commercial tide. So while one or two of his peers are conspicuously sweating on a breakout, the pressure is now off McKinzie—whose first stakes performer of any description has cut to the chase and won a Grade I. McKinzie certainly has the numbers behind him, his farm having unapologetically responded to the huge volume trademarked by Spendthrift and Ashford by corralling 214 mares into his debut book in 2021. That gives him a cavalry of 134 named foals, narrowly behind only Vekoma (138) in this intake. Their reception at the sales last year was impressive, given the choice available: behind his standout $1.2 million colt (out of Puca) at the September Sale, McKinzie managed a $90,000 median—three times the $30,000 conception fee. That suggested an effective replication of his imposing physique, which had sustained him through an exemplary career (Grade I winner at two, three and four), and it can only have served his cause that his dam Runway Model was such an accomplished juvenile. Admittedly she was by Petionville, with the next two dams by Houston and Navajo, pretty leftfield seeding for a top horse, but there's plenty of black type inlaid into the family. McKinzie had actually made a fairly quiet start on the track, with seven winners from 37 starters, but a Grade I headliner will always cover a multitude of sins. And after the historic embarrassment of last year's rookies, who mustered three graded stakes winners between them, this class is already up to five. Chancer McPatrick was one of several big scores for McKinzie at the 2-year-old sales, having brought $725,000 from John Kimmel and Nick Sallusto, acting for Sean Flanagan, when presented by Caliente Thoroughbreds at OBS April. (The previous month, in the same ring, Kimmel and Sallusto had been underbidders on Flanagan's behalf for a son of Flatter who made $1.3 million. That colt, of course, has turned out to be Ferocious—the rival Chancer McPatrick just managed to hold off on Labor Day.) Chancer McPatrick duly completed a spectacular pinhook, having been found by G S Inversiones Hipicas in the Denali consignment at the Fasig-Tipton July Sale for $260,000. He was bred by Rigney Racing from Bernadreamy (Bernardini), who never really built on her Churchill maiden success for that evolving program in 2017. As such she had seemed to contribute to a rather insipid production record for her dam, GI Alcibiades Stakes winner Dream Empress (Bernstein), in what proved a curtailed second career. But Chancer McPatrick's fourth dam is the prolific producer Execution (The Axe), and it looks as though those embers have been stoked up here. The mare's half-brother by Liam's Map will duly seek to profit from his upgrade as Hip 721 at Keeneland next week. The post Breeding Digest: Bernardini Mares Double Up at the Spa appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

