Riding on opposite ends of the country, Paco Lopez and Umberto Rispoli displayed their considerable riding talents with Lopez riding between Delaware Park and Parx and Rispoli in California at closing weekend of Santa Anita’s Hollywood meet. Lopez ended the week with 12 wins including three stakes races and Rispoli won 10 races including a…
The 29-day Santa Anita Hollywood Meet wrapped up Sunday with Antonio Fresu winning the jockey’s title, Phil D’Amato as top trainer and Nick Alexander as leading owner. For Fresu, this was his first jockey’s title at Santa Anita. The 33-year-old native of Italy has been riding in the U.S., specifically the Southern California circuit, since…
It’s well-established that the older a mare becomes, the less likely she is to produce a top-class runner, and particularly so in the case of mares that have never previously been represented by a notable performer. There are always exceptions, however, and we had a particularly noteworthy example in the shape of Gezora , who captured the…
The first of two sessions at the Ocala Breeders June 2-Year-Olds in Training and Horses of Racing Age Sale got underway June 17 with a colt by Yaupon headlining the day at $300,000 selling to Saffie Joseph Jr. The day concluded with gross sales totaling $9,758,500 from 222 horses to change hands; up from 2024…
The first of three daytime thoroughbred meets this year at Los Alamitos will begin Friday, June 20. The nine-day Los Angeles County Fair season will continue through Sunday, July 6. Racing will be conducted on a Friday-Sunday (June 20-22, 27-29 & July 4-6) basis for the next three weeks. Post time is 1 p.m. The…
This column highlights the performances of 2- and 3-year-old maidens who have made no more than five starts and who either sold for more than $500,000 at public auction, have siblings that are graded/group winners, or have dams that are graded/group winners. BloodHorse research shows maiden winners, in particular, who meet these criteria are more…
Karl Burke has been the man to follow in the Queen Mary Stakes (G2) at Royal Ascot over the past three years. He saddled Dramatised to win in 2022 and Leovanni was successful last year, while he also had Beautiful Diamond (GB) finish third in between. Miss Lamai (IRE) took fourth 12 months ago to boot. Punters…
Maria Borell’s application for a license to train Thoroughbred horses in Kentucky nine years after she left the state in the wake of a scandal was unsuccessful. Following a hearing June 17 the License Review Committee of the Kentucky Horse Racing & Gaming Corporation gave Borell the opportunity to withdraw her application for a 2025…
Maria Borell’s application for a license to train Thoroughbred horses in Kentucky nine years after she left the state in the wake of a scandal was unsuccessful. Following a hearing June 17 the License Review Committee of the Kentucky Horse Racing & Gaming Corporation gave Borell the opportunity to withdraw her application for a 2025…
There tends to be a temptation to go overboard this week of all weeks. With the sun shining, the Moet flowing and the good times rolling, we are all prone to hyperbole. No glass is half empty, always half full. But even those not viewing the June 17 St James’s Palace Stakes (G1) through rose-tinted shades…
