GII Eddie Read S.

   In this series, the TDN takes a look at notable successes of European-based sires in North America. This week's column is highlighted by Elusive Princess, who won the GIII Saratoga Oaks Invitational S. on Friday. Princess Reigns In Saratoga Oaks LNJ Foxwoods, Ecurie Victoria Dreams, and NK Racing's Elusive Princess (Fr) (Martinborough {Jpn}) made her Stateside debut a winning one at Saratoga for trainer Jean-Philippe Dubois on Friday (video). Bred by her trainer, she won three of her first four French starts for Ecurie Victoria Dreams, and was runner-up...

Equine or human, history is always about the six degrees of someone in racing's world. For instance, at 100-1 Jim Dandy beat Triple Crown champion Gallant Fox in the 1930 edition of the Travers S., which only featured four entries total. The horse who set up the longshot by engaging in a speed duel with the favorite over the mud was Whichone, a colt owned by Harry Payne Whitney (yes, that important family). And what other Thoroughbred did Whitney own? Well, that would be Upset, who did just that, when...

For every Off-the-Track Thoroughbred enthusiast, having a sound and healthy former racehorse to partner with for a second career is all they hope for. And while these same people will tell you their horse's racing history doesn't matter much, many of these same OTTB devotees will also admit their immense pride in explaining their companion's racing career, recreating as much of it as possible to anyone who will listen. Just about everyone in the Thoroughbred industry understands that most OTTBs are runners who served as the backbone of racing, filling...

For obvious reasons, Mike Cannon has enjoyed the run that Smooth Like Strait (Midnight Lute) is on. It's not just that he's become a Grade I winner this year, has earned $933,823 in his career or that he is the morning line favorite in Saturday's GII Eddie Read S. at Del Mar. That matters to Cannon, but maybe not as much as the fact that the horse's success has allowed him to pump a large sum of money into a charity he supports, The Special Operations Care Fund (SOC-F). While...