Wesley Ward

2nd-Belmont, $87,300, Msw, 5-13, 2yo, f, 5f, :58.02, ft, 11 3/4 lengths. HAPPY SOUL (f, 2, Runhappy--Cowgirl Lucky, by Stephen Got Even) was hammered down to 2-5 favoritism for a barn known for its prowess with early season juveniles and ran to the money with a dominant performance. Away alertly, the bay took command and never looked back, blitzing through splits of :22.16 and :45.46. She crossed the line a good 10 lengths clear of 8-5 shot Lemieux (Nyquist) in a field scratched down to five. In her prior start,...

Lucky 7 Stables' Street Lute (Street Magician) looks to rebound off a third as the 3-5 favorite in Laurel's Beyond The Wire S. Mar. 13 and gain her first graded score in the GIII Miss Preakness S. at Old Hilltop Friday. Reeling off five straight wins from last November through February, including the Laurel's six-furlong Xtra Heat S. in January followed by the seven panel Wide Country S. Feb. 20, the chestnut tried a mile for the first time in the Beyond The Wire, but tired late to finish third,...

Twilight Gleaming (Ire) (National Defense {GB}), a strong second debuting on the Keeneland main track last month, got to her likely preferred surface of turf Sunday at Belmont and rocketed clear in the lane for 'TDN Rising Star' honors. Bought for £75,000 by Ben McElroy at the Goffs Orby Yearling Sale last October, Twilight Gleaming became the first starter for her freshman sire when backed down to 3-5 Apr. 8 at Keeneland, and ran a game second despite being pinched at the start and going wide on the turn. Recording...

1st-Belmont, $83,700, Msw, 5-9, 2yo, 5fT, :56.92, fm, 3 lengths. LUCCI (c, 2, Not This Time--Lucky'stormwarning, by Lookin At Lucky) showed a sharp Keeneland worktab for this unveiling, capped by a half-mile breeze in :47 3/5 (4/23) Apr. 28, and was made a fractional 5-4 favorite. Breaking sweetly from his rail draw, the $290,000 Fasig-Tipton Selected Yearling buy quickly scampered clear and showed the way through a modest :22.92 quarter. Pressured harder by Speak Unity (Union Rags) as the pace picked up past a :45.32 half, Lucci stiff-armed that rival...

Trainer Wesley Ward, known particularly for his prowess with 2-year-olds and his success when shipping to Royal Ascot, recorded his 2,000th win as a trainer Thursday when Gold for Kitten (Kitten's Joy) won the sixth race at Churchill Downs. Among Ward's top horses as a trainer have been English highweight and MG1SW Lady Aurelia (Scat Daddy); French highweight and G1SW No Nay Never (Scat Daddy); Eclipse champion and Breeders' Cup winner Judy the Beauty (Ghostzapper); and additional Breeders' Cup winners Hootenanny (Quality Road), Four Wheel Drive (American Pharoah), and Golden...

Averly Jane came from just off the pace to remain undefeated in two starts and gain her black-type badge in Wednesday's Kentucky Juvenile S. Bohemian Frost took to the front through a quarter :21.84 and :45.34 as heavy 1-2 favorite Averly Jane remained in hot pursuit. A couple of lengths adrift of the free-running grey turning for home, the Wesley Ward trainee gradually overtook the pacesetter midstretch and strode clear to score with ease over an oncoming Vodka N Water. Bohemian Frost held on for third. "She's a naturally fast...

Entries for 12 races-including all eight Group 1s-across the five days of Royal Ascot from June 15 to 19 were revealed on Wednesday, with a strong contingent of eight standing their ground from America. Last year's GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf winner Aunt Pearl (Ire) (Lope De Vega {Ire}), who was sourced at the Tattersalls October Yearling Sale by American owners Madaket Stables, Michael Dubb, Peter Deutsch, Michael Kisber and The Elkstone Group, makes her seasonal debut in Friday's GII Edgewood S. at Churchill Downs and, if all goes...

Khalid Abdullah's legacy will live long in Thoroughbred genealogy thanks to the female families he cultivated, like the one that supplied him Sunday's 'TDN Rising Star' and G1 Cadoo Oaks contender Noon Star (Galileo {Ire}). Juddmonte's sires, likewise, have started the season off with a bang. In this space last week we were singing the praises of Frankel (GB) off the back of a week of intercontinental successes. While Frankel remains poised to have an excellent season, in the space of 35 minutes at Sandown on Friday along came his...

When Napa Spirit (Ire) (Invincible Spirit {Ire}) won Friday's first race at Keeneland, bloodstock agent Ben McElroy was more relieved than ecstatic. Some six months earlier, he purchased Napa Spirit at the Goffs Orby Yearling sale in Ireland with a set goal in mind. He was looking for a unique type of horse, one that could win in the U.S. and Europe, would be fast and precocious, like the grass and be a good fit for the Royal Ascot meet. Friday's win was the latest sign that he had more...

The 15-day Spring meet at Keeneland Race Course concluded Friday, with total all-sources wagering reaching $164,680,229, an improvement of 7.55% versus the 2019 Spring meet, when all-sources handle totaled $153,116,119. The 2020 Spring meet was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Average daily wagering on the Keeneland product was $10,978,682, an increase of 14.72 when compared to $9,569,757 during Spring 2019. A limited number of patrons were allowed on track during the 15-day stand. Attendance totaled 96,243 for a daily average of 6,416. With four winners on Friday's closing-day program,...

2nd-Keeneland, $59,524, Msw, 4-23, 2yo, 4 1/2f, :51.75, ft, 2 1/4 lengths. HEADLINE REPORT (c, 2, Gormley--Green Eyed Cat, by Tale of the Cat) was pounded into debut odds of 30 cents on the dollar and did his best work through the wire to become the first winner for his freshman sire (by Malibu Moon) Friday at Keeneland. Off slowly beneath John Velazquez and immediately under the pump, the bay quickly made up for lost time and was on even terms with La Belleza Negra (Cairo Prince) as they hit...

1st-Keeneland, $43,340, Msw, 4-23, 2yo, 5 1/2fT, 1:04.17, gd, 1 1/2 lengths. NAPA SPIRIT (IRE) (c, 2, Invincible Spirit {Ire}--Aimhirgin Lass {Ire}, by Pivotal {GB}) validated 2-5 favoritism in the closing-day opener at Keeneland, giving Stonestreet and trainer Wesley Ward a maiden winner on the grass acquired overseas for the second consecutive afternoon. Not the fastest away, the bay raced in and among rivals early on as stablemate Magniloquent (American Pharoah) showed the way through an opening quarter in :21.78. Three wide and traveling well in hand on the turn,...