Last year's NetJets Breeders' Cup Mile (gr. I) winner Kip Deville has a clear edge in class over his four contenders in the $100,000 Poker Handicap (gr. IIIT) July 13 at Belmont, but will have to carry 125 pounds, which is nine to 11 more than his rivals.
Friday, July 11, 2008Sky Conqueror, winner of the May 5 Turf Classic at Churchill Downs, will face off with veteran Better Talk Now and Todd Pletcher trainee English Channel in the June 9 Manhattan Handicap at Belmont Park
Thursday, June 07, 2007Magna Graduate, trained by two-time Eclipse trainer Todd Pletcher and ridden by two-time Eclipse jockey John Velazquez, challenged the pacesetting Jonesboro at the head of the stretch, and drew off in the final furlong for a 1 3/4- length victory in the $150,000 Razorback Breeders' Cup Handicap (gr. III) at Oaklawn Park.
Saturday, March 10, 2007Magna Graduate and Student Council plan to take their Oaklawn-based rivals to school in Friday's $150,000 Razorback Breeders' Cup Handicap (gr. III) for older horses going 1 1/16 miles.
Wednesday, March 07, 2007Steppenwolfer, the 7-2 morning line favorite for Saturday's $1-million Virginia Derby (gr. IIT) at Colonial Downs, has been scratched after spiking a fever.
Friday, July 14, 2006You'd never know Belmont Stakes (gr. I) winning trainer Kiaran McLaughlin slept a whole four hours Saturday night. McLaughlin was bright-eyed and all smiles Sunday morning as he sat in his office and talked about Jazil's victory.
Sunday, June 11, 2006After missing his mount aboard Bluegrass Cat in the Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands (gr. I) with a broken shoulder blade, John Velazquez is looking forward to riding the colt in the $1 million Belmont Stakes (gr. I) Saturday.
Friday, June 09, 2006There are nine -- count 'em, nine -- horses who can win Saturday's Belmont Stakes (gr. I), and it wouldn't come as a major surprise. What that means is that you can safely disregard the experts, speed figures, or any other handicapping tool and just hope the horse or horses you choose are in top shape to go a mile and a half.
Friday, June 09, 2006Under the watchful eye of trainer Bob Baffert, Belmont Stakes (gr. I) contender Bob and John and Woody Stephens Breeders' Cup (gr. II) favorite Too Much Bling both galloped easily over the muddy Belmont Park track Thursday morning.
Thursday, June 08, 2006With each failed Triple Crown attempt comes an outcry from racing fans and horsemen that the structure of the Triple Crown needs changing. If it is the horses' safety and longevity that is the impetus for their comments, then no one can take issue with them. If, however, it is based on the fact that we have gone 28 years without a Triple Crown winner and racing desperately needs a horse to finally win all three races, that's a different matter.
Monday, June 05, 2006Jazil, who dead-heated for fourth in the Kentucky Derby presented by Yum! Brands (gr. I), is scheduled to breeze a half-mile Monday morning in preparation for the June 10 Belmont Stakes (gr. I). He was one of several probable starters that are expected to work Monday.
Sunday, June 04, 2006Trainer Danny Peitz kept a close eye on Robert and Lawana Low's Steppenwolfer as the colt cooled out from a sparkling six-furlong work of 1:10 1/5 on the training track Friday. Saturday morning Peitz reported nothing out of the ordinary with the Belmont Stakes (gr. I) contender.
Saturday, June 03, 2006With heavy rain and a wet track expected over the next couple of days, trainer Danny Peitz sent Robert and Lawana Low's Steppenwolfer to the training track for a quick six-furlong breeze Friday morning in preparation for the Belmont Stakes (gr. I) on June 10.
Friday, June 02, 2006Steppenwolfer and Jazil, the third and fourth-place finishers in the Kentucky Derby presented by Yum Brands (gr. I), both worked over a fast main track at Belmont Park Saturday morning in preparation for the Belmont Stakes (gr. I) on June 10.
Saturday, May 27, 2006Yes, there still is another leg of the Triple Crown to be run. Although the Belmont Stakes (gr. I) on June 10 has lost its star appeal with the absence of Barbaro and Bernardini, it is still a classic, and a grueling one at that, and should at least be a competitive race, offering interesting possibilities for bettors.
Thursday, May 25, 2006Colonial Downs' early closing of their twin million dollar 3-year old turf races -- the Colonial Turf Cup and the Virginia Derby (gr. IIT) --have drawn 107 nominations, including Barbaro, Bluegrass Cat and Steppenwolfer, top three finishers in the Kentucky Derby Presneted by Yum! Brands (gr. I).
Thursday, May 18, 2006No horse had won the Kentucky Derby with a five-week or longer layoff since Needles 50 years ago. But Barbaro showed how special he is by remaining undefeated and winning the 132nd running of the race by a wide margin.
Saturday, May 06, 2006A daily update on the candidates for the May 6 Kentucky Derby presented by Yum! Brands (gr. I) at Churchill Downs.
Wednesday, May 03, 2006"I worked his daddy out of that barn," jockey Robby Albarado said the morning of April 29, pointing to barn 43 on the Churchill Downs backside.
Tuesday, May 02, 2006A daily update on the candidates for the May 6 Kentucky Derby presented by Yum! Brands (gr. I) at Churchill Downs.
