Thoroughbred Daily News

The number of race days was higher and so was wagering compared to a year ago in May, according to information released by Equibase on Thursday.

Total wagering of $1,445,615,184 on races during the month represented a 2.97% increase over the same period from 2024, while available purses of over $122 million were lower by 1.56%. The figure of over $118 million for paid purses in May was also down by 1.45%. As for the total number of race days, they increased from 359 to 365 (+1.67%) and the number of U.S. races was lower from 2,958 in May 2024 to last month's tally of 2,933 (-0.85%).

Average field size in May was down a tick from over a year ago when it was 7.10, and checked in at an average of 7.09 runners, a slight decrease of 0.14%. Average daily wagering increased by 1.28% to $3,960,590, but the average available purse number per race day was down 3.18% to $336,247 from the figure of $347,292 in 2024.

When it comes to the year-to-date figures, through May of 2024 wagering on U.S. races came in at $4.920 billion, while this year the amount is $4.829 billion (-1.85%). Those numbers include worldwide commingled wagering on U.S. races.

The post May Economic Indicators: Wagering Up Over More Race Days appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Maryland's Fair Hill Training Center will replace its seven-furlong Tapeta Footings track this summer, an upgrade from one of the synthetic surface's earliest installations to the company's newest iteration Tapeta 13.

Work is slated to begin in mid-July and take approximately six weeks, depending on weather and other factors. Fair Hill, home to approximately 700 Thoroughbred racehorses in 18 privately owned barns, was founded in 1983 with a seven-furlong wood-chip track and upgraded to include a one-mile dirt track shortly thereafter.

The wood chips were replaced 19 years ago with Tapeta, a synthetic training surface consisting of silica sand, wax and fibers created by former trainer Michael Dickinson, who established Tapeta Footings in 2005.

Funds acquired via condominium fees, state grants and a business loan will pay for the project.

“It's been a 2 1/2-year project,” said Buddy Jones, co-owner of two barns on the property and spearheaded the funding effort. “A lot of people did a lot of work to get here, and we're excited about the future. Fair Hill has a big economic impact in Cecil County and the state, and that was an important point to keep in mind. We're grateful to the barn owners, the state of Maryland, Tapeta Footings and everyone who helped make this a reality.”

Construction steps will include removal of the existing footing, a thorough examination of and repairs to the porous asphalt base, blending of the new material on site and finally installation of the new surface on the same footprint inside the dirt oval. Unlike the nearly black Tapeta 1, the new version is lighter in color and does not use rubber as part of the formula.

“The Tapeta has held up well and we've been pleased with it, but we felt it was time to replace it,” said trainer Graham Motion, a Fair Hill barn owner and a member of the association board. “We breezed a lot of good horses on that track. We're excited about it. It will be one more piece to training at Fair Hill.”

The Tapeta replacement also comes with the recent re-opening of the Fair Hill turf course for training on state-owned property adjacent to the training center. The one-mile course, rebuilt and redesigned in 2019-20.

“I think it's spectacular,” Motion said of the turf. “It will be great to have it when we're replacing the Tapeta, but I think it's genuinely exciting for Fair Hill as a whole. To add access to that to everything else here is great. It's already a great place to train horses and it's getting better.”

The post Fair Hill Training Center to Upgrade Tapeta Surface appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Fasig-Tipton has catalogued 261 selected yearlings for The July Sale, to be held Tuesday, July 8, at Newtown Paddocks in Lexington, Kentucky. The sale will begin at 10 AM. To view the catalog, click here.

“We are excited to lead off yearling sales season with a quality catalogue of precocious, selected yearlings,” said Fasig-Tipton President Boyd Browning. “July continues to be at the top of all major North American yearling sales in a variety of performance statistics. It's a sale all yearling buyers need to focus on or risk missing major opportunities.”

The sale's graduates include Chancer McPatrick, winner of last year's GI Hopeful S. and GI Champagne S. and Carson's Run, who captured last year's GI Saratoga Derby Invitational S. The sale is also responsible for GSWs Black Forza, Chop Chop, Federal Judge, Maysam, Non Compliant, Shisospicy, Taking Candy and Three Technique.

The sale opens with the Freshman Sire Showcase (Hips 1-93), highlighting the offspring of first-crop yearling sires.

This year's first-crop roster include Mystic Guide, Cyberknife, Early Voting, Happy Saver, Drain the Clock, Nashville, Pinehurst, Mo Donegal, Greatest Honour, Mandaloun, Jackie's Warrior, Golden Pal, Epicenter, Olympiad, Highly Motivated, Idol, Jack Christopher, Aloha West, Corniche and Speaker's Corner.

“This year's crop of Freshman sires is a very exciting group, and they are well represented by some outstanding individuals in July,” noted Browning. “There is also a great mix of proven sires as well, making this a very attractive catalogue.”

Nominations are also now open for the July Selected Horses of Racing Age sale, which will be held immediately following the conclusion of the yearling sale, Tuesday, July 8. Fasig-Tipton will accept nominations up until sale time; however, to be included in the catalogue's initial release, entries should be finalized by June 13.

The July Sale catalogue will also be available via the Equineline sales catalogue app. Print catalogues will be available by June 9.

The post 261 Yearlings on Offer, Catalogue for The July Sale Available Online appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

'TDN Rising Star' Colloquial (Vekoma), the 6-1 fourth choice on the morning line for Saturday's $500,000 GI Woody Stephens at Saratoga, will be withdrawn from the race, according to his trainer, George Weaver.

“Since his last breeze, he hasn't been moving on the track to our satisfaction,” said Weaver. “He's been jogging and galloping but just not moving 100%. He's not hitting the ground the way we would like. We don't have time to get really concrete diagnosis done [before the race]. We're going to get it done, but we don't feel he should run this weekend.”

Weaver was asked if he was disappointed in the turn of events.

“He is one of the most talented horses I have ever had,” said Weaver, who also trained the colt's sire, dual Grade I winner Vekoma. “We have been looking forward to this race for a long time. It's a disappointment, but I have been doing this long enough that I have been disappointed before and I can take it. He's one of the best horses I have ever trained. He reminds me a lot of his sire, Vekoma.”

Owned by Harrell Ventures LLC and Starlight Racing, the three-year-old Colloquial has won both of his 2025 starts, an Aqueduct maiden special weight on Feb. 7, and a wire-to-wire score in Keeneland's Lafayette Stakes on Apr. 7. The margin of victory in his maiden race was seven lengths, and he earned a 106 Beyer Speed figure, the third-fastest 3-year-old Beyer this year. He was given a Ragozin figure of 3 3/4, currently the fastest of any 3-year-old in North America.

He was second in his debut on June 15, 2024 at Aqueduct, to Mentee (City of Light), the full-brother to Fierceness, before an eight-month absence from the races.

The post Colloquial Out of Woody Stephens appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Every week, the TDN posts a roundup of the relevant Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act (HISA) related rulings from around the country.

The following rulings were reported on HISA's “rulings” portal and through the Horseracing Integrity and Welfare Unit's (HIWU) “pending” and “resolved” cases portals.

Among this week's rulings, trainer Efren Loza Jr. has been suspended an additional four years and fined a total of $38,000 (including arbitration costs) for a Clenbuterol positive stemming from last September, adding to an 18-month suspension he is already serving, again for a Clenbuterol positive.

According to the arbitrator's final decision, an out-of-competition hair test taken from Lucago on Sept. 3 last year returned positive findings for the controversial bronchodilator Clenbuterol, which is banned under HISA except under certain circumstances.

At the time that sample was pulled, Loza was not the covered person responsible for Lucago, and was already serving his 18-month suspension. Loza had officially transferred responsibility for Lucago to trainer Luis Ramirez on June 20 last year.

