A year ago, trainer Larry Jones had just recently been released from the hospital. Known for exercising his own horses, he’d been thrown by a rambunctious 2-year-old, landing on his face and suffering serious internal injuries. A month ago, 56-year-old jockey Kerwin Clark had never won a Grade I race. On Friday afternoon, they were…
Our crack handicappers took aim at the Oaks in this post yesterday, and today they set their sights on the Derby. Do they think the much-hyped American Pharoah can pull it off? Will he have to fend off stablemate Dortmund? Can one of the three New York-breds become the first horse from the Empire State…
Churchill Downs: The Grade I, $2 million Kentucky Derby at 1 ¼ miles #1 Ocho Ocho Ocho (50-1): Decided longshot was up against it even before they drew post positions and then was essentially eliminated when he drew the dreaded rail, which would have compromised even the best’s chances. Son of Derby winner Street Sense…
On Friday at about 5:45 pm, 14 fillies will line up to run for the lilies in the Grade I, $1 million Longines Kentucky Oaks. Horse racing is the only sport in the U.S. on which you can bet legally online, and even a $2 win bet makes watching the race more exciting, so our…
On Tuesday afternoon after the draw for the Kentucky Oaks, Carolyn Gray was enjoying a rare afternoon off. Warm and sunny weather in Louisville invited al fresco dining, an invitation that Gray accepted, eating lunch and having a beer at an outdoor patio, followed by a trip for ice cream. “I can’t remember,” she said,…
While the Kentucky Derby has long captured the interest of the sporting public, even that of people who infrequently pay attention to horse racing, the Kentucky Oaks, run the day before the Derby for 3-year-old fillies, seldom garners the same sort of attention. The Oaks field tops out at 14, six horses fewer than the…
Akindale Thoroughbred Rescue doesn’t boast any Derby winners—or maybe even any Derby runners–but its equine family of 150 stakes winners and claimers invite you to the farm’s first Derby party, a fundraiser at Madava Farms in Dover Plains, NY. The home of 100% organic Crown Maple syrup, the beautiful Madava Farms is a working farm…
At the close of the second Welfare and Safety of the Racehorse Summit in March 2008, the Grayson-Jockey Club Research Foundation and The Jockey Club, underwriters and hosts for the event, released eight recommendations, developed by the working groups that participated in that summit held in Lexington, Kentucky. Recommendation #7 reads: “Find solutions for unwanted…
On Saturday afternoon at Charles Town, an odds-on favorite with a big fan base went to the gate. She was expected to be an easy winner; after all, she’d won eight in a row, and 14 of her last 15. Her lone loss in that stretch came at Mountaineer, one of only four starts in…
At his first meeting as chair of the board of directors of the New York Racing Association, Anthony Bonomo Jr. pledged “to work to make New York racing the best it can be,” saying that he would bring together owners, trainers, and racing executives “for the good of the sport.” Acknowledging the challenges faced by…
Brooklyn Backstretch 