Keeneland

Randall Lowe's speedy homebred Golden Pal (Uncle Mo) overcame the 13 hole and a few awkward strides to kick off the Breeders' Cup action Friday while providing trainer Wesley Ward with his second consecutive victory in the GII Juvenile Turf Sprint. Looking to avenge his dam Lady Shipman (Midshipman)'s neck second in the 2015 GI Breeders' Cup Turf Sprint over this same course and distance, the 4-5 favorite blasted out of the gate and cleared off early until Irad Ortiz, Jr. tapped on the brakes and Golden Pal began to...

Highly Motivated (Into Mischief) led home a 1-3 finish and became the 81st black-type winner for his sire, establishing a new track record in the opening race of Breeders' Cup weekend. Quick Tempo (Tapizar) won the break and set a slick early pace, as Javier Castellano had the favorite settled from a midfield fifth while glued to the inside. Pinching ground on the turn, Highly Motivated popped off the fence and went on the attack three wide off the home corner, grabbed the front-runner at the sixteenth pole and pulled...

Featuring five deep, competitive fields and plenty of intrigue, Future Stars Friday will get the two-day, 37th Breeders' Cup World Championships festivities underway from historic Keeneland Race Course. First post on the all-stakes card at the bucolic oval, hosting the Breeders' Cup for the second time, is 11:30 a.m. ET, with the first Breeders' Cup race set to run at 2:30 p.m. All in all, 184 horses were entered in the 14 World Championship races, which conclude with the highly-anticipated GI Longines Breeders' Cup Classic, slated for 5:18 p.m. Saturday....

You have to have the right horses, manage them properly and get them to the big races when they are at their best. Those are the sentiments of Classic-winning trainer Joe Orseno, who will saddle Saturday's GI Breeders' Cup Turf Sprint morning-line co-second choice Imprimis (Broken Vow). It's been some time, 20 years to be exact, but this isn't Orseno's first trip to the Breeders' Cup with a live runner. Far from it. Back-to-back wins at the 2000 Breeders' Cup-held then as just a one-day, blockbuster eight-race program-put an exclamation...

Tony Holmes has enjoyed sales success with mares he has purchased in partnership with employees of his Marula Park Stud in the past, but next week the native New Zealander and a 22-year veteran of the farm may have success on the next level when they send Veronique (Mizzen Mast) (hip 244D) through the ring during Monday's first session of the Keeneland November Breeding Stock Sale. Holmes purchased the mare, in foal to Mastery, privately after she RNA'd for $22,000 at last year's Keeneland November sale. It was 10 months...

LEXINGTON, KY--Tuesday brought about another bright but cool morning in Lexington, and the European Breeders' Cup contingent-all bar the Ballydoyle brigade, which touched down in Lexington late on Monday evening and will be ensconced in quarantine until Thursday-had another opportunity to stretch their legs at Keeneland. The English and Irish Guineas winners Kameko (Kitten's Joy) and Siskin (First Defence) were among those who took to the training track for the second straight day, with Kameko once again catching the eye in a light gallop just as dawn broke. Siskin once...

In his first year as President and CEO of the Breeders' Cup, 38-year-old Drew Fleming has found himself trying to stage a global event in the midst of a global pandemic. In a socially-distanced phone call with TDN Publisher Sue Finley, he discusses the challenges and the triumphs of Breeders' Cup 2020. SF: You picked a heck of a year for this to be your first Breeders' Cup. DF: Well, this is my first Breeders' Cup as the CEO, but I've been working for the company since 2016. And then...

Team Valor's Oleksandra (Aus) (Animal Kingdom), who will be making her first start since winning the June 20 GI Jaipur S. when she goes postward in Saturday's GI Breeders' Cup Turf Sprint, worked six furlongs in 1:14.04 (1/3) Sunday at Belmont Park. "She's doing very well," said trainer Neil Drysdale. "She doesn't need speed because she's very fast. She worked in company behind another horse and started a half dozen lengths back and finished well." Oleksandra has worked six times on the Belmont main track this month, including a trio...

J Kirk and Judy Robison's Jackie's Warrior (Maclean's Music), likely favorite for Friday's GI TVG Breeders' Cup Juvenile, was among nine Steve Asmussen trainees aiming for championship weekend to work at Keeneland Sunday morning. The undefeated 2-year-old went four furlongs in :48.80 (9/25). "He had a nice, easy half-mile," Asmussen said. "I thought he moved well over the race track. The circumstances were excellent today. We're very excited about running him on Friday." Sunday's work was Jackie's Warrior second over the Keeneland surface. He also went five furlongs in 1:00.20...

Thoughts I had while perusing the pre-entries for what promises to be a terrific Breeders' Cup? What are the chances that Swiss Skydiver is named Horse of the Year? It now appears almost certain that Swiss Skydiver (Daredevil) will go in the GI Breeders' Cup Distaff instead of the GI Breeders' Cup Classic. "At this point we are going in the Distaff unless there is a late defection from the Classic," trainer Ken McPeek told reporters Saturday morning. The Classic field is loaded, so running Swiss Skydiver in the Distaff,...

For several centuries, Chantilly has been considered the heartland of the French racing industry and the hub for the country's major trainers. But in recent years, a number of names have proved that it is possible to dine at racing's top table while maintaining the bulk of your stable away from the Paris region. Currently leading the trainers' list and set to be crowned champion for the third time is Jean-Claude Rouget, whose main stable is in Pau but who also has a fairly major satellite operation farther north in...

Sackatoga Stables' GI Belmont S. winner and GI Kentucky Derby runner-up Tiz the Law (Constitution) capped off his serious work ahead of next Saturday's GI Breeders' Cup Classic with a five-furlong breeze at Keeneland Saturday morning. With his regular work rider Heather Smullen in the irons, the New York-bred drilled five furlongs in :59.20 and galloped out an extra eighth of a mile in 1:12.20 (video). "I saw just what I wanted. He went perfectly," said trainer Barclay Tagg who will send out his 11th Breeders' Cup starter next weekend....