But according to the arbitrator's ruling based on expert testimony, the Clenbuterol had been administered prior to the June 20 switch in responsibility. “Based on sound scientific reasoning-and common sense-Lucago's exposure to clenbuterol had to have occurred prior to June 3, 2024,” the ruling states.

In Loza's post-hearing brief, he argued that the most plausible explanation for the positive was accidental contamination. Loza's current 18 month suspension ends Oct. 16 this year. This additional four-year suspension begins the same day.

Resolved ADMC Violations
Date: 06/03/2025
Licensee: Samuel Valdivia, trainer
Penalty: Disqualification of Covered Horse's Race results, including forfeiture of all purses and other compensation, prizes, trophies, points, and rankings and repayment or surrender (as applicable); a fine of $500; imposition of 1.5 Penalty Points. Admission.
Explainer: Medication violation for the presence of Isoflupredone–a controlled substance (Class C)–in a sample taken from Computing Champ, who finished second at Will Rogers on 4/29/25.

Date: 06/03/2025
Licensee: Steve Williams, trainer
Penalty: Disqualification of Covered Horse's Race results, including forfeiture of all purses and other compensation, prizes, trophies, points, and rankings and repayment or surrender (as applicable); a fine of $500; imposition of 1.5 Penalty Points. Final decision by HIWU.
Explainer: Medication violation for the presence of Phenylbutazone–a controlled substance (Class C)–in a sample taken from Gospel Mark, who finished second at Will Rogers on 4/21/25.

Date: 06/03/2025
Licensee: Glenn Wismer, trainer
Penalty: 7-day period of Ineligibility for Covered Person, beginning on June 4; Disqualification of Covered Horse's Race results, including forfeiture of all purses and other compensation, prizes, trophies, points, and rankings and repayment or surrender (as applicable); a fine of $1,000; imposition of 2 Penalty Points. Admission.
Explainer: Medication violation for the presence of Acepromazine–a controlled substance (Class B)–in a sample taken from Ask Arthur, who finished fifth at Keeneland on 4/19/25.

Date: 06/02/2025
Licensee: Efren Loza Jr., trainer
Penalty: Four (4) year period of Ineligibility, beginning on October 16, 2025; $30,000 fine; payment of $8,000 toward the arbitration costs of the proceeding; and (14) month period of Ineligibility for the Covered Horse Lucago, beginning on April 3, 2024. Final decision by arbitral body.
Explainer: Out-of-competition medication violation for the use or attempted use of Clenbuterol–a banned substance except in strict circumstances–on the horse, Lucago.

Date: 05/30/2025
Licensee: Gregory Foley, trainer
Penalty: A fine of $500 per violation, for a total of $1,000; imposition of 1.5 Penalty Points per violation, for a total of 3 Penalty Points. Final decision by HIWU.
Explainer: Vets' list medication violation for the presence of Dexamethasone and Phenylbutazone–both controlled substances (Class C)–in a sample taken from Hard to Get on 4/15/25.

Date: 05/30/2025
Licensee: Dr. Margaret Smyth, veterinarian
Penalty: Three (3) month period of Ineligibility, beginning on Aug. 5.
Explainer: Possession of Pitcher Plant Extract (Sarapin), Levothyroxine and Hemo 15–all banned substances–for an event dated 10/4/23.

Date: 05/30/2025
Licensee: Dr. Barbara Hippie, veterinarian
Penalty: Three (3) month period of Ineligibility, beginning on May 30, with a credit of twenty-five (25) days for the Provisional Suspension served in 2023. Admission.
Explainer: Possession of Clodronate (Bisphosphonate), Pitcher Plant Extract (Sarapin), Levothyroxine, Isoxsuprine and Hemo 15–all banned substances–for an event dated 9/28/23.

Date: 05/29/2025
Licensee: Emmanuel Tzortzakis, trainer
Penalty: 15-day period of Ineligibility for Covered Person, beginning on May 30, 2025; Disqualification of Covered Horse's Race results, including forfeiture of all purses and other compensation, prizes, trophies, points, and rankings and repayment or surrender (as applicable); a fine of $2,500; imposition of 2 Penalty Points. Admission.
Explainer: Pending vets' list medication violation for the presence of Cannabidiol (CBD)–a controlled substance (Class B)–in a sample taken from Whoosh on 3/18/25.

Pending ADMC Violations
06/03/2025, Jorge Abreu, trainer: Pending vets' list medication violation for the presence of Dantrolene–a controlled substance (Class C)–in a sample taken from Curlin's Angel on 5/2/25.

06/03/2025, Luis Fernando Gonzalez, trainer: Pending medication violation for the presence of Phenylbutazone and Flunixin–a controlled substance (Class C)–in a sample taken from Swen on 5/2/25.

06/02/2025, Mike Miceli, trainer: Pending medication violations for the presence of Dexamethasone–a controlled substance (Class C)–in samples taken from Montauk Mystique, who finished second at Aqueduct on 3/28/25, and from Mighty Atlas who won at Aqueduct on 3/21/25.

05/29/2025, Carmelo Ortiz-Ruiz, trainer: Pending vets' list medication violation for the presence of Phenylbutazone–a controlled substance (Class C)–in a sample taken from Boxster on 4/6/25.

Violations of Crop Rule
Belterra Park
Antioco Murgia–violation date May 29; $250 fine, one-day suspension

Churchill Downs
Abel Cedillo–violation date May 29; $1,500 fine, three-day suspension

Gulfstream Park
Miguel Angel Vasquez–violation date May 30; $250 fine, one-day suspension

Hawthorne
Alexis Centeno–violation date May 29; $250 fine, one-day suspension

The post Weekly National Regulatory Rulings, May 29-June 4 appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY — While the rematch between GI Kentucky Derby winner Sovereignty (Into Mischief) and GI Preakness Stakes winner Journalism (Curlin) has received top billing, the camp surrounding the blue-blooded Baeza (McKinzie) sees a slightly different storyline ahead of Saturday's GI Belmont Stakes at Saratoga.

“They talk about the challenge of the two of them. I think it's more the challenge of the three of us,” said Lee Searing of C R K Stable, who campaigns Baeza in partnership with the colt's breeder Robert Clay of Grandview Equine.

“This horse can really run.”

Baeza rallied smartly for third at odds of 13-1–beaten 1 3/4 lengths by Sovereignty and just a neck for second by Journalism–after somewhat of an eventful journey on the first Saturday in May.

Widest of all in post 19 after drawing in off the also-eligible list, Baeza was bumped and steadied beneath Flavien Prat at a very crucial juncture at the five-sixteenths and came flying home while completely covered in mud to pass the top two shortly after the wire.

Baeza was previously a fantastic second to Journalism while making his stakes debut in the GI Santa Anita Derby.

Baeza in front past the wire in the Kentucky Derby | Coady Media

“We only got beat a neck for second, and we didn't have the greatest of trips, either,” Searing said. “We had one of the best riders in the world riding him and he blames himself for the path he took. The stretch he had to move him in and out and he finally got free.”

C R K Stable (those are the initials of Lee and Susan Searing's three adult children–Christina, Richard and Katherine) has also finished a rallying fourth with GI Runhappy Santa Anita Derby winner Honor A. P. (Honor Code) in the COVID-delayed Kentucky Derby in 2020 and a troubled 13th with Candy Boy (Candy Ride {Arg}) in 2014. Skinner (Curlin) was scratched due to a fever from the 2023 Run for the Roses.

“When you start going to the racetrack when you're eight years old, which goes back to 70 years ago, you start hearing about the big races, the great jockeys and great horses, and the Kentucky Derby comes right up,” Searing said.

