Horse Racing

Clerk Of Scales Jack Keller To Be Inducted Into Finger Lakes Hall Of Fame

Longtime Finger Lakes Clerk of Scales Jack Keller will be inducted into the track's Hall of Fame this Friday, the gaming establishment said in a press release on Wednesday. When Keller arrived at Finger Lakes outside of Farmington, New York in 1967, he figured he would spend a year working as a valet and then move on to another track for his next adventure in the world of racing. One year, however, became 59. "As it turned out, I never left," said Keller, who is in his 39th season as...

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National Regulatory Rulings, June 5-11, 2025

Every week, the TDN posts a roundup of the relevant Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act (HISA) related rulings from around the country. The following rulings were reported on HISA's "rulings" portal and through the Horseracing Integrity and Welfare Unit's (HIWU) "pending" and "resolved" cases portals. Resolved ADMC Violations Date: 06/09/2025 Licensee: Victor Barboza, trainer Penalty: None. Case dismissed. Explainer: Barboza had faced a medication violation for the use or attempted use of a Class C controlled medication on Gayles Evening during the race period, an event dated 3/2/25. According to the final ruling of the internal adjudication...

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Deterministic's Manhattan Win Delivers Miguel Clement First Grade I Victory

In perhaps the most fitting end to a dramatic weekend of racing in upstate New York, Deterministic (Liam's Map) held on for a last-gasp victory in the GI Manhattan Stakes Sunday at Saratoga, giving Miguel Clement his first top-level victory just two weeks after taking over the stable following the passing of his father, longtime New York conditioner Christophe Clement. "I'm very fortunate and very lucky we have a great team. Very much Dad's legacy," Clement said. "It is beyond emotional, the last two weeks, to be honest with you....

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Electrifying Ag Bullet Schools Boys In Spa Jaipur To Earn Breeders' Cup Ticket

Ag Bullet stamped her ticket to the GI Breeders' Cup Turf Sprint with a powerful victory over the boys in the GI Jaipur Stakes at Saratoga Sunday. The race had originally been scheduled for the loaded GI Belmont Stakes card, but was moved to Sunday after heavy rains hit the upstate track Saturday. The transfer allowed jockey John Velazquez to pick up the mount from Flavien Prat, who was in Kentucky to ride Final Gambit in the GIII Matt Winn Stakes Sunday. Sent off at 5-2, Ag Bullet broke in...

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'Rising Star' East Avenue Goes The Distance In The Matt Winn At Churchill

Godolphin homebred East Avenue got back to winning ways with a gutsy wire-to-wire victory in the GIII Matt Winn Stakes Sunday at Churchill Downs. Facing just three rivals, the 7-5 favorite stepped right out to the early lead and was tracked by Coal Battle and Burnham Square through an opening quarter in :24.41 and a half in :47.66. Burnham Square, Coal Battle and second choice Final Gambit lined up across the track behind him as East Avenue turned for home a length in front. Final Gambit's rally never materialized, leaving...

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Win Win Win's Diblasi Skims Rail And Scores To Graduate At The Spa

3rd-Saratoga, $100,000, Msw, 6-8, 2yo, 5 1/2f, 1:04.65, ft, 3 1/4 lengths. DIBLASI (g, 2, Win Win Win--One More Minute, by Istan) was introduced to the races with a runner-up finish at 4 1/2 furlongs on Apr. 13 at Keeneland. Aided by the slow starting rivals to his inside, this gelding broke well and worked his way down to the rail, sitting off an early quarter clicked in :22.28. While Diblasi bided his time, four rivals lined up at the top of the stretch, and with a seam opening down...

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Journalism's Camp Not Throwing In the Towel

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY -- The party was just getting started in the cramped winner's circle at Saratoga Race Course. It almost seemed like half of the 46,243 that came out to Saratoga to watch the GI Belmont Stakes were in there. Well, let's not get carried away. But it was jammed, and everyone was singing the praises of Sovereignty (Into Mischief), the Most Valuable Player in the second annual Belmont Stakes Festival at Saratoga. Even those who were vanquished by Sovereignty had to give a congratulatory nod to the Godolphin-owned,...

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Sovereignty Rules Again in Belmont Stakes

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. - There's absolutely no doubt who the ruler of the 3-year-old division is now. Just like he did in the GI Kentucky Derby, Godolphin homebred Sovereignty (Into Mischief) collared Journalism (Curlin) in the stretch, and powered on by to capture the 157th running of the GI Belmont Stakes with authority. It was the same first three finishers across the line on the first Saturday in May with the blue-blooded Baeza (McKinzie) up for third once again. The Belmont Stakes Racing Festival was held at Saratoga Race Course...

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'Rising Star' Patch Adams Scoots Clear In Woody Stephens
'Rising Star' Patch Adams Scoots Clear In Woody Stephens

'TDN Rising Star' Patch Adams (Into Mischief) took his record at one-turn trips to three wins from four tries with a clear-cut victory in Saturday's GI Woody Stephens Stakes at a drying-out and freshly harrowed Saratoga Race Course. Hard-ridden from gate four by Luis Saez, the bay colt took up a prominent early spot as GII Pat Day Mile upsetter Macho Music (Maclean's Music) cut out the fractions in advance of Madaket Road (Quality Road) down the backstretch. Under constant urging as longshot T Kraft (Connect) went through underneath him...

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All the Rage: Raging Torrent a Front-Running, Upset Winner of the Met Mile

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. - Raging Torrent (Maximus Mischief) continued his ascent with a powerful, 2 1/2-length victory over heavily favored 'TDN Rising Star' Fierceness (City of Light) in the 'Win and You're In' GI Hill 'n' Dale Metropolitan Handicap at Saratoga. Just a Touch (Justify) held third over second-choice White Abarrio (Race Day). "(Winning the Met Mile) is something that I never dreamt of just because it seems so far-fetched, but a horse like Raging Torrent is kind of a once-in-a-lifetime kind of horse," winning trainer Doug O'Neill said. "He's...

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Sunday Insights: Son Of Lady Apple Makes The Races At Saratoga

3rd-SAR, $100K, Msw, 2yo, 5 1/2f, 1:20 p.m. ET. MALUS (Into Mischief)--owned by Brookdale and trained by Todd Pletcher--is the second foal and first to make the races out of Lady Apple (Curlin). The winner of the GIII Fantasy Stakes, GIII Houston Ladies Classic and the GIII Iowa Derby, this dam was acquired for $1.2-million by Gerald Butler at the 2020 Fasig-Tipton Fall Mixed Sale. Lady Apple is a half-sister to SW Dr. Diamonds Prize (Pure Prize) and GSW American Apple (American Pharoah). TJCIS PPS

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Final Gambit In a Starring Role in Matt Winn

One of the pieces to the handicapping puzzle that was this year's GI Kentucky Derby was just how Juddmonte Farm's Final Gambit (Not This Time) would handle a conventional dirt surface, having raced only on turf and synthetic tracks in his four starts prior to that. The homebred had punched his ticket to the Run for the Roses when exploding through the lane to dominate the GIII Jeff Ruby Steaks Mar. 22, and he answered the surface question when making up a stack of ground--albeit behind a strong tempo--to round...

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