Triple Crown

The field for the GI Preakness S., ranked in "likeliest winner" order: 1) MYSTIK DAN (c, Goldencents--Ma'am, by Colonel John). O/B-Lance Gasaway, Daniel Hamby, 4G Racing, LLC, & Valley View Farm LLC (Ky); T-Kenneth G. McPeek. Lifetime Record: GISW, 7-3-1-1, $3,650,050. Last start: WON May 4 GI Kentucky Derby. The Derby champ will go favored in the Preakness on Saturday after the scratch of 'TDN Rising Star' Muth (Good Magic). This son of Goldencents upset the first leg of the Triple Crown at 18-1 odds. In the last three Derbies,...

Having arrived on a van from Louisville on Sunday, GI Kentucky Derby hero Mystik Dan (Goldencents) took to a sloppy and sealed main track at Pimlico Race Course for the first time Monday morning. If the bay looked at home in the wet conditions, it should come as no surprise. Prior to his narrow success in the Derby, his career highlight came in the Feb. 3 GIII Southwest S., when he relished a muddy strip to crush by eight lengths. "He's such a smart horse. He takes everything in," said...

Kenny McPeek's final decision on GI Kentucky Derby-winner Mystik Dan (Goldencents)'s Preakness appearance should come Saturday after training at Churchill Downs and post-discussion with the owners. The Derby hero went through a second day of galloping beneath the Twin Spires Friday morning under Robby Albarado and will likely pick up the pace Saturday morning. Jockey Brian Hernandez Jr. will have other mounts Preakness weekend and will be riding at Pimlico regardless of the final choice. "Another steady day, another good day. Robby was happy. [Mystik Dan] ate up. We'll discuss...

While still officially remaining on the fence when it comes to whether or not he will run his GI Kentucky Derby winner Mystik Dan (Goldencents) in the May 18 GI Preakness S., trainer Kenny McPeek confirmed that an appearance in the middle jewel of the Triple Crown is a distinct possibility. "Who wouldn't want to?" he replied when asked if he is leaning toward running in the Preakness. "You only get so many of these windows of opportunity. It would give him a chance to prove himself again and maybe...

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. - While most of the racing world was focused on the 150th GI Kentucky Derby run last Saturday at Churchill Downs, the final stop on the Triple Crown series--the 156th GI Belmont S., some six weeks hence on June 8--is already at the top of the charts for plenty of people in this horse-centric upstate city. In order to accommodate the massive makeover of Belmont Park, New York Racing Association officials decided last year to stage the 2024 and 2025 runnings of the Belmont S. at Saratoga...

With the leading GI Kentucky Derby runners looking likely to skip the May 18 GI Preakness S., a wave of non-Derby starters are lining up for the second leg of the Triple Crown. Trainer Bob Baffert, whose horses were banned from the Derby, confirmed GI Arkansas Derby winner Muth (Good Magic) and stablemate Imagination (Into Mischief), who won the GII San Felipe S. before finishing a narrow runner-up behind Stronghold (Ghostzapper) in the GI Santa Anita Derby last time out, are both expected for the Preakness. The duo breezed in...

For an eighth straight year, the Maryland Jockey Club is offering bonus money totaling $100,000 to trainers who run a minimum of five horses in the 15 Thoroughbred stakes races during Preakness weekend, May 17 and 18, at Pimlico Race Course. The blockbuster weekend includes a total of 16 stakes, nine graded, worth $4.4 million in purses. The trainer with the most points will receive $50,000, second is worth $25,000, third $12,000, fourth $7,000, fifth $4,000 and sixth $2,000. Points are accumulated for finishing first (10 points), second (seven), third...

Triple Crown winner Justify, champion Gun Runner, and jockey Joel Rosario lead a class of nine new members to be inducted this year to the National Museum of Racing's Hall of Fame. In addition to those three entries--all in their first year of eligibility--jockey Abe Hawkins and racehorses Aristides and Lecomte have been selected by the Pre-1900 Historic Review Committee; and Harry F. Guggenheim, Clement L. Hirsch, and Joe Hirsch were chosen by the Pillars of the Turf Committee. Joel Rosario, 39, a native of Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, has...

One day after a lower court in Kentucky denied a motion to make Amr Zedan's 'TDN Rising Star' Muth eligible for the GI Kentucky Derby by overturning Churchill Downs Inc., (CDI)'s ban again trainer Bob Baffert, Zedan's incorporated racing stable on Friday asked the Kentucky Court of Appeals to "vacate the Jefferson Circuit Court's order and issue a temporary injunction" to let his Good Magic colt at least begin the entry process to race in the first leg of the Triple Crown. Zedan's Apr. 19 motion proposed that "At a...

You need to channel your inner Meat Loaf to put Saturday's trio of points-awarding stakes for the GI Kentucky Derby in perspective. The well-backed winners of the GI Arkansas Derby, GI Florida Derby, and G2 UAE Derby all delivered commanding, speed-centric performances that transformed what has been an underwhelming prep season into a Triple Crown chase suddenly spiked with intrigue. 'TDN Rising Star' Muth (Good Magic) swatted back a surprise mid-race attack to win authoritatively at Oaklawn. Fellow 'Rising Star' and juvenile champ Fierceness (City of Light) administered a 13...

Secretariat's birthday will be celebrated Saturday, March 30 with a special children's event hosted by the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame in Saratoga Springs, NY. The afternoon, which will run concurrently with the final day of the Museum's exhibit celebrating the 50th anniversary of Secretariat's Triple Crown, will feature a showing of the 2010 Disney film starring Diane Lane along with a variety of children's activities. Fans are welcome to an Easter egg hunt and will have the opportunity to color silks and design a birthday card....

'TDN Rising Star' Locked (Gun Runner), the winner of last year's GI Claiborne Breeders' Futurity, has come down with a knee injury that will prevent him from running in the upcoming Triple Crown races. The injury is not considered career-threatening. The news of his injury was first reported by David Grening of the Daily Racing Form. Aron Wellman, the managing partner of Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners, the co-owners of Locked, described the injury as "a very minor ligament fray in the upper part of the left knee." Locked was first expected...