“Then you go through the years and think, 'Can I ever get a horse good enough to go?' We've had four and we haven't had a clean trip yet. It's a dream to win it. I have some really nice horses for next year and we'll try again. But the focus right now is on Baeza.”

And, of course, that pedigree page of his.

Hailing from the first crop of McKinzie, Baeza brought $1.2 million to top the third session of the 2023 Keeneland September Yearling sale.

Baeza strikes a pose at the Spa | Sarah Andrew

He can become an unprecedented third American Classic winner for Broodmare of the Year and 'TDN Rising Star' Puca (Big Brown), who has also produced 2023 Kentucky Derby winner Mage (Good Magic) and last year's Belmont Stakes winner Dornoch (Good Magic). Only Better Than Honour has produced back-to-back Belmont winners–Jazil (2006) and Rags to Riches (2007).

The 13-year-old Puca, also responsible for a Good Magic colt of 2024 and a Good Magic filly of this year, sold to John Stewart for $2.9 million at the 2023 Keeneland November Sale.

“The quality of his breeding and the bloodlines that he comes from–I have a partner in Robert Clay that bred him and is sitting on the fact that mare would be the first to have three winners in Triple Crown races,” Searing said. “He's a great man, good partner and fun to be around. We're both gonna root really hard. God, if he gets it done it will be a tremendous feat.”

The purple-and-yellow colors of C R K Stable (Searing's silks pay homage to the Los Angeles Lakers and the late Kobe Bryant) have been carried by 1,713 starters (according to Equibase stats), including Grade I winners Beyond Brilliant, Express Train and Switch. Just never one at the Spa.

“I've never run a horse at Saratoga,” said Searing, who will also be represented by 'TDN Rising Star' Justique (Justify) in Friday's GII Bed o' Roses S. “That's an amazing statistic as many good horses as we've had.”

Lee Searing | Photos by Z

Searing, the CEO of Searing Industries, a California- and Wyoming-based, family-run business specializing in manufacturing steel-tubing products, will have another rooting interest of sorts via the aforementioned Honor A. P., who is the sire of Heart of Honor (GB), a 30-1 longshot in the Belmont Stakes. The sophomore sire stands at Lane's End.

Baeza is listed as the third choice at 4-1.

“It's gonna be fun going to Saratoga and it's gonna be fun watching the race,” Searing said. “I think with a good track–seven, eight horses–and a clean trip, it's gonna be a really really good horse race. But I think we got a really good horse.”

The post Baeza Gets Another Shot at Kentucky Derby Top Two in Belmont Stakes appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y.–The sting of missing the GI Kentucky Derby has faded. Ditto for the GI Preakness Stakes.

Rodriguez (Authentic) is well rested, healthy and a ready to roll 'TDN Rising Star.' The colt, trained by Hall of Famer Bob Baffert, will make his Triple Crown debut in Saturday's GI $2 million Belmont Stakes at Saratoga Race Course.

Owned by SF Racing LLC, Starlight Racing, Madaket Stables LLC, Stonestreet Stables LLC, Dianne Bashor, Determined Stables, Robert Masterson, Tom Ryan, Waves Edge Capital LLC and Catherine Donovan, Rodriguez turned heads earlier this year when he rolled to a front-running 3 1/2-length win the GII Wood Memorial at Aqueduct Apr. 5.

Baffert had to scratch Rodriguez from the Kentucky Derby due to a foot issue; that kept him out of the Preakness, too.

Rodriguez, who will be ridden by Hall of Famer Mike Smith, is 6-1 on the Belmont morning line.

“It was unfortunate we could not make the Derby,” Baffert said on the Saratoga backstretch Wednesday morning. “We tried to make the Preakness, and we just needed some extra time. We took him back home and felt if we could get him going good and get him back to where he was … his last works were good enough to bring him up here.”

Rodriguez looks sharp | Sarah Andrew

The Belmont strategy for Rodriguez is simple enough. Let the big horse roll.

“We know what his style is,” Baffert said. “He needs to be out there running. We tried rating him and he just doesn't like it; he wants no part of it. We will just let him do his thing. If he does it, he does it.”

Other trainers in the Belmont are well aware of Rodriguez's ability on the front end. It was some comfort to them when Crudo (Justify) was entered at the last minute. He has two wins in three starts (by a combined 14 1/2 lengths) and both of them came on the lead. He could keep Rodriguez company.

“You always have to be concerned with a Bob Baffert horse,” said Michael McCarthy, the trainer of Belmont 8-5 morning-line favorite Journalism (Curlin). “His works, from what I can tell, have been very good.”

Baffert said Rodriguez is a horse he thinks will get better as he gets older. Whether he is ready to jump up and be a major player in the Belmont remains to be seen.

“This is a good crop of 3-year-olds,” he said. “We just don't know how he is going to stack up. He won the Wood, but this is a different kind of field of horses. He is running against the best.”

Ask Mark Casse who the best 3-year-old grass filly in the land is and he'll point to his barn.

Of course, he'll tell you, that is Nitrogen (Medaglia d'Oro).

She has won all four of her starts this year–three of them graded stakes–and will shoot for No. 5 on Saturday. Nitrogen is the even-money morning-line favorite in the GIII Wonder Again, a 1 1/16-mile event on the inner turf course.

“I hope she remains at the top of the heap,” Casse said outside his barn on the Saratoga backstretch Wednesday morning.

Nitrogen turf move | Sarah Andrew

Casse admits the success of the filly, owned by D J Stable LLC, came as a surprise.

When she was two, Nitrogen was winless in three starts but the light came on in the GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf at Del Mar when she was third at 49-1.

She has won at four different race tracks this year, the latest win coming in the GII Edgewood Stakes at 1 1/16 miles at Churchill Downs May 2. Jockey Jose Ortiz has been aboard for all four wins.

“She just runs faster than everyone else,” Casse said. “She is quiet and will shut off and you can place her wherever you want. If the pace is fast, she will be up close. If it isn't–if she needs to–she will sit off.”

Casse has trained some good fillies during his Hall of Fame career, the best being Tepin (Bernstein), who was inducted into the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame in 2022 after winning 13 of 23 career starts.

Casse was not about to compare the two horses but did offer this:

“At this point of her career, she is much better than Tepin was,” Casse said. “Tepin did not really take off until she was four. She struggled at three and excelled at four. This one has done a lot more at three than Tepin ever did. Excited? How can you not be excited?”

Hall of Fame trainer Todd Pletcher has three of the best older horses in training in 4-year-olds Fierceness (City of Light), Mindframe (Constitution) and Locked (Gun Runner)–all are 'TDN Rising Stars.' His job is to keep them away from each other for as long as he can.

So far, so good.

Fierceness up close | Sarah Andrew

Fierceness will represent the Big Three on Saturday in the $1 million GI Metropolitan Handicap at Saratoga.  He is the even-money morning-line favorite.

Mindframe has won both his starts this year, the last being the GI Churchill Downs on Kentucky Derby Day. He will head back to Louisville June 28 for the GI Stephen Foster.

Locked, winner of the GI Santa Anita Handicap earlier this year, is being pointed to the GII Suburban Stakes at Saratoga on the Fourth of July.

Eventually, the stablemates will meet, but the longer Pletcher can keep them apart, the better.

“After (the Suburban), we will see,” Pletcher said outside his barn on the Oklahoma Training Track.

Fierceness won his 2025 debut with a 1 1/2-length win in the GII Alysheba May 2 at Churchill. Owned by Derrick Smith, Repole Stable. Michael Tabor and Mrs. John Magnier, Fierceness is three-for-three at Saratoga, his biggest win being last year's GI Travers.

