Wandering Eyes

Observations on the European Racing Scene turns the spotlight on the best European races of the day, highlighting well-bred horses early in their careers, horses of note returning to action and young runners that achieved notable results in the sales ring. Monday's Observations features a half-brother to G1 St Leger hero Eldar Eldrov (GB). 5.45 Kempton, Novice, £7,000, 2yo, 8f (AWT) NAVAL COMMAND (GB) (Lope De Vega {Ire}) is another key member of Godolphin's Charlie Appleby stable as a half-brother to the G1 St Leger hero Eldar Eldarov (GB) (Dubawi {Ire}). His rivals include Denford Stud's homebred Anglophile (GB) (Too Darn Hot {GB}), a John and Thady Gosden-trained half-brother to the yard's Michelangelo (GB) (Galileo {Ire}) who was third in that Doncaster Classic in 2012. The post Lope de Vega Half to Eldar Eldarov Debuts at Kempton appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

Williams Haggas has issued a positive bulletin on star three-year-old Economics (GB) as he prepares for his showdown with French challenger Calandagan (Ire) (Gleneagles {Ire}) in Saturday's G1 Qipco Champion Stakes at Ascot. Economics heads the ante-post betting for the £1.3 million feature contest at a general 5-4, having gained his fourth victory from as many starts this season when making the breakthrough at the top level in last month's Irish Champion Stakes at Leopardstown. Magical (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) was the last horse to complete the Leopardstown/Ascot double in 2019, beating the Haggas-trained Addeybb (Ire) (Pivotal {GB}) for the second of those wins. Addeybb then went one better the following year to give his Newmarket trainer a first success in the race, with Economics poised to try and double that tally at the weekend. “His form is there and he seems very well,” Haggas said of the son of Night Of Thunder (Ire). “As long as he can stay well and run to his best, I think he is sure to run a good race. He battled well in Ireland and was tactically good. He fought hard when he had to in a top-class race and I was pleased he won a Group 1 as that makes things a lot easier.” Haggas has had his fair share of difficult calls to make with Economics in 2024, including the decision to skip the Derby after the imposing colt had put himself firmly in the picture for Epsom with a six-length success in the G2 Dante Stakes. Instead, he spent three months on the sidelines after that York win, before warming up for Leopardstown with victory in the G2 Prix Guillaume d'Ornano at Deauville. “It's history and you can't worry about it,” Haggas added of the decision to miss the Derby. “What has happened has happened, and what you have done this morning you can't remove. What you do tomorrow you can change before it happens. “We just have to look at the horses, train them as we see fit, and hope the owners buy into what we are trying to do. If you look at him, he is a very big horse who should do well with a winter on his back.” Golden Eagle on the Radar for Fallon and Lake Forest Champions Day at Ascot might be one of the final acts of the Flat season in Britain, but Haggas still has international targets in mind for some of his other stable stars beyond Saturday, including the three-year-old Lake Forest (GB). Haggas is no stranger to big-race success in Australia, notably winning back-to-back editions of the G1 Queen Elizabeth Stakes with the aforementioned Addeybb, and the trainer now has the A$10 million Golden Eagle in his sights with last year's Gimcrack winner. Last seen filling the runner-up spot in the G3 Hackwood Stakes at Newbury in July, Lake Forest is set to be ridden by Cieren Fallon when he makes his next appearance at Rosehill on Saturday, November 2, with regular rider Tom Marquand likely to be in action at the Breeders' Cup. “We'll need a lot of luck and a nice draw,” Fallon said of the challenge. “It's a big race worth a lot of money and hopefully he acclimatises well. He's got a lot of speed and it's round a bend, not just a straight. He can be a tad slow away, which isn't ideal in a big field like that as they tend to go two-by-two, so we'll need a bit of luck with a couple of gaps up the home straight.” He added, “Racing is a roller-coaster ride and I've had some highs and some lows this year, but it's a great opportunity and hopefully he can perform on the day and things go our way.” The post Economics “Very Well” ahead of Champion Stakes Clash with Calandagan appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

Cervinia (Jpn) (Harbinger {GB}) produced a dominant performance to justify favouritism in Sunday's G1 Shuka Sho at Kyoto Racecourse, the final leg of the fillies' Triple Crown in Japan. She became the fifth winner of the G1 Yushun Himba (Japanese Oaks) to follow up in this race in the last decade, with the others including the same owner's Liberty Island (Jpn) (Duramente {Jpn}) when she won all three legs of the fillies' Triple Crown last year. Trained by Tetsuya Kimura for Sunday Racing, Cervinia's hopes of emulating Liberty Island fell by the wayside when she finished down the field in the G1 Oka Sho (Japanese 1,000 Guineas) at Hanshin in April, but she proved her true worth when beating the winner of that race, Stellenbosch (Jpn) (Epiphaneia {Jpn}), by half a length to win the Yushun Himba at Tokyo the following month. The Shuka Sho brought Cervinia and Stellenbosch together for a third clash, while the form of two key trials was represented by the likes of Queen's Walk (Jpn) (Kizuna {Jpn}), successful in last month's G2 Rose Stakes at Chukyo, plus the first three from the G2 Shion Stakes at Nakayama, won by Christmas Parade (Jpn) (Kitasan Black {Jpn}) ahead of Mi Anhelo (Jpn) (Duramente {Jpn}) and Bond Girl (Jpn) (Daiwa Major {Jpn}). Cervinia broke alertly before finding a position in mid-division under Christophe Lemaire as Sekitoba East (Jpn) (Declaration Of War) took the 15-strong field along in the early stages. Sekitoba East's lead had grown to seven or eight lengths with less than 600 metres to run, ahead of Christmas Parade, who raced a couple of lengths in advance of the main pack. However, it was all change in the straight as that pair gradually came back to the field, with Cervinia emerging from between runners to hit front inside the final furlong. From there she kept going well to win by a length and three-quarters from Bond Girl, who ran on strongly on the outside to snatch second from Stellenbosch, having had just one rival behind her on the home turn. It was a first success in the Shuka Sho for Kimura, while Lemaire was winning the race for the third time, having won consecutive renewals with Deirdre (Jpn) (Harbinger {GB}) in 2017 and Almond Eye (Jpn) (Lord Kanaloa {Jpn}) in 2018. “As always, it's not easy to win a Group 1 race, but Cervinia ran an incredible race today and everything went smoothly,” said Lemaire afterwards. “The distance was right for her and we were able to sit in a good position. She found her own rhythm and was very calm throughout. The fast pace was also a good factor and she responded beautifully.” Cervinia and the runner-up have history as they made their respective debuts in the same race at Tokyo in June last year when Bond Girl came out on top by three quarters of a length. Cervinia later opened her account at Niigata and won the G3 Artemis Stakes at Tokyo as a two-year-old, before returning this year in the Oka Sho. 【Shuka Sho (G1), 2000m, Kyoto, JRA】 Cervinia won the Shuka Sho !#JRA #horseracing #ShukaSho #Cervinia pic.twitter.com/u2smDvgXnh — HorseRacingInJapan (@HorseRacing_JPN) October 13, 2024 Pedigree Notes Cervinia's dam, Cecchino (Jpn) (King Kamehameha {Jpn}), who filled the runner-up spot in the 2016 Yushun Himba, has now produced three winners from as many runners. The others include the G3 Niigata Kinen victor Nocking Point (Jpn) (Maurice {Jpn}) and the two-year-old Arlecchino (Jpn) (Bricks and Mortar), who registered his first success at Niigata in August. Cecchino has since produced a yearling colt by Epiphaneia (Jpn). She was bred to Efforia (Jpn) for this season. Cecchino is a full-sister to Codino (Jpn), who ran second in the G1 Asahi Hai Futurity Stakes and third in the G1 Satsuki Sho (Japanese 2,000 Guineas), in addition to being a multiple Group winner. She is also a half-sister to Pastophoria (Jpn) (Symboli Kris S), who produced last year's G2 Hanshin Himba Stakes runner-up Sublime Anthem (Jpn) (Lord Kanaloa {Jpn}). The second dam, Happy Path (Jpn) (Sunday SIlence), was a multimillionaire racehorse in her own right, while this is also the immediate family of Japanese champion older mare Shinko Lovely (Caerleon). Sunday, Kyoto, Japan SHUKA SHO-G1, ¥214,620,000, Kyoto, 10-13, 3yo, f, 2000mT, 1:57.10, fm. 1–CERVINIA (JPN), 121, f, 3, by Harbinger (GB) 1st Dam: Cecchino (Jpn), by King Kamehameha (Jpn) 2nd Dam: Happy Path (Jpn), by Sunday Silence 3rd Dam: Happy Trails (Ire), by Posse O-Sunday Racing; B-Northern Farm; T-Tetsuya Kimura; J-Christophe Lemaire; ¥113,234,000. Lifetime Record: 6-4-1-0, ¥328,424,000. *Half to Nocking Point (Jpn) (Maurice {Jpn}), GSW-Jpn, ¥120,507,000. Werk Nick Rating: A+++. *Triple Plus*. Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree. Click for the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree. 2–Bond Girl (Jpn), 121, f, 3, Daiwa Major (Jpn)–Coasted, by Tizway. (¥210,000,000 Ylg '22 JRHJUL). 1ST GROUP 1 BLACK TYPE. O-Susumu Fujita; B-Shadai Farm; ¥44,024,000. 3–Stellenbosch (Jpn), 121, f, 3, Epiphaneia (Jpn)–Bloukrans (Jpn), by Rulership (Jpn). O-Katsumi Yoshida; B-Northern Farm; ¥28,462,000. Margins: 1 3/4, HF, 3/4; Odds: 1.30, 13.60, 2.90. Also ran: Lavenda (Jpn), Christmas Parade (Jpn), Mi Anhelo (Jpn), Tagano Elpida (Jpn), Chilcano (Jpn), Koganeno Sora (Jpn), Hohelied (Jpn), Rabbiteye (Jpn), Admire Belle (Jpn), Sekitoba East (Jpn), Lance of Queen (Jpn), Queen's Walk (Jpn). Click for the JRA chart & video. The post No Stopping Cervinia in Shuka Sho, Final Leg of Japanese Fillies’ Triple Crown appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

