#Spring Meet

It is sometimes called the most important turf meeting in the U.S. this side of the Breeders' Cup. But is the Arlington Million card really all that? The ingredients are certainly there. Impressive purses for three Grade 1 races that have endured for more than three decades. Horses from around the world representing the sport's biggest powerhouse…

Justify, ridden by jockey Mike Smith, crosses the finish line to win the 144th running of the Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs on May 5, 2018, in Louisville, Kentucky. Rob Carr/Getty Images The 145th Kentucky Derby takes place this weekend at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky. The first event of the Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing, the…

Keeneland Announces Spring Stakes Schedule (Keeneland / Photos by Holly M. Smith) From the Keeneland Media Team: Keeneland will award a season record $8.05 million for 19 stakes to be run during its 2023 Spring Meet, which will cover 15 days from April 7-28. Leading the schedule are the 99 running of the $1 million Toyota Blue Grass (G1) and 86…

Keeneland will award a season record $8.05 million for 19 stakes to be run during its 2023 Spring Meet, which will cover 15 days from April 7-28. Leading the schedule are the 99 running of the $1 million Toyota Blue Grass (G1) and 86 running of the $600000 Central Bank Ashland (G1), both major targets of the nation's top 3-year-olds. Keeneland has…

The Road to the Kentucky Derby series opened in late September, but the prep season doesn't get into full swing until the New Year. And the first qualifier of 2023 took place at Oaklawn Park on New Year's Day, the Smarty Jones. Twenty-six additional point races will be offered for the May 6 Kentucky Derby (G1) over the next 3 1/2 months. Let's…

While opening day of the Santa Anita winter/spring meet is traditionally scheduled on the 26th of December, it is also considered the ceremonial start of the next year. If Monday's festivities are a harbinger of what is to come, 2023 should be a pretty good year. Under a perfect southern California winter sky, a massive, enthusiastic crowd of…

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,…

From the Turfway Park Media Team: Lucrative purse money and Kentucky Derby qualifying points will be on the line during Turfway Park's annual Winter/Spring Meet, which will begin Sunday, Jan. 1 and feature the Grade III, $700000 Jeff Ruby Steaks on Saturday, March 25. Led by the Jeff Ruby Steaks on the Road to the Kentucky Derby presented by…

Ramon Vazquez / 7 Edwin Maldonado / 5 TRAINERS / WINS Philip D'Amato / 8 Doug O'Neill / 7 Bob Baffert / 6 Peter Miller / 5 George Papaprodromou / 4 Friday • $175000 Real Good Deal Stakes, 3-year-olds bred in CA, 7 furlongs Saturday • $400000 Grade I Clement L. Hirsch Stakes, fillies and mares, 3-year-olds and up, 1 1/16 miles • $150000 California…

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…

The annual Dec. 26 start of the Santa Anita season has a natural, anticipatory, turn-the-page vibe to it. But this mark-your-calendar Opening Day mainstay hasn't always been a post-holiday tradition. Although Santa Anita has kicked off its winter/spring meet on the day after Christmas every year since 1977, the track originally opened in 1934 on…

Horse racing fans get the holiday gift they really want - albeit a day late - when the SoCal winter racing season celebrates its traditional post-Christmas opening day on Dec. 26 at Santa Anita Park. That date marks the start of a new season in racing at the Arcadia, Calif., track and kicks off one of the country's premier annual winter/spring race…

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…

By Pat McKenna - NYRA Press Office OZONE PARK, N.Y.- The New York Racing Association, Inc. (NYRA) today announced the stakes schedule for the 2023 spring meet at Aqueduct Racetrack, featuring 14 stakes worth nearly $2.8 million in total purses. The 19-day spring meet will open on March 30 and continue through April 30. Live racing will be conducted…

Lucrative purse money and Kentucky Derby qualifying points will be on the line during Turfway Park's annual Winter/Spring Meet, which will begin Sunday, Jan. 1 and feature the Grade 3, $700000 Jeff Ruby Steaks on Saturday, March 25. Led by the Jeff Ruby Steaks on the Road to the Kentucky Derby presented by Woodford Reserve, Turfway Park will offer…

Keeneland Barn Notes: Blue Grass Winner Zandon Zooms in Pre-Derby Work (Zandon in his work at Keeneland / Coady Photography) From the Keeneland Media Team: TOYOTA BLUE GRASS WINNER ZANDON TUNES UP FOR KENTUCKY DERBY WITH KEENELAND WORK Jeff Drown's Zandon, winner of Keeneland's $1 million Toyota Blue Grass (G1) on April 9, worked 4 furlongs…

Keeneland's 15-day Spring Meet begins on Friday, offering a loaded weekend featuring 10 stakes worth $4.55 million. But this being Keeneland in the spring, many eyes are focused on just one stable. That would be Wesley Ward's, he of the three consecutive Keeneland Spring Meet training titles. Ward comes into the 2022 meet loaded as ever in his…

