Wandering Eyes

Both Charles Town Races (165 dates) and Mountaineer Park (125 dates) got approval Dec. 16 from the West Virginia Racing Commission (WVRC) to finalize live racing schedules for 2026. The awarding of race dates in West Virginia is annually an outdated, several step process. A state statute requires Charles Town to apply for 220 programs every year, and Mountaineer is required to apply for 210 dates. But those quotas haven't been reached for quite some time. So what has ended up happening in recent seasons is that after the initial approvals of those mandated 220 and 210 dates every November by the WVRC, both venues have subsequently come back before the commission to ask for reductions that reflect what each track and its respective Horsemen's Benevolent and Protective Association chapters think is a workable schedule. The post ’26 Dates Set For Charles Town And Mountaineer appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

Pinhooker Fearghal Hogan completed his shopping for the year at the Tattersalls Ireland Sapphire Sale when going to €60,000 to secure a Make Believe colt that was offered by the Irish National Stud. Out of black-type Sea The Stars mare The Sky Is Blazing, the Make Believe colt was the most expensive horse sold at the one-day sale on Tuesday. The Sky Is Blazing has already produced two individual winners, including the 91-rated Blazing Skies (Dark Angel). “I love the foal,” Hogan said. “I saw him when the videos came up on the website a few weeks ago. I like the sire and I just thought he was the best foal on the day – it was plenty of money for him.” Hogan added, “He's out of a black-type Sea The Stars mare who has bred two good horses. She is still a young mare. I knew he was going to cost….but not that much! “When you see a horse that you like, you just want to buy it. I have bought between 12 and 14 this year.” The turnover for the Sapphire Sale almost doubled [up 93%] to €609,200 for 62 lots sold at a clearance rate of just 60%. The average was up by 50% to €9,826 while the median was up 127% to €6,250. The post Hogan Completes Haul For 2025 With Make Believe Colt At Tattersalls Ireland appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

Writers Edward L. Bowen and Ray Kerrison and photographer Charles Christian “C. C.” Cook have been selected to the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame's Joe Hirsch Media Roll of Honor. Edward L. Bowen (1942-2025), who was inducted into the Hall of Fame earlier this year as a Pillar of the Turf, enjoyed a prolific career as a racing journalist and historian for more than 60 years. An editor-in-chief of The BloodHorse magazine and the author of 22 books on horse racing, Bowen also served 24 years as president of the Grayson-Jockey Club Research Foundation, traditionally the leading source of funding for veterinary research specifically to promote horse health and soundness. He was the chair of numerous committees at the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame, including the contemporary Nominating Committee for 38 years, beginning in 1987. “Ed contributed to the betterment of racing in so many ways and the historical record of his outstanding writing will live on forever,” said Brien Bouyea, the National Museum of Racing's Hall of Fame and Communications Director. “Ed built a reputation on integral reporting and captivating storytelling. He loved horses and horse racing and that passion shined through in his vivid work.” Charles Christian “C. C.” Cook (1873-1954) was one of American racing's first and most influential photographers. A native of Carmi, Illinois, Cook worked as a photojournalist for newspapers in Chicago before becoming a freelancer around 1900. His images of animals in the Lincoln Park Zoo in Chicago and the Barnum and Bailey Circus attracted wide attention. Cook began his association with racing photography at Washington Park in Chicago in the late 1890s. Cook was one of the first photographers in the United States to specialize in horse racing photography, as well as portraits and scenic images at various racetracks. “Cook was a prolific photographer who established trends in U.S. racing photography as both an artist and as a pioneer of track photography equipment that evolved heavily in the early decades of the 20th century,” said Keeneland Library Director Roda Ferraro. “The Cook Collection remains a pillar of Keeneland Library's vast photography collections, and Cook's seminal body of work is alive and influential as we connect people daily to his captured race day moments for use in international articles, books, films, exhibits, social media, and track and farm marketing campaigns.” Ray Kerrison (1930-2022) was one of racing's most respected writers and had few peers as an investigative reporter. A native of Australia, Kerrison wrote for the New York Post from 1977 through 2013, serving the paper as both a news and horse racing columnist. He covered 32 editions of the Kentucky Derby and numerous other major races, including Breeders' Cup events. “Ray was smart, kind, dryly witty, and as committed to his craft as any journalist I've ever known,” Bob McManus, The Post's retired editorial page editor, said after Kerrison's death in 2022. “He was a man of unshakable principle, which was obvious in his writing, but also a fellow who respected his readers' intelligence. His goal was to persuade, not to lecture, and while his work could be controversial, it always was honest.” “I used to refer to him as the Fred Astaire of thoroughbred racing because he was the best,” former Post sports editor Greg Gallo said. “He was the classiest guy who ever worked that beat. No one was better as a journalist.” For more information on the newest Joe Hirsch Media Roll honorees, click here. The post Bowen, Cook, Kerrison Selected to Joe Hirsch Media Roll of Honor appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

The Australian Turf Club has secured a temporary injunction from the Supreme Court of New South Wales halting Racing NSW's move to place the club under administration, with the matter set to be heard on Thursday, December 18. Racing NSW announced on Monday it intended to appoint an administrator, citing concerns over the ATC's financial position and corporate governance, claiming the club failed to present a credible remediation plan during a protracted show-cause process. ATC chairman Tim Hale rejected those claims, saying the club is “financially strong and operationally stable”. “As of today, the club holds approximately $29 million in cash and continues to meet all financial obligations as they fall due,” Hale said. “Our balance sheet is supported by more than $400 million in land and property assets, including strategically significant holdings at Canterbury and Camellia.” Hale also said Racing NSW currently owes the ATC $1.2 million in outstanding payments, with almost $800,000 more than 120 days overdue. Racing NSW responded on Tuesday afternoon with a statement. Chairman Dr Saranne Cooke said the decision followed what she described as a misrepresentation of the situation by the ATC in a notice to members. “Racing NSW will continue to act in the best interests of the NSW Thoroughbred Racing industry, and we believe the facts in the attached letter speak for themselves,” Cooke said. A sizable part of the letter called into question the conduct of Hale around the proposed sale of Rosehill Gardens and his communications at the time with the Hon Mark Latham. The letter stated that Hale did not inform the rest of the Board that he was communicating with Latham at that time. Racing NSW expressed concern for the “changing nature” of Hale's correspondence with Latham, and that “the conduct of the ATC Board gives rise to serious and systemic corporate governance concerns”. The matter returns to the Supreme Court on Thursday. The post ATC, Racing NSW Head to Court appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