If you really do reap what you sow, then Gavin Cromwell is set for a bumper harvest. A cool €1 million has been injected into the trainer's County Meath stable in the past year alone and the green shoots have already been sighted with the runners who were readied on the trainer's new five-furlong hill gallop burning up the track of late. Important winners they were, too. Diego Ventura (Ire) (Mehmas {Ire}) has been snapped up by Wathnan Racing after scoring on debut at Naas while Gowran Park winner An Chorr Dubh (Ire) (Coulsty {Ire}) was purchased by American clients for another good six-figure sum. Impressive business considering sending out winners on the level has been something of a side hustle for a man better associated with big-race success over jumps. That narrative is beginning to change. Princess Yaiza (Ire) (Casamento {Ire}) was one of Cromwell's first flag-bearers on the Flat but it's what the stable has done with its two-year-olds in recent seasons that has grabbed people's attention the most. From just three runners in the juvenile department at Royal Ascot, Cromwell has scooped the 2021 Queen Mary with Quick Suzy (Ire) (Profitable {Ire}) while Snellen (Ire) (Expert Eye {GB}) landed the Chesham Stakes last season. His other runner at the royal meeting, Mighty Eiru (Ire) (Inns Of Court {Ire}), finished runner-up in this year's Queen Mary. So almost a clean sweep. “The horses on the Flat have been huge for us,” Cromwell says. “We have 20 two-year-olds this year and we're definitely going to go out and buy more than that for next year. Diego Ventura was brilliant. We expected him to nearly go and win at Naas on what he was showing us at home and thankfully he did. “Listen, he cost 72 grand at the Tattersalls Ireland Breeze-Up Sale but he has obviously worked out. It was very simple dealing with Richard Brown and the Wathnan Racing team. Roger O'Callaghan [Tally-Ho Stud] recommended the horse to us. He said that he hadn't got the best out of the horse for the breeze and that he wouldn't mind keeping a leg. “When a vendor is willing to put his neck on the line on a horse, it can give that bit of confidence, so we ended up splitting the horse up three ways between myself, Roger and John Brennan.” He added, “I think there'll be loads of improvement in him. That's equally as important for our business. You need those horses to go on and do something for their new owners and thankfully we've a good track record with that. We sold Quick Suzy to Eclipse Thoroughbreds after she won her maiden at the Curragh and she went on to land the Queen Mary. You'd be hoping that the likes of Diego Ventura and An Chorr Dubh go on and do what you think they can.” Such deals have fuelled the development of Cromwell's yard from a simple 14-acre green field site to one of the most dynamic training facilities in the country. This bustling operation was hardly imaginable when Cromwelll and his wife Kiva lived in a one-bedroom apartment above the original block of eight stables for the best part of a decade when shoeing rather than training winners kept bread on the table. “I was probably very lucky that, when I was shoeing, I wasn't relying on training for an income,” he says. “Not only could I live off my farrier business, but I could also put some of that money into getting the yard set up. I was training for a good few years before I actually paid myself a penny out of the training business. “But I never set out to be a trainer at all. When I built the first eight stables, I was riding in point-to-points just as a bit of fun, and I said I wouldn't mind having a few pointers with a view towards selling them. I thought I had no chance of selling them but I knew that I'd have even less of a chance without a gallop so I bit the bullet and put in a two-and-a-half furlong round gallop. It's the biggest gallop that I could squeeze into the 14 acres. That's all I had for years but we trained Jer's Girl (Ire) (Jeremy {Ire}) and Espoir D'Allen (Fr) (Voix Du Nord {Fr}) off it so it mustn't have been too bad.” Kevin Ross [left]: has helped source a number of Cromwell's big winners on the Flat | Tattersalls If Jer's Girl provided a launchpad for the soon-to-be 50-year-old's training career, Espoir D'Allen could be viewed as the horse who confirmed Cromwell's arrival at the top tier of National Hunt racing. However, it took Cromwell a little longer to see it that way. “When I won the Champion Hurdle with Espoir D'Allen in 2019, I felt it was one that just fell my way,” he shares. “The three big ones on the day-Apple's Jade, Laurina and Buveur D'air-didn't perform and I just felt it was a lucky win. I nearly got more of a kick out of Flooring Porter (Ire) (Yeats {Ire}) winning his second Stayers' Hurdle a couple of years back. I suppose he's what you would call a rags-to-riches horse because I bought him myself as a store at the Land Rover Sale for just five grand and I do think we did a brilliant job with him.” In many ways, Cromwell's meteoric rise flies in the face of the elitist fears for Irish National Hunt racing. Here is a man who has challenged the sport's establishment and his prize for pulling himself up by his bootstraps is that Horse Racing Ireland has proposed that he, along with Willie Mullins, Gordon Elliott and Henry de Bromhead, will not be allowed enter their horses in a total of 60 races next season. The new series, which was designed to level the playing field of jumps racing in Ireland, has caused consternation within the training ranks and, with the situation likely to go legal, Cromwell is understandably keeping schtum. But you can venture that he is not happy. On the track, things have been chirpier. The stable is well on course to bettering last season's best-ever tally of 21 domestic Flat winners. It has been humming along similarly sweetly over jumps as well. A record 72 National Hunt wins were achieved last year and, with the new campaign in its infancy, there are 25 on the board already. Those are healthy numbers. Yet Cromwell can't relax. Like many top sports people, it's that fear of failure that drives him out of the bed before 5am every morning to draw up plans for an army of dual-purpose warriors that he has fought so hard to assemble. “I wouldn't even dream of taking a holiday now,” he says. “We've a great system in place but, if something were to happen if I did go away, I'm not sure I could live with myself.” A fear of failure is not the only thing sustaining this place. There are other motives behind keeping busy. “I don't drink,” he shares. “Used to alright. I gave it up seven years ago and, as the fella says, I didn't give it up because I didn't like it. It was just a conscious decision that I made. I actually said I'd go off it for a week and here I am seven years later. I was just getting too busy with the training and the shoeing. I used to always love a few pints in the evenings and, when I was shoeing, you'd always go into the pub on the way home from work. But there were times when you'd overstay your welcome.” So would you say there has been a direct correlation between kicking the bottle and the upsurge in your success as a trainer? “One hundred per cent. Look, there are some fellas who can do the two, and fair play to them, but I couldn't. The training was starting to go well when I was still drinking but, when I started to get really busy, I wasn't able to handle the two. When I gave up the drink, I noticed a major difference. The whole thing jumped a couple of levels. This job is all about making decisions. If things didn't go well, I used to blame myself and the drink. “Now, you still might have made the same decision, but you'd just be in the horrors and you'd blame being hungover for doing something stupid. If I make a bad decision these days, it's a conscious decision and I've made it with a clear mind and I've nothing or nobody else to blame. It's a lot easier to get up in the morning and to make those decisions now as well.” He continued, “Listen, life can be very boring. You have a different circle of friends to what you used to have and you don't get the same phone calls on a Friday evening. I don't miss it but, to be honest, I'd say it's one of the reasons why I keep myself so busy. Say if we have no runners on a Sunday afternoon or something, if I haven't something planned with the kids-Jake [12], Sophie [10] and Cameron [9]–, I find it the longest, most boring day ever. I don't know how some people can work five days a week.” Luckily for Cromwell, there are no signs of the yard slowing down. In actual fact, things are set to crank up a notch. All of the big-named stars of the jumps are back in full training while plans are afoot for the trainer-along with his new buying team of Kevin and Anna Ross-to hit the yearling sales harder than ever over the coming weeks and months. “There is definitely a bit more interest heading into the yearling sales,” he reveals. “And, with the year that we're after having on the Flat, I might be a bit more ballsier in gathering up a few more yearlings on spec. I have been buying them on spec over the past few years. We worry about getting different owners into them after we buy them. There are some owners who will take a leg in half a dozen yearlings and then there are others who might take a leg in one or two. “Nearly all of the yearlings are bought with a view towards trading them on and I do explain that to anyone who gets involved. Really, if you want to get involved to go racing and have fun, it's probably the wrong thing for you because, in an ideal world, you will only see the horse run once. And, if you do see the horse run a few times, the plan probably hasn't worked out.” He added, “To be fair to Kevin and Anna, they have been great since they came on board. The proof of their work is there for everyone to see this year. They bought very well. Any horse who has done anything, they've bought them. Mighty Eriu, Fiery Lucy (GB) (Without Parole {GB}) and An Chorr Dubh were all bought for less than 70 grand combined. It just shows that, when you do the work you can root out the good horses.” It has taken Cromwell years of back-breaking work to have built what is now a flourishing training business from scratch. And in his case, the old adage of 'if you're not moving forward, you get left behind,' certainly applies given the scale of investment to the yard. There is a stealthy seriousness to how he conducts business but it shouldn't be confused for coldness. Cromwell is just a man who prefers not to use two words when one will do and, while his arrival at the top tier of Irish racing came many years ago, it has taken much longer for the man himself to agree with such a statement. “I am comfortable in my own skin but I would never have been a very confident person. When I started training first, the thoughts of talking to owners or even the press used to kill me. I never did any public speaking of any type and even as a kid at school, if there was a play or something, I'd be the fella hiding at the back. I've gained a lot of confidence in recent years.” He added, “Up until very recently, I was seen by many people just as Gordon Elliott's farrier who trained a few horses on the side. And to be honest, it probably took me a while to let go of the farrier business and dive into the training thing full-time. I still have to think like that because you have to be careful not to let things slip in this business. You are only ever as good as your last winner and I've seen it so many times that, when someone goes through a bad spell, things can go downhill very fast. I don't want to let this slip. This really is a game where, if you're not growing you're dying, so you need to keep the revs up the whole time.” The post Cromwell: ‘If You’re Not Growing You’re Dying And I Don’t Want To Let This Slip’ appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

