Wandering Eyes

Grants totaling over $1 million were awarded by Thoroughbred Charities of America (TCA) this year, the organization announced in a release. Eighty six organizations were approved for a grant, including 45 aftercare organizations, 20 backstretch and farm worker programs, six equine-assisted therapy organizations, three Thoroughbred incentive programs, and one research organization. Over the last 34 years, TCA has awarded more than $27 million in grants. TCA grants were bolstered this year by a bequest from late California Thoroughbred owner Nancy Messineo. Messineo was devoted to the well-being of animals, specifically horses. She was a strong supporter of Thoroughbred aftercare efforts and routinely worked to rehome her former racers. In addition to TCA, Messineo's estate bequeathed funds to the California Retirement Management Account (CARMA), the Wild Horse Sanctuary, the Red Bucket Sanctuary, and the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. “Each year TCA's Grants Committee works hard to ensure that we are an outstanding steward of the donations that we receive,” said Erin Halliwell, executive director of TCA. “This year is no different, as the committee carefully reviewed over 100 applications. Our grants are only possible thanks to our generous donors, and we are thrilled to be able to support so many impactful, effective, and change-making organizations in our industry because of this support.” Grant applications for the 2025 grant cycle will be available in mid-January. The post Thoroughbred Charities of America Awards Grants Totaling Over $1 Million in 2024 appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

Some of the most highly anticipated races during the summer racing season are the 'baby' races during the boutique meetings, which attract its fair share of high-priced offspring from a variety of top national outfits. Summer Breezes highlights debuting and stakes-entered 2-year-olds at those meetings that have been sourced at the breeze-up sales earlier in the year, with links to their under-tack previews. Here are the horses entered for Thursday's program at Kentucky Downs: Thursday, September 5, 2024 KY Downs 1, $100k, 2yo, (R), 1mT, 1:25 p.m. ET Horse (Sire), Sale, Price ($), Breeze Roustabout (Caravaggio), OBSJUN, 15,000, :10 2/5 C-Bobby Dodd, agent; B-Clark O Brewster KY Downs 2, $170k,2yo, 7fT, 1:57 p.m. ET Hard Circle (Hard Spun), OBSAPR, 30,000, :10 1/5 C-Wavertree Stables (C Dunne), agent; B-Three Diamond Farm The post Summer Breezes, Sponsored By OBS: September 5, 2024 appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

