Del Mar

Sponsored by Alex Nichols Agency EXPENSIVE DAUGHTER OF JACARANDA DEBUTS AT THE SPA 3rd-SAR, $72K, Msw, 2yo, f, 6f, 2:20 p.m. Peter Brant went to $925,000 at KEESEP for AMERICAN WEST (Curlin), the second foal and first to make the races out of GSW Jacaranda (Congrats), who makes her career bow in this test. Jon Clay's Alpha Delta Stable went to $2 million to acquire Jacaranda, in foal to Candy Ride (Arg), at the 2016 FTKNOV sale. The Grade III winner is a half-sister to MGISW and hot young sire...

It's not his fault. But the fact is that Maximum Security (New Year's Day) has become one of the most chronicled, most contentious Thoroughbreds of recent times. From a lawsuit over his disqualification at Churchill, to the scandal engulfing his former trainer, to his frozen Arabian treasures, to the merit (or otherwise) of his debut for a new barn, one way or another, this extraordinary creature cannot keep out of the headlines. If feeling mischievous, indeed, one might almost say that he will not be the only polarizing incumbent facing...

Sponsored by Alex Nichols Agency HALF TO LEA DEBUTS AT THE SPA 1st-SAR, $72K, Msw, 2yo, f, 5 1/2fT, 1:10 p.m. Claiborne Farm and Adele Dilschneider homebred FOLIAGE (Speightstown), a half-brother to Grade I winner Lea (First Samurai), makes his career bow in this spot for Al Stall. In addition to his top-level victory on the dirt, Lea was GISP on turf and earned over $2.35-million before retiring to Claiborne's stud barn. Their MSP dam Greenery (Galileo {Ire}) is also the dam of SW Acre (Blame) and GSP Heath (Pulpit)....

In response to reports of inaccurate times being produced for Del Mar turf races by its new Gmax GPS timing system, Equibase said in a statement Thursday that Del Mar will hand time its turf races for the rest of the meet. The statement also admitted the company found "inconsistencies" in the Gmax timing of Del Mar turf races that it will work to fix before the fall meet at the seaside oval. "Del Mar racetrack will be utilizing hand timing for turf races for the remainder of the summer...

One day after Bill Finley wrote about inconsistencies in timing at a handful of racetracks in the U.S.--both big and small--in Wednesday's TDN, Pat Cummings, the Executive Director of the Thoroughbred Idea Foundation, has penned a piece of his own, explaining why accuracy in timing is paramount to the game and offering a framework for how to move forward. "The state of race timing in America is not improving as the years pass. It is getting worse," writes Cummings, who served as the director of racing information for Trakus for...

In this continuing series, TDN's Senior Editor Steve Sherack catches up with the connections of promising maidens to keep on your radar. The highly regarded Spielberg (c, 2, Union Rags-Miss Squeal, by Smart Strike), runner-up on debut as the 4-5 favorite for Hall of Famer Bob Baffert in a quickly run maiden special weight at Del Mar Aug. 8 (video), is currently being aimed at the GI Runhappy Del Mar Futurity Sept. 7. Campaigned in partnership by SF Racing LLC, Starlight Racing, Madaket Stables LLC, Golconda Stables, Siena Farm LLC...

When the horses in the fourth race at Del Mar Aug. 1 crossed the wire, the final time for the mile-and-a-sixteenth turf race was posted as 1:41.18. There was no reason to believe the race was mistimed and no announcements to that effect were made, but when the official chart was released by Equibase the time was listed as 1:40.80. It happened again in the next race on the card, a mile dirt race originally timed in 1:38.60, but changed to 1:38.53 in the official chart. It didn't stop there....

C R K Stable's GI Kentucky Derby contender Honor A. P. (Honor Code) worked five furlongs prior to the first race at Del Mar Saturday, covering the distance in :59.40 (4/96) with jockey Mike Smith in the irons. The dark bay sophomore clipped off fractions of  :23.80, :36.00 and :47.40 on a fast Del Mar track with trainer John Shirreffs watching the move from the frontside. Del Mar clocker Toby Turrell, who timed the move, caught Honor A.P. going six furlongs in 1:11.40, seven-eighths in 1:23.80 and a mile in...

1st-SAR, $72K, Msw, 2yo, f, 6 1/2f, 1:10 p.m. ET Stonestreet Stable's CANTATA (Medaglia d'Oro) debuts for Steve Asmussen, who is winning with 20% of his runners at the current meet. Purchased for $950,000 at Keeneland last September, the bay is the second foal out of Stoweshoe, who is also responsible for Desert Peace (Curlin), who realized $1.3 million from Godolphin at the same venue one year earlier. The Doug and Felicia Branham-bred filly has been training steadily at Saratoga, including a four-furlong move two back Aug. 6 (XBTV Video)....

3rd-Del Mar, $56,000, Msw, 8-14, 2yo, 5fT, :57.50, fm. GET HER NUMBER (c, 2, Dialed In--Fancier, by Bernstein), off at a well-backed 3-1 in a field scratched down to seven after the chilly-on-the-board Stratofortress (The Factor) got loose while parading, took up a prominent position outside of pacesetting Commander Khai (Twirling Candy) and pressed from the outside. The latter carried the lead into the lane, traveling well, and looked home inside the final half-furlong, but Flavien Prat was able to extract just a bit extra from his mount and threw...

In a vast cavern of a building like an aircraft-hanger just a tad more than a stone's throw from Newport Beach is a sparkling chrome vista that would set any motorhead's heart a flutter. This waltz through recent history takes you from a sturdy-looking 1931 Ford Model A to a plushly upholstered 1948 Hudson Commodore to a 1956 Ford Thunderbird Convertible the color of a brightly polished London bus, and onwards. The oldest, most venerable member of the gang is an open-topped 1911 Hudson Speedster—a throw-back to a bygone era...

Sponsored by Alex Nichols Agency 2nd-MTH, $47.5K, Msw, 2yo, f, 5 1/2f, post time: 1:15 p.m. ET St Elias Stables and West Point Thoroughbreds homebred Graceful Fancy (Liam's Map) is out of the super-talented Icon Project (Empire Maker), who earned a gaudy 114 Beyer Speed Figure for a 13 1/2-length romp in the 2009 GI Personal Ensign S. at Saratoga. Already the dam of Grade II winner Fashion Business (GB) (Frankel {GB}), Icon Project was a 1.45-million gns RNA in foal to Dubawi (Ire) at the 2015 Tattersalls December Mare...