Nyquist Archives - Page 2 of 3

May 18, 2016May 19, 2016

Preview Pimlico’s Preakness

Share This:

The 141st running of the Grade I Preakness Stakes will take place this Saturday, 5/21/16. I will be betting on Nyquist (update: that is him pictured above), our latest Kentucky Derby winner! He was just announced as the morning line favorite with 3/5 morning-line odds immediately following the post position draw. Here is the full field:

Post Position: Horse/Jockey/Trainer/Owner/M-L Odds

Cherry Wine/Corey Lanerie/Dale Romans/William Pacella and Frank L. Jones, Jr./20-1
Uncle Lino/Fernando Hernandez Perez/Gary Sherlock/Tom Mansor, Purple Shamrock Racing and Gary Sherlock/20-1
Nyquist/Mario Gutierrez/Doug O’Neill/Reddham Racing/3/5
Awesome Speed/Jevian Toledo/Alan Golberg/Colts Neck Stables/30-1
Exaggerator/Kent Desormeaux/Keith Dersormeaux/Big Cheif Racing, Head of Plains Parteners, Rocker O Ranch, et al./3-1
Lani/Yutaka Take/Mikio Matsunaga/Yoko Maeda/30-1
Collected/Javier Castellano/Bob Baffert/Speedway Stable/10-1
Laoban/Florent Geroux/Eric Guillot/McCormick Racing and Southern Equine Stable/30-1
Abiding Star/J.D. Acosta/Edward Allard/Stonehinge, LLC/30-1
Fellowship/Jose Lezcanno/Mark Casse/Jacks or Better Farm/30-1
Stradivari/John Velazquez/Todd Pletcher/John Gunther, Michael Tabor, Derrick Smith and John Magnier/8-1

While the Preakness Stakes is eligible to 14 Thoroughbreds only these 11 will be participating. That is 3 more than last year’s small field when American Pharoah became the 14th horse to take the Kentucky Derby and the Preakness Stakes. He went on to win at the Belmont Stakes and the Breeders’ Cup Classic to become our 12th Triple Crown winner and our first Grand Slam winner. The competition is tough to see if Nyquist can follow in those horseshoes.

Cherry Wine was an “also eligible” as the 22nd horse in a 20 post position race for the Kentucky Derby but he did not get his chance that day. He is a lovely grey late bloomer. It took him 5 starts to break his maiden. His last 2 of 8 career races were graded stakes. He finished 4th in the Rebel Stakes and then 3rd in the Blue Grass Stakes. In all he has 2 wins, 1 place and has come in third twice. American Pharoah won from post position 1 in last year’s Preakness.

Uncle Lino wasn’t in the Kentucky Derby. His last race out was the California Chrome Stakes. He finished 1st place with his only win since he broke his maiden his second start. Out of his 7 races he has been twice at each 1st, 2nd and 3rd place. He has has finished in the top four of all three of his graded stakes, Robert B. Lewis, San Felipe and Santa Anita Derby. His sire is Uncle Mo, making him a half brother to Nyquist and Laoban and Abiding Star.

Nyquist is the favorite and I have written about him a few times if you want a more complete history on him check on my webpage, ThoroughbredU.com. He is undefeated in 8 starts and he wants to keep that title. He just won the KY Derby by 1 and 1/4 lengths on 5/7/16. California Chrome won the Preakness from post position 3 in 2014. Secretariat liked this post in 1973.

Awesome Speed has finished 1st in 4 of his 6 career starts however, he was 4th in his only graded stakes race, the Fountain of Youth. His connections have noted that he has bumped around a lot in his last couple of races. He is a pacemaker in his running style.

Exaggerator ran an exciting late sprint to earn 2nd to Nyquist in the KY Derby. He is 1 of only 3 horses from that race to step up to the Preakness challenge. His sire, Curlin, won the 2007 Preakness. To read more about Exaggerator, look back to my KY derby story.

Lani is the final horse to return from this past KY Derby. This lovely grey son of Tapit finished 9th in the KY Derby. Lani is described in more detail in my former KY Derby story. His dam sire, Sunday Silence, won the Preakness in 1989.

Collected is trained by Bob Baffert. Baffert has won the Preakness with Silver Charm, Real Quiet, Point Given, War Emblem, Lookin At Lucky and American Pharoah. In 6 career starts, Collected has 4 wins and a finish in 2nd place as well. He has won 2 of his 4 graded stakes races. These were the Cecile B. DeMille, Sham, Southwest and Lexington Stakes.

Laoban was the other “also eligible” that missed the KY Derby by a post. One of the 4 sired by Uncle Mo he is a front runner but also he has never won a race! Despite that, his connections have raced him 5 times and 3 of those where graded stakes, the Sham, Gotham and Blue Grass Stakes.

Abiding Star is the 4th and final horse sired by Uncle Mo in this race. He has had an amazing 11 career starts in which he has won 5 times and finished at 2nd and 3rd place each once. It took him 7 times to break his maiden. He has never ran in a graded stakes race, however he is on a five race winning streak.

Fellowship is trained by Mark Casse. He is the trainer of one of my favorite Thoroughbreds, Tepin. Fellowship has had a total of 12 starts. He has finished 1st two times and 2nd and 3rd three times each. He raced at Churchill Downs on KY Derby day in the Pat Day Mile where he finished fourth. That race was his fourth graded stakes race. He is of the Secretariat lineage.

Stradivari is the final horse in the Preakness. He has only been in 3 races. He won the last two. These were not stakes races. To my personal surprise, his trainer Todd Pletcher, despite all his fame, has never won the Preakness. Pletcher was 3rd in 2000 with Impeachment.

Preakness Fun Facts:

the food of the day, crabcakes
the flower, Black-Eyed Susans
the blanket is actually made of Viking Poms
the race is “The Run for the Black-Eyed Susans”
the song, “Maryland, My Maryland”
the trophy, a silver replica of the 1860 Woodlawn Vase
the track record, 1:55 set by Secretariat
the drink is also the Black-Eyed Susan
post time is 6:45 PM EST
NBCSN will televise starting at 2:30 PM EST
NBC will televise starting at 6:30 PM EST
Pimlico starts racing at 10:30 AM EST that day and the Preakness is the 13th race
the race is 1 and 3/16 miles or 9.5 furlongs on the dirt
the race is for 3YO Thoroughbreds

I hope everyone finds this info useful and helpful for their Preakness Stakes planning. Check back after the race for another blog post. Go, Nyquist, go! Let’s wish the rain holds off this year.

