By My Standards

Last year's GI Travers S. hero Code of Honor (Noble Mission {GB}) looks to become the first horse since Medaglia d'Oro in 2002/2003 to complete the Travers-GI Whitney S. double Saturday at Saratoga and secure a spot in the starting gate for the GI Breeders' Cup Classic. Capturing the GIII Dwyer S. last term prior to his Travers score, the W.S. Farish homebred came up a nose short of champion Vino Rosso (Curlin) in the GI Jockey Club Gold Cup S. in September, but was promoted to first via DQ....

Tom's d'Etat (Smart Strike) has been on a streak over the last few months and is heavily favored on the morning-line to secure his fourth straight victory in Saturday's GII Stephen Foster S. at Churchill Downs, which grants the winner a spot in the starting gate for the GI Breeders' Cup Classic. Capturing a sloppy renewal of the GII Fayette S. at Keeneland in October, the bay followed suit with a decisive score in the track-and-trip GI Clark S. Nov. 29. He kicked off 2020 with a 3/4-length score in...

All that glisters is not gold. Certainly we shouldn't get too carried away: Goldencents has been launched by mares in such volume that there would be something badly amiss if he didn't come up with the occasional smart racehorse. In fact, a suitably brisk start made by his first juveniles in 2018 saw him entertain a staggering 239 mares last spring. That put him in the company of seven other stallions in the 200 club (five at Ashford, the other two alongside Goldencents at Spendthrift) and onto an aggregate 929...

The steadily improving Combatant (Scat Daddy), winner of the GI Santa Anita H. last out, headlines an intriguing field in Saturday's GII Oaklawn H. Closing out his 2019 campaign with a Churchill optional claiming victory Nov. 8 for Winchell Thoroughbred, Willis Horton and trainer Steve Asmussen, he was sent through the ring at Keeneland November days later, where bloodstock agent David Ingordo purchased him for $220,000 for Hronis Racing. Transferred to John Sadler, the bay checked in third in the GII San Pasqual S. Feb. 1 and rebounded to win...

On this program 12 months ago, Allied Racing Stable's By My Standards (Goldencents) belied odds of 22-1 to upset the GII Louisiana Derby. He'll be a fraction of that price and even of his 6-1 morning line when he makes his return to graded-stakes company in the GII New Orleans Classic S. at the Fair Grounds. The bay colt overcame the widest stall in a field of 12 to break his maiden by better than four lengths last February and was prominent in the Derby before rallying late to score...

7th-Fair Grounds, $47,000, Alw (NW2X)/Opt. Clm ($40,000), 2-9, 4yo/up, 1 1/16m, 1:43.75, ft. BY MY STANDARDS (c, 4, Goldencents--A Jealous Woman {MSW & GSP, $469,956}, by Muqtarib), a maiden winner over this track and trip last February, earned a ticket to the GI Kentucky Derby with a next-out victory in the Mar. 23 GII Louisiana Derby, but had been missing since a troubled 12th-place effort in the big dance last May. Sent off the 1-2 favorite, the bay colt shadowed pacesetting Two Emmys (English Channel) through fractions of :24.64, :49.29,...

Mr. Money has proven more or less unbeatable since a breakout romp in the GIII Pat Day Mile on GI Kentucky Derby Day May 4, and the progressive colt strung together his fourth consecutive win Saturday while becoming a millionaire. Breaking well from a high draw, the heavy favorite locked on to Plus Que Parfait early and traveled under stout restraint through opening splits of :24.42 and :49.10. He poked a head in front turning for home, and was clearly going much better than his rivals as he hit the...