“He has put on weight, and he has gotten stronger,” Pletcher said. “He has always been a laid-back horse to train. He is kind of unassuming until you breeze him. When you breeze him, he will go as good as you want him to go. On his daily gallops he is more laid back.”

Hall of Famer John Velazquez, who has ridden Fierceness in his last eight starts, will ride.

The post Rodriguez Finally Gets His Chance In Triple Crown Finale appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

The most important asset the horse industry has are the brands of the Kentucky Derby and the Triple Crown. Nothing else comes close in our dying business. Nothing in Major League Baseball, the Indy 500 or the Masters can match the number of TV viewers every year for the Derby. Outside of the Super Bowl (115 million viewers) and the NBA Finals (17.8 million), one couldn't spend enough money to get 16 million TV viewers for a sporting event today in America. When a horse wins the Preakness and the Derby, TV viewers increase by 75% for the Belmont.

In this industry, we take the Triple Crown for granted and as an industry we do very little today to promote it and make it better. In the past, we had the three racing entities working together through an organization known as Triple Crown Productions. No longer–in fact, track management don't even speak to one another. Sure, the Derby and Preakness are televised by NBC and the Belmont by Fox, but that doesn't mean closer coordination can't help the product. Leaders from all three racetracks have told me recently they could work together now.

The states of New York and Maryland have committed over $400 million apiece to upgrade the racing product in their states. They see the need for their Triple Crown races. The year 2027 offers a great opportunity for our industry to make the Triple Crown great again. If some racing organization or racing leader wants to create a lasting legacy, get these three tracks together and space out the races. I reckon 80% of our fans recognize the need for the Preakness to be three weeks or more after the Derby. Recreate Triple Crown Productions. Remember, they got Chrysler and Visa to offer a $5-million bonus for a Triple Crown winner.

More importantly, create a national bet,  and make the modern-day bookies give some profits back to the Triple Crown entity to fund it.  The point leader that runs in all three events earns a big bonus. You can bet on it before the Derby, then make new bets after the Derby and Preakness. Hey, and what about a Triple Crown series for the fillies? That would be easy!

–John Stuart is the owner of Bluegrass Thoroughbred Services

The post Letter To The Editor: The Importance Of The Triple Crown appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

English based trainer Jamie Osborne doesn't think like everyone else does. Which explains why he paid €160,000 at the 2024 Arqana May Breeze-Up sale for a horse that was bred to be a dirt horse and looked like a dirt horse. The horse turned out to be Heart of Honor (GB) (Honor A.P.) who is among the eight horses that will contest Saturday's GI Belmont Stakes. Could Heart of Honor, with his breeding have become a top turf horse in Europe. The answer is “probably not.”

But racing this horse in Europe was never Osborne's intention. On this week's Thoroughbred Daily News Writers' Room Podcast, presented by Keeneland, Osborne came across as a man who has a plan. He was this week's Gainesway Guest of the Week.

Osborne likes to run in Dubai, but only in dirt races. He said the competition is too tough in the grass races, but says the quality of the horses racing on the dirt there is modest. They can be beaten and for good purses.

“The motivation for buying him was that we were taking squads of horses to the Middle East for the winter and just banging our heads up against Charlie Appleby,” Osborne said. “So 60% of the racing in Meydan in the winter in Dubai is dirt racing. Godolphin is so strong out there, they're really tough to beat. Now we have had success there, but a good example this year on the turf, I think we had seven seconds to Charlie [Appleby]. So it can be a little bit frustrating. So we thought, why don't we try something different and see if training a dirt horse is possible. So we bought a handful. I can only do this with the backing of my owners, Jim and Claire Bryce, who very much enjoy being in Dubai for the winter. So Heart of Honor was bought, not with the American Triple Crown in mind, he was bought to entertain them in Dubai during the winter racing on the dirt. And thankfully he did.”

Heart of Honor's best performance in Dubai came in the G2 UAE Derby, where he finished second, beaten a nose. Now that he had an established dirt stakes horse, Osborne needed a place to run him with the Dubai racing nearing an end. So he picked the American Triple Crown. Heart of Honor was fifth in the GI Preakness Stakes and will try again Saturday in the Belmont.

The jockey will again be Osborne's 23-year-old daughter Saffie.

“It is good. It's a whole different dimension to what I'm doing. Imagine if she was just an ordinary rider and I'd have to sack her for the good of my business,” Osborne said. “It wouldn't go down very well, would it? But no, thankfully she can ride. She doesn't lack strength, this child, she's like a little weightlifter. It's quite extraordinary. She won the genetic lottery really, because she's got three elder brothers that, believe it or not, are six-foot-four, six-foot-three, and six-foot-two. She's just five-foot-two. She is very strong and I do enjoy working with her. It has its moments. But it's different. If you take away the fact that she's my daughter, she does a great job for us. And I'm not saying that every winner doesn't give her enormous pleasure, but I think she gets extra pleasure from one of ours. She knows how hard I've had to struggle through the last 20 years.”

Jamie Osborne began his career in racing as a steeplechase rider, and was among the best in the business. In 1999, he decided to go in a different direction and retired. The decision was then made to being a flat trainer.

“I switched over to flat racing because I don't like the English winters,” he said. “The worst thing about being a jump jockey is it happens in the winter and England is a horrible place in the winter. The days are very short and it's always raining and cold.

There were lots of reasons at the time. I didn't really want to be a trainer at all until retirement was really looming and I had to face reality that the first career was over or about to be over. I had all sorts of ideas when I was riding about what I would do and wouldn't do. Then I just felt I wasn't kind of ready to leave the sport. I'd done nothing else all my life. I'd been in it since I left school at 17. And I thought, 'Well, maybe it's a bit silly trying to go and earn a living elsewhere when the only thing I know is this sport.'”

In our “Fastest Horse of the Week,” segment, which is sponsored by WinStar, we went over the many reasons there are to breed to WinStar stallion Constitution. The fastest horse of the week was Nysos (Nyquist), who ran a 108 Beyer when winning the GIII Triple Bend Stakes at Santa Anita.

Elsewhere on the podcast, which is also sponsored by the Pennsylvania Horse Breeders' Association, West Point Thoroughbreds, 1/ST Racing and 1/ST TV, the team of Randy Moss, Zoe Cadman and Bill Finley went over the Belmont Stakes, horse by horse. Finley liked Sovereignty (Into Mischief), Moss thought the race came down to Sovereignty and Baeza (McKinzie) and Cadman thought the same way. The team also previewed the many Grade I stakes that will be offered on Friday and Saturday at Saratoga.

To watch the Writers' Room, click here. To view the show as a podcast, click here.

The post Jamie Osborne Joins TDN Writers’ Room Podcast, Presented by Keeneland appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Amplify Horse Racing is currently accepting applications for the Fall 2025 session of its Mentorship Program. The deadline for applications is June 24 at 11:59 PM ET.  The fall session will run from Aug. 1 through Oct. 31.

The free program is designed for individuals aged 15 to 25 who are curious about careers in the Thoroughbred racing and breeding industry with no prior experience or academic qualifications required.

Amplify is also seeking qualified mentors with substantial industry experience who are willing to meet training, background check, and time commitment requirements.

To learn about the program and apply, prospective mentors and mentees can visit amplifyhorseracing.org/mentorship or contact info@amplifyhorseracing.org for more information.

The post Amplify Accepting Mentorship Applications appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

An additional 83 horses have supplemented to the upcoming Ocala Breeders' Sales Company's June Sale of 2-Year-Olds in Training and Horses of Racing Age, which will be held June 17 and 18. Included in the supplemental entries are offspring by sires such as Charlatan, Constitution, Curlin, Ghostzapper, Gun Runner, Independence Hall, Leinster, Maxfield, McKinzie, Medaglia d'Oro, Mitole, Not This Time, Nyquist, Oscar Nominated, Quality Road, Tiz the Law, Twirling Candy, Vekoma, Win Win Win, and Yaupon. For complete pedigree information on the supplemental offerings, visit obssales.com.