The "Japan Road to the Kentucky Derby" returns with the Zen-Nippon Nisai Yushun at Kawasaki Racecourse Dec. 17 with none of the runners who contested the first leg in November.View the full article

It may not have rivalled the headline acts Romantic Warrior, Ka Ying Rising or even Sosie, but for Justin Timmons, the success of his graduate Helene Supafeeling (City Light) in Hong Kong on Saturday provided the popular breeze-up consignor with reason to celebrate. And why wouldn't it? Helene Supafeeling, formerly known as Port Light in Europe, landed a £107,160 cheque when making his debut at Sha Tin a winning one on what is one of the most important fixtures of the year in that jurisdiction. Not only that, but the 24,000gns yearling purchase, who was then sold to Tom Biggs of Blandford Bloodstock for €41,000 at last year's Tattersalls Ireland Breeze-Up Sale, is yet another highly-rated horse to have been sold by Timmons under the banner of Dolmen Bloodstock. “It might have been a race on the undercard, but the biggest thing that I took from it was that he managed to win first-time up in Hong Kong,” Timmons said. “A lot of people tell me that it usually takes horses a couple of runs to acclimatise and adapt to the style of racing in Hong Kong so, to win on his debut, that was quite impressive.” Timmons added, “He was rated 100 in Britain and won off a Hong Kong rating of 72 so he could be well ahead of that rating. Who knows, he could be running in one of the bigger races on that card in 12 months' time! He's definitely quite useful.” Helene Supafeeling was winning for trainer David Eustace, but it was Archie Watson who managed the horse's career in between the breeze-ups and that valuable Hong Kong victory. A dual winner for Watson, Helene Supafeeling finished fifth behind Cosmic Year in a Listed contest at Newmarket before being sold to continue his career in Hong Kong. They say one swallow doesn't make a summer, though, and, luckily for Timmons, he has come up with a good horse from small numbers every year for the past number of years. He explained, “I have sold a horse rated 90 or 100 every year but they never seem to blitz in their breeze. Orderofthephoenix (Phoenix Of Spain), for example, was 70th or 80th on the clock at Tattersalls Ireland, yet she won over six furlongs at Woodbine earlier this year. She's obviously very quick for a Phoenix Of Spain, who seems to be getting mile-plus horses, but, for whatever reason, she didn't clock. “Lost Signal (Lucky Vega) looks a nice horse as well. He was only beaten a few lengths by Gewan on debut at Newbury but he won his next two starts and is now rated 89. He's another who didn't rock the clock in his breeze but he looks an exciting horse for next year.” Timmons added, “I only breeze on average five or six every year and I don't even have the hunger to go up in numbers anymore because it is just very hard to get riders these days. The way I work it is, I go to all of the sales and I try to buy something I really like. There are plenty of days I come home with nothing as a result. I don't need to fill a stable for the sake of it because I'm trying to keep numbers tight. That way, I can do a lot of the hands-on work myself. I have a good rider, Niall O'Connor, who is a big help to me. People say breezing is a numbers game but there's no point in having horses for the sake of it. It's hard to say what's right and what's wrong but, for me, I know that keeping the numbers tight is working so we'd rather keep it as a boutique operation.” Along with producing nice horses, the one constant to Dolmen Bloodstock over the past number of years is that the horses sold under that banner rarely feature in the top third of the time sheets at the breeze-up sales. It doesn't seem to hinder them on the racetrack, however, and Timmons believes that his consignment highlights the value on offer to buyers willing to look beyond the clock at the breeze-up sales. He said, “I would like to think by now that there are one or two buyers out there that are savvy enough to know my horses don't blitz the clock. Tom Biggs, for example, bought the City Light off me last year and, off the back of him, he asked me what I liked this year. I told him that the Lucky Vega was my pick and he followed him into the ring. Fair enough, he didn't get him but he bid on him. He trusted me and I didn't set him wrong so there is definitely value to be gotten at the breeze-ups if you look beyond the clock and analyse the breeze as a whole. People build up a profile on consignors and they know what to expect from different vendors.” Timmons added, “I started out in this game in a racing yard and have also dabbled in the breeding and stud farm side of the business as well. Every time I get a horse in, I train them like they're racehorses. Maybe from a trading perspective, I should be training more for the clock but this is what I know and I am set in my ways. The breeze-ups were fundamentally about getting a yearling in, breaking them and letting them go up the track in a good style. Buyers had the advantage of being able to see them gallop up the track without blitzing and I think that's what breeze-ups should always be about. There's a part of me that would love them to be able to go quicker in the breeze but, I'm 35 now so maybe I'm too old to change my ways!” The post Early Christmas Present For Timmons With Success Of “Value” Breezer In Hong Kong appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

