In August, Steve Asmussen took the mantle as North America’s winningest career trainer. On Thanksgiving Day, he went from macro record-setter to micro record-setter, winning what is believed to be a record five races on one card at Churchill Downs. Churchill Downs officials said records prior to 1991 are incomplete, […]
The Grade 1 Clark Stakes provides the final opportunity for Maxfield to grab a Grade 1 win. It’s an opportunity for Midnight Bourbon to shake his seconditis and grab his first Grade 1. And it provides a great opportunity for Dr. Post and King Fury to grab validation in their […]
Last year, Bonny South came into the Grade 2 Falls City Handicap as the 8/5 favorite. She didn’t run to those odds, finishing a distant second, six lengths behind winner Envoutante. And yet, Churchill Downs morning-line author Mike Battaglia has no issue making her this year’s 9/5 favorite for the […]
The question surrounding Obligatory, the 5/2 morning-line favorite for Saturday’s Grade 3 Chilukki at Churchill Downs, is an obligatory one, given the filly’s 2021 season. Will we see the Obligatory who won her last race at Churchill Downs, the Grade 2 Eight Belles on April 30 at 16/1? Or will […]
Betting on Tyler Gaffalione at Churchill Downs on Friday was a no-lose proposition, as the jockey won all six of his races on the card. Gaffalione, who owns six Churchill Downs riding titles, put his name in another chapter of the track’s record book. He became the 12th jockey scoring […]
Keeneland threw itself an 85th anniversary party and horseplayers responded with a wagering gift: a record $181 million in all-sources handle for its just-concluded Fall Meet. The 17-day Fall Meet, which ran from Oct. 8-30, brought an all-sources handle of $181,009,626. That destroyed the previous mark of $164,680,229, set during […]
The Grade 2 Fayette Stakes brings a host of recognizable names to its Keeneland starting gate Saturday for the featured event on Keeneland’s Fall Meet final day. None more recognizable than the horse running his final career race: Code of Honor. The 5-year-old owns two Grade 1 wins: both as […]
When Two Emmys won August’s Mr. D Stakes at Arlington Park at 27/1, Hugh Robertson was the trainer of record. When Two Emmys leaves the Keeneland starting gate for Friday’s Grade 3 Sycamore Stakes, where he’s the 3/1 morning-line favorite, Mac Robertson will be the trainer of record. What’s going […]
When it comes to his Irish-bred filly Empress Josephine, the concept of “load management†is a foreign one to Irish trainer Aidan O’Brien. It’s apparently also a foreign concept to Keeneland’s morning-line author, who made Empress Josephine the 3/1 favorite for Saturday’s Grade 1 Queen Elizabeth II Challenge Cup. This, […]
It was in the genes that Flippant would run her first two races on dirt. After all, that’s what Tapit offspring do. They run on dirt. Often, quite well on dirt, as we’ve seen with the likes of Belmont and Travers winner Essential Quality, among numerous others. But Flippant flipped […]
When it comes to running against Letruska, Kenny McPeek – who sends Envoutante against the standout mare in Sunday’s Grade 1 Spinster — summed up the frustration he and his fellow trainers face. “That’s the thing,†McPeek told the Daily Racing Form. “If you try to run with her early, […]
Rattle N Roll entered the Kentucky Derby prospect picture, Saturday, doing so with a 4 ¼-length victory in the Grade 1 Breeders’ Futurity on a busy opening weekend at Keeneland. Not only does this put Rattle N Roll into next month’s Breeders’ Cup Juvenile, courtesy of the Breeders’ Futurity’s “Win […]
It took two horses dropping out to get Order of Australia into the Breeders’ Cup Mile last fall. Then, once he was in the then-3-year-old son of Australia went off at a dismissive 73/1. A tick over 93 seconds later, bettors holding Order of Australia win tickets weren’t dismissive. Not […]
Last year, Kenny McPeek watched Simply Ravishing and Crazy Beautiful turn in stunning performances in the Alcibiades at Keeneland. That he watched his 2-year-old duo go 1-2 in the Grade 1 race while at Pimlico was a minor annoyance. McPeek, like everyone else coping with the pandemic, could handle minor […]
Knicks Go is back in his Churchill Downs stall, coming in off a resounding victory in one of the biggest older-horse races in the country. And he’s running against a familiar crew of competent, but hardly imposing, rivals. As Breeders’ Cup Classic tune-ups go, this one couldn’t come on a […]
Before its Fall Meet begins next Friday, Keeneland unveiled a wagering menu that features new contests and a twist on the Pick 3 – the Keeneland Turf Pick 3. The Keeneland Turf Pick 3 requires that bettors pick the winners of Keeneland’s final three turf races each day. It comes […]
The Grade 3 Iroquois Stakes open the gate for the 2022 Kentucky Derby trail. But perhaps winning the first points race on the Derby trail is a poisoned chalice. Win the 1 1/16-mile Iroquois, named after the first American horse to win the Epsom Derby – along with the Native […]
Horse racing continues its return from the post-Saratoga/Del Mar hiatus today, with the beginning of Churchill Downs’ 12-day September Meet. The Kentucky track joins Belmont Park, which began its fall meet Wednesday. All 117 September races at Churchill Downs will run on dirt. The track began work on its new […]
Whether it was riding or betting, records fell in bunches during Kentucky Downs’ recently completed six-day meet. The boutique, all-turf track located on the Kentucky-Tennessee border destroyed its previous handle record, both for a single day and for the overall meet. Kentucky Downs came in with a six-day, all-sources handle […]
To illustrate how seriously trainer Mike Maker takes the $1 million Grade 3 Calumet Turf Cup and how deep his barn goes at Kentucky Downs, Maker had owner Michael Hui retire Grade 1 winner Zulu Alpha Friday. And even with Zulu Alpha’s retirement, Maker still sends four horses into Kentucky […]
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