Breeders' Cup

South African Horse of the Year Princess Calla (SAf) (Flower Alley) has been purchased by John Stewart of Resolute Farm from Mario Ferreira, Stewart announced on X Saturday morning. Ferreira and trainer Sean Tarry had sent the five-time South African Grade 1 winner to America in early March for a crack at the Breeders' Cup. "We have finalized our international deal and I'm so excited to announce that we have acquired 2023 South African Horse of the Year Princess Calla in a private sale," Steward said on X. "She is...

Del Mar Thoroughbred Club has scheduled a 31-day/39 stakes program topped by its premier offering--the 34th running of the $1-million GI FanDuel Racing Pacific Classic slated for Saturday, Aug. 31. Del Mar is also projecting a total purse distribution of more than $26.6 million over the course of the eight-week season. The shore oval's 85th summer session staged alongside the blue Pacific opens Saturday, July 20 and races ahead to Sunday, Sept. 8. The Pacific Classic will be the highlight of a rich afternoon that will feature five graded stakes,...

War Like Goddess (English Channel) typically makes a single stop at Keeneland per year and she does so exclusively to win the GIII Bewitch S. Not only did the 7-year-old mare win last year's edition, she also won the same race in both 2022 and 2021. Making her first start of 2024 off a seventh to Auguste Rodin (Deep Impact {Jpn}) in the GI Longines Breeders' Cup Turf at Santa Anita last November, War Like Goddess began her 2023 campaign in exactly the same way, debuting to a win in...

On the back of a 2023 racing calendar which saw no racing fatalities, the 2024 summer season at Del Mar will feature among the nation's highest prize money as well as a 'robust' lineup of trackside events, the club announced Monday. Marking a historic shift, opening day will be held on a Saturday--July 20--for the first time since the 1950s due to a scheduling adjustment with the San Diego County Fair running through July 7. Tickets for opening weekend and the summer racing season will go on sale Friday, May...

The 2024 Breeders' Cup Challenge Series: Win and You're In will consist of 82 races in 12 countries and host track Del Mar will run six on a schedule with several new additions, the organization announced via release Monday. In its 18th year, the Win and You're In (WAYI) program gives each winner an automatic qualifying position with fees paid into the corresponding race at the 2024 World Championships. In addition to the domestic schedule, forty-one international races will be held at premier tracks in Argentina, Brazil, Canada, Chile, England,...

The 2024 schedule for the Breeders' Cup Dirt Dozen, an incentive-based participation bonus program for horsemen pointing runners to the dirt races in the Breeders' Cup World Championships, was released Monday. Launched in 2022, the 12-race program is comprised of existing graded stakes races scheduled from May through October at six tracks throughout the United States. "We are happy to once again offer our lucrative Dirt Dozen program," said Dora Delgado, Executive Vice President and Chief Racing Officer of Breeders' Cup Limited. "Each year $525,000 is offered in awards, and...

While tickets go on sale to the general public Apr. 22, fans can register for pre-sale access to tickets for this year's Breeders' Cup championship weekend at Del Mar at BreedersCup.com/2024. A broad range of seating options for the event were unveiled Tuesday at BreedersCup.com/Tickets. The Breeders' Cup returns to Del Mar for the third time Nov. 1-2. Ahead of championship weekend, Breeders' Cup and Del Mar will invest more than $5 million to create new seating areas and expanded hospitality offerings, including construction of a luxury chalet that will...

Tickets are now on sale for the 2024 Horse Racing Women's Summit (HRWS) Annual Summit and HRWS Events. Events at Keeneland (Apr. 18) and at Saratoga (July 23) kick off the year, all leading up to the third annual Horse Racing Women's Summit at Santa Anita Sept. 25-26. There will be another gathering prior to the Breeders' Cup at Del Mar Oct. 31. Attendance at each event is limited and it is expected that events will sell out. Click here to purchase tickets. "Coming into our third year of the...

The GI Longines Breeders' Cup Classic and the GI Longines Breeders' Cup Turf will both receive individual $1-million purse increases, Breeders' Cup Limited announced Tuesday. Beginning with this year's 41st World Championships at Del Mar, the purse of the 1 1/4-mile Longines Breeders' Cup Classic will increase from $6 million to $7 million, while the purse of the 1 1/2-mile Longines Breeders' Cup Turf will increase from $4 million to $5 million. This raises total purses and awards for the Breeders' Cup World Championships, Thoroughbred racing's most prestigious two-day event,...

With a strong first day program which ran the gambit from the centrality of horse racing's societal license to the destructive use of xylazine to an update from the Horseracing Integrity & Welfare Unit, horse racing investigators at the annual Organization of Racing Investigators were immersed in some of the most pressing issues affecting the sport. Hosted by Parx Racing and sponsored by everyone from Keeneland to the Breeders' Cup, over 100 specialists who protect racetracks in America and several other countries, listened, asked questions and made connections, all in...

Edited Press Release New York Governor Kathy Hochul provided a project timeline and additional updates Monday on the construction of new racing facilities at Belmont Park. The New York Racing Association, which will oversee construction, also released a series of architectural renderings to bring the project's vision to life. Expected to be completed in late 2026, the multi-year project to build a new Belmont Park will generate $1 billion in construction-related economic impact and create 3,700 construction-related jobs. Following the return of thoroughbred racing to Belmont in 2026, additional racing...

Within the past three months, the purses for all three Triple Crown races have been raised. Paradoxically, this increase in prize money has coincided with a 2024 prep race season that is uncharacteristically light on emphatic, leap-off-the-page contenders for the GI Kentucky Derby, GI Preakness S., and GI Belmont S. The first weekend in March has traditionally served as a launch pad for sophomores who figure to excel in the spring Classics and beyond. Of all the prep stakes currently carded at 1 1/16 miles, the two that have historically...