TDN Rising Stars

VALENTINIAN (Into Mischief) marks his return following a third-place effort going 8 1/2 furlongs at Keeneland Apr. 9. A solid3 1/4-length victor in his career debut at Tampa Mar. 1, the $1.5 million Fasig-Tipton Saratoga Select yearling graduate is reunited with Hall of Famer John Velazquez, who was also in two last time out. Todd Pletcher trains the son of GI Spinaway heroine Rachel's Valentina (Bernardini), herself a daughter of Classic winner and champion Rachel Alexandra (Medaglia d'Oro). Also trying to bounce back from a last-out loss, Tiz Secure (Maximum...

7th-AQU, Alw (N1X)/OC ($100k), $82k, 3yo, 1m, 4:22 p.m. ET The official feature of Sunday's program at the Big A is the Memories of Silver Stakes one race hence, but this one-mile contest is liable to produce multiple runners for age-restricted stakes over the coming weeks and months. CORNUCOPIAN (Into Mischief) blew the doors off a field of Oaklawn maidens on debut Feb. 23, earning no-brainer 'TDN Rising Star' status, but found himself in a suicidal pace battle in the Mar. 29 GI Arkansas Derby and the $1.1-million KEESEP yearling...

With paddock buzz in his corner and looks to match, Big Truzz (Justify) did not disappoint his backers as he strolled home to confidently break his maiden at Keeneland and earn 'TDN Rising Star' honors in the process. Coming into this unveiling, the striking son of Triple Crown winner Justify had a bullet work at Palm Meadows Mar. 28 [four furlongs in :47 flat, fastest of 52] and a work locally Apr. 9 to his credit. That most recent breeze was another four panel work clocked in :49.80 (67/121), and...

Group winner Field Of Gold (Ire) anchors the Juddmonte Classic brigade, and he is pointing to a start in the G3 Craven Stakes at Newmarket, according to racing manager Barry Mahon. The G3 Solario Stakes-winning son of Kingman (GB) won second out at Newmarket last July. After his group tally in August, the John and Thady Gosden trainee went on to finish fourth in soft going in the G1 Prix Jean-Luc Lagardere in the autumn. He will be joined by Harry Charlton's fellow Kingman colt Cosmic Year (GB), who won...

Following on from Sean Cronin's feature published on Thursday, below are my pick of bright prospects from the armada of 'TDN Rising Stars' from 2024. Unsurprisingly, there were several from Ballydoyle among the total of headline-grabbing 2-year-olds breaking their maidens in style and I have chosen one in particular that I feel has the potential to be another of their "special" brigade. Twain (Ire) is a direct descendant of the great Urban Sea (Miswaki) and was one of a clutch by Wootton Bassett (GB) to take off last term. Not...

Though he won the 2022 GI Florida Derby with White Abarrio (Race Day), Saffie Joseph, Jr. isn't necessarily thought of as someone to fear on the roads to the GI Kentucky Oaks and GI Kentucky Derby. His bread and butter remains claimers and tough older horses like the now 5-year-old White Abbario and Skippylongstocking (Exaggerator), who won this year's GII Oaklawn Handicap and the GII Charles Town Classic Stakes. But that may be about to change. It's early yet and Todd Pletcher has yet to send his first string to...

With an aggregate 104 engaged at the beginning of the week, contestants for Sunday's two juvenile Group 1 contests at Saint-Cloud have been whittled down to 10 after declarations were confirmed Friday morning. The one-mile G1 Criterium International has six declared for a mouthwatering renewal which features 'TDN Rising Stars' Maranoa Charlie (Fr) (Wootton Bassett {GB}), the lone French-trained runner remaining, and supplementary entry Twain (Ire) (Wootton Bassett {GB}). The latter, who makes a swift return to action after debuting in style at Leopardstown last Saturday, is set to be...

After entering stable star Book'em Danno (Bucchero) in both Friday's Robert Hilton Memorial at Charles Town and Saturday's GI H. Allen Jerkens Memorial S., trainer Derek Ryan confirmed Wednesday that his New Jersey-bred gelding will go in the Saratoga race. Both races are restricted to three-year-olds, have purses of $500,000 and will be run at the distance of seven furlongs. "We're going to Saratoga," Ryan said from his base at Monmouth Park. "He got a good post (post 8). At Charles Town, he got a bad post (post 2) and...

Three Chimneys Farm's Touchy (Nyquist) would go heavily favored in any maiden race at the Spa, but connections continue to campaign the homebred colt boldly as he remains in stakes company for his second career appearance in Saturday's GII Saratoga Special Stakes. The bay colt was bet down to 85 cents on the dollar for his debut in the June 6 Tremont Stakes on the first day of the Belmont Stakes Racing Festival at this venue, and he made the majority of the running before giving way late to be...

1st-SAR, $100K, Msw, 2yo, f, 6f, 1:10 p.m. ET. FIRST CLASS LADY (Uncle Mo) debuts for Douglas Scharbauer and Stonestreet. Made a $900,000 purchase at last year's Keeneland September Sale, the Steve Asmussen trainee is the second registered foal, but first to the races for Stonestreet homebred and 'TDN Rising Star' Lady Pauline (Munnings). This dam, who is herself out of Puerto Rican champion D' Wildcat Speed (Forest Wildcat), is a half-sister to G1 King's Stand Stakes heroine Lady Aurelia (Scat Daddy)--the dam of SW American Rascal (Curlin)--both of whom...

An interval of 136 years between Apollo and Justify, followed by one of just five to Mage, tells us all we need to know about the way modern trainers can (and increasingly prefer to) prepare their Derby prospects. So these remain very early days for the freshmen sires, nowadays responsible for such a large portion of every juvenile crop. In this era of monster books, especially, even the rookie with most action to date has barely scratched the surface. At the moment that's Vekoma, who lies second in the freshman...

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y.--Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert, who has won the GI Travers Stakes three times, could be going for No. 4 in this year's Midsummer Derby Baffert, speaking from his summer base at Del Mar in California, said that one of his 3-year-olds--Parenting (Justify) or Muth (Good Magic) who were both tabbed as 'TDN Rising Stars'--could represent him in the $1.25 million race at Saratoga Race Course Aug. 24. "Potentially," he said. Parenting, owned by Wathnan Racing, was a $750,000 purchase at the 2023 Ocala 2-year-olds in training...