thoroughbreds

The New York Racing Association, Inc. (NYRA) has increased the purses of 10 Aqueduct winter meet stakes by $25,000 as the 49-day schedule features a total of 20 either black-type or graded races worth $3.1 million, the track said in a press release on Wednesday. The meet, which opens Wednesday, Jan. 1 and continues through Sunday, Mar. 30, includes $25,000 purse increases for the Busanda, Ruthless, Damon Runyon (NYB), East View (NYB), Say Florida Sandy (NYB), Broadway (NYB), Correction, Gander (NYB), Maddie May (NYB) and the Jimmy Winkfield will be...

The National Thoroughbred Racing Association (NTRA) has formed a multi-year partnership with the Ed Brown Society to assist young people of color pursue careers in the racing industry, the NTRA said via a Wednesday release. "The NTRA is thrilled to partner with the Ed Brown Society to help encourage diversity in the Thoroughbred racing industry," said NTRA President and CEO Tom Rooney. "We look forward to mentoring the Ed Brown Scholars as they get their start in this amazing industry." Together with NTRA and its other partners, the Ed Brown...

Every week, the TDN posts a roundup of the relevant Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act (HISA) related rulings from around the country. NEW HISA/HIWU STEWARDS RULINGS The following rulings were reported on HISA's "rulings" portal and through the HIWU "pending" and "resolved" cases portals. Resolved ADMC Violations Date: 12/03/2024 Licensee: Jesus Esquivel, trainer Penalty: For both cases, Disqualification of Covered Horse's Race results, including forfeiture of all purses and other compensation, prizes, trophies, points, and rankings and repayment or surrender (as applicable); a fine of $500; imposition of 1.5 Penalty...

McMahon of Saratoga Thoroughbreds has added Provocateur (by Into Mischief) for the 2025 breeding season with a stud fee set at $5,000 LFSN, according to a press release from the New York stallion farm on Wednesday. The 5-year-old will stand alongside three-time leading New York sire Central Banker and nationally ranked second crop sire Solomini. The farm will hold their annual holiday stallion show on Saturday, Dec. 14 from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. ET., and all three stallions will be available for inspection. Bred by Kingswood Farm and David...

Without a doubt, I did not have the most conventional entry into horseracing. Growing up in Montreal, Canada, I was much more likely to have ventured into the world of harness racing rather than its Thoroughbred counterpart. Courtesy of Blue Bonnets (later re-named Hippodrome de Montreal), Montreal's racing landscape hadn't seen Thoroughbred racing since 1973, an era in which racetrack attendance in the province was at its zenith. One of three daughters of Greek immigrant parents, I simply did not have the access to horses or racing like many others...

All of us involved in this game tend to be exposed to its ups and downs on a scale proportionate to our means. That being so, there have unsurprisingly been some pretty wild extremes--for better and worse--in the story of the most lavishly funded program in its history. Just think back, for instance, to the last days of April 2001. Sheikh Mohammed had sent Street Cry (Ire) back to the United States, where he had been skillfully developed as a juvenile by Eoin Harty, with the mission of winning the...

On Saturday at Churchill Downs, 2-year-old Patch Adams (Into Mischief)--yes, as in the 1998 Robin Williams film where the best line might be, "Donner, party of 50!"--earned his very own 'Rising Star' on TDN's Walk of Fame. The colt turned in what Alan Carasso called "a jaw-dropping performance" as he broke his maiden by an eye-catching 10 1/2 lengths at second asking. The time over the fast main track was just 0.33 off the record held by MGISW Groupie Doll. Thoroughbred bloodlines can highlight connections to a rich past and...

8th-Aqueduct, $95,000, Alw (NW2$X)/Opt. Clm ($62,500), 12-1, 3yo/up, f/m, 1m, 1:35.78, ft, 3 1/4 lengths. JULIA SHINING (f, 4, Curlin--Dreaming of Julia {Broodmare Of The Year, GISW, $874,500}, by A.P. Indy) was named a 'TDN Rising Star'--the fifth in her extended female family--after she broke her maiden at first asking over Keeneland's main track as a late juvenile. The well-bred filly won the GII Demoiselle Stakes that December, and the following spring she was third in both the Suncoast Stakes at Tampa in mid-February and in the GI Central Bank...

Responding to a rash of recent breakdowns at Woodbine, the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO), which regulates racing in the province, has taken steps it hopes will lead to fewer injuries. Woodbine has now had six fatalities since the Nov. 9 card in which two horses died and the remainder of the day's program was cancelled, as was the next scheduled day of racing. The biggest change is that any horse that has raced within the previous 14 calendar days is ineligible to race and will be scratched...

The Horseracing Integrity & Safety Authority (HISA)'s 150-Day Layoff Report rule is scheduled to go into effect Thursday, Dec. 5, the group announced Saturday afternoon. Announced back in July but beginning on the aforementioned date, any horse who has not raced in 150 days (approx. five months) or more must have a report submitted prior to race entry. It is recommended that said report be uploaded 10-14 days prior. Trainers will be notified when a horse has been off for 140 days. A live demonstration and Q&A will be hosted...

With a horse having to be euthanized Thursday at Woodbine and another one on Friday, the Toronto-area track has now had six fatalities since the Nov. 9 card in which two horses died and the remainder of the day's program was cancelled, as was the next scheduled day of racing. Woodbine's Tapeta surface has long been considered to be one of the safest tracks in North America, which makes the rash of breakdowns particularly unusual. "We are closely monitoring the situation and remain in continuous communication with our regulator, veterinarians,...

How did we get hooked on this sport? We all have stories about how our love affair developed and blossomed. The TDN will be reaching out to numerous notable people in the industry to get their stories to find out how they got hooked and stayed hooked on the sport. Brian Spearman, Chairman, Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners Growing up in Saratoga, it's pretty inevitable that you're going to fall in love with horse racing if you love horses and you love the whole atmosphere. As a young adult, I went to...