Horse Racing

Some of the most highly anticipated races during the summer racing season are the 'baby' races during the boutique meetings at Saratoga and Del Mar and at Ellis Park, which attract its fair share of high-priced offspring from a variety of top national outfits. Summer Breezes highlights debuting 2-year-olds at those meetings that have been sourced at the breeze-up sales earlier in the year, with links to their under-tack previews. Here are the horses entered for Friday at Saratoga and Del Mar: Friday, July 26, 2024 Saratoga 6, $90k, 2yo,...

The 12th annual 'Riders Up!' jockey karaoke contest, benefitting the Permanently Disabled Jockeys Fund (PDJF), returns on Sunday, July 28 at Vapor Night Club in Saratoga Springs, the non-profit said in a Thursday press release. As in previous years, the Saratoga contest will be part of the Battle of East-vs-West with the Del Mar event being held on Aug. 11. Famed track announcer Tom Durkin returns as emcee, and this year's judges include Donna Brothers, Marisa Jacques, Mark Mulholland and Father Jim Sichko. Click here for more information.

Monmouth Park's $1,000 Haskell Handicapping Challenge on Saturday, July 20, saw another record field and finished with New Jersey's own Pete Rogers atop the leaderboard, according to a release on Thursday from the racetrack. Rogers's $6,095.50 bankroll was best of 323 total entries and landed the Summit, New Jersey-resident a first prize of a Breeders' Cup Betting Challenge seat and $21,000. In total, Saturday's Haskell contest awarded 10 BCBC seats, two seats to the National Horseplayers Championship and $50,000 in cash. Monmouth Park's next live-money handicapping contest is Saturday, Aug....

Retired MLB star and GI Belmont Stakes-winning co-owner Jayson Werth will be the luncheon keynote speaker at the Racing and Gaming Conference at Saratoga (RGCS), taking place from Aug. 12-14 at the Saratoga Hilton, the organizers said in a release on Thursday. "I am humbled to be welcomed into the racing community alongside experts passionate about addressing the challenges and opportunities in racing and gaming," said Werth. "It's an honor to share my own journey with such a remarkable group at the Racing and Gaming Conference at Saratoga." The RGCS...

Fasig-Tipton will offer a share consigned by Airdrie Stud in freshman sire Complexity (by Maclean's Music) as the first item in the Saratoga Sale's second session on Tuesday, Aug. 6, the auction house said in a release on Thursday morning. Complexity leads all first crop sires by winners, black-type winners, black-type horses, graded stakes winners and progeny earnings. He is also the current leading general sire of 2-year-olds. These include Mo Plex, winner of the GIII Sanford Stakes at Saratoga on opening weekend, as well as Mensa, winner of the...

Kentucky Downs plans to increase purses for nine of its 18 stakes by a total of $3.7 million from what was originally announced, pending regulatory approval, according to a press release from the track early on Thursday morning. Leading the way is the GIII Nashville Derby Invitational, bumped from $2.5 million to $3.1 million. That would make the 1 5/16-mile stakes North America's second-richest race, for Kentucky-breds, behind only the $5 million GI Kentucky Derby among races held at one track. The Nashville Derby already was America's richest turf race...

An $80-$90 million renovation to the existing grandstand at Churchill Downs Racetrack that will update ticketed seating is scheduled to begin in August with completion planned in time for the 151st GI Kentucky Derby in May 2025, the track said in a Wednesday release. The renovation of the Grandstand Club will transform existing outdoor aluminum bleachers into a combination of 8,300 new seating varieties. Updated options will include covered and uncovered stadium-style seats as well as rail boxes along the dirt track's outer rail that will offer a "trackside" seating...

If you didn't know the sophisticated people behind the mating, you might imagine that Puca went to Good Magic on no better premise than to double down on the alchemy implicit in both names. Because a puca (or pooka) in folklore is a shape-changing sprite, capable of bringing good or bad fortune. Shakespeare named Puck accordingly in A Midsummer Night's Dream, but my favourite example is Elwood P. Dowd's invisible drinking buddy Harvey, a rabbit standing just under six feet four inches. Perhaps you've noticed his silhouette at Harvey's Bar...

The Horse Racing Women's Summit (HRWS) hosted their second event of the year with panels and networking opportunities taking place at the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame on Tuesday, July 23 in Saratoga Springs, New York, the organization said in a Wednesday release. "To be clear, this is not an event where women get together to discuss female challenges," said Shona Rotondo, Chair of the HRWS Marketing & Communications Committee. "It's an event that brings together intelligent and successful industry professionals to discuss the challenges of our...

Canadian champion 2-year-old colt Truth of It All (Proud Truth) died peacefully from natural causes at age 34 on Wednesday, July 24 at Hurstland Farm in Midway, Kentucky, according to a press release from the farm. By Darby Dan stallion Proud Truth, Truth of It All was born at Hurstland to MGSW Cup of Honey (Raise a Cup) Feb. 26, 1990. Trained by Sheldon Wolfe, Truth of It All won the 1993 edition of the GIII Grey Stakes en route to taking home the Sovereign Award for the top juvenile...

Vladimir Cespedes, an owner, exercise rider and stable employee based at Parx Racing was found in possession of an electrical device and illegal human narcotics on Monday, July 23, during an integrity sweep of the barn area which was led by Pennsylvania State Horse Racing Commission (PSHRC) investigators who were in coordination with the racetrack and the Pennsylvania Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association (PTHA), according to a stewards' ruling (24172PP) posted on the Commission's portal. That same day, Cespedes was summarily suspended by the stewards for a potential violation of 7 PA...

Some of the most highly anticipated races during the summer racing season are the 'baby' races during the boutique meetings at Saratoga and Del Mar and at Ellis Park, which attract its fair share of high-priced offspring from a variety of top national outfits. Summer Breezes highlights debuting 2-year-olds at those meetings that have been sourced at the breeze-up sales earlier in the year, with links to their under-tack previews. To follow are the horses entered for Thursday at Saratoga: Thursday, July 25, 2024 Saratoga 1, $90k, 2yo, f, (S),...