Medaglia d'Oro

11th-GP, $60K, Msw, 3yo, 1mT, 5:14 p.m. ET Juddmonte, Winchell Thoroughbreds and Bridlewood Farm's PRINCIPE D'ORO (Medaglia d'Oro), a $650,000 KEESEP yearling and half-brother to 'TDN Rising Star' and GIII Allaire DuPont Distaff Match Series S. heroine Spice Is Nice (Curlin), draws the fence in this grassy debut run for Todd Pletcher. The 7-2 morning-line favorite was bred by B. Flay Thoroughbreds. Pletcher also campaigned the dark bay's dam, the Bobby Flay colorbearer and 'TDN Rising Star' Dame Dorothy (Bernardini) to a win in the 2015 GI Humana Distaff S....

With the 2022 breeding season right around the corner, we will feature a series of breeders' mating plans over the coming weeks. Today we have Aidan and Leah O'Meara of Stonehaven Steadings. VENETIAN SONATA (m, 13, Bernardini--Moonlight Sonata, by Carson City), to be bred to Curlin Bernardini's talents as a broodmare sire have been impressive but his strike rate with Curlin has been hugely impressive with nearly 20% stakes winners to date. That coupled with another stellar year at the track for Curlin made this mating an easy decision. Venetian...

The new year could scarcely have opened in more familiar fashion, with Bob Baffert not only winning the GIII Sham S. for an eighth time but replicating what had meanwhile become a bitterly poignant 1-2 in the race last year. Hopefully the names of Newgrange (Violence) and Rockefeller (Medaglia d'Oro) will not end 2022 quite so explosively freighted as those of Life Is Good (Into Mischief) and Medina Spirit (Protonico), whose respective transfer and tragedy have meanwhile become so expressive of the travails not only of their trainer, but of...

With only a field of five newly turned 3-year-olds signed on, Hall of Famer Bob Baffert will saddle a pair of imposing runners in Saturday's GIII Sham S. going a two-turn mile at Santa Anita. Rockefeller (Medaglia d'Oro) returns to the West Coast for Baffert after securing a front-running victory in Belmont's one-turn mile GIII Nashua S. Nov. 7. The $750,000 KEESEP yearling was previously fourth behind his unbeaten GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile-winning stablemate Corniche (Quality Road) in the GI American Pharoah S. Oct 1. Rockefeller is the 8-5 morning-line...

On this day 12 months ago, Robertino Diodoro saddled Cypress Creek Equine and partners' Keepmeinmind (Laoban) to a popular maiden-breaking victory in the GII Kentucky Jockey Club S. en route to a trip down the Triple Crown trail. Saturday afternoon beneath the Twin Spires, the same connections' Dream Lith (Medaglia d'Oro) officially served notice that she is on a GI Longines  Kentucky Oaks trajectory, overcoming a tricky trip to post a narrow success in the GII Golden Rod S. When favored Rags To Riches S. winner Sandstone (Street Sense) failed...

7th-Churchill Downs, $119,047, Msw, 11-20, 2yo, f, 1 1/16m, 1:45.44, ft, 2 1/4 lengths. LA CRETE (f, 2, Medaglia d'Oro--Cavorting {MGISW, $2,063,000}, by Bernardini), a half-sister to Clairiere (Curlin), GISW, $1,290,992, took care of business impressively on debut going a tough, two-turn distance of 1 1/16 miles here. Facing only seven rivals, the 8-5 favorite caught a flyer beneath Joel Rosario and shot out to the front. The Stonestreet homebred showed the way while uncontested through fractions of :23.53 and :47.84. She let it out a notch rounding the far...

Darley America will have two major new additions to its stallion roster for 2022 as GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile and GI Belmont S. winner Essential Quality (Tapit--Delightful Quality, by Elusive Quality) and fellow Grade I winner Maxfield (Street Sense--Velvety, by Bernardini) are set to retire to Jonabell after their final starts. "To have both Essential Quality and Maxfield coming to Jonabell is as exciting as it gets. And to have accomplished what they did as homebreds in the colors of Godolphin makes it even that much more meaningful," said Darley...

7th-Belmont, $90,000, Msw, 10-22, 2yo, f, 1 1/16m, 1:47.36, ft, 7 3/4 lengths. NOSTALGIC (f, 2, Medaglia d'Oro--Been Here Before {SP}, by Tapit), scratched out of an intended unveiling here about a month ago, showed three easy breezes in the interim and was let go at 9-1 as her second-time-starting stablemate Handbelle (Tapit) took the most tote attention. The Godolphin homebred showed little early foot and sat far back in second last down the backside through splits of :24.02 and :48.50. She sliced through a seam and began to inch...

2nd-SAX, $61K, Msw, 3yo, 7f, 4:31 p.m. Kaleem Shah's THALES (Quality Road) gets his start for Simon Callaghan Friday. The half to SW and MGISP Standard Deviation (Curlin), who sold for $240,000 at the Fasig-Tipton October sale, realized a $1.25 million final bid following a :20.3 quarter at the OBS Spring sale last season. The ridgling was the highest-priced colt and the second highest priced offspring by the Lane's End stallion last term. Pegram, Watson & Weitman's Essential Wager (Honor Code) also represents a sale's coup for his sire. One...

Godolphin's Arqana Breeze-Up@Doncaster £675,000 sale topper Chancellery (Ire) (Medaglia d'Oro) was all the rage for Thursday's Prix de Fontenoy at ParisLongchamp and justified odds-on favouritism in the one-mile newcomers' test to earn 'TDN Rising Star' status with an impressive debut performance. The 7-10 pick shuffled for early positioning and found a slot stalking the pace in second by halfway. Looming large on the bridle approaching the quarter-mile marker, he was comfortably on top with 250 metres remaining and powered clear under minimal coaxing before gearing down to easily outclass Woozle...

Coinage (c, 2, Tapit--Bar of Gold, by Medaglia d'Oro) switched to grass in style with a wire-to-wire upset victory at 6-1 in Wednesday's GIII With Anticipation S. at Saratoga. The chestnut, drawn widest of all in post six, was sent to the front by Junior Alvarado. The New York-bred showed the way through fractions of :25.66 and :50.65, and had plenty left for the stretch to win going away by two lengths. Saratoga debut winner Portfolio Company (Kitten's Joy), a handful for Irad Ortiz, Jr. throughout the 1 1/16-miles journey,...

6th-Saratoga, $100,000, Msw, 8-8, 2yo, f, 6 1/2f, 1:17.72, ft, 2 1/4 lengths. DREAM LITH (f, 2, Medaglia d'Oro--Elle Sueno, by Street Cry {Ire}), the longest shot in the field at 36-1, was quickly in stride from an outside post and settled into a tracking spot through fractions of :22.60 and :45.75. She split horses coming off the turn and ground down the lane under a vigorous ride from David Cohen before drawing away late with good energy. She left no doubt about the outcome with 2 1/4 lengths of...