Horse Racing
Five juvenile colts not quite up to the quality of the Breeders' Cup are signed on for Sunday's GIII Nashua S., being held this year at Belmont Park, and features runners based on either coast sent out by Hall of Fame conditioners. Shug McGaughey has won the Nashua but once in his illustrious career, sending out the tempestuous Coronado's Quest (Forty Niner) back in 1997. Courtlandt Farms' Judge Davis (Distorted Humor) carries the hopes of the stable into the final graded event of the fall meet. A debut fourth behind...
Equibase has released the economic indicators for the month of October and year-to-date, as well as the same statistics for October of 2020 and January through October of 2020 for comparison. THOROUGHBRED RACING ECONOMIC INDICATORS FOR OCTOBER 2021 Indicator Oct. 2021 Oct. 2020 % Change Wagering/U.S. Races $950,624,087 $929,063,211 +2.32% U.S. Purses $107,844,038 $90,904,717 +18.63% U.S. Race Days 328 340 -3.53% U.S. Races 2,748 2,852 -3.65% U.S. Starts 20,750 22,410 -7.41% Avg. Field Size 7.55 7.86 -3.90% Avg. Wagering/Day $2,898,244 $2,732,539 +6.06% Avg. Purses/Day $328,793 $267,367 +22.97% YTD 2021...
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 Sunday running at Hanshin and Tokyo Racecourses, featuring the much-anticipated debut of one of this year's breeze-up sales toppers: Sunday, November 7, 2021 2nd-TOK, ¥9,680,000 ($85k), Maiden, 2yo, 1400mT WALKER TESORO (f, 2, Speightstown--January Jones {Brz}, by Shirocco {Ger}) is the second foal...
Jockey Miguel Mena was killed at about 7:36 p.m. Sunday night in Louisville when struck by a car. He was 34. According to the Jefferson County Coroners Office, which released a brief statement Monday, Mena was a pedestrian on Interstate 64 West between Blankenbaker Parkway and Hurstbourne when hit. The cause of death is listed as blunt force injuries and the manner of death was listed as accidental. According to Rick Sanders, the chief of the Jeffersontown Polic Department, which handled the incident, Mena wound up on the highway after...
The 2021 Fall Meet at Keeneland Race Course in Lexington, Kentucky, closed Oct. 30, with record all-sources wagering of better than $181 million over the course of 17 days of live racing at the historic facility. When the dust had settled Saturday afternoon, all-sources wagering (not including whole-card simulcasting at Keeneland) totaled $181,009,626, obliterating the previous record of $164,680,229 established during this year's Spring Meet and the previous Fall Meet record of $160,207,916 set in 2019. This year's all-sources wagering numbers represented a 22% increase over last fall's $148,229,708. Keeneland...
A half-sister to 'TDN Rising Star' and GI Breeders' Cup Classic hopeful Essential Quality (Tapit), Ch. 2yo Colt, MGISW, $4,215,144, Famed (Uncle Mo) followed in the latter's hoofprints with a 'Rising Star'-worthy romp of her own in the fall meet finale from Keeneland Saturday afternoon. The dark bay was bet down to 90 cents on the dollar for her much-anticipated debut at Churchill Sept. 26 and was in the thick of it from the start, but ultimately dropped a one-length decision to Sweet Dani Girl (Jess's Dream), who franked the...
12.50 Saint-Cloud, Debutantes, €27,000, 2yo, c/g, 7 1/2fT GAUCHER (GB) (Frankel {GB}) is the first foal out of the Wertheimers' G1 Prix Vermeille heroine Left Hand (GB) (Dubawi {Ire}), who was also runner-up in the G1 Prix de Diane. Carlos Laffon-Parias is in charge of the March-foaled chestnut, whose rivals include The Aga Khan's Mirabad (Fr) (Gleneagles {Ire}), a Mikel Delzangles trainee whose listed-winning dam hails from a strong-staying family.
12.40 Newmarket, Novice, £10,000, 2yo, f, 7fT CRYSTAL CAPRICE (IRE) (Frankel {GB}) represents the longstanding De Rothschild--Sir Michael Stoute connection which has fared so well with members of this March-foaled bay's family down the years. The dam Crystal Zvezda (GB) (Dubawi {Ire}), a talented but perhaps underachieving listed winner, is a half to three heavyweight performers to have raced in these silks in Crystal Ocean (GB) (Sea The Stars {Ire}), Crystal Capella (GB) (Cape Cross {Ire}) and Hillstar (GB) (Danehill Dancer {Ire}). Among her peers is Lady Derby and Lady...
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. As promised, a second installment this weekend featuring the horses of interest for this weekend running at Niigata and Tokyo Racecourses. Click for a preview of Sunday's G1 Tenno Sho, featuring the produce of American-sourced mares Rhodochrosite (Unbridled's Song), Tapitsfly (Tapit) and Ginger Punch (Awesome Again), among others: Sunday, October 31,...
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. With plenty activity this weekend, we will serve up two helpings of American-bred and -sired runners, beginning with Saturday's runners at Hanshin and Tokyo. Sunday's featured event is the G1 Tenno Sho (Autumn), which will feature 2020 Triple Crown winner Contrail (Jpn) (Deep Impact {Jpn}), this year's G1 Japanese 2000 Guineas...
With a record HK$100 million available across the four tests that comprise the Longines Hong Kong International Races, some 135 horses from all corners of the globe--including a whopping 57 that have already struck at Group 1/Grade I level--have been entered for the 'Turf World Championships,' to be held Sunday, Dec. 12 at Sha Tin Racecourse. Despite the ongoing complications caused by the COVID-19 pandemic--the staging of the Longines HKIR is officially subject to the approval of the HKSAR Government--fully 90 entries were received from the connections of overseas runners,...
Baoma Corp's Eda (Munnings) made light work of four fellow juvenile fillies to post her first stakes success in facile fashion in Sunday's Anoakia S. at Santa Anita. Away without incident from the inside stall, the bay was beaten for speed, then angled away from the fence to stalk the pace outside of Shes Bout a Mover (Mastery) through a quarter in :21.90 and a half in :44.98. Pressing past the front-runner with a minimum of fuss at the head of the lane, Eda was under very little urging from...