Saratoga

David O'Rourke, the President and CEO of NYRA, joined this week's TDN Writers' Room ahead of the opening week at Saratoga.

Some of the most highly anticipated races during the summer racing season are the 'baby' races during the boutique meetings at Saratoga and Del Mar and at Ellis Park, which attract its fair share of high-priced offspring from a variety of top national outfits. Summer Breezes highlights debuting 2-year-olds at those meetings that have been sourced at the breeze-up sales earlier in the year, with links to their under-tack previews. To follow are the horses entered for Thursday at Saratoga: Thursday, July 11, 2024 Saratoga 6, $80k, 2yo, f, (R),...

The 12th edition of the Fasig-Tipton July Selected Horses of Racing Age Sale kicks off Monday with a single session consisting of 117 cataloged entries set to go under the hammer beginning at 3 p.m at Newtown Paddocks in Lexington, KY. And despite several impactful withdrawals over the last week, the sale was reinforced with the addition of multiple quality supplements as late as Friday and looks to provide the perfect springboard into summer racing. In fact, Fasig-Tipton President Boyd Browning needed just two words to describe its appeal: "Instant...

It was second verse same as the first for Mullikin (Violence) as he powered home to win a quick edition of the GII John A. Nerud Stakes. Untouchable in 2024, he started his season Apr. 26 at Keeneland when beating a first-level allowance group by over five lengths, posting a lifetime best Beyer figure of 98 in the process. He was awarded a similar number for his effort last out June 8 at Churchill Downs, where he soundly defeated a field of optional claimers by 3 1/4 lengths. On the...

The National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame will present special exhibitions celebrating the legacies of Hall of Fame members Paul Mellon and Ruffian this summer when they open on Thursday, July 11, the repository said in a release Wednesday morning. "We are excited to honor and share the legacies of these two outstanding Hall of Fame members," said curator Jessica Cloer. "Paul Mellon and Ruffian were both tremendously impactful. These exhibits are a tribute to all they achieved and their lasting influence on the sport." A third special...

The Jockey Club Safety Net Foundation will host its annual Fashionable Fillies Luncheon honoring their former Executive Director, the late Nancy Kelly who, over the course of her 32-year career, helped thousands of individuals in need in addition to organizing fundraising events and creating the inaugural Fashionable Fillies Luncheon. The event will be held in Saratoga Springs, N.Y., at Saratoga National Golf Club Monday, August 5. The theme of this year's luncheon is 'All Things Nancy!'. The event will feature shopping for handbags from Kent Stetson and Lisi Lerch, shoes...

A pair of noteworthy names were spotted on the work tab over the weekend at Saratoga, GISW Sierra Leone (Gun Runner) on Sunday and MGISW Thorpedo Anna (Fast Anna) on Saturday, both cruising over the Oklahoma dirt training track for the first time since their respective efforts during the Belmont at Saratoga festival. From the Chad Brown barn, the 'TDN Rising Star' put in a solo half-mile move with blinkers on in :49.66 (6/30) and galloped out into the backstretch while being encouraged by the exercise rider. When asked, Brown...

Tickets are now on sale as the Horse Racing Women's Summit returns to Saratoga Springs, New York, for an educational networking event to be held Tuesday, July 23 at the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame, the volunteer organization said in release on Friday. The proceedings include a keynote conversation with Lisa Lazarus, CEO of the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority (HISA), hosted by NBC Sports's Donna Barton Brothers. Following the keynote, two panels focused on horse safety and aftercare are scheduled. Finally, Jane Lyon, owner of Summer...

Jockey agent Kiaran McLaughlin will add jockey John Velazquez to his roster, which already includes Luis Saez, McLaughlin announced Friday on X. . "It came about because Ron (Anderson) has three jockeys and he was only allowed two, so he reached out to me a few days ago and said would you be interested in Johnny," said McLaughlin, reached by the TDN Friday morning. "He said he thought we'd be a good match. After I talked to Luis, I said I said I'd be honored to take him." Saez has...

   In this series, the TDN takes a look at notable successes of European-based sires in North America. This week's column is highlighted by the victory of Measured Time in the Manhattan S. on Saturday.   Blue Is The Colour In Manhattan Godolphin homebred Measured Time (GB) (Frankel {GB}) doubled his top-drawer tally in the GI Manhattan S. during the Belmont S. Festival at Saratoga (video). Trained by Charlie Appleby, the 4-year-old colt has a record of three wins from four starts in Britain with a second at listed level...

Highlighted by a 17-1 upset victory by Dornoch (Good Magic) in the $2-million GI Belmont S., the four-day Belmont Stakes Racing Festival drew better than 120,000 racing fans to Saratoga for the unprecedented event, approximately double the attendance for the two most recent runnings at Belmont Park. Thursday's opening day of the Festival featured a pair of $150,000 stakes for the 2-year-old males and females and the first of the weekend's 14 graded stakes, the GII Belmont Gold Cup. In front of an announced crowd of 22,027, renowned Australian commentator...

SARATOGA, NY-Sunday morning brought a stark contrast to the previous day, with the skies opening up for several hours over the region. Like many others, the Todd Pletcher squad went out for some light work given the challenging conditions, creating a far more sedate overall atmosphere as opposed to the frenetic activity raging through Saratoga only a day earlier. In Saturday's GI Belmont S., Pletcher saddled a trio of runners in the Triple Crown's final jewel, with TDN Rising Star Mindframe (Constitution) just falling short by a half-length to winner...