The first weekend of racing at Del Mar put to rest the fallacy that West Coast racing is synonymous with small fields and weak handles. Instead, Del Mar clocked record handles and field sizes that are the envy of any North American track. The seaside track north of San Diego set […]
Tag: horse racing
NYRA Declares Saratoga Race No Contest After Gate Tractor Failure
New York Racing Association stewards ruled Sunday’s seventh race at Saratoga a No Contest due to a mechanical issue with the starting gate tractor. That mechanical issue created a delay in removing the gate once the field started the race. The outriders communicated to the jockeys there was a problem. […]
After CCA Oaks Win, Nest Could Challenge the Boys in the Travers
This time, Nest finished the job. There would be no yielding to her rival, Secret Oath. There would be nothing but vapor trails and dirt for Secret Oath and the rest of Saturday’s Grade 1 CCA Oaks field to absorb. Now, after Nest bludgeoned her rivals by 12 ¼ lengths […]
It’s Malathaat vs. Clairiere Part the Sixth at the Shuvee Stakes
Clairiere and Malathaat share the same sire (Curlin) and the same breeder (Stonestreet Stables), so it’s only natural the two 4-year-old fillies share the same stage for the sixth time in Sunday’s Grade 2 Shuvee Stakes at Saratoga. As rivalries go, this one took a while. But these two ride […]
Cyberknife Carves His Way To Haskell Title, Monmouth Park Record
Cyberknife not only left the heralded Haskell Stakes duel between Jack Christopher and Taiba in the dust, he left both horses behind – along with the Monmouth Park track record for 1 1/8 miles. Also left behind was Jack Christopher’s aura of invincibility, along with Chad Brown’s chances of sweeping […]
The Haskell Buzz Follows Baffert’s Taiba, Brown’s Jack Christopher
The buzz horse in Saturday’s Grade 1 Haskell Stakes is definitely Jack Christopher. The buzz trainer – as he usually is in high-profile 3-year-old races – is Bob Baffert who brings in 7/5 morning line favorite Taiba. So when the starting buzzer goes off in the 1 1/8-mile Haskell, who’s […]
CCA Oaks Provides Another Glimpse of Secret Oath vs. Nest
There are actually five horses in Saturday’s featured Grade 1 CCA Oaks at Saratoga. But do not let yourself get bogged down by numbers. Let yourself get bogged down by details. Because this year’s CCA Oaks marks only the third time in the last 25 years the top-two finishers from […]
King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes Come With Plenty of Jewels
Consider Saturday’s Group 1 King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes at Ascot a European preview to November’s Breeders’ Cup Turf at Keeneland. And consider it a meeting of some of the best turf runners in the world: European Division. Which is appropriate, given the winner of this 1 1/2-mile jaunt […]
United Nations Offers Up French Favorite: Defending Champ Tribhuvan
In case you forgot how good United Nations Stakes favorite and defending champion Tribhuvan can be when he’s given the lead, the 6-year-old gelding provided you with another lesson on Belmont Stakes day last month. The French-bred son of Toronado outran his foes and outran his 19/1 odds, going gate-to-wire […]
All-Stakes Cross Country Pick 5 Features the Haskell, UN, Caress
The Grade 1 Haskell Stakes, its Grade 1 turf undercard United Nations, and a salty Grade 3 filly turf sprint finale at Saratoga headline this week’s New York Racing Association Cross Country Pick 5. This week’s Cross Country Pick 5 features stakes races coming from Monmouth Park, Saratoga, and Canada’s […]
Breeders’ Cup Returns to Santa Anita Park in 2023
The Breeders’ Cup World Championships announced Thursday it will bring the Breeders’ Cup back to Santa Anita Park for a record 11th time in 2023. That milestone for the Southern California track also signifies the 40th running of the Breeders’ Cup. The 2023 Breeders’ Cup will take place on Friday, […]
Caravel’s Winding Road Leads Her Back to Saratoga’s Caress Stakes
This time last year, Caravel was about to win the Grade 3 Caress Stakes for owner/trainer Elizabeth Merryman. Coming out of that victory, her third consecutive score, Caravel was about to go to Bobby Flay. The celebrity chef and racing aficionado bought a majority share of the filly before that […]
Del Mar Opening Day Features Sold-Out Stands, Maxed-Out Fields
Del Mar opens its 83rd season of racing Friday with boosted purses, the customary opening-day sellout crowd, and a sellout field of 14 for the meet’s first feature, the Oceanside Stakes. Lost to history and time is the Hollywood flavor the seaside track enjoyed from the moment Bing Crosby took […]
Star Stallion Gun Runner Going South For Australian Breeding Season
Like any rock star worth his paycheck, Gun Runner is taking his act on the road. The leading second-crop sire in North America will breed a limited number of Southern Hemisphere mares during the Down Under breeding season. Thoroughbred Daily News reported that Gun Runner will stand for $75,000 US/AUS $109,700. […]
Del Mar Betting Menu Includes Extra Pick 6 Mandatory Payout Day
When Del Mar begins its 83rd summer season on Friday, it will do so with one notable change in its wagering menu: an extra mandatory payout day for its Rainbow Pick 6. That brings to three the number of mandatory payout days for the wager, which requires horseplayers to hit […]
Chad Brown Talks Turf Dynasty, Where His Star Sophomores are Headed
One day after Chad Brown racked up the Diana Stakes superfecta, he discussed his barn’s new MO acquiring horses, where Preakness Stakes winner Early Voting is running next and what’s next for his other two standout sophomores: Zandon and Jack Christopher. You’ll see Early Voting next in the July 30 […]
In Italian Speaks Universal Language of Setting Saratoga Track Record
In Italian was Chad Brown’s fourth of four entries into Saturday’s Grade 1 Diana Stakes at Saratoga. At 8/1, she was the longest shot of Brown’s four-headed Diana armada, charged with being the rabbit for undefeated Bleecker Street or Rougir. Run fast, set a blistering pace for the closers to […]
Influential Turf Sire, Champion Kitten’s Joy Dies at 21
Kitten’s Joy, a former Champion Male Turf Horse and one of the top turf sires of the 21st century, died Friday at his Hill n’ Dale Farm home in Xalapa, KY. of an apparent heart attack. He was 21. Ramsey Farm’s social media accounts announced the death Friday. Ramsey Farm […]
Brown Shows Four of a Kind in the Hunt for Diana Title No. 7
The Diana Stakes are the first of 19 Grade 1 stakes at Saratoga and it’s clear that Chad Brown is wasting no time playing for keeps in defense of his Saratoga training title. Brown is flooding the Diana zone. He’s sending four of the six 4-year-olds and up into the […]
Saratoga’s First Grade 1, Deep Allowances, Head Cross Country Pick 5
Saratoga’s first Grade 1 of its 2022 Summer Meet opens this week’s New York Racing Association Cross Country Pick 5. The weekly sequence includes races from not only the Spa, but also from Ellis Park and Monmouth Park. Interestingly, those latter two tracks offer wagering options not available at Saratoga. […]