Mo Donegal rallied in deep stretch to get up in the final strides to take the 97th running of the $750000, Grade 2, Wood Memorial at Aqueduct on Saturday. After a slow start, Mo Donegal and pilot Joel Rosario settled comfortably towards the rear of the pack while Early Voting and Jose Ortiz set the pace in the 1-1/8 mile event. Mo Donegal saved…

Patrons at Omaha's Horsemen's Park will find the simulcast wagering area much smaller than in the past, but an official says it's all for the greater good. The main simulcast facility at 63rd & Q closed its doors two weeks ago following the busy Breeders Cup weekend. In its place is a temporary home - a trailer that seats about 130 - until the…

After a record-setting $28.1 million was bet at Keeneland for Blue Grass Day, Week 2 of the four-week spring meet features five more prominent stakes races going off Friday or Saturday. The Kentucky Derby trail quiets a bit after a flurry of major preps in recent weeks, but potential Preakness players will be in action in Keeneland's Lexington…

Aqueduct Racetrack is kicking off the weekend early... They have a full slate of races that are all set! It's the day before the Wood Memorial... check out these free picks! Race 1: 1-5-1-2 Race 2: 5(MTO)-9-5-1-6 Race 3: 4(MTO)-6-3-1-9 Race 4: 1-3-4-6 Race 5: 4-5-1-3 Race 6: 7(MTO)-5-2-3-1 Race 7: 7-3-1-2 Race 8: 6-3-7-5 **Most Likely: Khali Magic…

Like the national open stakes schedule on this first post-Breeders' Cup weekend, the TwinSpires Jury has a slimmed-down look this week. James Scully and Vance Hanson opine with their best opinions on a weekend that includes the 2022 Claiming Crown at Churchill Downs. James Scully: #2 Divine Leader in Saturday's ninth race at Churchill Downs, the…

One year ago, trainer Todd Pletcher's filly Malathaat started her 3-year-old campaign with a late rally to win Ashland Stakes by a head. The victory launched her to an Eclipse Award-winning season that also included Grade 1 wins in the Kentucky Oaks and Alabama Stakes. Pletcher will hope for similar things Friday and beyond with Nest (2-1),…

Art Collector came through with a masterpiece in the $600000 Toyota Blue Grass Stakes (G2) at Keeneland on Saturday, rolling past the filly Swiss Skydiver near the eighth-pole and cruising to a 3 ½-length victory. Sent off as the second choice just behind slight favorite Swiss Skydiver, Art Collector stamped himself as a Kentucky…

Churchill Downs To Offer Special "Wagering Menu" for KY Derby Week (Twin Spires of Churchill Downs / Coady Photography) From the Churchill Downs Media Team: A new $3 All-3-Year-Old Pick 3 and a 50-cent All-Dirt, All-Stakes Pick 5 that close with the $3 million Kentucky Derby presented by Woodford Reserve (Grade I), highlight the spectacular…

BALNIKHOV TO WAIT UNTIL THE DEL MAR DERBY SEPTEMBER 3 Little Red Feather Racing, et al's Balnikhov brought a baggage full of promise with him when he arrived from Ireland at the first of the year. He finally met those expectations Friday afternoon on Opening Day at Del Mar when the 3-year old son of Adaay dropped down on the rail and surged to…

It showed up like clockwork last week in my email. Remember email? About 240 of us voters for the Eclipse Awards received our annual packets of digital information, complete with the usual advice to tamp an eagerness we may have to cast an early ballot. "It is strongly encouraged," the instructions said, "that you consider waiting to vote until…

Sprinting on the Haggin Turf Course will take center stage... J.N. Campbell has a price play in the Sunday "feature." And just like... that...

Bob Baffert has dominated Santa Anita's Grade 1, $300000 American Pharoah Stakes, winning it nine times. The trainer enters the race's 2021 edition with three of the seven entrants. Yet, this running comes with the caveat that none of Baffert's runners can earn qualifying points Friday toward the first Saturday in May. Baffert trains Corniche, 6-5…

We're about a third of the way into Santa Anita's winter-spring meet, so let's check in with the track's general manager, Nate Newby. In this Q&A session, we find out how Newby feels about the short field sizes that have plagued the track so far, how business has gone through the first seven weeks and if the Arcadia track is still in the running to…

Live Racing Returns to Churchill Downs on Sunday for 19-Day Fall Meet (Churchill Downs / Photos by Holly M. Smith) From the Churchill Downs Media Team: Thoroughbred racing in Kentucky shifts from Keeneland to Churchill Downs on Sunday as the home of the Kentucky Derby readies to open its 133 Fall Meet with an 11-race program - all for promising…

Don't panic, fans. These four dark days at Santa Anita are not the result of a lack of enthusiasm at the entry box or some mandated shutdown. No, the brief pause in racing action was planned long before Santa Anita's winter-spring meet began Dec. 26. Action will resume Saturday, April 30, with a card that includes four graded stakes races - the…

