In an exhibition of pure sprinting prowess, Sheikh Hamdan bin Rashid al Maktoum's Battaash (Ire) (Dark Angel {Ire}) brought all his power to bear on his rivals on Friday to register back-to-back successes in Goodwood's G2 King George Qatar S. Despite the contrasting ground conditions to the easy turf he encountered 12 months ago and the obvious questions posed by defeat in the June 19 G1 King's Stand S. at Royal Ascot, the bay attracted heavy support as the 8-11 favourite and was in front before he had raced two...
The 17th edition of the Claiming Crown, held Saturday at Gulfstream Park, generated total handle of $10,118,000--up 0.57% from 2014 despite rainy conditions which caused four races to be taken off the turf. Gulfstream was hosting the event for the fourth year. "We're extremely pleased with the success of Saturday's Claiming Crown," said P.J. Campo, General Manager of Gulfstream Park and Vice President of Racing for The Stronach Group. "We had big fields and tremendous participation from horsemen throughout North America. We're confident the numbers would have been even more...
From Kentucky to France to the Breeders' Cup last year, Outfielder (Speightstown) has always been well-regarded, and he made his return to the races a stylish one with a frontrunning masterclass in the Animal Kingdom Stakes. A buzz horse almost from day one, he was made a 'TDN Rising Star, presented by Hagyard' at first-asking in late May last year when he went gate-to-wire by a commanding 6 1/4 lengths in a five-furlong maiden dash at Churchill Downs. Trainer Wesley Ward saw more than a glimmer of potential in his...
The Flat season kicks off in Ireland at the Curragh on Sunday and Brian Sheerin has spoken to some of the main protagonists ahead of the eagerly-anticipated fixture Robson Aguiar has described himself as a big fan of first-season sire Persian Force and said he expects Force Noir to get the Tally-Ho Stud resident off to the best possible start with victory in the opening two-year-old maiden of the year at the Curragh on Sunday. Through his association with former licence holder Adrian Murray, the Brazilian native has dominated the...
The Irish National Stud has reported interest among breeders in newbie stallion Arizona Blaze to be "very strong" and revealed that Amo Racing, whose colours the horse carried to Group 1 glory, will be sending up to 45 mares to the young stallion in his debut season. A tough and classy sprinter, Arizona Blaze landed the Group 1 Flying Five Stakes at the Curragh last season. That was the sixth win of his glittering career that saw him amass close to €1m in prize-money. All six of those wins were...