The under-tack portion of the sale will take place June 10-14 with sessions beginning at 7:30 a.m. ET each day. Hips one through 172 are scheduled to breeze Tuesday; followed by hips 173-343 Wednesday; hips 344-386 and supplemental hips 387-430 and 451-534 Thursday; hips 535 through 705 on Friday; and hips 706 through 833 and supplemental hips 834 through 873 on Saturday.

The June 17 sale session will offer hips one through 386, plus supplemental entries 387-430, with the June 18 session selling hips 451-833, along with supplements 834-873. The horses of racing age, hips 901-903, will also be offered June 18. Each session of the sale begins at 10 a.m.

The post OBS Adds 83 Supplemental Entries to June Sale appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Jean Rice, matriarch of a family of top horsemen, passed away May 27 at the age of 85.

Born Sept. 9, 1939 in Antigo, Wisconsin, Jean did not come from a racing family, but–alongside her husband of 59 years and top pinhooker Clyde Rice–she created one of the sport's most well-respected and deeply talented families of horsemen.

She earned a four-year teaching degree while raising her four children, all of whom became jockeys and/or trainers. Curt Rice was one of the leading riders of his time and his brother Wayne gave him a run for his money in the saddle before transitioning to the training ranks.

Their eldest son, Bryan Rice, got his start working under his father and Clyde's childhood friend, Hall of Famer D. Wayne Lukas. Bryan trained under his own name, alongside his wife Holley, at the racetrack before following his parents to Ocala and developing Woodside Ranch, where they give young racehorses their early education.

Jean was one tough lady and she raised another in the nation's leading female trainer Linda Rice, whose career achievements on the New York circuit speak for themselves. Jean's four children have combined to win 3,824 as either trainer or jockey.

That number does not include the many achievements of her grandchildren, almost all of whom are in the racing business. Her eldest grandson, Brandon Rice, operates Ricehorse, a 2-year-old training and sales operation, alongside his wife Alexandra deMeric Rice. Grandsons Adam and Kevin are both talented trainers in their own rights.

Her granddaughter Taylor was a very skilled jockey before transitioning into motherhood and still likes to give her husband, leading rider Jose Ortiz, a run for his money breezing at Saratoga.

Her other granddaughter Ashley is a major player in the western performance horse world, while grandson Cash makes his trade in dairy cows, but spends as much time supporting his family's passion as he possibly can.

Jean was also blessed with 10 great grandchildren, all of whom are too young to add to the family's list of racing achievements just yet, but will surely extend their matriarch's reach in due time.

Jean Rice supported her husband's many ventures and ideas in the horse business from Wisconsin to West Virginia to Pennsylvania before ultimately landing in Florida and developing the well-known Indian Prairie Ranch. She steered the ship at Indian Prairie Ranch, where the family educated the likes of champion Family Style and Grade I winner Titalating, both of whom were also purchased by her husband. While Clyde was traveling between sales and racetracks in search of racing's future stars, Jean kept things going on the home front, handling not only the family, but the business end of things. She was meticulous and exceptionally organized, keeping all the accounting in perfect order.

Anyone who met Jean will tell you she was sharp as a tack, no-nonsense, honest, and funny. She was full of entertaining anecdotes, most of which centered around her family and horses, of course. Her mind was like a steel trap, and she always paid attention, so whenever a horse issue was discussed, she could recall a similar issue Clyde or one of her children had encountered and tell you exactly what they did to fix it.

Jean will be dearly missed and her family welcomes all to attend her celebration of life Sunday, June 8 at 2 p.m. at Hiers-Baxley Funeral Home located at 910 E Silver Springs Blvd. in Ocala, Florida.

The post Jean Rice, Racing Family Matriarch, Passes Away appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Strada Del Sogno (f, 2, Street Boss–Line Up, by Violence), whose only career start to date resulted in a third-place finish last month behind Royal Ascot-bound Lennilu (Leinster) in the Royal Palm Juvenile Fillies Stakes at Gulfstream Park, sold for $150,000 to top Fasig-Tipton's June Digital Sale Tuesday. Taylor Made Sales Agency, agent consigned the chestnut filly as hip 2. Offered as a horse of racing age from Gulfstream, Strada Del Sogno sold to Elkin Family Racing.

Total receipts for the June Digital Sale included 53 horses sold for $1,401,500, an average of $24,587 with a clearance rate of 78%. In addition to horses of racing age, the catalogue also offered racing/broodmare prospects, 2-year-olds in training, broodmares (including mares with foals at foot), and yearlings.

“The top three sold were all horses of racing age, marking the shift from breeding season to racehorses and racing prospects,” said Fasig-Tipton Director of Digital Sales Leif Aaron. “It's already been an exciting year in 2025 with six sales on the books and more than 575 head sold so far. The momentum is strong, and the season is just getting started.”

The top three sellers were rounded out by the winning 3-year-old colt Landing Craft (Omaha Beach), who sold as hip 9 for $130,000 to Lucky Hat Racing from the consignment of Taylor Made Sales Agency, agent; and last week's maiden winner Zandvoort (Good Magic). The latter, consigned as hip 52 by Steve Asmussen, agent, is a 3-year-old colt who sold for $105,000 to Abubaker Kadoura.

Full results are available online at Fasig-Tipton's site. Fasig-Tipton will next host the July Digital Sale from July 17-22 with entries closing July 7.

The post Royal Palm Juvenile Fillies Third Strada Del Sogno Tops Fasig-Tipton June Digital Sale appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Last week, 'Five Fastest Maidens' became six because of a fifth-place tie. This week, only four maidens met our minimum threshold of an 80 Beyer Speed Figure

4) KAPOOR, CD, 5-31, Race 4, 7 furlongs
Beyer Speed Figure- 80
(f, 3, Uncle Mo–Kareena, by Medaglia d'Oro)
O/B-Godolphin; T-Bill Mott; J-Irad Ortiz, Jr.
She was Mott's second promising maiden to graduate on Saturday's strong Churchill Downs card, leading all the way after starting her career with third-place efforts at both Gulfstream and Keeneland. Godolphin bought dam Kareena for $400,000 from Jane Lyon at Saratoga in 2014, and she showed enough talent in five starts to record Beyer Speed Figures of 98 and 96 and win Belmont's Jersey Girl Stakes in 1:07.87. Kapoor's older half-sister Padma (Tapit) was second in Gulfstream's Cash Run Stakes.

3) EXCITE, CD, 5-31, Race 1, 1 1/8 miles
Beyer Speed Figure- 83
(c, 3, Speightstown–Elate, by Medaglia d'Oro)
O/B-Claiborne Farm & Adele B. Dilschneider (Ky); T-Bill Mott; J-Irad Ortiz, Jr.
The second foal to race and first winner for Claiborne/ Dilschneider's $2.6-million earner and Grade I winner Elate, also trained by Mott. After three losses on grass, Excite was switched to dirt against a strong maiden field in the finale on Kentucky Derby day. In that race, he was bounced around early and dropped to last on a sloppy strip, yet came with an encouraging run for fourth at a seven-furlong distance likely shorter than he prefers. This time, he was on the pace and drew off through the lane to win by 5 1/4 lengths.