1st-Belmont The Big A, $90,000, Msw, 10-13, 2yo, f, 7f, 1:23.02, ft, 4 lengths. FULLY SUBSCRIBED (f, 2, Tiz the Law–Sweetbaby, by Candy Ride {Arg}) was bet down from her 6-1 morning line to 5-2 in her first start since bringing $300,000 at OBS April earlier this year. Outrun by most of the field in the opening furlong from her rail draw, she stayed along the fence under Dylan Davis and enjoyed a ground-saving trip around the far turn past the half in :46.16. Tipped outside of a pair of dueling leaders at the quarter pole, she swarmed up three wide and kicked right on by, putting four lengths on Sharp Smile (Practical Joke). The 17th winner for her freshman sire (by Constitution), Fully Subscribed is the second foal out of a winning daughter of GISW Rutherienne. Sweetbaby has a yearling Union Rags filly and reported a filly by Highly Motivated this year before returning to Tiz the Law for 2025. Sales History: $65,000 RNA Wlg '22 KEENOV; $35,000 Ylg '23 KEESEP; $300,000 2yo '24 OBSAPR. Lifetime Record: 1-1-0-0, $49,500. Click for the Equibase.com chart or VIDEO, sponsored by FanDuel TV. O-Klaravich Stables, Inc.; B-Payson Stud Inc (KY); T-Chad C. Brown. The post Fully Subscribed A First-Out Winner For Tiz The Law appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

