As lyrics from the ’64 Martha and the Vandellas hit song suggest, “Summer’s here and the time is right for dancing in the street.” On second thought, if you’re of a certain age and can fondly recall shakin’ your bootie to that tune’s original release, be careful while ‘dancing in the street.’ You’re liable to […]
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Now that it is July, it’s time for my list of the Top 10 performances by a Thoroughbred in the United States during the first half of 2019. A Thoroughbred’s performance can make this list for a variety of reasons, such as: –A win by a big margin while showing brilliance. –Recording a fast final […]
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We are just about halfway through 2019. With that in mind, what if there were such a thing as Mid-Year Eclipse Awards? These would be my votes, excluding the 2-year-old, human and steeplechase categories. MID-YEAR THREE-YEAR-OLD MALE: 1. War of Will, 2. Maximum Security, 3. Omaha Beach. If Maximum Security had won the Pegasus Stakes […]
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Both 2019 Kentucky Derby winners—Country House and Maximum Security–and the 151st Belmont Stakes victor—Sir Winston–hit rough patches this week. Country House, who originally finished second in the Derby but was elevated to first via disqualification, has been shelved for the rest of the year. Sidelined by an illness following the Derby, he hasn’t raced since […]
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King for a Day ruled the day when he managed to topple overwhelming 1-20 favorite Maximum Security in last Sunday’s 1 1/16-mile Pegasus Stakes at Monmouth Park. When I was a guest with Joe Withee and Rob Rao last Sunday morning on the Win Place Show, a radio program heard on Seattle’s KJR-AM, I issued […]
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The gas tank situation was considerably different for the horse I picked to win last Saturday’s Belmont Stakes (War of Will) than it was for my selection to take the 2018 renewal (Justify). After Justify won the 1 1/4-mile Kentucky Derby and 1 3/16-mile Preakness Stakes for trainer Bob Baffert and jockey Mike Smith, the […]
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There’s no Triple Crown on the line Saturday in what appears to be a lackluster Belmont Stakes. However, don’t sleep on this race. There’s a chance we could witness a breakout performance from a developing star. Tacitus has many positives going for him both in the Belmont Stakes and for the future. He could emerge […]
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Do you have a pen nearby? Go ahead and grab it. Next, get yourself a set of past performances for Saturday’s 151st running of the Grade I Belmont Stakes, the demanding 1 1/2-mile event that has drawn a field of 10. Okay, now take a look at the past performances for those 10 horses. Focus […]
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To say that this has been one of the most trying seasons in the history of beautiful Santa Anita Park would be accurate. This winter, beneath a persistent dark cloud, the place I fell in love with as a teenager and where I spent early mornings, afternoons and evenings for 30 years, has struggled. Friends, […]
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Showing once again that she truly was a fantastic claim, the equine ATM named Vasilika surged to a one-length victory in the Grade I Gamely Stakes at Santa Anita this past Monday. Sent off as the 11-10 favorite, Vasilika raced fifth early in the 1 1/8-mile grass affair. When the 5-year-old mare still was fifth […]
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A number of Preakness Stakes traditions continued last Saturday. Keeping with tradition, when the horses came onto the track for the Preakness Stakes post parade, the folks on hand at Pimlico Race Course sang “Maryland, My Maryland.” Also in keeping with tradition, after the 1 3/16-mile Preakness was declared official, the silks of the winning […]
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Redemption. That’s what winning the 144th Preakness meant to War of Will’s trainer Mark Casse. Forget that in a post-race interview Casse said he wouldn’t use that word to describe his feelings. It sure seemed that way to me. And not just redemption for the trainer. Young jockey Tyler Gaffalione and colt War of Will […]
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There is no question that the 2 019 Kentucky Derby is going to be discussed and debated for a very long time. I had hoped this week to be writing about Omaha Beach heading to the Preakness Stakes following his victory in the 1 1/4-mile Kentucky Derby. But after Omaha Beach had been installed as […]
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Maximum Security–starting as the 9/2 second choice to favored Improbable at 4-1–had the lead turning into the stretch of the 145th running of our nation’s most important horse race. He then drifted out suddenly into the path of… What am I doing? You don’t need a blow-by-blow rehashing of the event. Unless you’ve been training […]
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It was 10 weeks ago that Omaha Beach debuted on my Kentucky Derby Top 10. All he had done at that point was win a maiden race. But his Feb. 2 maiden performance impressed me to such an extent that, even though he had not even run in a stakes race yet, I decided to […]
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