Adare Manor

Just over 100 years ago, the Jockey Club's resident New York handicapper, William Vosburgh, knew the value of history and understood how it could be applied when he penned his magnum opus, Racing In America, 1866-1921. The turf wordsmith revealed his intent in the Preface when he said, "I shall show that, owing to want of popular support, racing had fallen so low, and so infrequent, as to excite little or no interest." What he was talking about was a sport in crisis, as progressive forces in America drove racing...

Several top horses trained by Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert were among 174 workers at Santa Anita Monday morning. Among those working four furlongs for Baffert on the main track were GISWs Adare Manor (Uncle Mo) (:46.40), Arabian Lion (Justify) (:46.80), Faiza (Girvin) (:49.20) and National Treasure (Quality Road) (:48.20). GI Starlet S. winner Faiza's drill was her first since being scratched from the Torrey Pines S. on Sept. 2 at Del Mar. National Treasure, winner of this season's GI Preakness S., had his second work since finishing fifth...

Sunday dawned emotionally overcast for a racing world still trying to process Saturday's stunning, life-ending injury to the unbeaten New York-bred filly Maple Leaf Mel (Cross Traffic), who was steps from victory in the GI Test S. at Saratoga when she crashed to the track with a catastrophic injury to her right foreleg. She was euthanized on the spot, while jockey Joel Rosario escaped serious injury (three lip stitches) and was off his Sunday mounts. The very public, deep-stretch tragedy on a huge day of racing is comparable to the...

Adare Manor (f, 4, Uncle Mo--Brooklynsway, by Giant Gizmo), a big, rangy daughter of her Breeders' Cup-winning sire, made it four in a row and a first Grade I with a facile win in the $400,000 GI Clement L. Hirsch S. at Del Mar Saturday. The filly will likely attempt to win a Breeders' Cup of her own as the "Win and You're In" Hirsch offers a fees-paid berth to the GI Distaff, which will be held at Santa Anita in November. When the field broke in the Hirsch, it...

The Ocala Breeders' Sales Company's June Sale of 2-Year-Olds in Training--once an afterthought, but now a destination in its own right--begins its three-day run Tuesday in Ocala with bidding slated to get underway at 10 a.m. The June sale brings the curtain down on the OBS juvenile sales season, which featured a co-record sale topper in March and records for gross and average in April. "The sales calendar has migrated later [in the year], so I think there is still a demand for 2-year-olds out there for sure," OBS Director...

Bob Baffert's ADARE MANOR (Uncle Mo) re-enters graded-stakes company with an expected start in the GII Santa Maria S. Saturday at Santa Anita. A runaway winner in her maiden-breaking score in early 2022, she romped by 13 lengths in the GIII Las Virgenes S. in her next start but missed qualifying for the GI Kentucky Oaks. Transferred back to Baffert's care after near misses in both the GII Santa Anita Oaks and the GII Black-Eyed Susan S., she faltered to sixth in the GI Cotillion before calling it a year...

Sponsored by Alex Nichols Agency 5th-FG, $70K, Msw, 3yo, 6f, 3:00 p.m. Purchased by Coolmore's M V Magnier as a weanling for $600,000 just one hip after his dam herself brought $850,000 in foal to Into Mischief at the 2020 Keeneland November Breeding Stock Sale, OCEAN CITY (American Pharoah) is the fifth foal out of Unicorn Girl (A.P. Five Hundred), making him a half-brother to champion male sprinter and MGISW Jackie's Warrior (Maclean's Music). The colt drilled five furlongs from the gate in 1:00 4/5 (2/42) Jan. 27 and again...

Last seen fighting out a tight finish in the GI TVG.com Haskell Invitational S. in neighboring New Jersey in mid-July, 'TDN Rising Star' Taiba (Gun Runner) and Cyberknife (Gun Runner) are the top two choices on the morning line for what appears a contentious renewal of the $1-million GI betPARX Pennsylvania Derby Saturday afternoon in suburban Philadelphia. A veteran of just four starts, Taiba--a $1.7-million purchase by Zedan Racing Stables out of last year's Fasig-Tipton Gulfstream Sale--took the GI Runhappy Santa Anita Derby at second asking, but the GI Kentucky...

Heading into Friday's GII George E. Mitchell Black-Eyed Susan, much of the attention centered around GIII Las Virgenes S. winner Adare Manor (Uncle Mo). However, when the dust had settled, it was Flurry Racing Stables' Interstatedaydream (Classic Empire) who had scampered away to victory, heading a 1-2 finish for Coolmore stallions. Sent off at 6-1, Interstatedaydream shadowed 11-1 chance Beguine (Gun Runner) through :23.34 and :46.65 splits as favored Adare Manor, the sole graded winner in the bunch, tracked in third. Inching closer to her front-running rival before drawing even...

Michael Petersen's Adare Manor (Uncle Mo) will try to recapture her winning form in Pimlico's Friday feature, the GII George E. Mitchell Black-Eyed Susan S. While under the care of trainer Bob Baffert last season, she debuted with a close up second sprinting six furlongs on Santa Anita's Halloween day card before coming home fourth next time going 6 1/2 panels at Del Mar in November. Shelved for the remainder of the season, the dark bay returned with a gaudy 12-length score in her route bow at Santa Anita and...

While Saturday's GII Santa Anita Oaks seemed all but a procession for 13-length GIII Las Virgenes S. romper Adare Manor (Uncle Mo) in her first start since being transferred from Bob Baffert to Tim Yakteen, Desert Dawn (Cupid)--the longest shot in the field of five at higher than 14-1 odds--had other ideas. Desert Dawn broke well from the fence before tucking in to sit third as her seemingly much more formidable stablemate Ain't Easy (Into Mischief) set off to show the way with the imposing presence of Adare Manor looming...

Having her first start for trainer Tim Yakteen, Michael Lund Petersen's Adare Manor (Uncle Mo) tries to remain unbeaten around two turns as the prohibitive favorite in Saturday's GII Santa Anita Oaks at the Great Race Place. Second and fourth, respectively, in sprint maidens at this track on Halloween and at Del Mar the following month, the dark bay ran away from Micro Share (Upstart) by a dozen lengths when making her first start around two turns Jan. 7 and made light work of the GIII Las Virgenes S. last...