Hunter Rankin

What kind of sire will Horse of the Year Flightline turn out to be? The first hints are right around the corner. Greenwell (Flightline) will make his debut Friday at Churchill Downs in the fifth race for trainer Mark Casse. He will be the first offspring of Flightline to start in North America. The next day, the filly House Boat Party (Flightline), will run in the sixth race at Churchill for trainer Brian Lynch. She will be the first Flightline filly to start in the U.S. Both races are at...

by Jessica Martini, Christina Bossinakis and Jill Williams LEXINGTON, KY - The Keeneland September Yearling Sale continued to churn out double-digit year-on-year gains as its second Book 2 session concluded Thursday night with yet another son of Gun Runner leading the way. Through four sessions of the 12-day auction, 671 yearlings have grossed $307,639,000. At this same point a year ago, 640 head had sold for $252,528,000. Asked about the gross surpassing the $300-million mark after day four, Keeneland Senior Director of Sales Operations Cormac Breathnach laughed and said, "It's...

Flying Dutchmen Breeding and Racing's 'TDN Rising Star' Shred the Gnar (Into Mischief), "a little off" and scratched from last Friday's GI Acorn S. at Saratoga, will receive 30 days off, according to Hunter Rankin, president of Travis Boersma's operation. "She's doing fine," Rankin said. "We had Dr. Bramlage (at Rood & Riddle Equine Hospital) go over her, bone scan and everything else. But it turns out, she's just gonna need 30 days. Her front, high-suspensories are bugging her a little bit, but it's nothing that we can't deal with....

On March 3, 2019, Happy Farm (Ghostzapper) was claimed by trainer Jason Servis for $30,000 at Aqueduct. The dark bay gelding would remain in that barn for an entire year where he'd go on to finish no worse than second in seven starts - highlighted by a victory in the 2019 GIII Fall Highweight Handicap. Within days of Happy Farm's second-place finish in the GIII Tom Fool Handicap on March 7, 2020, Servis was arrested and charged following a multi-year investigation overseen by the FBI that identified over 30 people...

It all started at the 2022 Kentucky Derby. Kelly Mahoney had the time of his life attending his very first horse race as he watched Rich Strike (Keen Ice) make one of the biggest upsets in Derby history. Afterwards, he called up his business partner Brad Kinsell and uttered that notorious phrase: 'I want to win the Kentucky Derby.' It took some convincing on Mahoney's part, as neither of them had any prior experience or involvement in horse racing, but eventually his friend acquiesced and Victoriam Farm was born. Now...

by Jessica Martini & Christina Bossinakis LEXINGTON, KY - The Keeneland November Breeding Stock Sale produced a day of solid trade with the opening session of its two-day Book 2 section Wednesday in Lexington. For the session, 201 horses grossed $29,440,000. The day's average of $146,468 dipped 9.38% from the corresponding session in 2023, while the median remained unchanged at $120,000. "It was a good, solid day's trade," said Keeneland Vice President of Sales Tony Lacy. "I think it was fair. There were some sticky spots, it was a little...

by Jessica Martini & Christina Bossinakis OCALA, FL - With plenty of activity at the top of the market, the Ocala Breeders' Sales Company's March Sale of 2-Year-Olds in Training concluded its three-day run with increases in average and median over last year's two-session renewal and five juveniles selling for seven figures, led by a co-record $2-million son of Good Magic. "I thought it was a really good sale and it held strong all the way through," said OBS Director of Sales Tod Wojciechowski. "There were quality horses on each...

It's not like you just add water. For the very possibility of reaping the ultimate harvest with Instant Coffee (Bolt d'Oro), on the first Saturday in May, has only been able to take root because the ending of even the longest stories, in this game, can always prove the start of a new chapter. Having already demonstrated an aptitude for the Churchill surface in winning the GII Kentucky Jockey Club S., Instant Coffee resumes the Derby trail in the GIII Lecomte S. at the Fair Grounds on Saturday. And while...

LEXINGTON, KY - The Keeneland January Horses of All Ages Sale continued to keep pace with its 2021 renewal with a day of competitive bidding topped by the 3-year-old filly Ancient Peace (War Front), who sold for $650,000 to Travis Boersma's Boardshorts Stables late in Tuesday's second session of the four-day auction. "It started strong and it held pace," said Keeneland's Vice President of Sales Tony Lacy. "We've got to be very encouraged with the consistency within the market. Quality was selling well. There was hunger for the good stock...

Hunter Rankin has been hired as Senior Director of Racing for Churchill Downs Incorporated, CDI announced Tuesday. The role was recently vacated following Mike Ziegler's promotion to General Manager of Churchill Downs Racetrack in December 2020. As CDI's Senior Director of Racing, Rankin will act as a representative and liaison to the U.S. Thoroughbred racing and breeding industry and focus on the implementation of standards and processes outlined in the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act ("HISA") across all of CDI's racing properties. "Hunter brings to this role a breadth of...

What is it, beyond our obvious bond in the Thoroughbred, that most vitally comprises the fabric of the Turf? It's a question answerable in too many ways, requiring definition of too many intangibles, to be easily condensed. But I think we'll get somewhere close if we ponder the retirement this week of Stan Hough, an old-school horseman of a type largely overwhelmed in the era of the super-trainer. And especially because his departure from the stage coincides with the removal of two key features of the scenery: Calder Race Course,...

The present crisis will perhaps find horsemen a little more stoical than most. When it comes to biding their time, after all, the Thoroughbred gives them plenty of practice. Nonetheless it must test the patience more than anything to have a racehorse just back to fitness this spring after a long lay-off, only to find most of the racing program immersed by the pandemic. What a relief for his connections then that Global Campaign (Curlin) was able to find a landing strip for his touchdown, after a nine-month absence, at...