2) MOR FORCE, LS, 5-30, Race 1, 4 1/2 furlongs
Beyer Speed Figure- 84
(c, 2, Mor Spirit–Ready Witted, by More Than Ready)
O-Norman Stable; B-Adcock's Red River Farm & Hume Wornall (La); T-Jayde Gelner; J-Ramon Vazquez.
Alabama grocery exec Robby Norman is having a breakout 2025. And like the stable's GII Rebel winner Coal Battle and standout Louisiana-bred filly Secret Faith, this 2-year-old is a product of Louisiana breeders Jay Adcock and Hume Wornall who was plucked out of the Texas Yearling Sale for a modest bid–in this case, $20,000. Mor Force debuted here with a sharp 5 1/2-length score over Liteupthenite, also owned by Norman. Both are trained by young Jayde (J.J.) Gelner.

1) THIRTY TWO CHUNK, SA, 6-1, Race 3, 6 furlongs
Beyer Speed Figure- 88
(g, 3, by More Than Ready–She's My Gem, by Into Mischief)
O-Muir Hut Stable; B-Three Chimneys Farm (Ky); T-Mark Glatt; J-Kazushi Kimura.
Named for a massive wild bear with a YouTube following, he was the bear among these maiden claimers. Dropped in for $50,000 by Glatt and owner Sean Rodgers after an unsuccessful debut on grass, he immediately sped to the front and widened to win by 8 1/2 lengths in 1:09.71. Perhaps just as importantly, no one filled out a claim slip. The namesake bear “32 Chunk” weighs an estimated 1,200 pounds at age 30, and Glatt estimates that his 3-year-old gelding tips the scales at a comparatively trim 1,100. “But he was chunky as a baby,” Glatt said, “and we thought it was a great name.”

The post The Five Fastest Maidens, Presented by Taylor Made, for the Week of May 26-June 1 appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

The 2025 Belmont Stakes Racing Festival–held for the second straight year at Saratoga Race Course while the transformation of the new Belmont Park continues–begins with a 10-race program saluting New York-breds on Wednesday.

'New York Showcase Day' will feature six $200,000 stakes races exclusively for New York-breds–the Bouwerie S., Commentator S., Critical Eye S., Kingston S., Mike Lee S. and Mount Vernon S. Morning-line favorites for the six stakes races are as follows: Kay Cup (Instagrand) (Bouwerie) (9-5); Bank Frenzy (Central Banker) (Commentator) (7-5); Sterling Silver (Cupid) (Critical Eye) (1-1); Hush of a Storm (Creative Cause) (Kingston) (2-1); Mo Plex (Complexity) (Mike Lee) (2-1); and Silver Skillet (Liam's Map) (Mount Vernon) (3-1).

“Kicking off this year's Belmont Stakes Racing Festival with New York Showcase Day is a great opportunity for fans and our program participants to experience the quality and talent of New York's breeding and racing industry,” New York Thoroughbred Breeders Executive Director Najja Thompson said.

Admission gates open at 11 a.m. with first post scheduled for 12:40 p.m for the GI Beverly R. Steinman Hurdle H. over the fences. The first 10,000 fans to enter with paid admission will receive a free, white baseball cap featuring the NYTB and 2025 Belmont Stakes logos.

The Belmont Stakes Racing Festival–featuring 27 stakes races with purses totaling $11.275 million, led by the 157th renewal of the GI Belmont Stakes–will take place from Wednesday, June 4 through Sunday, June 8.

Graded action gets underway on Thursday's 10-race program with the grassy GII Intercontinental S. and GIII Poker S. The Intercontinental includes the GIII Giant's Causeway S. re-opposing one-two-three, led by 2024 Intercontinental winner Future Is Now (Great Notion).

America's Day at the Races will present daily coverage and analysis of the Belmont Stakes Racing Festival on the networks of FOX Sports.

Future Is Now (middle) winning the 2024 Intercontinental in a wild finish | Sarah Andrew

The post Belmont Stakes Racing Festival Kicks Off With New York Showcase Day appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

A Thoroughbred and Quarter Horse trainer's argument with a New Mexico state steward in 2021 over a licensing dispute that got escalated all the way up that state's Supreme Court has resulted in a ruling issued Monday establishing that New Mexico's governmental organizations can be immune from liability in civil rights lawsuits if they are carrying out administrative actions that are judicial in nature.

According to an opinion issued June 2 by the Supreme Court of New Mexico in a case involving Bradley Bolen vs. the New Mexico Racing Commission (NMRC), the state's Civil Rights Act (CRA) “expressly preserves judicial immunity as a defense. Judicial immunity is justified by public policies supporting independent decision-making and ensuring the integrity of a judicial or quasi-judicial process. These policies apply to both individuals and governmental entities performing judicial functions.”

However, just because the New Mexico Supreme Court ruled that judicial immunity can, in theory, be used as a defense by the racing commission, it didn't rule as to whether that immunity actually applied to the NMRC in this specific instance.

In that respect, the court sent the case back to a district court to decide “whether and to what extent NMRC is immune using the framework set forth in this opinion.”

The case began in July 2021, when Bolen got into an argument over the telephone with a NMRC state steward after learning that an assistant trainer whom Bolen wished to employ would not have his license reinstated after a lengthy period of suspension.

The Supreme Court's opinion stated that “the parties do not dispute that Bolen criticized the steward during the phone call.”

The NMRC then asserted that Bolen's phone manners had transgressed regulations prohibiting “conduct or reputation [which] may adversely reflect on the honesty and integrity of horse racing or interfere with the orderly conduct of a race meeting.”

A panel of three stewards presided over an evidentiary hearing on the alleged infraction and  found that Bolen violated the conduct rule. They fined him $500, but stipulated that the fine would be waived so long as Bolen had no additional violations within one year.

“Bolen appealed the ruling under regulations that entitle him to a de novo hearing before an independent administrative hearing officer,” the Supreme Court opinion stated. “Bolen also sued NMRC in the district court, asserting a claim under the CRA for a violation of his rights to free speech and due process under Article II, Sections 17 and 18 of the New Mexico Constitution.

“Bolen alleged that NMRC pursued the disciplinary proceeding in retaliation for his protected speech with the steward and for a previous, unrelated lawsuit he had filed against NMRC's Executive Director. Bolen ultimately withdrew his administrative appeal, choosing only to pursue litigation in the district court,” the opinion stated.

The NMRC countered with a claim that its “quasi-judicial administrative actions” in pursuing the disciplinary proceeding entitled it to absolute immunity from Bolen's CRA claim.

The district court refused to extend that quasi-judicial immunity to the commission. The NMRC appealed, and a state appeals court eventually concluded that the district court had erred because the “plain language” of the law confirmed that judicial immunity is available to a public body in defense of a CRA claim.

So after the appeals court reversed the district court, Bolen petitioned the state's Supreme Court, which then issued the June 2 opinion, nearly four years after the original dispute over the phone.

“We answer: Yes, a public body may raise judicial immunity as an affirmative defense to claims brought pursuant to the CRA,” the Supreme Court opinion stated.

“We explain that judicial immunity, which applies to judges, advocates, and witnesses, may be consistently applied under the CRA to preserve the role of the judiciary in protecting a person's constitutional rights,” the opinion stated.

“We also articulate a framework for determining when that defense applies to quasi-judicial adjudicatory proceedings in the executive branch,” the opinion stated.

“However, as the record and arguments presented here are insufficient to resolve the question of NMRC's entitlement to immunity, we reverse the Court of Appeals to the extent it held that NMRC is immune from Bolen's CRA claim. We remand to the district court for further proceedings consistent with this opinion,” the Supreme Court opinion stated.

“We also emphasize that judicial immunity should extend no further than necessary to achieve the policy goals of protecting independent decision-making and ensuring the integrity of an established adjudicatory process,” the opinion stated.

