Manny Franco

Manny Franco was the leading rider and Chad Brown took the leading trainer title at the 35-day Belmont at the Big A spring/summer meet which concluded Sunday. Franco, 29, topped the table on the heels of a prosperous Aqueduct spring meet where he won the title with 28 wins. He visited the winner's circle 41 times as part of a 210-41-41-25 record with $3,148,141 in earnings at the Belmont meeting. "It's special. I have never won this one before, so it's amazing," said Franco. "I'm so happy to have the...

The late Maple Leaf Mel (Cross Traffic), who won last year's GIII Victory Ride S. and GIII Miss Preakness S. before tragically falling en route to victory in the GI Test S., was named New York-bred Horse of the Year along with champion 3-year-old filly and champion female sprinter honors during the New York Thoroughbred Breeders Inc.'s Annual Awards Ceremony Monday night. Bred by Joe Fafone and campaigned by Bill Parcells' August Dawn Farm, Maple Leaf Mel was trained by Melanie Giddings--for whom she was named--and Jeremiah Englehart. The complete...

Manny Franco rode the winners of 28 races to claim the leading jockey title during the 16-day spring meet at Aqueduct which concluded Sunday. The 29-year-old native of Carolina, Puerto Rico earned a repeat win and his third overall title at the meet after capturing last year's Big A spring title with 37 wins and the 2019 title with 18 wins. "It feels great to be back on top," said Franco, who is represented by agent John Panagot. "I'm just grateful and happy to be in this position. I want...

Sumaya US Stable homebred Ghalia Princess (American Pharoah) made light work of three rivals to post a first black-type success in Saturday's $100,000 Cicada S. at Aqueduct. Cutting back a furlong after finishing runner-up in the Feb. 17 Ruthless S., the bay was away from stall one without incident, but was beaten for speed by Reconcile (War Front). Manny Franco elected to take a tug on Ghalia Princess, easing her back and into the two path to do the chasing through an opening quarter in :22.15. Content to race with...

1st-Aqueduct, $80,000, Msw, 1-13, 3yo, 6f, 1:10.51, my, 5 1/4 lengths. TUSCAN SKY (c, 3, Vino Rosso--South Andros {SW, $207,125}, by Sky Mesa), a clear 7-2 second choice on debut taking on the three-start maiden, but 3-4 chalk Have You Heard (Hard Spun), found his best stride entering the final furlong and streaked home to open his account impressively at first asking in the Saturday opener from Aqueduct. Tuscan Sky won the break and took his four rivals along through the opening furlong, but Have You Heard wrested command before...

The New York Racing Association released the stakes schedule for the 2024 winter meet at Aqueduct Racetrack, the organization said in a release Friday. The 47-day Big A winter meet, which will feature 26 stakes races worth $3.5 million in purses, begins Monday, Jan. 1 and runs through Saturday, Mar. 30. Live racing will be conducted Thursday-Sunday for the first three weeks of January and Friday-Sunday from Jan. 26 through the first week of March. Aqueduct will host a Presidents' Day card on Monday, Feb. 19. Four-day race weeks resume...

Chad Brown had three chances to record a sixth victory in the last eight runnings of the GIII Pebbles S., and it was the 10-1 longest priced of the trio Implicated (Connect) who parlayed a perfect trip into a first black-type success Saturday at the Big A. Drawn the fence with Manny Franco at the controls for the first time, the $125,000 Fasig-Tipton October yearling purchase was away without incident and raced a touch keen into the first turn as 53-1 Precious Avary (Divining Rod) showed the way at a...

Jockey Manny Franco earned the 2,000th victory of his career Sunday at Aqueduct when guiding the Chad Brown-trained Spirit of St Louis to a half-length score in the day's second race. "I feel great," Franco, who also won the day's opener, said. "I had that on me the whole week, so I'm glad to do it early. I'm a little calm now and happy to do it. I just let him do what he wanted to do because I know the pace wasn't fast in front. I just kept my...

She may not have been the longest shot on the board--that title fell to intent-on-the-lead pacesetter and 55-1 shot Sister Bridget (Ire) (Galileo Gold {GB})--but Mertkan Kantarmaci's 29-1 trainee Evvie Jets (m, 5, Twirling Candy--Natchez Trace, by Consolidator) was still an afterthought in the public eye's at 29-1 behind a trio of Chad Brown entrants and one shipped stateside by Ireland's Joseph O'Brien in Saratoga's GII Mohegan Sun Ballston Spa S. Thursday. Longshot or not, Evvie Jets set the Spa lawn on its ear with a bold win up the...

Gainesway Stable's Spendarella (Karakontie {Jpn}) was named 2022 New York-bred Horse of the Year--as well as champion 3-year-old filly and champion female turf horse--at the New York Thoroughbred Breeders Inc.'s annual awards ceremony, sponsored by the New York Thoroughbred Breeding and Development Fund, at Saratoga National Golf Course Monday evening. Now four, the filly won a pair of graded events last spring before heading overseas for a runner-up effort in the G1 Coronation S. at Royal Ascot. She returned Stateside to win the GI Del Mar Oaks in August. "It's...

The 19-day Aqueduct Racetrack spring meet, which ran from Mar. 30 to Apr. 30, closed out with jockey Manny Franco and trainer Linda Rice repeat as the leaders in their respective divisions after taking the titles at this year's Aqueduct winter meet. Franco secured his second Big A spring meet riding title with 37 wins while Rice won her fourth Aqueduct spring meet training title with 17 wins. Franco, a 28-year-old native of Carolina, Puerto Rico, earned the eighth riding title of his career. "I'm very grateful for the help...

2nd-Aqueduct, $84,000, Alw (NW2$X), Opt. Clm ($62,500), 4-21, 4yo/up, f/m, 1 1/16mT, 1:43.02, fm, 1 length. YUKATA (IRE) (f, 4, Galileo {Ire}--Blue Kimono {Ire}, by Invincible Spirit {Ire}), victorious in a Deauville all-weather maiden at first asking for Jean-Claude Rouget in November 2021, took a conditions race on the turf at ParisLongchamp last April before finishing third as the favorite in the Listed Prix Finlande at the same venue May 19. Well-beaten when last seen in the G1 Prix de Diane (French Oaks) last June, she was part of a...