Joe Bianca

Selected from a pool of almost 200 applicants, the Next Generation Advisory Group will consist of 16 new members who represent a broad range of views and experiences across the American horse racing community, the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority (HISA) announced Monday. The group will start in April and will convene monthly to provide feedback on the implementation and evolution of HISA's various regulations, including racetrack safety and anti-doping and medication regulations. Among this group of 16 are horsemen, veterinarians, jockeys, horseplayers, representatives from horsemen's groups, racing offices and...

Former TDN Associate Editor Joe Bianca has joined West Point Thoroughbreds as a partner account representative. Bianca comes to the partnership company after nearly seven years as an associate editor at Thoroughbred Daily News, where he received a Media Eclipse Award for his 2020 piece on New York City, Belmont Park and the COVID-19 pandemic, "To Hell and Back: Belmont Marks a Deserved Triumph for New York City." Bianca also hosted the industry-leading "TDN Writers' Room" podcast as well as the handicapping-focused conversation show "Bettor Things with Joe Bianca." An...

The writing is on the wall for Aqueduct Racetrack. There has been no official announcement, but the New York Racing Association has made clear with its plans to 'winterize' Belmont Park that Aqueduct, New York's stalwart winter racing home for decades, is on borrowed time. And while the logic of continuing to operate two racetracks just nine miles apart is undeniably questionable, don't let anyone fool you into thinking that nothing of value will be lost or that no one will mourn when Aqueduct becomes the latest American racing staple...

Chuck Simon, a trainer for two decades in horse racing who previously worked for legends of the game like H. Allen Jerkens and D. Wayne Lukas, has reinvented himself in the sport. After being squeezed out of the training game in part due to the rise of the "super trainer", Simon has become one of the most articulate critics of racing and advocates for the sport's reform, both on Twitter and the hit Going in Circles podcast, which he co-hosts with handicapper Barry Spears. Wednesday, Simon joined Bettor Things with...

There has never before been an effective, institutional advocate for horseplayers in North American racing, but Pat Cummings and the Thoroughbred Idea Foundation have emphatically changed that in the past several years. As the TIF's executive director, Cummings has brought to light many of the myriad issues and injustices facing horse bettors like no one has before, and Tuesday, Cummings joined Bettor Things with Joe Bianca for an illuminating conversation about the progress made on behalf of players in recent years and how much work there still is left to...

There has never before been an effective, institutional advocate for horseplayers in North American racing, but Pat Cummings and the Thoroughbred Idea Foundation have emphatically changed that in the past several years. As the TIF's executive director, Cummings has brought to light many of the myriad issues and injustices facing horse bettors like no one has before, and Tuesday, Cummings joined Bettor Things with Joe Bianca for an illuminating conversation about the progress made on behalf of players in recent years and how much work there still is left to...

A week out from his company's marquee October Yearling Sale, Tattersalls Director Jimmy George joined the TDN Writers' Room presented by Keeneland Tuesday as the Green Group Guest of the Week to discuss the increasing American participation in the sale, the booming yearling market, opportunities for American buyers with the lopsided exchange rate and more. "It's not quite buy one, get one free, but it's very nearly that," George said of the potential sales results of the exchange rate, where pounds are nearly equal to dollars at this point. "Honestly,...

Tattersalls Marketing Director Jimmy George joined this week's TDN Writers' Room ahead of the anticipated October Yearling Sale, which runs October 4-6.

Even in a booming yearling sales market, Keeneland's marquee September Sale has exceeded expectations, selling a remarkable 13 seven-figure yearlings in Book 1 and passing its 2021 gross numbers Monday despite having five sessions left to go. Tuesday, Keeneland's VP of Sales Tony Lacy joined the TDN Writers' Room presented by Keeneland as the Green Group Guest of the Week to talk about the banner results, the preparation that goes into selling over 4,000 yearlings, what the future of the sale will look like and more. "I think you had...

Tony Lacy, the Vice President of Sales at Keeneland, joined this week's TDN Writers' Room ahead of the conclusion of another historic edition of the Keeneland September Sale.

The Del Mar summer meet, always a hot attraction in Southern California, could not have gone much better this year. The stand set records for average daily handle and average field size, and crucially, recorded zero racing or training fatalities, the fourth stakes Del Mar meet with no racing breakdowns. Tuesday, Del Mar CEO Joe Harper joined the TDN Writers' Room presented by Keeneland as the Green Group Guest of the Week to talk about how the track has become the gold standard for racehorse safety, what the future looks...

Joe Harper joins this week's TDN Writers' Room to discuss the close of a Del Mar meet marked by a perfect safety record and record handle.