Share This:

May 14, 2016May 14, 2016

California Chrome Concisely

Share This:

It’s back to work for California Chrome! Today, 5/14/16, Chrome returned to the Los Alamitos Quarter Horse track in California to work 3 furlongs. He was clocked on the fast dirt with a time of 36.20 and rank 13/36. This is his first workout since he won the $10 million dollar Dubai World Cup on 3/26/16.

California Chrome was foaled at Harris Farms in California on 2/18/11. He is the champion son of Lucky Pulpit and Love the Chase by Not For Love. His breeders are Perry Martin and Steve Coburn. Martin and Taylor Made Farm are his current owners. Chrome is trained by Art Sherman and his jockey is Victor Espinoza. California Chrome is a good looking and well behaved horse. That made him attractive to fans early on. Chrome, also known as Junior, was thrust into stardom when he won the Kentucky Derby in 2014. He has had 21 career starts that have made him the wealthiest in earnings for any Thoroughbred in North America, in all of racing history. He has earned $12,532,650 in his lifetime. He holds two Eclipse Awards. Following the Dubai World Cup, Junior came to Taylor Made Farm in Kentucky to rest up but after last weekend’s Kentucky Derby he headed back to California.

California Chrome has many more races to win before he retires to stud. His connections have him pointed towards a 3 race bonus opportunity. Santa Anita and Del Mar tracks will reward an additional $1 million dollars to the horse that can win the Pacific Classic, the Awesome Again Stakes and the Breeders’ Cup Classic. Chrome was third in the 2014 BC Classic. To prepare for the bonus threesome Chrome will first take on the $200,000 Grade II San Diego Handicap. Following the BC Classic he may race in the inaugural Pegasus World Cup. This race will top the Dubai World Cup by becoming the world’s richest race, offering a purse of $12 million dollars. Here is Chrome’s predicted path:

San Diego Handicap 7/23/16 at Del Mar in California
Pacific Classic 8/20/16 at Del Mar
Awesome Again Stakes 10/1/16 at Santa Anita in California
Breeders’ Cup Classic 11/5/16 at Santa Anita
Pegasus World Cup 1/28/17 at Gulfstream Park in Florida

Earlier this week Longines announced that California Chrome is still tied for the World’s Best Racehorse with Winx. They are both ranked number one with a rating of 126. Last week’s KY Derby win by another California bred horse put Nyquist on the chart in a 4 way tie for rank 2 and an 124 rating.

Let’s hope Chrome continues to be all smiles as he continues his impressive career. I wish that he will sweep all of these races and then I look forward to the day he begins his stud career at Taylor Made. I can’t wait to cast my eyes upon some Chrome babies! Until then keep sharing and as always, thank you for reading my posts!

Share This:

May 5, 2016May 5, 2016

Derby Deciphered

Share This:

It is hard to contain my enthusiasm with only 2 days to go until the 142nd Kentucky Derby. Post time is 6:34 P.M. EST on 5/7/16 at Churchill Downs in Louisville, KY. The KY Derby Undercard can be watched from 12 PM to 4 PM on NBCSN and then NBC will broadcast coverage from 4 PM to 7:30 PM EST.

The Longines Kentucky Derby has taken place annually since 1875. The race is held on the first Saturday of May. The track is dirt and is raced 10 furlongs, 1 and 1/4 miles. Contenders are 3 year old Thoroughbreds that were selected from a points system in 35 qualifying races. Points are awarded to the 1st four finishers on those races. The first race, on the road to the KY Derby, was the Iroquois held at Churchill Downs on 9/12/15. The last race to qualify in was the Lexington at Keeneland on 4/16/16. Last evening 22 horses drew post positions. 20 will race, the final 2 are “also eligible” if there is a scratch before 9 A.M EST on 5/6/16. The field is as follows:

Post position. Horse/Jockey/Trainer/Owner

Trojan Nation/Aaron T. Gryder/Patrick Gallagher/Julie Gilbert and Aaron Sones
Suddenbreakingnews/Luis Quinonez/Donnie Von Hemel/Samuel F. Henderson
Creator/Ricardo Santana Jr./Steven Asmussen/WinStar Farm LLC
Mo Tom/Corey J. Lanerie/Thomas M. Amoss/GMB Racing
Gun Runner/Florent Geroux/Steven M. Asmussen/Winchell Thoroughbreds LLC, Three Chimneys Farm LLC and Besilu Stables
My Man Sam/Irad Ortiz Jr./Chad C. Brown/Sheep Pond Partners, Newport Stables LLC and Jay W. Bligh
Oscar Nominated/Julien R Leparoux/Michael Maker/Ken and Sarah Ramsey
Lani/Yutaka Take/Mikio Matsunaga/Koj Maeda/North Hills Co Limited
Destin/Javier Castellano/Todd Pletcher/Twin Creeks Racing Stables LCC and Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners
Whitmore/Victor Espinoza/Ron Moquett/Robert LaPenta, Harry Rosenblum and Southern Springs Stables
Exaggerator/Kent J. Desormeaux/J. Keith Desormeaux/Big Cheif Racing LLC, Head of Plains Partners LLC, Rocker O Ranck LLC, et al.
Tom’s Ready/Brian Joseph Hernandez Jr./Dallas Stewart/GMB Racing
Nyquist/Mario Gutierrez/Doug F. O’Neill/Reddam Racing
Mohaymen/Junior Alvarado/Kiaran McLaughlin/Shadwell Stable
Outwork/John Velazquez/Todd Pletcher/Repole Stable
Shagaf/Joel Rosario/Chad C. Brown/Shadwell Stable
Mor Spirit/Gary Stevens/Bob Baffert/Michael Lund Petersen
Majesto/Emisael Jaramillo/Gustavo Delgado/Grupo 7 C Racing Stable
Brody’s Cause/Luis Saez/Dale L. Romans/Albaugh Family Stable
Danzing Candy/Mike E. Smith/Clifford W. Sise Jr./Halo Farms and Jim and Dianne Bashor
“Also Eligible” Laoban
“Also Eligible” Cherry Wine

Trojan Nation has not even broken his maiden in 6 starts but he received his qualifying Derby points when he finished 2nd in the Grade 1 Wood Memorial Stakes at Aqueduct on 4/9/16. His dam sire, Summer Squall, was 2nd in the KY Derby in 1990. Ferdinand was the last horse that won the KY Derby from post position 1 and that was back in 1986.