The new Goffs Breeze-up Sale will be held on Irish Derby weekend 2025, it was announced on Wednesday. The breeze will take place at Naas Racecourse on Thursday, June 26 ahead of the sale at Goffs before evening racing at the Curragh on Friday, June 27. Previously announced for early-June, the later date for the Irish Derby Breeze-up Sale is intended to accommodate quality two-year-olds who may have missed an earlier sale. The increased likelihood of optimum ground conditions at that point in the summer was identifed by Goffs as another reason behind the decision to push back the date, as well as the additional time for sales preparation it allows. “The move to Irish Derby weekend follows further consultation with both buyers and vendors of breeze-up horses,” said Goffs chief executive Henry Beeby. “In particular, I wish to acknowledge the Breeze-Up Consignors Association (BUCA) and their members whose feedback we have welcomed and carefully considered in our decision. “As with all Goffs sales, we will work tirelessly alongside Irish Thoroughbred Marketing (ITM) to provide the best market for those vendors who support the sale. We are investing a huge amount of time and resource in delivering international buyers to Kildare Paddocks and that also applies to this new breeze-up sale. The added benefit of the Irish Derby Festival taking place on our doorstep in Kildare will only help this goal.” In line with the Goffs Customer Loyalty Scheme, no vendor commission will apply for yearlings purchased at Goffs in Ireland or the UK this autumn when they are sold at the Irish Derby Breeze-up Sale. Nominations for the Goffs Irish Derby Breeze-up Sale will be taken alongside those for the established Goffs UK Breeze-up Sale at Doncaster. The post New Goffs Breeze-up Sale Confirmed for Irish Derby Weekend 2025 appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

A leading trainer at Louisiana Downs over the last decade, Joseph Foster accomplished a career milestone Sept. 3 when Flash N Class became his 1,000th winner in the track's opening race.View the full article

Charlotte C. Weber has been chosen as the interim board chair of the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame through a vote by the institution's executive committee. Weber, previously a vice chair, will serve in the chair position formerly held by John Hendrickson, who passed away Aug. 19. Hendrickson was the museum's chair since 2017. Weber has been a museum trustee since 2001. The post Weber Named Interim Board Chair of Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

Del Mar's Bing Crosby Season, which opens Oct. 31 and will run an extra week through Dec. 1 this year, will play host to the Breeders' Cup championship Nov. 1 and 2. In addition to the championship races, Del Mar will offer 20 stakes worth $3,150,000 during the meet. The schedule is highlighted by a pair of Grade I events: the $300,000 GI Hollywood Derby is scheduled for Nov. 30 and the $300,000 GI Matriarch Stakes will be run Dec. 1. Six stakes races tied to the Breeders' Cup have been added to the season's 2024 line-up. The quartet added to the Friday card are all for 2-year-olds: the Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance at a mile on the turf; the Golden State Juvenile Fillies for California-breds at seven furlongs; the Ken Maddy Stakes for fillies and mares aged two and up at five panels on the turf, and the Golden State Juvenile for California-breds at seven furlongs. Added to the Breeders' Cup Saturday card are a pair of Grade III stakes for fillies and mares: the $200,000 Bayakoa Stakes at a mile on the main track and the $300,000 Goldikova Stakes for fillies and mares at a mile on the turf course. “The combination of our usual fall attractions and the return of the Breeders' Cup this year will make for a very special Bing Crosby Season this time around,” said Del Mar vice president and racing secretary David Jerkens. “We believe we offer the best racing in America during the fall and our additional week this time around just adds more sparkle to a season already filled with luster.” To view the complete stakes schedule, click here. The post Del Mar’s Bing Crosby Meet to Feature 20 Stakes Races appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

