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Shared Content Archive

This is the archive of all the old shared content.

Cheveley Park Buys Into Guineas Hope

Cheveley Park Stud has bought into last year’s G3 Acomb S. winner Dutch Connection (GB) (Dutch Art {GB})), a 25-1 chance for the G1 2000 Guineas May 2, according to Racing Post. Cheveley Park, which stands Dutch Art, joins the colt’s breeder, Susan Roy, on the ownership line, and Charlie Hills trains. Dutch Connection was last seen...

Birsh Prepares to Take His War Horse into Battle at the Ky Derby

by Mike Kane Owner-breeder Phillip Birsh and trainer George Weaver crunched some numbers in the days following Tencendur’s (Warrior’s Reward) second-place finish in the G1 Wood Memorial and compared them to the other major prep races for the Kentucky Derby. They liked what the stats revealed.  The math exercise–showing a jump in speed figures and a...

Wandjina to Ascot, Then Newgate

G1 Australian Guineas scorer Wandjina (Aus) (Snitzel {Aus}) will target the G1 Diamond Jubilee S. at Royal Ascot before retiring to Newgate Stud later this year. The Gai Waterhouse-trained 3-year-old finished second to Dissident (Aus) (Sebring {Aus}), who will also enter stud at Newgate in September, in Saturday’s G1 All Aged S.  “Gai Waterhouse said to us, ‘you...

WinStar Acquires Minority Interest in Upstart

WinStar Farm has acquired a minority interest in Upstart (Flatter), winner of the GII Holy Bull S. and runner-up in the GI Florida Derby and GII Fountain of Youth S. earlier this year. Trained by Rick Violette Jr., Upstart is being pointed toward a start in the GI Kentucky Derby May 2.  “Upstart has been on our...

Bolger Hoping For Guineas Deja Vu

Trainer Jim Bolger will be hoping his G2 Rockfel S. scorer Lucida (Ire) (Shamardal), who was one of 25 fillies remaining in the May 3 G1 1000 Guineas at Wednesday’s declaration stage, will continue to follow the path of his previous winner of that Classic, Finsceal Beo (Ire) (Mr. Greeley).  Finsceal Beo closed out her juvenile campaign...

NYRA Survives Brutal Winter, Looks Forward to Better Days Ahead

by Bill Finley With 16 full card cancellations and a horse shortage that allowed the racing office to card just eight races on many occasions, this was a winter that the New York Racing Association would like to forget. Yet yesterday’s meeting of the New York Racing Association Reorganization Board at times took on a...

Keeneland’s Local Impact? $590 Million

As a company that sold $535 million worth of horses in 2014, and handled another $263 million in wagers, Keeneland, it could be assumed, has a big economic impact on the local economy in Lexington, Kentucky. But just how big? That’s what officials at Keeneland wanted to know when they commissioned a study by the...

Designs On a Repeat Mission

Reigning Hong Kong Horse of the Year Designs On Rome (Ire) (Holy Roman Emperor {Ire}) will attempt to become the first horse since Japan’s Eishin Preston (Green Dancer) in 2002-2003 to record back-to-back successes in Sunday’s G1 Audemars Piguet Queen Elizabeth II Cup at Sha Tin Racecourse. He is somewhat surprisingly the second favorite in early wagering...

Sherack at the Derby: ‘Pharoah’ Fires Warning Shot

With temperatures struggling to exit the mid-40s on an unseasonably chilly and overcast morning, the action immediately began to percolate on the Churchill Downs backside outside of Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert’s barn as championAmerican Pharoah (Pioneerof the Nile) readied for his final GI Kentucky Derby breeze.  Accompanied by his wife Jill, Baffert, bloodstock agent...

Godolphin Purchases Lightning Moon

Ed Walker trainee and G3 John Guest Bengough S. winner Lightning Moon (Ire) (Shamardal) has been purchased by Godolphin it was announced Tuesday. The deal was brokered by Blandford Bloodstock. Previously owned by M. Betamar, the 4-year-old son of Shamardal is undefeated in three starts to date and was last seen on the racecourse taking the Bengough...

Far Right Eyes Ky. Derby Glory

by Bill Finley Everyone wants to win the Kentucky Derby, but the people who usually get there shop at Tiffany. Not Jon Jazdzewski. He goes to the Dollar Store. What does it take to buy a Derby contender these days? Sometimes as much as $1.6 million, which is what was paid for Carpe Diem at...

Criterion Touches Down in Newmarket

Triple Australian Group 1 winner Criterion (NZ) (Sebring {Aus}), third in Sunday’s G1 QEII Cup in Hong Kong, has arrived at trainer John Gosden’s yard in Newmarket to prepare for the G1 Prince of Wales’s S. at Royal Ascot. Trained by David Hayes, the 4-year-old’s preparation will be overseen by Gosden’s son, Ben.  “He’s just arrived there...