You've probably heard the news bulletin that Saturday's G1 Epsom Derby is still pretty much a race without a favorite–well, let's put it this way: yesterday afternoon on Betfair G2 Dante winner Wings of Desire (Pivotal) was favorite at 5-1. Aidan O'Brien has seven of the 18 entered at the six-day stage, and to further [...]

It was quite an amazing Classic weekend: all three favorites–two at odds-on–placed but did not win, on soft ground at the Curragh Saturday and Sunday (softer on Saturday), and on a muddy dirt track at Pimlico Saturday afternoon. Rain arrived everywhere, and proven soft-ground or off-track performers went three-for-three. First up was the G1 Irish [...]

Galileo's fingerprints are all over the four Guineas races which have been run so far in Britain and now France this season: he's the sire of the commanding G1 English 1000 Guineas winner, Minding (and the second, Ballydoyle; and the third, Alice Springs) and Sunday's impressive G1 Poule d'Essai Des Poulains – French 2000 Guineas [...]

The Australasian horse industry has been very successful in making itself the principal source of racehorses for the burgeoning racehorse market in Asia, and in attracting Asian investment into major stud farms in Australia. Following the 2008-09 economic meltdown in North America and Europe, the Australian dollar became so strong for a time that Australasian [...]

The number four sire in North America this year is Spendthrift's Malibu Moon (click here); he is the only one of the North American top five who did not have a runner in the superfecta in the GI Kentucky Derby. By this I mean: winner (and future Darley sire) Nyquist, by North America's #1 sire, [...]

Paco Boy (Desert Style) was a £30,000 Doncaster (now Goffs UK) 2-year-old, bought by Peter and Ross Doyle for the Hannon training academy. He ran 24 times over four seasons, winning 11 times. His nine Black-Type wins included three Group 1 races and four Group 2 wins. His three Group 1 wins were: the 7-furlong [...]

Most years, the first English Classics, the one-mile G1 English 2000 Guineas, for colts, and the G1 English 1000 Guineas, for fillies, are run on the same weekend as the GI Kentucky Oaks and GI Kentucky Derby, but because of the vagaries of the calendar this year, the two Guineas races will be run at [...]

After the upset win by Creator (Tapit) in the final Grade I Derby prep, last Saturday's GI Arkansas Derby (Beyer 96), even with the other, favored Tapit, Cupid, out of the money and now out of the Derby, Gainesway's flagship sire has reclaimed the top spot on the 2016 YTD TDN General Sire List (NA/EU [...]

Outwork's win over 80-1 maiden Trojan Nation (sent across the country by the vastly underrated Paddy Gallagher) in last Saturday's GI Wood Memorial gave his first-crop sire Uncle Mo at least three contenders, including universal favorite Nyquist, for next month's GI Kentucky Derby, and in the bargain Uncle Mo vaulted past even Tapit to claim [...]

One of the first sons of Danzig to stand in Europe, Green Desert made an impact at stud right from the start by becoming the leading first-season sire of 1990. His influence will be felt for some time yet, as he only died last year at the age of 32 and was still covering up [...]

It's approaching the moment of truth for third-crop sires, which now have their first 4-year-olds racing; by the summer the market will be deciding whether it's thumbs-up or thumbs-down, so let's take this opportunity to look at the latest snapshot. Nothing's definitive as it's a deep group of prospects, and a fluid one; one or [...]

Yes, we are all Chromies now. Topping Curlin (Smart Strike)'s earnings, what a feat, and a great comeback job featuring Taylor Made Farm and Art and Alan Sherman. It all went wrong last year, but to come back as a 5-year-old and win convincingly as he did, it was heartwarming. I'm not being flippant, it [...]