Tracy Farmer

Saturday's Insights: Half-Sister to Belmont Winner Sir Winston Debuts at Gulfstream

1st-GP, $84K, Msw, 3yo, f, 7 1/2f, 12:50p.m. Tracy Farmer's homebred TAP THIS WAY (Tapit) kicks off for Mark Casse, who also trained this filly's illustrious brother, Sir Winston (Awesome Again), winner of the 2019 GI Belmont Stakes for Farmer. While dam La Gran Bailadora (Afleet Alex) never managed a win on the turf, she did register her biggest won on the synthetic in the GIII Kentucky Cup Distaff. Chiefwood Stables also unveils Not This Time, an Ontario-bred daughter of Cool Shadows (Munnings). Trained by Katerina Vassilieva, the dark bay...

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La Cara in the Acorn
La Cara, Quietside Both Retired After Disappointing in Azeri Saturday

After finishing fifth and seventh, respectively, in Saturday's GII Azeri Stakes at Oaklawn Park, Tracy Farmer's La Cara (Street Sense--Cara Caterina, by Bernardini) and Shortleaf Stable's Quietside (Malibu Moon--Benner Island, by Speightstown) have each been retired. La Cara, a homebred for Farmer conditioned by Mark Casse, won both the GI Central Bank Ashland Stakes and GI DK Horse Acorn Stakes in 2025, in addition to the 2024 GIII Pocahontas Stakes and last year's Suncoast Stakes. The now-4-year-old bay made two starts in 2026, finishing off the board each time. She...

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Breeding Digest: Silent Breakout Amplifies Sire and Damsire

Looks like the boys must have got on the phone last week. Having watched him throw his weight around all January, it was time to remind Not This Time that he doesn't yet control every neighborhood. The Godfather himself took charge, Into Mischief sending out sons to earn 20 GI Kentucky Derby points on either coast: Plutarch taking the GIII Robert B. Lewis Stakes, Renegade the Sam F. Davis Stakes. But he also got together with Not This Time's big rival as young pretender to put a couple of fillies...

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Gun Runner's Search Party Wins the Late Battle, Takes Martha Washington

Having just broken her maiden over course and distance in her fifth try last out Dec. 27, Search Party stepped right up Friday to win the Martha Washington Stakes at Oaklawn Park, earning herself 20 points on the Road to the Kentucky Oaks. Clearly comfortable on the Oaklawn surface as she debuted a winner on it in that late December route, the 4-1 shot had shown versatility in prior starts at both Churchill Downs and Ellis Park, only missing the board once when sprinting 6 1/2 furlongs at first asking...

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Tracy Farmer Picks Up Gun Runner Filly for $500,000

Red-hot sire Gun Runner batted 1,000 during the weanling portion of the Fasig-Tipton November Sale, with his only weanling scheduled to go through the ring Monday bringing $500,000 to the bid of Tracy Farmer. The chestnut filly, consigned by Hill 'n' Dale at Xalapa as Hip 56, is out of the winning Susie's Baby (Giant's Causeway) and is a half to GSW & MGISP Family Way (Uncle Mo). The Mar. 27-foaled filly's dam is a half-sister to MG1SW and sire Caravaggio (Scat Daddy). The new Tracy Farmer purchase was bred...

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Not This Time's Time to Dazzle Does Just That at Keeneland in Franklin Win

Tracy Farmer's Time To Dazzle, last seen finishing second behind In Our TimeĀ  in a 6 1/2-furlong optional claimer over the Kentucky Downs turf Sept. 10, turned the tables on that rival with a powerful last-to-first rally to win the GII Franklin Stakes at Keeneland Sunday. The 3-1 shot settled at the back of the field as In Our Time battled favored Luna Louska (Complexity) on the front end through a blistering opening quarter in :20.65. In Our Time skipped away entering the straight and was clear as the half...

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Saratoga Notebook, presented by NYRA Bets: La Cara “Perfect” Heading into Next Weekend's Alabama

SARATOGA SPRINGS -- Hall of Fame trainer Mark Casse needed a very good reason to miss next weekend's prestigious $1-million Listed King's Plate at Woodbine. Actually, he has two of them. Casse will miss Canada's oldest thoroughbred horse race--one has won three times--because he's staying in Saratoga to try and win the $600,000 GI Alabama Stakes for the first time. He will be well represented by La Cara (Street Sense) and Nitrogen (Medaglia d'Oro) in Saratoga's premier race for 3-year-old fillies. The King's Plate at Woodbine and Alabama are both...

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Quarantine Issued On Barn 28 At Saratoga, CCA Oaks Entrant La Cara And Pair Of Casse Runners At Monmouth Scratched

The New York Racing Association, Inc. (NYRA) and the New York State Gaming Commission (NYSGC) have placed a group of horses located in Barn 28 at Saratoga Race Course under quarantine due to a suspected case of strangles, which includes La Cara (Street Sense) who was scratched from the GI CCA Oaks, the track said in a press release on Saturday morning. The 4-year-old filly [Surprenant Cocca (Catholic Boy)], who is trained by Mike Maker and stabled in Barn 28, presented symptoms early Saturday, July 19 and has been transported...

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Pop the Corks: Italian Soiree Pulls the Shocker in Coronation Cup

Nothing like claiming your second lifetime win in a graded stakes at Saratoga, especially so when your last time on the board was a year ago at the venue. A pricey $600,000 OBS March juvenile purchase in 2024, Italian Soiree (Uncle Mo) came with big expectations and her connections refused to throw in the towel despite their filly not hitting the board in the last five starts at the black-type level. Her 2025 attempts included a Feb. 8 seasonal bow in the Suncoast Stakes at Tampa Bay Downs where she...

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Two-Time Whitney Winner Commentator Euthanized

Commentator (Distorted Humor--Outsource, by Storm Bird), a two-time winner of the GI Whitney Handicap for owner Tracy Farmer and trainer Nick Zito, was euthanized on Friday, June 27, at Old Friends at Cabin Creek in New York due to long-term complications from Potomac horse fever. He was 24 years old. Bred in New York by Michael Martinez, the chestnut was a $45,000 Keeneland November weanling and was purchased by Farmer for $135,000 out of the 2002 Fasig-Tipton Kentucky Sale. After besting his fellow Empire-breds by over 27 combined lengths in...

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The Kentucky Oaks Top 10: Good Cheer Leads Competitive Field

Prep season is over, and now it's time to get down to business. A deep field will line up for the GI Kentucky Oaks, led by the undefeated Good Cheer (Medaglia d'Oro). In most years, she'd be 4-5 or lower, but there are enough quality fillies lining up for the race that you might see 2-1 on her. Since the last installment, La Cara (Street Sense) moved up the charts with a win in the GI Ashland S., Ballerina d'Oro (Medaglia d'Oro) nosed out Early On (Union Rags) to win...

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Street Sense's La Cara Wins Postponed Ashland at Keeneland

Tracy Farmer's homebred La Cara (f, 3, Street Sense--Cara Caterina, by Bernardini) closed out the Road to the Kentucky Oaks the same way she started it: with a win. Victorious in the first GI Kentucky Oaks points race of the season--the GIII Pocahontas Stakes at Churchill Downs last September--and the last, Monday's rescheduled GI Central Bank Ashland Stakes at Keeneland, La Cara heads to the Oaks with 151.75 points, second on the leaderboard behind Mar. 29 GII Fantasy Stakes winner Quietside (Malibu Moon). The Ashland awarded Oaks points on a...

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