Today's Edition

The whole thing's crazy, really. In five previous instalments of this series, we've surveyed a dazing variety of young stallions--among which only a single intake has even undertaken the cursory test of actually loading some adolescent stock into the starting gate. The percentage of mares sent to these unproven sires is pretty horrifying, when you consider how quickly most of them will promptly be written off--more often than not on the self-fulfilling basis that their fees, books and sale dividends start to fall as soon as they get anywhere near...

Trainer Anthony Mitchell closed 2018 out with a bang when his 3-year-old Sir Anthony (Mineshaft) sprung a shocking 25-1 upset of heavily favored GI Kentucky Derby third-place finisher Audible (Into Mischief) in the GIII Harlan's Holiday S. at Gulfstream Park Dec. 15, but the veteran conditioner said he is resisting the temptation to press on toward a potential start in the GI Pegasus World Cup Invitational Jan. 26. Mitchell, who trains the ridgling for American Academy of Art president Richard Otto, has been based in Chicago for the last 20...

After kicking off our European value sires series earlier this week with stallions entering stud in 2019, we move on to sires with their first foals this year. Please note that figures of mares bred are taken from the 2018 Return of Mares, and are subject to be slightly off due to late registrations. A trio of colts entered stud last year sharing the top-of-the-class fee of €35,000, and all three remain at that price this year: Coolmore's Caravaggio (Scat Daddy) and Churchill (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}), and Haras d'Etreham's Almanzor...

An internal marketing policy at The Stronach Group (TSG) designed to minimize imagery that shows whip usage in horse races resulted in unintended blowback to start the new year. But Tim Ritvo, the company's chief operating officer, told TDN Wednesday that the company is owning up to its error in judgment, and that he now intends to use the instance of overzealous photo editing to spur reform to one of the sport's most sensitive welfare issues. TSG's Gulfstream Park recently gave away a 2019 wall calendar as a promotional item....

Every breeder aims for Classic success and achieving that feat must have been extra sweet for Luca and Sara Cumani of Fittocks Stud given that the horse in question was named in honour of Luca's birthplace. Coolmore's 2001 St Leger winner Milan (GB) (Sadler's Wells) is now leading all active National Hunt stallions in Britain and Ireland on the sire table for 2018/19 while his dam Kithanga (Ire) (Darshaan {GB}) has just turned 29 and lives in glorious retirement at Fittocks. Two of her daughters are among the 14 mares...

The 2019 Dubai World Cup Carnival begins its march to Dubai World Cup night on Mar. 30 with a pair of group races at Meydan on Thursday. Worth $200,000 each, the 1200-metre G3 Dubawi S. and grassy 1800-metre G3 Singspiel S. drew fields of seven and 16, respectively. A prep for the G1 Dubai Turf on Dubawi World Cup night, the Singspiel pits Irish highweight and GI Belmont Derby Invitational S. hero Deauville (Ire) (Galileo {Ire})-making his first start for Fawzi Nass and new owners Victorious--against David Simcock's MGSW Arod...

By the time 2018 came to a close, Irad Ortiz, Jr. and Jose Ortiz had firmly established themselves atop the nationwide jockey standings, distancing themselves from the pack in the earnings race by millions of dollars. With Irad generating $27.7 million and his younger brother, Jose, ending the year with $26.8 million, the Puerto Rican duo is poised to once again contend for the Eclipse Award for champion rider, to be presented at Gulfstream Park on the evening of Thursday, Jan. 24. On the heels of a breakout 2017 campaign which...

There's some hope for the camp of Accelerate (Lookin At Lucky), but not much. The more you talk to voters and racing fans and experts, the more it becomes clear that Justify (Scat Daddy) will be named the 2018 Horse of the Year. It's the power of the Triple Crown, and it's such a big force it appears that even a GI Breeders' Cup Classic winner and a five-time Grade I winner on the year can't even put a dent into it. A little history: The modern day Eclipse Awards...

Judging by a list in an old edition of the American Racing Manual, taking the title of leading freshman sire has often been a stepping stone to even greater success. The list features the likes of Bold Ruler, Northern Dancer, Buckpasser, What A Pleasure, Raja Baba, Roberto, Mr. Prospector, Seattle Slew, Alydar, Danzig and Fappiano. But they all took the title more than 30 years ago, when the world of Thoroughbred breeding was a simpler place. Superstardom has arguably awaited fewer of their successors, but there are still some notable...

It's probably fair to call it a first-world problem, but one dilemma which extremely successful owner/breeders can find themselves facing is what strategy to adopt when a top-class broodmare produces several prospective stallions, because it is asking a lot for them all to fulfil their potential if they are standing alongside (and essentially in competition with) each other. That is the position which Prince Khalid Abdullah has found himself in with Kind (Ire) (Danehill), dam of two winners of the G1 Champion S., i.e. the peerless Frankel (GB) (Galileo {Ire})...

Musicians and writers have often found death to be a lucrative career move, prompting a dramatic spike in sales as the media reminds a neglectful public of what they have just lost. After the passing of B.B. King, for instance, Spotify reported a streaming increase of over 9,000%. That's human nature. But an equivalent rise in the fortunes of deceased stallions--Scat Daddy being the most conspicuous example--must be attributed to the sheer cussedness of fate. In the case of Unbridled's Song, the emergence of Arrogate and Liam's Map after his...

The first Exhibition Raceday will be held at Conghua Racecourse on Mar. 23, the Hong Kong Jockey Club announced on Monday. Staged by the HKJC in collaboration with the Conghua District Government, members of the Mainland public will be able to experience horse racing at a world-class standard. Five exhibition races will be held with no wagering allowed and no live broadcasts in accordance with the laws and policies of Mainland China. "Conghua Racecourse is the first racecourse and training center for Thoroughbreds in the Mainland which meets the highest...