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Scheduled to join Burnham Square, the sixth-place finisher from the Kentucky Derby (G1), in the $400,000 Matt Winn Stakes (G3) June 8 at Churchill Downs is Coal Battle, 11th in the Derby.

The opening under tack show session for the Fasig-Tipton Midlantic May 2-Year-Olds in Training Sale will now begin at 9 a.m. ET May 14, a one-hour delay from its originally scheduled start time of 8 a.m.

Early Epsom Derby (G1) favorite The Lion In Winter will make his highly anticipated return to action after being declared for the May 15 Dante Stakes (G2) at York.

Maiden Watch Preakness Edition

Porter on Pedigrees

Trainer Mike Maker and Sugoi are back to try for a repeat in the May 17 Louisville Stakes (G3T) at Churchill Downs.

The $150,000 Maryland Sprint Handicap (G3) lures quick horses to Pimlico Race Course to race six furlongs. Two of the race favorites—Booth and Concrete Glory—are speedsters, highly effective when racing three-quarters of a mile.

It was a relatively quiet May 13 morning at a soggy Pimlico Race Course as two of nine starters in the May 17 $2 million Preakness Stakes (G1) jogged around the wet, sealed racetrack.

It will be a busy day at the GI Preakness S. for the West Point Thoroughbreds team as they have four horses entered on the day at Pimlico. But none is more important than Sandman (Tapit), a horse they co-own along with DJ Stable, St. Elias Stable and CJ Stables. He finished seventh in the GI Kentucky Derby, but his owners have decided to give him a chance to make amends. Despite there being only being two weeks between the first two legs of the Triple Crown, Sandman will run in Saturday's Preakness.

To talk about Sandman, the Preakness, the Triple Crown and other subjects, West Point Founder and President Terry Finley joined the team on this week's TDN Writers' Room Podcast presented by Keeneland. He was the Gainesway Guest of the Week.

Originally, the connections had said they were going to pass the Preakness and point for the GI Belmont S. What changed their minds?

“(Trainer) Mark (Casse) just felt like it was a good spot to go in with the way everything developed and, obviously, the Derby winner not coming,” said Finley. So I think he put two and two together. I look at the really top-end horsemen across the country and I think there are people that don't mind changing their minds. Mark is a Hall of Famer and in Mark Casse we trust. I was really glad to hear that we were going in the Preakness.”

Even though Sandman is one of only three Derby starters to come back in the Preakness, Finley has joined the camp that believes the Triple Crown needs to be changed with more time between the races.

“I've evolved,” he said. “I try to stay away from people that are absolutely against evolving in their thoughts and their outlooks. And I've evolved here. At first, I really didn't think it was the right thing to do. Looking at what's happened the last couple of years, we'd be better off running in the beginning of May, the beginning of June and the beginning of July. I'd love to hear from NYRA on this. But it would only add a couple of weeks, right? Instead of it being a five-week series, it would be an eight or nine-week series. I don't think that puts us in a position where we lose all. I understand and acknowledge that there are very valid reasons on really both sides of the question. But ultimately, it's time for our game to change. We know that we don't run our horses as much as we used to. If we don't change, I think this will happen again and again and again.”

Finley teamed up with America's Best Racing to bring social media influencer Griffin Johnson aboard for Derby week. Johnson was given a 2.5 percent interest in the horse and was asked to promote Sandman, the Derby and racing in general during Derby week on his many social media accounts. Young, articulate and likeable, Johnson was a huge hit.

“He was a powerful force overall. I think we all saw it,” Finley said. “You can't really have somebody parachute in the week of the Derby and throw some things up on social media and expect the storm that we had over the last couple of weeks with Griffin. You have to have somebody who's really dedicated, who's into the process and has been there for a sustained period of time.

