Trainer Bob Baffert reunited with one of his star sophomores, Santa Anita Derby winner Taiba, this week and the reunion went so well that Baffert will send Taiba to next Saturday’s Grade 1 Haskell Stakes at Monmouth Park. “I hadn’t seen him in a long time. I’m happy with the […]
Tag: Authentic
Baffert May Pick Up Sophomore Mantle at Familiar Spot
The Haskell Stakes and Bob Baffert have become so synonymous that the Hall of Fame trainer has nine Haskell titles on his mantle. And with his suspension ending this Sunday, Baffert may send one or more horses in his quest for Haskell title No. 10. The Asbury Park Press reported […]
Monmouth Park Offers $1 Million, Just Win Haskell, Travers, BC Classic
For the third straight year, Monmouth Park offers a $1 million bonus to the connections of any horse who sweeps three of the biggest races remaining on the 2022 racing calendar. All you have to do is win the Grade 1 Haskell Stakes, the Grade 1 Travers Stakes and the […]
Breeding Frenzy: Goldencents is 2021’s Most Prolific Stallion
The Jockey Club released its annual Report of Mares Bred (RMB) this week, revealing that three of super-stallion Into Mischief’s offspring serviced the most mares during the 2021 breeding season. Goldencents, the 2012 and 2013 Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile winner, led the stallion parade, covering 230 mares this year. Right […]
Spendthrift Farm’s Influential Owner B. Wayne Hughes Dies at 87
B. Wayne Hughes, the billionaire co-founder of Public Storage and one of the most influential figures in horse racing, died Wednesday at his Spendthrift Farm home in Kentucky. He was 87. Any comprehensive 21st-century horse racing chronicle must include a chapter on Hughes. His impact on the sport through his […]
This $1 Million Bonanza is Easy: Just Win Haskell, Travers and BC Classic
Monmouth Park and BetMakers Technology Group announced a $1 million bounty – the BetMakers Bonanza — to any 3-year-old who wins the Haskell Stakes, the Travers Stakes, and the Breeders’ Cup Classic. Just win three of the most prestigious events in American racing. Simple, right? Actually, one horse collected the […]
New Jersey Assembly Passes Fixed-Odds Horse Wagering Bill
New Jersey horseplayers tackling the upcoming Monmouth Park season received a gift from the state’s Assembly on Friday when that body voted 74-0-1 to permit fixed-odds wagering at Jersey’s racetracks. That sends the bill to the state senate. Should it clear that body, as expected, it goes to Gov. Phil […]
Ny Traffic Returns With a Vengeance, Takes Apart Belmont Park Allowance
Whatever rust Ny Traffic possessed during a seven-month layoff disappeared in less than 90 seconds on Sunday, when the colt dismantled a Belmont Park allowance field of New York-breds by 6 ½ lengths. The Cross Traffic progeny made his 4-year-old debut nearly seven months to the day after he finished […]
The Derby Strike System: Does Your Horse Strike Gold or Strike Out?
That Jon White would come up with something like the Derby Strike System (DSS) makes sense when you consider its creator spent hours surreptitiously handicapping races during his high school classes. “I’d hide it from my teachers. But I’d hide it from my fellow students as well,†said White, Santa […]
Medina Spirit, Bob Baffert Cast Their Spell in Santa Anita Derby
About the only thing faster than Life Is Good on the track was the rush of horses piling into the Santa Anita Derby the moment the Bob Baffert supercolt departed the Kentucky Derby Trail with an ankle injury. Now, all of a sudden, horses like Dream Shake, Parnelli, Law Professor […]
MyRacehorse Offers Shares of Monomoy Girl for $46
This is the essential lure of MyRacehorse Stables for horse racing fans. Starting early next month, you can own a piece of Monomoy Girl for the price of a tank of gas or a nice bottle of wine. MyRacehorse Stable paid $300,000 to Spendthrift Farm for 51% of the racing […]
Three Powerful Breeding Farms Sue The Jockey Club Over Stallion Cap
Three of Kentucky’s most powerful breeding farms filed suit in US District Court on Tuesday, seeking to end The Jockey Club’s stallion cap rule that limits stallions born in 2020 or later to 140 mares a year. The plaintiffs, Spendthrift Farm, Ashford Stud, and Three Chimneys Farm, also listed two […]
Authentic Runs Away With 2020 Horse of the Year Eclipse Award
Authentic rarely won his big races by big margins. But, he won his final “race†– the Eclipse Award for 2020 Horse of the Year – by a Secretariat at the Belmont-esque 31 lengths on the track. The Kentucky Derby and Breeders’ Cup Classic champion garnered 224 out of a […]
Authentic Ranked Second to Ghaiyyath in 2020 World Racing Awards
Two days before his expected coronation as Horse of the Year, Authentic took home the No. 2 spot in the 2020 Longines World Racing Awards. This translates to the Into Mischief colt being named the second-ranked horse in the world. It also translates into Authentic earning top honors as the […]
Magic Words ‘Bob Baffert’ Bring Concert Tour, Bezos to Derby Futures
Concert Tour won his debut by 3-½ lengths at Santa Anita last Friday. Other than workouts, Bezos hasn’t entered a starting gate yet. So why are both horses now among the Kentucky Derby futures favorites? Two words: Bob Baffert. Yes, the magic words for 3-year-old Derby hopefuls cast its usual […]
Authentic, Improbable, Monomoy Girl Head Eclipse Awards Finalists
Horse of the Year candidates Authentic, Improbable, and Monomoy Girl headline the finalists for the 2020 Eclipse Awards, announced Saturday by the National Thoroughbred Racing Association, the National Turf Writers and Broadcasters (NTWAB), and the Daily Racing Form. The Eclipse Awards get their name from the iconic 18th-century racehorse and […]
How Close is Too Close? Derby Futures Boards Reward Sham Stakes Runner-Up
Proving that Kentucky Derby futures boards and futures bettors view such matters through a kaleidoscope, Medina Spirit finished second in Saturday’s Grade 3 Sham Stakes at Santa Anita Park. At 9/1, he needed a furious stretch rally to even get near race winner and fellow Bob Baffert stablemate, Life Is […]
Can Life Is Good Duplicate His Electric Debut In Sham Stakes?
Yes, Saturday’s Sham Stakes at Santa Anita Park is only a Grade 3. And yes, only five horses are entered. But no. These facts scare away exactly nobody interested in New Year Kentucky Derby reconnaissance. That’s because one of those five is Life Is Good. The same Life Is Good […]
OG’s Eclipse Award Candidates Cover Some of 2020’s Greatest Races
Yes, it’s time for the Eclipse Awards, which in 2020, were brought to you by a scrambled Triple Crown schedule, along with tracks closing, reopening – and closing. Also featured were few – if any – fans in the stands and a rash of retirements. But the horses running in […]
Into Mischief Takes Top Stallion Honors for Second Consecutive Year
That Into Mischief became North America’s leading stallion for the second consecutive year is borne out by facts that carry weight, heft and meaning beyond the breeding shed. Yes, there’s the $225,000 stud fee he commands. That hasn’t stopped would-be filly and mare owners from beating a path to his […]