Tag: horse racing

A broken bone in her right fetlock means Champion mare Midnight Bisou has her eyes on retirement now.  (Image: Skip Dickstein/For the Albany Times Union)

Midnight Bisou Retires After Fracturing Bone In Her Leg

After suffering a sesamoid bone fracture during a workout on Monday, Midnight Bisou, one of the most accomplished mares in North American racing, suddenly retired late Wednesday night. The news came via a release from Bloom Racing Stable, one of Midnight Bisou’s owners. According to the release, Dr. Larry Bramlage […]

Art Collector has taken trainer Tommy Drury Jr. on the ride of his life this year. He's the 5/2 second choice in Saturday's Preakness Stakes. (Image: Wendy Wooley)

Trainer Tommy Drury Takes Big Picture View with Art Collector

Art Collector was the biggest “what-if” surrounding this year’s Kentucky Derby. “What if” the multi-dimensional speedster ran the Derby? Would Authentic have run first at every call, like he did en route to his victory? Would he have had run first at the most important call of all – the […]

One-eyed Mighty Heart made his rivals see dirt en route to his dominant Queen's Plate victory. He is the 7/5 favorite for the Canadian Triple Crown's second leg -- the Prince of Wales Stakes. (Image: Michael Burns/Woodbine)

Queen’s Plate Winner Mighty Heart Made Prince of Wales Stakes Favorite

Mighty Heart’s days of sneaking up on rivals have ended after he blew his rivals away on Saturday in the Queen’s Plate. That explains his 7/5 favorite status for Tuesday’s Prince of Wales Stakes. the second leg of Canada’s Triple Crown. The marquee event at Fort Erie Racetrack in Ontario, […]

Jockey Tomas Mejia piloted 158/1 shot Andrez Conquist to victory in Monmouth Park's 13th race Saturday. The $319.80 payout broke a 69-year-old Monmouth Park record. (Image: Equi-Photo)

Record 158/1 Shot Andrez Conquist Conquers Monmouth Park Foes

Trainer Melvin Ovando owns only three victories in his career. But his third career victory etched his name in the Monmouth Park record book when 158/1 long shot Andrez Conquist captured Saturday’s 13th race at the New Jersey track. Andrez Conquist’s surprisingly easy four-length victory in the maiden claimer produced […]

Spielberg was a breeder's box-office smash, selling for $1 million a year ago at Keeneland. He strives for his first victory in Saturday's American Pharoah Stakes at Santa Anita Park. (Image: Keeneland)

Favored Spielberg Shoots for Winning Close-Up in American Pharoah

Could this be Spielberg’s long-awaited Oscar moment? Is Saturday’s Grade 1 American Pharoah Stakes at Santa Anita Park the race where Spielberg finds box-office – or winner’s circle – gold? The $1 million juvenile comes into his third race as the 3/1 morning line favorite in this eclectic, but well-bred, […]

United owns six victories in 15 career starts, including the Grade 2 San Marcos Stakes. He is the expected favorite in Sunday's John Henry Turf Championship at Santa Anita. (Image: Benoit Photo)

United Seeks Redemption in John Henry Turf Championship

The John Henry Turf Championship is the perfect race at the perfect place for United — a meeting of opportunity and talent in a setting the standout turf runner should devour. And United has devoured Santa Anita Park. Three of his six career victories came at Santa Anita. Missing on […]

Finishing second in the Kentucky Derby took more out of Tiz the Law than his victories did. He'll skip the Preakness Stakes and focus on the Breeders' Cup Classic Nov. 7. (Image: Jamie Squire/Getty)

Tiz the Law Passes on Preakness, Bound for Breeders’ Cup

To the surprise of few, standout 3-year-old Tiz the Law will bypass the Preakness Stakes and train for the Breeders’ Cup Classic, according to his primary owner, Jack Knowlton. The managing partner of Sackatoga Stable, the Saratoga Springs-area consortium which owns Tiz the Law, Knowlton confirmed his prize colt will […]

Standout sprinter Volatile retired Monday after a leg injury. His July victory here in the Grade 1 Vanderbilt marked his sixth and final race. (Image: Erica Miller)
Volatile

Star Sprinter Volatile Retires to Stud After Breaking Bone

Volatile, the standout sprinter who set records on numerous tracks, broke a bone in his leg Monday and immediately retired from racing. Considered the top sprinter in America, Volatile suffered a hairline fracture of his right front cannon bone. The injury, while not life-threatening, ends Volatile’s dynamic racing career and […]

Kentucky Derby winner Authentic opens as the +225 favorite on Circa Sports Preakness futures board. (Image: MyRacehorse/Coady Photography)

Authentic Captures Top Spot on Circa’s Opening Preakness Futures Board

Circa Sports in Las Vegas unveiled its Preakness Stakes futures odds this weekend and, not surprisingly, Kentucky Derby winner Authentic finds himself the opening favorite at +225. This is better than what the foreign books offer. The best odds offered overseas are 3/2. Meanwhile, Authentic celebrated his futures board-topping debut […]

Arlington Park played host to racing's first $1 million race in 1981. The 93-year-old track may not race beyond 2021. (Image: Jonathan Daniel/Getty)

Arlington Park A Go In 2021, But is That The Iconic Track’s Finish Line?