At 30 years of age, Hamish McCalmont has already experienced two different worlds. Having spent seven years working in finance in London, and enjoyed the delights that comes with city living, McCalmont made the decision to return home to his family's Norelands Stud in County Kilkenny and immerse himself in the world of bloodstock. In fairness, he picked a good time to change career path and come home. Norelands was one of three consignments selected by the Niarchos family to offer some select mares at the Goffs November Breeding Stock Sale, including the €6 million Alpha Centauri (Ire) (Mastercraftsman {Ire}), and returned to that sales house earlier this month to sell a €900,000 Sea The Stars colt. The momentum continued at Book 1 of the Tattersalls October Yearling Sale last week with three yearlings selling for almost 1.6 million gns. Even a self-proclaimed rookie like McCalmont was left gobsmacked by that record-breaking trade and the youngster is hoping for more of the same at Book 2 this week. He said, “We knew we had three very nice fillies but obviously you never know what's going to happen until you get there. Especially with a sale like Book 1, where everyone is always a little bit guarded at the beginning, you don't take anything for granted. The great thing about last week was there seemed to be a floor to the market. The footfall was great and we never went through as many cards than we did last week. A lot of that was down to the American influence at the sale, which helped push up the market, and then obviously we had the massive players Kia [Joorabchian]–who isn't new to the market but never spent as much at a sale before-and Godolphin. Everyone was pleasantly surprised, really.” Norelands has targeted Book 2 with a nine-strong draft. There are two colts by Sea The Stars (Ire), a filly and a colt by No Nay Never along with fillies by New Bay (GB) and Night Of Thunder (Ire) to get excited about. But McCalmont knows better to be getting ahead of himself at this early juncture. “I'm relatively new to working full-time in the business but, from what I learned from my Dad, Matt [Gilsenan, farm manager] and lots of other people in the industry, you have to remain cautious. But you have to be optimistic about the fact a lot of people were blown out of the water in Book 1. Hopefully those people who weren't able to fill orders in Book 1 will continue shopping at Book 2.” He added on the draft, “We're very strong on the sire side of things for Book 2 this year. We're a bit like everyone else in that we wanted to send a lot of our own homebreds to Book 2 because it's a sale that everyone goes to. You're really getting your horse in front of all of the eyes. These matings were planned a long time ago but thankfully all the sires of the horses we have are going extremely well. We don't have a huge number of horses but we're more concentrated on keeping the quality really high and the quantity low. Let's see how they get on.” The majority of the people working in this industry have had to work from the bottom up. However, McCalmont's trajectory in the industry is a little different. His family may be steeped in racing history, but he has relatively little hands-on experience working with horses. It's only now that he's keen to make up for lost time. He said, “I've always had an interest in bloodstock but studied finance at university and spent seven or eight years in London working with Hambros. It was about a year ago when I made the difficult decision to leave that job. I was trying to juggle going to the sales whilst working in London but I just found I was missing a lot. I was trying to balance my passion with my job but I couldn't do both. It got to the stage where I wanted to follow my passion. This is very much a game about people as much as it is about horses and you need to be at the sales and you need to be getting involved. I found that I wasn't there when I needed to be and wasn't there when I wanted to be so that's how I made that decision. It wasn't easy but, as I had a bit of money saved up, I went and bought a few fillies and a few broodmares and really immersed myself in it. I'm going to see how that goes and I've already spent the whole foaling season at home and have been heavily involved with the yearling prep as well.” He added, “I didn't do pony club or anything like this when I was growing up so I really want to get my fingers under it and understand how the whole breeding side of the game works. I just want to understand the horse, really. I could follow the industry from London and read all the stallion stats-and I'm big into that-as I wanted but I couldn't get my eyes on enough horses. That's what I have been trying to do for the past year and I've loved every minute of it.” To that extent, McCalmont has looked on at Norelands through a unique prism. A fresh set of eyes if you will. While he brings a certain youth and enthusiasm to the operation, there's no angling to fix something that clearly isn't broken. He explained, “I'm very lucky that I had the support of my parents to go and follow what I thought I wanted to do. But the thing I couldn't wrap my head around for years, the business I was in, people would applaud you if you produced a five per cent return on your investment every year. In this game, if you make five per cent on your pinhook, you're miserable! “I love the farm, love being home and working alongside my parents so, given it was always the direction that I was going to go, I thought rather than spending all my time working for somebody else, it was probably wise to come back and channel my energies into the family business.” He added, “But I'm definitely not trying to bring in new tech or new marketing strategies. The farm is a very established name and all of our clients in the past and hopefully in the future come to us purely through word of mouth. Norelands is a boutique operation and we want to keep it that way. If you were to try and change how that works, you could ruin the brand, so we're very mindful of that.” What McCalmont does bring to the operation is a mathematical brain and strong understanding of statistics. That can come in handy when predicting what the market might want and, while he may lack hands-on experience, he's not afraid to back his own judgment. A case in point being his purchase of Kingman (GB) filly Rathmore (Ire) at the Tattersalls December Mares Sale last year for 50,000gns. That looks pretty decent value now since the half-sister Idea Generation (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}) landed the G2 Flower Bowl Stakes at Saratoga for Chad Brown. “When I was going into the office in London, I used to be on the bus reading TDN sires' lists, the Bill Oppenheim report, the return of mares and things like that,” McCalmont recalled. “My passion is for long-term and middle-distance breeding and I love all of those German, Irish and English Classic-type pedigrees. Even if the market goes a certain way, I like being a contrarian to a certain degree and I'd always be following statistics in the hope of figuring out what the market will be looking for in two years' time. I think every breeder is like that and my Dad has been very receptive to that as well. He was always doing it that way, as was my Mum, so now we just put our heads together on the matings. Obviously the most important thing is to get a nice horse to the sales but, if you don't have the right sires on the door, it's a real problem. We've seen that with the selectivity of the market in recent times so hopefully we're vindicated by our matings during Book 2.” He added, “All the fears I had when I made the decision haven't come to fruition. Not yet anyway. But this doesn't feel like work to me. Working on stallion statistics on a Sunday morning, or delving into the form late at night, that doesn't feel like work. It's something I really enjoy doing and, because it's the family farm, I feel we are all working towards something together. I do more hours now than when I was working in London but it's very different work and it's really enjoyable. This is not a nine to five job and you don't survive in this business unless you are passionate. I've followed that passion and I'm very happy that I did.” The post ‘I Work More Hours Now Than I Did In The City But It Doesn’t Feel Like Work’ appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

Power Connection (Authentic) strolled home in the Manzano Stakes at Albuquerque on Saturday evening and in the process hand-delivered the first stakes winner to his freshman sire (by Into Mischief). The dark bay was sent by his New Mexico-based trainer Todd Fincher to Southern California where she was the runner-up in her debut at Los Alamitos June 30. At Del Mar, the filly was a well-beaten third Aug. 10 and finished a distant fourth Aug. 25. Shipping back to the capitol of her home state and off as the 3-2 second choice here, Power Connection chased a longshot speed horse up the backstretch. Given her cue around the far turn, the juvenile was challenged by her stablemate and favorite West of Me (West Coast). Digging deep in the final furlong, Power Connection put away her rival and collected the black-type. The winner has a full-brother who was foaled Apr. 11. A half-sister to MGSP Jet West (Western Fame), Lady Leftennant was bred to Tacitus for 2025. Authentic's first crop includes 160 foals of racing age. MANZANO S., $60,000, Albuquerque, 10-12, 2yo, 6f, 1:10.31, ft. 1–POWER CONNECTION, 120, f, 2, Authentic–Lady Leftennant, by Officer. ($200,000 Wlg '22 KEENOV; $150,000 Ylg '23 KEESEP). 1ST BLACK TYPE WIN. O-Gary Randall Andrews, James Cone, James, Brad E. King and Robert L. Lewis; B-Scott Pierce (KY); T-Todd W. Fincher; J-Irwin J. Rosendo. $35,400. Lifetime Record: 4-1-1-1, $57,100. *1/2 to Lady Ivanka (Tiz Wonderful), GISW, $259,800. 2–West of Me, 119, c, 2, West Coast–Best of Me, by Super Saver. 1ST BLACK TYPE. O-HX3 Incorporated; B-Todd & Shawn Hansen (KY); T-Todd W. Fincher. $12,000. 3–Karaoke Hero, 118, g, 2, Stay Thirsty–No Tunes, by Songandaprayer. ($2,500 2yo '24 CTBAJA). 1ST BLACK TYPE. O-Tyson Esquibel; B-Terry C. Lovinger (CA); T-Timothy Mark Gleason. $6,000. Margins: 2, 1, 1 1/4. Odds: 1.50, 1.30, 24.20. Also Ran: Roadswitcher, Williams Empire, My Vino, Toni the Grrreat, Street Colors. Click for the Equibase.com chart. The post Power Connection Delivers First Stakes Win To Freshman Sire Authentic On Saturday appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

