John Ennis

Opening an occasional series focused on Irish expatriates in Kentucky, TDN meets a son of Co. Meath testing the GI Kentucky Derby water with his impressive Leonatus S. winner. As migrations go, one is rather less surprising than the other. On the one hand, over the past two years the synthetic circuit at Turfway has consecutively delivered the winner and runner-up in the definitive test of a dirt Thoroughbred. On the other, the trainer hoping to produce another GI Kentucky Derby horse from the same unlikely platform is only the...

LEXINGTON, KY - The Fasig-Tipton July Selected Horses of Racing Age Sale, bolstered by the last-minute addition of a newly crowned graded stakes winner, marches into its second decade with its 11th renewal Monday at Newtown Paddocks. Bidding on the first of 245 catalogued offerings is slated to begin at 2 p.m. A common refrain from consignors heading into the one-session auction was timeliness, as the sale's place on the calendar puts it right in front of a busy summer of racing, both regionally and at boutique meets on both...

He was hardly the first horseman who couldn't afford to be wrong, and he won't be the last. And he knows that another day, with another horse, the high-wire might not have taken the weight of the gamble. But if John Ennis duly needed a share of luck to make it across, then everything that has happened since suggests that he did so principally through his own dexterity. The trainer remembers trembling as he signed a $7,000 docket for a Yes It's True colt at the Fasig-Tipton October Sale in...

3rd-Churchill Downs, $114,814, Msw, 4-28, 2yo, f, 5f, :58.75, ft, 3 lengths. MOLLIE KATE (f, 2, Tapizar--Forbidden Brew, by Milwaukee Brew), sent off at 4-1 for this unveiling, broke sharply and soon led Tranquil Times (Firing Line) through a crisp opening quarter in :22.19. Clear of her rival and moving easily straightening for home, the John Ennis trainee was given moderate encouragement by James Graham in the stretch, cruising home an unchallenged three-length winner over Murgatroyd (Brody's Cause). The winner, a half to Paige Anne (Take Charge Indy), MGSP, $114,540,...

2nd-Keeneland, $55,240, Msw, 4-8, 2yo, f, 4 1/2f, :52.04, ft, 1 length. SHESGOTATTITUDE (f, 2, Tiznow--Mackenzie Capri, by Eskendereya) was allowed to drift up to 21-5--better than twice her morning line--in the face of the heavily backed Wesley Ward 3-5 firster Twilight Gleaming (Ire) (National Defense {GB}) and ran to some eye-popping morning trials to provide trainer John Ennis with his second debut winner of the meet. Exiting a bullet three-furlong blowout in :34 flat (1/32) over this main track Mar. 30, the bay filly hit the ground running and...

1st-Keeneland, $56,787, Msw, 4-2, 2yo, f, 4 1/2f, :52.15, ft, 3 1/2 lengths. BOHEMIAN FROST (f, 2, Frosted--Toast of Mayfair, by Speightstown) blasted out of the gate and never looked back to become the first winner at Keeneland's spring meet Friday afternoon. Having prepped for this with a :46 2/5 bullet from the gate here Mar. 21, the grey was pounded down to 9-5 into the face of a 4-5 Wesley Ward shot and soon proved why. With Ward's runner Dream Fly (American Pharoah) missing the break from the rail, Bohemian...

Early action seemed tepid, but bidding picked up noticeably throughout leading to a lively day of business at the Fasig-Tipton July Horses of Racing Age Sale in Lexington Monday. "There was lots of activity at all price ranges and a lot of horses got moved and found new opportunities with new buyers," said Fasig-Tipton President Boyd Browning. "The sale was well-attended. Veterinary activity, which is one of the things that I always look at to kind of evaluate pre-sale interest, was higher this year than last year. We have now...

Fasig-Tipton has added 11 supplemental entries, led by graded stakes placed juvenile County Final (Oxbow), to its July Horses of Racing Age Sale which will be held Monday in Lexington. County Final, who will be offered as hip 166, was a debut winner over the turf at Churchill Downs June 5 and is coming off a runner-up effort behind 'TDN Rising Star' Cazdero (Street Sense) in the June 27 GIII Bashford Manor S. He is consigned by trainer and co-owner John Ennis. Also added to the auction is the 3-year-old...