“Griffin joined the ownership group last spring after we bought this colt at the OBS sale,” Finley said. “And he's been really involved at every step of the way. I think about the times where we didn't run well and he was still upbeat and he still wanted to learn and kind of explore the fields and the races and the strategy and the rides and everything else. So I think very quickly I saw that this influencer was really different from the others that I've experienced and that I was aware of. So look, I've said it to a couple of people. There's a reason why he's come into our industry. But our job now is to take advantage of this. We're going to get him another horse. I mean, he's forced me to give him another horse, which is fine. He's so he's so motivated. Griffin said to me that influencers can make a big difference and they have. He also said this is the first time he's been in a situation and have been affiliated with an industry that he's really, really been passionate about.”

In our “Fastest Horse of the Week,” segment, which is sponsored by WinStar, the home of the stallion Heartland, Randy Moss revealed that the fastest horse of the week was GII Man o'War S. winner Far Bridge (English Channel), who earned a 99 Beyer.

Elsewhere on the podcast, which is also sponsored by the KTOB, the Pennsylvania Horse Breeders' Association, West Point Thoroughbreds, 1/ST Racing and 1/ST TV, the team of Moss, Zoe Cadman and Bill Finley went through the whole Preakness field horse by horse. All three agreed that Journalism should win and that Clever Again (American Pharoah) is the main threat.

To watch podcast, click here. For an audio version of the show, click here.

The post Terry Finley Joins TDN Writers’ Room Podcast to Discuss Preakness Starter Sandman appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

California-breds have long been a staple of the state's racing product. Since 2014, CA-breds have represented between 45% and 50% of all starters at Thoroughbred race meets. Since the consolidation of racing in the south of the state, that trend has continued.

From the start of the Santa Anita winter meeting through mid-March, Cal-breds made up about 47% of all individual starters, which includes both open races and those restricted to northern trainers. But with last year's foal crop (now yearlings) currently sitting at just below 1000 amid a breeding industry that has been waning for two decades—in line with national trends—California faces a decline in Cal-bred participants over the next few years.

Modeling performed for the TDN using available mares-bred and foal crop numbers, along with existing trend lines (more on this in a bit), suggests that there will be a combined 290 fewer Cal-bred runners competing in California between 2026 through 2028.

This could be a conservative estimate and doesn't factor in a possible larger-than-anticipated decline in mares bred in 2025, or a smaller-than-expected foal crop this year.

What does this mean to California's consolidated industry? It depends how you look at it.

The TDN sent its numbers to the California Thoroughbred Breeders Association (CTBA), the Thoroughbred Owners of California (TOC), executives for Santa Anita, Del Mar and Los Alamitos, along with the California Horse Racing Board (CHRB) and the California Thoroughbred Trainers (CTT).

The responses have been a mixed bag. Some declined to respond. Among those that did, several suggested that shrinking Cal-bred numbers could mean a further decline in overall races carded in California, for example, to maintain field sizes.

Another suggestion was that, under this new but evolving single-circuit structure, the number of Cal-bred races run in the south could actually increase.

The projected Cal-bred numbers are a concern, however, “and if anybody says that it's not concerning or is not an issue is putting their heads in the sand,” said Scott Chaney, the CHRB's executive director. “A logical question then is, 'what is the extent of this impact?'”

Important Numbers

(NOTE: The TDN's calculations are based on historical DRF chart data, along with Jockey Club and CTBA foal crop and mares-bred data) 

The 3-year-old and 4-year-old Cal-bred runners currently competing in California's new consolidated program were foaled in 2021 and 2022, when the foal crops were 1323 and 1315 respectively.

In 2023, the California foal crop was 1191. According to the CTBA, the foal crop from 2024 currently stands at 983, though the organization said it expects the final number to eventually be nearer the 1000 mark.

To project what all this could mean over the next few years, the TDN's calculations used the following trend lines:

• Approximately 73% of the annual Cal-bred foal crop that get to the races make a start in California.
• Roughly 29% of the Cal-bred foal crop race as two-year-olds.
• An 8.6% annual decrease in mares bred in California.

