NEWMARKET, UK — After a weekend of brutally cold winds and rain at Park Paddocks, summer decided to reappear to bless the final yearling viewing day at Tattersalls with warm sunshine. An omen of bright days ahead, perhaps? Or if you're not a fan of symbolism, a more concrete guide to what could be in [...]

One of the concerns of the most recent breeding season was the relative dearth of stallions retired to stud, particularly in Britain, for 2025. That should not be a concern for the forthcoming year, with a number of retirements already announced and more likely to follow. Leading the charge, appropriately, is Juddmonte's Lead Artist, who [...]

We have become accustomed to the prevalence of Urban Sea in today's pedigrees, chiefly through her high-flying sons Galileo and Sea The Stars. But another mare whose name pops up on the page of Sea The Stars as well as that of the recently deceased Wootton Bassett is Park Appeal, whose influence should not be [...]

Roll up, roll up. It's the bloodstock equivalent of the Taylor Swift Eras Tour, live and exclusive in Newmarket for three days only.  Yep, it's Book 1 of the Tattersalls October Yearling Sale and doors open this year on Tuesday, October 7. That is indeed if there are any doors left, as they were blown [...]

The victory on Monday of Royal Chapel in the Listed Criterium de Bordeaux brought up the 100th stakes winner for the filly's sire Kingman. His speed in reaching this landmark century since retiring to stud a decade ago has been beaten only by Kingman's fellow Banstead Manor resident, Frankel. There can be few finer tributes [...]

One regrettable development of the last few years has been the discontinuation of Timeform's Racehorses annuals, which are as vital and as vivid a history lesson one could find on this sport. Geoff Greetham, who died last week at the age of 79, had an enormous influence on the annuals, both for the Flat and [...]

The boy-made-good story of Wootton Bassett is as time-honoured as life itself. To a degree, it is a rags-to-riches tale, particularly when it comes to the phenomenal trajectory of his stallion career. And it is a story which is ending far too soon. The 17-year-old stallion died on Tuesday at Coolmore Australia in the Hunter [...]

We are very good at depressing ourselves in the racing industry, aren't we? Threats of the betting tax going up and the foal crop going down are currently on the doom loop of news, and they are of course reasons to be concerned. But my daily coping strategy has always been to look for reasons [...]

Three Group 1 winners this year have emanated from the Tattersalls Ireland September Yearling Sale, with their wins coming across four glorious days on the biggest stage of all: Royal Ascot. From the opening-day thrill of Docklands (Massaat) holding off Rosallion (Blue Point) in the Queen Anne Stakes came a dual top-level strike on the [...]

There was much consternation when only three new Flat stallions retired to stand in Britain for the 2025 season. It remains to be seen whether this was a blip, but if it becomes a trend then obviously it is cause for concern. It is easy to understand why, in an increasingly commercial sphere, breeders would [...]

Wednesday was a dark day for British racing. Racing cancelled across the land while the sport's leaders made an empassioned stand in the country's seat of power against a proposed rise in betting tax, warning of plenty more dark days to come.  There can be no denying the intent with which the British Horseracing Authority [...]

There will be no horseracing across the UK on Wednesday as part of an industry-wide attempt to persuade the British government of the potentially ruinous consequences of a proposed rise in betting tax. A hike from 15 per cent to 21 per cent has been suggested to bring betting on racing and other sports into [...]