Violence

Linda Rice led all trainers and owners at the Aqueduct winter meet, which began Jan. 1, and Manny Franco topped the leading riders list as the circuit swaps over to the spring meeting starting Thursday, NYRA announced Sunday afternoon. Rice claimed 51 wins as a trainer to capture the title for the third consecutive year since the 2023 meet, and secured her fifth winter title overall. Her record of 217-51-38-29 was good for a win rate of 23.5% and an in-the-money strike rate of 54.38%. Meet highlights included Sand Devil...

A filly born at Darby Dan Farm near Lexington, Kentucky is the first reported foal for champion 2-year-old colt Forte (Violence). Gravy (Collected--Flawless Diamond, by Saint Ballado), a $160,000 2024 Keeneland November purchase by Darby Dan client Gary Holland for Kamden Favorites, had a dark bay filly Jan. 8 at 6:00 p.m. ET. "She is a flashy filly with plenty of leg, we are thrilled with the result, especially as this is the mare's first foal," said Darby Dan Farm Manager Charlie McKinlay. Forte, named a 'TDN Rising Star' and...

First let's salute two horses in this category just emerging from surely the most competitive freshman title race ever. The lead changed hands between both, as well as McKinzie (now $75,000), through the final hours of 2024, with VEKOMA ultimately seizing the crown--partly through belated processing of a son in Panama--by $22,939 from McKinzie, with TIZ THE LAW breathing down their necks $9,334 behind. In fact, his "extra" winner gave Vekoma a share of the North American record of 39 first-crop juvenile winners. Admittedly he was working from corresponding volume,...

A race after running into a 'TDN Rising Star' at Keeneland, Quantum Burst (Munnings) will now be the running line for many horses after she overwhelmed this maiden field to take home her own TDN Stamp of Approval Saturday evening. Said fellow 'Rising Star' was Winstar Farm's Impulse Buy (Speightstown), who also earned the moniker at second asking at their mutual Keeneland start Oct. 5 at this distance. Once that one got to the lead, she never looked back, beating Quantum Burst by 11 lengths on the line. Swapping barns...

It has always been a small farm, and nowadays they're down to no more than half a dozen mares. Some of the more strenuous duties, moreover, have lately been contracted out. After all, Alfonso Mazzetti is not as young as he was. It's been a long and winding road since he used to ride a motorcycle, aged just 11, to the racetrack in Lima where he would shoot pool with the jockeys; never mind the many years in Colorado in between. Such a long and winding road, in fact, that...

Two time Horse of the Year Curlin (Smart Strike) remains steady atop the roster at Hill 'n' Dale Farm with a fee of $225,000 LFSN for the 2025 breeding season, the farm announced Monday. The sire of three Eclipse Award Champions last year, he currently has three Grade I winners and five Grade I performers in 2024. Standing alongside his sire, Good Magic's (Curlin) fee also remains unchanged at $125,000 LFSN. Good Magic has three Grade I winners in 2024 including GI Belmont Stakes and GI Haskell Stakes winner Dornoch,...

Two people were shot and one person stabbed when violence broke out at La Plata Racecourse in Argentina Tuesday, Racing Post reported. Approximately 30 people were involved in the incident at the coastal track, located around 30 miles from Buenos Aires, and two people were transported to the hospital with gunshot wounds. A third sustained a knife injury. Footage of the incident posted on social media showed a gunman running toward the group and producing a gun before a shot rings out. Other video shows a male being treated for...

However obvious it may now appear that the "real" Fierceness didn't show up for the GIII Holy Bull Stakes back in February, he was keeping tougher company than many assumed at the time. Of the pair, in fact, things went rather more blatantly wrong for Domestic Product, bumped early before wasting energy against a slow pace and coming home wide. Domestic Product still managed to get closer to the winner than did the juvenile champion, and even in scrambling home in the GIII Tampa Bay Derby next time left a...

Siena Farm and WinStar Farm are going to have to make room in their trophy cases. Less than 24 hours after the partnership captured the King's Plate with Caitlinhergrtness (Omaha Beach), they added more hardware when Mullikin (c, 4, Violence--Tulira's Star, by Congrats), stamped as the horse to beat in Saratoga's GI Forego Stakes, proved much the best. In winning his fourth straight and capturing the first Grade I of his career, Mullikin cemented his status as the best older sprinter east of the Mississippi with a comprehensive, front-running victory....

Owen Almighty (Speightstown), who won his June 20 Churchill Downs debut by 3 1/2 lengths, stepped up to take his stakes debut comfortably. After a slight bobble at the start under Cristian Torres, he established a striking position while three-wide stalking Politicallycorrect's (Violence) pace set in :22.46 and :45.79. Finishing strongly under Torres's drive, the 3-5 favorite in a field of seven pulled away from the 3-2 second choice Politicallycorrect in the final furlong to garner a 4 3/4-length tally. "He's certainly taking us in the right direction from just...

Back on the hamster wheel, everybody. You know the drill. Usual freshman hype, please. Just remember to change the names--and not to dwell too unhelpfully on how things played out for those being talked up four or five years ago. But the legitimate, perennial challenge of the yearling circuit also abides, and likewise much of its color and character. Just not quite all. Not enough time has elapsed, certainly, to heal one aching void. For many of his compatriots, in particular, every barn we enter we still half-expect to hear...

It was second verse same as the first for Mullikin (Violence) as he powered home to win a quick edition of the GII John A. Nerud Stakes. Untouchable in 2024, he started his season Apr. 26 at Keeneland when beating a first-level allowance group by over five lengths, posting a lifetime best Beyer figure of 98 in the process. He was awarded a similar number for his effort last out June 8 at Churchill Downs, where he soundly defeated a field of optional claimers by 3 1/4 lengths. On the...