 

 

 

 

The crunched numbers suggest a combined 290 fewer Cal-breds competing in California between 2026 and 2028—what works out at 82 fewer Cal-breds in 2026, 93 in 2027, and 115 in 2028.

If the same trends continue, the loss annually of on average 97 Cal-bred starters amounts to about 5% of the overall Cal-bred starters each of those years.

This doesn't seem an insurmountable number to overcome, if indeed California's leaders see the current program as a baseline from which to build.

If that's the case, two key questions arise. One is this: what if these projected numbers are either an undercount or an overcount?

The TDN gave each of the key organizations an opportunity to digest and to dispute the numbers, and to share any comparable data of their own. None said they had run their own projections.

The second question is this: what coordinated strategy does California's leaders have in place to address the impending Cal-bred inventory problem?

Mares bred, foal crop

Earlier this year, the mood among California breeders about their plans for this year varied considerably. Some said they feared that lack of racing opportunities will drive significant contraction at the lower end of the market especially, while in some quarters they were optimistic that years of declining trends will now lead to a period of economic stasis or even tentative growth.

Sarah Andrew photo

One of those interviewed was Tom Clark, the owner of Rancho San Miguel and a mainstay of the state breeding industry, who predicted a one-third drop-off in mares bred this year.

Reached this week, Clark said he's now expecting a roughly 25% decline in mares bred. Having recently put Rancho San Miguel on the market, Clark explained he's not seeking to liquidate his stock but rather to hold out for someone with “vision and passion” to assume the reins in his stead.

Given the ongoing nature of the current breeding season, CTBA president Doug Burge said he doesn't yet have hard numbers for this year's foal crop, nor the overall numbers of mares bred.

“I'm getting mixed answers,” said Burge, about mares-bred numbers. “I'm getting some of the bigger farms telling me they're breeding the same. And then I've got some farms, particularly in the north, telling me they're down.”

According to the TDN's calculation, if existing trend lines from the past decade continue for the next few years, the foal crop in 2030 will be 607.

“That's low. We're not going to get that low. If we get that low, I mean, there won't be…” said Burge, letting the thought trail off.

Is there a baseline Cal-bred foal-crop threshold? Burge believes that number to be somewhere between 850 and 950. If the foal crop threatens to drop below the 850 number, “we would stop the bleeding before that happens,” he said.

Burge said that he also believes that, while there will be a drop off in mares-bred again this year, from next year onwards, California's long-declining foal-crop will plateau. “I don't see this thing dropping off every year going forward,” he said.

What drives this expectation? Burge pointed to several factors that he believed were signs of such a stemming of the tide.

He said he expected the number of mares foaling in California bred to non-California stallions to remain stable. California breeder and stallion awards also increased between 2023 and 2024, and are expected to increase again this year, he said.

“The Cal-bred incentive program is still very strong,” he said, highlighting similar sentiments shared by major owner-breeder Terry Lovingier in February.

According to Burge, there are routine conversations “weekly, if not daily” between the various stakeholder groups about “how we can further expand the incentives for people to continue to invest in racing and breeding.”

Burge highlighted a recently-run $12,500 Cal-bred claiming race—which previously would have been restricted to northern horses but was opened up to all eligible Cal-breds.

“In the end, there were 14 horses entered. You were accommodating horses from the north, but you're also doing the best you can to keep the southern horses at the bottom level in the circuit as well,” said Burge. “And we will continue to look at how we can expand those opportunities.”

Possible Fixes

In his March 2024 letter to the CHRB threatening the closure of Santa Anita if the board continued to accommodate sustained racing in the North, former TSG executive Craig Fravel said that a consolidated program in the South could include a fourth day of weekly racing at Santa Anita.

Santa Anita | Benoit

The projected Cal-bred numbers strongly suggest that, without some large and unexpected influx of horses from out-of-state, that fourth day of racing is a pipedream, at least over the next few years.

Bill Nader, TOC president and CEO, discussed both the idea of further cuts to the racing calendar, and of using the current program as a baseline from which to grow. “It's still to me in early days,” he said, when asked about what the program will look like moving forward.

