Today's Edition:  Record-Setting $1.4M Justify Filly Leads The Way at OBS · Baeza Set for Summer Showdown · Royal Ascot Coverage 2

Horse Racing

'Rising Star' Returns A Determined Winner at Monmouth

3rd-Monmouth, $47,500, Alw, 5-31, (NW1X), 3yo, 6f, 1:10.83, ft, neck. MOMOS (c, 3, Distorted Humor--Inspeight of Us, by Speightstown), making his first start since a troubled seventh in the GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf Sprint at Keeneland in November, was there for the taking in the final sixteenth of a mile, but he called upon his class to post a gritty neck success. Sent off the 3-5 chalk in receipt of Lasix for the first time in his career and getting blinkers off, the $75,000 OBS Winter Mixed yearling turned...

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Fulsome Maintains 'Winn'-ing Ways at Churchill

Four weeks after the commonly owned 'TDN Rising Star' and stablemate Mandaloun (Into Mischief) crossed the line second in the GI Kentucky Derby, Juddmonte's Fulsome (Into Mischief) was afforded his own chance to shine and made the most of the opportunity in Saturday's GIII Matt Winn S., overcoming a sluggish break to defeat Derby fifth O Besos (Orb) and that race's eighth-place finisher Helium (Ironicus) in convincing fashion. Sent off the 17-10 chalk to remain perfect in three tries on the main track, the impeccably bred bay walked out of...

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Gam's Mission Gives DeVaux First Stakes Winner in Regret

Carrying the silks of the famed Lazy F Ranch, Gam's Mission (Noble Mission {GB}) rallied through the final eighth of a mile to take out Saturday's GIII Regret S. at Churchill, giving trainer Cherie DeVaux her first stakes winner since going out on her own. Bumped soundly at the break by her inside rival Postnup (Declaration of War), the homebred settled slightly worse than mid-division from fifth, as favored Spanish Loveaffair (Karakontie {Jpn}) argued a moderate pace from the fence inside of Postnup, who raced in the two path. Ground-saving...

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Notable US-Bred Runners in Japan: May 30, 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 Sunday running at Chukyo Racecourse, including the return of last-out Group 3 winner Shivaji (First Samurai). Over at Tokyo, a field of 17 is set for the world's richest Derby, the G1 Tokyo Yushun, headed by the undefeated Efforia (Jpn) (Epiphaneia {Jpn}): Sunday, May...

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Efforia Gunning For Fantastic Five in Tokyo Yushun

Perfect in four career attempts to this point, including a facile success in the G1 Satsuki Sho (Japanese 2000 Guineas) (2000mT) last month, Carrot Farm's Efforia (Jpn) (Epiphaneia {Jpn}) will jump a warm favourite to take his winning streak to five in Sunday's G1 Tokyo Yushun (Japanese Derby) at the Fuchu Racecourse in the Japanese capitol. Blessed with excellent tactical speed, Efforia has managed to be a forward factor in each of his races to date, sitting fairly handy to the pace when besting Victipharus (Jpn) (Heart's Cry {Jpn}) by...

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No Detailed Update From Laurel on Massive Track Repair Project

Thursday's Maryland Racing Commission (MRC) meeting figured to provide an update on the massive main track base and cushion repair project that has kept Laurel Park dark since Apr. 10 and caused the entire backstretch community to relocate to either Pimlico Race Course, the Timonium fairgrounds, or private stabling. But beyond noting that all horses had been moved out of the Laurel backstretch as of May 26 and thanking horsemen for their cooperation, Sal Sinatra, the president of the Maryland Jockey Club (MJC), which owns Laurel and Pimlico, only reported...

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Notable US-Bred Runners in Japan: May 29, 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. Plenty of activity this weekend, so we'll begin with Saturday's runners at Tokyo and Chukyo, where the promising Careerism (Upstart) will try to build on an impressive maiden victory from three weeks ago: 4th-CKO, ¥9,680,000 ($88k), Maiden, 3yo, 1400mT ROARING (f, 3, California Chrome--Warbling, by Unbridled's Song) looks to become the...

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Speightstown Firster Overcomes Wide Trip at Churchill

6th-Churchill Downs, $100,000, Msw, 5-23, 3yo/up, f/m, 5 1/2fT, 1:04.51, fm, neck. TOWN AVENGER (f, 3, Speightstown--Unavenged, by Empire Maker) was crunched into 7-2 at post time from a morning line of 12-1 and was up in the shadow of the post for a good-looking victory at first asking. Settled behind midfield, but trapped out wide after departing the 10 hole, the $380,000 Keeneland September yearling purchase looped rivals four deep on the turn and carried a full head of steam into the lane despite the significant ground loss. The...

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Panfield Ascends To New Heights in Champions & Chater Cup

Exultant (Ire) (Teofilo {Ire}) was a well-backed third in the 2018 BMW Hong Kong Derby before winning the G3 Queen Mother Memorial Cup H. and finishing runner-up in the G1 Standard Chartered Champions & Chater Cup. Three years on, South American import Panfield (Chi) (Lookin At Lucky), who racked up a trio of top-level successes on home soil prior to his sale to Hong Kong, outran odds of 25-1 to complete the tierce in this year's Derby and was only fifth to Butterfield (Brz) (Setembro Chove {Brz}) in the Queen...

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Irish Guineas Hangs In The Balance

Saturday's Curragh card which features the G1 Tattersalls Irish 2000 Guineas is in doubt after 35 millimetres of rain hit the track overnight Thursday. With a morning inspection called, chief executive Pat Keogh is hoping for a turnaround with the course currently waterlogged in places. "We got a lot more rain than we anticipated overnight. We were forecast 15 millimetres at the most in the last 24 hours," he explained on Friday. "It's come completely out of left field, unfortunately. The track would not be raceable today. We'll just have...

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Observations: Chiasma Aimed at Goodwood

4.35 Goodwood, Novice, £9,000, 3yo, f, 9f 197yT CHIASMA (IRE) (Galileo {Ire}) has been found an easy target, ground-permitting, by John and Thady Gosden as she bids to build on an encouraging debut third over this trip at Sandown last month. The full-sister to Frankel (GB) and Noble Mission (GB) meets just four opponents at the rain-hit Sussex track and if she handles the testing ground, is likely to be a class above.

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Sodashi Aims For Six Straight in Yushun Himba

The world's most recognizable--and most talented--white Thoroughbred, Sodashi (Jpn) (Kurofune), puts her unblemished record on the line against a full field of fellow 3-year-old fillies in Sunday's G1 Yushun Himba (Japanese Oaks) going a full circuit of the Fuchu Racecourse at Tokyo. Not one of the 68 horses Sodashi has faced through her five career starts have managed to finish ahead of her, even if she never wins by a space. The Makoto Kaneko runner debuted with a 2 1/2-length victory over 1800 metres last summer, but has since been...

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