Santa Anita
Every week, the TDN publishes a roundup of key official rulings from the primary tracks within the four major racing jurisdictions of California, New York, Florida and Kentucky. Here's a primer on how each of these jurisdictions adjudicates different offenses, what they make public (or not) and where. With the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act (HISA) having gone into effect on July 1, the TDN will also post a roundup of the relevant HISA-related rulings from the same week. California Track: Santa Anita Date: 01/13/2023 Licensee: Tim Yakteen, trainer Penalty:...
It's been some four years since Santa Anita suffered through some of the worst times in its long and otherwise glorious history, a prolonged period where horses were breaking down and dying at an alarming rate. Aidan Butler, the chief executive officer at The Stronach Group 1/ST Racing and Gaming, the corporation that owns Santa Anita, is still haunted by that period, so much so that he says he has nightmares about horses breaking down. "It was horrific," Butler said. "Can you imagine having bloody helicopters from the news stations...
With additional rain forecast in the area, officials at Santa Anita have announced the cancellation of the live card originally programmed for Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, Monday, Jan. 16. As was announced when the track revealed that the Saturday, Jan. 14 program was also to be called off, racing will take place Friday, Jan. 20, originally a dark day due to the holiday racing. Santa Anita will remain open as planned for live racing this Sunday, Jan. 15, highlighted by the redrawn GIII La Canada S., which was transferred...
With a 100% probability of rain for this coming Saturday, officials at Santa Anita Park have announced the cancellation of the day's eight-race program. Following discussions with the California Thoroughbred Trainers, Thoroughbred Owners of California and the California Horse Racing Board, the races originally scheduled for Saturday will be offered as extras for Sunday, Monday (holiday racing) and Friday, Jan. 20. The GIII La Canada S. is currently listed as an extra for Sunday. Friday, Jan. 20 was meant to be a dark day given Monday's MLK-day program. "With the...
'TDN Rising Star' Justique (Justify), the morning-line favorite in Sunday's GIII Santa Ynez S., will not run after spiking a fever this week. "I'm going to scratch," trainer John Shirreffs said Saturday morning. "She had a little temperature." Justique will now await the GIII Las Virgenes S. going a mile Jan. 28, Shirreffs added. The expected scratch of Justique leaves a five-horse field in the Santa Ynez. "She only had a temperature for a day (on Thursday) and she seems pretty good, but I don't know how she'll run under...
Bob Baffert supplies two-thirds of the field for Sunday's GIII Sham S. at Santa Anita, but he is no slam dunk to walk away with a record-extending ninth renewal of the event, given the imposing presence of 'TDN Rising Star' Spun Intended (Hard Spun). The chestnut had a bit of buzz about him ahead of his Oct. 30 debut over 6 1/2 furlongs of this main track, and he nearly overcame a slow start and wide trip to run Fort Warren (Curlin) to a half-length, a performance that was also...
With 2023 marking his final year in the saddle, Frankie Dettori joined this week's TDN Writers' Room to discuss his fast start at the Santa Anita meet, where he has already made headlines aboard Country Grammer in the GII San Antonio S.
Riding full-time in the U.S. for the first time in his storied career, Frankie Dettori has brought his talents to Arcadia, California, where he has settled in as a regular in the Santa Anita jockey's colony. Dettori joined this week's TDN Writers' Room podcast presented by Keeneland to discuss his three wins on opening day, his expectations for the Santa Anita meet, his search for a contender for the GI Kentucky Derby and his plans to retire after this year's Breeders' Cup. Dettori was this week's Green Group Guest of...
When Amy Bunt and John Barton teamed up to present their first consignment as Baldwin Bloodstock at the 2021 Keeneland January Horses of All Ages Sale, Barton was still based in Southern California and making a living underwriting auto loans. Two years on, Barton has made the transition full-time to the Bluegrass and Baldwin Bloodstock is set to present six horses in its third January consignment. While earning a living in the industry might have been a new experience when he joined forces with Bunt two years ago, Barton was...
AMERICAN OAKS-GI, $303,000, Santa Anita, 12-26, 3yo, f, 1 1/4mT, 2:00.75, fm. RHEA MOON (IRE), 124, f, 3, by Starspangledbanner (Aus) 1st Dam: Callisto Star (Ire), by Fastnet Rock (Aus) 2nd Dam: Livia Galilei (Ire), by Galileo (Ire) 3rd Dam: Mohican Princess (GB), by Shirley Heights (GB) O-Rockingham Ranch & Talla Racing LLC; B-Kevin J Molloy (IRE); T-Philip D'Amato; J-Juan J Hernandez. For brilliant Group 1 winner RHEA MOON (Ire) (f, 3, by Starspangledbanner {Aus} out of Callisto Star {Ire}, by Fastnet Rock {Aus}) the sky is the limit in...
Mandy Lynn Delahoussaye, daughter of retired Hall of Fame jockey Eddie Delahoussaye and his wife Juanita, succumbed to a series of ailments this past Friday at age 47. Mandy, whose aunt, Rose Ann Delahoussaye, was her primary nanny and "Second Momma," was known to racegoers at Santa Anita, Hollywood Park and Del Mar, as she often accompanied her family prior to moving to Louisiana from Arcadia in 2014. "Mandy was an Angel sent from God to show us the world through her precious, innocent eyes," reads an obituary posted by...
Eclipse Award ballots were sent out electronically to voters on Dec. 12, with 19 days remaining on the calendar in 2022. That's how it's done. The ballot always lands in your in-box with a few weeks to go in the year. In a normal year, that's not a problem. Come mid-December there are only a handful of major races left on the calendar and most Eclipse races have been wrapped up by then. But that wasn't the case in 2022. The GI Runhappy Malibu S. at Santa Anita turned into...