#Blue Grass Stakes

Few horses have been able to blend the kind of success that Unbridled enjoyed both on the racetrack and in the breeding shed. A strapping, 17-hand colt with a long, ground-gobbling stride, he was slow to develop at 2 after a promising 10 ½-length victory in his career debut. The son of Fappiano was then plagued by a sore hoof at 4, succinctly…

I led last week's column with this, but … "There seems to be more distractions than ever before for gamblers' attention with MLB starting to join NBA and NHL on the daily calendar" … and now we have football, too, with the second coming of the USFL. But, hey, there's always time to slip in some horse racing plays on our busy Saturdays. Last…

Belmont Stakes winner Tiz the Law will try to win one of the signature races on the horse racing calendar when he leaves the starting gate on Saturday in the 2020 Travers Stakes at Saratoga Race Course. Nicknamed the Mid-Summer Derby, the Travers ranks alongside the Triple Crown races as the most prestigious three-year-old events of the year.…

Top contenders for the 142nd running of the Kentucky Derby are listed in order of preference, with comments provided by Joe Drape and Melissa Hoppert of The New York Times. Churchill Downs has adopted a points system to determine the Derby field, with points being earned by the top four finishers in designated prep races. The odds are from the…

The bourbon and mint juleps will be flowing at Churchill Downs for the 148th running of the Kentucky Derby, which hopes to race past last year's controversy The 2021 winner, Medina Spirt, was disqualified after testing positive for a banned substance. Bob Baffert, the horse's Hall of Fame trainer and a six-time Derby winner, was banned by Churchill…

The 145th running of the Grade-1, Kentucky Derby will take place on Saturday, May 4, at historic Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky. This is the only race in the U.S. with a 20-horse field and it can provide great wagering opportunities for bettors. The favorite has won the run for the roses the last several years, but even with the top choice…

The Preakness Stakes is traditionally the second leg of the American Triple Crown but in this most unusual of seasons, the 2020 Preakness concludes the series this year at Pimlico on Saturday (10.45pm BST). Routinely flanked by the Kentucky Derby and the Belmont Stakes, this renewal of the Preakness moves from second to third in the Triple Crown…

May 9, 2021 update: Medina Spirit has reportedly failed a drug test. Should those result be confirmed, the horse will be retroactively disqualified from the Kentucky Derby, forfeiting its first-place finish and winnings. Medina Spirit is the winner of the 147th Kentucky Derby at famed Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky. The horse entered the…

Zandon, shown winning the Grade I Blue Grass Stakes, runs in Saturday's Grade I Cigar Mile at Aqueduct. Photo courtesy of Keeneland Dec. 2 (UPI) -- Triple Crown contenders from the past three seasons will battle it out in a field of seven for one of this weekend's top races, the Grade I Cigar Mile at Aqueduct, where 2023 Kentucky Derby hopefuls…

The principal action for Kentucky Derby 148 occurred more than 2000 miles west of Churchill Downs Thursday morning as Santa Anita Derby (GI) winner Taiba worked six furlongs in 1:12.80. "It was very straight forward," trainer Tim Yakteen said. "He worked three-quarters from the five-eighth pole. It was a typical Taiba work and we accomplished what…

According to Churchill Downs' Mike Battaglia's opening odds, thoroughbred contender Cyberknife is a 20-1 shot for Saturday's Kentucky Derby. Even if he doesn't win, his owner deserves a bouquet of roses or at least a glass of champagne. You see, Al Gold had more important things on his mind when he named his Chestnut colt. The prostate cancer he…

The Triple Crown season resumes following the Kentucky Derby when The Preakness Stakes returns to its traditional position. This legendary race, also known as "The Run for the Black-Eyed Susans" will once again blanket the winning colt or filly in Maryland's state flower. When is the Preakness Stakes 2022? On Saturday, May 21, 2022, the 147 annual…

A points-based system determines which 20 horses will load into the Churchill Downs starting gate on the first Saturday in May. Generally, the prep races that offer the most points are the most impactful. A total of 37 races comprise the USA Road to the Kentucky Derby schedule. The first 21 of those races is considered the Kentucky Derby prep…