Suddenbreakingnews has raced 8 times with 7 times winning or placing. He is experienced in 3 graded stakes races that are all KY Derby select races. He got his points in the Arkansas Derby, 2nd, and the Southwest Stakes, 1st, while he was a disappointing 5th place finisher in the Rebel Stakes. His dam sire, Afleet Alex, was 3rd in the 2005 KY Derby.

Creator also has 8 starts behind him. He has finished in the top 3 in 7 races. He is a lovely grey son of Tapit. Juba, my favorite horse is sired by Tapit. Lani and Mohaymen are also sired by Tapit. Creator did better in both the Rebel, 3rd, and the Arkansas Derby, he was the winner, than Suddenbreakingnews who ran 5th and 2nd respectively.

Mo Tom has finished 1st or 3rd in 6 of 7 races. He is the offspring of Uncle Mo as are Nyquist and Outwork. Mo Tom ran in 4 KY Derby qualifying graded stakes races and gathered points in each of them. He was 3rd in the KY Jockey Club, 1st in the LeComte, 3rd in the Risen Star and 4th in the Louisiana Derby.

Gun Runner, son of Candy Ride, has participated in 5 races and won all but the KY Jockey Club Stakes when he came in 4th, right behind Mo Tom. He beat out Mo Tom in 2 other graded stakes when he won both the Risen Star and the Louisiana Derby. He shares a trainer with Creator. California Chrome won the KY Derby from post 5 in 2014!

My Man Sam has only raced 4 times. It took him twice to break his maiden and he placed twice since then. He has only been in one graded stakes and he finished 2nd. It was the Grade 1 Blue Grass Stakes at Keeneland on 4/9/16 that gave him his KY Derby points.

Oscar Nominated has finished 4th or better in his 7 races. In his 3rd stakes race he won the Grade 3 Spiral Stakes and earned his KY Derby points. The Ramsey’s are frequent winners at Keeneland and Churchill but they have never had a KY Derby horse yet.

Lani is another Tapit colt. He is also a champ on an international level. He has raced 6 times in Japan and in the United Arab Emirates. It was his win in the U.A.E. Derby that qualified him to “Run for the Roses. In all 142 KY Derbys he is only the 2nd Japan based entry. Ski Captain was the other Japan based horse. He came in 14th in 1995 in the KY Derby with the same jockey as Lani has now, Take.

Destin has 3 wins and 1 show finish is his 5 starts. Two of his 3 graded stakes races were part of the KY Derby prep series. He was 4th in the LeComte, where Mo Tom won, and he was 1st in the the Tampa Bay Derby. He is a pretty grey.

Whitmore will be have the winner of the past 2 KY Derbys on his back, Espinoza! Espinoza won with California Chrome and again with American Pharoah. Whitmore has 2 firsts, 2 seconds and 1 third place finish out of his 6 races. 4 of his races were KY Derby prep stakes. He earned no points in the Delta Downs Jackpot where he finished 5th. He was 2nd in both the Rebel Stakes and the Southwest Stakes. In the Arkansas Derby he finished 3rd. He lost to Suddenbreakingnews in the Southwest but beat him in the Rebel. Whitmore beat Creator in the Rebel too.

Exaggerator has had a whopping 9 starts in his lifetime. 5 of these races were for KY Derby points. He was 1st in the Santa Anita Derby and the Delta Downs Jackpot. He took second in the Breeders’ Futurity. He was 3rd in the San Felipe Stakes and 4th in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile. He has beat out Whitmore in the Delta Down Jackpot. Nyquist beat Exaggerator in the San Vicente Stakes. Exaggerator’s sire Curlin was 3rd in the 2007 KY Derby.

Tom’s Ready has had 9 starts too. He is a Pennsylvania bred horse. His dam sire, Broad Brush, was 3rd in the 1986 KY Derby. He is owned by the same owner as Mo Tom. He hasn’t won since he broke his maiden his 3rd time out. He participated in 4 KY Derby preps. He finished 8th in the KY Jockey Club. He was 2nd in the LeComte and the Louisiana Derby and 7th in the Risen Star. He finished behind Mo Tom in the KY Jockey Club and the Risen Star but bested him in the LeComte and the Louisiana Derby. Gun Runner has beat him in 3 prep races. Tom’s Ready beat Destin in the LeComte.

Nyquist is the favorite to win and I have agreed with that for some time. I have seen Nyquist on several occasions and written a great deal about him. He is pictured at the top. He is undefeated in seven races. He drew lucky post 13 which is the post he won from in the Sentient Jet Breeders’ Cup Juvenile, where I first saw him. Three of his races were in the KY Derby prep series, the FrontRunner Stakes, the BC Juvenile and the Florida Derby. He has beaten Exaggerator in the San Vicente and Mohaymen in the FL Derby.

Mohaymen is another lovely grey sired by Tapit. He has raced 6 times and was undefeated until his last race. Nyquist beat him in the Florida Derby where he can in a very unexpected 4th place. His other 3 Derby preps were the Remsen Stakes, the Holly Bull Stakes and the Fountain of Youth Stakes where he dominated them all.

Outwork is a fine colt of Uncle Mo. He has only 4 career starts. He did 2 KY Derby preps. He was 2nd in the Tampa Bay Derby and 1st in the Wood Memorial Stakes, when he beat Trojan Nation. Outwork drew post 15, the post that American Pharoah won from last year! Outwork’s dam sire, Empire Maker, was 2nd in the 2003 KY Derby.