Five contenders went postward for Sunday's G3 Wettstar.de Preis des Winterfavoriten at Cologne and, despite the dearth in quantity for Germany's premier juvenile contest of the year, the quality was not for questioning as the quintet raced line abreast entering the final quarter-mile before Stall Hanse's hitherto undefeated Lifetimes (Ire) (Gleneagles {Ire}–La Petite Virginia {Ger}, by Konigstiger {Ger}) asserted superiority in the closing stages of a thrilling renewal. The Peter Schiergen trainee had recorded a facile 10-length triumph over the same one-mile trip at Dortmund last month and, lining up as the 19-10 second choice, was steadied to race last of the five runners after an alert break. Urged forward in the straight, he joined all four opponents passing the quarter-mile marker and stayed on powerfully under whipless rousting in the closing stages to prevail by 3/4-of-a-length from 17-10 favourite Think Giant (GB) (Lope De Vega {Ire}). The duo pulled 2 1/2 lengths clear of the remainder, headed by Serienadler (GB) (Gleneagles {Ire}), inside the final furlong. The win provided Schiergen with a sixth victory and followed in the hoofprints of Geography (Ger) (Holy Roman Emperor {Ire}), who registered a narrow success last year. Ownership vehicle Stall Hanse consists of Moritz Becher, Philip von Ullmann, Vinzenz Klemm and Dr Andreas Jacobs. Becher stated, “We do hope that he is one for the [G1 Deutsches] Derby next year, unlike [subsequent G3 Fritz Henkel-Preis winner] Geography.” Schiergen continued, “He has come along very well from his runaway maiden victory [at Dortmund] to here, where he had to fight for the first time. Fight he did and he did it well. I think he will be able to handle a longer trip.” Winning rider Bauyrzhan Murzabayev added, “He is definitely a very good horse. He always works well and was the deserved winner here.” Winter Favorite Prize Cologne – Groupe 3 – 2 ans – 1600m – 5 Pts – 155 000 € Lifetimes Bauyrzhan Murzabayev @BauyrzhanBauy1 Think Giant Serienadler (Gleneagles (Ire) @coolmorestud – La Petite Virginia (Ger) par Konigstiger… pic.twitter.com/vtCgLyTT3D — French and International Horse Racing (@Vincenzo0612) October 13, 2024 Pedigree Notes Lifetimes, the fifth of six foals, is one of two scorers produced by an unraced half-sister to G1 Deutsches Derby-winning sire Lavirco (Ger) (Konigsstuhl {Ger}), dual Group-winning G1 Deutsches Derby placegetter Laveron (Ger) (Konigsstuhl {Ger}) and G3 Furstenberg-Rennen victor Lyonel's Glory (GB) (Green Desert). He becomes the 25th pattern-race winner for his sire. Descendants of the April-foaled chestnut's second dam La Virginia (Ger) (Surumu {Ger}) also include Group 3-winning G1 Premio Lydia Tesio runner-up Lacy (Ger) (Authorized {Ire}) and dual Group 3-winning sire Langtang (Ger) (Campanologist). La Virginia is a full-sister to G3 Neusser Herbst Stutenpreis victrix and G3 German 1000 Guineas runner-up La Colorada (Ger), herself the dam of multiple Group 1-winning sire Lomitas (GB) (Niniski), with this being the dam line of Gestut Fahrhof's blue hen Love In (GB) (Crepello {GB}). The latter's descendants include G1 Deutsches Derby-winning sire Lagunas (GB) (Ile De Bourbon) and leading sire Lord Of England (Ger) (Dashing Blade {GB}). Lifetimes is a half-brother to G1 Pretty Polly Stakes heroine and G1 Yorkshire Oaks third La Petite Coco (Ire) (Ruler Of The World {Ire}) and a yearling filly by Camelot (GB). Sunday, Cologne, Germany WETTSTAR.DE – PREIS DES WINTERFAVORITEN-G3, €155,000, Cologne, 10-13, 2yo, 8fT, 1:39.76, sf. 1–LIFETIMES (IRE), 128, c, 2, Gleneagles (Ire) 1st Dam: La Petite Virginia (Ger), by Konigstiger (Ger) 2nd Dam: La Virginia (Ger), by Surumu (Ger) 3rd Dam: La Dorada (Ire), by Kronzeuge (Fr) 1ST BLACK-TYPE WIN; 1ST GROUP WIN. (€85,000 RNA Ylg '23 BBAGS). O-Stall Hanse; B-Stiftung Gestut Fahrhof (IRE); T-Peter Schiergen; J-Bauyrzhan Murzabayev. €85,000. Lifetime Record: 2-2-0-0, €91,000. *1/2 to La Petite Coco (Ire) (Ruler Of The World {Ire}), G1SW-Ire & G1SP-Eng, $470,569. Werk Nick Rating: A+++ *Triple Plus*. Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree, or the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree. 2–Think Giant (GB), 128, c, 2, Lope De Vega (Ire)–Think Of Me (Ger), by So You Think (NZ). 1ST BLACK TYPE; 1ST GROUP BLACK TYPE. (€160,000 Ylg '23 ARQOCT). O-Eckhard Sauren; B-Clear Light SAS (GB); T-Christophe Ferland. €31,000. 3–Serienadler (GB), 128, c, 2, Gleneagles (Ire)–Serienheilige (Ger), by Holy Roman Emperor (Ire). 1ST BLACK TYPE; 1ST GROUP BLACK TYPE. O-Michael Wachowitz; B-Gestut Wittekindshof (GB); T-Marcel Weiss. €20,500. Margins: 3/4, 2HF, 1 1/4. Odds: 1.90, 1.70, 2.80. Also Ran: Kolsch (Ger), Name Lord (Ger). The post Gleneagles’s Lifetimes Prevails in Thrilling Renewal of Germany’s Winterfavoriten appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

Veteran handler’s big guns produce impressive first-up runs behind Galaxy Patch in Sha Tin Trophy.View the full article

Ballydoyle's Bounty (Ire) (No Nay Never–Rosdhu Queen {Ire}, by Invincible Spirit {Ire}) had little to beat in the six-furlong maiden at Naas on Sunday and made no mistake to open his account in style. Runner-up on debut in a Curragh maiden last month, the son of the 2012 G1 Cheveley Park Stakes heroine was contained on the front end throughout the early stages by Wayne Lordan and went through the race untroubled en route to a bloodless 4 1/2-length success from Iceford (Ire) (Beckford {GB}) as the 2-9 favourite. The dam was a 2.1million gns purchase at the 2013 Tattersalls December Sale. bar none ….@Ballydoyle and @coolmorestud's young son of No Nay Never backs up a pleasing debut @curraghrace by nicely winning @NaasRacecourse under @waynemlordan pic.twitter.com/HFkQdz0BuX — Racing TV (@RacingTV) October 13, 2024 The post No Nay Never Son Of Rosdhu Queen Opens His Account For Ballydoyle appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

Circuit Jolly falls short in Sunday’s opener after joining string of gallopers to jump over a mark on the Sha Tin track.View the full article

Cambridge Stud’s outstanding weekend continued at Rotorua on Sunday, with their exciting mare Luberon (NZ) (Embellish) adding a valuable black-type success to her name in the Gr.3 Sweynesse Stakes (1215m). The previous day at Te Rapa, Snazzytavi carried the prominent yellow and black-chequered silks to victory in the Gr.1 Livamol Classic (2040m) for Graham Richardson and Rogan Norvall, and it was the turn of the Stud’s private trainer Lance Noble in the feature sprint, where Luberon was rated a $6.20 hope on the TAB tote. A competitive field assembled in this year’s race, with a number of proven elite-level sprinters in the mix, while Luberon had put her hand up as a key chance with a strong resuming victory at Ellerslie last month, starting fourth-favourite with Bonny Lass on top at $3.20. With Warren Kennedy in the saddle, Luberon was positively away from the gates before front-runner Farravallo took over the lead, with the mare settling midfield and off the fence. Turning for home, Luberon trailed Navigator and ranged up on his outside to hit the lead at the 200m, before showing a sizzling turn of foot to kick clear by more than two lengths. Rising talent Navigator and Gr.1 Railway (1200m) winner Waitak put in strong performances to fill the trifecta. Noble was thrilled with the performance, which was Luberon’s first stakes victory after placing in the Listed Challenge Stakes (1100m), Gr.2 Auckland Guineas (1400m) and finishing fourth in the Gr.1 New Zealand 1000 Guineas (1600m). “She’s probably just fulfilling the promise she’s shown as a three-year-old, a few things went wrong so this is very pleasing,” Noble said. “She is a great advertisement for Embellish, and it tops off a great weekend for Cambridge Stud.” After the race, Kennedy indicated the shorter distances were now well suited to Luberon. “Since we’ve brought her back to the sprints, I think she’s found her niche,” Kennedy said. “Lance put those cheek pieces on her and it’s done the trick, they went at a good pace up front and she was a little bit fierce for me, but when she saw daylight, she’s picked them up really quickly and easily. “It was just a hands and heels ride.” Luberon has now earned $196,875 in stakes with five wins from just ten starts. A daughter of Cambridge Stud stallion Embellish, Luberon was bred by her owners Brendan and Jo Lindsay who operate the farm. View the full article