It might be over-egging the pudding a bit to describe this year's Prix Morny as a familiar tale of woe for the home team. However, in order to understand why the 2024 winner, Whistlejacket, is such a welcome addition to the Normandy stallion ranks for next season, it's important to acknowledge the gaping void that necessitated his purchase in the first place. Increasingly, France seems to be falling behind its British and Irish counterparts when it comes to producing top-class, sprinting juveniles. This struggle was depicted in no uncertain terms by what we witnessed at Deauville in August, when only one of the six runners for the Morny was actually trained in France. The colt in question, Imperial Me Cen (Mehmas), proceeded to trail home at the rear of the field, eight lengths adrift of the winner, Venetian Sun (Starman). Andre Fabre's Earthlight stemmed the tide somewhat when hitting the target in 2019, but it remains only four times this century that the Morny has been won by a French-trained horse, with the consecutive victories of Whipper (2003) and Divine Proportions (2004) being followed at much longer intervals by first Dabirsim (2011) and then Earthlight. A familiar tale of woe, indeed. This year, however, there has at least been an encouraging epilogue to the story for French breeders, with Whistlejacket – the first Morny winner to retire to stud in France since Shalaa – possessing many of the attributes that they've been crying out for. A battle-hardened colt who ran eight times in his juvenile campaign alone, the son of No Nay Never filled the runner-up spot at the top level on two other occasions, in the Phoenix Stakes and Middle Park Stakes, as well as winning the G2 July Stakes and dishing out a near-four-length beating Arizona Blaze in the Listed First Flier Stakes. “We were really impressed by his two-year-old career and we were thinking that this is the type of profile we don't have here in France at the moment,” says Jean-Daniel Manceau of Capucines Bloodstock, the man tasked with managing Whistlejacket's stallion career at Haras de Grandcamp. “We'd been looking for a stallion for a couple of years. We were looking for a speedy, early type, from a nice family and with a fashionable sire. He was ticking all of these boxes so, when he came up for sale, I was more than interested. I worked on making a nice partnership with some French breeders to purchase the horse and to give him a place at stud here in France.” Whistlejacket is joined on the Haras de Grandcamp roster for 2026 by the Queen Elizabeth II Stakes hero Big Rock and Grosser Preis von Baden scorer Zagrey, with Jean-Philippe Dubois leading the group of breeders who have committed to supporting the former Aidan O'Brien trainee in his second career. Manceau adds, “I think he will fit plenty of mares and [appeal to] plenty of breeders. We made a little syndicate with a few shares to sell. In only 48 hours that was done, so it was showing already a few good signs. “We will support him a lot as well. We're trying to buy around 15 mares and fillies with a speedy profile to support him during the year and to give him the best start possible at stud.” Whistlejacket's arrival at Haras de Grandcamp sees him become the fourth son of No Nay Never to find a place at stud, with the others including this colt's full-brother, Little Big Bear, who demolished his Phoenix rivals by seven lengths in 2022, and Blackbeard, who won the same year's Morny and Middle Park. No Nay Never, of course, won the Morny himself in 2013. “He comes from a very good sire-line,” Manceau continues. “His father No Nay Never was a Group 1 winner. He actually won the Morny, like Whistlejacket, and his grandfather, Johannesburg, won the Morny as well. Scat Daddy was a two-year-old winner [at Grade I level], Johannesburg was one and Hennessy was one, so that's five sires in his sire-line who were Group 1 winners at two, like him. “He's an outcross to the Sadler's Wells line and the Danehill line. He has this nice Scat Daddy blood, so I think he can be crossed with all of the Kodiac, Dark Angel and Galileo mares. All of these lines could fit him well, I think.” Bred by Camas Park, Lynch Bages and Summerhill, Whistlejacket was a knockout yearling when sold to MV Magnier and White Birch Farm for 500,000gns at Tattersalls Book 1. Within seven months he was debuting at the Curragh, becoming one of the first Ballydoyle two-year-olds to be unleashed that season. Clearly, the ambition is that Whistlejacket will produce high-class horses built in his own image, ready to go early in their juvenile campaigns, although Manceau is quick to point out that there is more staying power on the distaff side of the pedigree. “He came from a family that I love, a Wertheimer family from the good mare All Along, who was a five-time Group 1 winner,” he explains. “He's out of a Bering mare called Adventure Seeker and, obviously, he's a full-brother to Little Big Bear. He comes from that good French family which we all like here. I think that can help him to have horses who can be [talented] three-year-olds, stay a bit more and go over all type of distances. “He's standing at 16 hands. He has a lot of scope and a good walk. He's a very nice, well-made horse – that's why he made that [amount of money] at the sale.” Already, Whistlejacket is drawing admiring glances from breeders in his new surroundings at Haras de Grandcamp, little over an hour from where he enjoyed his finest hour in the Morny, beating the G2 Coventry Stakes winner Rashabar (Holy Roman Emperor) by three-quarters-of-a-length. Named after the chestnut racehorse famously depicted in George Stubbs's 18th century painting, Whistlejacket will command a fee of €14,000 in his debut season, with Manceau eager to get the ball rolling. “He was a Group 1-winning two-year-old and we need this type of profile here,” Manceau sums up. “I think, at this price point, he will be good value for breeders here in France. “He just came a week ago to the farm and I was delighted to see him in the flesh. He's such a nice-looking and calm horse. He's already had a few good shows and a few good visits. All of the breeders were pleased with him. I'm really excited to work on it and to support him at the sales, buying mares and trying to do really something great.” The post Haras de Grandcamp Welcomes Prix Morny Hero Whistlejacket appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

