BloodHorse.com

By J. Keeler Johnson (''Keelerman'') Twitter: @J_Keelerman On Saturday at Saratoga, a full field of fourteen horse will enter the starting gate for the historic $1,250,000 Travers Stakes (gr. I). The ten-furlong race could not have come up much tougher, for just about every three-year-old colt that has achieved anything this year has been ...

There was a time when seven furlongs in 1:23 to 1:24 was considered pretty decent for allowance and stakes horses, and anything under 1:23 was what the fastest stakes sprinters would run. Today, 1:24 normally would be considered pedestrian, as we consistently see seven-furlong times of 1:20 and change and 1:21 and change in graded stakes. We ...

No one can time the market with any consistency; often one finds himself at the corner of value and opportunity. That was the case just 13 months ago when the Taylor boys—Duncan, Ben, Frank, and Mark—and some of their Taylor Made Stallions clients took a shot by acquiring a 30% stake in California Chrome. California Chrome had been valued ...

Todd Pletcher’s once seemingly powerful army of 3-year-olds has pretty much disbanded, with some of the troops retreating from the battlefield, others spending time in sick bay, and two transferred to another outfit. By mid to late March, Pletcher’s Kentucky Derby hopefuls included Zulu, Outwork, Destin, Gettysburg, Stradivari, Rally Cry, Mo ...

By J. Keeler Johnson (''Keelerman'') Twitter: @J_Keelerman A fantastic summer of racing continues on Saturday with stellar afternoons at Del Mar and Saratoga, including four grade I races. The highlight of the weekend will undoubtedly be the Pacific Classic (gr. I), which has drawn the amazing trio of California Chrome, Beholder, and ...

In James Michener’s epic novel and later TV miniseries “Centennial,” an Arapahoe boy learns that his father had been killed in battle and is told, “Only the rocks live forever.” Well, in Thoroughbred racing, there is one rock that sadly will not live forever. On Aug. 31 Rockingham Park, one of the most charming racetracks in America since ...

Earlier this month the Grayson-Jockey Club Research Foundation announced the completion of the organizational funding of the Ocala Initiative. The initiative was designed to garner support from horse farms and equine businesses, as well as individual donors, to advance equine research. Florida-based organizations raised $100,000, and we are ...

Among the Hall of Fame inductees in attendance and acknowledged at Friday’s ceremonies at the Fasig-Tipton Company sales pavilion was trainer Nick Zito. The once ubiquitous Zito has not been as prominent in recent years, but he still has hopes of finding the types of young horses he used to pick out at the sales year after year on a regular ...

By J. Keeler Johnson (''Keelerman'') Twitter: @J_Keelerman Fans of top-notch horse racing will have plenty to enjoy this Saturday when Arlington Park and Saratoga host a total of seven graded stakes races, including four grade I events. There's lots to cover, so without further ado, let's get started! Adirondack Stakes (gr. II) Silvertoni ...

It has been called the greatest rivalry that never was -- two magnificent fillies, as different as two horses can be, destined to never meet on the racetrack. The rivalry between Zenyatta and Rachel Alexandra in reality was not between the horses, but their passionate and often zealous fans, who did everything but take up arms against each ...