Veteran handler could be forced to thrust exciting galloper into Group Two company after latest win.View the full article

Jockey labels Pierre Ng’s excitement machine ‘the next future star’ after sensational return in Sunday’s feature.View the full article

Swayzee’s dominant win the Victoria Cup, Coastal Babe’s winning debut in Aussie, and Keayang Zahara’s ninth victory on the bounce all feature in today’s Aussie News. By Adam Hamilton Mighty stayer Swayzee rekindled memories of last year’s powerhouse New Zealand Cup win when he added last night’s $300,000 Group 1 Victoria Cup to his growing CV. Just as he did at Addington 11 months ago, Swayzee simply ran his rivals ragged last night. And that’s despite doing a power of early work from a back row draw to circle the field then fight to get the lead from main danger, Mach Dan. Despite a scorching 43.2sec lead time and then 27.9sec opening quarter, driver Cam Hart just let Swayzee keep rolling in front. “He’s a beast doing that, he loves just rolling them along when he’s out in front,” Hart said. “I knew he’d done plenty, but he’s done it before and kept going. Even on the home bend, he still felt strong.” Swayzee held on to beat the improving Curly James by four metres to give trainer Jason Grimson the quinella. Mach Dan fought on bravely for third. The 1min51.8sec mile rate was just 0.4sec outside Lochinvar Art’s track record. Grimson said he had no qualms about opting to bypass the NZ Cup defence next month with Swayzee. “No, it’s a big trip and the travel and race itself took plenty out of him last year. I couldn’t ask him to do it again,” he said. “He’s got this (Carnival of) Cups series in NSW. He heads back home for the second leg of that now, which is around the same time as the NZ Cup.” Swayzee won the first of the five races in the Carnival of Cups series at Parkes two weeks ago and stands to pocket connections a $1 million bonus if he can win all five. Grimson is still looking to tackle the NZ Cup next month with Major Moth appearing his best chance. The recent Kilmore Cup winner finish a solid fifth in the Victoria Cup after losing momentum at a crucial stage and closing well late. In contrast, another of his NZ Cup contenders District Attorney worked hard early, but tired badly to finish last. Auckland Cup winner Better Eclipse looked to go just fairly back in seventh spot, beaten almost 20m. The other disappointment was eight-time Group 1 winner Catch A Wave, who ran eighth and is likely to have a break and be set for races early in the new year. X X X A daring Victoria Oaks raid returned the perfect result with classy Kiwi filly Coastal Babe. As daunting as it can be to tackle the might of the Emma Stewart and Clayton Tonkin stable in Victoria’s juvenile features, Steven Reid and Coastal Babe’s connections chose to just that and rewarded with wins in the heat and last night’s $150,000 Group 1 feature. But the connection still runs deep with Stewart and Tonkin, given Coastal Babe is raced by some of their best and most loyal clients in Summit Bloodstock and Reid opted to base the filly in Victoria’s most dominant barn during her three weeks or so in Victoria. Coastal Babe, who won five of 12 NZ runs before crossing the ditch, looked a logical Aussie raider given her abundance of a gate speed. And that’s just how it turned out, leading throughout to win her Oaks and the final. Many thought slick former Kiwi and now Queensland-based filly Aardie B Miki could cross Coastal Babe at the start, but she never looked likely and then Victorian stand-in driver James Herbertson dictated terms in front. Coastal Babe ripped home in 54.6 and 26.5sec to beat former Kiwi filly Kiss, who is also raced by Summit and trained by Stewart, by two metres. The first five across the line were trained from Stewart’s property near Ballarat. Showsomejoy ran third, Vague Beauty fourth and Eureka Jo was fifth. It was Herbertson’s sixth Group 1 win and one of his most important yet. X X X Champion Aussie trotter Just Believe showed he was primed for another New Zealand raid with a narrow but fantastic Group 1 win at Melton last night. The rising nine-year-old posted the ninth Group 1 win of his stellar career when he sat parked and nabbed a gallant leader, OIlivici, to win the $75,000 Bill Collins Trotters’ Sprint (1720m). Just Believe posted a brilliant 1min54.1sec mile rate for 1720m, just one second outside Tornado Valley’s track record. “That was a big win tonight, especially with five weeks between runs,” driver Greg Sugars said. “I was a little bit concerned when Ollivici gave a good kick at the top of the straight, but I knew he (Just Believe) would rally. He always does, but we had to really earn it.” Just Believe won by 1.4m to make it 36 career wins from 80 starts and edged close to $1.7 mil in career earnings. He looked every bit a dominant favourite for the $400,000 Group 1 Dominion Trot at Addington on November 12. In contrast, star French import Callmethebreeze finished last after a tough run and then galloping in the closing stages. “He just wasn’t trotting well tonight for some reason,” driver Kate Gath said. “It actually wasn’t that he was getting tired, more that he was trotting well at all. We’ll need to get him home and work out what caused that.” Earlier, a brilliant Greg Sugars drive helped former Kiwi mare Rakero Rebel land the biggest win of her career. Sugars saw daylight at just the right time from three pegs and flashed home to gun down leader and favourite Aardies Express in the $150,000 Group 1 Queen of the Pacific (2760m). It was deserved given Rakero Rebel’s fantastic record since coming to Australia and the fact she ran second to retired champion Ladies In Red in last year’s Queen of the Pacific. Trainer Jess Tubbs said the win was up with her most satisfying. “She’s a real favourite of ours, she deserves this one,” she said. Rakero Rebel’s win was her 12th from 43 starts with another 18 placings and she’s now banked $326,485. X X X The “freak show” heads to New Zealand next. Freak is a fair way to describe three-year-old trotting filly Keayang Zahara, who stretched her unbeaten record to nine races when she toyed with het rivals in last night’s $75,000 Group 1 Victoria Trotters’ Oaks (2240m) at Melton. It was the fourth Group 1 win for the daughter of Volstead. Driver Jason Lee worked Keayang Zahara to the front from gate four, cruised through a 63.2sec first half and then blasted home in 55.2 and 26.6sec. “She’s just something else,” Lee said. Keayang Zahara is booked on a November 3 flight to Auckland and will then head down to Christchurch as the headline act of the inaugural $500,000 The Ascent at Addington on November 12. X X X Former Kiwi pacer Mister Smartee grabbed a stranglehold on favouritism for WA’s most prestigious race with a dominant Gloucester Park win last Friday night. The four-year-old is in to $2.50 prepost favourite to give champion trainer Gary Hall Sr a staggering 13th win in the $450,000 Group 1 WA Pacing Cup on November 8. Mister Smartee, a four-year-old son of Always B Miki, made it 12 wins from just 14 starts when driver Gary Hall Jr took him the front from gate two and dominated last Friday night’s $100,000 Group 2 James Brennan free-for-all (2536m). With WA’s other young star Never Ending stranded in Victoria and Catch A Wave struggling to get a flight to Perth, Mister Smartee beat most of his key WA Cup rivals last Friday night. On the same card, Team Bond’s Kiwi-bred three-year-old Golden Lode raced into Group 1 WA Derby contention when he beat another young star, Alta Tribute, in a thrilling clash. X X X Champion trainer Emma Stewart totally dominated the Group 1 Victoria Derby when Best Deal led home the first four runners in the class for her. It took a blistering turn of speed along the sprint lane by Best Deal in a 25.9sec closing quarter to snatch a nose win over gallant stablemate Some American with Miki To Success third and Bay Of Biscay fourth. It was Stewart’s fourth Victoria Derby win with partner Clayton Tonkin. The others were Petracca (last year), Act Now (2021) and Our Little General (2017). Stewart had seven of the 12 Derby runners last night and also nabbed sixth (Kingman) and seventh (Stormryder). But it was a first Victoria Derby win for Stewart’s stable driver, Mark Pitt. “I was fortunate enough to drive the best horse in the race and get the best run, but he still has to really sprint quickly in a race where the pace was controlled,” Pitt said. View the full article

