Bill Mott

Juddmonte's Elite Power (Curlin) showed a new dimension and continued his ascension while punching his ticket to the GI Breeders' Cup Sprint in Saturday's 'Win and You're In' GII Vosburgh S. at Belmont at the Big A. Heavily favored at 1-2 to win his fourth straight over just four rivals in this belated stakes debut, Elite Power broke on top and conceded the early lead to longshot Jalen Journey (With Distinction). He took a narrow advantage near the three-eighths marker, began to sneak away under confident handling in the stretch...

With Breeders' Cup weekend at Keeneland right around the corner, 15 graded stakes--including seven 'Win and You're In' events--will take place throughout North America on an absolutely loaded day of racing Saturday. Five of those graded races will go down in Lexington, including a stacked renewal of the 'Win and You're In' GI Claiborne Breeders' Futurity. The overflow field of 14 (plus two AE's)'s lone graded winner, GI Hopeful S. hero and 'TDN Rising Star' Forte (Violence), bypassed last weekend's GI Champagne S. in favor of this first attempt around...

Keeneland opens its highly anticipated fall meet Friday with a trio of graded stakes that each provide the winners with a spot in the gate for the Breeders' Cup World Championships to be held in Lexington the first weekend of November. The highlight of the day will be the GI Darley Alcibiades S., a qualifier for the GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies. Ken McPeek and Brad Cox have taken turns the last few years, each winning two of the last four, and McPeek has the morning-line favorite in last-out GIII...

Throughout your life, there are people who make it better. In 1964, when I moved to New Orleans to live with my soon-to-be adoptive mother, Marie Krantz, the caretakers of the Old Jefferson Downs were Jimmy and JoAn Stewart. The old Jefferson Downs was the converted Magnolia Park Harness track in Metairie (now Lafreniere Park). Jimmy had retired from race-riding and had a trainer's license with some good clients. It was summer and the camp bus would drop me off at the Caretakers Cottage on the grounds. JoAn would babysit...

Red Knight blew up the tote at 15-1 in the GII Kentucky Turf Cup S. at Kentucky Downs Saturday, earning a spot in the gate for the GI Breeders' Cup Turf in November. Breaking sharply from his inside post, the chestnut settled back near the rear with just three of his 11 rivals beat through an opening half-mile in :49.72. Inching up a bit, but still biding his time through three-quarters in 1:14.52, Red Knight snuck up the outside to be within striking distance approaching the far turn. Four wide...

Grandview Equine, Cheyenne Stable and LNJ Foxwoods's Olympiad (Speightstown), a head-scratching fourth in the GI Whitney S., bounced back with a powerful performance in Saturday's 'Win and You're In' GI Jockey Club Gold Cup at Saratoga. The 8-5 favorite jumped well from his inside draw and sat a perfect, stalking trip in second behind longshot pacesetter Tax (Arch) through fractions of :24.54 and :49.70. Racing in between rivals as last year's GI Cigar Mile H. winner Americanrevolution (Constitution), one of four entered for Todd Pletcher, continued to draw closer heading...

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY--With a sterling race record that befits her very distinctive name all wrapped in an engaging story, War Like Goddess (English Channel) is an impossible-to-ignore race mare bidding for a championship. Though her late sire was a champion on the track and a top turf stallion for many years, the first foal out of Misty North (North Light {Ire}) brought a mere $1,200 at auction as a weanling and did not draw a single bid at the 2018 Keeneland September yearling sale. At the June 2019 OBS sale,...

It was a relatively quiet Thursday last week when jockey John Velazquez registered his 1,000th victory at Saratoga, extending his record as the winningest jockey in Spa history. Sifting through the archives to get a feel for what was going on in the sport when Johnny V. won his first career race at Saratoga back on Aug. 5, 1990, yields a heady mix of nostalgia tinged with kismet. Although not considered a truly "historic" day of racing at the Spa, there are enough intriguing nuggets buried within the charts and...

Previously unbeaten at Saratoga and for the season, champion Jackie's Warrior (Maclean's Music) became the latest victim of the "Graveyard of Champions" Saturday when run down late by the ever-improving Cody's Wish (Curlin). The 1-9 favorite hustled up to dictate terms and was pressed by longshot Pipeline (Speightstown) through a :22.75 opening quarter and :45.10 half-mile while 8-1 shot Cody's Wish raced in a joint last. Jackie's Warrior turned for home in front with a stubborn Pipeline breathing down his neck and Cody's Wish winding up out in the center...

Hall of Famer D. Wayne Lukas is the newest addition to the MyRacehorse cast of trainers, as he will condition a yearling colt by Arrogate out of well-bred stakes-placed runner and producer Smart Shopping (Smart Strike) for the micro-share syndication company. The colt was purchased for $300,000 at the Fasig-Tipton Saratoga sale as hip 79. "Adding a world-class name such as D. Wayne Lukas to MyRacehorse is an honor," MyRacehorse CEO Michael Behrens said. "Teaming up to provide our owners with the opportunity to say their horse is trained by...

1st-SAR, $105K, Msw, 2yo, 6f, 11:35 a.m. EDT The star-studded GI Runhappy Travers S. day card kicks off with a pair of juveniles events, starting with this main track sprint. VERIFYING (Justify), a $775,000 KEESEP acquisition by the Coolmore contingent, is one of the most intriguing firsters in this event. The Brad Cox pupil is out of GSW Diva Delite (Repent), who summoned $1.2 million with this colt in utero at the 2019 Fasig-Tipton November Sale. That makes Verifying a half-sibling to champion Midnight Bisou (Midnight Lute), who brought $5-million...

The GI Runhappy Travers S. is one of the summer's most highly anticipated events and for the past several years it has been the centerpiece of a Super Saturday card at Saratoga that serves as a Breeders' Cup preview. The Travers is one of five star-studded Grade Is on the 14-race card, which also includes the GII Ballston Spa S. for turf fillies. Intriguing storylines abound in this year's eight-horse renewal of the summer centerpiece for sophomore colts, which is topped by GII Jim Dandy S. winner Epicenter (Not This...