Jose Ortiz

Verbal replicated his impressive debut victory when he came flying late to win the GIII Cecil B. DeMille S. at Del Mar Sunday. The bay colt was unhurried from his outside post and was well back as longshot pacesetters Groovy Huey (Dad Caps) and Get Back Goldie (Goldencents) ran away from the field through fractions of :22.04 and :46.10. Get Back Goldie took over entering the far turn, but the field was quickly closing in on the pacesetters. Verbal made rapid progress while four wide into the stretch and he...

In the 1997 Breeders' Cup not far away at old Hollywood Park, trainer Christophe Clement made a favorable impression with his first-ever starter at the championships, sending out Allen Paulson's Flag Down (Deputy Minister) to a sound third-place effort behind Chief Bearhart (Chief's Crown) in the GI Breeders' Cup Turf. Thirty-nine starters had represented the stable in the 22 years since, each walked back to the barn a defeated animal. You couldn't have faulted the Frenchman if he'd begun to feel a bit like the late Bobby Frankel, who saddled...

Sunday's running of the Bertram F. Bongard S. for New York-breds at Belmont ended in tragedy as Happy Happy B (Honor Code) broke down during the race and had to be euthanized. The 2-year-old suffered a catastrophic injury to his right front leg. Breaking down about 70 yards before the wire, Happy Happy B threw rider Jose Ortiz, who was sent to North Shore Hospital to have his left leg evaluated. Ortiz's agent Jim Ricco Jr. reported Sunday evening the rider was fine and was not expected to miss any...

2nd-Saratoga, $100,000, Msw, 8-22, 2yo, f, 1 1/16mT, 1:49.45, yl, 1 1/2 lengths. FORTINENO (IRE) (f, 2, Frankel {GB}--Rubina {Ire} {SP-Ire}, by Invincible Spirit {Ire}), backed to 6-5 favoritism for this debut despite a modest-looking worktab, traveled in a clear fifth as Seduce (Into Mischief) dictated terms through pokey fractions of :26.06 and :51.81 over boggy ground. Picking up a bit three wide nearing the lane, the $400,000 Keeneland September buy found her best stride passing the eighth pole and wore down the pacesetter in the final sixteenth to score...

The crew of the TDN Writers' Room presented by Keeneland celebrated a major milestone Tuesday, recording the 100th episode of the ever-growing podcast, and did so with a star-studded show shot from the New York Racing Association's television stand overlooking the majestic paddock at Saratoga. Welcoming as guests NYRA CEO David O'Rourke, America's Day at the Races analyst and Saratoga veteran Andy Serling and Eclipse champion jockey Jose Ortiz, the writers got insight on the future of New York racing both upstate and downstate, the significance of fans returning to...

On the 100th episode of the TDN Writers' Room, Joe, Bill and Jon were on scene in Saratoga to chat with NYRA's David O'Rourke, Fox Sports analyst Andy Serling and Eclipse champion jockey Jose Ortiz.

It was a different year, but the same result with Chad Brown earning his third consecutive win--and fifth overall--with Klaravich Stables' Technical Analysis (Ire) (Kingman {GB}) in Friday's GIII Lake George S. at Saratoga. In fairness, Brown came into the race with a significant advantage, saddling four of the 10 runners, including GSW Fluffy Socks (Slumber {GB}), Amy C (GB) (Charming Thought {GB}) and Minaun (Ire) (Zoffany {Ire}). "Going into this race, I thought these four horses were even," admitted Brown. "I couldn't have picked between them..I hope that some...

Chad Brown won 32 races to capture his sixth consecutive trainer's title at the Belmont spring/summer meet, which opened Apr. 22 and concluded Sunday. His win total was five more than second-place finisher Christophe Clement. Rob Atras was third with 19 wins, while Hall of Famer Todd Pletcher and Mike Maker each finished with 18 victories. "It takes a lot of good horses, loyal and patient owners and, of course, the team," Brown said. "This meet wasn't easy. We had a bad virus run through the barn and that really...

Godolphin homebred Maxfield (Street Sense) put on a show at Churchill Downs yet again with a dazzling victory in the GII Stephen Foster S., a "Win and You're In" for the GI Breeders' Cup Classic. Running off the fence early, the 2-5 chalk settled in sixth as longshots Empty Tomb (Speightstown) and Sprawl (City Zip) duked it out through opening splits of :23.33 and :46.88. Making an eye-catching move up the outside on the backstretch run, the dark bay swiftly picked off rivals, flying up to take charge at the...

Entering this test on the back of a pair of Grade I wins, Letruska (Super Saver) was installed as the overwhelming favorite at 4-5 and more than justified those odds, running an overmatched field off their feet in Churchill's GII Fleur de Lis S. This event was a "Win and You're In" for the GI Breeders' Cup Distaff in November at Del Mar. Veering right a bit exiting her outside post, Letruska went straight to the front under Jose Ortiz and clocked opening splits of :24.533 and :48.19 with Antoinette...

The Week in Review, by T.D. Thornton A couple of decades ago, I knew a press box wiseguy who faithfully played what he called "ambulance chaser" bets. Every time a rider got unseated in a spill, he would put two bucks to win on the next mount that jockey rode back. The wagers didn't have to involve an actual ambulance ride--he believed the very act of hitting the dirt and having to dust yourself off might give a jockey extra incentive once he or she got back in the irons....

Hall of Famer Todd Pletcher offers a two-pronged attack--Con Lima (Commisioner) and Jouster (Noble Mission {GB})--in Thursday's GIII Wonder Again S. at Belmont. Drawing the two hole in the nine-furlong event, Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners, Joseph Graffeo, Del Toro, Eric Nikolaus and Troy Johnson's Con Lima will attempt to collect her fourth stakes victory of the season after placing in a pair of blakc-type tests last term. The Texas-bred kicked off 2021 with a score in Gulfstream's one-mile Ginger Brew S. Jan. 2 before finishing runner-up to White Frost (Candy Ride...