In discussing the ramifications from what the 2023, '24 and '25 mares-bred and foal crop numbers mean for the future state horse inventory, Nader chose to largely concentrate upon the recent positive trends out of the new model.

These positives include increases in handle, field size, and ADW and brick-and-mortar wagering both in-state and beyond, he said. The TOC's efforts to better manage CAW wagering also appear to have helped bolster the purse account.

These upward trend lines occur in the midst of what Nader said is a roughly 40% decline in races carded annually compared to last year.

“Everything is trending positively. So, for the first time in a long time, there's a bit of optimism,” said Nader, who indicated possible new tax incentives for breeders and owners.

For this positive momentum to continue, however, California needs runners—and Cal-bred runners especially.

“If folks think, 'oh, there's consolidation, purses are up in California—our work here is done,' that is a complete misunderstanding of the situation,” said Chaney, describing the biggest issue facing California as one of three things: “Purses, purses, and purses.”

Over the past year, there have been (so far unsuccessful) efforts to install Historic Horse Racing (HHR) machines at Santa Anita, and to pass legislation to accommodate this form of gambling in the state. Other ways to augment purses include direct government supplements, similar in effect to that enacted in New York and Maryland, said Chaney.

“I think something will happen because it has to,” said Chaney, when asked how likely it was that purse supplements materialize in California. “There is no other choice for the horse racing industry here.”

Strategic Planning

While the projected numbers paint a worrying landscape for the industry over the next few years, forewarned is forearmed. There's still time for those responsible for the lives and livelihoods of thousands of trainers, breeders, farm and backstretch workers in California to devise a coordinated action plan, with a set of realistic targets against which the success or failure of those efforts can be gauged.

Del Mar | Benoit

Santa Anita and Los Alamitos declined to speak for the story about what the projected Cal-bred numbers mean for their businesses. The Del Mar Thoroughbred Club (DMTC) wrote a short statement.

“Maintaining a viable state breeding program over the longer term is crucially important as Del Mar and other stakeholders work through the new single-circuit structure here and we are committed to providing opportunities and incentives for California-breds,” the DMTC wrote.

CTT executive director Alan Balch offered a far more critical assessment of the situation in an emailed statement.

“There's an old quote I've always believed in: 'the pessimist complains about the wind; the optimist expects it to change; the realist adjusts the sails,'” wrote Balch.

“In California, racing's sails have needed very serious adjusting for a long, long time: it's called strategic planning. For at least 15 years, the tracks, breeders, owners, and trainers, haven't had a single organized, serious meeting to address the threats which have been clearly visible for over 25 years.

“Successful strategy in any industry depends on reliable, objective, truthful information. For at least 15 years, CTT and Del Mar have jointly funded detailed, objective, annual data collection. Our increasing reliance on California-breds hasn't been hidden to anyone paying attention. Now the peril we face is literally ominous, since breeding itself is so future-oriented.”

Balch added: “Only with an urgent, immediate, serious commitment to joint strategic planning—involving how to persuade the State of California to help reverse the present perils to its agricultural economy—could we hope to mitigate what we're all facing.”

The post Will There Be Enough Cal-Breds to Fill Racing Cards In California? appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

The Thoroughbred Education and Research Foundation (TERF)'s second annual Soiree For Safety will take place Friday, May 23 from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. at the Fair Hill DNR Tea Barn. All proceeds from the event support TERF's mission of promoting Thoroughbred health, welfare and racing safety. Since its founding in 2010, TERF's endowment has grown to over $2.5M and has awarded over 100 grants totaling more than $1M to support educational programs, student scholarships, and equine research projects consistent with TERF's mission.

The event will include a Q & A session with Dr. Scott Palmer, DVM, the Medical Director for the New York State Gaming Commission, who will discuss a data-based program at the tracks of the New York Racing Association that has improved safety for equine athletes and riders alike. There will also be a live auction of fine art and adventure experiences, including seats for this year's Belmont Stakes at Saratoga, donated by NYRA.

