Keeneland

Clairita (Gun Runner) broke last but finished a respectable third beaten 2 1/2 lengths in her Keeneland debut going this distance on a fast main track Oct. 17. Meant for the turf Friday but rained onto the slop under the Twin Spires, the 6-5 favorite got off to a smoother beginning and found herself fourth in the leading pack around the clubhouse turn as Lady Iva (Uncle Mo), who drew in off the also-eligible list, set a tempo of :24.07 and :48.79. Making steady progress towards the front on the...

There appears to be something for everyone--pari-mutelly speaking--in Saturday's GIII Commonwealth Turf Stakes, the final age-restricted contest on the grass on the Kentucky circuit for 2025. Donamire Farm's GI Franklin-Simpson Stakes hero Troubleshooting led home a top-four sweep for the outstanding Not This Time when last seen in the GIII Bryan Station Stakes at Keeneland back on Oct. 25, and he looms the one they'll have to beat at or around his 7-2 morning line. Placed once from three tries on the dirt to begin his career, he has conversely...

1st-AQU, $85K, Msw, 2yo, f, 7f, 12:10 p.m. ET. POMERANCE (Curlin) brought $700,000 at the Fasig-Tipton Saratoga Select Yearling sale. Bred & owned by partners Jeff Drown and Don Rachel, the filly is out of MGSW Pomeroys Pistol (Pomeroy), who produced current sire Thousand Words (by Pioneerof the Nile) and Sweet Pistol (Smart Strike)--the dam of 'TDN Rising Star, presented by Hagyard' & GISW Faiza (Girvin). The first-timer was sent to trainer Chad Brown. TJCIS PPS 10th-CD, $120K, Msw, 2yo, 1m, 5:24 p.m. ET. An $800,000 buy during the Fasig-Tipton...

Northview Stallion Station has pensioned Great Notion (Elusive Quality) ahead of the 2026 breeding season. A top stallion in Maryland, Great Notion, who will turn 26-years-old Jan. 1, sired 55 stakes winners led by MGSW Future Is Now, MGSW Havelock and millionaire GSW Coastal Mission. On the track, the son of Elusive Quality broke his maiden on debut at Churchill Downs for Silverton Hill and trainer Darrin Miller. Silverton Hill, who purchased Great Notion as a yearling at Keeneland September in 2001 for $82,000, raced him across the country, winning...

The Freakonomics Radio podcast has released a new three-episode series, "The Horse Is Us," which includes coverage of the Keeneland September Sale and several other important industry issues. "Their team was fantastic to work with and spent several days interviewing several industry professionals and Keeneland team members on our grounds," said Keeneland Communications Manager Meredith Daugherty. The first episode is not necessarily Keeneland-centric. It is entitled "The Ultimate Dance Partner." "For most of human history, horsepower made the world go," the introduction reads. "Then came the machines. So why are...

Dale Romans is among the most successful trainers in the history of Kentucky racing. He's the all-time leading trainer in terms of wins at Churchilll Downs, has won the GI Preakness Stakes and upset Triple Crown winner American Pharoah (Pioneerof the Nile) with Keen Ice (Curlin) in the 2015 GI Travers S. But he's looking for a career change. Last week, trainer Romans announced that he'd like to become U.S. Senator Romans, representing Kentucky. He announced his candidacy and has entered the Democratic primary. To discuss why he is running...

Fourth most recently in the GI Queen Elizabeth II Challenge Cup Stakes at Keeneland Oct. 11, Fionn (Twirling Candy) turned on the tables on that race's runner up, Laurelin (Ire) (Zarak {Fr}) to win Saturday's GIII Jockey Club Oaks at Aqueduct. It's been a year of incredible form for the Brad Cox trainee as the 3-year-old filly has won five of seven starts including her first Grade I success in the GI Belmont Oaks Invitational at Saratoga in July. In fact, that fourth in the QEII as the favorite marked...

The $3-million GI Pegasus World Cup Invitational will for the first time be included in the Breeders' Cup Challenge Series: Win and You're In, Breeders' Cup Limited and 1/ST announced Thursday. The Breeders' Cup Challenge Series is an international series of 94 stakes races in 15 countries whose winners will receive automatic starting positions and fees paid into a corresponding race at the 2026 Breeders' Cup World Championships, scheduled to be held Oct. 30-31 at Keeneland Race Course in Lexington. As part of the global series of automatic qualifying races...

Sponsored by Pedigrees360. Sorry to do this yet again, but the very fact that the exercise can be repeated every November shows that we're not looking at anything freakish; in other words, that there are valid lessons to learn. Because with daughters of Old Fashioned, Mitole, Big Brown, Ten Sovereigns (Ire) and Outwork among the 10 most valuable mares changing hands at Fasig-Tipton and Keeneland last week, why would anyone trying to seed a breeding program start by spending fortunes on fillies by glamor sires? For most of us, who...

2nd-Aqueduct, $79,050, Msw, 11-9, 2yo, 1m, 1:36.03, ft, 2 1/2 lengths. COURTING (c, 2, Curlin--Cavorting {MGISW, $2,063,000}, by Bernardini), who topped the 2024 Keeneland September sale when selling for $5 million, closed to be fourth after a slow start in his debut over this track and trip Sept. 27. The 1-9 favorite in this second outing, he was away alertly and was under a snug hold while setting a moderate early tempo. He shrugged off a challenge from longshot Stream It (Tapit) in upper stretch and sailed down the lane...

The annual end-of-year student networking event hosted by Amplify Horse Racing will be held Monday, Nov. 10 at the Keeneland library, the group announced Friday via press release. Set to begin 4:00pm and run until 6:00pm, the theme for this year's event is 'Storyteller Night: Exploring Careers in the Thoroughbred Industry'. Students, educators, industry and community members are invited to spend the evening storytelling, exploring careers, and establishing meaningful connections within the equine industry. Students will be offered an accessible way to meet professionals, explore pathways, and learn how diverse...

Trainer Brad Cox's outfit was like a hen on a June bug towards the end of Keeneland's 'Fall Stars' meet and subsequently kept pouncing on wins at Churchill, Horseshoe Indy and Aqueduct as the calendar flipped to the more autumn-like weather of November. Louisville's favorite son collected 20 winner's circle visits across 61 starts from Oct. 21 on, which included a Hit Show (Candy Ride {Arg}) playlist in the GIII Hagyard Fayette Stakes, an Oaks points deposit for Life of Joy (Gun Runner) in the Rags to Riches Stakes and...