Keeneland Barn Notes: Basin Gets Final Prep for G2 Blue Grass Stakes (Trainer Steve Asmussen / Photo by Holly M. Smith) From the Keeneland Media Team: GRADE 1 WINNER BASIN WORKS FOR TOYOTA BLUE GRASS Toyota Blue Grass (G2) hopeful Basin, who races for Terry Green's Jackpot Farm, was the first horse to breeze over Keeneland's fast track Monday when…

Kentucky Derby Past Performances and statistical view at the Run for the Roses. Since 1940, a lot of talk has been placed on a Kentucky Derby hopeful's final start and where they will prep and how well the past performances were. The interest in this annual right of passage for the owners of each horses and for Kentucky Derby handicappers as well…

The Bob Baffert-trained Gamine will try to establish herself as the top three-year-old filly in the country on Friday when she leaves the starting gate in the nation's top race for three-year-old fillies, the 2020 Kentucky Oaks at Churchill Downs. This daughter of Into Mischief has never trailed in any of her four career starts. She is coming off a…

The Road to the Kentucky Derby is back to its more traditional format after the pandemic forced last year's iteration to be heavily modified. This time, 46 prep races spread out over North America, Europe, Dubai and Japan will award points to the top four finishers in each designated race. Three of those prep races arrive this weekend - the Wood…

Derby day has arrived, as sports bettors worldwide are looking to cash in on "the most exciting two minutes in sports" with the running of the 148th Kentucky Derby. Starting positions have been set, and a post time of 6:57 p.m. ET means that the first leg of the Triple Crown will likely conclude before the clock strikes 7. The 2022 Kentucky Derby…

Clockers' Corner was not as crowded as it was two springs ago, but it still felt lively Thursday morning. Trainers Carla Gaines and Vlad Cerin brought around their dogs, who playfully breached whatever canine protocols there are for social distancing. Hall of Fame jockey Kent Desormeaux was the best-dressed gent in the joint, sporting a colorful…

As the dust settled on Rich Strike's improbable 81-1 victory in the 148th Kentucky Derby on Saturday, the question of who would challenge him in the Preakness Stakes on May 21 in Baltimore, Maryland began to make the rounds across the country. Rich Strike, a last-minute Derby entrant who got a dream trip under jockey Sonny Leon for trainer Eric…

There will be 20 horses lined up in the posts at Churchill Downs for Saturday's Kentucky Derby. And 1.25 miles later, one will be crowned the 2022 champion and go on to leave Louisville with the opportunity to try to capture the illustrious Triple Crown. This year's Derby field is fairly wide-open, as there's no clear-cut favorite. So The Most…

Welcome to 2023 Kentucky Derby Prospect Snapshots, where we'll take a look each week at a recent winner on the Triple Crown trail, usually from a race on the Road to the Kentucky Derby schedule. That schedule consists of prep races offering qualifying points for the Kentucky Derby, running from September 2022 through mid-April 2023. The 1…

Saturday's Coverage Kicks Off with Kentucky Derby Prep at Noon ET on USA Network Live Coverage from Churchill Downs Begins with Five Hours of Kentucky Oaks Day Races This Friday, May 6 at 1 p.m. ET on USA Network Peacock to Live Stream NBC's Triple Crown Horse Races for the First Time STAMFORD, Conn. - May 2, 2022 - NBC Sports presents the 148…

Blue Grass Stakes winner Zandon takes on older horses for the first time when he leaves the starting gate in the 2022 Cigar Mile on Saturday at Aqueduct Race Course. Trained by Chad Brown, Zandon has two wins, three seconds and three thirds in eight career starts. He is coming off a second place finish in the Pennsylvania Derby. He is the…

One horse won the Kentucky Derby and now faces disqualification (maybe) and banishment (definitely). That would make a second horse the new winner. A third horse won the Preakness. Then there is last year's 2-year-old champion, who lost as the Derby favorite this month, and a filly who has been beating every challenger among her gender and now may…