Trainer Danny O’Brien says it’s now or never in terms of winning a Caulfield Cup next Saturday for his seven-year-old gelding Young Werther (NZ) (Tavistock). “He’s going as well as he’s ever gone. That was a good run in the Turnbull, and he’s come out of it in good shape,” O’Brien said. “He will never get a better opportunity to win a Caulfield Cup. This is his opportunity.” Young Werther finished a last-start fifth in the Turnbull Stakes behind Via Sistina. It will be Young Werther’s second attempt at a Caulfield Cup after he finished eighth behind Incentivise in 2021. “He wasn’t quite mature enough then, he’s ready for it this time.” Although Young Werther hasn’t won over 2400 metres, O’Brien said he had put in several exemplary performances at the distance. These include a second in the ATC Derby and a third in Victoria Derby as a three-year-old. O’Brien pointed out that at his last run over the trip he finished second behind his stablemate Vow And Declare in the Grand Prix at Eagle Farm in track record time. O’Brien said Vow And Declare would not run in the Caulfield Cup after his last in the Might And Power Stakes. “He’s pulled up well,” he said. “That was his first poor run for a long time. He’s been very consistent for 18 months; we’ll monitor him during the next week or so and check whether he runs again in spring.” O’Brien has built up a solid record in the Caulfield Cup having quinellaed the event in 2007 when Master O’Reilly defeated Duoro Valley. He has subsequently trained Vow And Declare to finish second in 2019 and Vigor, who finished third in 2010. View the full article

Talented stayer Aljay (NZ) (Rock ‘N’ Pop) indicated he will be a big threat come New Zealand Cup Week, after a comprehensive winning display in the Staphanos Classic (1950m) at Rotorua. The Kevin Myers-trained seven-year-old was the winner of the Gr.3 Martin Collins New Zealand Cup (3200m) in 2022, and he looks to be on track for a third shot at the iconic Riccarton contest, as demonstrated by his performance on Sunday. In the hands of apprentice Ngakau Hailey, who decreased his 61kg impost by three-kilograms, Aljay settled near the tail of the compact field, which had plenty of quality including the $2.60 race-favourite Drop Of Something. Cork and Verry Flash forced the favourite to work early in the contest to reach the pace making position, with Aljay biding his time before making a move to the outside as the field tightened turning for home. Drop Of Something gave the gelding something to chase in the straight, but Aljay showed a dashing turn of foot to storm over the top in the final strides, the margin just a head at the post. Hailey, who has now ridden Aljay on three occasions for two wins and a placing in the Listed Rotorua Cup (2200m), was full of praise for the son of Rock ‘N’ Pop. “I’m very happy,” Hailey said. “I was struggling to hold my position a bit at the 800, so I pulled him back, Ace (Lawson-Carroll) gave me a drag into the race and he went beautifully. “He’s got a super turn of foot, push-button to ride and just stays and stays.” Wanganui-based Myers purchased Aljay for $39,000 at the 2019 New Zealand Bloodstock Ready To Run Sales, and in his 42-start career, he has won nine races and just shy of $480,000 in stakes earnings. His dam, Albacora, also produced star jumper Tallyho Twinkletoe, who was a Trans-Tasman Grand National Hurdle and Steeplechase winner through his glittering career. View the full article

Team Hayes will contemplate having two runners in the Cox Plate, with three-year-old gelding Evaporate (NZ) (Per Incanto) a possibility to join his stablemate Mr Brightside (NZ) (Bullbars) in the prestigious event at The Valley after his third in the Caulfield Guineas. On Sunday, Ben Hayes confirmed Mr Brightside would have his next run in the Gr.1 Cox Plate (2040) on October 26 after he pulled up well after his second in the Gr.1 Might And Power Stakes. “He ran very well. The race shape was not ideal and he always seems to be the one to do the chasing behind these front runners,” Hayes said on RSN. “He’s on track for the Cox Plate and I notice that rain is forecast, so he will be suited by a track with a bit of give in it. While he runs well on firm tracks, he runs better on surfaces with give.” Hayes said they would give consideration to starting Evaporate in the Cox Plate, at a track he is undefeated in from three starts, after his great run in the Caulfield Guineas. “I thought his was the run of the race. He had to make an early move and then went wide. He peaked on his run and was only beaten three-quarters of a length in a race which was dominated by on-pacers,” Hayes said on RSN. Ben Hayes said they had four options which they would consider for Evaporate, which were the Cox Plate or the Gr.2 Vase (2040) on the same program against his own age group or the Gr.1 Spring Champions Stakes (2000) at Randwick on the same day. The other race he could run in was the Gr.3 Carbine Club Stakes (1600) at Flemington on Victoria Derby Day. View the full article

Sterling Express (NZ) (Shamexpress) came from nowhere to collect the fourth victory of his promising career at Arawa Park on Sunday, taking out the MacMillan Accountants 1400. Prepared by Mark Brosnan at Matamata, Sterling Express has been lightly-raced with twelve previous starts resulting in three wins and three minor placings, a record punters anticipated he may improve, backing him into $5.20 favouritism ahead of Sudbina ($5.30). Slowest away from the barriers, Sterling Express settled among the backmarkers in the hands of Masa Hashizume, with This Little Light heading the field at a decent tempo. Turning for home, the four-year-old had a task on his hands with the entirety of the field ahead of him, but Hashizume weaved a path through down the straight and burst into the clear short of the line, running down the Te Akau pair of Wolverine and Malborough Bay to score by a long neck. While having plenty of faith in his charge, Brosnan hadn’t expected him to make up the margin in such devastating fashion. “It was a really big performance from him,” Brosnan said. “I knew he had a pretty good sprint, but I didn’t think he would get there, it was very good. “He has been up for a while but we’ll probably keep him going a little while longer, I’ll look for another race for him.” Sterling Express raced in the colours of his co-breeder and owner Gloria Macrae, who has been a strong supporter of Brosnan and enjoyed recent success with stablemate Fly My Wey and full-sister Grace ‘N’ Glory. Also in the gelding’s ownership is former trainer Brian McKeagg. “Gloria bred him and Brian McKeagg used to be a trainer, he unfortunately had a stroke but he used to train for her so that’s how it began,” Brosnan said. The son of Shamexpress is out of Macrae’s six-win mare On Parole, and the victory increased his career earnings above $113,000. View the full article

