Danny Gargan

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. - Competing much like he trained, Golden Tornado (McKinzie) showed Saturday that he is a 2-year-old colt to pay attention to. While his connections were confident of his ability level, Golden Tornado made it clear that he was indeed ready for the prime time of a $100,000 maiden special weight test at the Spa with a 3 1/4-length triumph. Under Hall of Fame jockey Joel Rosario, the bay colt owned by Reeves Thoroughbred Racing, Antony Beck's Gainesway Stable and Legendary Thoroughbreds, stalked pacesetter Oscar's Hope (Twirling Candy),...

Golden Tornado (c, 2, McKinzie--Ruby Trust, by Smart Strike), a half-brother to three-for-three Maxfield S. winner and 'TDN Rising Star' Verifire (Authentic), earned a 'Rising Star' badge of his own with a good-looking debut victory for trainer Danny Gargan at the Spa Saturday. The $475,000 KEESEP yearling graduate secured a perfect spot in a tracking second behind favored Oscar's Hope (Twirling Candy) through an opening quarter in :22.76. He turned up the heat approaching the quarter pole and leveled off beautifully in the stretch to win going away with powerful...

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. - There was never really any thought about running Iron Orchard (Authentic) in Sunday's GIII, $175,000 Adirondack Stakes at Saratoga Race Course. Trainer Danny Gargan said Saturday that Iron Orchard, the 5-2 second choice on the Adirondack morning line, will stay in the barn on Sunday. "I didn't really train her for this race," Gargan said Saturday morning outside his barn on the Saratoga backstretch. "I wasn't going to enter at all and (owners) said let's enter and look at it and then decided to wait." Iron...

6th-Saratoga, $90,000, (C), Msw, 7-3, 2yo, f, 5 1/2f, 1:05.46, ft, 5 1/2 lengths. IRON ORCHARD (f, 2, Authentic--Onebrethatatime {MSP, $133,283}, by Brethren) went off heavily favored at 3-5 facing auction-restricted maidens as a New York-bred. As advertised right from the break, she was quickly solo on the lead through the opening strides and dealt only with minor pressure up the backstretch from second-time starter Winrooski (Win Win Win). Shrugging that rival off as the half went in :46.37, Iron Orchard came home on cruise control under a motionless Joel...

A filly by Good Magic (hip 486) launched to the leaderboard at OBS Wednesday when selling for $1.1 million to the bid of Sean Flanagan. She will be trained by Danny Gargan. Consigned by Top Line Sales, the juvenile worked a furlong last week in : 9 4/5. She is out of the unraced Rose Mine (Street Cry {Ire}) and was bred by Don Alberto. She was purchased for $275,000 at last year's Keeneland September sale. Two years ago, Top Line sold another 2-year-old by Good Magic, subsequent multiple Grade...

Needless to say, Dornoch didn't look as shocked as Jayson Werth had felt when someone once said much the same to him. But somehow he got the message, because next day he went out there as a longshot and came back the winner of the GI Belmont Stakes. It had just been the two of them, in his stall, Werth literally giving the horse a pep talk. So he wanted to be a stallion, a lot of pretty mares lining up? Wanted to be somebody in this game? Well, here's...

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. - If the 2024 racing season at Saratoga Race Course wrapped up Labor Day weekend, why are so many of the best horsemen in the country still sticking around? Overlooking the famed Oklahoma Training Track, and, at the moment, enveloped in bright fall foliage, the former home to 2023 Horse of the Year Cody's Wish (Curlin) seems like a good place to start. "What did we win, five the last two years? That's not bad," Hall of Fame trainer Bill Mott said with a smile standing outside...

1st-Belmont The Big A, $90,000, Msw, 10-26, 2yo, 6f, 1:10.69, ft, 5 lengths. ROOKIE CARD (c, 2, Adios Charlie--Glamalert, by Vindication) atoned for a pair of tough-luck losses in his first two trips to the post to take the Saturday opener at Aqueduct with a fair bit of authority. Drawn the fence as the 1-2 jolly, the $165,000 OBS June breezer was soon in front for Dylan Davis and had company to his outside in the form of the once-raced Atlal (Quality Road) through an opening couple of furlongs in...

Dornoch (Good Magic--Puca, by Big Brown), a leading 3-year-old colt with impressive wins in the 2024 GI Belmont Stakes and GI Haskell Stakes, has been diagnosed with bone bruising, which will force him to miss his planned final start in the GI Breeders' Cup Classic. Dornoch, fourth in the GI Travers Stakes last out, has been retired from racing and will begin his stud career at Spendthrift Farm in 2025. "Dornoch's performance in the Travers really wasn't what we expected, and we just have not been happy with the way...

Dual Grade I-winner Dornoch (Good Magic) has been on downtime at Saratoga in the weeks after finishing fourth in the GI DraftKings Travers Aug. 24. Trained by Danny Gargan, the colt is gearing up for what is expected to be his final career start in the GI Breeders' Cup Classic at Del Mar Nov. 2 before retiring to stud at Spendthrift Farm. "He's doing good, and we gave him some time off and are just starting back," Gargan said. "He'll work three times before the Classic. He's not a horse...

by Jessica Martini & Christina Bossinakis LEXINGTON, Ky - With a pair of seven-figure colts by Nyquist leading the way, trade remained strong straight through the conclusion of Book 2 during the fourth session of the Keeneland September Yearling Sale Thursday in Lexington. "It was a great day," said Keeneland Vice President of Sales Tony Lacy at the close of business Thursday evening. "We are very pleased. The median is up 25% for the session over last year, which is a metric that we always use. That shows that it...

In this continuing series, TDN's Senior Racing Editor Steve Sherack catches up with the connections of promising maidens to keep on your radar. Trainer Danny Gargan launched the careers of GI Belmont Stakes winner Dornoch (Good Magic) as well as GIII Matt Winn Stakes winner Society Man (Good Magic) during the 2023 meeting at Saratoga. Both starters in this year's GI Kentucky Derby, neither won on debut. Dornoch finished a strong second behind fellow future Classic winner Seize the Grey (Arrogate) in his unveiling in the Saratoga slop while Society...