thoroughbreds

After being implemented and put into effect on Thursday, NYRA, citing a need to upgrade its tote system, announced Friday that the new "guardrail rails" put in place regarding Computer Assisted Wagering (CAW) will not go into effect until Feb. 11. With winter weather having knocked out the Saturday and Sunday cards at Aqueduct, the 11th is the next scheduled day of racing. "The guardrails requiring CAW activity to cease at 1 MTP have been suspended today to allow for technical upgrades to the tote system," read a NYRA statement....

The New York Racing Association, Inc. (NYRA) will host a job fair on Thursday, Feb. 26, to recruit employees for the 2026 Belmont Stakes Racing Festival at Saratoga Race Course, the track said via a press release Friday. The Belmont Stakes Racing Festival job fair will be held from 2-7 p.m. ET on the first floor of the 1863 Club. Applicants must be at least 15 years of age and have New York State Certified Working Papers. Prospective security guards, cashiers and betting clerks must be at least 18 years...

The Spendthrift Farm team never wanted to run its pair of 3-year-old male 'TDN Rising Stars, presented by Hagyard', against one another during the lead-up to the GI Kentucky Derby. But that was no longer a problem when Ted Noffey (Into Mischief)--who was being pointed for the GII Fountain of Youth Stakes and the GI Florida Derby--was taken off the Trail due to bone bruising. So, that created a situation where Spendthrift's other 3-year-old star, Further Ado (Gun Runner), who is based in South Florida at Payson Park, might be...

3rd-TAM, $55K, Msw, 3yo, f, 1m 40yds, 1:36 p.m. ET. Three Chimneys bred ALWAYS A RUNNER (Gun Runner) as the first foal out of GSP Always Carina (Malibu Moon) who is the half-sister to Jeff Drown and Don Rachel's GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf hero Structor (Palace Malice). The farm bought Always Carina's dam, Miss Always Ready (More Than Ready), for $400,000 at the 2014 Keeneland April 2-Year-Old Sale. Her full-sister is Bobby Flay's GII Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf victress More Than Real. During the 2024 Keeneland September Sale,...

This wasn't the plan. Jon Green, the general manager of D.J. Stable, and trainer Mark Casse were ready to give 3-year-old filly champion Nitrogen (Medaglia d'Oro) a nice break after her second-place finish in the GI Longines Breeders' Cup Distaff. But just 67 days after her last race, she will go in Saturday's GIII Bayakoa Stakes at Oaklawn, where she is the 4-5 morning-line favorite. Why? Because Nitrogen was telling Casse that she had had enough of taking it easy. "The game plan, initially, was that when she was done...

The New York Racing Association, Inc. (NYRA) canceled live racing on Saturday and Sunday at Aqueduct Racetrack due to arctic temperatures that will range from 23 degrees to as low as six degrees in Ozone Park and extremely low wind chill values forecast to impact the New York metropolitan area throughout the weekend, the track said in a press release on Thursday afternoon. NYRA is working with the New York Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association (NYTHA) and New York Thoroughbred Breeders, Inc. (NYTB), to schedule and apply for added race days from...

I've never understood this business of Dry January--the one month when those of us who take a glass of cheer are most grateful for a little respite from the dark and cold. Okay, maybe not a problem in California, but those of you battling all that snow and ice will surely see the merit of Dry February instead. It's shorter, for a start; and ends with the days lengthening and spring tangibly in the air. It's perfectly natural, however, for stallions to have a dry January. Certainly nobody will be...

A total of 367 of the world's top 3-year-old Thoroughbreds became eligible to compete in the 2026 Triple Crown series during the early nomination phase, which closed Monday, Jan. 26, Churchill Downs said in a press release on Tuesday. This year's early nominees span the globe and include several horses that have already made an impact on the 'Road to the Kentucky Derby', led by graded stakes winners 'TDN Rising Star, presented by Hagyard', Further Ado (Gun Runner), 'TDN Rising Star, presented by Hagyard', Golden Tempo (Curlin), 'TDN Rising Star,...

Ocala Breeders' Sales Company has catalogued 816 horses for its 2026 March Sale of Two-Year-Olds in Training, which will be held over three days March 10-12, the auction company said via a Tuesday press release. Sessions will begin at 11 a.m. ET each day. Hips 1-272 will sell Mar. 10 with Hips 273-544 going Mar. 11 and 545-816 selling Mar. 12. The under-tack show will run from Mar. 4-7 starting at 8 a.m. ET each day. Hips 1-204 are slated for Mar. 4 followed by Hips 205-408 Mar. 5, Hips...

Turfway Park Racing & Gaming will move its Wednesday and Thursday live racing cards to afternoon programs with a 1 p.m. ET first post in response to forecasted single-digit wind chills expected during the evening hours, the track said in a press release on Tuesday. Officials will continue to monitor the latest forecasts, with Friday and Saturday's cards currently scheduled for their regular 5:55 p.m. first post. Wednesday will mark the first day of live racing at Turfway Park since a winter storm and freezing temperatures forced the cancellation of...

Racing has a legacy to rectify before it can look to the future. The "Racing in 2036" series struck me for its lack of perspective from the aftercare segment of the industry. Post-racetrack life for our equine athletes was mentioned a few times, but only in a cursory manner. And certainly without any accountability. Thoroughbred aftercare is chronically underfunded despite the creation of the Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance (TAA) in 2012. Aftercare organizations founded before the TAA was created have been underfunded for decades. Programs that predominantly follow the sanctuary model...

With the maintenance team scheduled for an annual track refresh Feb. 7-8, there will be no live racing at Los Alamitos Race Course on either day, the track announced via release. The maintenance project will begin following the conclusion of morning training Wednesday, Feb. 4. To provide the Los Alamitos staff with enough time to complete the comprehensive refresh of the one-mile dirt oval, the track will be closed for training Feb. 5-9. Training will resume Tuesday, Feb. 10, and live racing will return Saturday, Feb. 14. The annual procedure...