GI Breeders' Cup Classic

Mentee (City of Light), the two-year-old full-brother to GI Travers Stakes winner Fierceness (City of Light), came down with laminitis after his winning debut on June 15 at Aqueduct. According to owner Mike Repole, who revealed the news on the TDN Writers' Room Podcast presented by Keeneland, the situation was so severe that the colt is "lucky to be alive." However, Mentee recovered so well and so quickly that he is set to start in Monday's GI Hopeful S. at Saratoga. Mentee broke his maiden by a nose, defeating another...

The GI Breeders' Cup Classic has been confirmed as the next port of call for City Of Troy following his dominant win in Wednesday's G1 Juddmonte International at York. Trainer Aidan O'Brien said, "It looks like City Of Troy is going to go straight to the Classic, I think, listening to everybody. I think he's going to go to one of your tracks [for a racecourse gallop], either Southwell or Ryan [Moore, jockey] mentioned Wolverhampton. "We just want to get him on a different surface, so that's where he could...

For a horse that has won the richest race in the world, Saturday's $250,000 GII Pat O'Brien S. at Del Mar might not seem like an overly difficult spot. But when Senor Buscador (Mineshaft) heads to the post for Saturday's race, he probably won't be the favorite and there will no doubt be some wiseguys who throw him out altogether. The problems are threefold: He's not a seven-furlong horse; he will not have run for 147 days; he'll be facing the best sprinter on the West Coast in the California-bred...

In a stylish defense of his title--though the word feels underwhelming to describe the ease--Next (Not This Time) did what Next does best in the Birdstone Stakes: turning a marathon into a runaway. Racing on appointment only the last couple of seasons, his smallest margin of victory came in his first appearance in the GII Brooklyn Stakes last year, where he defeated SW & MGSP Calibrate (Distorted Humor) by 2 1/4 lengths. His largest came when he wrapped 2023 a 25-length winner in Parx's Sept. 23 GIII Greenwood Cup, but...

Six weeks removed from his biggest win in his career win in the GI Belmont Stakes, Dornoch (Godo Magic) did what many thought he surely wouldn't be able to repeat. But it seems nobody told him, nor the colt's connections for that matter. During Wednesday's draw for the GI NYRABets Haskell Stakes, trainer Danny Gargan made it pretty clear that he was not really enthused with his Classic-winning colt drawing Post 1. The  trainer probably had a flashback to this season's Kentucky Derby, where Dornoch drew the dreaded rail and...

The G1 Japan Cup at Tokyo Racecourse on Sunday, November 24 has been identified as a potential end-of-season target for Auguste Rodin (Ire) after he got his four-year-old campaign back on track with victory in the G1 Prince Of Wales's Stakes at Royal Ascot. A four-time winner at the top level as a three-year-old when landing the Derby, Irish Derby, Irish Champion Stakes and Breeders' Cup Turf, Auguste Rodin was unable to add to those victories in two starts earlier this year, first trailing home last in the G1 Dubai...

Spendthrift Farm's Kingsbarns (Uncle Mo) earned an automatic berth in the GI Longines Breeders' Cup Classic with a dominant victory in the GI Stephen Foster Stakes at Churchill Downs Saturday. The 2-1 shot rated just off the pace as First Mission (Street Sense) and Skippylongstocking (Exaggerator) took the field through a moderate opening quarter in :24.13. First Mission, the 4-5 favorite, took charge as the half went up in :48.38, but Kingsbarns was rolling up three wide to grab control into the stretch. The favorite attempted to fight back, but...

WinStar Farm stallion Improbable (City Zip), the champion older male of 2020 and a 'TDN Rising Star', was euthanized late last night at Rood & Riddle Equine Hospital in Lexington after suffering from ataxia behind, a condition which causes poor voluntary muscle control, the farm said in a release early Sunday. "He was sent to Rood and Riddle yesterday morning to determine the exact cause of the ataxia," said Elliott Walden, president, CEO, and racing manager of WinStar Farm. "He was responding well to treatment, but went to lie down...

Brothers Mark and Clint Cornett, who race under the name of C2 Racing Stable, have taken on HRH Prince Faisal Bin Khaled Bin Abdul Aziz Al Saud of Saudi Arabia as a partner in the GI Breeders' Cup Classic winner White Abarrio (Race Day). The 5-year-old will make his next in the Feb. 24 running of the G1 Saudi Cup. Mark Cornett said that C2 remains the majority owner, but declined to say how big of a percentage was sold. The story was first reported by the Daily Racing Form's...

MGISW Arcangelo (Arrogate) is scheduled to undergo surgery for a left hind short lateral condylar fracture after a consultation by Dr. Larry Bramlage, Lane's End Farm said in a release late Thursday afternoon. The procedure was recommended to expedite the healing process and ensure his long-term soundness. The findings were made during precautionary radiographs that were performed after missing training and scratching from the Breeders' Cup Classic. "We expect a quick recovery and return to normal activities for Arcangelo," said Bill Farish. "We do not anticipate this having any impact...

ARCADIA, CA -- After missing the last three days of training with a foot issue, leading 3-year-old Arcangelo (Arrogate-Modeling, by Tapit) was withdrawn from Saturday's $6-million GI Breeders' Cup Classic at Santa Anita and will be retired to begin his career at stud at Lane's End Farm in 2024. A powerful winner of this year's GI Belmont S. and GI Travers S., the gray had a warm hind foot and had a shoe pulled on Saturday. He was listed as the 7-2 second choice on the morning line for the...

Amo Racing's G1 Champion S. victor King Of Steel (Wootton Bassett {GB}) has been given the go ahead to travel and contest the Breeders' Cup at Santa Anita next weekend. According to Amo's Kia Joorabchian, the massive grey is likely for the GI Breeders' Cup Turf, of which the Champion S. was a "Win and You're In" on QIPCO British Champions Day. "We've been monitoring him all week, I've spoken to Roger [Varian] almost every day and I went to see him this week," Joorabchian told Nick Luck's Daily Podcast...