Tickets for the Soiree For Safety are $75 and include an open bar and hors d'oeuvres. For more information, visit terfusa.org.

The post TERF’s ‘Soiree For Safety’ Set For May 23 appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Wet weather in the Midlantic region not only resulted in messy tracks for morning training ahead of the Preakness at Pimlico and for the first under-tack session in advance of next week's Fasig-Tipton Midlantic Sale, but also forced the cancellation of Wednesday's season-opening card at Delaware Park.

Wednesday's card was scheduled to begin at 12:35 p.m. ET and there was no immediate word from track management as to when and how the eight programmed races might be rescheduled.

Racing at Delaware Park is expected to resume Saturday, May 17, with the first of eight races scheduled to jump at 12:35 p.m.

The post Wet Weather Prompts Cancellation Of Delaware Opening Day appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Ifurhappynuknowit (Bernardini–Mushka, by Empire Maker), an unraced full-sister to Godolphin's late Crowned, dam of last week's GI Kentucky Derby winner Sovereignty (Into Mischief), topped the Fasig-Tipton May Digital Sale, which closed late Tuesday afternoon. Consigned by Knowles Farm as hip 30, Ifurhappynuknowit sold for $280,000 to Denali Stud, agent. She was sold with her Feb. 18-foaled colt by Vino Rosso at her side and is back in foal to two-time champion Elite Power.

“It was very exciting to offer a horse like Ifurhappynuknowit fresh off a huge update,” said Fasig-Tipton Director of Digital Sales Leif Aaron. “Timing is everything.”

Overall, 98 horses changed hands during the May Digital sale for a total of $3,786,000 and an average of $38,632. The clearance rate for the sale, which included horses of racing age, racing and broodmare prospects, 2-year-olds in training, broodmares (including mares with foals at foot), and yearlings, held at 83%.

“It was a great sale, strong across the board,” said Aaron. “We sold six-figure horses in every segment of the market. The clearance rate was fantastic and there was good trade all around. Horses of racing age continue to be in high demand.”

Another top seller Tuesday was 3-year-old colt Lionel (Authentic), who sold as hip 122 for $260,000 to BBA Ireland/KAS Stables from the consignment of ELiTE, agent. Lionel broke his maiden on debut by 9 1/2 lengths at Laurel May 4. He was offered as a horse of racing age.

“We like the way he broke his maiden by a wide margin and feel there is a lot more to come,” said BBA Ireland's Michael Donahoe. “He vetted clean and the plan is to take him to Saudi Arabia for an autumn campaign and hopefully we will see him running on Saudi Cup weekend in 2026. The Fasig-Tipton Digital Sales platform really makes the world's bloodstock market a small place: we're an Irish bloodstock agency purchasing an American-based horse for clients from the Middle East. It's seamless and extremely easy to use.”

Other toppers included Stonetacular (Speightstown, hip 14), who sold for $250,000 to Greg Tramontin from the consignment of Bluegrass Thoroughbred Services, agent for A Major Reduction of Merriebelle Stable. Sold with her 2025 Vekoma filly, who was born Feb. 18, Stonetacular was offered back in foal to MGISW and 'TDN Rising Star' Muth.

The top yearling was a colt by Yaupon out of Dance Costume (Union Rags), who sold for $200,000 to Red Devil Bloodstock. Sold as (hip 51) from the consignment of Hill 'n' Dale at Xalapa, agent, the bay is from the same family as MGSW and MGISP Fluffy Socks (Slumber {GB}).

Click here for full results. Fasig-Tipton's next digital sale will be the June Digital Sale, to be held May 29-June 3. Entries will close May 19.

The post Fasig-Tipton May Digital Topped by Full-Sister to Dam of Derby Winner appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Churchill Downs, Inc. (CDI), which in recent seasons has ended racing at such high-profile tracks as Arlington and Calder over alleged profitability issues, on Tuesday threatened to pull out of Fair Grounds over a recent court ruling that bars it from using a certain type of slot machine, saying the ban would cause it to lose money at the New Orleans track and 13 off-track-betting outlets it owns.