Shagaf has the same trainer as My Man Sam and the same owner as Mohaymen. Shagaf took on two KY Derby prep races in his slim 4 starts. He won the Gotham Stakes but he scored no points in his 5th place finish in the Wood Memorial Stakes. Trojan Nation beat him in his last race.

Mor Spirit is trained by Baffert, winner of last year’s KY Derby. He has 3 1st place finishes and 4 2nd place races in his 7 starts. 5 of these were KY Derby prep races. He was 2nd in the KY Jockey Club, San Felipe Stakes and Santa Anita Derby. Mor Spirit was 1st in the Los Alamitos and Robert B. Lewis Stakes. He has beaten Mo Tom, Tom’s Ready,Exaggerator and Gun Runner.

Majesto has raced 6 times. It took 5 times out to break his maiden but then his next time out he was 2nd in the Florida Derby. Nyquist beat him out that day but he still bested Mohaymen.

Brody’s Cause also has had 6 starts. 4 of them were on the road to the KY Derby. He won the Breeders’ Futurity and the Blue Grass Stakes. He was 3rd in the BC Juvenile and a sad 7th in the Tampa Bay Derby. He has lost to Nyquist, Outwork, Exaggerator and Destin. He has beaten My Man Sam.

Danzing Candy has put in 5 races with 2 KY Derby preps. He won the San Felipe Stakes but was 4th in the Santa Anita Derby. He has lost to but also beaten both Exaggerator and Mor Spirit.

Finally, if there is a scratch by tomorrow morning there are 2 also eligibles and I will add an update if that happens.

KY Derby Fun Facts:

American Pharoah won last year
The record is held by Secretariat who finished in 1:59.40
The largest margin is 8 lengths held by 4 horses: Old Rosebud, Johnstown, Whirlaway and Assault
The song is My Old Kentucky Home
The Drink is the Mint Julep
The official flower is the red rose, thus “The Run for the Roses” and a garland of roses is draped on the winning horse
The purse is $2 million dollars
The trophy is 22 inches tall and gold on a jade base
May 17, 1875 was the inaugural race

I hope everyone has an opportunity to do something special for the Kentucky Derby. I will be cheering for Nyquist as I could never get enough of watching him win. Just as I mentioned with my KY Oaks story, you may want to bookmark Thoroughbred U for a quick reference for this information on race day. Who is your Derby favorite?

Share This:

May 4, 2016May 4, 2016

Observations On The Oaks

Share This:

It’s just a few days now until the Bluegrass State hosts the 142nd running of the Longines Kentucky Oaks! Friday, 5/6/16 at 5:49 P.M. EST be sure to watch the run for the lillies at Churchill Downs in Louisville, KY.

The Kentucky Oaks is a 1 and 1/8 mile (9 furlong) race on a dirt track at Churchill for 3 year old fillies. Competition began with the Pocahontas race on 9/12/15 at Churchill Downs and ended with the Beaumont at Keeneland 4/17/16. 30 races are qualified to provide the points needed to receive a nomination for the KY Oaks. 14 horses have been selected with an additional “also eligible” horse. Post positions have been drawn and the field is as follows: Post position. Horse/Jockey/Trainer/Owner

Terra Promessa/Ricardo Sanatana Jr./Steven M Asmussen/Stonestreet Stables, LLC
Weep No More/Corey Lanerie/George R. Arnold/Ashbrook Farm
Lewis Bay/Irad Ortiz, Jr./Chad C. Brown/Alpha Delta Stables
Go Maggie Go/ Luis Saez/Dale L. Romans/Mike Tarp
Dream Dance/Brian Hernandez Jr./Neil J. Howard/Stoneway Farm
Mo Kat/Flaven Prat/Richard Baltas/JK Racing Stable
Mo d’Amour/Joel Rosario/Todd Pletcher/King of Prussia Stable
Royal Obsession/Florent Geroux/Steven M. Asmussen
Paola Queen/Emisael Jaramillo/Gustavo Delgado/Grupo 7 C Racing Stable
Venus Valentine/Shaun Bridgmohon/Thomas M. Amoss/Rosemont Farm LLC
Rachel’s Valentina/John Velazquez/Todd Pletcher/Stonestreet Stables, LLC
Cathryn Sophia/Javier Castellano/John C. Servis/Cash Is King LLC
Land Over Sea/Mario Guiterrez/Doug F. O’Neill/Reddam Racing LLC
Taxable/Mike Smith/Steven M. Asmussen/Winchell Thoroughbreds LLC
“Also Eligible”Dothraki Queen/Gary Stevens/Kenneth G. McPeek/Magdalena Racing

Terra Promessa has had 5 career starts and won her last 4 races including two Grade 3 races, The Honeybee and the Fantasy Stakes. She is sired by Curlin.

Weep No More raced for her first time at Churchill but she broke her maiden at Tampa Bay and has not lost a race since then. In 4 of her 5 career starts she has won including her last race, the Grade 1 Ashland Stakes. In that race she beat Rachel’s Valentina and Cathryn Sophia.

Lewis Bay has always been 1st or 2nd place in her 5 career starts. Her last 3 races were all Grade 2. In her final race, the Gazelle Stakes, she beat both Royal Obsession and Mo d’Amour.

Go Maggie Go has only raced twice. That being said she is undefeated and the only horse in the Oaks with that title. She beat Paola Queen in the Grade 2, Gulfstream Park Oaks.

Dream Dance has raced 9 times before. She has finished all over the board but has the experience of 4 graded stakes and she did win her last race, an allowance, at Keeneland.

Mo Kat is one of 2 Uncle Mo sired fillies in the Oaks. The Kentucky Derby is heavy with Uncle Mo progeny as well. She has had 7 starts and though she has not won since her maiden she has placed or showed in 3 graded stakes.

Mo d’Amour is the other Uncle Mo offspring in this field. She has raced 6 times with 3 wins and 2 times in 3rd. Two of these races were graded stakes.

