Saratoga

The Todd Pletcher-trained trio of Fierceness (City of Light), Antiquarian (Preservationist) and Mindframe (Constitution) all visited the track Friday morning in preparation for upcoming starts in the GI Belmont S. held at Saratoga. 'TDN Rising Star' and Champion 2-year-old Male Fierceness marked his first work since finishing off the board as the favorite in the GI Kentucky Derby earlier this month. Working in company with stablemate Mindframe, the pair covered a half-mile in :50 flat over the Oklahoma training track, galloping out in 1:02 2/5, 1:14 3/5 and 1:28 2/5....

Post time for the 10-race Belmont Stakes Day on June 6 will be 12:50 p.m. (EST), NYRA announced Tuesday. The four-day Belmont Stakes Racing Festival will be held at Saratoga from Thursday, June 6 through Sunday, June 9. Headlined by the June 8 GI Belmont S., the festival will include 24 stakes races with purses totaling $10.25 million. Four stakes will be held Thursday, June 6, led by the GII Belmont Gold Cup offering a 'Golden Ticket' for an automatic berth into the A$8.4-million G1 Lexus Melbourne Cup Nov.5 at...

Joseph O'Brien has laid out an adventure in America for juvenile Group 1-winner Al Riffa (Fr) (Wootton Bassett {GB}), the target being the GI Manhattan S. in New York on June 8, in a path eventually routing to the G1 Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe. After having his sophomore season disrupted by injury, Al Riffa resurfaced in the G1 Prix Ganay at ParisLongchamp and was only beaten by three-quarters of a length in a wild scramble on the wire. O'Brien admits his charge's size is something of a concern, and...

In terms of positive momentum, the best result in the aftermath of every year's GI Preakness S. is for the GI Kentucky Derby winner to triumph again in Baltimore, setting up a potential Triple Crown bid that infuses the sport with a three-week burst of buoyancy leading up to the GI Belmont S. In the majority of years that doesn't happen, which is why the elusive Triple Crown is so special. So the next-best result is an exciting race with a compelling storyline. Saturday's 149th Preakness didn't quite deliver on...

GI Kentucky Derby winner and GI Preakness S. runner up Mystik Dan (Goldencents) will ship to Saratoga but trainer Kenny McPeek has yet to make a decision on whether the colt will contest the third leg of the Triple Crown, the GI Belmont S. "It's impossible to be disappointed about being involved with these kind of races and be competitive," McPeek told assembled media at Pimlico Sunday morning. "One, they are hard races to get into, but to be competitive in them is a big deal. You just do your...

'TDN Rising Star' Sierra Leone (Gun Runner) returned to the worktab for the first time since his bang-up second to Mystik Dan (Goldencents) in the GI Kentucky Derby, breezing a half-mile in the company of his GIII Lambholm South Tampa Bay Derby-winning stablemate Domestic Product (Practical Joke) in :48.20 (3/31) over the Oklahoma training track at Saratoga. With light rain falling, the pair galloped out six furlongs in 1:14 4/5, according to trainer Chad Brown. "I thought the horse worked super," Brown said of Sierra Leone, who was once again...

The Todd Pletcher-trained Antiquarian (Preservationist), who won Saturday's GII Peter Pan S. at Belmont's The Big A meeting, will point towards the GI Belmont S. held at Saratoga, Pletcher confirmed Sunday. "He certainly acts like it," said Pletcher when asked about whether the added distance would benefit Antiquarian. "We didn't get him in until October, but he's always done everything very professional." Both Antiquarian and Peter Pan third-place runner Protective (Medaglia d'Oro) will ship to Saratoga sometime in the coming week where they will join last year's champion 2-year-old Fierceness...

A participation bonus program for owner and trainers at the four-day 2024 Belmont Stakes Racing Festival at Saratoga, which runs from June 6 through June 9, was announced by The New York Racing Association, Inc. Tuesday. Highlighted by the June 8 GI Belmont S June 8, the four-day Belmont Stakes Racing Festival will include 24 stakes races with purses totaling $10.25 million, the highest purse levels and number of stakes offered since the launch of the multi-day Festival in 2014. Owners will be eligible for a starter bonus for horses...

Good Lord Lorrie (Hard Spun) came back from a lengthy layoff to not only win his seasonal bow but also claim his first black-type in the Woodhaven S, When last seen, the chestnut broke his maiden in a turf dash at Saratoga last summer, defeating SP Smokey Smokey (Mendelssohn) and SP Ocean Mermaid (GB) (Kingman {GB}). Brushing with a rival after the jump, he was well-placed early in third and tracked the leading duo until late on the backstretch, where he took closer order. Called for a rally, he shifted...

Samantha Randazzo will no longer serve as The Jockey Club steward at New York Racing Association Inc. (NYRA) racetracks, the Jockey Club announced Thursday. The move was made with immediate effect. Current NYRA safety steward Juliet Kagno will fill the vacancy for the remainder of NYRA's Aqueduct spring meet and for the Belmont at the Big A spring/summer meet from May 2 to July 7. Former Jockey Club steward at NYRA Dr. Ted Hill will assume the steward position during the Belmont Stakes Racing Festival at Saratoga from June 6-9...

The start of the Ocala Breeders' Sales Company's June 2024 Two-Year-Olds in Training & Horses of Racing Age Sale will now start at 10:00 a.m. Wednesday, June 12 and run through Friday, June 14, the auction company said in a release Wednesday afternoon. The Under Tack Show will be Tuesday, June 4 and continue through Sunday, June 9 with each session beginning at 7:30 a.m. The June Sale was shifted forward one day to allow additional travel and inspection time for those attending Belmont Stakes weekend held at Saratoga this...

The New York State Budget for the 2025 fiscal year totaling $237 billion was finalized Apr. 20, according to the New York Thoroughbred Breeders Tuesday. Included among the 2025 State Budget includes updates pertaining to New York's horse racing and breeding industry: A state-backed loan for the redevelopment of a new and improved Belmont Park. Increased Breeder Awards offering up to 40% for New York Sired progeny and 20% for Non-NY-Sired progeny. Annual Fund Caps legislation that allows the Breeding Fund to payout program awards as advertised. Groundbreaking anti-slaughter legislation...