#San Felipe

This content was produced in partnership with Sean Miller. If you are a casual fan of horse racing, you will know the first Saturday in May is for the Kentucky Derby. But that is just the culmination of months worth of qualifying to get into the main race, let alone all the other races on Kentucky Oaks and derby day. That is where we are at now:…

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.…

Now we are talking Kentucky Derby preps. This time we mean it. Life Is Good can race across, up and down or diagonally through the San Felipe. Greatest Honour can close on pedestrian fractions in the Fountain of Youth. Concert Tour can be anointed prince of the Bob Baffert Invi … er … Rebel Stakes. Essential Quality can be forgotten with his…

ARCADIA - Taiba will be favored when a field of nine enters the starting gate for Monday's Malibu Stakes on opening day of Santa Anita's 47-day Classic Meet. The $300000 Malibu is one of three Grade I races, along with the La Brea and the American Oaks, on the 11-race card that begins at 11 a.m. There are also three Grade II events scheduled,…

Letruska edges Monomoy Girl in Saturday's $1 million Grade I Apple Blossom at Oaklawn Park. Photo by Coady Photography, courtesy of Oaklawn Park April 19 (UPI) -- Million-dollar races at Oaklawn Park produced a big upset and a potential star for the remainder of the year in highlights of horse racing this weekend. The Kentucky Derby field continued…

Saturday's Road to the Kentucky Derby schedule is one to watch, as three Championship Series races are key preps for bigger Kentucky Derby preps at the same tracks next month. This trio of races award 50 points to the winner and enough points to gain a spot in the starting gate for the Run for the Roses May 7 at Churchill Downs. Saturday, March…

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…

Santa Anita and Gulfstream Park will embark upon their inaugural 1/ST Saturday promotion tomorrow, featuring 15 stakes, six at Santa Anita and nine from Gulfstream. In addition to unrivaled world class racing, a number of outstanding wagering opportunities will be available, including a pair of one dollar Pick Fives with a low takeout of 12…

Like many front-runners, Knicks Go is an all-or-nothing proposition. As a 2-year-old, he wired the Breeders' Futurity by 5 1/2 lengths at odds of 70-1 and ran second at 40-1 in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile. Then the potential star turned into a nobody, losing his next nine races. Out of desperation, owner Korea Racing Authority replaced Ben Colebrook…

The undefeated Flightline can cement his legacy as one of the top horses in decades when he leaves the starting gate in the 2022 Breeders' Cup Classic on Saturday at Keeneland Race Course. A perfect 5-for-5 in his career, Flightline has won his starts by a combined 62 ¾ lengths, an average winning margin of 12 ½ lengths. The 126 Beyer Speed Figure…

Mike Willman/Santa Anita Press Releae ARCADIA, Calif. - With an Eclipse Award for top 3-year-old male potentially at stake on opening day, Monday, Dec. 26, nominations for Santa Anita's prestigious Grade I, $300000 Runhappy Malibu Stakes and five other graded offerings closed Monday with a total of 104 horses nominated for the Malibu, Grade I La…

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…

A strong second to Rich Strike, the surprising winner of the Kentucky Derby, Epicenter is the headliner of a field of nine set for Saturday's 147th edition of the $1.5 million Preakness Stakes. A brave runner-up in the Derby, the son of Not This Time is a three-time stakes winner for trainer Steve Asmussen. The biggest of his wins was the 1…

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…

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…

Reigning 2-year-old champion Echo Zulu will try to take a step toward another Eclipse Award when she leaves the starting gate in the 2022 Kentucky Oaks on Friday at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Ky. Trained by Steve Asmussen, Echo Zulu is a perfect 5-for-5 in her career. Last year, she won the Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies en route to earning…

Wet racetracks can create confusion for horse racing handicappers, and all week long it has appeared that Churchill Downs would be a sloppy mess for Saturday's 2020 Kentucky Derby. Instead, the 146th Run for the Roses will be contested under sunny skies and on a dry track. Does that mean overwhelming favorite Tiz the Law has a better chance at…

The road to the Kentucky Derby through New York culminates on Saturday when nine evenly matched 3-year-olds leave the starting gate in the 2021 Wood Memorial at Aqueduct Racetrack in Queens, N.Y. Both the winner, who will receive 100 qualifying points to the Derby, and the runner-up, who will receive 40, are likely to earn a berth in the Run for…

The Michael McCarthy-trained Smooth Like Strait will try to end a five-race losing streak when he leaves the starting gate in the 2022 Shoemaker Mile on Memorial Day at Santa Anita Park. A son of Midnight Lute, Smooth Like Strait has not won since going gate-to-wire to win last year's Shoemaker Mile over Say the Word. In five races since, he has…