James A. Philpott, Jr., one of the original founding directors of Breeders' Cup Limited, died Monday. He was 77. Philpott served as the volunteer corporate secretary of the Breeders' Cup for 30 years. In a statement, the organization said, “It is with great sadness that we learned about the passing of Jim Philpott. Mr. Philpott served the Breeders' Cup with great honor, distinction and with extraordinary business acumen for the first 25 years of the company's existence. He was one of 20 original 'members' who contributed initial funding to form the company. As such, he stayed active as a Member/Trustee his whole life. Mr. Philpott served as the corporate secretary from 1993 until 2009, maintaining the bylaws and minutes of the Board and Committee meetings. Prior to that, he served as the assistant corporate secretary to Charles Taylor. We extend our deepest sympathies to Mr. Philpott's family and loved ones.” A graduate of Washington & Lee School of Law, where he served as editor-in-chief of its law review and graduated summa cum laude, Philpott began his career as Clerk of Court for the Fourth Circuit in Asheville, North Carolina, before practicing law in New York City. Throughout his education, he also served as a captain in the US Army. Philpott's involvement with the Thoroughbred industry began in 1978 when he assisted the Kentucky Secretary of Agriculture in developing the original Code of Practice for contagious equine metritus. He moved to Kentucky in 1980 to become Executive Vice President and General Counsel of Gainesway Farm. He also served as Vice President and General Counsel of Live Foal Co. from 1986 to 1990. He worked in private practice in Lexington for many years before joining the law firm of Stoll Keenon Ogden in 2008. He was elected president of the American College of Equine Attorneys in 2016. Philpott served as Vice President of the Washington & Lee School of Law Alumni Council for several years, as well as on the board of The Lexington Philharmonic and The Lexington School. He is survived by his children; John Harman Philpott and his wife, Mary Laura; Cameron Philpott Chason and her husband, Jeremy; and James Hundley Philpott and his wife, Emily, as well as his grandchildren: William Cameron Philpott, Mary Genevieve Philpott, Claire Brooks Chason, Charlotte Hundley Chason, Shelby Harman Chason, Marilyn Russell Philpott, and James Hunter Philpott. He is also survived by his sister, Martha Philpott King. He was preceded in death by his wife, Judy Mauze Philpott. The Philpott family will hold a private service. Memorials to a charity of one's choice are preferred in lieu of flowers. The post James Philpott Passes Away appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

"Glenn was the heart and soul of Ellis Park's track maintenance for decades,"- Dan Bork, racing secretary of Ellis Park.View the full article

Churchill Downs has committed $150,000 over three years to support educational programs at the Kentucky Derby Museum. The money will allow the museum to continue offering free in-house field trips during January and February and free outreach programming throughout the school year, extending the museum's reach to schools that may not be able to travel to Louisville. “We are excited to partner with Churchill Downs on this important initiative that directly supports our mission to engage, educate, and excite students about the Kentucky Derby,” said Patrick Armstrong, President and CEO of the Kentucky Derby Museum. “This generous commitment allows us to continue offering free educational programs that our instructors are so passionate about. With our organizations' shared love of education, we're proud to work together with Churchill Downs to not only preserve the Derby's legacy, but also inspire the next generation.” The post Kentucky Derby Museum, Churchill Downs Partner on Educational Programs appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

Amo Racing's Cathedral (GB) (Too Darn Hot {GB}–War And Peace {GB}, by Frankel {GB}) was a talking horse making her debut at Lingfield on Wednesday and the Ralph Beckett trainee duly delivered with an impressive success in the six-furlong maiden. Sent off the 1-2 favourite under David Egan, the €800,000 joint-top-priced filly at the Arqana May Breeze-Up tracked the strong early pace before being launched from the top of the straight. Brushing aside Godolphin's Warm Summer (Ire) (Blue Point {Ire}) passing the furlong pole, the granddaughter of the G1 Matron Stakes heroine Emulous (GB) (Dansili {GB}) from the immediate family of Bluestocking (GB) (Camelot {GB}) powered to a 4 1/4-length success from that rival. Debut victory for Cathedral! This €800,000 @amoracingltd filly – who has an entry in next week's G1 Moyglare Stud Stakes – scores convincingly for @DavidEgan99 on her first start at @LingfieldPark… pic.twitter.com/ETgpAWWuLU — At The Races (@AtTheRaces) September 4, 2024 The post Amo Racing’s Too Darn Hot Arqana Breeze Up Sensation Wins On Debut appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

Southwell Racecourse will be opening its doors for free to members of the public who wish to watch City Of Troy (Justify) in action on September 20. The Aidan O'Brien-trained colt will undertake a racecourse gallop prior to heading to Del Mar for the Breeders' Cup Classic. American starting stalls and an as yet unconfirmed team of stable-mates will join City Of Troy at the Nottinghamshire track as he is put through his paces. Mark Clayton, executive director at Southwell, has confirmed that racing fans wishing to attend will need to register for a free ticket to the event once arrangements have been finalised. He said, “We have decided that on September 20, everybody will be welcome to come and watch City Of Troy. “We haven't got the times yet of when he will gallop, but once we have that, we will release a statement with the relevant information. “All of the public are welcome for free, they will just need to pre-register on our website. “That is not live yet and until that is confirmed, we won't be accepting bookings, but we are expecting arrangements to be confirmed ASAP, then it will go live on our website. We will look after everybody and what an occasion it will be for us.” O'Brien has previously galloped both Galileo (Ire) and Giant's Causeway at Southwell ahead of Breeders' Cup assignments and more recently Mick Appleby took last year's Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf Sprint winner Big Evs (Ire) (Blue Point {Ire}) for a spin on the Tapeta all-weather track before his trip to Santa Anita. Clayton added, “Who knows, it could be the last time we see City Of Troy on these shores and he's going off to try to do something special. “Aidan O'Brien coming to Southwell is quite a unique experience and it only happens maybe once a decade, so it will be nice to make something of it. “We're also hoping to entice Big Evs back to do a gallop before the Breeders' Cup like he did last year. Mick has mooted it to me but it is still to be confirmed.” The post Public Welcomed by Southwell for City Of Troy Gallop appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

