Cherie DeVaux

Closing out her sixth year in the training ranks, Cherie DeVaux added yet another notch on her belt, collecting her first Keeneland stakes victory in Saturday's feature, the GII Lexus Raven Run S. Helping her achieve that goal, DeVaux was represented by GIII Charles Town Oaks winner Vahva (Gun Runner), who was accompanied by Hall of Fame jockey John Velazquez, also aboard in her last-out score in West Virginia. "I don't know if there are words to really describe that," said a visibly moved DeVaux following the win. "Our team...

With the 40th Breeders' Cup World Championships less than two weeks away, a number of hopefuls worked Saturday morning at Keeneland as they make their final preparations before shipping to Santa Anita. Trainer John Ortiz took GISW Brightwork (Outwork) out for a spin on Saturday with William Simon, owner of WSS Racing, on hand as the bay filly points towards the GI NetJets Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies Nov. 3. Working with 4 G Racing's GSP Crown Imperial (Classic Empire), a candidate for the GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf also...

5th-BAQ, $90K, Msw, 2yo, f, 1 1/16mT, 2:44 p.m. ET On Friday at the Belmont at the Big A meet, trainer Cherie DeVaux and co-owners Martin Schwartz and David Ingordo celebrated Reagan's Flame (Flameaway) coming home a winner over the turf in her first start. Now Schwartz and DeVaux send PURLOIN (Arrogate) to the post looking for a similar outcome. A $200,000 Keeneland September purchase by Midnight Bloodstock, the gray filly went for $400,000 during the OBS April Sale with DeVaux signing the ticket after she went 10 2/5 during...

2nd-Belmont The Big A, $90,000, Msw, 10-13, 2yo, f, 6fT, 1:10.46, fm, head. REAGAN'S FLAME (f, 2, Flameaway--Mizzen Donald, by Mizzen Mast), a 10-1 gamble on career debut, jumped away fairly, but was ridden along by Kendrick Carmouche to argue the early fractions inside of fellow firster Save Us Melania (Constitution). Shaking free from that one in upper stretch, the $185,000 OBS April breezer was clear into the final eighth of a mile and held on late to take it by a head. Favored Lamorna (Munnings), scratched out of last...

A colt by Twirling Candy broke clear of the pack when selling for $925,000 to Jim and Dana Bernhard's Pin Oak Stud during an otherwise steadily consistent conclusion to the Book 4 section of the Keeneland September Yearling Sale Tuesday in Lexington. Through both sessions of Book 4, Keeneland sold 606 yearlings for $46,078,000. The book average of $76,036 declined 5.0% from last year, while the median dipped 8.3% to $55,000. During last year's Book 4 section, 609 yearlings sold for $48,726,500. The section's average was $80,011 and the median...

Lael Stables' She Feels Pretty (Karakontie {Jpn}) came with a stinging rally down the center of the E. P. Taylor turf course to punch her ticket to the GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf with an impressive victory in Saturday's GI Johnnie Walker Natalma S. at Woodbine. It marks the first elite-level scorer for the barn of Cherie DeVaux. Sent off at odds of 8-1 while stretching out to the mile off a first-up graduation sprinting over the Ellis Park turf course July 16, the $240,000 Keeneland September acquisition was...

3rd-DMR, $82K, Msw, 2yo, 6f, 5:30 p.m. As the summer winds down, there is still more than enough time for juvenile first timers to make their debut. At Del Mar, $1.25-million Fasig-Tipton Yearling Sale buy MC VAY (Constitution) is set for his inaugural trip. Out of Dothraki Sea (Union Rags), who counts both GISW Dixie Chatter (Dixie Union) and GSW Rumor (Indian Charlie) as half-siblings, the dark bay colt is trained by John Shirreffs and will be ridden by Mike Smith. Also entered is $250,000 Keeneland September Yearling Sale grad...

Cherie DeVaux trainee Vahva (f, 3, Gun Runner--Holiday Soiree, by Harlan's Holiday) shipped in to Charles Town off a third in Belmont's July 8 GIII Victory Ride S. to capture Friday night's 15th running of the $750,000 GIII Charles Town Oaks, billed as the richest sprint race for sophomore fillies in North America. Off at 7-5, Vahva raced just behind the leaders while 96-1 Late Frost (Frosted) set early fractions of :23.37 and :46.82 as Undervalued Asset (Speightstown) pressured her from the outside. The two pacesetters pulled well clear of...

Shotgun Hottie (Gun Runner), last-out winner of the GIII Molly Pitcher S., will get the rest of the year off and be prepared for her 5-year-old campaign in 2024. "After talking to Shotgun Hottie's trainer, Cherie DeVaux, and my partner Omar Aldabbagh, we have decided the best move for Shotgun Hottie's career will be to give her some time off to get ready for what we expect to be a monumental racing campaign next year," said co-owner Jeff Ganje said. "Shotgun Hottie has proven she can compete with the best...

They talk about the glass ceiling, though back in 1992 Shelley Riley ran into something more like a glass wall. For a few strides, it looked as though she was going to make history as she watched Casual Lies--a Lear Fan colt she had found as a short yearling for $7,500--lead into the stretch with most of the Kentucky Derby field in trouble. But then that invisible barrier came down, and Lil E. Tee ran by to win by a length. Her reward? Later that year, somebody claiming to represent...

9th-Churchill Downs, $123,240, Msw, 5-21, 3yo/up, 1 1/16mT, 1:43.89, fm, 1 3/4 lengths. TAKING CANDY (c, 3, Twirling Candy--Taking Aim, by Trappe Shot), not seen since his debut last August at Saratoga in a route over the turf where he finished a well-beaten sixth, returned here as the 8-1 choice. The bay colt settled mid-pack as the leaders tried to slow the pace down the backstretch. Into the far turn, Taking Candy looked for running room along the rail, cut to the three path at the top of the lane,...

by Jessica Martini & Christina Bossinakis OCALA, FL - The Ocala Breeders' Sales Company's Spring Sale of 2-Year-Olds in Training opened Tuesday with a session that produced figures nearly identical to the auction's 2022 opening session. "It was a good start to the sale," said OBS Director of Sales Tod Wojciechowski. "A lot of horses sold very well. And I'd like to think the strength will continue through the next three days. I feel pretty good about that. There are a lot of good horses left to sell." During Tuesday's...