Royal Obsession has had only 4 starts but has won twice and been 2nd in another race. She has been beaten by Venus Valentine before in the Rachel Alexandra Stakes and Lewis Bay in the Gazelle.

Paola Queen has 5 races behind her. It took her the 1st four times to break her maiden but then she jumped right into a second place finish in the Gulfstream Park Oaks. Maybe her time has come?

Venus Valentine has been 1st, 4th or 5th in her last 5 of 6 races. She was the winner of the Grade 2 Rachel Alexandra however. In her other graded stakes race, her last race, she came in 5th.

Rachel’s Valentina is the favorite. Her dam is Rachel Alexandra, winner of the 2009 KY Oaks. No Oaks winning dam has ever foaled an Oaks winning filly. This could be the 1st time? In her 4 career starts she has won twice and placed twice. Her last 3 races have all been graded stakes races. Pictured above is from her 2nd place finish behind Songbird in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies races. Land Over Sea and Dothraki Queen finished behind her.

Cathryn Sophia won her 1st of 4 races but in her 3rd graded stakes she was 3rd in a tight finish with Weep No More and Lewis Bay. She probably still has what it takes.

Land Over Sea is trained by Doug O’Neill who also trains the KY Derby Favorite, Nyquist. She is experienced with 8 starts. 7 times she has finished in the top 3. Her last 3 races were all graded stakes. This horse has the practice and she won her last time out at the Grade 2, Fair Ground Oaks.

Taxable has only 3 starts to her name. She broke her maiden at Churchill. She shares her trainer, Asmussen, with Terra Promessa. Taxable was 2nd behind Terra Promessa in the Grade 3 Fantasy Stakes.

Finally, should there be a scratch, Dothraki Queen may get a chance at the Oaks. She has raced 6 times before. Her first race, after her maiden, put her on the path to the Oaks. She won the Pocahontas, the 1st of 5 stakes races but she has never been 1st since and in her last race, the Appalachian stakes, she was 8th.

Fun Facts:

Lovely Maria won last year
Rachel Alexandra has the largest winning margin at 20 1/4 lengths
The 1st race was May 19, 1875
The official drink is the Grey Goose Oaks Lilly
The Song is My Old Kentucky Home
The flower is the Stargazer Lilly, the winner will be blanketed in these
The Charity is “Bright Pink”, to raise funds for fighting breast and ovarian cancer
The prizes: a sterling silver statue kept at the Kentucky Derby Museum and engraved with all the winners names, 12 Julep Cups to share and purse money
The purse is 1 million dollars
The color is pink
The channel to watch is NBCSN from 12:30 to 6 PM EST
Race 1 of the 13 race card at Churchill posts at 10:30 A.M EST

Enjoy the Kentucky Oaks and the Kentucky Derby Post positions were announced as I was writing this. That story shall follow tomorrow. Keep Thoroughbred U bookmarked as a quick reference for the information you may need.

Share This:

April 30, 2016April 30, 2016

Nyquist Loves and Leaves Keeneland

Share This:

Over all too soon. Yesterday was the closer for Keeneland’s Spring Meet. Live racing took place from April 8-29, 2016. I was there for the final day of racing and it was too much of a good time to be sad that it was all about to end.

Keeneland’s meet was quite a success story with plenty of excitement and quality races, horses, owners, trainers and jockeys. The handle was up over 23% versus last Spring and the attendance was up over 4%. I had the pleasure of attending 6 times and the weather was quite pleasant each of those days. Keeneland credits the appeal of the Breeders’ Cup, that they hosted in October, with the returning fans and Thoroughbreds. They also believe that having Nyquist, the 2016 Kentucky Derby favorite, living and training on the grounds added a special attraction. I certainly agree. Nyquist had his last Derby prep work at Keeneland on closing day and then shipped to Churchill Downs today. He is featured in most of the pictures throughout this post. I watched him work once again prior to the races yesterday. He breezed a mile in 1:41 with Mario Gutierrez on board.

45 horses that participated in the Breeders’ Cup in October returned to Keeneland this meet to race or train. Ralis is seen in the top photo with Nyquist. Other BC horses on the grounds this meet were Tepin, Ready for Rye, Barbados, Rachel’s Valentina, Nickname, Camelot Kitten, Ma Can Do It, Limosine Liberal, I’m A Chatterbox, Dacita, Azar, Thrilled, Private Zone, Land Over Sea, Bradester, Green Mask, Riker, Recepta, Holly Boss, Dothraki Queen, Fioretti, Gilding By, Red Rifle, Salama, Shinning Copper, Curlina, Right There, Grand Arch, Siding Spring, Catch A Glimpse, Wavell Avenue, Stopchargingmaria, Sheer Drama, Undrafted, Brody’s Cause, Da Big Hoss, Something Extra, Swipe, The Great War, War Envoy, Twilight Eclipse, Super Majesty and Tourist.

As for the people who help make this sport awesome, many big names were present this meet. Javier Castellano was the leading jockey with 17 wins. He won that title last Spring as well. Ken and Sarah Ramsey are owners who won 9 races at Keeneland this meet. They are Keeneland’s leading owners for the 17th time. The leading trainer was won by Michael Maker, his 4th time earning this title. Many more Hall of Fame, Eclipse Award and Graded Stakes winning jockeys, owners and trainers were in attendance for this Spring as well.

I really had a great time at Keeneland, as always. I am really going to miss the track that won’t have live racing again until October. I thought that watching Nyquist work was a real joy. I appreciate that the horse’s connections and Keeneland were kind enough to share the experience. I wrote a story about a prior work a few weeks ago

My Eye On Nyquist

I hope Nyquist wins the Kentucky Derby next week on May 7th. The success of American Pharoah has me eager for another Grand Slam. Nyquist is a champion and he looks ready to win. The 20 horse field won’t be finalized until Wednesday, 5/4/16. Look for me to bring you the information you may need for the 142nd running of the Kentucky Derby.