Former Ellis Park track superintendent Glenn Thompson passed away Saturday. He was 88. Thompson began his career at Ellis Park at age 16, working on the maintenance crew before eventually becoming track superintendent. Known for his unwavering commitment to track safety, Thompson often started his workday as early as 2 a.m. to prepare the surface for morning training. “I've always loved the sport, the horses and the people,” Thompson said in a 2019 interview. “Every day, I did my best for the horses. It was never just a job–it was a passion.” Raised in Henderson, where the Green and Ohio Rivers meet, Thompson balanced his time between farming and his duties at Ellis Park. His dedication to the track and its community was unparalleled, and he often remarked, “Horses are all I know. That's why I do this.” “Glenn was the heart and soul of Ellis Park's track maintenance for decades,” said Dan Bork, racing secretary at Ellis Park. “His dedication to the safety and care of our racing surface was unmatched. His work ethic and passion for the sport set a standard that will be felt for generations to come.” Thompson's son Clifton also served as a track superintendent, and his grandson Garrett worked alongside his father and grandfather. Thompson is also survived by his daughter, Rhonda; granddaughter, Delaney; siblings Billy Thompson and Sheila Echols; and his significant other, Tracey Keller. Funeral services will be held at 2 p.m. Saturday at Tomblinson Funeral Home in Henderson, with burial to follow at Fernwood Cemetery. Visitation begins at 10 a.m. The post Glenn Thompson Passes Away appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

Dollars & Sense with Frank AngstView the full article

Cliff Goss has many adoring words when describing Casino Princess(NZ) (Casino Prince), but there was only one to sum up her performance in the Robert Bruce Clothier Memorial (1600m) at Matamata on Wednesday, tough. Casino Princess has put the 93-year-old horseman’s name up in lights over recent months, with a streak of consistent displays culminating in the Listed Tauranga Classic (1400m) crown in June. She found 1200m a touch sharp in the start following, but Goss was confident a mile would be right up her alley and with a four-kilogram claim courtesy of apprentice Gareth Lahoud, she was the top pick in the market closing at $2.40. Jumping away positively, Casino Princess was allowed to ease back and settled beautifully into fourth position off the fence, while Electric Time led the field up to the home turn. Casino Princess loomed strongly into contention and was set to chase down a game Chevron, who held the mare out until the final bounds where she pinned her ears back and found the line by a short head. Goss had plenty of admiration for Casino Princess following the race, a six-year-old he owns alongside Darryl Heaphy. “I was surprised, she was very tough,” Goss said. “I thought she had gone and would run second, but she knuckled down and fought the other horse off. “She’s just tough, even at home she’s the boss. It’s hard to get those types of horses, but she’s really good. “It was a very good ride, the reason I went for that (the claim) was because I thought the track might be pretty heavy and with 53(kg) on her back, she should win. “There is a mile here next month, that’ll be her next race.” The race Goss was referring to is the Listed Team Wealleans Matamata Cup (1600m), which will be run at the Waikato venue on October 5. For Lahoud, the win got the young hoop on the board for the season, and it was also his first success under new employer Chris Wood. “She’s a tough mare, she just keeps finding and finding. She didn’t handle the ground too well, but she just keeps fighting,” Lahoud said. “I saw him (Chevron) in the last furlong and thought I am going to catch him, but she just put her head down. “I’m very happy with him (Wood), he keeps me humble and working hard and he’s got me riding well.” Purchased for just $5,000 by Goss and Heaphy via gavelhouse.com in December 2019, the daughter of Casino Princess has won six of her 13 starts and more than $140,000 in stakes. View the full article

The 57-year-old takes six runners to Sunday’s season opener, including Karma in the Class Two Tai Mo Shan Handicap (1,400m)View the full article

