TDN Writers' Room Podcast With Guest Shug McGaughey, Episode 39 | June 3, 2020

There was no better place to be in American horse racing than Belmont Park Wednesday morning as the track prepared to reopen New York racing later in the day after months of being shuttered by the coronavirus pandemic. That's where Hall of Fame trainer Shug McGaughey called in from as the Green Group Guest of the Week on this week's TDN Writers' Room podcast presented by Keeneland. In a wide-ranging discussion, McGaughey talked about the return of stable star Code of Honor (Noble Mission {GB}), racing finally resuming at his Big Sandy home base, his reaction to the FBI's indictments of Jason Servis and Jorge Navarro and more.

Known as one of the cleanest big-name trainers in racing, McGaughey was asked for his opinion on the bombshell indictments from March and what it's like, as a person who tries to do things the right way, to lose races to people he knows are cheating. The pill was especially bitter to swallow for McGaughey last year when Code of Honor finished second in the Eclipse voting behind Servis-trained Maximum Security (New Year's Day).

Elsewhere on the podcast, in the West Point Thoroughbreds news segment, the writers remembered the great Arrogate after Tuesday's news of his tragic death, and conducted a fantasy draft of 3-year-olds for a new contest that will run through the end of the Triple Crown.

Read more on the TDN.