Santa Anita
GI Santa Anita Derby hero Rock Your World (Candy Ride {Arg}) looks to take his turf record to three-for-three as he returns to the grass for the first time since February in Sunday's GII Twilight Derby at Santa Anita. Opening his account with a pair of turf victories, including the Pasadena S. Feb. 27, the $650,000 KEESEP buy wired the Santa Anita Derby Apr. 3, but could not reproduce that effort in Louisville, finishing 17th in the GI Kentucky Derby May 1. A well-beaten in the GI Belmont S. June...
It an East versus West match-up in the GIII Autumn Miss S. at Santa Anita Saturday when Spanish Loveaffair (Karakontie {Jpn}) meets Madone (Vancouver {Aus}). Runner-up in the GIII Regret S. at Churchill May 29, Spanish Loveaffair faded to eighth in the July 10 GI Belmont Oaks Invitational S. and was fourth in Saratoga's GII Lake Placid S. over a yielding course Aug. 21. She enters off a win in the Pebbles S. at Belmont Sept. 19. Winner of the GIII Senorita S. earlier this year, Madone captured the GII...
In the news plenty recently for cracking down on clenbuterol violations with out-of-competition testing, suspending a jockey over a suspected betting coup and overseeing the successful installation of a third, synthetic surface at Gulfsteam Park, 1/ST Racing's Chief Operations Officer Aidan Butler is making a name for himself in the industry as a proactive, no-nonsense executive. Wednesday, he joined the TDN Writers' Room presented by Keeneland as the Green Group Guest of the Week to discuss all of those recent stories, the improved safety record at Santa Anita, long-term plans...
1/ST Racing COO Aidan Butler joins this week's TDN Writers' Room to discuss Gulfstream's new Tapeta track and the recent Clenbuterol crackdown, plus track safety at Santa Anita.
Equibase Premium Past Performances for all racing cards at Santa Anita Park, Gulfstream Park, Laurel Park and Golden Gate Fields will be available through the end of the year for free effective immediately, 1/ST Racing announced Monday. The fan-friendly initiative provides the ability to unlock the data for all 1/ST races without a signup or membership fee. The free Equibase Premium Past Performances will be available online at XBTV.com. "This is an important innovation for Thoroughbred racing since most sports make their statistical information available for free," said Aidan Butler,...
Baoma Corp's Eda (Munnings) made light work of four fellow juvenile fillies to post her first stakes success in facile fashion in Sunday's Anoakia S. at Santa Anita. Away without incident from the inside stall, the bay was beaten for speed, then angled away from the fence to stalk the pace outside of Shes Bout a Mover (Mastery) through a quarter in :21.90 and a half in :44.98. Pressing past the front-runner with a minimum of fuss at the head of the lane, Eda was under very little urging from...
Santa Anita Park's inaugural "Folds of Honor" Charity Poker Tournament, held Saturday night following the races in the track's Player's Lounge, raised more than $50,000 to help provide scholarships to spouses and children of disabled or fallen American military veterans. A large contingent of Santa Anita fans, jockeys, agents, owners, trainers, employees and other racing industry personalities participated to make the event a success. "We were very gratified with the turnout and the support we were able to provide to Folds of Honor," said Santa Anita Senior Vice President and...
Crunched into 2-5 favoritism to build on a debut second at Los Alamitos at the end of June, Messier (Empire Maker) made a bold run to the front fully three furlongs from home and coasted in by 6 1/2 lengths to become a new 'TDN Rising Star' in Friday's fourth race from Santa Anita. Away only fairly beneath Flavien Prat, the $470,000 Fasig-Tipton Selected Yearling Showcase graduate worked his way up into a chasing second as the debuting Godsend (Midshipman) went a strong gallop up ahead of him. Prat allowed...
Zedan Racing Stables' Medina Spirit (Protonico) drilled six furlongs in 1:13 (2/7) on a foggy Friday morning at Santa Anita as he prepares for his next start in the $6-million GI Longines Breeders' Cup Classic at Del Mar Nov. 6. The Florida-bred was put through his paces by former jockey Juan Ochoa. "I got :59 and four," said bloodstock agent Gary Young, who recommended the purchase of Medina Spirit to owner Amr Zedan. "You can see fine now [8:15 a.m.], but you couldn't see him when he worked. It was...
8th-Santa Anita, $63,000, Msw, 10-15, 2yo, 1m, 1:37.55, ft, 1/2 length. BAROSSA (c, 2, Into Mischief--Bouquet Booth {GSW, $527,279}, by Flower Alley) was sent off the lukewarm 14-5 favorite in a strong-looking two-turn maiden Friday at Santa Anita got just the better of a race-long tussle with Durante (Distorted Humor) to graduate at third asking. The latter, drawn the inside for his first try at a distance of ground, was aggressively ridden and led into the first turn, but was joined immediately to his outside by Barossa and the two...
2nd-SAX, $61K, Msw, 3yo, 7f, 4:31 p.m. Kaleem Shah's THALES (Quality Road) gets his start for Simon Callaghan Friday. The half to SW and MGISP Standard Deviation (Curlin), who sold for $240,000 at the Fasig-Tipton October sale, realized a $1.25 million final bid following a :20.3 quarter at the OBS Spring sale last season. The ridgling was the highest-priced colt and the second highest priced offspring by the Lane's End stallion last term. Pegram, Watson & Weitman's Essential Wager (Honor Code) also represents a sale's coup for his sire. One...
In this continuing series, TDN's Senior Editor Steve Sherack catches up with the connections of promising maidens to keep on your radar. After finishing a well-beaten third behind potential GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile favorite Corniche (Quality Road) sprinting on debut at Del Mar Sept. 4 (video), the promising War At Sea (c, 2, War Front--Serene Melody, by Street Cry {Ire}) stretches to two turns at Santa Anita Friday. Off at 24-1 in his unveiling for the patient Ron Ellis barn, War At Sea chased from an inside fifth as Corniche...