BloodHorse.com

With the recent passing of trainer Lyn Whiting and this year marking the 25th anniversary of Lil E. Tee’s victory in the Kentucky Derby, it brought back a flood of memories. Lil E. Tee’s stunning score at 16-1 over that year’s Cinderella horse Casual Lies was extremely popular in Kentucky because of the always amiable Whiting, a longtime ...

By J. Keeler Johnson (''Keelerman'') Twitter: @J_Keelerman Now that the Kentucky Derby prep races are over and the field for the ''Run for the Roses'' is coming into sharper focus, we can temporarily turn our attention to a different division of racing. Older males will get a chance to shine in the $1,250,000 Charles Town Classic (gr. II) on ...

Considering Todd Pletcher will have one of the Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands (G1) favorites in Florida Derby (G1) winner Always Dreaming and several other promising starters in this year's Louisville classic, it's even money the most-repeated Derby-week stat will be the multiple Eclipse Award-winning trainer's 1-for-45 mark in the ...

While it doesn’t have the breeding and sales industry infrastructure of Keeneland, Oaklawn Park—and the town of Hot Springs, Ark.—is steeped in racing and gambling tradition. Both tracks run high-caliber meetings, feeding right into Triple Crown season. Oaklawn’s signature closing event—the Racing Festival of the South—brings together the best of ...

By: Erin Shea, @BH_EShea While ending up in the winner's circle is ultimate goal for Thoroughbred owners, one partnership tries just as hard to find homes for former charges once their racing days are over. Ten Strike Racing—which is run by Marshall Gramm and Clay Sanders, plus 25 other partners—campaigns graded stakes placed Allied ...

1 Always Dreaming Todd Pletcher Bodemeister—Above Perfection, by In Excess Boy, is it close up at the top. But rather than keep switching the No. 1 horse every few weeks based on the latest big-race winner, I decided to stick with this guy for now, partly because of his potential to be any kind and his combination of tactical speed, ...

The major preps are over. Now the anticipation begins. Time to call the car rental office and reserve a car, hoping it drives well enough to make the 11 1/2-hour trek to Louisville somewhere between tolerable and semi-enjoyable. For that, I also will need to specify the car has satellite radio. The big day finally arrives and I am out the door ...

In a move designed to build the confidence of new horseplayers while emphasizing that racing offers a different form of gambling from random gaming like the lottery, Oaklawn Park is paying more money for winning on-track show wagers this year. Bobby Geiger, Oaklawn's director of wagering and simulcasts, said while it's a thrill for new players to ...

By J. Keeler Johnson (''Keelerman'') Twitter: @J_Keelerman With just three weeks remaining until the Kentucky Derby, the last of the official prep races are scheduled to be run this Saturday, led by the $1 million Arkansas Derby (gr. I) at Oaklawn Park. Given the number of surprising results that we've seen on the Derby trail so far this ...