Breeders' Cup
Group 2 heroine Quick Suzy (Ire) (Profitable {Ire}), who won the G2 Queen Mary S. at Royal Ascot, will not start in the Sept. 25 G1 Cheveley Park S. and instead target an Oct. 1 listed event at Dundalk prior to a run in the GII Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf Sprint at Del Mar in November. Purchased privately by Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners prior to her Royal Ascot heroics, the filly was second in the May 16 G3 Coolmore Stud Irish EBF Fillies Sprint S. and, in her only race since...
George Hall and Sport BLX Thoroughbreds' Max Player (Honor Code) will train up to the Nov. 6 GI Breeders' Cup Classic at Del Mar following his win in Saturday's GI Jockey Club Gold Cup, trainer Steve Asmussen confirmed Sunday. "Max Player is better than he's ever been and physically he's developed into this," Asmussen said. "There's more of him. He's a horse that's continued to grow, fill out and mature. There's a lot more of Max Player as a 4-year-old than there was as a 3-year-old. He's bigger and stronger....
The in-person Owner Conference during Breeders' Cup week in Del Mar remains on course for Wednesday Nov. 3 from 8:30a.m. until 5:00p.m. followed by a conference dinner that evening. A location for the single-day conference location has yet to be finalized, however, the Estancia La Jolla Hotel and Spa is likely to be announced soon as this year's conference host site. "As part of the planning, it's important we know how many attendees to expect for the Conference to insure we have the correct number of hotel rooms, the correct...
Friday's G3 Round Tower S. heroine Sacred Bridge (GB) (Bated Breath {GB}), who races in the colours of breeder Juddmonte, is a possible starter in the GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf, as long as her European campaign concludes in satisfactory fashion, trainer Ger Lyons revealed to the Nick Luck Daily Podcast. The four-for-four bay's next target is the G1 Cheveley Park S. on Sept. 25. Lyons, who saddled his 1,000th winner on Monday, told the Nick Luck Daily Podcast, "The little filly gave me a 'wow' feeling on Friday--it...
When Joe Bravo decided to leave New Jersey because of new regulations banning the use of the whip, his future was unclear. Bravo, 49, needed a place to ride, but leaving the comfortable confines of Monmouth Park might be difficult. He had been riding at the Jersey Shore track since the late eighties and has been leading rider there 13 times. But rather than struggling outside of the Garden State, Bravo is having a meet to remember at his new home, Del Mar. With a week to go in the...
SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY - Though he quickly conceded that things could change, trainer Fausto Gutierrez said Sunday that GI Personal Ensign winner Letruska (Super Saver) is headed to the GI Breeders' Distaff, not the GI Breeders' Cup Classic. "I think it will be with the mares. I think this is the correct decision," he said. "I think there is a group where she is the leader. Anyway, this can change in any moment. You never know." The Personal Ensign was Letruska's fourth-straight graded stakes victory, three of them Grade Is,...
Godolphin's Essential Quality (Tapit) exited his win in Saturday's GI Runhappy Travers S. in fine shape, and, while his next start is up in the air, his ultimate target will be the Nov. 6 GI Breeders' Cup Classic, trainer Brad Cox confirmed Sunday. "He looked great this morning. He's in good shape," Cox said. "[Godolphin USA President] Jimmy Bell and I spoke about [his next start] this morning, there's no pressure to make a decision right now. We'll just let the dust settle and enjoy this victory for a little...
SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY-Some 15 hours after he suffered a career-ending injury, Whitmore (Pleasantly Perfect) was being Whitmore Sunday morning. Acting like he was quite ready to run in another Grade I at Saratoga Race Course, the 8-year-old was positioned in the front of this stall, alert, active and on the prowl for a carrot or a piece of candy. During the gallop-out past the wire of the GI Forego S. Saturday afternoon, jockey Joel Rosario noticed something didn't feel right and pulled the champion up. As a precaution, he was...
C Z Rocket (City Zip) will be looking to earn another automatic berth to the GI Breeders' Cup Sprint when he attempts to defend his title in the 'Win and You're In' GII Pat O'Brien S. at Del Mar Saturday night. The 7-year-old gelding has hit the board in all 10 starts--with seven wins--since being claimed for $40,000 last April. He earned his first graded score in last year's Pat O'Brien and followed up with a win in the GII Santa Anita Sprint Championship S. before concluding the year with...
Breeders' Cup and America's Best Racing launched "Breeders' Cup En Vivo," a series of six live digital handicapping shows in Spanish covering 13 of the Breeders' Cup Challenge Series races. Co-hosted by Emanuel Aguilar, Annise Montplaisir, Roberto Rodriguez, Claudia Spadaro, and Darwin Vizcaya, the six shows will be streamed live across both America's Best Racing and Breeders' Cup's Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube channels. The following tracks and races will be covered by Breeders' Cup En Vivo: Aug. 28 - Del Mar: GII Pat O'Brien S. Sept. 11 - Kentucky Downs:...
Cheveley Park Stud homebred Sacred (GB) (Exceed and Excel {Aus}) is targeting the G1 Prix de la Foret after returning to form with a win in the Aug. 14 G2 Hungerford S., but trainer William Haggas has also nominated the Breeders' Cup at Del Mar as a possibility for the 3-year-old filly who wants firm ground. "Before the Foret the only possible is the [G2] Park S. at Doncaster, but she has to have to fast ground," said Haggas. "Unfortunately fast ground Arc weekends are few and far between these...
Shadwell Stable's Malathaat (Curlin), winner of Saturday's GI Alabama S., will likely train up to the Nov. 6 GI Longines Breeders' Cup Distaff, trainer Todd Pletcher confirmed Sunday morning. "Right now, we're focused on the Distaff, so we'll zero in on that and take things from there. That's the most likely scenario," Pletcher said. "Nothing's etched in stone, but that's sort of the plan that we discussed with Rick Nichols [of Shadwell] a while ago." Malathaat won the GI Ashland S. and GI Kentucky Oaks before suffering her first career...