Mystik Dan

It will be a hugely important weekend for trainer Kenny McPeek as Thorpedo Anna (Fast Anna) and Mystik Dan (Goldencents) will be in action Saturday at Churchill Downs. Horse of the Year Thorpedo Anna will be heavy favorite in the GII Fleur De Lis while 2024 GI Kentucky Derby winner Mystik Dan faces a tough assignment in a loaded GI Stephen Foster Stakes. To talk about the two biggest stars in his barn, his hiring of Jimmy Jerkens and even his new tattoo, McPeek was the Gainseway Guest of the...

GI Kentucky Derby hero Mystik Dan (Goldencents) will square off against old foe, GI Longines Breeders' Cup Classic winner, and 'TDN Rising Star Sierra Leone (Gun Runner), plus G1 Dubai World Cup champ Hit Show (Candy Ride {Arg}) and GISW sprinter and 'TDN Rising Star' Mindframe (Constitution) in next Saturday's 44th running of the $1-million GI Stephen Foster Stakes at Churchill Downs, which is a "Win and You're In" qualifier for the Breeders' Cup Classic. The last time Mystik Dan and Sierra Leone faced one another was in the 2024...

Mystik Dan (Goldencents--Ma'am, by Colonel John), the winner of the GI Kentucky Derby in 2024, is set to stand stud at Airdrie Stud in Midway, Kentucky, upon the conclusion of his racing career, according to a press release from the farm Monday morning. A three-time graded stakes winner with earnings to date of more than $4.4 million, Mystik Dan has been campaigned throughout his career by trainer Kenny McPeek for the ownership group of Lance Gasaway, 4G Racing LLC, Daniel Hamby III and Valley View Farm LLC. Mystik Dan first...

GI Kentucky Derby winner Mystik Dan (Goldencents) returned to the Churchill Downs work tab Sunday with a five-furlong breeze in 1:00 under jockey Brian Hernandez Jr., preparing for a likely start in the $1-million GI Stephen Foster Stakes June 28. Mystik Dan, who won the GII Blame Stakes on May 31, breezed at 7:15 a.m. EST. He began his move with a three-furlong split of :36.80 before galloping out six furlongs in 1:12, according to Churchill Downs clocker John Nichols. Owned by 4 G Racing, Lance Gasaway, Daniel Hamby and...

One thing is certain: there's never been a May like it. Godolphin threw down the graded gauntlet in May with such an unprecedented and historic achievement surely no one dreamed it could be possible. A Classic double in America for the operation turned into a Classic quadruple on both sides of the pond, all in the same weekend. While that feat stands tall among the month's graded races, the rest of May did its part to deliver additional drama, special moments, and superb racing. We take a look at trends...

Since his upset victory in the GI Kentucky Derby nearly 400 days ago, not a whole lot had gone right for Mystik Dan (Goldencents). Yes, he was a meritorious second to a loose-on-the-lead Seize the Grey (Arrogate) in the GI Preakness Stakes, but he subsequently failed to shine in the GI Belmont Stakes, the GI Malibu Stakes when racing first off a 6 1/2-month absence and the GI Pegasus World Cup, defeating a total of four horses. Trainer Ken McPeek has remained unflappable and unwavering in his belief that Mystik...

Four weeks removed from the running of the GI Kentucky Oaks and GI Kentucky Derby, Churchill Downs stages its second stacked weekend of the spring/summer meeting, with five Grade IIIs and one listed contest on 'Stephen Foster Preview' Day. The program serves as a steppingstone to Foster Day itself in a month's time. A field of 10 has been entered for the GIII Blame Stakes, the course-and-distance prep for the $1-million GI Stephen Foster Stakes, a 'Win and You're In' qualifier for the GI Breeders' Cup Classic. Gary and Mary...

GI Pennsylvania Derby winner Saudi Crown needed every last bit of yardage to hold off last year's GI Kentucky Derby winner Mystik Dan in the Lake Ouachita Stakes on Oaklawn's closing day. Fifth to kick off the year in the GI Pegasus World Cup Invitational in January, Saudi Crown put in a good effort but wound up second behind Banishing (Ghostzapper) in the GIII Oaklawn Mile March 29. Adding the extra 1/16th Saturday, the rail-drawn grey show right to the front as the 1-2 favorite but had to deal instantly...

LOUISVILLE, Ky. -- A year after recording a historic double with Thorpedo Anna (Fast Anna) in the GI Kentucky Oaks and Mystik Dan (Goldencents) in the GI Kentucky Derby, jockey Brian Hernandez, Jr. is coming back for more. The native of Lafayette, Louisiana will pilot the stretch-running GI Toyota Blue Grass Stakes winner Burnham Square (Liam's Map), a live contender for trainer Ian Wilkes in Saturday's Kentucky Derby, and the Kenny McPeek-trained GI Central Bank Ashland Stakes runner-up Take Charge Milady (Take Charge Indy) in Friday's Kentucky Oaks. The aforementioned...

It was on the first Saturday in May, 2024 that Mystik Dan (Goldencents) ran the race of his life to win the GI Kentucky Derby by a nose over Sierra Leone (Gun Runner). One year and four starts later, he hasn't won again, but will hope to end the losing streak on the anniversary of his greatest triumph. On Saturday, Mystik Dan will take on seven others in the Lake Ouachita S. at Oaklawn Park. It will be his first start since he was beaten 20 3/4 lengths in the...

A Review, By Bill Finley Whether it was 60 Minutes, the FX Network, HBO or some other programs, the television media has bludgeoned the horse racing game in recent years. The great parts of this game barely get mentioned while the programs concentrate on the ugly aspects, namely breakdowns and drugs. So it was reasonable to be worried that more of the same was on its way when Netflix announced it was producing a racing documentary called 'Race For The Crown.' But this show, which includes six episodes, isn't like...

Nothing wrong with planning ahead, and trainer Kenny McPeek is doing just so after the 2024 Horse of the Year came out of her GI Apple Blossom tour-de-force in fine shape, with the GI La Troienne Stakes at Churchill Downs next on the list for 'Rising Star' MGISW Thorpedo Anna (Fast Anna). After receiving a preliminary Beyer of 93 for the romp, McPeek is already eyeballing a seventh victory at the elite level for 'the grizzly bear' and the May 2 Kentucky Oaks undercard feature is circled on the calendar....