What 2024 Moir Stakes Where Moonee Valley Racecourse – Melbourne, Victoria When Saturday, September 7, 2024 Prizemoney $750,000 Distance 1000m Conditions Weight For Age 2023 winner Imperatriz (5) | T: Mark Walker | J: Opie Bosson (56.5kg) Visit Dabble Sparks are set to fly when a star-studded field assembles at the Moonee Valley 1000m on Saturday for the 2024 Moir Stakes. Four Group 1 winners are in the field, while a string of up-and-coming sprinters are looking to set an early mark for the spring. Can the new-season three-year-olds stand up in weight-for-age company? Or will proven types like I Wish I Win or Chain Of Lightning exert their class? 2024 Moir Stakes odds Estriella — the boom horse from Melbourne’s autumn carnival — heads up the Moir Stakes betting at $3.50, drifting slightly from the opening quote of $2.80 after drawing barrier eight. Golden Slipper winner Lady Of Camelot has been backed in from $5 to $3.80 after drawing well in barrier two, while proven Group 1 sprinter I Wish I Win at $5 is the only other runner in single figures with horse racing bookmakers. Three-year-old sprinters Coleman ($11) and Hayasugi ($15) are the best of the rest. 2024 Moir Stakes speed map The Moir Stakes is often won within the first 100m. Lady of Camelot from barrier two looks to be the likely leader, with Caballus and Estriella needing to come from wide gates to land close to the speed. Mornington Glory and Coleman will likely lob just behind the leaders, with Johnny Rocker and Hayasugi settling midfield with a touch of cover. Peter Moody & Katherine Coleman duo I Wish I Win and Chain Of Lightning will likely be run off their feet early, but both will be charging home late. Continue reading for HorseBetting’s top selections and $100 betting strategy for the 2024 Moir Stakes. Recommended! The Better Bettors! Australian-owned and operated bookmaker! Join MarantelliBet Moir Stakes 2024 preview & form Lady Of Camelot has never run a bad race in her life, and in her first start as a three-year-old, the reigning Golden Slipper (1200m) champion is going to take some catching. With just 50kg on her back under Zac Lloyd, the pair’s chances were handed a massive boost when drawing barrier two while other likely speed influences drawn out on the track. She was grabbed on the line in a hotly run Blue Diamond Stakes (1200m) to suggest if she goes quickly in the first half of the race, she can keep bobbing late inside the final 100m. With all bar Mornington Glory coming to the Moir first-up, a fitness edge could prove beneficial for Gavin Bedggood’s in-form sprinter. The son of Shalaa was a handy winner in Listed grade last time out after being forced to travel three wide at this course and trip. Gate one is key to his chances, considering he lacks a bit of class on his rivals, but on the back of a breakneck speed, Mornington Glory will get his opportunity to pounce. Estriella may finish the spring as one of the best sprinters in the country, but the wide draw at the Moonee Valley 1000m first-up has to be a concern. She dominated against her own age group throughout the autumn before a somewhat disappointing run against the older girls in the Robert Sangster Stakes (1200m). Blake Shinn will likely get caught three wide from barrier eight, but she might just prove too good for her rivals. Hayasugi, I Wish I Win and Chain Of Lightning will all be launching late, with the unique surroundings potentially bringing them undone over the 1000m. Still, any one of those winning would not shock. 2024 Moir Stakes selections & best bets Selections: 8 LADY OF CAMELOT 2 MORNINGTON GLORY 8 ESTRIELLA 9 HAYASUGI $100 betting strategy $100 win Lady Of Camelot (#8) @ +280 with Neds Moir Stakes 2024 final field 1. I Wish I Win (5) T: Peter Moody & Katherine Coleman J: Luke Nolen W: 58.5kg F: x123x Age: 6YO Colour: Black Sex: Gelding Sire: Savabeel Dam: Make A Wish (NZ) +350 -142.86 2. Mornington Glory (1) T: Gavin Bedggood J: Ethan Brown W: 58.5kg F: 115×3 Age: 6YO Colour: Brown Sex: Gelding Sire: Shalaa (IRE) Dam: Crowned Glory +1600 +320 3. Johnny Rocker (3) T: Nick Ryan J: Mark Zahra W: 58.5kg F: x0821 Age: 5YO Colour: Chestnut Sex: Horse Sire: Jukebox Dam: Margene +1600 +320 4. Caballus (9) T: Bjorn Baker J: Joshua Parr W: 58.5kg F: x311x Age: 4YO Colour: Bay Sex: Horse Sire: I Am Invincible Dam: Calming Influence +1400 +280 5. Chain Of Lightning (4) T: Peter Moody & Katherine Coleman J: Damian Lane W: 56.5kg F: x6611 Age: 6YO Colour: Grey Sex: Mare Sire: Fighting Sun Dam: Magic Art +1200 +240 6. Estriella (8) T: Ciaron Maher J: Blake Shinn W: 56.5kg F: x5111 Age: 4YO Colour: Bay Sex: Mare Sire: I Am Invincible Dam: Madrigals +200 -250 7. Coleman (6) T: Matt Laurie J: Kerrin McEvoy W: 52kg F: x3230 Age: 3YO Colour: Bay Sex: Colt Sire: Pierata Dam: Sboog +900 +180 8. Lady Of Camelot (2) T: Gai Waterhouse & Adrian Bott J: Zac Lloyd W: 50kg F: x2121 Age: 3YO Colour: Bay Sex: Filly Sire: Written Tycoon Dam: Miss Debutante +350 -142.86 9. Hayasugi (7) T: Clinton McDonald J: Jamie Kah W: 50kg F: x0111 Age: 3YO Colour: Bay Sex: Filly Sire: Royal Meeting (IRE) Dam: China Road +1000 +200 Horse racing tips View the full article

There is no time like early spring to start dreaming of Derby glory, and that is the case for connections of impressive Sandown winner Giddy Up Warrior. The son of Saxon Warrior is a graduate of last year’s New Zealand Bloodstock Ready To Run Sale and has been widely promoted through media personality Gareth Hall’s SEN radio show Giddy Up, after which the gelding is named. Prepared by Ben, Will and JD Hayes, Giddy Up Warrior relished getting out to 1500m to prevail as the $2.25 favourite at his third raceday start, having put the writing on the wall when runner-up to Delivering at Sandown last start. “Every start he has just improved and even today he was still a bit raw,” Ben Hayes said. “When he hit the front, he wobbled around and didn’t quite know how to put them away but it was a great ride by Mark Zahra. “He had a beautiful run, came down the middle of the track and it was good to see him win. “There was good speed and he relaxed and did everything right. It is great for Gareth and his ownership group and a good way to get in his good books. “Credit to my brother JD. Gareth and JD teamed up and they picked this horse up from the Ready To Run Sale in New Zealand so it has been a nice quick turnaround for everyone and they have enjoyed it. “We are hoping he can get out over a bit further. He has got to tell us every time when we ask him to but he is bred to. He is a lovely long horse, and he is only improving into the preparation, and he could be a sneaky Derby chance or something like that.” Winning rider Mark Zahra was also impressed with the performance. “It was a good win. He feels like a horse that will get over a bit of ground,” Zahra said. “I was hoping I’d be a spot closer to be honest but I didn’t have the speed so I had to travel where I could. “I was stuck behind a horse in front and as froggy (Craig Newitt) does, he pinched a margin (on runner-up Brullen). It was a good effort as he had to quickly change gears as they put four or five lengths on me, and he toughed it out and was good across the line.” By former Coolmore shuttler Saxon Warrior, Giddy Up Warrior is out of the handy staying mare Persian Star, who won seven races including the Listed Andrew Ramsden Stakes (3200m). Th Lindsay Park went to $140,000 to purchase Giddy Up Warrior from the draft of Riversely Park at last year’s Ready To Run Sale. The A$2 million VRC Derby (2500m) at Flemington is the long-range target on November 2. View the full article

The spring racing season kicks off in earnest at Moonee Valley this Saturday with the highly anticipated Group 1 Moir Stakes (1000m). A field of seasoned sprinters and rising stars will battle it out for the coveted $750,000 prize. Leading the charge is Golden Slipper champion Lady Of Camelot, trained by the famed Gai Waterhouse […] The post Moir Stakes 2024 Field & Odds for Moonee Valley on Saturday appeared first on HorseRacing.com.au. View the full article