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…

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…

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…

The Richard Mandella-trained Royal Ship will try to win the Grade 1 race that barely eluded him last year when he leaves the starting gate in the 2022 Hollywood Gold Cup on Memorial Day at Santa Anita Park. A son of Midshipman, Royal Ship had the lead with one furlong to go in last year's Hollywood Gold Cup before losing by a head to Country…

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.…

The post-Triple Crown season gets started in earnest on Saturday when the starting gate opens in the 2022 Haskell Stakes at Monmouth Park. The $1 million Haskell Stakes 2022 is the first major race for three-year-olds since the Belmont Stakes and traditionally serves as a prep race for the Travers Stakes next month in Saratoga. With the…

Hall of Famer D. Wayne Lukas will extend his record number of starters by a trainer when he saddles Kentucky Oaks winner Secret Oath in the 2022 Preakness Stakes on Saturday at Pimlico Race Course. Secret Oath will be the 46th starter for the 86-year-old Lukas, who has won the race six times. Bob Baffert is second among all trainers in Preakness…

The late-running Gufo will try to win a Grade 1 race for a third time when he leaves the starting gate in the 2022 Manhattan Stakes on Saturday in Elmont, N.Y. Trained by Christophe Clement, the 5-year-old Gufo has won almost $1.5 million in his career. He is the 3-1 morning-line favorite in the 2022 Manhattan Stakes odds. The Brendan Walsh-trained…

The brilliantly fast Forbidden Kingdom can prove that he can stretch his speed out to nine furlongs and be a major contender for the Kentucky Derby when he leaves the starting gate in the 2022 Santa Anita Derby on Saturday at Santa Anita Park. A son of 2015 Triple Crown winner American Pharoah, Forbidden Kingdom has three wins, one second and one…

Trainer Todd Pletcher will try to win the Haskell Stakes for the fourth time when he sends out the up-and-coming Following Sea in the 2021 Haskell Stakes on Saturday at Monmouth Park in Oceanport, N.J. The 54-year-old Pletcher, who will be inducted into racing's Hall of Fame next month, won the race in 2006 (Bluegrass Cat), '07 (Any Given Saturday)…

Like a good honor student, Forbidden Kingdom aced his first try around two turns Saturday at Santa Anita while stamping himself as the horse to beat in next month's Santa Anita Derby. Sent postward as the even-money favorite, Forbidden Kingdom went gate to wire to win the $400000 Grade II San Felipe Stakes by 5¾ lengths under Juan Hernandez for…

After almost four months of waiting, the 2020 Kentucky Derby is finally ready to go off Saturday from historic Churchill Downs. When the 16-horse 2020 Kentucky Derby field is called to the post at 7:01 p.m. ET, a normally raucous Churchill Downs will be eerily quiet due to no spectators in the grandstands or infield. Favorites have lost 12 of the…

It will be a different Haskell this year. The name of Monmouth Park's signature race has been changed to the Haskell Stakes from the Haskell Invitational because the coronavirus pandemic moved the Kentucky Derby from its traditional the first spot of the first Saturday in May to Sept. 5. As a result of the date change of the Kentucky Derby, the…

With three different Derby points races on Saturday and many other graded stakes races, fans can watch racing all day and not get bored. From a betting standpoint, the Grade 2, $750000 Wood Memorial Stakes at Aqueduct, Grade 1, $1 million Blue Grass Stakes at Keeneland and Grade 1, $750000 Santa Anita Derby appear chalky. Players need to either go…

Making the Grade, which will run through the 2018 Belmont Stakes, focuses on the winners or top performers of the key races, usually from the previous weekend, who could impact the Triple Crown. We'll be taking a close look at impressive winners and evaluating their chances to win classic races based upon ability, running style, connections (owner,…

Cal-bred champ doing'Super' for Santa Ana; Mandella says United up to speed in training ARCADIA, Calif.- Doug O'Neill hopes The Great One rebounds from his disappointing fifth-place finish behind recently sidelined Life Is Good in the Grade II San Felipe Stakes on March 6 when he runs in the Grade I Runhappy Santa Anita Derby next Saturday, April…

Yibir, shown winning the 2022 Breeders' Cup Turf, preps for another American invasion with a start Friday at Newmarket in England. Photo by Carolyn Simancik/Eclipsesportswire, courtesy of Breeders' Cup April 29 (UPI) -- With a week to go before the Kentucky Derby, there's plenty of racing action to keep fan interest alive with Breeders' Cup runners…

