Keeneland

'TDN Rising Star' Kimari (Munnings) looks to successfully defend her GI Madison S. title Saturday at Keeneland. Twice second at Royal Ascot, the bay kicked off 2021 with a win in Oaklawn's Spring Fever S. and took the Madison next out. Sent to the sidelines after that effort, she was ambitiously spotted for her return off that seven-month layoff in the GI Breeders' Cup Turf Sprint and she could only manage seventh to stablemate Golden Pal (Uncle Mo). Sent through the ring at Fasig-Tipton's November Sale just days later, Kimari...

'TDN Rising Stars' Smile Happy (Runhappy) and Emmanuel (More Than Ready) face off Saturday as they try to secure their spots in the GI Kentucky Derby starting gate at Keeneland in the GI Toyota Blue Grass S. Smile Happy rallied past rivals with ease to take his career bow in style going two turns at Keeneland Oct. 29 and followed suit with a decisive victory in the GII Kentucky Jockey Club S. Nov. 27. Splitting foes, the dark bay closed from well back to be second to next-out GII Louisiana...

If you are around long enough, you're likely to meet a lot of people and see a lot of things. And Jackie Ward Ramos, who turns 90 Apr. 8, will celebrate her birthday at Keeneland Friday in exactly the way she's lived her life--surrounded by family, friends and horses. "It's a casual affair. People will come up and have some hors d'oeuvres and drinks--very easy," she said of her birthday bash at the track. "Of course, it will be all people in the horse business. At this point, I just...

Rodolphe Brisset has been training on his own for just five years, but he has already come close to what many dream of in starting a horse in the Kentucky Derby and Kentucky Oaks. First he trained Quip (Distorted Humor), the 2018 GII Tampa Bay Derby winner who was pulled from Kentucky Derby contention a few weeks out from the race. Then the next year GII Demoiselle S. winner Positive Spirit (Pioneerof the Nile) clipped heels and fell at the start of the Kentucky Oaks, walking away relatively unscathed but...

Keeneland began its official countdown to this year's Breeders' Cup at Tandy Park in Lexington Thursday at a ceremony attended by Breeders' Cup President and CEO Drew Fleming, Lexington Mayor Linda Gorton, Keeneland President and CEO Shannon Arvin, Breeders' Cup Festival Chair Kip Cornett, and GI Longines Breeders' Cup Classic winning trainer Brad Cox. "We're excited to officially begin our countdown to the 39th running of the Breeders' Cup World Championships this fall in our hometown of Lexington," said Fleming. "We're so grateful to work alongside leaders like Mayor Gorton,...

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 Nakayama and Hanshin Racecourses, the latter of which plays host to the first of this year's Japanese Classics--the G1 Oka Sho (Japanese 1000 Guineas) over 1600 meters: Saturday, April 9, 2022 11th-NKY, New Zealand Trophy-G2, ¥103.5m ($835k), 3yo, 1mT JEAN...

A small, but competitive field of six sophomore colts are set to line up Friday in Keeneland's GIII Transylvania S. Two-time Transylvania winner Chad Brown saddles a third of the field in Verbal (Flintshire {GB}) and Napoleonic War (War Front). Rallying to a decisive score in his Belmont unveiling Oct. 10, Juddmonte homebred Verbal closed strongly to take Del Mar's GIII Cecil B. Demille S. at Del Mar next out Nov. 28. He is the 2-1 morning-line favorite in this sophomore bow. His stablemate Napoleonic War is the longest shot...

Todd Pletcher captured last year's GI Central Bank Ashland S. with the blue-blooded Malathaat (Curlin), who went on to take the GI Kentucky Oaks in her next start. The Hall of Famer looks to repeat in Friday's renewal with another daughter of Curlin named Nest. A dominant debut winner going two turns at Belmont in September, the $350,000 KEESEP buy checked in third in the Tempted S. there next out Nov. 5. Besting next-out Busher S. winner and Saturday's GII Gazelle S. contender Venti Valentine (Firing Line) by a neck...

The Commonwealth Racing Challenge kicks off Friday, Apr. 8 with the opening of the Keeneland spring race meet. The new initiative is designed to encourage Kentucky Equine Education Project (KEEP) members to visit all of Kentucky's racetracks during the 2022 Kentucky horse racing circuit. KEEP members who successfully scan a unique QR code and tag KEEP in a social media post at each of the six participating Kentucky racetracks during their 2022 racing meets will be entered to win four VIP tickets the Breeders' Cup World Championships at Keeneland Nov....

Amplify Horse Racing and MyRacehorse are launching "Amplify Junior, Sponsored by MyRacehorse"--a partnership that will deliver a children's educational tour series to Kentucky. The new initiative will teach young children and their parents and guardians about the Thoroughbred horse racing industry. The new junior program for children 12 and under will feature monthly educational tours from April through October at iconic locations in Kentucky, including Keeneland Race Course, Fasig-Tipton Sales Company, and Taylor Made Farm. Each of the seven destinations will include a tour of the facility and hands-on engaging...

In this continuing series, TDN's Senior Editor Steve Sherack catches up with the connections of promising maidens to keep on your radar. Think the word was out on Creative Minister (c, 3, Creative Cause--Tamboz, by Tapit) ahead of his unveiling on the GII Fasig-Tipton Fountain of Youth S. undercard at Gulfstream Park Mar. 5 (video)? Hammered down to 5-2 favoritism off a 15-1 morning-line quote--having last year's GI Claiborne Breeders' Futurity winner Rattle N Roll (Connect) as a regular workmate will certainly do that--Creative Minister was quickly outsprinted in a...

By all accounts, trainer Wesley Ward is planning on coming out full force when Keeneland opens the doors on its spring meeting Friday, Apr. 8. To that end, four of the stable's stars tuned up for opening weekend stakes engagements Saturday morning in Lexington. Happy Soul (Runhappy) is set to represent Ward in the GI Central Bank Ashland S., her first try around two turns, and the Gayla Rankin-owned filly blitzed six furlongs in a race-like 1:11.20 Saturday morning. Since dropping her career debut at Keeneland last April, Happy Soul...