War Like Goddess

Back on the hamster wheel, everybody. You know the drill. Usual freshman hype, please. Just remember to change the names--and not to dwell too unhelpfully on how things played out for those being talked up four or five years ago. But the legitimate, perennial challenge of the yearling circuit also abides, and likewise much of its color and character. Just not quite all. Not enough time has elapsed, certainly, to heal one aching void. For many of his compatriots, in particular, every barn we enter we still half-expect to hear...

Godolphin's Wet Paint (Blame) ships in from trainer Brad Cox's Kentucky base at Churchill Downs as the favorite for Sunday's GII Delaware Handicap, the annual centerpiece of the racing calendar in the 'First State.' That fact notwithstanding, she'll need to bring her best if she is to put a halt to a four-race skid dating back to a narrow victory in last year's GI CCA Oaks at Saratoga. Runner-up to the highly impressive Randomized (Nyquist) in the GI Alabama Stakes, the homebred was never a factor when eighth to stablemate...

She might have been the bridesmaid in last year's running, but no one was taking her 'New York moment' in 2024. Didia (Arg) (m, 6, Orpen--Delambre {Brz}, by Rainbow Corner {GB}) broke well to briefly see open air in the GI New York S.  before eager pacesetters to her outside, namely Royalty Interest (Fr) (Le Havre {Fr}) and Surprisingly (Mastery), stepped out to dispute who would lead the large field of 13. The former ended up at the head of affairs and rolled along through :23.18 and :47.74 fractions as...

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY -- It sounds a little like a fairy tale. A fire-breathing creature descending on several unsuspecting ladies in search of a prized acorn. In this story, however, the role of the fearsome creature is played by GI Kentucky Oaks heroine Thorpedo Anna (Fast Anna), who while not grotesque, gives eight other GI Acorn S. rivals cause for concern nonetheless. "The boys are lucky she is not running," said trainer Kenny McPeek with a chuckle. "I mean she's good." After an emphatic win at Keeneland last October, she...

Emily Bushnell and Ric Waldman's Resilience (Into Mischief), most recently sixth behind Mystik Dan (Goldencents) in the GI Kentucky Derby May 4, is under consideration for the June 8 GI Belmont S., trainer Bill Mott told the NYRA media office Friday. The Hall of Famer said a decision would likely come this weekend after the GII Wood Memorial S. winner breezes at Saratoga. "We've got some discussions to have with the owners, but we're giving it strong consideration," Mott said. "We're going to work on the weekend and once he...

Hall of Fame trainer Bill Mott has plenty to look forward to at next month's Belmont Stakes Racing Festival, with at least five trainees eyeing stakes engagements during the lucrative weekend. Juddmonte homebred Batten Down (Tapit) is the latest addition to the prospective field for the GI Belmont S. with Mott confirming the 10-furlong test is next. "I don't know if he'll get in or not--he's only broken his maiden," said Mott. At fourth asking Apr. 30 at Aqueduct, the full-brother to the Mott-trained MGISP and current sire Tacitus drew...

A total of 994 horses--980 2-year-olds and 14 horses of racing age--have been catalogued for the Ocala Breeders' Sales Company's June 2-Year-Olds In Training and Horses of Racing Age Sale, to be held Wednesday through Friday, June 12-14. The under-tack show and sale itself have both been moved forward by one day to facilitate inspection and travel time for those horsepeople attending the Belmont S. at Saratoga the week prior. Hips 1-350 are set to go under the hammer during the opening session and a similar number of horses will...

War Like Goddess (English Channel) typically makes a single stop at Keeneland per year and she does so exclusively to win the GIII Bewitch S. Not only did the 7-year-old mare win last year's edition, she also won the same race in both 2022 and 2021. Making her first start of 2024 off a seventh to Auguste Rodin (Deep Impact {Jpn}) in the GI Longines Breeders' Cup Turf at Santa Anita last November, War Like Goddess began her 2023 campaign in exactly the same way, debuting to a win in...

George Krikorian has been around the game of racing for a long time and has owned a lot of good horses. But a win in the Breeders' Cup has eluded him. He's 0-for-11. But he has two strong candidates this year in Just FYI (Justify) in the GI Juvenile Fillies and War Like Goddess (English Channel) in the GI Breeders' Cup Turf, where she will tackle males for the second straight year. Will this be Krikorian's year? Those were among the questions our team asked Krikorian on this week's TDN...

George Krikorian, owner of War Like Goddess and Just FYI, joins the Breeders' Cup edition of the TDN Writers' Room.

GI Breeders' Cup Classic contender Arabian Knight (Uncle Mo) was first onto the main track Monday morning when he worked a bullet five furlongs in :59 flat, will walk at the barn Tuesday, and then is planned to return to the track Wednesday. "He's healthy, he's working well. There have been no hiccups," Baffert said. "He's ready. I know this is going to be a tough race, but if he brings his 'A' game, I don't really care who's running against us. That's my focus with him." The colt made...

The next best thing to the Breeders' Cup is a weekend filled with Breeders' Cup preps. That was the story last week as 31 graded stakes races were contested, many of them races that would help shape the fields for the Breeders' Cup races. Who were the big winners? Who were the big losers? Here's our reports card: Up to the Mark: A+ It had been a depressing year for North American-based turf horses, who lost race after race to European shippers, including some whose credentials were rather modest. Saturday's...