“A court considering a public body's entitlement to judicial immunity should, therefore, carefully parse the challenged conduct to determine whether and to what extent that conduct consists of a judicial function. Judicial immunity will protect a public body from liability only when the nature of the proceeding and the nature of the challenged conduct merit absolute protection from suit,” the Supreme Court opinion stated.

The post Trainer-VS.-Steward Spat Yields New Mexico Supreme Court Opinion on Immunity in Certain Civil Rights Suits appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

SARATIOGA SPRINGS–One thing trainer Michael McCarthy didn't have to worry about as he planned his trip to Saratoga Race Course was lodging. For his horses, anyway.

When McCarthy shipped GI Belmont Stakes favorite Journalism (Curlin) and two other stakes horses to the Spa, he knew right where they were going. That would be the barn of Hall of Fame trainer Todd Pletcher, whom McCarthy worked for as an assistant for nearly 12 years before going out on his own in 2014.

“I was a slow learner,” McCarthy said with a laugh.

Pletcher gladly opened the barn door on the Oklahoma Training Track for his friend. Besides Journalism, McCarthy has Look Forward (Bolt d'Oro), who is entered in the GI Acorn Stakes and Endlessly (Oscar Performance), who will go in the GI Manhattan Stakes. All the races are on Saturday.

“We have done this before,” Pletcher said. “When Locked (Gun Runner) went to the Santa Anita Handicap, we shipped into his barn. He has had horses ship in here other times, and I have had horses in California. We send our staff out there and his staff comes here with his horses. Makes it a lot easier on everyone.”

“I am very familiar with those surroundings,” McCarthy said of being back in Pletcher's barn. “I spent a couple seasons up here during my tenure with Todd. He has been gracious enough every time we have come to New York to be able to house us.”

Accommodations through the Spa City and beyond are pricey for the public during Belmont week, but Pletcher came up with a special rate for McCarthy's four-legged travel partners.

“Yeah,” he said. “Free!”

McCarthy is hoping for better results during this trip to Saratoga.

In the past, he has brought Grade I runners to the Spa with high expectations and left disappointed. City of Light (Quality Road) was second in the GI Forego in 2018; that was McCarthy's first horse he saddled at Saratoga as a head trainer.

He also brought Ce Ce (Elusive Quality), who was fifth in the GI Ballerina in 2022, and Clearly Unhinged (Into Mischief), second in the GI Test in 2023. According to Equibase, McCarthy has started 11 horses at Saratoga without a winner.

“Hopefully, we will find the winner's circle here, and, hopefully, it will be Saturday,” McCarthy said. “This might be the hardest place in America to win at.”

If the name of GI Belmont Stakes runner Baeza (McKinzie) sounds familiar, it is.

The colt, trained by John Shirreffs, was named in honor of Hall of Fame jockey Braulio Baeza, who won the Belmont three times during his riding career, which started in 1955 and ended in 1976.

“Of course he is,” Shirreffs said when asked if Baeza the horse was named for Baeza the jockey. “One of his owners, Lee Searing (majority owner, C R K Stable LLC), really likes jockeys. He is a jockey guy.”

Grandview Equine shares ownership in the horse.

Shirreffs is delighted that his stable star has this racing moniker. When Shirreffs was working in New York, he became friendly with Baeza, who was long retired but still wanted to be around the Thoroughbreds.

He and Shirreffs became friendly, and the former rider would walk horses for him when the trainer was spending time at Belmont Park.

“He just wanted to be involved because he loved horses,” Shirreffs said. “I really, really enjoyed my time with Braulio Baeza.”

Braulio Baeza, who is now 85 years old, had 14 mounts during his career in the Belmont. In 1963, he rode Chateaugay (Swaps) to victories in the Kentucky Derby and Belmont and was second in the Preakness.

Baeza, the horse, comes into the Belmont after finishing third –just a neck behind second-place finisher Journalism–in the Derby.

Before that, he was second in the GI Santa Anita Derby, losing to Journalism by three-quarters of a length. Shirreffs thought enough of Baeza to enter him in the Santa Anita Derby after he broke his maiden in his third try.

He returned to California after the Kentucky Derby and shipped to Saratoga last week. There was not much talk about running him in the GI Preakness.

“I skipped the Preakness mostly because he is a May 13 foal,” Shirreffs said. “He is very young, and I trained him very hard for the Santa Anita Derby and the Kentucky Derby was a big, emotional race. Bringing him back in two weeks (for the Preakness) would have been asking too much for a somewhat immature, lightly raced horse.”

A year ago, trainer Chad Brown had the favorite for the GI Belmont Stakes in 'TDN Rising Star' Sierra Leone (Gun Runner). He finished third.

Brown is back for this year's Belmont, but 'TDN Rising Star' Hill Road (Quality Road) isn't attracting the same kind of attention that Sierra Leone did.

Hill Road | Sarah Andrew

The winner of the GIII Peter Pan Stakes, who is owned by Amo Racing USA, Hill Road is 10-1 on the Belmont morning line, the fifth choice in the field of eight.

Brown isn't deterred by that.

He saw enough talent in Hill Road's rallying three-quarters of a length victory in the 11/8-mile Peter Pan on May 10 to move forward.

“I am going to try [for the upset],” Brown said. “I had the favorite last year, and it didn't work.”

Hill Road began his career on the turf for trainer Adrian Murray in Ireland, and, after two starts, came to the United States and switched to dirt in the GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile. After Hill Road finished third, he came to Brown, a five-time Eclipse Award-winning trainer.

Following a third-place finish in the GIII Tampa Bay Derby, Brown hoped to run the colt in the GII Wood Memorial. A fever scrapped that plan and bounced him off the GI Kentucky Derby trail.

Now, here he is.

“Every month that went by, he continued to move forward and get stronger and get fitter,” Brown said. “Right now, I think he is peaking.”

When Brown first started working with Hill Road, one thing he noticed was the horse did not change leads.

“That has always been him,” Brown said. “He moves forward pretty good.”

It happened in the Peter Pan, but Hill Road still got the job done with a strong kick.

With the Belmont being run at 1 1/4 miles at Saratoga, Brown is confident that could be right in Hill Road's wheelhouse.

“He galloped out big [in the Peter Pan],” Brown said. “The thing that gives me the most hope with this horse is the distance of the race. But he is not going to have an easier race because he can get the distance. Many in this race can.”

The last Peter Pan winner to come back and take the Belmont was Arcangelo (Arrogate), who won in 2023 at Belmont Park at 1 1/2 miles.

Antiquarian (Preservationist), the 2024 Peter Pan winner, finished fifth in last year's Belmont.

The post Belmont Stakes Notebook: McCarthy Feels Right at Home in Pletcher’s Barn appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y.–The event that horse racing has been waiting for is here.

Sovereignty (Into Mischief) and Journalism (Curlin), the top two finishers in the GI Kentucky Derby, will get their rematch in Saturday's $2-million GI Belmont Stakes at Saratoga Race Course.

The two heavyweights of the 3-year-old division are the headliners of the 157th running of the Belmont, which will be run for the second straight year at Saratoga while Belmont Park continues its major renovation downstate.

A field of eight was entered at Monday's draw, which was held downtown at Universal Preservation Hall. The race, which has a scheduled post time of 7:04 p.m., will be run at 1 1/4 miles.

Normally, the Belmont distance is 1 1/2 miles but the track configuration of the track at Saratoga.

Journalism, despite losing the Derby by 1 1/2 lengths to Sovereignty, was installed as the 8-5 morning-line favorite in the Belmont by New York Racing Association odds maker David Aragona. Sovereignty is the second choice on the morning line at 2-1.

Journalism will be the only horse that competes in all three legs of this year's Triple Crown.

