Harris Farms

Santa Anita's 16-day Autumn Meet concluded Sunday, Oct. 27 with Juan Hernandez on top of the jockey's standings, Bob Baffert winning the trainer's title and Harris Farms leading all owners in wins. For Hernandez, a 32-year-old native of Veracruz, Mexico, this was his seventh riding title at Santa Anita. He finished the meet with 25 wins from 103 mounts (24%), which was 10 more victories than runner-up Umberto Rispoli. Hernandez also led all jockeys in purse earnings with $1,566,410. His biggest wins came in the GII Oak Leaf Stakes aboard...

Grade I winner Catholic Boy (More Than Ready) has been relocated to California and joined the roster at Harris Farms for the 2025 breeding season, a release announced Monday afternoon. A winner at the highest level on turf and dirt, and only the third American 3-year-old in history to accomplish the feat by winning the GI Travers and GI Belmont Derby Invitational Stakes, he has two crops of racing age with 65% starters, 26% winners, and one stakes winner, El Catolico in Puerto Rico as of Oct. 21. He also...

A MGISW and sire standing at Harris Farms in Coalinga, California, Smiling Tiger (Hold That Tiger--Shandra Smiles, by Cahill Road) was euthanized Aug. 1 after succumbing to a condition which affects coordination called ataxia, according to reports from several horse racing media outlets on Friday. The 17-year-old was responsible for nine crops, which amounted to 561 foals and currently 199 winners. Accounting for a champion (Ace Korea), a graded winner (Spiced Perfection) and a dozen black-type winners, Smiling Tiger currently has 74 juveniles to his credit. He stood at the...

John C. Harris, Ty Green and Andy Mathis have been appointed to the board of the Thoroughbred Owners of California (TOC). Owner of Harris Farms, Harris was inducted into the California Racing Hall of Fame in 2008 and was honored last year by the Edwin J. Gregson Foundation for his industry service. Harris Farms has been connected to over 50 California divisional champions, including eight California Horses of the Year. He is a former California Horse Racing Board (CHRB) Commissioner and currently serves on the board of the California Thoroughbred...

Stop us if you've heard this a time or a thousand. Horses trained by Chad Brown figure tough in the GI Matriarch S. on closing day of the Bing Crosby Meet at Del Mar. Undisputable though that is--he has, after all, sent out the winner all but once since 2017--Harris Farms homebred Closing Remarks (Vronsky) will look to have the final say Sunday afternoon. The chestnut has yet to strike in three tries at the top level, though she was runner-up in the 2021 Del Mar Oaks while finishing just...

by Dan Ross & Jill Williams A $250,000 colt by late California sire Vronsky led Tuesday's one-session Fasig-Tipton California Fall Yearlings and Horses of Racing Age Sale, topping a dozen lots to sell for six figures. While the $5,751,500 gross for 185 head and $15,000 median (-11.76%) declined somewhat from the 2022 edition, average was up slightly from $30,522 in 2022 to $31,089 (+1.86%) this year. The buy-back rate, 25.7% in 2022, rose to 34%. "Buy-backs may be up a little bit," said Fasig-Tipton's California representative Mike Machowsky. "But the...

Thoroughbred owner and breeder John C. Harris will be honored at a charity fundraising dinner hosted by the Edwin J. Gregson Foundation. The event will take place Thursday, August 17, 2023, at The Inn at Rancho Santa Fe, in Rancho Santa Fe, CA, located just a few miles east of Del Mar Racetrack. "We're delighted to honor John, not only for the accomplishments of his Harris Farms Horse Division, one of the country's leading racing stables and utmost influential owner/breeder operations, for which he has been inducted into the California...

Harris Farms' GISW Cistron (The Factor) sired his first reported foal, a filly born at the California farm Jan. 30. A fourth-generation Harris Farms homebred, the filly is out of Patriot Mission (Acclamation). The mare's extended family includes MGISW and young sire City of Light (Quality Road). Cistron will stand his second season at Harris Farms for $3,500, live foal.

Harris Farms and Santa Anita Park have announced the creating of new scholarship opportunities to promote the Thoroughbred in the Sporthorse disciplines. Two scholarships in the amount of $1,000 will be awarded annually, one for the Junior rider Thoroughbred and the other for the Amateur rider Thoroughbred partnership. The recipient shall receive an award of $1,000, to further their training and competition opportunities. Eligible expenses include lessons or clinics, travel expenses directly related to receiving instruction, competition fees, etc. The recipient must attest that he/she will continue to pursue training...

Halladay (War Front--Hightap, by Tapit), winner of the 2020 GI Fourstardave H., has been retired from racing and will stand the 2022 breeding season at Harris Farms in California as the property of a syndicate led by Adrian Gonzalez of Checkmate Thoroughbreds. He will stand for an introductory fee of $7,500, live foal stand and nurse guarantee, with shares available. Racing for Harrell Ventures and trainer Todd Pletcher, Halladay also won the 2019 Tropical Park Derby and 2020 Sunshine Forever S. On the board in 12 of 17 starts, the...

Grade I winner Cistron (The Factor--Major Allie, by Officer) has been retired from racing and will stand stud at Harris Farms in California. He is now available for inspection and a stud fee will be announced in the fall. Scoring his first black-type win in Oaklawn's Northern Spur S. in 2017, the Hronis Racing colorbearer's other career highlights include victories in the GI Bing Crosby S., GII Kona Gold S. and GIII San Simeon S. The $180,000 KEESEP buy retires with 30-6-7-6 and earnings of $768,719.

Successful California-based stallion Vronsky (Danzig--Words of War, by Lord at War {Arg}), the sire of Grade I winner What A View, passed away from an apparent heart attack after successfully covering a mare at Harris Farms, according the farm's General Manager Jonny Hilvers. Vronsky was 22 years old. Bred by Arthur Hancock and Stonerside Ltd., Vronsky was a $1-million purchase out of the 2000 Keeneland September Sale and was a three-time winner at the races before entering stud in 2005 at E. W. 'Buddy' Johnston's Old English Rancho in Sanger,...