thoroughbreds

It has been two months since the Horseracing Integrity and Welfare Unit (HIWU) stopped sending samples to the University of Kentucky's Equine Analytical Chemistry Laboratory due to "concerns with the performance" of the facility. Prior to that, the laboratory had been one of six drug testing facilities used under The Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority's (HISA) drug testing program. Since then, several key developments have unfurled amid limited public explanations. HISA and HIWU announced that they have opened an investigation into the UK Laboratory's performance, alongside the university's own investigation...

The owner of a pair of Grade I wins on turf in North America last year, Fev Rover (Ire) (Gutaifan {Ire}) took home Horse of the Year honors at Thursday evening's 49th Annual Sovereign Awards ceremony hosted by the Jockey Club of Canada. Fev Rover, who won the GI Beverly D. S. at Colonial Downs and the GI E.P. Taylor S. at Woodbine, is trained by Mark Casse. The Canadian and U.S. Hall of Famer once again collected hardware as he was awarded his 13th consecutive Sovereign and 16th overall...

5th-Keeneland, $97,558, Msw, 4-18, 3yo, f, 1 1/16mT, 1:41.50, fm, 1 length. WAVES OF MISCHIEF (f, 3, Into Mischief--Pearl River, by Quality Road), off as the 5-2 choice for this debut here, settled along the rail in the third position while the pace was made by Beyond Lucky (Nyquist). As the field began to bear down on the leader around the far turn, the filly--bred in part by Marty Wygod who passed away last week at the age of 84--launched her bid by tipping to the two path at the...

2nd-Keeneland, $76,880, Msw, 4-18, 2yo, f, 4 1/2f, :53.48, ft, 3 3/4 lengths. ULTIMA GRACE (f, 2, American Pharoah--Ultima D {SW, $241,936}, by Scat Daddy) debuted as the 1-9 choice here, but she was not alone upon exiting the gate as she was joined by Haven't a Red Cent (Goldencents). The pair locked horns around the far turn, but the Wesley Ward trainee began to pull away entering the stretch and she won in geared down fashion by 3 3/4 lengths over Kiss Cam (Mastery). A $300,000 purchase by For...

The Whitney Viewing Stand at Saratoga's Oklahoma Training Track will open to the public beginning Thursday, Apr. 25, the New York Racing Association said in a release Wednesday afternoon. Prior to the start of the summer meet, the site will be open free of charge from Thursday through Sunday from 8 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. ET. The Oklahoma Training Track is accessible to pedestrians through Gate 21 on East Avenue. Parking is not currently available within the Oklahoma grounds. The opening of the Whitney Viewing Stand also coincides with the...

When it comes to getting horses to the GI Kentucky Derby few have done more with less. Dennis Albaugh's Albaugh Family Stable doesn't have nearly the numbers of a Mike Repole or the partnership of SF Racing, Starlight Racing, and Madaket Stables, but he keeps coming up with Derby starters. This year he has Catching Freedom (Constitution), the winner of the GII Louisiana Derby, who will be his tenth starter under the Twin Spires over the last seven years. The goal this time around is not to simply make into...

Edited Press Release FanDuel TV, the New York Racing Association, Keeneland and Santa Anita will team up with Hall of Fame jockeys along with some of the top active riders in the country and other prominent racing personalities on Sunday, Apr. 21 for the sixth annual telethon presented by Lane's End to raise money for the Permanently Disabled Jockeys Fund (PDJF). The event will be broadcast on both FanDuel TV and America's Day at the Races on the Fox Sports family of networks as well as streamed on TVG.com. Fans...

His contentious prohibition from Churchill penalizes many others besides Bob Baffert and his loyal patrons. A shot at the GI Kentucky Derby, once-in-a-lifetime for most, is also being denied to everyone else with a stake in his horses' development, from those on duty at the foaling shed to the pre-trainer to the feed company. And, of course, there's nothing like a Derby winner to market a stallion. As things have turned out, a setback means that Nyquist would have lost the services of Nysos even had he moved to another...

Godolphin homebred Encino (Nyquist) took to dirt with aplomb, delivering a 3/4-length, wire-to-wire victory over favored The Wine Steward (Vino Rosso) in Saturday's GIII Stonestreet Lexington S. at Keeneland. With the win, good for 20 points on the Road to the Kentucky Derby, Encino is currently ranked 21st on the leaderboard with 40 points. "Ultimately (whether he starts in the Kentucky Derby) will be up to the Godolphin team--Dan Pride, Michael Banahan, Sheikh Mohammed--and if it's something they want to do, we'll prepare him," winning trainer Brad Cox said. "We'll...

Ready for Shirl (More Than Ready), a daughter of GI Breeders' Cup Filly and Mare Turf upsetter Perfect Shirl (Perfect Soul {Ire}) from a wildly productive female family beautifully nurtured over the last 20 years by Charles Fipke and his team, jumped at odds of nearly 8-1 in a two-turn maiden over the Keeneland turf course Saturday afternoon. 8-1? 'Shirl'-y you must be joking, but the March-foaled bay rewarded her backers in becoming the second 'TDN Rising Star' out of the mare and the fourth from the first two dams...

On April 22-23 Light Up Racing will launch its Media & Content Cohort Training Program in Lexington, Kentucky, which aims to improve the narrative of horse racing and empower changemakers by teaching skills to better promote the sport, the organization said in a release Friday. Light Up Racing is assembling approximately 20 individuals from every aspect of the horse racing industry, across all demographics, united by their passion for positive change over two days of training. "Our goal is to empower each participant with the confidence to share their stories...

High-profile trainer Robertino Diodoro, who is serving a provisional suspension from the Horseracing Integrity and Welfare Unit (HIWU) after the banned substance levothyroxine was found in his barn at Oaklawn Park, has entered a horse for the April 18 card at Lone Star Park. On opening night, he has entered Master of Disguise (Mastery) in a maiden special weight race with a purse of $33,000. Diodoro is eligible to race in Texas because the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority (HISA) does not have jurisdiction in that state. Diodoro did not...