Reporting by Anthony McAuley and Tyler Bridges at NOLA.com first broke the news, which emerged out of an “emergency” Louisiana Racing Commission meeting May 13.

According to the NOLA.com story, a CDI attorney, Ozair Shariff, told the 12 commissioners that the company would not proceed with the 2025-26 season scheduled to run November through March unless the state legislature comes up with a workaround to a Louisiana Supreme Court ruling in March that upheld a lower court's ruling from 2021 deeming historical horse racing to be unconstitutional.

According to NOLA.com, Shariff said the Supreme Court ruling made it impossible for the Kentucky-based gaming corporation to cover the costs of conducting racing at Fair Grounds.

According to NOLA.com, “the court determined that HHR constitutes a new form of gaming, distinct from traditional pari-mutuel wagering on live horse races, and therefore requires prior approval from voters in each parish where it would be implemented.”

NOLA.com reported that Churchill Downs executives stated that the loss of HHR machines eliminated 46% of the firm's annual revenue and 74% of after-tax profit in Louisiana. The NOLA.com report stated that the annual operation and capital spending for Fair Grounds was $9 million.

NOLA.com reported that Louis Roussel III, a longtime Louisiana-based racehorse breeder and former owner of Fair Grounds, testified at the meeting that CDI was trying to bully the state and he urged the commission to call its bluff.

“Don't let them come here and poor-mouth you,” NOLA.com quoted Roussel as saying. “Do what is right for the horsemen, breeders, and more importantly, the citizens of the state and New Orleans.”

NOLA.com reported that “state legislators have been working to try and find a way to make up for the lost revenue for others affected by the loss of HHR, mainly by expanding an existing form of gambling, video poker.”

NOLA.com reported that a bill that passed in the Louisiana House on Monday earmarks “the first $22 million in tax revenue from the additional machines [to] boost purses at the four horse racing tracks in Louisiana,” referring also to Louisiana Downs, Delta Downs and Evangeline Downs.

The post Report: CDI Threatens to Pull Out of Racing at Fair Grounds over Recent Court Ruling on Slots appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Francisco Martinez, featured in TDN last year when he got his first win at age 30, has returned to riding–and the winner's circle–after spending three months on the sidelines due to injuries sustained in a Feb. 5 spill. He was the leading apprentice rider at Parx in 2024 after kicking off his career in March of last year.

“It means a lot to me and my people that follow me and support what I do to get the opportunity to come back like this,” said Martinez. “I couldn't wait to get back in the saddle and win a race. There is no feeling like being one with the horse and being able to show what we can do. There is nothing better than winning a race and then thanking the horse for the ride and having the horse look back at you saying we did it. They have as much feelings as we do.”

Martinez returned to action Monday at Parx, winning the fifth race aboard Jamie Ness trainee Persuasive (Omaha Beach) in his first start. He won two additional races Tuesday and now has 127 victories from 884 career starts.

The post Parx’s Leading Apprentice Francisco Martinez Back to Winner’s Circle After Injury appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Former jockey Armando Rivera will highlight the mission of the Permanently Disabled Jockeys Fund (PDJF), which provides financial assistance to jockeys who have suffered catastrophic on-track injuries, by racing in the Run the Bluegrass half-marathon May 17. Rivera is a paraplegic athlete and advocate for the PDJF. He has competed in over 50 races across the country and will race Saturday in his wheelchair.

The half-marathon begins Saturday at 7 a.m. at Talon Winery in Southern Fayette County. Rivera participates to show his commitment to supporting his fellow injured riders.

The post Jockey and Paraplegic Athlete Armando Rivera to Compete in Half-Marathon for PDJF appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

GI Kentucky Derby runner-up Journalism (Curlin) continues to give his connections positive indicators coming out of his run at Churchill Downs nearly two weeks ago. The GI Santa Anita Derby winner, who drew post 2 for the GI Preakness Stakes, vanned from Louisville to Pimlico Tuesday.

