Pioneerof the Nile

Peachtree Stable's Tawny Port (c, 3, Pioneerof the Nile--Livi Makenzie, by Macho Uno), second in the GIII Jeff Ruby Steaks S. just two weeks ago at Turfway, punched his ticket to the GI Kentucky Derby for trainer Brad Cox with a good-looking win in Saturday's GIII Stonestreet Lexington S. at Keeneland. The 5-1 shot found a good spot in an outside fifth rounding the clubhouse turn. Traveling nicely while three wide heading into the far turn, he rolled up on the outside of the top two in the stretch and...

Karma, football, a wild longshot in the Santa Anita Oaks, and one of the industry's oldest farms striving to break new ground in new areas. Let's also not forget the big Twin Spired shadow looming over us. Here's how the controlled chaos went down this week. Defying the odds...again Taiba will be up against all sorts of historical norms by forging ahead to the Kentucky Derby off just two lifetime starts. Since 1937 (the advent of detailed start statistics), only four horses have ever even attempted the Derby in career...

Godolphin's Matareya (Pioneerof the Nile), bet hard throughout, ran to the money in Sunday's GIII Beaumont S. at Keeneland, picking up her first stakes win with a daylight romp against six overmatched rivals. Debuting with a smooth 4 1/2-length wire-to-wire score while geared down late Aug. 20 at Ellis, the homebred disappointed a bit when flattening out to fifth in the GI Darley Alcibiades S. on this strip Oct. 8. Finishing second as the favorite in the Fern Creek S. Nov. 27 at Churchill, the bay was a distant runner-up...

The first reported foal by GSP Aurelius Maximus (Pioneerof the Nile-La Reina, by A.P. Indy) was born Feb. 10 at Hebert Farms in Maurice, LA. The dark bay filly was produced by the Pomeroy mare, Platinum Patty, owned by William Meaux. Platinum Patty, a $100,000 Texas 2-yr-old sale purchase, won a first asking during her juvenile season. The Aurelius Maximus filly is her second foal. "We are really excited about Aurelius Maximus's first foal. And, we are extremely excited about 'Aurelius'. He's been nothing but class in the breeding shed...

Spendthrift Farm's Thousand Words (Pioneerof the Nile), the undefeated Grade II winner at two and multiple stakes winner at three, sired his first reported foal on Tuesday when a filly was born at Bison Ridge Equine in Bartlesville, OK. Bred by Hidden Creek Farm, the chestnut filly is the first foal out of the Laoban mare Laoban Furen, whose dam is the stakes-winning and stakes-producing Malibu Moon mare Hung the Moon. Laoban Furen is a half-sister to Brill (Medaglia d'Oro), a million-dollar, sale-topping yearling and Santa Anita stakes winner. "She's...

3rd-Gulfstream, $53,000, Msw, 1-9, 3yo, f, 1m, 1:36.64, ft, 3 3/4 lengths. FAVOR (f, 3, Pioneerof the Nile--Fame and Fortune, by Unbridled's Song) was a well-beaten fourth as the 3-2 favorite when running into 'TDN Rising Star' Send for Me (Into Mischief) on career debut at Aqueduct Nov. 27. With that experience under her belt and getting more ground to work with here, the $500,000 Fasig-Tipton Selected Yearlings Showcase graduate was antsy at the start, but broke well enough to cross over in front of the pack and clear Story...

Sent off the 9-10 chalk to build on a three-length maiden victory at Los Alamitos when last seen Dec. 11, Mrs. John Magnier, Michael Tabor and Derrick Smith's Under the Stars (Pioneerof the Nile) was made to work for it, but managed to tough out a narrow victory in Saturday's GIII Santa Ynez S. at Santa Anita. Away alertly enough from the inside stall, the bay--bred on a similar cross to the one that produced Triple Crown winner American Pharoah--held her spot at the fence while being shaded three wide...

Sponsored by Alex Nichols Agency 6th-AQU, $80K, Msw, 2yo, f, 6 1/2f, 2:14 p.m. Hall of Famer Shug McGaughey unveils a pair of well-bred newcomers in this salty-looking test. Courtlandt Farm paid $1,025,000 for Adam's Angel (Into Mischief) as a Keeneland September yearling. Out of stakes-placed Mary Rita (Distorted Humor) and bred on the same cross as Practical Joke and Life Is Good, the bay's third dam is the McGaughey-trained Hall of Famer and blue hen Personal Ensign (Private Account). Gainesway Stable and Andrew Rosen, meanwhile, will be represented by...

Sponsored by Alex Nichols Agency RACHEL'S VALENTINA FILLY DEBUTS IN NY 4th-BEL, $90K, Msw, 2yo, f, 6f, 2:11 p.m. Todd Pletcher unveils the latest foal out of Grade I winner Rachel's Valentina (Bernardini) named AMBASSADOR KELLY (Pioneerof the Nile). The second and final foal out of Hall of Famer Rachel Alexandra, whose accomplishments speak for themselves, Rachel's Valentina followed up a 'TDN Rising Star'-worthy debut with a win in Saratoga's GI Spinaway S. She finished second in both the GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies and the GI Central Bank Ashland...

6th-Ellis, $51,000, Msw, 8-20, 2yo, f, 6 1/2f, 1:15.87, ft, 4 1/2 lengths. MATAREYA (f, 2, Pioneerof the Nile--Innovative Idea {GSW, $229,343}, by Bernardini), whose dam's signature win came in the 2016 GIII Groupie Doll S. here, was coupled in the wagering at 9-5 with Brendan Walsh-trained fellow Godolphin homebred  Dreamalot (Ghostzapper). Straight to the front, the bay doled out splits of :22.09 and :45.07 and turned for home in command. Dreamalot came with a fence run and briefly looked like she'd give Matareya a challenge, but the front-runner shut...

3rd-Ellis, $51,000, Msw, 8-8, 2yo, 6f, 1:10.87, ft, 5 1/2 lengths. BALADI (c, 2, Pioneerof the Nile--Dancing House {GSW & GISP, $450,825}, by Tapit), sent off at 11-1, was among a pack of horses chasing the early pacesetter down the backstretch before rushing up to take the lead after a quarter in :23.55. He began inching away without being asked after a half in :46.75 and skipped clear down the lane before finishing geared down and 5 1/2 lengths in front. Let My People Go (Pioneerof the Nile) was second....

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 Saturday running at Niigata Racecourse: 3rd-NII, ¥9,680,000 ($88k), Maiden, 3yo, 1800m MOZU LOTUS LAND (c, 3, Tapit--Sacred Feather, by Carson City), a $425K Keeneland September acquisition by the owner of MG1SW and now Japanese sire Mozu Ascot (Frankel {GB}), was a debut sixth...