Monday, May 01, 2006It's becoming an adventure waiting for jockeys to arrive for morning works. Unlike Kent Desormeaux, who never showed up for Sweetnorthernsaint's work on Saturday, Alex Solis did make it to Churchill Monday morning to work Brother Derek following a flight from Los Angeles to Cincinnati.
Monday, May 01, 2006It took a week, but we finally have works...and works...and works. In what has to be a one-day record, a dozen Derby horses were on the work tab on a mild, drizzly Saturday morning, and we had a little bit of everything, from Lawyer Ron's sizzling five-furlong drill to a mixed bag of six-furlong works.
Saturday, April 29, 2006With one week to go before the 132nd running of the Kentucky Derby presented by Yum! Brands (gr. I), 13 candidates for the 1 1/4-mile classic were on the track at Churchill Downs Saturday morning, going through their final workouts before the rain that was forecast for later in the day in Louisville, Ky.
Saturday, April 29, 2006A daily update on the candidates for the May 6 Kentucky Derby presented by Yum! Brands (gr. I) at Churchill Downs.
Friday, April 28, 2006The Ocala Breeders' Sales Co. spring sale of 2-year-olds in training closed out its four-day run Friday in Central Florida with increases in its gross revenue and average price.
Friday, April 28, 2006Friday was another relatively quiet day on the backside at Churchill Downs, as none of the 22 horses being pointed toward the May 6 Kentucky Derby presented by Yum! Brands (gr. I) worked on a dry sunny morning.
Friday, April 28, 2006The Kentucky Derby favorite has arrived in all his glory. At around 11:30 Thursday morning, Brother Derek stepped off the Tex Sutton chartered plane and onto a one-horse van, which delivered him safe and sound to his new home at Churchill Downs.
Thursday, April 27, 2006The biggest news of the day was the arrival Tuesday of Sweetnorthernsaint and Cause to Believe. With a lack of work activity once again, the talk of the morning was the cold and the unveiling of the new Kentucky Derby presented by Yum! Brands (gr. I) saddle towels, which appear to be designed with the sole intention of going unnoticed.
Wednesday, April 26, 2006Where are all the Derby horses? Times have changed from the days when trainers shipped their Derby horses to Churchill Downs several weeks before the big race. Here we are less than two weeks out and only one shipper has arrived.
Monday, April 24, 2006Suddenly, all the fast horses in this year's Run for the Roses don't seem that fast anymore.
Monday, April 17, 2006Put up or shut up; now or never; do or die. You get the picture. With the running of Saturday's Toyota Blue Grass Stakes (gr. I) and Arkansas Derby (gr. II), we finally will have a good idea who will be in the starting lineup for the Kentucky Derby presented by Yum! Brands (gr. I).
Thursday, April 13, 2006The doubters are thinning out as the seasoned Triple Crown contender Lawyer Ron turned in an impressive victory in Saturday's $300,000 Rebel (gr. III) for 3-year-olds before 32,983 at Oaklawn Park, recording his fifth consecutive win.
Saturday, March 18, 2006Never before have three grade III stakes and a grade II stakes come together on one afternoon to showcase so many major players on the Triple Crown trail. With the grade III Rebel, Gotham, and Tampa Bay Derby and grade II San Felipe drawing so many serious Derby horses, this surely will be a make or break weekend.
Thursday, March 16, 2006Lawyer Ron looks to run his winning streak to five as the likely choice in a 10-horse field for the Rebel Stakes (gr. III) Saturday at Oaklawn Park in Hot Springs, Ark. Private Vow, who won four of six races last year, makes his long-awaited 3-year-old debut.
Thursday, March 16, 2006Racing fans made "all others" the favorite on the opening day of the second pool of Churchill Downs' 2006 Kentucky Derby Future Wager, but had trouble deciding on which of the individual horses deserved backing.
Friday, March 03, 2006Lawyer Ron took another step forward with his victory in Saturday's Southwest Stakes, extending his winning streak to four. But he still left a major question unanswered. Despite the lack of stakes action last week, there were several horses around the country who stepped up and made people take notice.
Tuesday, February 28, 2006Prohibitive favorite Lawyer Ron overcame some early eagerness to record a gate-to-wire win in the $250,000 Southwest Stakes for 3-year-olds at Oaklawn Park for his fourth straight victory Saturday.
Saturday, February 25, 2006There will be a good deal of emotion surrounding Saturday's $250,000 Southwest Stakes at Oaklawn Park, as Lawyer Ron tries to extend his impressive three-race winning streak following the death his owner, James T. Hines Jr., who died in a swimming pool accident at his home earlier in the week.
Thursday, February 23, 2006So far, Todd Pletcher has been probing the enemy forces with his second- and third-stringers, with and without success. But this week it was time to get serious and bring out the heavy ammo. He hit his target with Bluegrass Cat on Saturday and now gets ready to fire off his second round with High Cotton on Wednesday.
Monday, February 20, 2006What has happened to the Sam F. Davis Stakes? Saturday's race has drawn a field that in the past would have been considered a super field for the Tampa Bay Derby (gr. III), for which the Davis has been an obscure prep. Perhaps the presence of so many accomplished horses can be attributed to Gulfstream Park's configuration.
Friday, February 17, 2006It is mid-February, and although the 3-year-olds look to be a solid bunch, there are few standouts. With question marks surrounding some of the leading contenders and the top spots up for grabs, it's time to check out the second wave, which includes several horses whose bandwagons are ready to take on passengers.
Tuesday, February 14, 2006
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