A four-win horse in a special conditions maiden is a rare sight, and rapidly improving mare Lux Libertas (NZ) (Almanzor) proved to be as dominant on the Te Rapa track in Saturday’s Three Wise Birds (1400m) as she was on paper. The $65,000 race was restricted to horses that were maidens on July 16. At that stage, Lux Libertas had recorded a fifth and a seventh from her only two starts. She then recorded a stylish maiden win at Te Rapa on July 27, followed by another three straight victories on August 10, September 4 and September 15. In her only appearance since then, the four-year-old Almanzor mare finished third behind My Lips Are Sealed and Keegan at Te Rapa on September 27. Lux Libertas was sent out as the hottest favourite of the day on Saturday at $1.30, and she lived right up to those high expectations. Ridden patiently by Warren Kennedy, Lux Libertas settled at the back of the field and could still see all of her eight rivals as she came around the home turn. But then Kennedy angled her into clear air one from the outside, and Lux Libertas produced an explosive turn of foot and bounded to the front with 100m remaining. Lightly raced three-year-old On The Town chased hard and kept the margin to less than a length, but Lux Libertas was never in any danger of defeat. “She’s just getting better and better, and she’s learning her craft more with every race,” Kennedy said. “She finished really strongly today and just switched off a little bit once she hit the front, so she still has a bit more to learn. But she was a deserving favourite for this race and she’s won it as she liked. “The reason for taking her back the way we did today was that we need to teach her to relax if she’s going to get up over a bit more ground. She has such a huge action, she was always going to make up that ground quickly. “Her connections will probably have bigger plans in mind for her from here, and likely up over more ground as well.” Lux Libertas has now had eight starts for five wins, with all of those victories coming from her last six starts. She has earned $119,045 in stakes. Part-owned by Kylie Bax’s Goldeye Trust, Lux Libertas was bred by her parents Graham and Helen-Gaye Bax in partnership with Lib Petagna’s JML Bloodstock. Lux Libertas is by Almanzor out of the stakes-placed Makfi mare Miss Fi, whose three foals to race are all winners including the Malaysian stakes winner Trigger Pegasus. Lux Libertas completed a winning double on the Te Rapa card for Kennedy and trainers Lance O’Sullivan and Andrew Scott. They had previously joined forces to win the Dan Looker – Celebrating 100 Years (2000m) with Sassy Lass (NZ) (Staphanos). View the full article

Guy Heveldt, Emily Murphy and Jayne Ivil are joined by jockey Warren Kennedy to chat about his win in the Livamol on Snazzytavi. Then Glen Boss covers off all the races from across the ditch. Weigh In, October 13 (youtube.com) View the full article

What Bairnsdale Races Where Bairnsdale Racing Club – Racecourse Rd, Bairnsdale VIC 3875 When Monday, Ocotber 14, 2024 First Race 1:30pm AEDT Visit Dabble A new week of racing in Victoria commences at Bairnsdale on Monday afternoon, where an eight-race meeting is set to greet punters. Brief showers are forecast on raceday, meaning the Good 4 track rating at the time of acceptances will likely downgrade to a Soft 5 or 6, with the rail sticking to its true position. The Bairnsdale races on October 14 are set to commence at 1:30pm AEDT. Best Bet at Bairnsdale: Malarkey Despite putting in a poor run at Hamilton on Heavy ground, Malarkey looks set to bounce back in style at Bairnsdale. The Robbie Griffiths & Mathew de Kock-trained gelding has since been back to the jumpouts where he put in a promising display up on speed and offered a nice kick when asked to quicken. Look for Brad Rawiller to hold the rail having drawn barrier one, and if the son of Swear can offer a similar kick on the home turn, Malarkey should prove too hard to run down. Best Bet Race 3 – #4 Malarkey (1) 4yo Gelding | T: Robbie Griffiths & Mathew de Kock | J: Brad Rawiller (59.5kg) +300 with PlayUp Next Best at Bairnsdale: Cortes Cortes has been off the scene for over a year, but on the back of a couple of handy jumpouts, the son of Pariah looks poised to strike upon return. The five-year-old has a win and a minor placing in two fresh runs throughout his career, suggesting he does not take too long to come to hand. Considering he is a natural front-runner, it is likely Brad Rawiller will look to land outside the lead from barrier 10. What he may lack in fitness, Cortes should have enough class on his side to account for his BM58 rivals over 1000m. Next Best Race 5 – #3 Cortes (10) 5yo Gelding | T: Robbie Griffiths & Mathew de Kock | J: Brad Rawiller (61.5kg) +250 with Bet365 Best Value at Bairnsdale: Outcaster Outcaster simply had no luck at Moe second-up this campaign after travelling wide throughout over 1619m, and with a bit more luck on Monday, she can reverse that form quickly. Prior to that run, the Pairah mare returned from a spell with an eye-catching run at this track over 1200m when unleashing a strong finish from the rear of the field. She stays at 1600m and with enough speed in the race, it sets up perfectly for Outcaster to unwind down the heart of the track and salute at a nice price with horse racing bookmakers. Best Value Race 7 – #14 Outcaster (13) 5yo Mare | T: Rachael Cunningham | J: Jake Noonan (56.5kg) +900 with Neds Monday quaddie tips for Bairnsdale races Bairnsdale quadrella selections Monday, October 14, 2024 1-3-10 3-4-5-10-11 2-7-8-9-10-14 1-2-3-4 | Copy this bet straight to your betslip Horse racing tips
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Horses owned by their breeders swept all eight of the stakes on the 39th annual Jim McKay Maryland Million program Saturday at Laurel Park. Brilliant Ice, a 5-year-old gelding owned and bred by Crystal Park Stables, marched up on the outside from mid-pack, then slipped through at the rail to seize the lead at the head of the lane before drawing away to a 5 1/4-length victory in the featured $150,000 Classic S. at 1 1/8 miles. The 5-1 win by Brilliant Ice represented the second Maryland Million stakes score of the day for his sire, Great Notion, who increased an already remarkable streak to 15 years. His offspring have now won at least one Maryland Million Day stakes in every running of the event since 2010. Great Notion has been the state's leading stallion by progeny earnings every year since 2018, and is once again the leader so far this season. Trained by Annette Eubanks and ridden out at the 1:50.19 finish by jockey Jeiron Barbosa, the 5-for-26 Brilliant Ice had never won a stakes before–and neither had his owner/breeder despite decades in the racing business. “He is the great-grandson of the first horse that we ever owned,” said Phil Bartz, a principal of Crystal Park Stables. “I didn't know he had this in him, but we gave it a shot and he was really good today.” The 2.1-1 favorite Mosler Time (Mosler) was second in the Classic. Mugatu (Blofeld) ran third. Course conditions were fast and firm throughout the day. The most intriguing result of the afternoon came in the $100,000 Turf Sprint S. over 5 1/2 furlongs when Bosserati (Holy Boss), the lone filly in a stakes against nine males, assumed command straight out of the gate and swatted back several serious stretch bids to win at 5-1 odds in 1:02.04. Joel Politi owns and bred the 4-year-old, who is a front-running specialist who had performed well against (bit did not beat) open-company stakes distaffers all season long. Jockey Sheldon Russell rode for his wife, the trainer Brittany Russell. “She's had a big year. She's been knocking on the door, a couple of tough beats, and, look, we took a swing here today [running] the filly against the boys,” said Brittany Russell. “But we felt like we had a shot, and she ran her race. She didn't know she was running against a bunch of boys. She's just been a whole lot of fun, and for her to win a race on Maryland Million Day, this is why we do this. This is huge.” Owner/breeder Dianne Stern articulated similar sentiments after her 4-year-old filly Foxy Junior (Cuba) captured the $100,000 Distaff S. at seven furlongs. “It means so much, because I'm from Maryland, and this is something I've dreamed of,” said Stern. “We had her mother and grandmother, who ran here.” Jomar Torres rode Foxy Junior for trainer Bernie Houghton. Her victory might have been the most tenacious of the afternoon, considering she stalked behind a brisk speed duel, clawed back the lead when confronted by fave at the top of the stretch, then held off another late charge to win by three-quarters of a length in 1:23.86. In the $125,000 Turf over nine furlongs, Starstruck Notion (Great Notion) avenged a second-place finish in last year's edition of the same stakes, in which the gelding was beaten three-quarters of a length. Under deft handling by Forest Boyce, Starstruck Notion secured a primo stalking position inside and bided his time third or fourth for most of the trip. The 3.3-1 shot briefly lost momentum entering the far turn when the pack shifted, then regained his stride to split horses at the quarter pole before tipping out to the three path and closing with a surge to nail a tiring favorite at the wire in 1:47.84. Pat McBurney trains the 4-year-old for owner/breeder Kenneth Garcia. Starstruck Notion is a New Jersey-bred with a Maryland sire, so that gives him dual access to Maryland Million conditions and New Jersey-bred opportunities. The two juvenile stakes, both carded at six furlongs, were each decided by neck margins. In the $100,000 Nursery S. for 2-year-old males, Do It for Michael (Uncle Lino), led from the outset and stayed on under constant pressure despite drifting out late in the lane in 1:10.57. The 5-2 second choice, ridden by Xavier Perez and trained by John Robb for owner/breeder No Guts No Glory Farm, now sports a 3-1-0 record from four starts, with all of his wins at Laurel. In the companion $100,000 Lassie S. for 2-year-old-fillies, jockey Angel Cruz rallied from 12th and last at 8-1 odds with Shkhara Fire (Friesan Fire) to win in 1:11.24 for trainer Jose Corrales and the owner/breeder partnership of Barak Farm and Dino's Thoroughbreds. Barak Farm and Corrales also ran third in the Lassie with the 22-1 Safe Trust (Mosler). In the $125,000 Ladies S. at nine furlongs on the lawn, favored Circle Home (Bodemeister), a 5-year-old mare owned and bred by Dark Hollow Farm, raced last or next to it for most of the nine-furlong journey, then lived up to her name by looping the field four wide around the far turn and uncorking a gradual grind-down to reel in the 9-1 pacemaker, scoring by a neck at 19-10 odds in 1:48.10. Jevian Toledo rode for trainer Miguel Vera. In the $100,000 Sprint S. at six furlongs, Celtic Contender (Irish War Cry) sat well behind a trio of speedsters in fourth, picked them all off from the far turn to mid-stretch, then repulsed a stern late charge from the even-money favorite to win by half a length at 9-2 odds in 1:09.87. Victor Carrasco rode for trainer Hamilton Smith and owner Lewis Family Racing (bred by the late Fred T. Lewis, DVM). The post Homebreds Sweep All Eight Maryland Million Stakes appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

