Todd Pletcher

There is no such thing as a sure thing in horse racing, but 'TDN Rising Star' Flightline (Tapit) will be bet as if Saturday's GI TVG Pacific Classic--a 'Win and You're In' qualifier for the GI Breeders' Cup Classic at Keeneland Nov. 5--is already the proverbial fait accompli. And why not, really? His four towering victories in as many trips to the races have come by an average winning margin of better than 13 lengths. His lowest Beyer Speed Figure is a downright pedestrian 105 earned for his debut just...

The Consignors and Commercial Breeders Association Inc. (CBA) will stage their fourth 'Deal or No Deal' event on the eve of the 2022 Keeneland September Sale from 4:30-6 p.m. It will take place at the Paddock Chalet next to the East Gate entrance at Keeneland, just up the hill from the sales pavilion. Keeneland will provide food and drink and live racing will be streamed from Kentucky Downs. The 'Deal or No Deal' series kicked off last year, first at Fasig-Tipton in July and then again at Keeneland in September....

It was a relatively quiet Thursday last week when jockey John Velazquez registered his 1,000th victory at Saratoga, extending his record as the winningest jockey in Spa history. Sifting through the archives to get a feel for what was going on in the sport when Johnny V. won his first career race at Saratoga back on Aug. 5, 1990, yields a heady mix of nostalgia tinged with kismet. Although not considered a truly "historic" day of racing at the Spa, there are enough intriguing nuggets buried within the charts and...

Todd Pletcher was in a chipper mood one morning in his office near Saratoga's Oklahoma training track when I asked him about the Green sisters. "Which one?" Pletcher replied, wryly. "The one right outside the door." "Oh, the brown-noser," Pletcher said with a laugh. "Do you want to listen in, Sophie?" "No," said the mocking English voice from the other side of the glass door. "I will never say anything nice about you again!" Meet Sophie Green, the elder of the Green sisters, the younger being Amelia. The two sisters...

While his half-sister, Nest, has been racking up the Grade I victories at Saratoga this summer, Lost Ark (Violence--Marion Ravenwood, by A.P. Indy) stayed behind in Todd Pletcher's Belmont division with Monmouth's Sapling S. targeted. Mission accomplished, as the 2-year-old remained undefeated in two starts and romped by 7 1/2 lengths in the Sapling. Shuffled back at the start, but securing a mid-pack spot on the inside, Lost Ark was content to let Bourbon Spirit (Liam's Map) battle it out up front for the :23.94 quarter and :47.51 half. Angled...

Shadwell Stable's 'TDN Rising Star' Malathaat (Curlin) had settled for second to re-opposing Clairiere (Curlin) in both the GI Ogden Phipps S. downstate June 11 and local GII Shuvee S. July 24, but she got rolling in the Saratoga stretch Saturday to blow past the talented tandem of Search Results (Flatter) and Letruska (Super Saver) and post a half-length victory over the former in the GI Personal Ensign S. Clairiere, the 8-5 favorite, acted up in the gate then lagged far back while seemingly not herself. Having bested Search Results...

More Than Ready (Southern Halo--Woodman's Girl, by Woodman), whose 216 worldwide stakes winners is the fourth highest total of all time, was euthanized the morning of Aug. 26 at WinStar Farm due to the cumulative effects of old age. He was 25 years old. "More Than Ready was an amazing horse who touched everyone he came in contact with," said Elliott Walden, president, CEO, and racing manager of WinStar Farm. "He may not have been the biggest horse in the barn, but he more than made up for it in...

Hall of Famer D. Wayne Lukas is the newest addition to the MyRacehorse cast of trainers, as he will condition a yearling colt by Arrogate out of well-bred stakes-placed runner and producer Smart Shopping (Smart Strike) for the micro-share syndication company. The colt was purchased for $300,000 at the Fasig-Tipton Saratoga sale as hip 79. "Adding a world-class name such as D. Wayne Lukas to MyRacehorse is an honor," MyRacehorse CEO Michael Behrens said. "Teaming up to provide our owners with the opportunity to say their horse is trained by...

Marion Ravenwood (A.P. Indy), dam of multiple Grade I-winning sophomore filly Nest (Curlin); and Callingmissbrown (Pulpit), dam of Mo Donegal (Uncle Mo)--who beat his stablemate Nest in this year's GI Belmont S.--have been entered in Keeneland's November Breeding Stock Sale to sell on opening day, Nov. 7, during Book 1. Marion Ravenwood is carrying a full-sibling to Nest, while Callingmissbrown is carrying a full to the Belmont winner, who also took the GII Remsen S. last year and GII Wood Memorial S. in April. Ashview Farm, agent, will consign both...

1st-SAR, $105K, Msw, 2yo, 6f, 11:35 a.m. EDT The star-studded GI Runhappy Travers S. day card kicks off with a pair of juveniles events, starting with this main track sprint. VERIFYING (Justify), a $775,000 KEESEP acquisition by the Coolmore contingent, is one of the most intriguing firsters in this event. The Brad Cox pupil is out of GSW Diva Delite (Repent), who summoned $1.2 million with this colt in utero at the 2019 Fasig-Tipton November Sale. That makes Verifying a half-sibling to champion Midnight Bisou (Midnight Lute), who brought $5-million...

There was both positive and negative news coming out of the Todd Pletcher barn Sunday morning, as 'TDN Rising Star' Charge It (Tapit) will be forced to miss next Saturday's GI Runhappy Travers S., but GI Alabama S. romper Nest (Curlin) was in fine fettle after her Saturday romp. Whisper Hill homebred Charge It, a jaw-dropping 23-length winner of the GIII Dwyer S. at Belmont July 2, missed a scheduled breeze Saturday morning due to a front right foot abscess and galloped Sunday morning. "He galloped super, but you could...

Repole Stable, Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners and Michael House's Nest (Curlin) left little doubt who the best 3-year-old filly in the country is with a second straight tour-de-force victory over GI Kentucky Oaks heroine Secret Oath (Arrogate) in Saturday's GI Alabama S. at Saratoga. The overwhelming 1-5 favorite wasn't off to the smoothest of beginnings, bobbling slightly and bumping with longshot Nostalgic (Medaglia d'Oro) at the start. It didn't seem to matter one bit once the 1 1/4-mile journey was officially underway with Nest finding a perfect spot in a stalking...