The OBSOnline January 2026 Sale, offering horses of racing age and 2-year-olds in training, will run in conjunction with the Ocala Breeders' Sales Company's January Winter Mixed Sale, which will be held Jan. 27 in Ocala, Florida. The Winter Mixed Sale, featuring newly turned yearlings, broodmares, and broodmare prospects, has 282 head catalogued. The single-session auction will begin at 11 a.m. ET. OBSOnline January 2026 Sale Dates Entry deadline – Jan. 19 Optional Under Tack – Jan. 22, 10 a.m. ET Bidding Begins – Jan. 26, noon ET Bidding Closes – Jan. 30, noon ET Among the stallions represented with yearlings in the Winter Mixed catalogue are OBS graduates Bucchero, Colonel Liam, champion Corniche, Goldencents, Kantharos, Mitole, and Yaupon as well as offerings by first-crop sires Arcangelo, Annapolis, OBS grad Country Grammer, Dr. Schivel, Doppelganger, Endorsed, Fulsome, Gunite, Pappacap, Proxy, Simplification, Taiba, and Zandon. The catalogue also features yearlings by such notable stallions as Authentic, Charlatan, Early Voting, Essential Quality, Girvin, Golden Pal, Hard Spun, Jackie's Warrior, Independence Hall, Maclean's Music, Mandaloun, Maximus Mischief, Omaha Beach, Roadster, Speaker's Corner, Tiz the Law, Twirling Candy, and Win Win Win. The 2026 OBS January Winter Mixed Sale includes a daughter of six-time leading sire and OBS grad Into Mischief as well as mares in foal to young sires Dornoch, Maxfield, and Verifying and proven stallions Khozan, Leinster, and Midshipman. Supplemental entries are being accepted until Jan. 16, 2026. For complete information on registration and internet bidding, click here. The post OBSOnline January Sale to Run Alongside OBS Winter Mixed Sale appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

What will racing look like in 10 years? We asked some of racing's best and brightest to give us their predictions. Want to submit an answer? Email suefinley@thetdn.com Louisiana Downs Racing Secretary Stuart Slagle: My 2036 Racing Travelogue DATE: Jan 25, 2036 10:00 PM EST CITY: HAVANA Wow, what a year! I kicked things off in Havana, where the legendary Oriental Park made its comeback with Hong Kong Jockey Club's assistance following the successful launch of Chongua Racecourse. The Gran Premio Laz Barrera Internacional was a huge draw, even luring recent Florida Derby champs. The Friday night post of 10 o'clock allowed for simulcasting at Sha Tin. The Friday night races were wild, and winning jockey Zac Purton partied so hard at the Havana Jazz Festival that he missed his flight the next morning. DATE: Jan 26, 2036 6:00?PM EST CITY: Hallandale Beach FanDuel Sportsbook was relieved of its liability because Purton-Purton's jockey prop parlay wasn't going to bankrupt them. The Computer Assisted Wagering teams successfully crushed the winning payoff on Derek Ortiz's first stakes win, as Purton's pickup mount. His dad, Jose, was the favorite until the gates opened, but the real surprise was a China Horse Club runner from Royal St. Lucia that paid $3.80. DATE: Feb 23, 2036 6:00 PM MST CITY: PHOENIX Phoenix was buzzing for the GI Luke Kruytbosch Derby. The city's grown huge (now the 3rd largest in the country), and the Rocky Mountain Breeders Cooperative has made Turf Paradise the place to be. Both purses and field sizes skyrocketed with the early adoption of the Equibase Ratings Handicaps. A full gate is now the norm for the Kruytbosch with the $1-million bonus for Rocky Mt.-breds that start in the Kentucky Derby. Trainers like Bob Baffert, Todd Fincher, and Steve Asmussen dominated, and Steve even posed with the WY-bred winner. DATE: Mar 15, 2036 6:00 PM EDT CITY: NEW KENT Once the decade-old Delmarva Racing Consortium negotiated a Preakness entry of the best-finishing DE-, MD-, or VA-bred in the race, the Virginia Derby was on every sophomore's dance card. Capitalizing on the stakes' popularity among horse people in the entry box, CDI increased starters to 20 in Colonial Downs' premier dirt race five years ago, DATE: Apr 6, 2036 6:00 PM EDT CITY: OCALA In its partnership's third year, the FTBOA and World Equestrian Center presented the Ocala Derby Spectacular, during which eventing, showjumping, and racing are interspersed throughout the day. The story of the week was Karl Cook winning a show jumping medal on the same day as scoring a surprise upset in The Ocala Oaks on a Michael Matz trainee. DATE: May 3, 2036 9:45 PM EDT CITY: LOUISVILLE After a decade of negotiating with the UFL, Churchill agreed to have the Kentucky Derby's post time during halftime of the championship game (Louisville Kings vs. Ocala Storm). A long post-time drag was necessitated following a controversial defensive pass interference call. Peacock7 boasted the largest Derby viewership ever. A $450-million Derby Day handle was reached despite bettors crashing ADWs, transferring funds between gaming wallets. DATE: May 26, 2036 9:00 PM EDT CITY: BALTIMORE Under enormous pressure for another Triple Crown, last seen with Justify, The Maryland Jockey Club moved the Preakness Stakes to Memorial Day so that more Derby runners would run in the Preakness. To maximize the television audience, Pimlico paid the Baltimore Orioles to play a day game so the second leg of the Triple Crown would own the Monday prime time slot. The Cygames-sponsored Umamusume: Pretty Preakness was a battle of the ages between granddaughters of Swiss Skydiver and Rachel Alexandra. DATE: Jun 21, 2036 9:00 PM EDT CITY: ELMONT After 95% of the 2035 Belmont Stakes wagers arrived in the last seconds, NYRA booked all fixed odds win, double, and exacta wagers to address CAWs. On this Belmont Day alone, those wagers handled $300 million. Sponsored by the World Pool, several jockeys, including Belmont winner Katie Davis, traveled on the 'New Concorde' for same-day riding engagements at Royal Ascot and Belmont Park. DATE: Jul 1, 2036 8:30 PM PDT CITY: TORFINO In cooperation with the Laytown Races, the British Columbia Teletheatre brings beach racing to the surfing and whale watching community of Torfino on Vancouver Island. Despite difficulty in obtaining Pacific Rim National Park accommodation, organizer Dawn Lupal expects that the Salish Stakes will be on everyone's bucket list. Donnacha O'Brien trained the winner and is pointing to Laytown to become the first condition to pull off the Torfino-Laytown Double. Late post time was to accommodate low tides. DATE: Jul 16, 2036 8:30 PM EDT CITY: NEW KENT Using event planning Artificial Intelligence, Colonial Downs created the Cavalier Invitational the evening after MLB's All-Star Game. Wednesday's two-mile test was with the middle turf rails down for a field of twenty-four. Barring the FIFA World Cup, no Wednesday sporting event had as much wagering. DATE: Aug 2, 2036 8:30 PM MDT CITY: JACKSON HOLE While the August standards of Saratoga and Del Mar are still popular, the Wyoming circuit is now the summer place to be. As a condition of Taylor Sheridan filming a documentary, the biggest fan of the Yellowstone series, Ben Huffman, was hired. Jackson Hole is now the summer hotspot, with Hollywood stars flocking to The Grand Teton Stakes. The purse hit $2 million, and the racing scene is booming. DATE: Aug 18, 2036 84:30 PM MDT CITY: LEHI California's population shift to Utah led to the demand for Sundance Downs, built near the American Fork train station in Lehi. The track's signature race, The Sting, is a period piece dress occasion for patrons on what would have been Robert Redford's 100th birthday. DATE: Sep 7, 2036 5:30 PM CDT CITY: BOSSIER CITY The Super Derby thrives at Louisiana Downs, which is now the most popular stop on Amtrak's recently completed Atlanta- Dallas high-speed rail link. They thank Woodbine for the inspiration for the track adjacent depot. Winning owner/breeder of the Bullet Train (GB) descendant, Sean Feld, used the purse to fund the rebirth of the 'Kids To The Cup.' DATE: Sep 10, 2036 5:30 PM EDT CITY: FRANKLIN Kentucky Downs got a makeover, with new barns and a backstretch grandstand over the old Interstate-65 rest stop, which was funded by the state. Historical Horse Racing keeps the excitement going. DATE: Oct 24-25, 2036 CITY: HOUSTON The Breeders' Cup at Sam Houston Race Park was a trophy bonanza for Michael Maker, who won all seven turf championships. Thanks to Penn Entertainment and Tilman Fertitta for championing HHR and sports betting. DATE: Nov 13, 2036 1:30 PM EDT CITY: CHEROKEE On Harrah's Cherokee Casino's 39th anniversary, the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians expands with the addition of parimutuel racing to North Carolina. The fans from Knoxville, Chattanooga, Charlotte, and Atlanta packed the grandstand for a lively nine-day meet. DATE: Dec 11, 2036 5:30 PM HST CITY: HONOLULU Honolulu hosted a pop-up racing festival at Kapi'olani Park, and ESPN revived the Diamond Head Classic. A Yoshito Yahagi-led investor group funded the King Kamehameha birthday celebration. It was a treat to see Coaches Calipari and Pitino at the races before their big game. I am grateful to TQ for getting me tickets for both. There are now rumors that Hawai'i is a future Breeders' Cup host site. DATE: Dec 26, 2036 12:30 PM PST CITY: ARCADIA Finally, I wrapped up the year in Arcadia at Clocker's Corner, celebrating the Great RIP's 102nd birthday. The two-week holiday break between Honolulu and Arcadia was the perfect way to end the season with friends and family. The post Racing in 2036: Stu Slagle appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