Zandon, shown winning the Grade I Blue Grass Stakes, runs in Saturday's Grade I Cigar Mile at Aqueduct. Photo courtesy of Keeneland Dec. 2 (UPI) -- Triple Crown contenders from the past three seasons will battle it out in a field of seven for one of this weekend's top races, the Grade I Cigar Mile at Aqueduct, where 2023 Kentucky Derby hopefuls…

The Kentucky Derby is the first leg of horse racing's Triple Crown and it will take place Saturday evening at Churchill Downs in Louisville. The year's derby will be one of the more interesting ones in recent memory since legendary trainer Bob Baffert will not be allowed at the track as he's serving a 90-day suspension. The ban was given to him by…

There may not be as much fanfare for the 2021 Belmont Stakes with no Triple Crown up for grabs, but there will be a crowd, which will be a welcomed sight for race officials. Last year's event was held behind closed doors, but roughly 11000 spectators will be inside Belmont Park for the 6:49 p.m. ET post time on Saturday evening. The Belmont Stakes…

Dimers.com provides exclusive sports betting content to PennLive.com, including picks, analysis, tools and sportsbook offers to help bettors get in on the action. Please wager responsibly. Zandon has opened as a 3-1 favorite to win the 148th running of the Kentucky Derby this Saturday. TVG is celebrating the first jewel of the Triple Crown in horse…

Horse of the Year honors could be on the line Saturday when the country's top dirt horses square off in North America's richest race, the 2020 Breeders' Cup Classic. Saturday's race features three of the top four horses in the National Thoroughbred Racing Association's Top Thoroughbred Poll: No. 1 Improbable, No. 2 Maximum Security and No. 4 Tom's…

The oldest stakes race in the country for three-year-olds will have its 153rd running on Saturday when the 2022 Travers Stakes will take place at Saratoga Race Course. First held in 1864, this 1 1/4 miles race is nicknamed the Midsummer Derby and offers a $1.25 million prize to the winner. The 2022 Travers Stakes field is stacked with multiple…

After last year's Preakness Stakes was postponed to October due to the coronavirus pandemic, the 2021 Preakness Stakes will return to its rightful spot on the third Saturday in May. Another change from last year will be the presence of spectators at Pimlico Race Course, with 10000 fans being admitted. That's still a far cry from the 51838 who…

A spot in the Kentucky Derby 2022 will be on the line when 11 three-year-olds leave the starting gate in the 2022 Rebel Stakes on Saturday at Oaklawn Park. The winner of the $1 million Rebel Stakes 2022 will receive 50 qualifying points towards the Kentucky Derby, all but guaranteeing himself a spot in the Run for the Roses on May 7. Trainer Bob…

Trainer Chad Brown will try to win the Pennine Ridge Stakes for a record third time when he sends out two horses -- the favored Unanimous Consent and Napoleonic War -- in the 2022 Pennine Ridge Stakes on Saturday at Belmont Park in Elmont, N.Y. The race, a nine-furlong turf race, has been around since 2014, and Brown won it in'16 with Camelot…

Saturday marks the 147th edition of the Run for the Roses, and there is plenty of history that could be made in the 2021 Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs. Louisville-born trainer Brad Cox will send out Essential Quality and Mandaloun in his first Derby appearance, as he seeks to become the first local trainer to win horse racing's biggest prize.…

A field of nine lightly raced three-year-old horses will try to take a step towards the 2022 Kentucky Derby when the starting gate opens on Saturday in the 2022 Holy Bull Stakes at Gulfstream Park. The Todd Pletcher-trained Mo Donegal is the 5-2 favorite in the 2022 Holy Bull Stakes odds. The Dale Romans-trained Giant Game is getting 7-2 in the…

The Chad Brown-trained Shantisara begins what her trainer hopes will be an Eclipse Award-winning season when she leaves the starting gate in the 2022 Jenny Wiley Stakes on Saturday at Keeneland Race Course in Lexington, Ky. A winner of five races in nine career starts, Shantisara makes the first start of her 4-year-old year. Brown says she's…

All 13 of the Triple Crown winners in horse racing history earned that signature victory at Belmont Park, which hosts the 2021 Belmont Stakes on Saturday evening. But none was greater than Secretariat's run in 1973, as the Triple Crown winner smoked the field by 31 lengths and set both the Belmont Stakes and world record for a 1 1/2-mile race in a…

