Royal Ascot
Charlie Hills-trained Battaash (Ire) (Dark Angel {Ire}), a MGSW for Sheikh Hamdan, has returned to Hills's Faringdon Place in preparation for contesting Royal Ascot in June, Shadwell. "He's come back very well," Hills said. "He was a little more wintry than last year, but the last couple weeks, his coat has really been coming through. He's physically done well and I'm happy with him. He's had one swinging canter and we're just trying to keep him ticking over. He's not a big horse, so he doesn't take as much training...
The 2-year-old races scheduled for the first eight days of racing in Britain after an intended resumption on June 1 will be given priority to be divided. With the expectation of a high number of entries for those 14 races in the short run-up to Royal Ascot, the BHA has introduced a number of measures to cope with the level of demand. At fixtures where stabling capacity allows, it is possible that races may divide more than once, provided that the number of races at each meeting does not exceed...
For better or worse, we're all products of our environment. Better, plainly, in the case of Jimmy Jerkens and Wesley Ward--both raised by exemplary practitioners in a trade that this weekend sees each send a gifted sophomore dashing round a single turn. Each of these trainers, of course, has long stood on his own two feet. So we'll wait and see how much flexibility Jerkens may consider latent in Green Light Go (Hard Spun) after he returns in the Roar S. at Gulfstream Saturday. Sprinting, after all, could yet turn...
Monomoy Girl (Tapizar) isn't the only comebacking Breeders' Cup winner set to return at the highly anticipated upcoming Churchill Downs spring meet. 'TDN Rising Star' Sharing (Speightstown), a last out 13-1 upset victress of the GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf at Santa Anita Nov. 1, is being aimed at the $100,000 Tepin S. going a mile on the lawn beneath the Twin Spires May 23. The Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners and Gainesway Stable colorbearer, a $350,000 Fasig-Tipton Saratoga yearling graduate, has been gearing up at trainer Graham Motion's Fair Hill...
Over the last week Australasian studs have begun to release their stallion fees for 2020, including for a number of shuttle stallions from Europe. The skies, however, have been notably light on air traffic since the coronavirus pandemic sent many nations into lockdown, and that has included a vast reduction in flights carrying horses. The breeding side of the racing business has thankfully been able to carry on largely unaffected. Under strict sanitary rules, broodmares have still been able to be transported for covering, and there is some reassurance of...
In this continuing series, TDN's Senior Editor Steve Sherack catches up with the connections of promising maidens to keep on your radar. The highly regarded Golden Pal (Uncle Mo) set a blistering early pace and had to settle for second in one of the first baby races of the season on the Gulfstream Park dirt last week. What's the confidence level like now surrounding the 2-year-old colt after getting upset as the 1-2 favorite on debut? "It's funny, about half an hour ago, I was booking airline reservations to Heathrow...
A Guineas meeting in early June and the Derby and Oaks run in early July feature in the British Horseracing Authority's "best-case scenario" planning for a resumption of racing. With racing currently suspended indefinitely due to the coronavirus pandemic, the season's first four Classics have been delayed from their usual slots in the calendar. However, the sport's Resumption of Racing Group is working to draw up provisional plans for when racing is able to return, with "a phased approach" to racing behind closed doors anticipated in the immediate stages. In...
Ascot Racecourse revealed in a statement on Tuesday that it still hopes to proceed with Royal Ascot on its originally planned dates of June 16 to 20, but that the event will be closed to the public due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The statement from Ascot Racecourse Chief Executive Guy Henderson read, "For public health and safety reasons we have reached the difficult but unavoidable conclusion that Royal Ascot 2020 (June 16 to 20) will not be able to take place as an event open to the public. This will...
Ten Broeck Farm's Kimari (Munnings) may be in line for a return date at the Royal Ascot meeting this summer following her win in the Purple Martin S. at Oaklawn Saturday. Trainer Wesley Ward said the tentative plan for Kimari, who was second in last year's G2 Queen Mary S., is to return to England for the June 19 G1 Commonwealth Cup. "She's going to be just a pure sprinter, dirt or turf," Ward said after his first career Oaklawn victory Saturday. "We'll probably try to stick a little bit...
G2 Lowther winner Living In The Past (Ire) (Bungle Inthejungle {GB}) has the G1 Commonwealth Cup at Royal Ascot as her first main aim in 2020. Karl Burke's filly ended her first season at the Breeders' Cup, but she failed to get home over a mile, confirming her future lies over sprinting trips. Burke has identified a couple of possible starting points before the Clipper Logistics colourbearer heads to Ascot in June and said, "She didn't stay at the Breeders' Cup. It was a bit of a shot in the...
Simon Crisford's Jash (Ire) (Kodiac {GB}), runner-up in the G1 Middle Park S. last term, has knocked one of his joints which will restrict him until the latter part of the season. Successful in his 3-year-old bow, the Liste King Charles II S. at Newmarket on May 18, the Shadwell colourbearer ran sixth in the G1 Commonwealth Cup at Royal Ascot and has been missing from racecourse action since. "Jash has actually just knocked a joint and has had a hold-up," said owner Sheikh Hamdan Al Maktoum's racing manager, Angus...
Charles Briere's Fairway Consignment seems to have sailed a smooth upward trajectory since its establishment four years ago, hitting one target after the next. This June, a significant milestone was achieved when Fairway pinhook graduate Arizona (Ire) (No Nay Never) took Royal Ascot's G2 Coventry S. Fairway Partners purchased the dark bay for 65,000gns at the Tattersalls December Foal Sale and sold him to MV Magnier for €260,000 at last year's Arqana August sale. From the second crop of No Nay Never, Arizona is out of the placed English Channel...