In terms of upcoming centenaries, the good news is that we should be favored with plenty of Marilyn Monroe movies. True, her most enduring contribution to equine sport was to exclaim, in Some Like It Hot: “Water polo! Isn't that terribly dangerous?” “I'll say,” replies Tony Curtis as the fake millionaire. “I had two ponies drowned under me.” In the Thoroughbred world, therefore, we will instead be honoring another immortal female born in 1926. Through the next year, in fact, it might be fun to make a specific note of every graded stakes winner tracing to La Troienne (Fr), just as a snapshot of her legacy. Because we had a pretty instructive sample last weekend, when horses as remote in origin as South American champion Obataye (Brz) (Courtier) and the Louisiana A.T.M., Touchuponastar (Star Guitar), could ultimately be entwined by the great matriarch. La Troienne's influence can hardly be condensed in a few paragraphs here; nor have we scope to reprise the encouragement she offers anyone who recently invested in a cull from a major program at the breeding stock sales. In short, the daughter of Teddy (Fr) never won a race (albeit highly tried, and placed a couple of times) and was discarded by Marcel Boussac for 1,250 guineas in December 1930. Though her dam was a steeplechaser, it was a Classic family overall and her purchase by Colonel E.R. Bradley duly consolidated his status as one of the principal architects of the modern American Thoroughbred. By now, of course, the direct genetic impact of La Troienne will be fairly infinitesimal. She's the 10th dam of Obataye, the ninth of Touchuponastar. But these two horses do legitimately measure the sheer range by which their ancestor has become such an icon. Each traces to a different daughter of La Troienne, among several to have established lasting lines; these latter having in turn proliferated to allow widespread access. Sure enough, both extend branches identified with relatively modern names-respectively those of The Garden Club (Herbager {Fr}) and La Mesa (Round Table)-but have since been diluted sufficiently to become perfectly affordable. Touchuponastar is out of a mare who cost $25,000 as a yearling and, while Star Guitar is a deserving legend in Louisiana, was conceived at no more than $7,500. But this tapering of values is pretty steep. The dam is out of a Deputy Minister mare who was in utero when Harbor View Farm decided that $450,000 was not enough for a half-sister (by Farma Way) to Bernstein and Sky Mesa's dam Caress (both by Storm Cat). Their dam was out of La Mesa, who was herself out of Buckpasser's half-sister-whose granddam was La Troienne's daughter Businesslike (Blue Larkspur). The line that leads to Obataye, meanwhile, was cultivated by Ogden Phipps, who acquired La Troienne's daughter Baby League (Bubbling Over) after Bradley's death in 1946. Her value had just been giddily elevated by her daughter Busher (War Admiral), Horse of the Year in 1945, but she was carrying a full sister who would repay Phipps every cent, in Striking. Striking's daughter by Nasrullah, So Chic, has become one of the principal thoroughfares to La Troienne, notably through her granddaughter The Garden Club. The latter's acquisition by William S. Farish III was pivotal to the development of Lane's End, with her daughter Up the Flagpole (Hoist the Flag) becoming dam of seven stakes winners and, eventually, granddam of Mineshaft (A.P. Indy). Obataye's profile on Pedigrees360 By that stage the farm had sold a Storm Cat filly out of The Garden Club's final foal, Hidden Garden (Mr. Prospector), for $360,000 as a yearling in 1998. The filly, named Hidden Storm, never made the starting gate but her latest owners were able to cash her out for $700,000 after Mineshaft refreshed the page in 2003. She redeemed that investment when the Danehill filly she was carrying was sold to Coolmore as a yearling for $1.45 million. But a single placing for that filly at Listed level proved the highlight of her dam's production record-albeit from only half-a-dozen named foals-and a later daughter by Unbridled's Song was discarded to Brazil, for just $28,000, as an unraced 2-year-old at the 2009 Keeneland November Sale. That has proved a moment of tremendous renewal for this strand of the La Troienne dynasty-even though neither this filly, Paris Commune, nor her daughter Surfi'n Usa (Crimson Tide {Sadler's Wells}) ever made the racetrack. For her son Gargalo's Hill (Brz) meanwhile won a couple of local Group races; and now Surfi'n Usa has become the dam of the Continent's outstanding racehorse. Obviously some credit is owed to Obataye's sire, Courtier, whose own maternal line extends to Almahmoud-a name that stands comparison with that of La Troienne herself-via the Coup De Folie (Halo) branch to Natalma. Courtier was a Juddmonte homebred, a half-brother by Pioneerof the Nile to multiple Grade I winner Emollient (Empire Maker), and was found a place at stud in Brazil after being beaten by a length in the GII National Museum of Racing Hall of Fame Stakes in 2015. Not many of us will remember him, on the racetrack, but he has sired three previous Group 1 winners in Brazil. Obataye may be a big fish in a relatively small pond. But nobody can belittle his genes as when a prize swordfish is described, in Some Like It Hot, as a member of the herring family. “Isn't it amazing how they get those big fish into those little glass jars?” remarks Marilyn. Curtis replies: “They shrink when they're marinated.” Warrior a Folk Legend Spreading our wings a little, this week, with the build-up to the holiday rather quiet on the domestic front. From South America we proceed to Asia, to acclaim a truly outlandish animal in Romantic Warrior (Ire), now winner of a fourth G1 Hong Kong Cup. And “acclaim” is the word. It was a year ago this month that Rathbarry Stud mourned the loss of Romantic Warrior's remarkable sire Acclamation (GB), whose very first crop included a future champion sire in Dark Angel (Ire). Though sire of seven elite winners, Acclamation never stood at a higher fee than €40,000. Admittedly he could work with some quite some interesting material in Romantic Warrior's dam Folk Melody (Ire) (Street Cry {Ire}). She had been culled in 2016 by Godolphin for €82,000 after a regressive track career (impressed on debut) contributed to the rather disappointing production record of her dam, GI E.P. Taylor Stakes winner Folk Opera (Ire) (Singspiel {Ire}), herself discarded that same fall as a 12-year-old, for no more than 240,000gns. Of the various good opportunities granted to Folk Opera, however, it has turned out that her first two foals-both daughters of Street Cry-would draw most of her ability. The unraced Opera Lily is dam of Argentinian Group 1 winner Mr Bailetti (Arg) (Exchange Rate); and then came Folk Melody. Folk Opera had herself been the first foal of her dam Skiphall (GB) (Halling), who similarly faded thereafter. That was a disappointment, given that Skiphall had been bred by Juddmonte from Minskip (The Minstrel), who can be found over some pretty smart horses-which would have been no less than would have been hoped, when her dam Fabulous Native (Le Fabuleux {Fr}) was expensively recruited halfway through her breeding career. Fabulous Native's dam, by Raise A Native, was a granddaughter of Exclusive (Shut Out)-whose own date with Raise A Native had produced Exclusive Native. Nyquist Passing the Test While the success of Litmus Test (Nyquist) in the GII Los Alamitos Futurity plainly consolidated the credentials of the crop champion, he is certainly coming along admirably in his own right and will stretch out next year with a nice, old-fashioned base of experience. Meanwhile he has completed a fine year for his sire, whose incoming juveniles will still only have been conceived-like Litmus Test-at $55,000. Now that he is trading at $175,000, the expectation will be that his upgraded mares will cycle through and keep up the momentum. As it is, his 10 Grade I performers this year represent 3.6 percent of starters, a match even for Not This Time, Gun Runner and his pensioned neighbor Medaglia d'Oro, the only others (among meaningful opposition) to bat three percent in 2025. It is certainly to Nyquist's credit that he was able to convert a relatively reachable fee into a $875,000 payday at Saratoga last year, much the best yet for Litmus Test's dam Study Hard (Malibu Moon). The latter was found by Machmer Hall as a yearling for $100,000 at the 2016 September Sale. Though she showed nothing in a light career, she was always going to be able to fall back on her genes, as full sister to triple graded stakes winner Sweet August Moon. The latter had an unusual distinction, by the way, in both starting and finishing her career in Grade I races! (Seventh when taking the Del Mar Debutante literally, and bowed out with third in the Santa Monica Stakes.) Study Hard duly contributes to the expanding distaff legacy of Malibu Moon, whose daughters have so far given us one excellent stallion in Girvin and now launch a couple of young “Guns” in Locked and Sierra Leone. The post Bloodstock Digest: La Troienne Jubilee Starts Early appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article

