Steve Asmussen

Spendthrift's Goodall (f, 3, Yaupon--Moon Over Mag Bay, by Malibu Moon) made it two in a row Saturday, capturing Oaklawn Park's Purple Martin Stakes in authoritative fashion. Shipped in from Fair Grounds for the six-furlong test, Goodall was overshadowed in the wagering by 8 1/4-length track and trip debut winner River Wind (Lexitonian). The latter hopped at the break and settled in third, just to the inside of Goodall, who pressured the :21.53 and :44.70 pace set by You're in Heaven (Global Campaign) from the inside. Taken back off the...

4th-GP, $84k, Msw, 3yo, f, 1 1/16m, 2:19 p.m. ET. Star Actress (Justify), a full-sister to champion 2-year-old filly and GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies heroine Just F Y I, stretches to two turns for her second career start for Bill Mott. The George Krikorian homebred rallied from seventh to finish a close second on debut going seven furlongs at Gulfstream Feb. 8. She earned a 73 Beyer Speed Figure for the effort. The aforementioned Just F Y I brought $4.5 million from Katsumi Yoshida at the 2025 Fasig-Tipton November...

5th-FG, $54K, Msw, 3yo, f, 6f, 3:45 p.m. ET. SHE'S OUR TEN (Constitution) will carry the colors for Lee Searing and C R K when she is unveiled under trainer Peter Eurton at Fair Grounds on Friday. The dark bay initially went to Hidden Brook for $215,000 at the Fasig-Tipton October Yearling Sale before being purchased by C R K for $675,000 during OBS April last year. Out of MSP Quality Heat (Quality Road), the filly's lone siblings are an older half-brother by Nyquist and a younger half-sister by Not...

TAPTASTIC (c, 3, Tapit--Valadorna {GSW & GISP, $670,265}, by Curlin), facing older rivals as the 4-5 favorite in his debut, found running room late to graduate with ease Sunday at Oaklawn. The gray colt was under a hold while racing in tight quarters behind the leaders down the backstretch behind fractions of :23.84 and :48.57. Still waiting for racing room approaching the stretch, Taptastic finally found a narrow opening along the rail and strode to the lead before drawing away to graduate by 1 1/2 lengths over pacesetting Dawn at...

1st-AQU, 80K, Msw, 3yo, f, 6f, 1:10 p.m. FUSION (Into Mischief), the second foal out of MGISW and 'TDN Rising Star, presented by Hagyard' Separationofpowers, debuts Sunday in New York for the partnership of Qatar Racing and Mountmellick Farm and trainer Chad Brown. The mare has already produced a winner from her first foal, this filly's full-brother, Poulsen, who went Japan's way for $925,000 at OBS April in 2024. Separationofpowers sold to Hunter Valley Farm for $2.1-million at Fasig-Tipton's November Sale in 2019 before going back through that same ring...

6th-OP, 110K, Msw, 3yo, f, 1 1/16m, 4:04 p.m. QUITE BAFFLING (Gun Runner) impressed enough at OBS March last year, breezing a quarter in :21.1, to warrant a $750,000 final bid from Case Clay Thoroughbred Management on behalf of owner Wathnan Racing. Debuting around two turns, Quite Baffling is a daughter of the unraced Graydar mare Baffling, herself a half-sister to MGISW and successful sire Constitution (Tapit). Another half-sister, GSW Jacaranda (Congrats), has produced SW/GISP Be You (Curlin). The only first-time starter in the field is trained by Steve Asmussen...

Making his seasonal debut Saturday, the now 4-year-old Magnitude (Not This Time) looked every bit the classy individual he was as a 3-year-old, beating up on an overmatched field to take down the GIII Razorback Handicap at Oaklawn Park Saturday. Last year's winner of the GII Risen Star and the GII Clark prepped for bigger things to come Saturday as the 4-5 favorite but had to deal with a pesky second choice in Nu What's New (Munnings) who rocketed into the race off a 12 1/2-length performance facing local allowance...

When Nu What's New (Munnings) started his career last year a sixth-place finish in a maiden race at Churchill and followed that with a seventh-place run in a maiden on the turf, trainer James DiVito couldn't have been happy. He had paid $300,000 for the horse at the 2024 OBS April sale and Nu What's New just wasn't performing. Fast forward several months later and Nu What's New is among the most improved horses in racing, and has a shot to defeat the favorite in Saturday's Razorback Handicap at Oaklawn...

Amy Moore, who owns and operates South Gate Farm in Virginia's northern Shenandoah Valley, went to $300,000 on Tuesday afternoon to acquire Neom Beach (Omaha Beach) (hip 1) as the topper out of the Fasig-Tipton February Digital sale. The breeder said she is always looking to add to her broodmare band and went online to see what she could unearth. It worked out by the time the 'shot clock' wound down. "Fasig-Tipton has a great platform, especially for broodmares and broodmare prospects," said Moore. "You're not trying to evaluate whether...

He faced pressure right from the jump, but Knock It Off (Vekoma) found plenty in the stretch to claim 'TDN Rising Star, presented by Hagyard' honors in his second lifetime victory at Fair Grounds. Unveiled at this venue against local maidens Jan. 17, the Steve Asmussen trainee set similarly brisk fractions while facing pressure from a rival, and kicked on to win by 1 1/4 lengths in a final time of 1:09.47 for six panels. Trouble Calling (Dialed In), defeated in that race, returned Feb. 14 over this same track...

Ricardo Santana, Jr. rode the 800th winner of his career at Oaklawn Park on Thursday, when he guided Will Take It (Tapit) to a hard-fought victory in the $150,000 Fifth Season Stakes. He is the fourth rider in the history of the track to achieve the milestone. Others to cross that threshold are Pat Day (1,264 wins), Larry Snyder and Calvin Borel. The 33-year-old credits trainer Ron Moquett and his fellow jockeys Terry Thompson and Borel with steering him towards the Arkansas track in 2011. "Got lucky, you know?" Santana,...

When a flight carrying several American-based Saudi Cup contenders departs Florida Monday, Magnitude (Not This Time) will not be on it, trainer Steve Asmussen told DRF on Sunday. The 4-year-old Winchell Thoroughbreds runner, who won the GII Clark Stakes last November, spiked a fever Sunday and would not ship out of his Fair Grounds base as planned. Magnitude registered his most recent work at Fair Grounds, covering five furlongs in a bullet 1:00.40 (1/18) on Jan. 29. Winner of last season's GII Risen Star, the colt also annexed the Iowa...