What Cranbourne Races Where Cranbourne Turf Club – 50 Grant St, Cranbourne VIC 3977 When Thursday, September 5, 2024 First Race 1pm AEST Visit Dabble Cranbourne Turf Club is set to host a stacked nine-race meeting on Thursday, September 5. A near-perfect spring day is forecast, and with the track already a Good 4, there should be no excuses for fancied runners throughout the day. The rail comes out 7m for the entire circuit, with the Cranbourne races commencing at 1pm AEST. Best Bet at Cranbourne: Western Conqueror Western Conqueror has improved with each run this campaign and, at the fourth time of asking, has found the right race to break maiden ranks. The three-year-old gelding has been run down in the shadows of the post in his last two starts, but he is set to gain a relatively uncontested lead on Thursday. With the rail out 7m, it could favour those up on speed, and look for Western Conqueror to take advantage of that. Best Bet Race 3 – #14 Western Conqueror (4) 3yo Gelding | T: Lloyd Kennwell & Lucy Yeomans | J: Blake Shinn (57kg) +220 with PlayUp Next Best at Cranbourne: Fretta Fretta put in an eye-catcher first-up at Sandown on July 24 before a bit of a forgive run last time out. The Frankel mare has seemingly found a weak BM64, and stepping up to the 2000m for just the second time, she will take some holding out. There should be a genuine tempo over 2060m, and as long as Fretta handles the 60kg, Damian Lane can guide her to a third career victory. Next Best Race 8 – #6 Fretta (10) 5yo Mare | T: Mick Price & Michael Kent (Jnr) | J: Damian Lane (60kg) +340 with Bet365 Best Value at Cranbourne: Sienna Clare Nick Ryan’s Sienna Clare hit the line strongly first-up at Echuca on August 11. He was beaten by two lengths after 31 weeks away from the track, so he should derive great benefit from that run. Jamie Mott will have him settled in the second half of the field, but with even luck, he can overpower his rivals at the 1200m this time around. Best Value Race 6 – #5 Sienna Clare (8) 4yo Mare | T: Nick Ryan | J: Jamie Mott (57.5kg) +800 with Neds Thursday quaddie tips for Cranbourne races Cranbourne quadrella selections Thursday, September 5, 2024 1-4-5-6-10 2-5-6-10 2-6-10 1-3-8-10-11 | Copy this bet straight to your betslip Horse racing tips
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Lux Libertas winning at Matamata on Wednesday. Photo: Kenton Wright (Race Images) Lux Libertas overcame plenty of adversity early in her life, but the four-year-old left unfortunate beginnings behind her when completing a winning hattrick at horse racing bookmakers. In the hands of Warren Kennedy, Lux Libertas jumped away positively from the inside draw and settled one back on the fence, while the 12-horse field stayed in close quarters throughout the running. Nearing the home turn, Kennedy moved off the rail and hit the lead soon after straightening, with the mare game in fighting off a strong late surge from Baronet to score by a long neck. Kennedy has been aboard Lux Libertas at each of her three successes and indicated she is deserving of higher targets. “I thought it was a very good win, especially on a testing track like it was today,” he said. “She’s run on heavy tracks and handled it well, she’s big and strong and it was a good win. “Although the margin wasn’t big, it was better than what it looked like. She’s a filly that we’ve been settling and the way the track was running today, it looked like it would be on-speed. “I didn’t want to be caught not getting a run and switching ground looking for runs, so I went for the trail and she never really switched off. She travelled up really hard and found a good kick off that, Opie’s loomed up to me but she’s found extra gears. “Three in a row is not easy to do, she’s been placed really well by Lance and Andrew and when I first won on her, I said she was a stakes filly. “Hopefully they’ll step her up now to that level and see how she competes there.” Kylie Bax, who co-owns the mare bred by her parents, Graham and Helen-Gaye Bax, alongside JML Bloodstock, revealed that after the birth of Lux Libertas was far from smooth sailing. “She’s a very special girl, she’s got a big heart and is a lovely filly,” Bax said. “She had a rough start to life, her mother didn’t want to know her, so I think she just relishes all the love and attention she gets from Wexford, she wants to be here. “The mother died after a while, but we had another mare that needed a foal at Blandford and there you go, she was adopted out. “I pre-train her and broke her in, and I think she’s got a lot of class. I don’t think a better track will be any problem at all, she’s got a lot of heart.” Horse racing news View the full article