“From top to bottom, it's a very competitive field that we have a lot of respect for,” said co-owner Aron Wellman. “Really our primary focus is on Journalism. We've been very, very intent on making sure that he's giving us all the right signs out of the Kentucky Derby, and he seems to have done that every which way, in terms of his appetite, his energy, his weight and his mindset. We wanted him to tell us that he was ready to go to Baltimore. We've got a master horseman in Michael McCarthy that's reading all those signs and hopefully reading them appropriately. We have total conviction that this is the right move for the horse, and we expect for him to be extremely live in the Preakness on Saturday.”

Seventh-place Derby finisher Sandman (Tapit) also arrived in Baltimore early Tuesday morning about 3 a.m.

“He had a bath, walked and seems to be happy,” said Shane Tripp, the New York assistant to Hall of Fame trainer Mark Casse. “He is relaxing, had some peppermints.”

Sandman drew Post 7 for the Preakness and is the 4-1 second choice on the morning line behind 8-5 favorite Journalism.

“We are encouraged with how he came back from the Kentucky Derby,” Tripp added. “He has held his weight good.”

 

Enter (and bathe) Sandman.

Welcome to @PimlicoRC! pic.twitter.com/Yy1eEVtnCF

— Preakness Stakes (@PreaknessStakes) May 13, 2025

'TDN Rising Star' River Thames (Maclean's Music), who scratched from the Derby to target the Preakness, will ship to Pimlico Wednesday for trainer Todd Pletcher from his base at Belmont Park.

“He's had a good week,” Pletcher said. “He had a good breeze at Belmont on Saturday and came out of it in good order. His energy level is good. He's coming up to it well.”

Steve Asmussen runner Clever Again (American Pharoah) drew Post 8 Monday night for what will be his graded stakes debut Saturday.

“I think it's a very good draw,” Asmussen said. “I like the two horses around him from a pace scenario. We expect him to break clean, with the other pace obviously to his inside.”

Eight-time Preakness winner Bob Baffert will seek a record ninth win with 'TDN Rising Star' Goal Oriented (Not This Time) who won an allowance race on the Derby undercard at Churchill.

“He is a big, strong horse, but he's still learning,” said Baffert. “His first out, he was behind horses and didn't like the kickback too much. We took him to Louisville, and he came back, and it was not really taxing on him. He is moving forward.”

Goal Oriented also shipped in to Pimlico Tuesday.

G2 UAE Derby runner-up Heart of Honor (Honor A.P.) trained Monday morning at Churchill after clearing quarantine and then shipped in Tuesday, taking to the local track Tuesday morning for trainer Jamie Osborne.

“He had a canter,” said assistant trainer Jimmy McCarthy, who was aboard the colt. “Well, I jogged a mile, galloped a mile, as you say. We 'canter;' you 'gallop.' He stretched his legs.”

Trainer D. Wayne Lukas, who won last year's Preakness with Seize the Grey (Arrogate), was also one who braved the early-morning rain in Baltimore Tuesday to oversee training for Virginia Derby winner American Promise (Justify).

“I think he's better this week than he was the week before the Derby,” Lukas said. “If that helps us or not I don't know.”

Waiting to train Wednesday will be Federico Tesio Stakes winner Pay Billy (Improbable) and GIII Lexington Stakes winner Gosger (Nyquist).

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As the 2-year-olds in training sales got underway earlier this spring, the first-crop juveniles by Independence Hall generated plenty of buzz and the WinStar stallion duly delivered in the sales ring, led by a $1-million colt at the OBS March sale. Mike Trombetta, who trained the multiple graded stakes winner early in his career, hopes that buzz continues this week in Timonium when he will offer a homebred filly by the stallion at the Fasig-Tipton Midlantic May 2-Year-Olds in Training Sale. Through the Best a Luck Farm consignment, the filly (hip 37) is scheduled to breeze during Wednesday's first of three under-tack preview sessions at the Maryland State Fairgrounds.

