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The third annual Blue Jeans, Boots and Bulls Derby Eve Charity event, hosted by the Barn Door Grill & Bar, will benefit Old Friends, the organization announced Tuesday. Held Friday, May 2 from 5:30-11:30 p.m. at The Bluegrass Stockyards in partnership with the Coaches for Kids Foundation, the event will also benefit The University of Kentucky Children's Hospital Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU), and Timbers Grateful Companions. It will include a silent auction, a Derby horse calcutta and a live auction along with live music and a buffet dinner.

“Blue Jeans, Boots and Bulls has rapidly become a great Derby Eve tradition,” said Old Friends President and CEO John Nicholson. “It's a good blend celebrating all the splendor of the Derby with having a truly fun down home party. Old Friends is delighted to be a part of the fun and very grateful for being one of the beneficiaries.”

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Longtime horseman Ralph Kinder, owner of Alliance Bloodstock, passed away last week at his home in Paris, Kentucky. He was 67.

“Sad to share my beloved dad tragically passed Thursday morning from a heart attack while on the farm in Kentucky,” Kinder's son Baron reported in a Facebook post. “I am mostly still at a loss for words, but ask for you all to pray with me that he makes himself home in spirit with all of our loved ones who've gone before us. I'm sure they're having a big celebration welcoming him into the fold.”

A native of Chattanooga, Oklahoma and from a long line of racehorse breeders, Kinder was involved with over 160 stakes winners, including 2009 GI Kentucky Derby winner Mine That Bird. Kinder helped Mark Allen with the purchase of the future Derby winner as a 2-year-old in 2008.

A longtime partner with the late country music manager Erv Woolsey, Kinder campaigned graded winners Jordan's Henny and Lookin for Eight. Kinder and Woolsey were co-breeders of 2017 GII Best Pal Stakes winner Run Away, as well as multiple graded stakes winner Miss Mo Mentum and stakes winner Just Read It.

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“The Bel-Mint Stakes,” a tribute version of Mint Cookie Crumble ice cream, has been re-branded by Stewart's Shops in honor of the Belmont Stakes Racing Festival, the New York Racing Association announced Monday.

The Bel-Mint Stakes will be available at more than 175 Stewart's Shops ice cream counters for a limited-time only, from Apr. 28 through June 8.

The GI Belmont Stakes will be run for the second time at Saratoga Race Course June 7.

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On a quiet April 28 morning at Churchill Downs for Kentucky Derby (G1) prospects after a half-dozen breezed April 27, three Derby entrants notched their final high-speed workouts for the 1 1/4-mile classic, the opening leg of the Triple Crown.

To celebrate Sandman being in the 151st Kentucky Derby and to highlight the importance of taking care of Thoroughbreds after their racing careers, Ken Freirich wanted to do something big for the heart and soul of the sport: the horses.

For the 20 3-year-old Thoroughbreds expected to compete in the Kentucky Derby (G1), racing luck can make or break their Derby run from the start. Some of that luck comes into play several days beforehand: the luck of the post-position draw.

We only have a handful of races to base wet track form on but some are compelling and worth noting.

America's Best Racing cheat sheet provides short bios on each Kentucky Oaks (G1) filly.

Horse Racing Radio Network (HRRN) once again kicks off a full slate of Kentucky Derby week programming on Tuesday morning live from Churchill Downs with the first of three 'Derby Countdown' Shows presented by Hill 'n' Dale at Xalapa.

A list compiled by America's Best Racing of TV, radio, and livestream racing coverage for a busy Kentucky Derby (G1) week.

Veteran analyst Randy Moss recently helped separate pretenders from contenders during a question-and-answer session with Tom Pedulla conducted on behalf of America's Best Racing.

Returning from Kentucky—including a five-hour layover in Atlanta—was worth it as Rispoli guided Jungle Peace to victory in the 6 1/2-furlong, $100,000 Senorita Stakes (G3T) over Santa Anita's downhill turf April 27.

The Aqueduct Racetrack spring meet, which ran from April 3-27, saw jockey Kendrick Carmouche pick up his fourth riding title at a NYRA meeting. Carmouche paced all other riders to secure his second Big A spring meet riding title with 21 wins.

The top-priced horse sold at public auction entered in the Kentucky Derby (G1) is Sandman, winner of the Arkansas Derby (G1). The son of Tapit, who is third choice on the morning line at 6-1, sold for $1.2 million as a 2-year-old.

Stablemates Public Assembly and Sun Of Hill, the one-two finishers in the April 26 Royal Heroine Stakes (G3T), were both in good order and pointed toward the Gamely Stakes (G1T).

The Royal Palm Meet's leading rider is slated to ride Tuesday, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday at Churchill Downs, including a mount in the May 2 $1.5 million Kentucky Oaks (G1) aboard Saffie Joseph Jr.-trained Early On.

Two months after the death of his more senior training partner Mike Moroney, Thompson cheered home Benagil as she stormed from near the tail of the field to record a commanding 1.29-length victory.

Top-rated sprinter Ka Ying Rising got Champions Day in Hong Kong off to a formful start but things went a different way in the two following group 1 races.

Trained by Andre Fabre, Sosie was beaten four and a quarter lengths behind Bluestocking in the Arc, but showed a good turn of foot early in the straight to win the first group 1 of the year in Europe.

America's Best Racing, a multimedia fan development and awareness platform initiated and funded by The Jockey Club, has received two 2025 Stevie Awards, presented by the 2025 American Business Awards, winning in the categories for Marketing Campaign of the Year–Entertainment & Sports and for Influencer Marketing Campaign of the Year. ABR has also been named a finalist in the 2025 Shorty Awards “Sports” category.

All of the awards are for ABR's ground-breaking campaign, “A Stake in Stardom,” which this week will be represented in the 2025 Kentucky Derby by social media influencer and entrepreneur Griffin Johnson.

Launched in 2022, “A Stake in Stardom” seeks to modernize the perception of Thoroughbred racing by marketing the sport to a new generation of fans. Through the campaign, ABR empowered influencers to become actual owners, allowing them to authentically share the sport's thrills and challenges with their audiences. Participants in the program have included media powerhouses such as NFL Network Insider Ian Rapoport, comedian and actress Heather McMahan, and Indy Car driver Alexander Rossi.

In the first four months of 2025, the program has generated more than five-million video views. Much of that has been driven by Johnson, who was paired with GI Arkansas Derby winner Sandman (Tapit) via a partnership with West Point Thoroughbreds.

“We are incredibly honored to receive two more awards for “A Stake in Stardom” and to be a finalist for another,” said Dan Tordjman, vice president of TJC Media Ventures/America's Best Racing. “Through long-term storytelling and deeper emotional investment, “A Stake in Stardom” is not only reshaping how racing is marketed, it is redefining who gets to be a part of it. We want to thank our marketing agency Branch & Bramble for launching this program with us, along with our partners at West Point Thoroughbreds.”

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