LEXINGTON, Ky. - Exceptional Thoroughbred racing fueled by record prize money along with exciting special events and inviting wagering offerings fill Keeneland's Fall Meet, which opens Friday for 17 days through Saturday, Oct. 29. The season precedes the Breeders' Cup World Championships, which Keeneland will host Nov. 4-5 for the third time. The…

Toyota Blue Grass returns to $1 million; Central Bank Ashland moves to opening day LEXINGTON, Ky. - Keeneland revitalizes the 2022 Spring Meet with record $7.7 million in awards. 19 stakes will be run during the meet to be held from April 8-29. The new schedule features increased purses for all stakes and significant changes to the season's two…

Fulsome Could Break Out in Saturday's Ack Ack Stakes From the Churchill Downs Media Team: (Fulsome / Photos by Holly M. Smith) COX HOPES FULSOME FINDS PACE IN ACK ACK - Juddmonte's multiple graded stakes winner Fulsome will attempt to tally his third victory at Churchill Downs in Saturday's $300000 Ack Ack, and trainer Brad Cox hopes the 4-year-old…

LOUISVILLE, Ky.- Juddmonte's multiple graded stakes winner Fulsome will attempt to tally his third victory at Churchill Downs in Saturday's $300000 Ack Ack, and trainer Brad Cox hopes the 4-year-old Into Mischief colt will have a good pace set-up in the one-mile event. Fulsome has won eight races in his career and most recently closed from three…

Nest Could Be A Star In The Making; Undefeated Sy Dog Might Head To Royal Ascot; Brinkman Has Big Plans Old Homestead LESINGTON, Ky.-Lucky Seven Stable's Smile Happy is the 9-5 morning-line choice in a field of 12 3-year-olds entered in today's 98th running of the $1 million Toyota Blue Grass (G1) going 1 1/8 miles on the main track. $1 million…

Swiss Skydiver takes on a talented field of 12 colts in Saturday's $600000 Toyota Blue Grass Stakes; Six fillies vie for Kentucky Oaks points in the $400000 Central Bank Ashland (G1) LEXINGTON, Ky. - Peter Callahan's Swiss Skydiver will try to put herself on the Kentucky Derby (G1) trail Saturday when she takes on males in a field of 13 horses…

Mark Beecher, a Fallston-based amateur jockey, took the inside trip with Upland Partners' Mystic Strike in Saturday's $50000 My Lady's Manor, surged to the lead at the final fence, and held off a hard-charging Witor to win Saturday's 109th running of the Maryland timber classic. Bruton Street-US's Lemony Bay finished third on a sunny, pleasantly…

LEXINGTON, KY (Feb. 24, 2022) - L and N Racing and Winchell Thoroughbreds' champion Echo Zulu, who capped off a perfect 2021 campaign with a victory in the NetJets Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies (G1) at Del Mar, and Dawn and Ike Thrash's Turnerloose, winner of the Rachel Alexandra (G2) last Saturday at Fair Grounds in her dirt debut, headline the…

Lothenbach Stables' Bell's the One will meet her rival Sconsin for the eighth time Saturday in the $300000 Open Mind Stakes at Churchill Downs, and trainer Neil Pessin hopes she can avenge her defeat from last year's race. Bell's the One got the better of Sconsin by 2 1/2 lengths in the Lady Tak one month ago. In last year's Open Mind, Bell's the…

Handicapper J. Keeler Johnson shares picks and plays for Friday, Sept. 16 at Churchill Downs and Belmont at the Big A, including tickets for Churchill's $2986 Super High 5 carryover. Churchill Downs Bet Back: Receive refunds on win bets (up to $10) if your horse finishes second in select races at Churchill Downs. $3000 Los Alamitos…

Keeneland Barn Notes: Champ Letruska Returns to Regular Work (Letruska / Photos by Holly M. Smith) From the Keeneland Media Team: CHAMPION LETRUSKA RETURNS TO KEENELAND WORK TAB St. George Stable's Letruska, who made Keeneland her main base of operations during an Eclipse Award-winning campaign in 2021, worked 5 furlongs in 1:02.40 over a fast…

Churchill Downs Ready To Pop Gate on September Meet (Set Piece gets a morning bath at Churchill Downs / Photos by Holly M. Smith) From the Churchill Downs Media Team: Horse racing on the Kentucky circuit shifts to Churchill Downs on Thursday, Sept. 15 with the first of three Twilight Thursday programs at 5 p.m. (all times Eastern) as the famed…

Kentucky Downs is back... The pear-shaped all-turf course is once again hosting a limited meet here in September! Today, we are going to take a look at the Late Pick 4... what a run! Race 1: 3-10-1-12 Race 2: 12-3-7-6 Race 3: 6-7-3-5 Race 4: 11-4-2-9 Race 5: 2-11-4-6 Race 6: 5-7-3-9 Race 7: 6-7-1-12 Race 8: 2-10-6-11 Race 9: 4-1-5-12 Race 10:…