Pearl Of Alsace during her exhibition gallop at Cambridge Synthetic last week. Photo: Kenton Wright (Race Images) Quality mare Pearl Of Alsace is back on track to open her spring campaign ahead of a later than originally anticipated involvement in the Hawke’s Bay Spring Carnival. Tavistock’s daughter will resume on Saturday at Ruakaka, where stablemate and Group 1 Melbourne Cup (3200m) hopeful Mahrajaan will also be in action. The Sir Peter Vela-bred and raced Pearl Of Alsace failed to trial to the satisfaction of trainers Shaune Ritchie and Colm Murray at Taupo last month, but they have been encouraged by her subsequent progress. “She came back from a spell in superb condition, she put a lot of weight on and with muscle comes a bit of fat that we’ve had to work off,” Ritchie said. “We got her rolling and ran out of time to get her fit enough for the Group One (Tarzino Trophy, 1400m) first-up. “They just don’t win when they blow that hard after under-performing in a barrier trial. “Since the trial, she’s had a sizzling exhibition gallop at Cambridge last week and she’s currently up at the beach and had a good gallop on Wednesday morning.” Ritchie is confident she can make her presence felt at Ruakaka before attention turns to Hawke’s Bay. “She will strip ready enough for this race for sure and obviously we are expecting her to improve and be at her peak for the final leg at Hastings (Group 1 Livamol Classic, 2040m),” he said. “Kelly Myers is going to ride her and it’s a good booking, she is riding very well. “She is going to need to perform on Saturday and I am confident that she will and then we’ll go to the Arrowfield Stud Plate (Group 1, 1600m) before the Livamol.” The stable’s 3200m specialist Mahrajaan will be second-up in the Tai Tokerau Cup (2200m) after delivering a pleasant surprise when a resuming third on the course over 1400m. “I expected him to run last when it started raining, I was worried that he wouldn’t get going at all,” Ritchie said. “Every prep we’ve given him he’s come back with his head down lower and hit the line stronger and it’s encouraging signs that he can round a race off like he did the other day. “We’re getting him up over ground earlier than most Melbourne Cup (Group 1, 3200m) aspirants. “He has compressed the weights, but we’d like to bank a bit of money for the flight over and the accommodation and he’s ready to run a big race.” As long as he performs up to expectations, Mahrajaan will cross the Tasman to continue his build-up. “If he goes well, he will have his next run in Melbourne and I’m keen to give him a look at Flemington, so he’ll run in the Bart Cummings (Gr.3, 2500m),” Ritchie said. “After that, I thought a race like the Moonee Valley Gold Cup (Gr.2, 2500m) might suit because it’s set weights and penalties and falls 10 days before the Melbourne Cup.” Meanwhile, the stable’s rising staying star Nereus will spearhead the team at Hastings under Opie Bosson following his resuming fifth. “He didn’t cop the Ruakaka track last time and he had a good blow and he’s improved a good deal,” Ritchie said. “He should be extremely competitive and we’ve decided to put the blinkers back on him. We’ve only done that once and he accelerated quickly at Trentham to win by three and a-half lengths. “We’ll make a call after Saturday and we’re hoping to get him to Melbourne, but he’s got to get up in the ratings, so this is a race we’re keen to try and win. “We’ll get some advice from Opie whether we need to use the blinkers when we step to 2000m plus.” The Waikato Stud-bred and raced Nereus won four times last preparation, including victory in the Group 2 Awapuni Gold Cup (2100m) before finishing sixth in the Listed Mornington Cup (2100m) Horse racing news View the full article

Ka Ying Rising is a five-time winner from seven starts. It’s easy to see why trainer David Hayes is excited about Ka Ying Rising, the sprinting sensation who was last season crowned Hong Kong Champion Griffin and Most Improved Horse. Returning in Sunday’s (8 September) HK$3.72 million Class 1 HKSAR Chief Executive’s Cup Handicap (1200m) at Sha Tin, the four-year-old begins a campaign that Hayes hopes encompasses a HK$26 million Group 1 Hong Kong Sprint (1200m) tilt. “The plan is for his fourth race to be the Hong Kong Sprint. After this (Sunday), he’ll have two more ‘prep’ races. I didn’t want to wait to bring him back in those races because I stopped him early last season. He’s had a nice break and he needs to get racing,” Hayes said. The HK$5.35 million Group 2 Premier Bowl Handicap (1200m) and HK$5.35 million Group 2 BOCHK Private Banking Jockey Club Sprint (1200m) shape as potential second and third runs. The five-time winning Ka Ying Rising closed his debut campaign with a smart victory in the HK$4.2 million Group 3 Sha Tin Vase Handicap (1200m) under a featherweight impost (115lb), while on Sunday he carries 135lb as the highest rated runner in the race. “He’s first-up and will carry a big weight, so whatever he does there’s a lot of things to say that he’ll be getting better and better as the ‘prep’ goes on. I think he’s done enough to say that he’ll be very competitive and go very close,” Hayes said. “Any horse who can go from a rating of 52 to 111 in a single season – they’re pretty smart.” The bay finished second in a turf barrier trial last Saturday over 1000m at Sha Tin, cruising through his hit-out under jockey Zac Purton in a time of 57.32s behind Magic Control. Purton rides again this weekend. “Because it’s close to the race, we didn’t let him go too hard. He still ran fast time and I thought he looked pretty good doing it without being put under pressure. “He’s always been a bit on the slim and angular side. He’s stronger than he was last season, for sure. I think we’ll see a stronger version of him when he parades on Sunday,” Hayes said. The New Zealand-bred Ka Ying Rising has carried 135lb to success previously, doing so in Class 3 as he got the better of Call Me Glorious, who subsequently won two more races last term by a combined eight and three quarter lengths. “He’s first-up, big weight and a possible wet track – that’s not easy for any horse, however, he did carry a big weight as a three-year-old in Class 3, so he’s a proven weight carrier. Some horses can’t carry weight, but he can,” Hayes said. Hayes is also represented by Harmony N Blessed (115lb) in the feature race. Flying Ace (131lb), Lucky With You (127lb), Majestic Knight (127lb), Packing Treadmill (123lb), Beauty Charge (119lb), Superb Capitalist (118lb), Beauty Waves (115lb) and Baby Crystal (115lb) are also engaged. “It might be a bridge too far for him (Harmony N Blessed), but there’s no races to run in him and he needs the run,” Hayes said. Hayes also saddles Sunny Baby, Youth Power, Metro Warrior, Snowalot, Amazing Run, Gallant Crown, Master Mastermind and Awesome Treasure this weekend. “He (Master Mastermind) trialled very well a couple of times last season and he trialled well last Saturday,” Hayes said. With more horses in his care, Hayes is optimistic of bettering last season’s score of 47 wins. “I would be very disappointed if I couldn’t beat last year’s tally, because last year I had around 48 horses for most of the year and this year I’m starting with 65. Hopefully it’ll be a significant improvement on last year,” he said. Horse racing news View the full article