thoroughbreds
Hill 'n' Dale at Xalapa has acquired a half-interest in 2024 Horse of the Year Thorpedo Anna (Fast Anna) in a deal which includes former NFL star Marshawn Lynch, according to a press release from the farm. Trained by Kenny McPeek, who selected her as a yearling, she is one of only seven distaffers in the history of the American turf and only the second 3-year-old filly, along with the fabulous Rachel Alexandra (Medaglia d'Oro), to claim the coveted title. A six-time Grade I winner with victories in the GI...
Mike Renfro caught 28 touchdowns during his eleven seasons in the NFL playing for the Houston Oilers and the Dallas Cowboys. Like most athletes, even after all these years, he misses those Sunday afternoons, the camaraderie with his teammates and the thrill of competition. But what would fill the void when he walked off the field for the last time in 1988? To Renfro, that's a very easy question to answer. He discovered horse racing. Thirty-seven years later, Renfro is part of the CJ Thoroughbreds ownership group, which has its...
Off his late heroics in the GI Whitney Stakes at Saratoga Race Course Aug. 2, Sierra Leone (Gun Runner) once again cracked the LONGINES World's Best Racehorse Rankings. Owned by Peter Brant, Mrs. John Magnier, Michael Tabor, Derrick Smith, Westerberg and Brook Smith, last year's Eclipse Champion 3-year-old rolled from the back of the pack as is his style to take the Whitney by a length. The Chad Brown trainee is now rated 120 on the 2025 list. Topping the chart at 127 is still a three-way tie between Field...
During this year's Keeneland November Breeding Stock Sale, Len and Jon Green's D.J. Stable will offer a curated reduction of its bloodstock portfolio consigned by Taylor Made Sales Agency, the auction house said in a press release on Thursday. While their reduction represents a meaningful milestone, the Greens remain as committed as ever to the sport. D.J. Stable will continue to be active in racing and at future sales, with plans to invest in new opportunities and further grow their presence in the sport. "This is a one-time offering--strategic and...
SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. - Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert is sending a strong contingent to Saratoga Race Course for Travers Day next Saturday. But he won't have a runner in the marquee event, the GI DraftKings Travers Stakes. Baffert said Wednesday that he is keeping 'TDN Rising Star' Goal Oriented (Not This Time) in California. He had originally been planning on shipping the lightly raced colt East but nixed that idea after Goal Oriented worked at Del Mar on Friday. He went seven furlongs in a 1:23.80 (1/2). "He...
Tickets will go on sale Friday, Aug. 15, at 11 a.m. PT for Santa Anita Park's upcoming Autumn Meet, according to a release from 1/ST on Wednesday. Passes will be available through Ticketmaster as the track opens its 16-day stand on Friday, Sept. 26, with free parking and general admission plus an all-day Happy Hour every Friday. Opening weekend will be showcased by Breeders' Cup Challenge Weekend which includes four "Win and You're In" stakes. Three of the track's promotions--Oktoberfest, Pumpkin Patch and Fall Festival and the Japan Family Weekend--anchor...
John and Leona Velazquez were publicly recognized for their longstanding commitment to the backstretch community at Saratoga, Belmont and Aqueduct on Wednesday when they received the Marylou Whitney and John Hendrickson Award from the New York Race Track Chaplaincy at the 18th annual fundraising brunch at the Saratoga National Golf Club, the non-profit said in a press release on Wednesday afternoon. On hand to assist with the award presentation was Marylou's Whitney's daughter, Heather Mabee. The brunch set a new record for fundraising. "Anyone who has spent much time around...
The Pennsylvania Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association (PTHA) will present the 2025 Owners and Trainers Appreciation Day on Monday, Aug. 18, 2025, at Parx Racing, the organization said via a Wednesday press release. The event features 12 races with purses totaling over $650,000, with a first post of 12:40 p.m. ET. A total of 163 horses were entered on the card, including 153 in the body of the races. This will be the first day back for live racing after the annual Parx summer break. That same day, horsemen will be treated...
Tickets for Keeneland's 2025 Fall Meet, to be held Oct. 3-25, will go on sale Tuesday, Aug. 19 at 9 a.m. ET., according to a press release from the track on Wednesday. Fans attending October racing will be among the first to experience the initial phase of Keeneland's new construction enhancements. Officials have said that ticketed dining for the newly-constructed Paddock Building will open to race-day guests at a later time. "At Keeneland, we approach each project deliberately, always striving to create meaningful experiences for our fans and horsemen," Keeneland...
4th-ELP, $100K, Msw, 2yo, 7f, 2:16 p.m. ET. MARAUDER (Gun Runner) heads the gate for Hall of Fame trainer Steve Asmussen. Co-owned by Winchell & Stonestreet, the colt is out of MGSW Dream Pauline (Tapit). She was bred and campaigned by Stonestreet and her own dam is MGISW Dream Rush (Wild Rush), a $3.3-million purchase by Halsey Minor during the 2007 Fasig-Tipton Fall Mixed Sale. Dream Pauline's immediate family includes another Stonestreet homebred, Dreaming of Julia (A.P. Indy) who was the 2022 Broodmare of the Year. Of course, she produced...
Filling out her RSVP card in advance and well-handled throughout, the budding turf star Laurelin (Zarak (Fr)--Bari (Ire), by Cape Cross {Ire}) kept her perfect record intact by sweeping down the Spa lane to earn a trip to the winner's circle in the GII Fasig-Tipton Saratoga Oaks Invitational on Saturday. Spotlighted by TDN Europe's Heather Anderson in her series Making Waves after the Graham Motion trainee broke her maiden at first asking during the Belmont At The Big A meet last October, the bay continued her winning ways in the...
The New York Racing Association, Inc. (NYRA) has appointed Eric Johnston to the position of stakes coordinator, according to a Friday morning press release by the track operator. Johnston brings more than four decades of racing industry experience to his new role, and was previously the director of racing and sportsbook at Penn National. As the new coordinator, Johnston succeeds Andrew Byrnes, who had held the position since 1999 and will retire at the conclusion of the summer meet at Saratoga. Johnston will assume his stakes coordinator responsibilities Oct. 3....