Pool 3 of the 2022 Kentucky Derby Future Wager opens its three-day run on Friday, and Brisnet.com editors James Scully and Vance Hanson have reached a consensus on an individual entry. Both will also offer a bonus contender they're interested in backing this weekend. Although not thrilled with the early price on #9 Forbidden Kingdom (10-1), we'll…

Barely more than one month remains until the Kentucky Derby (G1) on the first Saturday in May. The Kentucky Oaks (G1), held one day prior, is also rapidly approaching. News and notes are coming fast and furious, so let's dive in and see what's happening. A trio of Kentucky Derby qualifiers worth 100-40-20-10 points to the top four finishers took…

The Breeders' Cup prep season begins to draw to a close beginning this weekend, with major domestic stakes at Aqueduct, Churchill Downs, and Santa Anita on Saturday. There's also significant racing on both Saturday and Sunday at Longchamp in Paris, site of the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe (G1). The TwinSpires Jury of James Scully, Kellie Reilly, and…

Imagine a race day like no other. Two legendary racetracks 15 stakes races 14 graded stakes Coast-to-coast Pick 5's on dirt and turf with a low 12-percent takeout The chance to win a $5 million sweepstakes An Ultimate Betting Challenge Welcome to 1/ST Saturday, an extraordinary, unprecedented and innovative day of Thoroughbred racing Saturday,…

Trainer Bob Baffert can add to his record number of wins by a trainer when he sends out Taiba in the 2022 Breeders' Cup Classic on Saturday at Keeneland Race Course. The 69-year-old Baffert has won the race four times, most recently with Authentic in the 2020 Classic, which also was held at Keeneland. No other trainer has won the Breeders' Cup…

Travers Stakes winner Epicenter can cap off a sensational three-year-old season when he leaves the starting gate in the 2022 Breeders' Cup Classic on Saturday at Keeneland Race Course. Trained by Steve Asmussen, Epicenter has four wins, including the Travers, and three runner-up finishes in 2022 and is one of the major contenders for champion…

Editor's note: This is the Thursday, Nov. 3 edition of the "Game Day with Kevin Modesti" newsletter. To receive the newsletter in your inbox, . Today's Q&A with horse racing writer Art Wilson and handicapper Bob Mieszerski about this week's Breeders' Cup should interest readers who already follow racing and others who wonder what the fuss is…

Post positions have been drawn for Saturday's 2022 Breeders' Cup Classic, and the undefeated Flightline drew perfectly in what may be the final race of his brilliant career. A perfect 5-for-5, Flightline was assigned post No. 4 in the middle of the eight-horse 2022 Breeders' Cup Classic field. He's the 3-5 favorite in the 2022 Breeders' Cup Classic…

An inside look at how the 148th Kentucky Derby will shape up: Jockey: Irad Ortiz Jr. Trainer: Todd Pletcher Current Form: Ran evenly for third behind White Abarrio in the shorter Holy Bull, then rode the rail to victory in the Wood Memorial. Worth a Wager: Finished full of run after saving ground in the Wood. Draws rail again. Figure top jock Irad…

Longshot Kentucky Derby winner Rich Strike will try to pull off another shocking upset when he leaves the starting gate in the 2022 Breeders' Cup Classic on Saturday at Keeneland Race Course. Six months ago, Rich Strike became the second biggest longshot to win the Kentucky Derby when he crossed the finish line at 80-1 odds. Since then, he is…

Classic Causeway, shown winning the Sam F. Davis Stakes earlier in the meeting, is morning-line favorite for Saturday's Tampa Bay. SV Photography photo, courtesy of Tampa Bay Downs March 11 (UPI) -- With the Kentucky Derby picture still very much uncertain, Saturday's Tampa Bay Derby looms as a golden opportunity for one or more of the 3-year-olds…

Trainer John Sadler will try to win for just the second time when he saddles the undefeated Flightline in the 2022 Breeders' Cup Classic on Saturday at Keeneland Race Course. The 66-year-old Sadler won the Breeders' Cup Classic in 2018 with Accelerate, his only winner among six all-time starters in the race. On Saturday, he goes for No. 2 with…

It will be a different Haskell this year. The $1 million TVG.com Haskell Stakes at Monmouth Park has been changed from an invitational and will serve as a Kentucky Derby prep race, with the Run for the Roses shifted from May 2 to Sept 5 due to the coronavirus pandemic. There will be 170 qualifying points available toward the Derby in the Haskell…