Taj Mahal

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. - It was a 'Man' versus boys in the GI Woody Stephens S. at Saratoga Saturday. C R K Stable's Englishman (Maxfield), a well-beaten second behind Crude Velocity (Beau Liam) in the battle of unbeaten 'TDN Rising Stars, presented by Hagyard' in the GII Pat Day Mile S. on Kentucky Derby day, turned the tables with authority on the cutback to seven furlongs, equaling Darby Creek Road's track record of 1:20.40 set in 1978. "It doesn't surprise me," winning trainer Cherie DeVaux said. "This horse is so...

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. - Trainer Michael McCarthy would like nothing more than to have the wildly popular Journalism (Curlin) return to Saratoga Race Course this summer. "It would be awfully nice if he could," McCarthy said just outside Journalism's stall at the Oklahoma Training Track Thursday morning. "Saratoga, as I keep on saying, is a magical place for horses and people alike. We would be more than happy to bring him back here if the opportunity presented itself." First things first. Journalism, owned by Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners, Bridlewood Farm, Don...

'TDN Rising Star' presented by Hagyard Golden Tempo (Curlin) was not the only marquee name on the worktab over the last 48 hours, as horses prepping for next week's Belmont Stakes Racing Festival--as well as some household names not heading to upstate New York--turned in breezes at racetracks from coast-to-coast, from Saratoga, Laurel and Fair Hill to Santa Anita. To follow are works in alphabetical order at the various venues with parenthetical mention of intended targets or races to which the horses have been nominated. Saratoga (Oklahoma unless othewise indicated)...

LAUREL, MD--Napoleon Bonaparte was reputed as saying "Impossible is a word to be found only in the dictionary of fools." Never was a phrase more appropriate aprospos than the lead up to Saturday's GI Preakness Stakes at Laurel Park. Given the absence of both the Kentucky Derby winner and runner-up, it seemed like everyone and his brother emerged on the scene to take a shot at the second leg in the Triple Crown. While several contenders may have seemed like they may have been stretching to get the distance or...

LAUREL, MD--With the first two finishers in this season's Kentucky Derby opting to bypass the Preakness Stakes, something that hasn't happened in a quarter of a century, a full field of 14 readies to earn Classic glory in Saturday's second jewel of the Triple Crown, which will be staged at Laurel Park for the first, and quite likely, the only time. Despite the absence of what looks like the divisional leaders at this point, the 151 renewal of the Preakness Stakes offers a competitive group of 3-year-olds. One of this...

TDN's Chief Correspondent Bill Finley is joined by Senior Contributing Editor Alan Carasso and Senior Racing Editor Steve Sherack to handicap Saturday's GI Preakness Stakes at Laurel Park. FINLEY: Honestly, it's hard to like anyone in a race that looks like it will be a mad scramble and is made up of so many horses who really aren't Triple Crown caliber. The right move is probably to go for a longshot and just hope to get lucky. The pick here will be Pretty Boy Miah (Beau Liam), who is 15-1...

The field for the GI Preakness Stakes, ranked in "likeliest winner" order (program number after each horse's name). 1) INCREDIBOLT #12 (c, Bolt d'Oro--Sapphire Spitfire, by Awesome Again). O-Pin Oak Stud LLC; B-Deann Baer & Greg Baer DVM (KY); T-Riley Mott. Sales history: $75,000 Ylg '24 KEESEP. Lifetime record: GSW, 6-3-0-0, $498,681. Last start: 6th May 2 GI Kentucky Derby. In the GI Kentucky Derby, Incredibolt was off a beat slow, got pinched down toward the inside, then had the reins shaken at him to hustle up into a spot...

TIMONIUM, MD - As Taj Mahal (Nyquist) goes postward in the GI Preakness Stakes at Laurel Saturday, his 2-year-old full-sister (hip 402) will be about an hour northwards showing to prospective buyers ahead of the Fasig-Tipton Midlantic May sale in Timonium. While the filly is in line for a major update should her brother win the second leg of the Triple Crown, she can more than hold her own, according Top Line Sales' Jimbo Gladwell, who consigns her on behalf of breeder Vegso Racing Stable. "She's a typical Nyquist," Gladwell...

Drawn into post nine, the honor of being the morning line favorite for Preakness 151 went to GIII Gotham Stakes hero Iron Honor (Nyquist) as a competitive, wide-open cast came together Monday evening during the post-position draw. A full field of 14 contenders, the largest since 2011 when Shackleford won, are set to go for this year's running of the middle jewel of the Triple Crown contested at Laurel Park. The race was moved as renovations continue at Pimlico downstate. Iron Honor will carry the colors of St. Elias Stable,...

Undefeated Taj Mahal (Nyquist) has been all the rage in the lead up to the GI Preakness Stakes, and his move Saturday morning will have done nothing to cool those feelings as the Brittany Russell trainee posted his fourth consecutive bullet move. Sent out to work five furlongs with exercise rider Alex Beitia aboard, he went in company with stakes winner Regalo (Maximus Mischief) early in the morning at 6:15am. Taj Mahal cruised through splits of :12 1/5, :24 1/5, :36 2/5, and :48 flat while leading his workmate throughout....

While a decision on Golden Tempo (Curlin)'s participation in the May 16 GI Preakness Stakes at Laurel Park is still to be determined, Vinnie Viola's St. Elias Stable, co-owner of the GI Kentucky Derby winner, has another colt waiting in the wings for the second leg of the Triple Crown in GIII Gotham Stakes winner Iron Honor (Nyquist). Viola co-owns the 3-year-old, most recently seventh in the GII Wood Memorial, in partnership with William Lawrence and Glassman Racing. "He's a nice, nice horse," St. Elias racing and bloodstock manager Monique...

Taj Mahal (Nyquist) led them every step of the way while making his two-turn debut to romp in the $150,000 Federico Tesio S. at Laurel Park, a "Win and You're In" qualifier for the GI Preakness Stakes. The 6-5 favorite cleared the field of 10 from his outside draw and it was pretty much over from there. He was well clear through fractions of :23.93 and :47.80. The advantage shrunk to about a length on the far turn, but he had another gear. The $525,000 Keeneland September yearling opened up...