Siena Farm has been a regular player at the Keeneland sales over the years, and the upcoming September Yearling Sale will prove no different. Offering 17 yearlings in total, including a trio in Book 1 and an additional five in Book 2, the operation offers yet another group steeped in black-type and sire power. Consigned by Taylor Made Sales (Agent XXV), Siena is represented by Hip 88, a Gun Runner filly out of MGSW Isabella Sings (Eskendereya). The half-sister to SW Alaura Michele (Arch) is already responsible for listed winner Otello (Curlin). A colt by Into Mischief out of Isabella Sings brought $650,000 at Keeneland last September. “We are very impressed with the Isabella Sings filly,” said Siena Farm's COO Ryan Smith. “We've been pleasantly surprised with how well she moves and how good she looks. She has been presenting herself very well at the farm. We've had people come by and see her ahead of the sale, and they've been impressed too. I think if she shows how she has been, she'll do very well. We've heard that among Gun Runners, she stacks up very well. We have high hopes right now.” Also featured on the sale's opening day is Hip 96, a colt by Constitution out of unraced Joyful Addiction, herself a daughter of GI Vanity winner My Sweet Addiction (Tiznow) and a granddaughter of GISW Healthy Addiction (Boston Harbor). The 6-year-old Munnings mare, who was purchased for $150,000 at Fasig-Tipton November Sale in 2022, produced this colt the following season and followed by with a Life Is Good filly this year. Up At Dawn, represented by a Justify filly at KEESEP this year | Siena Farm “We're very excited about [the Constitution colt],” affirmed Smith. “Constitution's big crops are finally starting to come up after his early success.” “We are also extremely pleased with Joyful Addiction. She is a young mare that we got her two years ago and [the foals] she's produced has been a physical standout.” He added, “We're pleased with how he's developed, but he's also one that stood out as a foal.” Rounding out Book 1's trio is Hip 276, a filly by Justify. The Apr. 22 foal is out of Up At Dawn (Uncle Mo), a half-sister to GSWs Mr Freeze (To Honor and Serve), Dilemma (Grand Slam) and Heavenly Ransom (Red Ransom), in addition to Zayanna, herself the dam of Grade I winner Wicked Whisper and Grade II scorer Point of Honor. “She has been doing really well,” Smith confirmed. “I think the Isabella Sings filly has been taking some of the spotlight, but this filly has been looking good too. She has started to really improve over the past few weeks as she has started getting further into the prep. So we're also excited for her.” Making up the consignment's Book 2 offerings are Hip 381, a filly by Constitution out of Dear Elaine; Hip 456, a colt by Gun Runner out of GSP Island Saint; Hip 533, a filly by Good Magic out of My Sugar; Hip 731, a Twirling Candy filly out of Brabble and Hip 932, a filly by City of Light out of GSP Private Ensign. “The Constitution filly has been one that we have always liked and even more so now,” he said of the Dear Elaine filly. In regard to Hip 456, he added, “The Gun Runner colt was a bit behind. But he's growing up now and has put on the size that's needed. He was always a bit on the small side as the mare's foals had been. Fortunately, he's found his groove and put on more weight and muscle as we get closer to the sale.” Asked about this season's September consignment on a whole, Smith said, “We are pretty comfortable with the placement of these horses. We've always been happy with Keeneland and we believe that it is the best place to bring these yearlings at this stage.” “Sometimes you have to hold on to some of these. But realistically, if we have to hold on to somebody, it's because we want to take a shot racing them. We stand behind our horses.” Siena Embarks on a New Era… It's an understatement of epic proportions to say that Siena Farm and its founder, Anthony Manganaro, are well known in the Thoroughbred industry. However, the same can't necessarily be said about the farm's 30-year-old Chief Operating Officer, Ryan Smith. Anthony Manganaro co-founded Siena Farm with David Pope and Nacho Patino | EquiSport A member of the Siena team for over seven years, Smith, who is from upstate New York, assumed the mantle of COO in April of 2023 at the age of 29, however, unbeknownst to him, however, he was on the precipice of facing his most challenging test since taking the reins. Later that August, Manganaro passed away unexpectedly at the age of 79. “It was very difficult on everybody involved,” Smith said. “It is shocking that a whole year has gone by.” The troupes, including Siena co-founder Ignacio 'Nacho' Patino, rallied and over the course of the past year to make the best of a difficult situation. And that they did. “It's really been a learning experience,” Smith said. “We've been fortunate to have help from Anthony's son, Todd. He's been tremendously helpful and supportive throughout this time. I am really fortunate that Nacho has been here forever. I didn't have a lot of time in this position before Anthony passed away, so I was sort of thrown into it. One thing Anthony used to always say is, 'You really don't learn how to drive until you are driving the car by yourself.' I think that's been the case this past year.” Only three days removed from the one-year anniversary of Manganaro's passing (Aug. 20, 2023), Caitlinhergrtness (Omaha Beach), co-owned by Siena and WinStar Farm, won Woodbine's King's Plate Stakes–the first jewel in Canada's Triple Crown. One day later, Mullikin (Violence), racing for the same partnership, annexed the GI Forego Stakes at Saratoga. In tandem with WinStar, Siena also campaigns last year's GI Champagne winner and millionaire Timberlake (Into Mischief), who won this season's GII Rebel Stakes. Additionally, Siena owns a piece of MGSW Messier (Empire Maker), victorious in the GIII Westchester Stakes in May. “It wasn't by design initially but it then became by design,” Smith said with a laugh when asked about Siena's increasing number of horses raced in partnership over time. “It just makes so much sense for us, especially when we had so much else going on. The team at WinStar is so incredibly talented and experienced, not only at selecting horses but also managing them. It's been a well-suited partnership partner for us.” According to Smith, Siena currently owns five horses of racing age independently, however, the bulk of their horse in training (50-80 depending on the time of year) are raced in partnership. “The number we own by ourselves is smaller than it used to be in previous years,” he explained. “The rest are with the partnerships, primarily with WinStar. It's a formula that works.” “In most of the scenarios that we were racing horses 100%, it was with horses we bred. Horses we thought either we wanted to keep them in the broodmare band or maybe somebody we didn't get sold and we thought it just made sense to take a shot with them.” Campaigned by Siena and trainer Tim Hamm, Siena homebred Dayoutoftheoffice (Into Mischief), the winner of the 2020 GI Frizette Stakes, sold to Japanese interests for $2.85 million at the Fasig-Tipton November Sale in 2021. “At time we have also opted to keep some of our fillies from our more accomplished mares, but it also made more economic sense to sell some others along the way like Dayoutoftheoffice.” How has Siena's breeding operation evolved with time? “Over the past few years, we've been focusing a bit more on purchasing younger mares that showed some speed on the track and that had a bit stronger pedigrees to compliment the unraced or lightly-raced fillies that we already had in our broodmare band.” According to Smith, the operation currently has approximately 30 head. However, that is about to change. Smith confirmed that the Siena mares will be dispersed at Keeneland in November. “We will sell with Taylor Made under a common property line Siena Farm dispersal,” he said. “We have grouped the mares as best we can within the books. We want to make it easy for breeders to find what they want.” Caitlinhergrtness winning last month's King's Plate for partners Siena and WinStar/ Michael Burns Photo Pointing to some of the mares that will head to the ring this fall, he added, “We have a couple of nice mares, including Night on the Town (Street Sense) and Medaglia Mo, that we'll offer in November. We feel like we've assembled a strong group of mares.” Siena purchased the former for $450,000 at KEENOV in 2022 and gave $440,000 at that venue last year for the latter. Additionally, the remaining foals of this season-approximately 25–will be sold in 2025 to wrap up the breeding arm of the Siena operation. “We have a really nice group of foals this season and we felt it made more sense for them and for us to sell them next year as yearlings. We are excited about this group,” he explained. Early in August, the 262-acre farm was listed for sale and will remain the base of operations until its sale. “The farm has not been sold yet,” Smith confirmed. “We will stay here as long as we can until it sells with the yearlings. If somebody purchases it before next summer, then we will board the yearlings for the period of time and after that we'd just be a racing operation.” Asked about what comes next for Siena, Smith said, “In the short term, we are going to continue to do things as we have been. We'll get these yearlings to the sale and then focus on getting the mares ready for November. It's the right time for us and would also be a good time for somebody looking to get started before the new year begins.” “The long-term plan is to pull back and focus on being a racing operation only and not having a breeding operation.” The post Siena Farm Legacy on Display at Keeneland September appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