Following the Derby, he returned to win the GI Preakness Stakes with a remarkable, improbable finish. After encountering trouble in the stretch, Journalism and jockey Umberto Rispoli squeezed through a narrow hole and ran down the upset-minded Gosger (Nyquist).

Journalism will be making his third start in five weeks; Sovereignty has been resting since the Derby.

“This is a great race, one that is heavy on talent,” Journalism's trainer Michael McCarthy said. “Only eight horses but three or four that are going to be very, very good. Come years end, I would not be surprised if one of these horses won the Breeders' Cup Classic.”

Journalism is owned by Aron Wellman's Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners and Bridlewood Farm, Don Alberto Stable, Robert LaPenta, Elayne Stables 5 LLC, Mrs. John Magnier, Michael Tabor and Derrick Smith. Journalism was assigned post position seven and will again be ridden by Rispoli.

Hall of Fame trainer Bill Mott, after huddling with Sovereignty's owner, Godolphin LLC, decided to skip the Preakness and a chance at a Triple Crown. Sovereignty, who will be ridden by Junior Alvarado for the fifth time in six, drew post position two.

Sovereignty has won three of his six starts and has a pair of seconds. The only time he finished off the board was in his first career start, last Aug. 24 at Saratoga when he was fourth.

“Every race he has run, he has shown up,” Mott said. “I think everyone would be looking forward to (the Belmont). These are two very good horses.”

Although the focus is clearly on the top two, it is not a two-horse race.

 Baeza (McKinzie) was only a neck behind Journalism in the Kentucky Derby, and he also hasn't raced since the first Saturday in May. Trained by John Shirreffs and owned by C R K Stable and Grandview Equine, Baeza made his graded stakes debut in the GI Santa Anita Derby where he was beaten three quarters of a length by Journalism.

The 4-1 third choice on the morning line, Baeza will be reunited with jockey Flavien Prat, who rode him for the first time in the Kentucky Derby and will start from post six.

“I hope we are right there,” Shirreffs said with a laugh when asked if he thought his horse should share top billing with the other two.

Shirreffs, like every trainer in the race, were not too concerned about post positions with an eight-horse field.

Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert will be looking for his fourth Belmont victory when he saddles 'TDN Rising Star' Rodriguez (Authentic) on Saturday. Owned by SF Racing Starlight Racing, Madaket Stables LLC, Stonestreet Stable LLC, Dianne Bashor, Determined Stables, Robert E. Masterson, Tom J. Ryan, Waves Edge Capital LLC and Catherine Donovan, Rodriguez missed the Kentucky Derby and Preakness because of a foot issue.

Rodriguez (6-1 on the morning line) will start from post three. In his last start, he and Hall of Fame jockey Mike Smith won the G2 Wood Memorial at Aqueduct buy 3 1/2 lengths going gate-to-wire. Smith has won the Belmont three times, the latest coming in 2018 with Triple Crown winner Justify (Scat Daddy).

“This is a nice field,” Baffert, who is flying East Tuesday, said from California. “The break is going to so important, and he has to run his race.”

'TDN Rising Star' Hill Road (Quality Road) will attempt to become the 10th winner of the GIII Peter Pan Stakes to claim the Belmont. The last horse to do it was Arcangelo (Arrogate), who won both races in 2023. Trained by Chad Brown and owned by Amo Racing USA, Hill Road finished third in the GIII Tampa Bay Derby on Mar. 8.

Hill Road came to Brown's barn after a third-place finish in the GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile in November. After Brown had to scratch Hill Road from the Wood Memorial because the horse came down with a fever and that forced him to miss the Kentucky Derby.

“He is a fresh horse, and he is looking for a mile and a quarter,” Brown said. “He seems to be in good position for the Belmont, but he is going to have to step it up.”

Hill Road (10-1) will be ridden by Irad Ortiz Jr. for the first time and will leave from the rail.

Early last week, Hall of Fame trainer Todd Pletcher said he would not have a horse in the Belmont. That changed on Sunday when Pletcher, a four-time Belmont winner, announced that he would enter Crudo (Justify) and Uncaged (Curlin).

Crudo (15-1) won the Sir Barton Stakes at Pimlico on Preakness Day in his last start and will start from post position five with Hall of Fame rider John Velazquez, a two-time Belmont winner, in the irons. Crudo is owned by Bobby Flay and James Ventura.

Owned by WinStar Farm LLC and Repole Stable, Uncaged (30-1) tries the Belmont after finishing sixth in the Peter Pan. Luis Saez will ride Uncaged for the first time, and they have post position four.

Following a fifth-place finish in the Preakness, Heart of Honor (GB) (Honor A.P.) will look to improve on that in the Belmont. Trained by England's Jamie Osborne and ridden by his 23-year-old daughter, Saffie.

The Preakness was the first race Heart of Honor, owned by Jim and Claire Limited, missed finishing either first or second in his prior six starts. Five of them were in Dubai. They drew post position eight and are 30-1 on the morning line.

The post Belmont Draws Eight; Journalism, Sovereignty to Renew Rivalry appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

C R K Stable and Grandview Equine's Baeza (McKinzie) worked over Saratoga's Oklahoma track Monday morning in advance of a start in Saturday's GI Belmont Stakes.

With Flavien Prat aboard, the half-brother to Classic winners Mage (Good Magic) and Dornoch (Good Magic) reeled off splits of :24.89, :48.93 and galloped out six furlongs in 1:16.41, according to NYRA clockers.

“I thought the work was very good, especially the way he moved over the racetrack,” said Shirreffs Monday. “He is light on his feet. Everything he does is effortless.”

A winner in his third start while going a mile at Santa Anita Feb. 14, the John Shirreffs trainee finished runner-up behind ultimate GI Preakness winner Journalism (Curlin) in the GI Santa Anita Derby Apr. 5 before coming home third behind Sovereignty (Into Mischief) and Journalism in the May 5 GI Kentucky Derby. Bred by Grandview Equine, the son of Puca (Big Brown) was a $1.2 million buy at Keeneland September in 2023.

The post Baeza Works Ahead of Saturday’s Belmont Stakes appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

The GI Belmont Stakes, presented by NYRA Bets will return to FOX Sports for its 157th edition, which takes place at Saratoga Race Course June 7.

The third jewel in the Triple Crown highlights the Belmont Stakes Festival, which kicks off Friday with six graded stakes–including the GI Ogden Phipps and GI DK Horse Acorn Stakes. Saturday's Belmont Stakes card features seven additional graded stakes, including the GI Metropolitan and GI Woody Stephens.

Pro Football Hall of Famer and longtime FOX NFL Sunday analyst Terry Bradshaw will make special appearances as part of FOX Sports' Belmont Stakes coverage.

All FOX Sports horse racing coverage can be streamed live on the FOX Sports app and www.FOXSports.com.

FRIDAY, JUNE 6

America's Day at the Races  – FS2

11:30 AM – 5:00 PM

Belmont Stakes Festival Friday – FOX

5:00 PM – 6:00 PM

America's Day at the Races – FS1

6:00 PM – 7:30 PM

America's Day at the Races – FS2

7:30 PM – 8:00 PM

SATURDAY, JUNE 7

America's Day at the Races  – FS1

10:30 AM – 2:30 PM

Belmont Stakes Festival Saturday – FOX

2:30 PM – 4:00 PM

Belmont Day on FOX – FOX

4:00 PM – 6:30 PM

America's Day at the Belmont  – FS1

4:00 PM – 6:30 PM

The Belmont Stakes – FOX

6:30 PM – 7:30 PM

America's Day at the Belmont Stakes – FS1

6:30 PM – 7:30 PM

America's Day at the Races – FS1

7:30 PM – 8:15 PM

The post Coverage of the Belmont Stakes Festival Returns to FOX Sports appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.