Making her stakes debut in the Oct. 12 Ontario Fashion Stakes (G3), A Game stepped up to the plate and knocked it out of the ballpark in a 48-1 upset for trainer Josie Carroll.View the full article

6th-Santa Anita, $55,500, Msw, 10-12, 2yo, f, 1m, 1:40.10, ft, 3 3/4 lengths. HOWIN (f, 2, Gun Runner–Flora Dora {MSW & GISP, $607,152}, by First Dude), a $550,000 Keeneland September yearling, graduated on debut Saturday against three other fillies who also brought $500,000 or better at various sales. Favored at 6-5, the chestnut broke sharply and had a shot to set the pace, but backed off to let Watershed Moment (Omaha Beach) and Boujee Beach (Global Campaign) take the honors instead. Howin stayed in touch with the first two through the :22.39 and :46.89 fractions, took command with authority on the turn, and held sway by 3 3/4 lengths as Wren (Into Mischief), a $500,000 Fasig-Tipton Saratoga yearling, chased her home. Out of a multiple black-type winner who placed third in the 2016 GI CCA Oaks, Howin has a yearling half-brother by Candy Ride (Arg), who sold at the recent Keeneland September sale for $250,000 to Frank Fletcher Racing Operation. The mare was covered by Munnings and Liam's Map for next term. Sales History: $550,000 Ylg '23 KEESEP. Lifetime Record: 1-1-0-0, $32,400. Click for the Equibase.com chart or VIDEO, sponsored by FanDuel TV. O-Baoma Corp; B-Coffee Pot Stables (KY); T-Bob Baffert. The post Gun Runner’s Howin Graduates on Debut at Santa Anita appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

Big Fame (Mr. Big) topped 280 entries to be named the Thoroughbred Makeover Champion, sponsored by Churchill Downs, at the Thoroughbred Makeover and National Symposium, presented by Thoroughbred Charities of America Saturday at the Kentucky Horse Park. Big Fame's route to the title and a $10,000 check took her through the discipline of Eventing, in which the daughter of Mr. Big out of the Western Fame mare Adopted Fame finished fourth in preliminary competition. She also participated in the Show Jumper discipline, finishing second in preliminary rounds and landing second in the finale as well. “She has got such a great brain, very athletic, willing, and smart,” trainer Angela Carmitchel said of the 5-year-old bay mare. “She's got the work ethic of a Thoroughbred.” Big Fame, who won two of 13 races and earned $29,070 during her racing career, is still owned by one of her breeders, Dr. Dorothee Kieckhefer. “From the very beginning, I thought she would just make a wonderful jumper or eventing horse,” Kieckhefer, who was on hand at the Kentucky Horse Park to watch her homebred perform during preliminary rounds, told the Retired Racehorse Project Wednesday. “She just has the presence for the ring, and I think she has a lot of fun. All of the trainers that had her said that she has a wonderful work ethic, but she never really raced in the top levels–she's much better served in this area.” Discipline champions from the Makeover Challenge are: Eventing: Big Fame, trained by Angela Carmitchel Show Jumper: Comin' Back, trained by Madison Barnett Show Hunter: He Did It, trained by Anissa Butler Field Hunter: In The Air, trained by Caitlin Brooks Dressage: Flight To Paradise, trained by Kelly Ransom Polo: Baytown Ringer, trained by Meghan Shader Freestyle: Pretty In Prado, trained by Monique Cameron-Hamby Barrel Racing: Not Phar Now, trained by Jessica Frederick Competitive Trail: Eagle Feather, trained by Colton Thacker Ranch Work: Brooklyns Finest, trained by Raechel Ramsey The post Big Fame Named Thoroughbred Makeover Champion appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article