Saratoga Race Course

John Velazquez, the winningest jockey in the history of Saratoga Race Course, will serve a three-day suspension Aug. 28-30 stemming from the disqualification of his mount from a win in the tenth race there Aug. 16. Velazquez waived his right to an appeal, according to an Aug. 20 stewards' ruling posted on the New York State Gaming Commission (NYSGC) website. The race in which Velazquez got disqualified was an $80,000 optional claiming/allowance turf route. He was aboard the 4.9-1 fourth choice in the betting, Vino Rouge (Vino Rosso), a filly...

An $800 NHC & BCBC Handicapping contest, with cash prizes also awarded to the top 10 finishers, will be available online and onsite at Monmouth Park on Saturday, Aug. 24, the track said in Wednesday release. TVG, 4NJBETS and Xpressbet are the available online options for contest players. There is a non-refundable entry fee of $400 and a tournament bankroll of $400 for races at Monmouth Park and Saratoga, with contestants required to wager on a minimum of five of the local races of at least $80 each. For TVG...

After entering stable star Book'em Danno (Bucchero) in both Friday's Robert Hilton Memorial at Charles Town and Saturday's GI H. Allen Jerkens Memorial S., trainer Derek Ryan confirmed Wednesday that his New Jersey-bred gelding will go in the Saratoga race. Both races are restricted to three-year-olds, have purses of $500,000 and will be run at the distance of seven furlongs. "We're going to Saratoga," Ryan said from his base at Monmouth Park. "He got a good post (post 8). At Charles Town, he got a bad post (post 2) and...

Although she made history last year with a horse named Arcangelo (Arrogate), trainer Jena Antonucci hardly ever watches replays of the 2023 GI Belmont Stakes or GI Travers Stakes. She'll tell you why. She has a love for the horses, a love for competition, and, oh, she was good enough to seriously consider a career as a professional golfer. Here it is, the TDN's Saratoga Conversation. TDN: You were the master of ceremonies at the annual trivia contest at the Racing Museum last month. Asked all the questions. One of...

Joel Politi's Kimchi Cat, entered for main track only, made the most of her stakes debut when the Bolton Landing Stakes came off the turf Sunday at Saratoga. The dark bay filly sat just off of pacesetting favorite Viggiedal through an opening quarter in :22.03. She rolled up four wide into the lane and took the lead from the favorite with a furlong to run before sailing clear to the wire. Icona Mama overtook Viggiedal late for second. "Today, [trainer] Tom [Amoss] said there was a lot of speed, so...

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y.--A good 15 minutes after Briland (McKinzie) won the first race Sunday by a neck at Saratoga Race Course, Devon Bradley was unexpectedly pulled into the interview in the winner's enclosure. Well-respected bloodstock agent and architect of partnerships, Peter Bradley had just noted that his daughter was the driving force behind the purchase of the filly out of the Speightstown mare Bay Harbor at OBS April. When Peter said--"This was her favorite horse in the sale, so what was I to say?"--Devon was summoned from another conversation to...

1st-SAR, $100K, Msw, 2yo, f, 6f, 1:10 p.m. ET. BRILAND (McKinzie), the second to race after SW Miuccia (Mitole), will have her turn for trainer Chad Brown and the ownership group of Gainesway, Bradley Thoroughbreds, Cambron Equine and Alan Northcutt. Featured in TDN's Summer Breezes segment, the $675,000 buy at OBS April was initially purchased for $200,000 by Scoot Stables during Keeneland September. Briland's dam, Bay Harbor (Speightstown), is herself out of GSW Our Khrysty (Newfoundland). This second dam--a half-sister to GI Whitney Handicap hero Bullsbay (Tiznow)--also produced GISW Grace...

7th-DMR, $75K, Msw, 2yo, 5 1/2f, 8:02 p.m. ET. Conditioned by John Sadler, Don Alberto homebred UNIQUE POWER (Into Mischief) debuts for his dam--champion older dirt female Unique Bella (Tapit)--who was acquired by the stable for $400,000 at the 2015 Keeneland September Sale. Her own dam is GI Breeders' Cup Ladies' Classic heroine Unrivaled Belle (Unbridled's Song). Mandy Pope's Whisper Hill Farm took this mare home for $3.8 million at the 2016 Keeneland November Sale. Unrivaled Belle's half-sister, Lemon Belle (Lemon Drop Kid), is responsible for GIII Gotham Stakes champ...

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y.--A long-term plan and a recent decision brought California-based, Indiana-prepped Chatalas (Gun Runner) the rest of the way across the continent to run in the GI $600,000 Alabama Stakes at Saratoga Race Course. Feeling that she is better on dirt, her owners and trainer Mark Glatt decided last winter to avoid grass racing and point her to 3-year-old filly stakes in the Midwest and East. In her first start in seven months, Chatalas won the GIII Indiana Oaks by a head on July 6. Four weeks later, when...

The Thoroughbred Education and Research Foundation (TERF) has awarded $10,000 to the Belmont Childcare Association, Inc. (BCCA) for their early childhood education program, the organization said in a release Thursday. The mission of the BCCA is to provide a safe, supportive and academically inspiring environment for the children of parents working in the Thoroughbred racing backstretch area located at NYRA's three tracks. BCCA has received funds from TERF over the last five years and will once again use the grant to prepare students for elementary school as they develop physically,...

It took trainer Phil Bauer and his owner Richard Rigney a little while to figure the racing game out. From the time Bauer went to work for Rigney in 2013 through 2021, the stable had never had more than 17 wins in a year or earnings in excess of $1,724,016. But the last three years have seen the stable flourish into a win machine and one that can compete at the highest levels of the sport. From 2022 to present, Bauer has had 70 winners from 316 starters for a...

Hall of Fame jockey Javier Castellano and Classic-winning trainer Jena Antonucci will be signing posters of 2023 Eclipse Award winner Arcangelo (Arrogate) at Saratoga Race Course Saturday at 11 a.m. Proceeds will benefit the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame. Renowned artist Greg Montgomery has produced exclusive limited-edition poster prints featuring Arcangelo, Castellano, and Antonucci for the Museum. Each autographed poster is $20. Any additional items fans would like signed will also be $20 per autograph. The Museum's open-air satellite facility is located behind the racetrack's grandstand just...