French-born and Japan-based jockey Christophe Lemaire will try to transfer his international success to the United States when he leaves the starting gate aboard Crown Pride in the 2022 Kentucky Derby on Saturday at Churchill Downs. The 42-year-old Lemaire has led all Japan Racing Association jockeys in wins for five straight years. On Saturday, he…

Churchill Downs has hosted the Kentucky Derby continuously since 1875, making it the longest-running major American sporting event, but last year it faced one of its most serious challenges because of the coronavirus pandemic. The race was postponed to September and no fans were allowed in attendance, but the Kentucky Derby 2021 brings back…

The horses are nearing the starting gate for the 148th running of the Kentucky Derby. The post position draw and morning line oddswere released today, and the countdown to "the most exciting two minutes in sports" and America's most popular horse race is set. Post time for the Kentucky Derby from Churchill Downs in Louisville, KY is 6:57 p.m. ET on…

There are several horses with Triple Crown experience taking part in the 2022 Belmont Stakes on Saturday, but an inexperienced horse is the favorite. We the People, who has only raced four times in his career, is the 2-1 favorite in the 2022 Belmont Stakes odds. He is joined by Kentucky Derby winner Rich Strike (7-2) along with Churchill Downs…

Two Hall of Fame trainers -- D. Wayne Lukas and Todd Pletcher -- can tie the record for most Kentucky Oaks wins by a trainer when the starting gate opens in the 2022 Kentucky Oaks on Friday at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Ky. Both Lukas and Pletcher have won the Run for the Lilies four times, one shy of the record held by the great Woody…

Despite qualifying for the Kentucky Derby, trainer Chad Brown opted to hold Early Voting out of the first leg of the Triple Crown with designs on keeping him fresh for a run in the 2022 Preakness Stakes. It's a strategy that paid dividends for Brown in 2017, when he did the same with Cloud Computing, who went on to beat Classic Empire by a head.…

Longshot Kentucky Derby winner Rich Strike will try to match the feat of his father, Keen Ice, when he leaves the starting gate in the 2022 Travers Stakes on Saturday at Saratoga Race Course. In the 2015 Travers, Keen Ice, a 16-1 longshot, rallied past Triple Crown hero American Pharoah to post one of the most shocking upsets in the history of the…

Arguably the most exciting horse in training returns to the track on Saturday when Flightline leaves the starting gate in the 2022 Metropolitan Handicap, also known as the Met Mile, in Elmont, N.Y. A $1 million purchase three years ago, Flightline is undefeated in three career starts and has won by more than 37 combined lengths. He is the 3-5…

A spot in the Breeders' Cup Classic will be on the line when six of the best older horses in the country leave the starting gate in the 2022 Whitney Stakes on Saturday at Saratoga Race Course in Saratoga Springs, N.Y. The race has attracted five horses who have won at least $988000, topped by the $5.2 million earned by Hot Rod Charlie. However, the…

Jockey Flavien Prat has one Kentucky Derby victory and one Preakness Stakes win on his resume, but he remains in search of a triumph in the third leg of the Triple Crown. The 29-year-old Frenchman came close to completing the hat trick last year with Hot Rod Charlie, who was 1 1/4 lengths behind Essential Quality for a runner-up finish. Prat will…

A strong contingent of European horses meets some of the best turf 3-year-olds from the United States when the starting gate opens in the 2022 Belmont Derby on Saturday at Belmont Park in Elmont, N.Y. The European group is led by Stone Age and Nations Pride. Trained by Aidan O'Brien, Stone Age is the 9-2 morning-line favorite in the 2022 Belmont…

Trainer Todd Pletcher will try to set the all-time record for wins by a trainer in the Mother Goose Stakes when he sends out Shahama in the 2022 Mother Goose Stakes on Saturday at Belmont Park in Elmont, N.Y. The 54-year-old Pletcher has won the race six times and is tied with his mentor, D. Wayne Lukas, for the most Mother Goose wins ever.…