TDN Rising Star

Spendthrift Farm's Tamara (Bolt d'Oro), winner of the GI Del Mar Debutante S. Sept. 9, returned to the Santa Anita work tab Wednesday for Hall of Fame trainer Richard Mandella. With fellow Hall of Famer Mike Smith in the irons, the homebred out of four-time champion Beholder went three furlongs in :36.0 seconds. "It was an easy three-eights," Smith said. "She went around there nice and happy." Tamara is expected to make her next start in the GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies at Santa Anita Nov. 3. Tamara earned TDN...

Twirling Good Time (f, 2, Twirling Candy--Celebrategoodtimes, by Harlan's Holiday), well-backed at 3-1 off a 12-1 morning-line quote while making her debut in a loaded maiden special weight at Churchill Downs Wednesday afternoon, graduated with honors to earn the 'TDN Rising Star' nod. Hung out wide in post 10, she wasn't off to the sharpest of beginnings but rushed up to force the issue from second through an opening quarter in :22.08. The Rigney Racing colorbearer took over with a flashy move while racing in hand beneath Rafael Bejarano approaching...

Chantilly's Prix de Toutevoie for unraced 2-year-old fillies on Wednesday had an intriguing look to it beforehand and it did not disappoint as the Wertheimers' Aventure (Ire) (Sea The Stars {Ire}--Balladeuse {Fr}, by Singspiel {Ire}) won impressively to earn TDN Rising Star status. Placed handy behind the early leaders by Stephane Pasquier, the Christophe Ferland-trained half-sister to the G1 Prix Vermeille winner Left Hand (GB) (Dubawi {Ire}) was committed passing the 300-metre marker and responded generously to put the contest to bed. Strong to the line, the 41-5 shot had...

Zedan Racing Stables' Taiba (Gun Runner), a three-time Grade I winner and 'TDN Rising Star', has been retired from racing and taken up residency at Spendthrift Farm, where he will begin his stud career in 2024 along with Zandon (Upstart) and Arabian Lion (Justify) as was announced Saturday. Taiba will stand for an introductory fee of $35,000 S&N and is available for inspection by appointment. "There are very few stallion prospects that tick all the boxes, to use the old cliché. Taiba is certainly one of those horses that possesses...

The juvenile fillies division is crystalizing into one of the most intriguing subplots of the Breeders' Cup as we approach the six-week mark to the championships. The skyrocketing 'TDN Rising Star' Tamara (Bolt d'Oro), unveiled barely a month ago, has emerged from the West Coast as the obvious topper of her division. But the brilliant, 2-for-2  daughter of four-time champion Beholder is likely to have a fight on her hands as the upcoming stakes engagements extend around two turns, thanks to a talented trio of fillies who have ascended in...

Grade I winners and 'TDN Rising Stars' Taiba (Gun Runner) and Arabian Lion (Justify) will join Zandon (Upstart) and stand at Spendthrift Farm for the 2024 breeding season. Spendthrift announced the news Saturday. "We are really excited to be bringing in three new stallion prospects of the caliber of Taiba, Arabian Lion and Zandon for the 2024 breeding season," said Spendthrift general manager Ned Toffey. "All three are superior physicals, and all three displayed immense talent in winning some of America's biggest 3-year-old races on dirt. Obviously, the Breeders' Cup...

V V's Dream (Mitole) already is showing an affinity for Churchill Downs. She picked up her second victory over the track in the GIII Pocahontas S., earning the first 10 points available on the Road to the Kentucky Oaks. Debuted sprinting as the favorite over the dirt May 19, the gray filly earned 'TDN Rising Star' status with a 6 1/2-length win from off the pace. Shipped to Ellis Park for a run in the Debutante S., she was a beaten favorite July 2 by just a half-length to undefeated...

Racing roads converge this Saturday. With a little over a month left before horses and their connections officially point to Santa Anita, the Breeders' Cup Challenge Series returns to Woodbine Racetrack. Featured are three 'Win and You're In' chances, including the GI Ricoh Woodbine Mile. Meanwhile, at Churchill Downs, the prep seasons officially open for 2-year-old colts and fillies, who are seeking to bank points for next May's 150th editions of the GI Kentucky Derby and GI Kentucky Oaks. There is much to get to with Belmont at the Big...

As the sport continues in its efforts to drastically reduced the number of fatalities that occur in races and in morning training, there's little doubt that StrideSAFE is going to play an important role in preventing breakdowns. StrideSAFE is a biometric sensor mechanism that slips into the saddle cloth to detect minute changes in a horses's gait at high speed. Those changes can, and often do, signal that a horse is in the early stages of having a problem that could lead to a fatal injury. If the StrideSAFE data...

Godolphin's €130,000 Arqana October acquisition Casapueblo (Ire) (Le Havre {Ire}--Uruguay {Ire}, by Authorized {Ire}) justified 7-5 favouritism by overcoming traffic issues and was elevated to the 'TDN Rising Star' ranks with a taking display in Wednesday's Prix de la Maniguette at Chantilly. The eventual winner lobbed along in third through steady early stages, but slipped to fourth when brake-checked and impeded approaching halfway in this debut. Full of run along the rail when encountering heavy traffic passing the quarter-mile marker, he found an open lane inside the final 300 metres...

The first foal out of 'TDN Rising Star' Guarana (Ghostzapper)--a colt by the ever-present Into Mischief--had interest from all corners of the Keeneland sales pavilion and was ultimately hammered down to Ron Winchell's Winchell Thoroughbreds for $1.4 million. Winner of the one-mile GI  Acorn S. and GI CCA Oaks going nine panels at three, Guarana picked up where she left off at four, winning the GI Madison S. over seven-eighths of a mile. Hill 'n' Dale consigned and ultimately purchased Guarana for $4.4 million with the Into Mischief colt in...

If the last 24 hours have given us anything to judge by, the future of racing on the West Coast seems to be in safe hands. Just one day after 'TDN Rising Star' Tamara (Bolt d'Oro) asserted herself atop her division in the GI FanDuel Racing Del Mar Debutante S., fellow 'Rising Star' Prince of Monaco (Speightstown) followed suit with a game performance to give trainer Bob Baffert his 17th win in the GI Runhappy Del Mar Futurity. The colt's victory Sunday came as absolutely no surprise. An eight-length debut...