Share This:

April 15, 2016April 15, 2016

My Eye On Nyquist

Share This:

I get no sleep for Nyquist! For the second week straight I have roused myself from my bed to attend the morning workout to see our beloved Thoroughbreds at Keeneland in Lexington, KY. Nyquist certainly is a fan favorite and one of mine as well. I had my weary but enthusiastic eyes upon him before 7 a.m. EST today.

After arriving at the Track Kitchen I ran as fast as I could up the hill, towards the track, to catch today’s first sight of Nyquist. As I approached the barn, where he has been living since the Florida Derby, I saw a large crowd assembled. I though it was odd since he had no other visitors when I saw him just last week but then again, this is Nyquist! Of course he has a snowballing fan base. He is the current Kentucky Derby favorite to win! I stood with the crowd to see Nyquist exit the shed row and followed like a happy lemming as he headed to the track with exercise rider Jonny Garcia mounted. The sun was peaking through the clouds and it was warm for a Spring morning in the Bluegrass.

Nyquist is a bay colt, sired by Uncle Mo. His dam is Seeking Gabrielle by Forestry. Nyquist was bred in Kentucky Summer Hill Farm and born on 3/10/13. He is owned by Paul Reddam of Reddam Racing and trained by Doug O’Neill. Mario Gutierrez is his jockey. Nyquist is undefeated with 7 career wins and an Eclipse Award for 2015 Champion 2 Year Old Colt. He broke his maiden on 6/5/15 at Santa Anita. He has raced only graded stakes since. He won at both Grade 2 races, the Best Pal Stakes at Del Mar and the San Vincente Stakes at Santa Anita. He captured 1st place at four Grade 1 races too, the Del Mar Futurity at Del Mar, the Front Runner Stakes at Santa Anita, the Sentient Jet Breeders’ Cup Juvenile at Keeneland and the Xpressbet.com Florida Derby at Gulfstream. The $1 million dollar Florida Derby took place on 4/2/16. Today marked Nyquist’s first breeze since that race. He is now training for the Kentucky Derby to take place on 5/7/16. He will continue to live at Keeneland and he will have 2 more workouts here before he ships to Churchill Downs on 4/30/16. He breezed 5 furlongs today and galloped out to a 6th. He clocked 1:02.60 for the breeze. His connections were very pleased. I though he looked marvelous. I heard another trainer, not in connection with the horse, say she thought he made the workout look easy.

The smile on Garcia and the look on Nyquist’s adorable face lead me to believe, they too were very pleased with the work. The large assembly of fans and media continued to follow Nyquist off of the track and back to the barn. Everyone was overjoyed with the experience.

The fun was far from over. Nyquist was changed out of his tack and into his lovely BC blanket. He cooled off with several turns around the barn. He is quite calm in the presence of all of the paparazzi. Many people huddled up close to hear the words of his connections and to catch a look or a picture.

Then it was bath time! I particularly enjoy watching the baths. Steam rolled off his back end as he was sponged off. Nyquist kept his fancy blanket on. He looked marvelous! His handler booped his nose gently. This horse was very well behaved. Nyquist is stunning and I am so happy I have had the opportunity to have seen him now on two occasions. I know he has what it takes and I wish him well in his next race, the Run for the Roses, the 142nd KY Derby! He certainly looks appropriate flanked in roses!

I visited several other barns and will be at Keeneland the rest of today and all weekend. I am very hopeful to spend some time with Tepin and bring that story to you. She races here tomorrow, 4/16/16. Please, keep reading and tell your friends about this page and my posts on Twitter and Facebook too. Thank you and have a great weekend!

Share This:

April 7, 2016April 7, 2016

Keeneland Kickoff

Share This:

It’s a chilly start to Spring here in the Bluegrass but it still brings warmth to my heart that my favorite track, Keeneland, in Lexington, KY opens tomorrow! The Spring Meet is open from April 8 to 29, 2016. Live racing takes place on Wednesdays thru Sundays throughout those dates. I have to work all weekend so I made sure I got to participate in some of the pre-race events.

Yesterday morning I arrived before 8 a.m. EST and headed to the Racing Office. The horses enter the race track through an opening, “the gap”, right next to this building. Slowly, a large group of horses and exercise riders assembled. They were mounted and waiting for as far as I could see. The fans, connections of the horses and photographers were looking on with anticipation. At about 8:30 the horses took to the track. Some Thoroughbreds went at a leisurely pace while others sped around like they were floating. I love to catch the pictures with all four hooves in the air.

After the excitement of the workouts I headed to the newly renovated Track Kitchen. I had biscuits and gravy. If you haven’t had Southern food like this you are really missing out.

Next, I went to Kellyn Gorder’s barn. He had just recently returned to the grounds after having a nice season at Turfway and ongoing at Oaklawn race track. I visited with his horses and he was very busy on the computer, phone and with office visits in preparation for more races. Some of his nice horses are pictured below. I gave these cute noses some petting.

After the Gorder barn I went to see the remaining stable area. Keeneland has 57 barns with the capacity to hold 1,951 horses. Horses aren’t the only animals you will find on the grounds. In addition to birds, pet dogs and barn cats I met two busy goats along my adventure. I also saw some cool tack including Nyquist’s bridle and Tepin’s Breeders’ Cup blanket that has been refurbished with silk flowers.

The best part of my trip was looking for our favorite race horses. I went to the Casse Racing barn hoping to find 2015 Eclipse Award Champion Grass Mare and winner of the 2015 Breeders’ Cup Mile, Tepin, but she had moved to Churchill Downs. I was not disappointed in meeting Airoforce, 2nd in the 2015 BC Juvenile Turf, Catch a Glimpse and her teddy bear, 1st in the 2015 BC Juvenile Fillies Turf and Noble Bird, graded stakes winner, pictured below in order on the top row. I went to most of the barns to see what I could but unfortunately several trainers do not label their stalls so I just had to appreciate the unknown beauties as they were.

Saving one of the best for last I finally found the undefeated and 1st place winner of the 2015 Sentient Jet BC Cup Juvenile, Nyquist. He is the favorite for the Kentucky Derby with 5/2 odds currently and he is second on the leaderboard for points behind Gun Runner. He was happily snacking during my visit. I was going to return to see him train this morning but his white blood cell count was slightly elevated so he is going to rest up for now and perhaps train on Friday or Saturday. See how sweet he looks below.