From the first crop of Constitution, Independence Hall was purchased by Bob Verratti as a pinhooking prospect for $100,000 at the 2018 Keeneland September sale, but was bought back for $200,000 at the following year's Fasig-Tipton Gulfstream sale.

Racing for the partnership of Verratti, Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners and Twin Creeks Racing Stables, Independence Hall put himself on the GI Kentucky Derby trail with an eye-popping 12 1/4-length victory in the 2019 GIII Nashua Stakes and followed up with a four-length win in the Jerome Stakes on New Year's Day in 2020.

Runner-up in the GIII Sam F. Davis Stakes, Independence Hall ended his time with Trombetta with a fifth-place effort in the GI Florida Derby, but the Maryland-based trainer has kept his eye on the stallion's first offspring in the sales ring.

“With these babies that we have been watching, both at the yearling and 2-year-old sales, it seems like a lot of his good looks are moving over to these youngsters and they have actually proved to be very athletic individuals as well,” Trombetta said.

As Independence Hall, who added a win in the GII Fayette Stakes and a third-place effort in the GI Pegasus World Cup Invitational to his resume in 2021 for trainer Michael McCarthy, neared retirement from the racetrack, Trombetta went shopping for a mare to fill a season to the future WinStar stallion. He and his wife, Marie, purchased Candystand (Candy Ride {Arg}) for $9,000 at the Wanamaker's February digital sale in 2021.

Mike Trombetta | Sarah Andrew

“We were looking for some mares because I did have a season to utilize,” Trombetta said. “We have a few mares and we have a few seasons that we try to use every year and she kind of fit the bill.”

The mare produced a Maryland-bred daughter of Independence Hall two years later.

“Honestly, I haven't had my eyes on her in a while,” Trombetta said of the now 2-year-old who will be offered during the first session of the Midlantic May sale next Monday. “She's been in Ocala, but the feedback on her has been fairly good. We figured we would try our hand at the market and see how she does.”

Independence Hall, who stands for $7,500, currently ranks fourth among North American-based first-crop sires by average with 24 juveniles having sold this spring for an average of $166,416. In addition to his $1-million colt at OBS March, he was also represented by a $700,000 colt at the OBS Spring sale last month.

The results weren't a surprise to Trombetta, who had been trying to buy some of the stallion's first yearlings last fall.

“Nothing surprises me anymore, but I was just very glad to see it,” Trombetta said of the juvenile sales results. “I can tell you, I thought he would do relatively well, at least based on what I saw at the yearling market. I tried to buy a few of the yearlings and they were bringing significantly more than I thought I would have to pay, to be honest.”

One yearling by the sire that Trombetta did acquire was a filly out of Gottagottagiggle (Not For Love), who he purchased for $42,000 at last year's Fasig-Tipton Midlantic Fall Yearling Sale. The filly had been catalogued as hip 149, but has been withdrawn from the May sale.

“I think we are going to race her,” Trombetta said of the filly. “She had some minor issues that required some more time. She is a lovely horse. We couldn't make the cutoff here, so I think the plans are to race her and hopefully get her started this fall.”

With the stallion's success in the sales ring, Trombetta is eagerly anticipating Independence Hall's progeny taking the next step.

“He is certainly off to a great start,” the trainer said. “The only thing left remaining to do is to see how they perform on the racetrack.”

The under-tack show for the Midlantic May sale, delayed a day due to weather, is scheduled to begin Wednesday at 9 a.m. at the Maryland State Fairgrounds in Timonium. Additional sessions will be held Thursday and Friday. The two-day auction will be held next Monday and Tuesday with bidding beginning May 19 at 1 p.m. and May 20 at 11 a.m.

The post ‘Off to a Great Start’: Trombetta to Offer Independence Hall Filly at Midlantic May Sale appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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