Ellis Park

6th-Ellis, $120,000, Msw, 6-16, 2yo, f, 5 1/2f, 1:04.69, ft, 3 3/4 lengths. STREAMING NOW (f, 2, Into Mischief--One True Kiss {MGSP, $231,459}, by Warrior's Reward) came into this debut riding a pair of bullet works at the Thoroughbred Training Center, both four furlong moves in :48 flat, and she showed that speed here. Setting the pace right from the jump, she put up :22.92, :46.63, and :58.43 splits on an uncontested lead and was under confident handling entering the lane. Responding to further urgining, she inched away from a...

Pura Vida Investments celebrated a maiden-breaking win in style Thursday at Ellis Park when 2-year-old Rhyme Schemes (Ghostzapper--Katherine, by Distorted Humor) won second out in a gate-to-wire romp by 9 1/2 lengths and posted a 94 Beyer speed figure at the Pea Patch for trainer Norm Casse. In his debut May 18 at Churchill Downs, the chestnut colt finished a well-beaten sixth behind first-time starter Wilson Q (Constitution) and next-out Tremont S. victor Gold Sweep (Speightstown). "We've gone about training our 2-year-olds a little bit differently this year than previous...

GIII Louisville S. winner and Saturday's Chorleywood Overnight S. morning-line favorite Foreign Relations (Karakontie {Jpn}) very easily could have been retired from racing not long after his debut had it not been for the patience and perspective of his connections. A $1,500 short yearling-turned-$25,000 2-year-old, Foreign Relations was not the biggest physical standout when he first arrived at trainer Conor Murphy's barn. While he did run a promising second in his debut the summer of his 3-year-old season, he incurred a minor injury soon after and his owner Double O...

6th-ELP, $120K, Msw, 2yo, f, 5 1/2f, 4:14 p.m. An $800,000 yearling purchase out of Keeneland September, LADY MOSCATO (Quality Road) makes her afternoon debut for owner BC Stables and Hall of Fame trainer D Wayne Lukas. Out of a stakes-placed dam, she is a full-sister to GI La Troienne S. winner Salty, herself a $3 million dollar broodmare prospect out of the 2018 Fasig-Tipton November Sale. Luis Saez gets the mount. Opposing her is Beautiful Dancer (Gun Runner), the first foal to make the races out of GI Del...

2nd-Ellis, $120,000, Msw, 6-15, 2yo, 5 1/2f, 1:02.82, ft, 9 1/2 lengths. RHYME SCHEMES (c, 2, Ghostzapper--Katherine, by Distorted Humor) reported home a well-beaten sixth on debut going five furlongs at Churchill Downs May 18. Adding blinkers here, the 8-1 chance was hustled to the front from his inside draw and faced some pressure rounding the far turn. The chestnut began to shake clear approaching the quarter pole and dropped the hammer in the stretch to graduate by 9 1/2 lengths over Ponce de Leon (Copper Bullet) in a sharp...

Winchell Thoroughbreds' Disarm (Gun Runner), last seen finishing fourth in the GI Kentucky Derby, surged past Verifying (Justify) in the final strides to win the relocated GIII Matt Winn S. at Ellis Park Sunday. Sent off the even-money favorite in the race originally scheduled to be run at Churchill Downs, Disarm rated along the rail within striking distance in third as the lightly raced Bo Cruz (Creative Cause) took the field through fractions of :24.46 and :48.73 over the sloppy going. Verifying, who was tracking the pacesetter throughout, took charge...

3rd-Ellis, $127,000, Alw (NW1X)/Opt. Clm ($100,000), 6-10, 3yo, 1m, 1:34.88, ft, 6 1/4 lengths. EXTRA ANEJO (c, 3, Into Mischief--Superioritycomplex {Ire}, by Hard Spun), super on 'TDN Rising Star' debut last October when decimating a Keeneland maiden by 9 1/2 lengths and registering a 92 Beyer Speed Figure, spent the next several months on the bench before reappearing in an optional allowance on Derby Day at Churchill. He broke slowly and may have been a little rusty that day as he was fanned wide and closed late for a length...

The opening months of 2019 were still fresh in California lawmakers' minds when they passed a bill that summer giving the California Horse Racing Board (CHRB) emergency authority to suspend racing at a track without the hitherto required 10-day public notice period. The precipitating event, of course, was the spate of equine fatalities that had covered Santa Anita, and the racing industry in general, under a pall of public condemnation--the exact same kind of scrutiny Churchill Downs has faced these past few weeks, culminating with the announced switch of racing...

Earle Mack is right. This industry, which is mired in a crisis, can no longer afford to ignore the most obvious solution to its problems, which are synthetic tracks. Mack wrote just that in an Op/Ed that appeared in this publication last week. If you haven't read it yet, please do so now. It is powerful, articulate and well-reasoned and was written by someone whose credentials demand that we respect his opinion. He is a horse owner, a breeder, a former U.S. Ambassador to Finland and a smart and successful...

Dr. Michael "Mick" Peterson, Jr. is the executive director of the independent Racing Surfaces Testing Laboratory. He is a mechanical engineer who is widely considered the preeminent track surface specialist in North America. His team has conducted the ongoing testing at Churchill Downs, and it will be tasked this week with being sure Ellis Park is ready to handle a race meet in expedited fashion while also helping out with the continued surface analysis at Churchill. TDN spoke with Peterson early Friday evening in the wake of the 12 horse...

Reeling from a rash of breakdowns that has developed into what can only be described as a crisis for the track and for the entire sport, track management at Churchill Downs Incorporated (CDI) announced Friday that racing will be suspended at Churchill after Sunday's card and that the remainder of the scheduled meet will be run at Ellis Park. The first day of racing at Ellis will be held on June 10. The Churchill-at-Ellis meet will end on July 3. Racing at Churchill will be held as scheduled this Saturday...

Large purses and four new stakes events will highlight the 2023 Ellis Park Racing & Gaming $3.075-million stakes calendar. The Ellis Park meet will open Friday, July 7 and run through Sunday, Aug. 27. The stakes program has been increased by $1.65 million since 2022 (all prize money includes funds distributed by the Kentucky Thoroughbred Development Fund and is pending approval from the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission). There are four new stakes events on the calendar, including the $300,000 GIII Pucker Up S., which was previously run at Arlington Park...