The Illinois Racing Board approved a 68-day 2021 racing schedule for Arlington International Racecourse. But the pressing question hangs over the iconic Chicago-area racetrack. Will that be the last season of Arlington Park racing? The wariness stems from comments Churchill Downs Inc. CEO Bill Carstanjen made on a July conference […]

At 8/1, Marine Stakes winner Shirl's Speight offers high-flying value in his first Grade 1 race. (Image: Kevin Burns Photography)

Eclectic Cast of Characters Takes On the Woodbine Mile

The Woodbine Mile field defines the term “eclectic.” You’ve got a Preakness winner, a 7-year-old mare with multiple graded stakes victories, and one of Canada’s most promising 3-year-olds. And all three of them could lose to one of the best closers in Canadian racing. The eclectic field of eight tangles […]

Fillies, colts, it really doesn't matter who Swiss Skydiver runs against. Trainer Kenny McPeek is considering entering the filly in the Preakness Stakes. (Image: Coady Photography)

Swiss Skydiver’s Next Plunge Could be at Preakness Stakes

A second crack at Art Collector and a first crack at a Triple Crown race. That’s what Swiss Skydiver’s connections ponder as they explore running the filly in the Preakness Stakes. Kenny McPeek, Swiss Skydiver’s trainer, said the Oct. 3 Preakness at Pimlico is in the mix for the standout […]

Keeneland played host to the Breeders' Cup World Championships for the first time in 2015. It gets the 2022 Breeders' Cup along with this year's event Oct. 6-7. (Image: John Snell/Team Coyle)

Keeneland Gets 2022 Consolation After Breeders’ Cup Goes Fan-Free

The Breeders’ Cup became the latest major racing event going spectator-free, announcing it will go without fans for its upcoming event, Nov. 6-7 at Keeneland in Lexington, KY. At the same time, the Breeders’ Cup announced Keeneland will play host to the 2022 event. This means that all four major […]

Not only did Bing Crosby popularize Del Mar in song, he took tickets on the track's July 1937 opening day. The San Diego-area seaside track named its stakes-heavy fall season after the iconic entertainer and horse fan. (Image: Del Mar Thoroughbred Club)

Del Mar Puts Plenty of Stakes in Fall Bing Crosby Season

Del Mar’s fall season goes by the official name of the Bing Crosby Season. That’s an appropriate name honoring not only the San Diego-area’s track founder, but the amount of bling offered during its abbreviated meet. The seaside track features 16 stakes with $2,250,000 of purses during its 15-day meet, […]

Ghaiyyath and rider William Buick hold the top spot in the Longines World's Best Racehorse Rankings. (Image: Frank Sorge)

Tiz the Law Named Top American Horse in World Racehorse Rankings

Despite falling 1 ¼ lengths short to Authentic in the Kentucky Derby, Tiz the Law holds down a share of third in the just-released Longines World’s Best Racehorse Rankings for 2020. In the rankings compiled by the International Federation of Horseracing Authorities handicappers, Tiz the Law (125 rating) is the […]

Jackie's Warrior's impressive win in the Grade 1 Hopeful Stakes put him at the front of the line of 2021 Kentucky Derby contenders. (Image: Dom Napoiltano/Coglianese Photography)

Get to Know These 2-Year-Old Future Kentucky Derby Hopefuls

Say “hello” to Jackie’s Warrior, Dr. Schivel, Freedom Fighter, and Sittin on Go. You may not know much about them right now, but you’ll be hearing a lot more about these four — and other 2-year-olds — over the next seven months. Ignore for the moment the 2020 Kentucky Derby […]

Flavien Prat's closing-day victory aboard juvenile Dr. Schivel in the Del Mar Futurity gave the rider the Del Mar jockey title. The San Diego-area track boosted its handle 8% despite no fans and fewer race dates. (Image: Benoit Photography)

Del Mar Defies the Odds with Increased Handle, Decreased Racing Days

Del Mar’s 2020 summer meet ran with 25% fewer racing days than there were in 2019, and without spectators. Even so, the seaside San Diego-area track increased its betting handle 8% from last year. Race-starved Californians combined with action-hungry bettors outside the state to boost the track’s handle to $466.68 […]

Only a handful of essential personnel watched a geared-down Tiz the Law win the Grade 1 Travers at Saratoga Aug. 8. But despite no fans, Saratoga's handle surpassed $700 million for the second consecutive year. (Image: AP)

No Fans? No Problem as Saratoga Surpasses $700 Million in 2020 Handle

Bettors proved they could handle the magic of Saratoga’s racing season without being at Saratoga, passing the $700 million mark in all-sources handle for the second consecutive year. The numbers for the 40-day 2020 Saratoga meet remained surprisingly strong, despite the lack of fans due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Saratoga […]