Blood-Horse

If a Chad Brown-trained 3-year-old son of Gun Runner lining up for the Risen Star Stakes (G2) feels familiar, it's for good reason. Sierra Leone took that path two years ago, and now Paladin is following suit.

Legendary Hall of Fame trainer King Leatherbury died at his home the morning of Feb. 10. He was 92. His horses won 6,508 races and earned $64,693,537. Leatherbury captured 52 training titles in Maryland and four meet titles at Delaware Park.

Easterly and Bless Her both break their maidens at Gulfstream Park to earn recognition for this week's Maiden Watch.

HIWU's independent Laboratory Expert Group, which evaluates the performance of program laboratories, recommended the suspension of the Ohio lab's probationary accreditation due to nonconformities associated with compliance.

Easterly and Bless Her both break their maidens at Gulfstream Park to earn recognition for this week's Maiden Watch.

During 2021-25, Cowboy Cal was runner-up on Korea's general leading sire list for four years by progeny earnings but would be the leading sire by number of winners in 2022 (76) and by number of wins in 2023 (131).

Qiddiya Investment Company has announced plans for a horse racing venue in Qiddiya City, which will become home to the $20 million Saudi Cup (G1), the world's richest horse race. The race is now being run at King Abdulaziz Racecourse in Riyadh.

Penn National will raise purses by 5% for the 2026 racing season that begins Feb. 19 and lower takeout rates for the Trifecta and Superfecta.

Byron King's Top 12 on the Road to the Kentucky Derby, presented by Spendthrift Farm.

Del Mar's 2026 stakes schedule will offer $7,775,000 in purses, including five overnight stakes each carrying a $100,000 prize. The seaside Southern California track will present six grade 1 stakes over the course of its eight weeks of racing.

Retired candidates selected by the nominating committee as finalists may appear on the Hall of Fame ballot a maximum of 10 times. Previously, there was no limit to the number of times a candidate could be a finalist within the 25-year window.

The sale's aggregate of AU$57.57 million ranks behind only the Classic Sale's booming 2022 edition, which grossed AU$67.23 million, and eclipsed 2023's AU$57.48 million.

Dual Hall of Fame trainer Mark Casse has been named the sixth chairman of the board in the history of Ocala Breeders' Sales, succeeding Francis Vanlangendonck, who steps down after 35 years on the OBS board.

With Kentucky Derby (G1) preps in full swing, the National Thoroughbred Racing Association's Top 3-Year-Old Poll was bound to welcome some new faces. John Oxley's Silent Tactic jumped to sixth place with his win in the Feb. 6 Southwest Stakes (G3).

Paladin is the 8-1 individual morning-line favorite and "All Other 3-Year-Olds" not named within the 39 individual interests as the overall 4-1 choice in the latest Kentucky Derby Future Wager.

At the end of a day of steady trade, the sale saw 267 horses change hands for gross receipts of $16,696,500, including private sales, a 43.6% increase from last year's gross of $11,626,500, from 263 head.

Midway through the Feb. 9 Fasig-Tipton Winter Mixed Sale, Marc Gunderson bought the broodmare and foal package he had targeted: multiple graded stakes-placed Ava's Grace for $950,000, and her yearling filly by Into Mischief for $625,000.

On the Feb. 9 episode of BloodHorse Monday: Mark Casse recaps a successful weekend at Oaklawn Park highlighted by victories from Silent Tactic, Search Party, and Nitrogen. BloodHorse bloodstock editor Eric Mitchell previews new stallions for 2026.

The first Senor Buscador foal bred by the Peacock family of Texas arrived Feb. 7 at Shawhan Place near Paris, Ky. The bay filly is the family's first homebred by its homebred stallion, who stands at Lane's End.

Tattersalls Online has announced a dedicated Southern Hemisphere session within its Online February Sale, which will be held Feb. 17-18, in collaboration with Australia's leading auction house Inglis Digital.