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...
Riley Mott, the son of Hall of Fame trainer Bill Mott, has come a long way in the 3 1/2 years he has been training on his own. He's already won more than 100 races and collected a pair of Grade I wins, including World Beater (Oscar Performance)'s score in last year's GI Saratoga Derby Invitational Stakes. And now it looks like he'll have a starter in this year's GI Kentucky Derby. In winning the Virginia Derby, the Mott-trained Incredibolt (Bolt d'Oro) earned enough points to guarantee himself a spot in...
Paladin (Gun Runner), most recently winner of the GII Risen Star Stakes, and GII Fountain of Youth Stakes runner-up Chief Wallabee (Constitution) were 8-1 co-favorites when the Kentucky Derby Future Wager Pool 5 closed Sunday evening. The Chad Brown-trained Paladin, who runs next in the Apr. 4 GI Toyota Blue Grass Stakes at Keeneland, had $25,772 in Win bets, while the Bill Mott-trained Chief Wallabee, scheduled to make his next start in the Feb. 28 GI Curlin Florida Derby, handled $24,790--a difference of just $982. Next in the wagering was...
STAR ACTRESS (f, 3, Justify--Star Act {SP, $147,605}, by Street Cry {Ire}) was unveiled Feb. 8 at this venue trying a seven-furlong maiden race on the main track, and despite a wide trip, closed ferociously late to claim second by a half-length. Back here as the 3-5 favorite with added real estate to work with, Star Actress went one better while stalking the pace from much closer. Improving her position down the backstretch to come even with the pacesetter and another challenger by the half-mile marker, she was vying for...
4th-GP, $84k, Msw, 3yo, f, 1 1/16m, 2:19 p.m. ET. Star Actress (Justify), a full-sister to champion 2-year-old filly and GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies heroine Just F Y I, stretches to two turns for her second career start for Bill Mott. The George Krikorian homebred rallied from seventh to finish a close second on debut going seven furlongs at Gulfstream Feb. 8. She earned a 73 Beyer Speed Figure for the effort. The aforementioned Just F Y I brought $4.5 million from Katsumi Yoshida at the 2025 Fasig-Tipton November...
by Jessica Martini & Christina Bossinakis OCALA, FL - Brisk trade continued from start to finish of the second session of the Ocala Breeders' Sales Company's March Sale of 2-Year-Olds in Training Wednesday in Central Florida and the day concluded with figures well ahead of the auction's 2025 renewal. The session was topped by a filly by Nyquist who sold for $2 million to Boyd Racing from the Wavertree Stables consignment. Through two sessions of the three-day sale, 295 horses have sold for $51,336,500. After two sessions in 2025, 269...
Fresh off an action-packed Saturday at Gulfstream Park, Bill Mott wasted no time returning to the routine at his Payson Park base. The Hall of Fame trainer was back on the track the following morning to oversee Horse of the Year Sovereignty (Into Mischief) progressing toward his 4-year-old debut. The Godolphin homebred worked four furlongs in company in :49.80. Mott described the breeze as "workmanlike," noting that it was exactly the type of effort he has come to expect from the three-time Grade I winner. "He's not a spectacular workhorse...
In this continuing series, TDN's Senior Racing Editor Steve Sherack catches up with the connections of promising maidens to keep on your radar. Gilded Bandit (c, 3, Charlatan--Diamond Ore, by Tapit) had plenty of steam behind him ahead of his debut on the stacked Coolmore Fountain of Youth program at Gulfstream Park Feb. 28. He fired back-to-back bullet drills at Bill Mott's Payson Park base, including a four-furlong move in :48 (1/53) Feb. 20, and was well-supported as the 3-1 second-choice off a 10-1 morning-line quote in a deep six-furlong...
Reigning Horse of the Year Sovereignty (Into Mischief) worked a half-mile at Payson Park on Sunday morning. Also named the Eclipse Award champion 3-year-old of the 2025 season, the Godolphin homebred covered four furlongs in the official time of :49.64. According to the DRF, the colt worked in tandem with GSP Royal Majesty (GB) (Frankel {GB}), finishing a length ahead of his stablemate while galloping out five furlongs in 1:03.88. "I thought he looked great," Bill Mott told DRF Sunday. "He's been off a while. You'd want six or eight...
Barry K. Schwartz’s Japan (Medaglia d’Oro) displayed so much promise in his early training that former conditioner Mike Hushion thought he would be a GI Belmont S. contender. While the big, late-developing colt did not make it to the Test of a Champion, he was an impressive winner of the Easy Goer S. earlier that day, stamping his ticket to Saturday’s GII Jim Dandy S. at Saratoga. (Video) "We were very high on him from the start," Schwartz said. "Mike Hushion actually thought he might be a Belmont horse if...
Juddmonte Farms homebred Riposte (GB) (Dansili {GB}) hopes to return to the sharp form she displayed last term and score her first win of the season in Saturday’s GIII Modesty H. at Arlington Park. Finishing off 2014 with victories in Belmont’s GII Sheepshead Bay S. May 2 and GII New York S. June 5, the Bill Mott pupil kicked off this season with a runner-up effort in Gulfstream’s The Very One S. Feb. 21. Fifth in that venue’s GIII Orchid S. Mar. 28, the bay was fourth in this year’s...