Hard Spun

Caddo River (Hard Spun), a promising runner-up in a live-looking maiden race last out, went to the front and widened throughout for a dominant, 'TDN Rising Star'-worthy graduation Sunday at Churchill. Second on debut Sept. 5 at Saratoga, he filled the same slot after dueling on a scorching pace Oct. 11 at Belmont and was pounded down to 3-10 to break through stretching out to a mile here. Away in good order, the homebred made the lead on his own power and dictated terms through sharp splits of :22.38 and...

Bob and Sue Donaldson's Spun to Run (Hard Spun--Yawkey Way, by Grand Slam), last year's clear-cut winner of the GI Big Ass Fans Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile, has been retired from racing. The Juan Carlos Guerrero trainee blossomed in the second half of his sophomore season in 2019, finishing third in the GI Haskell Invitational S. behind eventual Maximum Security (New Year's Day) in July before annexing the GIII Smarty Jones S. over a pair of next-out winners. He earned a gaudy 110 Beyer Speed Figure two starts later when...

PRICEY HARD SPUN FILLY DEBUTS AT ELLIS 8th-ELP, $37K, Msw, 3yo/up, 6f, 5:10p.m. Susan Moulton's $560,000 KEESEP buy SARAH JOE (Hard Spun) makes her career bow in this test. Her unraced dam Castilla (Afleet Alex) is a half to MGISW Spain (Thunder Gulch), who is the dam of GSW & GISP Plan (Storm Cat). This is also the family of MG1SW Pleascach (Ire) (Teofilo {Ire}). TJCIS PPs

NEWMARKET, UK—Thunder is indeed expected in Newmarket as the scorching hot snap comes to an end but it appeared early at Tattersalls on Thursday when Darley's up-and-coming sire Night Of Thunder (Ire) was represented by the leading juvenile, at 575,000gns, of the Craven Breeze-up Sale. With Jane Chapple-Hyam one of the early determined bidders, the bragging rights eventually went to Tom Biggs of Blandford Bloodstock, who played the winning shot in a game of ping-pong in the seats between himself and underbidder Mark McStay. Johnny Collins of Brown Island Stables...

John C. Oxley homebred Beautiful Memories (f, 2, Hard Spun--Sky Dreamer, by Sky Mesa) was hammered down to 2-5 in her Churchill Downs unveiling Thursday, and ran to the money with a 'TDN Rising Star' performance. She was working bullets at the Casse Training Center, including a four-furlong warning shot from the gate in :46 3/5 (1/16) May 2, and wasn't much of a secret here. Hustled to the front from her inside draw, she was on the engine through an opening quarter in :22.00. The chestnut began to separate...

A syndicate of breeders headed by Argentina's Haras La Layenda has purchased Godolphin's graded stakes winner Lucullan (Hard Spun--Golden Velvet, by Seeking the Gold) for the 2020 Southern Hemisphere breeding season. A six-time winner with earnings of $510,925, Lucullan captured the GII Knickerbocker S. last fall at Belmont. He is out of a MGSW/GISP dam who is a half-sister to GISW and sire Sky Mesa (Pulpit) as well as the dam of top GI Kentucky Derby contender Maxfield (Street Sense).

Just under a decade ago, Migdaly Serra was busy building up her marketing and human resource company in Venezuela. The successful businesswoman and entrepreneur knew next to nothing about Thoroughbred horse racing. But Serra caught the horseracing bug, and in just a short time became not only a successful farm owner and manager, but also the breeder of last year's GI Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile winner Spun to Run (Hard Spun), as well as Tonalist's Shape (Tonalist), a leading 3-year-old filly in 2020. A native of Venezuela, Serra graduated with...

Budding distaff division star Hard Not to Love (Hard Spun), a winner of three straight and five of six in her young career, will try two turns for the first time as a probable heavy favorite in Saturday's GI Beholder Mile S. at Santa Anita. Starting two-for-two here last year, the $400,000 Keeneland September grad suffered her only defeat when third in the Angels Flight S. May 4. Returning off the bench to capture a local allowance Oct. 25, the 'TDN Rising Star' closed from last to post an 11-1...

5th-Gulfstream, $44,000, Alw (NW1$X)/Opt. Clm ($35,000), 3-1, 4yo/up, 6f, 1:09.25, ft. HIDDEN SCROLL (c, 4, Hard Spun--Sheba Queen, by Empire Maker), named a 'TDN Rising Star' after a 14-length debut romp in the slop last January that earned him a gaudy 104 Beyer Speed Figure, finally put it all together again Sunday to stamp himself as one to watch in 2020. The Juddmonte homebred set a much-too-fast pace before fading to fourth at 6-5 behind Code of Honor (Noble Mission {GB}) in the GII Xpressbet Fountain of Youth S. 12...

Right, that's enough ranting for now. In the course of this series, I've repeatedly professed bewilderment and alarm over the damage to the Thoroughbred gene pool threatened by a witless stampede towards unproven newcomers, and the no less puerile impatience with which they are promptly abandoned. But we won't revisit those complaints today. Embarking on this final instalment, dealing with those stallions talented or lucky enough to have come out the other side with a viable stud career in Kentucky, we'll just offer one simple consolation. Because if you're one...

'TDN Rising Star' Hard Not to Love was last seen blowing away her competition at 11-1 odds in the GI La Brea S. over this same track and trip Dec. 28, but she likely won't be going off at double digits for awhile, especially after her latest performance. Reined back to last by Mike Smith in a compact field of five, the bay sat perched out wide and within striking distance as the rest of her foes scrambled for position through a :23.04 opening quarter. The favorite began her sweeping...

Hard Not to Love (Hard Spun), one blemish from being undefeated in her five-race career, will look to validate a scintillating upset of the GI La Brea S. and continue her rapid ascent as a likely short price this time around in Saturday's GII Santa Monica S. at Santa Anita. Debuting with a local front-running score one day short of a year ago, the $400,000 Keeneland September buy repeated in an allowance Apr. 13 before suffering her only career defeat as a well-beaten third in the Angels Flight S. May...