The Australian Turf Club has launched Supreme Court action against Racing NSW's move to appoint an administrator to take over the club's affairs, claiming its board does not accept the regulator has the power to do so.View the full article

Jay Rooney LOVE TOGETHER - R8 (6) Improved second up to run a close second and can go one better tonight Owen Goulding MIGHTY STEED - R9 (12) Will get a soft lead and can be away and gone when the closers loom Trackwork Spy THUNDER PRINCE - R5 (6) Bursting to break through and gets a great chance from gate one Phillip Woo TOP TIME - R4 (1) Has been racing well and deserves a win with Purton hopping on Shannon (Vincent Wong) SKY SONG - R2 (2) Stormed home for second last start and looks a...View the full article

Douglas Whyte is keen to end a frustrating period of near misses when he saddles the strong pairing of King Oberon and Goko Win at Happy Valley on Wednesday night. The South African has enjoyed a strong campaign at the city circuit, sitting third behind Caspar Fownes and Danny Shum Chap-shing for winners at the Valley this season, with eight of his nine winners coming there. That tally could have been much higher, with the 54-year-old watching a trio of his horses finish second on International...View the full article

The Hong Kong International Races are officially in the rear-view mirror, and now the focus switches to the coming months when the three-race Four-Year-Old Classic Series, Triple Crown and Hong Kong Speed Series all commence. Following Ka Ying Rising’s (NZ) (Shamexpress) HK$28 million Gr.1 LONGINES Hong Kong Sprint (1200m) blitz, David Hayes was beaming at Sha Tin on Tuesday, indicating the world’s best sprinter will now take a short break before the HK$13 million Gr.1 Centenary Sprint Cup (1200m) – the first leg of the Hong Kong Speed Series – on 25 January. “He’s pulled up really well. It was, probably visually, his best performance. I think his last two runs have been career peaks and let’s hope he keeps holding that form. He will go to Conghua now and have a nice month. He’ll be back in January,” Hayes said. Hayes is eager to point Public Attention (NZ) (Written Tycoon) towards the HK$13 million Hong Kong Classic Mile (1600m), the first leg of the Four-Year-Old Classic Series – on 1 February – which also comprises the HK$13 million Hong Kong Classic Cup (1800m) before concluding with the HK$26 million BMW Hong Kong Derby (2000m) on 22 March. The 83-rated colt has raced twice in Hong Kong. He has come within a half-length of winning both times, including his narrow third placing last Sunday in Class 2 over 1400m. “I thought he ran really well. He just probably needs one more run at 1400 (metres). He is the stable’s premier Hong Kong Classic Mile horse,” Hayes said. Before the city’s best returns next month, Wednesday’s nine-race fixture at Happy Valley sees Hong Kong International Sale graduate Super Unicorn (NZ) (Savabeel) go for a hat-trick of wins in the Class 3 Sea Eagle Handicap (1650m) under Andrea Atzeni. “He’s obviously improved. It’s done his confidence a lot of good getting his head in front a few starts ago. We thought going into his last run that he definitely had improved because his work at home was better going into the race. We knew we were up in class, but we weren’t overly surprised that he won the race,” Atzeni said. View the full article

Michael is in Hong Kong for Hong Kong International Raceday, and is joined by his old mate, Emily Murphy. The pair catch up with Jamie Richards, Mark McNamara and Tom Wood, before dissecting a massive day of racing with wins for Ka Ying Rising and Romantic Warrior, among others. Guerin Report – S2 Ep. 15 – Hong Kong International Raceday View the full article

Rudy Liefting is dreaming of a Gr.1 Al Basti Equiworld Dubai New Zealand Oaks (2400m) tilt with his filly Unrestrained (NZ) (Time Test) in February, with her performance at Ruakaka on Wednesday dictating whether she continues down that path. The three-year-old daughter of Time Test has shown plenty of promise for the Pukekohe horseman, finishing runner-up to highly-regarded filly Transcend when on debut at Ruakaka in September before just missing out on black-type when fourth in the Gr.3 Sunline Vase (1400m) at Ellerslie a fortnight later. She has mixed her form since then, with a third placing over a mile at Pukekohe splitting unplaced runs in the Gr.2 Soliloquy Stakes (1400m) and Listed Trevor & Corallie Eagle Memorial 3YO (1500m). While disappointed in her last couple of stakes outings, Liefting is hoping a return to Ruakaka, and a drop back to maiden grade in the 6 Jan – Trigg Family Fun Race Day 1600, will help get his filly’s preparation back on track. “She gave us a little bit of hope when she ran a (fourth) placing in the fillies race and when she ran second in her first start to a good filly, but she has put in a couple of disappointing runs since,” Liefting said. “Her last start at Ellerslie was disappointing, she had every chance and was well-ridden. “The good thing is that she is still a maiden, so she has got the chance to drop back to maiden grade and get her form back. “I am a believer in horses for courses, so I thought Ruakaka is sitting there and she did run second to Transcend there, the timing seems right, so we will give her a crack up there.” Wednesday will be a crossroads for Unrestrained, with further black-type opportunities awaiting her if she performs up to expectations, or the spelling paddock if she does not. “We will try and work her way back to a fillies race,” Liefting said. “Our pipedream is the Oaks. We are going to pay up for that. The Oaks is at Ellerslie, and she has got a staying pedigree, so we are going to try and utilise that and try and get there.” Unrestrained is currently the only horse in work with Liefting, who is currently contemplating the future with his jumper Mont Ventoux (NZ) (Nom du Jeu). The 10-year-old gelding has performed on both the flat and over fences, winning nine races in total, including the Kiwifruit Cup (2100m), and was runner-up in last year’s Great Northern Hurdle (4200m), and placed in this year’s Waikato Hurdle (3200m) and Wellington Hurdle (3200m). “I am looking at retiring Mont Ventoux, he is a horse that wants to be active at pony club, but I can’t find a home for him, so I will probably end up putting him back in work,” Liefting said. “He has been a good horse and was the only reason I kept training for a while. I won a race or two every year with him and he ended up winning nine races and nearly $300,000, he was more than handy.” View the full article