Juddmonte's juveniles have already gone far in 2024 and another bids to enhance her reputation on Thursday as Tabiti (GB) (Kingman {GB}) tackles the G3 Ire-Incentive, It Pays To Buy Irish Dick Poole Fillies' Stakes at Salisbury. Impressive on debut over seven furlongs at Newmarket last month, the Ralph Beckett-trained half-sister to the G2 Linlithgow Stakes winner Old Flame (GB) (Invincible Spirit {Ire}) drops back in trip having missed the G3 Prestige Stakes when the rain came. “Obviously Plan A was the Prestige a couple of weeks ago, but there was a lot of rain and the ground went too soft, so we decided to miss that and there's actually very little for her to run in for a while, hence we're dropping down a furlong for this,” Juddmonte's European racing manager Barry Mahon explained. “Ralph did deliberate long and hard before he ran her whether to start her at six, so he felt she had plenty of speed. We had half an eye on the [Sept. 27 G2] Rockfel and there was nowhere else to give her more experience before then, so we thought this would be a fitting place to give her more experience and see whether she'd be up to something like that.” Of the experienced rivals in the line-up, the G3 Princess Margaret Stakes runner-up Betty Clover (GB) (Time Test {GB}) and Newmarket nursery scorer Magic Mild (GB) (Havana Grey {GB}) set the standard, but not a high one. Isa Salman Al Khalifa's William Haggas-trained Jewelry (Ire) (Wootton Bassett {GB}) and Hambleton Racing's Greydreambeliever (Ire) (Dark Angel {Ire}) from the Karl Burke stable did enough on their respective debuts at Newbury and York to suggest they have the material for a race of his nature. The post Juddmonte’s Tabiti Bids to Continue Momentum in the Dick Poole appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

If there is a horse ready for a breakthrough performance in the $2 million Franklin-Simpson Stakes (G1T) at Kentucky Downs, it's Mansa Musa.View the full article

Godolphin homebred Highland Falls has joined the Top 10 in the National Thoroughbred Racing Association's Top Thoroughbred poll, ranking sixth following his four-length win in the $1 million Jockey Club Gold Cup (G1) at Saratoga Race Course Sept. 1.View the full article

Swift Delivery may have finished second in his stakes debut, the Aug. 31 Toronto Cup Stakes at Woodbine, but that has not dampened the spirit of National Football League superstar and part-owner Travis Kelce.View the full article

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