Leo O'Brien

The Pasco Stakes at Tampa Bay Downs doesn't exactly rank high up on anyone's list of races on the road to the GI Kentucky Derby. But the seven-furlong race for 3-year-olds does offer a purse of $125,000 and is a stepping stone to the $400,000 GIII Tampa Bay Derby, the track's signature race. Expectations for the Pasco are modest, but not so modest that anyone could have predicted that this year's race, scheduled to be run last Saturday, would not fill. Only two horses entered the race. If the start...

Trainer Leo O'Brien, a long-time New York fixture as well as father-in-law of rider John Velazquez, has passed away, according to a release from the New York Racing Association, Inc. (NYRA). He was 85. Officials at NYRA penned a tribute to O'Brien. It appears here in its entirety: NYRA mourns the loss of the legendary Leo O'Brien--trainer of New York-bred millionaires Fourstardave, Fourstars Allstar and Irish Linnet--who passed away Thursday morning following a lengthy battle with Lewy Body Dementia, at the age of 85. O'Brien and his late wife, Joan,...