Post time begins at 1:05 p.m. EST on Friday. There are 10 races that day. On Saturday post time is 12:35 p.m. with 11 races. 5 of those are stakes races, numbers 6 thru 10. The 9th race, the 15th running of the Madison Grade I stakes, for fillies and mares 4 and older is packed with multiple graded stakes winners. The 10th race is the 92nd running of The Toyota Blue Grass Stakes. It is a Grade I race with a million dollar purse. The 9 furlong dirt race for 3 year olds posts at 6 p.m. This race gives 100-40-20-10 points to Kentucky Derby Contenders based on a 1st to 4th place finish respectively. There are a lot of great races at Keeneland this meet. I hope each of you has a chance to get in on the action. Catch my blog next week here and on Facebook and Twitter for more Thoroughbred news and events.

Share This:

April 1, 2016April 2, 2016

Memory Lane

Share This:

Come with me as I take a walk down memory lane. Pictured is a driving/walking path at the Lexington Cemetery, in Lexington, KY, where Spring is in bloom. There are some big Kentucky Derby prep races tomorrow, 4/2/16. While looking forward to those races I recalled some history about racing’s past.

Tomorrow brings the Florida Derby at 6:48 and the Spiral Stakes at 5:43 PM both EST. No owner has won the Florida Derby more than Calumet Farm located in Lexington, KY. Calumet won with Gen. Duke in 1957, Tim Tam in 1958, Forward Pass in 1968, Eastern Fleet in 1971 and Alydar in 1978. This farm was, for a long time, owned by the Maysville, KY born Lucille Parker Wright Markey. She lived from 1896 to 1982 and was a businesswoman and a philanthropist. She inherited Calumet from her late husband. Markey ran the farm for 30 years. She won the KY Derby 4 times during that career with horses including FL Derby winners Tim Tam and Forward Pass.

At the same cemetery, is the final resting place for John M. Gaver who lived from 1900 to 1982. He was the American Hall of Fame trainer for 73 stakes winning Thoroughbreds he managed at Brookdale Farm and Greentree Stable. In 1966 he received an Eclipse Award from the National Racing Museum and Hall of Fame. The KY portion of Greentree is now the great Gainesway Farm in Lexington. I bought into a partnership with Spruce Lane Pinhooking and we share ownership on one of our horses that is living at Gainesway!

On the same grounds, Hal Price Headley was laid to rest. Headley lived from 1888 to 1962. He is the founder of my very favorite and my home track, Keeneland! He was president of Keeneland Racetrack from 1935 to 1951. He was an owner and breeder, as well, at Beaumont Farm in Lexington,KY.

The next 3 horsemen all held important roles at Elmendorf Farm, Lexington KY. Charles Henry Berryman lived from 1867 to 1946. He managed Elmendorf when it was owned by James Ben Ali Haggin from 1897 to 1914. This farm was founded in 1874 and churned out fine race horses. Man o’ War’s sire, Fair Play, and dam, Mahubah, are buried at Elmendorf. Much of Elmendorf is owned by Clovelly, Normandy, Green Gates and Old Kenney Farms now. Elmendorf still holds part of a ruined mansion’s pillars where I attended a wedding reception once. Many Thoroughbreds are buried near the pillars. It is very pretty.

Before it was managed by Berryman, William Thomas Hughes operated Elmendorf Farm from 1862 to 1874. He inherited the farm from his father but he found himself in debt and was forced to sell the farm to Milton H. Sanford. Hughes was not always buried where he rests now, near his wife’s plot. He was buried in Richmond, KY for some time.

Hughes father, Thomas Hughes was the third owner at Elmendorf Farm. He bought the property from Carter Henry Harrison. He owned the farm from 1855 to 1862. He was first buried at the Hughes Farm but later moved to Lexington Cemetery. The Lexington Cemetery was established in 1849.

Across the street and over a few blocks is another cemetery. This is Calvary Cemetery created in 1874. It is not nearly as pretty but it is a peaceful place. I went looking just for Belle Brezing’s grave. The top says “Mother”. Her last name is spelled incorrectly on the stone. She is most famous for being an internationally known madam but she was an important figure in Thoroughbred racing too. She lived from 1859 to 1940.

I wrote more on the Lexington Cemetery and Belle Brezing in my other stories:

Heaven’s Horsemen

Brothels, Books and Bloodstock

I hope you enjoyed my walk down memory lane. I am excited about the races tomorrow. The Florida Derby will be held at Gulfstream Park in Hallandale Beach, FL. The inaugural race was in 1952. The 1 and 1/8 mile (9 furlong) dirt track will award a purse $1 million dollars. It is a Grade 1 stakes race. 8 horses including Nyquist and Mohaymen will compete for 100-40-20-10 KY Derby points, based on the finish of 1st thru 4th. The Spiral Stakes, 1st held in 1972, will be at Turfway park in Florence, KY. This race is the same length but has a synthetic track. It is a Grade III race with a purse of $500,000 dollars. 12 horses including Airoforce will try for 50-20-10-5 respective points. These are my favorites to win. Choose your picks wisely and if you can’t get to the track enjoy this lovely Spring. As always, thank you for following me on my web page, Facebook and Twitter.

Share This:

January 28, 2016January 28, 2016

100 Days Till Derby

Share This:

Wow! I still can’t get over the rush of American Pharoah’s Triple Crown and Grand Slam wins. Meanwhile, today marks only 100 days until the next running of the Kentucky Derby. Just in time, the early nominees have been announced! Will we get another big winner? Will it be Nyquist, pictured above following his undefeated 2015 season after winning the Sentient Jet Breeders’ Cup Juvenile? He does look nice in the crown!

