All of us are deeply affected whenever a horse is seriously or fatally injured in a race. Sometimes it happens in a major race witnessed by a national audience, that without the incident, would be a race watched over and over and enjoyed for its impact on the sport. I have never watched a replay of the Ruffian-Foolish Pleasure match race or the Go For Wand-Bayakoa Distaff or Big Brown's Kentucky Derby...
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I must start off by admitting that this is one race where my opinion changes, not by the day, but by the hour. I must also admit that two of my favorite horses are in the field, both of whom I would love to see win. They are CATHOLIC BOY and MIND YOUR BISCUITS. I have been a huge fan of Catholic Boy from the moment I laid on him in the paddock before the Remsen Stakes, and Mind Your Biscuits has added...
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Accelerate's connections are just focusing for now on winning the Breeders' Cup Classic. But the truth is the 5-year-old is embroiled in a hot rivalry with a horse he has never faced and never will. We are all aware, especially judging by the weekly NTRA poll, that a victory by Accelerate in the Breeders' Cup Classic could actually snatch Horse of the Year honors away from Justify, who would become...
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With the depth of this year’s Breeders’ Cup Classic, you are going to get some huge prices on horses that don’t deserve to be huge prices. But remember, depth does not always equate to strength, and at this point we really don’t know just how strong the Classic field is....
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In June of this year, Catholic Boy was winning the Pennine Ridge Stakes on grass at Belmont Park and 17 days later we watched Yoshida run his tail off to be beaten 1 1/4 lengths in the 15-horse Queen Anne Stakes at Royal Ascot following his victory in the Old Forester Turf Classic at Churchill Downs....
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The Breeders' Cup Classic preps are in the books, and what we have is, in simple terms, a mish mash on paper. The anticipated East vs. West showdown between Accelerate and Diversify didn't pan out with the performance of Diversify in the Jockey Club Gold Cup....
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The question that has to be asked is, are trainers beginning to take the same approach to the Breeders' Cup Classic, especially with the recent success of horses skipping the traditional Classic prep races and training up to the race?...
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Not only is today the 17th anniversary of 9/11, it falls on the same day of the week; that infamous Tuesday. Although I have written about that catastrophic day’s effect on racing, it is something that needs to be addressed from time to time for those who weren’t around and those who need to be reminded of those two gut-wrenching months for the Sport of Kings, from September 11 through the Breeders’ Cup, run in New York. The stories have been melded together and reworked to portray the entire picture from beginning to end....
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There are few things more exciting in horse racing than rivalries and epic showdowns to decide championships. But when these rivalries or showdowns have an East vs. West storyline, it makes it all the more intriguing....
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We should remember the Arrogate who raised goose bumps on our arms and left us numb from the experience of watching him run. And we should ignore the phantom who floundered at Del Mar, as we would any mirage....
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There is no need for an alarm clock when you're in Saratoga, especially when you're staying with your close friends Avi and Rhoda Freedberg, whose home on Fifth Avenue backs right onto the Oklahoma training track. It is just starting to get light out, and the sounds of horses hooves outside your window are all the stimuli you need to hop out of bed, throw on some clothes, go out to the back porch and...
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Once again, this is about longshots and value. I don't have enough money to bet favorites and pick 6's and superfectas, so I've got to take a few stabs....
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But let's start by being more logical. The Classic is simple: Arrogate or Gun Runner? That is where everyone will be focusing their attention. In the two previous showdowns between these two antagonists, Arrogate proved to be the fastest gun alive....
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Few, if any, owners and trainers have been more on a mission to win a single race than Coolmore and Aidan O'Brien when it comes to the Breeders' Cup Classic, which has eluded them for 17 years....
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The new "Zenyatta: Queen of Racing" video is out, but I must issue a warning to all those who purchase it. If you were a fan of Zenyatta, have plenty of tissues close by. You're going to need them. If you weren't a fan of Zenyatta, have them close by anyway, because you will be by the end. The memories keep coming throughout, reminding us that Zenyatta was so much more than a racehorse. She was a spiritual force who affected people unlike any other Thoroughbred. ...
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Keen Ice may have lost the battle, as in the $750,000 purse of the Jockey Club Gold Cup, but don't be surprised when the war is over on the evening of November 4 he is the last one standing....
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Once upon a time, not too long ago, Thoroughbred trainers considered prep races, well, prep races; short for prepare. As in prepare your horse for the ultimate goal. As in have him or her primed, fit, and sharp for their big test, which in the case of the Breeders' Cup, often determines the Eclipse Award winners....
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The more Arrogate accomplishes, the more we want to see if he can top it. Unlike the vast majority of today's champions, we want to know just how high a ceiling our champions have, as we saw years ago when horses ran every two to three weeks and kept piling new feats on to their record....
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The fairy tale journey of Mucho Macho Man and trainer Kathy Ritvo that began on Father's Day 2008....
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Since last year's Travers Stakes, the racing world has been trying to place Arrogate's astounding feats in historical perspective. With the Juddmonte colt having started in only three stakes races, it's been nearly impossible to explain his mind-boggling performances and meteoric rise to stardom, because no one has seen anything like it before....
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All one say is, what manner of horse is Arrogate? Two races hardly defines a career, but after an artist paints two masterpieces, one can hardly wait to see what emerges from his next blank canvas....
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The stars will be out in force Saturday, as California Chrome, Arrogate, Tepin, Lady Eli, Flintshire, Frosted and a host of Aidan O'Brien horses, headed by iron filly Found, will be on display in what promises to be a memorable day of racing....
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In the world of Thoroughbred racing, Aidan O'Brien can be called the modern day Alexander the Great and his four-legged Ballydoyle bruisers the Macedonian army....
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Question: How good is Arrogate and do you think he can beat California Chrome in the Breeders' Cup Classic?...
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No one is expecting all the big names in racing to make the Breeders' Cup Classic, but one can always hope, especially when you have a year like this with such a wide variety of talent gearing up for a run at America’s richest horse race....
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