Usha

She was claimed for $5,000 out of a race in which she bled badly. Yet here we are, 75 years later, celebrating Iltis (War Relic) as founder of a dynasty freshly decorated, coast to coast, on consecutive weekends. The moment of alchemy for Iltis was the transfer early in her breeding career to Ocala Stud, where a remarkable stallion, Rough'n Tumble, and the still more remarkable O'Farrell family were together putting Florida in the Thoroughbred map. A first date between Iltis and Rough'n Tumble produced My Dear Girl, as leading...

Thermal (Nyquist)'s list-topping 106 Beyer Speed Figure is tied with Mashallah for third-fastest of the year by a female, behind only Madison Stakes one-two finishers Eclatant (109) and Grand Job (108).   6 - GIGABIT, IND-6, May 21, Allowance, 5 furlongs Beyer Speed Figure- 92 (f, 3, by Dialed In--Adventurous Lady, by Kantharos) O-Lantern Hill Farm. B-Pursuit of Success (Ky). T-Rey Hernandez. J-Marcelino Pedroza Jr. Her half-sister Twirling Queen (Twirling Candy) improved markedly when switched from dirt to turf and Tapeta, but Gigabit seemed to go the other direction: her...

Despite being the sole Grade I winner in the field, Usha (Tiz the Law) entered Monday's GIII Winning Colors Stakes as the 2-1 second choice behind 8-5 choice Kapoor (Uncle Mo), victorious in her four most recent starts. While the latter was significantly compromised at the start and failed to show her best in her stakes debut, Usha muscled her way to the front in the early going of the six-furlong test and remained tough to the very end, hanging on to a narrow victory over the oncoming Zeitlos (Curlin)....

Rhetorical (Not This Time) earned New York-bred Horse of the Year honors and led a strong evening for his breeders Mallory and Karen Mort Monday evening during the New York Thoroughbred Breeders' Inc.'s Annual Awards Ceremony held Monday night at the Hall of Springs at the Saratoga Spa State Park in Saratoga Springs. Bred by the Morts and campaigned by Gary Barber, Cheyenne Stable and Wachtel Stable, Rhetorical won four of five starts and earned $863,800 in 2025. His victories included the GI Coolmore Turf Mile Stakes at Keeneland Race...

Trainer Saffie Joseph Jr. picked up the first Grade I of Kentucky Derby day Saturday as 7-1 shot R Disaster (Awesome Slew) caught a flyer from the gate and took the field gate to wire under Tyler Gaffalione. Never off the board in 15 prior starts, the Florida-bred entered off a third when caught on the lead in the seven-furlong GI Madison Stakes at Keeneland  Apr. 6, her first try at the top level. Clearly a mare who takes her racetrack with her, she's continued to post increasing Beyer Speed...

Shortly after Journalism (Curlin) worked five furlongs in company at Santa Anita Sunday, trainer Michael McCarthy said he is looking at three potential races to kick off the colt's 4-year-old campaign. Last season's GI Preakness winner could return in either the GII Oaklawn Handicap or GIII Ben Ali at Keeneland, both on Apr. 18, or wait for the GII Alysheba at Churchill Downs on May 1. "All three of those races are in play," McCarthy said. Both the Oaklawn Handicap and Ben Ali are 1 1/8 miles. The Alysheba is...

A total of 1,220 horses have been catalogued for the upcoming OBS Spring Two-Year-Olds in Training Sale, which will be held over four days Apr. 14-17. The catalogue is available online at www.obssales.com. Sale sessions will begin at 10:30 a.m. ET.  Hips 1 - 306 will sell Apr. 14 with Hips 307 - 610 going Apr. 15. Apr. 16 will offer Hips 611 - 916 with the sale concluding Apr. 17 with Hips 917 - 1220. The under-tack show will run from Apr. 6-11 starting at 8 a.m. ET each...

Several notable sophomores were out on track Saturday morning at Santa Anita Park, including Grade I winner Intrepido (Maximus Mischief) and fellow GIII Robert B. Lewis alumnus Secured Freedom (Practical Joke)--both of whom put in their first moves since the aforementioned race. The former finished closest to GISP Plutarch (Into Mischief) in the Lewis, that one claimed top prize by three-quarters of a length, and took a spin over the main track for trainer Jeff Mullins in an easy four-panel move. Clocked in :48.80 with jockey Hector Berrios in the...

The turn of the year always prompts us to look both forward and back, along with Janus, the god of two faces for whom January is named. And that provides a perfect context for Goal Oriented (Not This Time), graduate of a farm with an unrivalled past-and one that has dynamically reimagined its future. On the one hand, the GI Malibu Stakes winner stands for continuity and heritage. Co-bred and raised by the oldest continuously operative Thoroughbred farm in the Bluegrass, he extends one of its most patiently cultivated families....

Bob Baffert came out swinging on Santa Anita's opening day card on Sunday, with Nysos (Nyquist), Goal Oriented (Not This Time)--both TDN Rising Stars, presented by Hagyard, and Usha (Tiz the Law), coming home winners in the GII Laffit Pincay Jr., GI Malibu and GI La Brea, respectively. According to the Hall of Famer, the trio were "doing well" on Monday morning. Baffert also indicated that Nysos and Nevada Beach (Omaha Beach), runner up in the Laffit Pincay Jr., are among potential candidates for the G1 Saudi Cup in Riyadh...

Making her Grade I debut and just her second start in stakes company, Usha (Tiz the Law) dazzled through the final two furlongs to romp home in the GI La Brea Stakes at Santa Anita Sunday, giving her sire his first Grade I winner. A highly-touted debut runner during the Del Mar summer in 2024, the $600,000 OBS April grad has the unfortunate luck of running behind several classier stablemates including the likes of GISW Tenma (Nyquist) and GSW Non Compliant (Tiz the Law). Being a New York-bred, Usha then...

Who says it never rains in Southern California? Well, for any music trivia buffs in the audience, it was the little-known Albert Hammond who sang those lyrics, but those living in and around metropolitan Los Angeles will confirm that the precipitation came with a vengeance this Christmas week, flooding parts of Interstate 5 and causing power outages and even the (very) odd threat of tornadoes. Nearly two inches of rainfall was recorded at Los Angeles International Airport, breaking a 54-year-old mark, while nearly four inches fell upon Woodland Hills and...