Fan favorite Skelly has been retired from racing, Frank Alosa, bloodstock agent for Red Lane Thoroughbreds, confirmed Dec. 15. The hard-knocking 6-year-old gelding won 12 of his 25 starts and retired with a record of 12-7-1.View the full article

Graham Richardson and Rogal Norvall’s star filly Lollapalooza (NZ) (El Roca) is set to be joined in the Gr.2 Hallmark Stud Eight Carat Classic (1600m) at Ellerslie on Boxing Day by her rapidly emerging stablemate Fleeting Star (Cool Aza Beel). Given Lollapalooza’s penchant for the Ellerslie track, the Matamata training partners were keen on the three-year-old feature even before she finished second to Well Written in last month’s Gr.1 New Zealand 1000 Guineas. That’s where she won the Gr.3 Gold Trail Stakes (1200m) in September, followed by a close second in the Gr.3 Sunline Vase and a luckless fifth in the Gr. 2 Soliloquy Stakes. Fleeting Star threw her hat in the ring for the Eight Carat Classic when clearing maiden grade at last week’s Ellerslie twilight meeting, having also finished third there twice beforehand along with second placings in her only two other starts. “She’s a filly that we’ve always liked and hadn’t done much wrong in her four previous starts, so she deserved that win last week,” Richardson said. “We’ve had a race like the Eight Carat in the back of our minds for a while, and now that’s cleared maiden grade she deserves her chance at black-type now.” Fleeting Star, a daughter of former leading two-year-old Cool Aza Beel who Richardson bid $80,000 for in Book 1 at last year’s National Sale, is part-owned by a Richardson Racing Syndicate, as is Lollapalooza, whose $30,000 price tag from Book 2 of the same Karaka sale makes her a genuine bargain. After seven starts the El Roca filly’s stake-earnings stand at a tick under $250,000, and her co-trainer is looking optimistically to upcoming features. “I was very proud of her second in the 1000 Guineas. There’s no doubting Well Written’s class, but our filly never stopped trying and had all the others covered over the final stages. “She had two weeks off after getting home from Christchurch and her work since coming back in has been very good. “She’ll run in the special trial before the first race here on Friday and that should top her off nicely for Boxing Day. “Vinnie (Colgan) stays on her in the Eight Carat and we’ve booked Opie (Bosson) for Fleeting Star.” As New Zealand Bloodstock sales graduates, both fillies are qualified to run in the TAB Karaka Millions 3YO and the NZB Kiwi. “Lollapalooza has had those races on her programme right through and if Fleeting Star continues to step up we’d have to consider her as well.” Richardson and Norvall, who produced Britannia Gold (NZ) (Ten Sovereigns) for a narrow but impressive fresh-up win at Te Rapa last Saturday, will have relatively light representation at Friday’s home track meeting. “The best of ours is Buccino, who kicks off a new campaign in one of the maiden 1200 races. We’re happy with the way she’s coming to hand. “She’s a five-year-old now and has a had a few starts, but she’s been placed in half of them and when you combine her experience and maturity, her turn can’t be far away.” View the full article

On the Dec. 15 episode of BloodHorse Monday: SF Racing's Tom Ryan reacts to Litmus Test's victory in the Los Alamitos Futurity (G2) and former NFL Pro Bowl quarterback Jake Delhomme, on his Louisiana-bred star, Touchuponastar.View the full article

The Australian Turf Club has launched Supreme Court action against Racing NSW's move to appoint an administrator to take over the club's affairs, claiming its board does not accept the regulator has the power to do so.View the full article

The Virginia Racing Commission approved an expanded and adjusted 48-day live racing season for Colonial Downs in 2026. This will be the most live racing days ever held in one season at Colonial Downs in its nearly 30-year history.View the full article

Hollywood Casino at Charles Town Races put a bow on its 2025 racing season Dec. 13 and handed out the hardware to the year's leading connections.View the full article

Daniel Alonso's grade 1-placed son of Exaggerator comes into the $150,000 stakes with four wins at the 1 1/16-mile distance and three wins at Gulfstream Park.View the full article

On the Dec. 15 episode of BloodHorse Monday: SF Racing's Tom Ryan reacts to Litmus Test's victory in the Los Alamitos Futurity (G2), former NFL Pro Bowl quarterback Jake Delhomme on his Louisiana-bred star, Touchuponastar.View the full article

Colonial Downs will host an expanded 48-day live racing season in 2026 after the Virginia Racing Commission approved the upcoming season's schedule on Monday. The increase in days will be the most live racing days ever held in one season at Colonial Downs in its nearly 30-year history. Additionally, the upcoming season will shift to a Thursday through Sunday schedule, with post time set for 12:30 p.m. The season will kick off with a special three-day Virginia Derby meet on Mar. 12-14, anchored by the $500,000 Virginia Derby on Saturday, Mar. 14. After a sold-out 2025 race that drew more than 8,000 race fans to Colonial Downs, the Virginia Derby will again serve as Virginia's only Kentucky Derby qualifier race with the winning horse securing a spot in the field for the 152nd Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs. “With a Kentucky Derby qualifier, new weekend race days, and the biggest racing schedule in the track's history, 2026 promises to be an unforgettable season at Colonial Downs,” said Frank Hopf, Senior Director of Racing Operations. “We cannot wait to welcome race fans and horsemen from around the country to Virginia for another season of excitement, fun, and competition at Virginia's premier thoroughbred racetrack.” Following the March meet, the racing season will continue with 45 days of live racing each Thursday through Sunday from June 25 through a special day of racing on Labor Day, Monday, Sept. 7. The summer meet will include the annual Colonial Downs Festival of Racing with the Arlington Million and the Old Dominion Derby. The post Colonial Downs to Offer 48 Live Racing Days in 2026 appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article