A look at Benner Island‘s past performances might suggest the filly entered in Saturday’s Acorn Stakes (G1) at Belmont Park is due for a loss. After all, she won last out in the Eight Belles (G2) at Churchill Downs in May, and following each of her two previous wins, she’s slumped a bit before returning…
Brian Nadeau is back this year to offer insight and analysis on this year’s road to the Kentucky Derby. A handicapper at Horseplayer Now and Capital OTB, he’ll analyze every official Derby points race and the three Triple Crown races, back at Brooklyn Backstretch for the sixth year. Gulfstream Park: The Grade II, $400,000 Fountain of…
Brian Nadeau is back this year to offer insight and analysis on this year’s road to the Kentucky Derby. A handicapper at Horseplayer Now and Capital OTB, he’ll analyze every official Derby points race and the three Triple Crown races, back at Brooklyn Backstretch for the sixth year. Oaklawn Park: The Grade III, $500,000 Southwest at…
Golden Gate Fields: The GIII, $200,000 El Camino Real Derby at 1 1/8 miles (Kentucky Derby qualifying points 10-4-2-1) While synthetic racing has gone out of favor in recent years, Golden Gate’s featured event has lured a pair of legitimate dirt horses looking to get some ever-important Kentucky Derby qualifying points, in #3 ANN ARBOR EDDIE and…
On Saturday afternoon at a little racetrack just outside Philadelphia, the top three finishers from this year’s Kentucky Derby will meet, for the third time this year. In some racing circles, Parx Racing — the name of that little track — is more often derided than praised, not least of all for the name it…
The final first of Saratoga 2016 was not one that we looked forward to. This summer, we celebrated pinhooker Andrew Motion’s first Saratoga yearling sale, and trainer Ray Handal’s first Saratoga win, and trainer Lacey Gaudet’s first Saratoga starter. And then we waited. Not for a first, but for a next, to see if trainer…
On Saturday morning, Andrew Motion didn’t look like a man who hadn’t had much sleep over the last couple days. Two days earlier, he’d loaded a yearling filly onto a van and driven overnight to Saratoga from his Upperville, VA farm; three days before he’ll send his first horse through the auction ring here, he…
