Pennsylvania Derby

After a horse named Causes Trouble (Creative Cause) broke down in the Aug. 24 Parx Dash at Parx Race Course and had to be euthanized, a video circulated that showed that the turf course was in abysmal condition. The video showed that there were numerous holes in the turf course and that the grass itself looked like something you might see in a vacant lot. Just without the broken bottles. There were as many weeds as there were blades of grass. "It's always been known as a bad course, but...

With better than three months left on the racing calendar for 2024, 'TDN Rising Star' Thorpedo Anna (Fast Anna) has already locked up the 3-year-old filly championship, having dominated her peers in the GI Longines Kentucky Oaks, GI Acorn Stakes and GI Coaching Club American Oaks. She lost little in defeat when running fellow 'Rising Star' Fierceness (City of Light) to a head in the GI Travers Stakes, but she returns to her own sex for Saturday's $1-million GI Cotillion Stakes, the first half of a Grade I double in...

'TDN Rising Star' Thorpedo Anna (Fast Anna) drew gate six in a field of eight and was made the 4-5 morning-line favorite when post positions were drawn Monday for Saturday's GI Cotillion Stakes at Parx Racing in suburban Philadelphia. Trainer Ken McPeek will once again give Brian Hernandez, Jr. a leg up on Thorpedo Anna, whose victories in the GI Kentucky Oaks, GI Acorn Stakes and GI CCA Oaks have virtually clinched the 3-year-old filly championship with better than two months of racing left in 2024. She covered herself in...

The entries of two horses, one entered in the GI Pennsylvania Derby and other in the GI Cotillion S., that appeared to be hopelessly outclassed were not accepted Monday by the Parx racing office. Both are trained by Daniel Siculietano and owned by Salvatore Rizzo's JR Jewel Stables. The Pennsylvania Derby horse, Carry Grant (Brody's Cause) was coming off a race where he finished second in a $16,000 maiden claimer at Delaware Park. The Cotillion horse Molly Malone (Mendelssohn) won a $10,000 maiden claimer at Parx in her last start....

Hall of Fame trainer D. Wayne Lukas expressed his desire on Sunday to run GI Preakness Stakes winner Seize the Grey (Arrogate) in the Aug. 24 GI Travers Stakes at Saratoga Race Course. Tim Wilkin covered Lukas's perspective extensively in Saratoga Notebook, presented by NYRA Bets. On Tuesday, according to Daily Racing Form's David Grening, Lukas confirmed Seize the Grey will instead be pointed to the Sept. 21 GI Pennsylvania Derby at Parx. Although he trains at Saratoga, the 3-year-old colt has finished off the board in his two starts...

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY -- It's a tossup as to what is the biggest sporting event this weekend for trainer Jeremiah Englehart. The choices are these: the $175,000 GIII Sanford Stakes at Saratoga Race Course on Saturday or the Vermont Lacrosse Classic two and a half hours away in the town of Essex. Come again? Englehart will do double duty because three of his five kids are in the lacrosse travel tournament. He wont miss that. And he can't be absent from the Spa because he has to to saddle Mo...

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY -- Missing from action for two months, but certainly not forgotten, beaten GI Kentucky Derby favorite and 'TDN Rising Star' Fierceness (City of Light) is ready to make his comeback. Hall of Fame trainer Todd Pletcher said the Repole Stable homebred is set to resume competition in the GI Haskell Stakes at Monmouth Park on July 20 with stablemates Mindframe (Constitution) and Tuscan Sky (Vino Rosso). Mindframe is making his first start since finishing second in the GI Belmont Stakes on June 8. Tuscan Sky won the...

Edited Press Release The Pennsylvania Horse Breeders Association will run 23 stakes at Pennsylvania tracks throughout 2024, including five for PA-Sired, PA-Bred runners. 2-year-olds will have added opportunities, as the PA-Sired, PA-Bred Stallion Series returns in its third year with four stakes worth $400,000. The Series will continue into 2025 with races for 3-year-olds, with a $50,000 breeder bonus paid out to the top three point-earning horses after the third leg. The first of 23 stakes with purses of $100,000 will be run April 22 at Parx Racing: the Unique...

Godolphin's First Mission (Street Sense) continued preparations for the Jan. 27 GI Pegasus World Cup Invitational with a bullet five-furlong work in 1:00.00 (1/51) at Fair Grounds Saturday. "He's a great work horse," trainer Brad Cox said Sunday. "He's continued to do the same here at the Fair Grounds in preparing for the Pegasus. He looked fantastic this morning. We actually took him to the track today [jogging a mile Sunday] because we're due some cold weather in the next few days and we may miss a day of training....

Uncovering loaded needles and syringes to apprehending an assistant starter who was in possession of a controlled substance, seasoned integrity teams conducted searches and seizures last week across a pair of Keystone State racetracks. Led by the Pennsylvania State Horse Racing Commission staff, the sweeps took place first in Erie at Presque Isle Downs before spending three days downstate at Parx Racing in Bensalem through Saturday's GI Pennsylvania Derby. As part of their integrity program, the Commission once again put together a group of investigators--this time from nine states, plus...

For the connections of 11 3-year-olds, the GI Pennsylvania Derby at Parx on Saturday represents a last-ditch effort to pick up an elusive Derby win and while it's not the Derby win most started out the year in search of, the $1 million purse, Grade I status and strong history of past winners makes it a coveted race to win nonetheless. Since Hall of Famer Woody Stephens trained Smarten (Cyane) to earn the inaugural Pennsylvania Derby trophy in 1979, a number of good 3-year-olds have also emerged from the nine-furlong...

Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert will look for a record fifth victory when he sends out 3-1 morning-line favorite Reincarnate (Good Magic) in Saturday's GI betPARX Pennsylvania Derby. "This race is going to be a good step up for him," Baffert said. "He ran really well at Los Alamitos. He is going to have to break well and show up. That's the main thing. If he shows up, I don't see why he wouldn't run well." The field of 11 also includes 7-2 second choice Saudi Crown (Always Dreaming)...