Horse Racing

Two weeks after a Kentucky Court of Appeals judge denied trainer Bob Baffert and owner Amr Zedan an "emergency" stay in their fight against the penalties levied against them by the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission (KHRC) over Medina Spirit (Protonico)'s betamethasone positive in the 2021 GI Kentucky Derby, a separate three-judge panel denied a motion for interlocutory relief that will keep the case from proceeding any deeper in that same court. The Apr. 15 ruling did, however, note that the judges' order was not a ruling on the merits of...

Peter Brant's 'TDN Rising Star' Regal Glory (Animal Kingdom) got the jump on stablemate Shantisara (Ire) (Coulsty {Ire}) with three-sixteenths of a mile remaining in Saturday's GI Jenny Wiley S. at Keeneland and dug in gamely to hold off her younger rival to prevail, providing trainer Chad Brown with a record fifth Jenny Wiley win, all since 2015. Brown overtook his mentor Bobby Frankel and Hall of Famer Bill Mott with the win. "I'm a lucky guy with owners like Mr. Brant and plenty before him that have sent me...

Stonestreet Stables LLC's Campanelle (Ire) (Kodiac {GB}) touched 3-2 in the final stages of the wagering for Saturday's Listed Giant's Causeway S. at Keeneland, but drifted all the way out to 19-10 and asserted her class to post her third career black-type success in stakes-record time. Away fairly, the 190,000gns Tattersalls October acquisition settled in fifth position and raced a touch keen three off the inside into the turn. Going well on the turn, she was eased out into the four path at the quarter, was shaken up and hit...

5th-Keeneland, $109,450, Alw, 4-16, (NW1X), 3yo, 1 1/16mT, 1:43.75, gd, neck. LIMITED LIABILITY (c, 3, Kitten's Joy--Hold Harmless, by Blame) had just one rival beat for the opening six furlongs of his July 31 debut over the Saratoga turf, only to shoot past the rest of his rivals to graduate by 2 3/4 good-looking lengths. A pace-compromised third as the odds-on choice behind Coinage (Tapit) in the Sept. 1 GIII With Anticipation S. at the Spa, the homebred raced handier to the speed in the Oct. 3 GII Pilgrim S....

Ruthin (GB) (Ribchester {Ire}) led home a 'TDN Rising Star' 1-3 finish in Friday's co-featured TVG Limestone S. at Keeneland, as she turned away a bid from her pace-pressing and favored stablemate, fellow 'Rising Star' Her World (Ire) (Caravaggio) and held off a late dive from Derrynane (Quality Road) for a narrow victory. So quickly into stride that jockey John Velazquez reported post-race that he surged back in the irons, Ruthin, a six-length graduate in a course-and-distance maiden 51 weeks ago to become the first winner for her sire, cut...

Highly impressive in winning a pair of juvenile starts last season, Equinox (Jpn) (Kitasan Black {Jpn}) makes Sunday's G1 Satsuki Sho (Japanese 2000 Guineas) his 3-year-old debut, but must overcome the widest draw in the field of 18 if he is to stretch his unbeaten mark to three. Receiving the always important endorsement of Christophe Lemaire for his career debut in an 1800-metre newcomers' event at Niigata at the end of August, the Silk Racing colorbearer settled handy to the pace and stormed clear to graduate by six powerful lengths....

'TDN Rising Star' Zozos (Munnings), most recently runner-up to Epicenter (Not This Time) in the GII Louisiana Derby Mar. 26, continued his preparations for the May 7 GI Kentucky Derby with a five-furlongs work that was timed in 1:00.20 Friday morning at Churchill Downs. Breezing in the company of his GI Longines Kentucky Oaks-bound stablemate Turnerloose (Nyquist), the Barry and Joni Butzow homebred was out at 5:30 a.m. and broke off about a length behind the GII Rachel Alexandra S. heroine before galloping along through fractions of :24 flat and...

As has been well-documented, Japanese interests have--over the course of many years--accumulated some of the best bloodstock from all corners of the globe, and as evidenced in Riyadh and Dubai in the last couple of months, the Japanese are breeding horses that can compete anywhere at any level. Classics season in the island nation kicked off last weekend with the running of the G1 Oka Sho (Japanese 1000 Guineas), with the colts' equivalent--the G1 Satsuki Sho (Japanese 2000 Guineas)--set for this weekend at Nakayama Racecourse. The 3-year-old offspring of some...

The owner of some very solid West Coast form, Count Again (Awesome Again) nevertheless projects to be at least a little bit forgotten from a pari-mutuel perspective in a high-class renewal of the GI Maker's Mark Mile, the Good Friday feature at Keeneland. A maiden winner during this track's fall meet in 2019 when under the care of Neil Howard, the bay won the 10-furlong GIII Singspiel S. for trainer Gail Cox in 2020, but has been kept between eight and nine panels since being switched to the barn of...

In this continuing series, we take a look ahead at US-bred and/or conceived runners entered for the upcoming weekend at the tracks on the Japan Racing Association circuit, with a focus on pedigree and/or performance in the sales ring. Here are the horses of interest for this weekend running at Hanshin and Nakayama Racecourses. While the 3-year-old filly set was front and center for last weekend's G1 Oka Sho, their male counterparts get their chance in Sunday's G1 Satsuki Sho (Japanese 2000 Guineas), and though there are no American-bred runners...

Slipstream (More Than Ready) could do no better than sixth in last year's GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf at Del Mar, but closed furiously up the rail to best favored Stonestreet filly Twilight Gleaming (Ire) (National Defense {GB}) in Sunday's Listed Palisades S. at Keeneland. Quickly into stride from an outside alley, 'TDN Rising Star' Twilight Gleaming outsprinted her male rivals and galloped them along on a drying-out turf course as Slipstream, last year's GIII Futurity S. hero, bided his time at the tail of the field. As her stablemate...

3rd-Keeneland, $100,000, Msw, 4-10, 3yo, f, 1 1/16m, 1:45.99, ft, 1 1/4 lengths. DISTINCTLYPOSSIBLE (f, 3, Curlin--Funny Proposition {GSW, $230,295}, by Medaglia d'Oro) closed off nicely to be second on her six-furlong debut at Saratoga last August and was last seen finishing runner-up to Juju's Map (Liam's Map) when last seen in this track's GI Darley Alcibiades S. in October. A slight drift in the markets saw the bay jump at a fairly generous even money Sunday and she hit the ground running before being securing a rail-skimming spot by...