On Saturday May 7, 2016 Churchill Downs will host the 142nd running of the Kentucky Derby. Early nominees for all 3 legs of the Triple Crown were due on 1/16/16. Early nominees pay a fee of $600 while later nominees can enter until 3/21/16 but that fee is $6,000. The fee jumps to a large sum of $200,000 if entered after that. The deadline for the latest entry is 5/4/16. Today, the 368 select 3 year-old Thoroughbreds were revealed. Eclipse Award Juvenile Male, Nyquist, tops the list of contenders. He is owned by Reddam Racing, LCC. His trainer is Doug F. O’Neill and his jockey is Mario Gutierrez. He won twice at Santa Anita and twice at Del Mar prior to his BC win at Keeneland. He had a nice workout at Santa Anita on 1/24/16. Nyquist is preparing for the Saint Vincente Stakes on 2/15/16 at Santa Anita and he is a top nominee for the Louisiana Derby at Fair Grounds on 4/2/16.

368 nominees are considered low for an early selection. Brody’s Cause, Mor Spirit, Greenpointcrusader, Mohaymen, Hit It A Bomb, Ralis and Swipe are some of the other early favorites. Swipe is seen at the top of the second photo just barely losing to Nyquist at the BC races. Only 3 fillies were nominated. These little ladies are Northwest Tale, Royal Obsession and Flora Dora.

On the road to the Kentucky Derby, Nyquist leads in points with a score of 30. He is followed by Exaggerator, Brody’s Cause, Mor Spirit, Flexibility, Swipe, Mo Tom, Airoforce, Mohaymen and Greenpointcrusader for the top 10 of 20 available positions. Urban Bourbon is nominated from Bourbon Lane Stable.

In regards to trainers, who have nominated horses, Bob Baffert leads with 35 entries. He was the trainer for our 2015 Triple Crown winner, American Pharoah. One of his entries this year is Southern Pharaoh, another colt sired by Pioneer of the Nile. Todd Pletcher, Chad Brown, Mark Casse, D. Wayne Lukas (my favorite with 10 entries) and Mike Maker round out the top trainers, by number of entries. Kellyn Gorder is entered with Torrontes.

Again we find the American Pharoah connection when we see the owners with the most entries. It is Zayat Stables that owns 15 entries. Zayat is followed by Calumet Farm, Charles Fipke and Keeneland’s biggest winners, Ken and Sarah Ramsey.

Following the Kentucky Derby, the 141st Preakness Stakes takes place on 5/21/16 and then the 148th running of the Belmont Stakes is on 6/11/16. The full list of nominees for the Triple Crown is available here: 2016 Triple Crown Nominees

These 100 days are going to be so exciting. I love watching all of the prep races and the leaderboard on the road to the Kentucky Derby. Who is your favorite? Please, share this and share with me.

Share This:

January 19, 2016January 19, 2016

Phavorite Pharoah

Share This:

Congratulations are in order again as American Pharoah sweeps in one award after another. My last post was on the morning of January 16th. That evening we had the Eclipse Award Ceremony and today we received news of the Longines Awards. American Pharoah won at each event.

The 45th annual Eclipse Awards were held at Gulfstream Park in Florida this past weekend. Winners were chosen in 17 horse and human categories. The finalist were announced on January 6th. All the nominees can be seen in my prior story.

A Tepin Time

Here are the winners:

Horse of the Year: American Pharoah
2 Year Old Filly: Songbird
2 Year Old Male: Nyquist
3 Year old Filly: Stellar Wind
3 Year old Male: American Pharoah
Female Sprinter: La Veridad
Male Sprinter: Runhappy
Female Turf Horse: Tepin
Male Turf Horse: Big Blue Kitten
Older Dirt Female: Beholder
Older Dirt Male: Honor Code
Steeplechase Horse: Dawalan
Jockey: Javier Castellano
Apprentice Jockey: Tyler Gaffalione
Trainer: Bob Baffert
Owner: Zayat Stables
Breeder: Zayat Stables

As you can see, American Pharoah and his connections won Horse of the Year, 3 year Old Male, Trainer, Owner and Breeder. Pretty impressive but there is more…

American Pharoah has long been acknowledged as a national champion but today he was recognized internationally! On 1/19/16 American Pharoah was named Longines World’s Best Racehorse 2015 at the Claridge’s Hotel in London, England.

Longines is a Swiss watchmaking company. They have historically been associated with sporting events including world equestrian sports. They made their 1st chronograph (a stopwatch) engraved with a mounted jockey in 1878. 3 years later, those chronographs were in use at tracks everywhere to time performance measures. Longines is the official partner and watch of the International Federation of Horse Racing Authorities (IFHA).

The IHFA had it’s earliest beginning in 1961 when horse racing authorities from the United States, Ireland, Great Britain and France came together to form standards to select the best horses. They held the 1st annual International Conference in Paris, France in 1967 with representation of world wide racing authorities. By 1977 the International Classifications were published. In the 1990s North and South America, South Africa, the Middle East, Europe, Asia, Australia and New Zealand came together with racing officials and handicappers to develop the World Thoroughbred Racehorse Rankings, which in 2012 became the World’s Best Racehorse Rankings. The best horse that is 3 years old and up from participating countries, where it was raced or trained, is selected annually. The season runs from 1/1 thru 12/31. The top Grade/Group 1 international races are rated. These ratings are not the same ratings used in many other horse ranking systems. American Pharoah won with an 134 rating. He is followed by Golden Horn (130), Shared Belief (126), Treve (126), Able Friend (125) and Solow (125). Best race and best jockey are selected as well. The Longines World’s Best Horse Race 2015 is the Qatar Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe in France followed by the Breeders’ Cup Classic. Further race categories are chosen by surface and distance. The top jockey is Lanfranco Dettori of Great Britain followed by our Victor Espinoza and 5th for Javier Castellano, which is quite different from the Eclipse Award results. To enjoy some of the excitement, see the great new YouTube below.

Congrats again to American Pharoah, Victor Espinoza, Bob Baffert and Zayat Stables for all the amazing races and accolades. American Pharoah is not racing anymore but he has an exciting new career as a stallion. I am looking forward to his progeny. I love seeing everyone’s #APandMe photos on Twitter and Facebook. Please, keep sharing and hopefully I will go meet the champ soon!

Share This: