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One of the first rules of Thoroughbred racing is ''they all get beat,'' so while there was a collective groan when Keen Ice rolled past American Pharoah in front of 50,000 at Saratoga Race Course and on a nationally televised broadcast Aug. 29 in the Travers Stakes (gr. I), we shouldn't have been shocked. American Pharoah joins some select ...

The defeat hit like a ton of bricks. It was a crushing blow to the thousands who journeyed to Saratoga and those watching on TV. But the bottom line is that American Pharoah should not be blamed for this loss. He ran his heart out, having to withstand pressure for a long way from a very talented colt in Frosted. That is all you can ask of any ...

By TimeformUS Analyst Mike Beer >>Go to the TimeformUS PPs for the Travers | Post Time 5:46 EDT Saturday  The Grade 1 Travers, for 3yos over 1 1/4 miles, is always the centerpiece of the Saratoga race meet. This year's running has taken on added significance due to the participation of one horse. That horse is, of course, American ...

Call me a worry wart. I’ve been known to see the glass half empty; just my nature. So don’t take my concerns about American Pharoah in the Travers Stakes too seriously. It’s just me being me. All I can say, from past experience, is that this race scares the heck out of me, even though American Pharoah looks as if he could have everything his ...

By J. Keeler Johnson (''Keelerman'') Twitter: @J_Keelerman Get ready, everyone! Saturday is the kind of day that racing fans dream of, with seven graded stakes races on schedule at Saratoga, including the $1,600,000 Travers Stakes (gr. I). The prestigious ''Midsummer Derby'' is always a great race, but this year’s renewal promises to be the ...

The 3-year-old showdown of the year will take place in the grade I Travers Stakes. This time American Pharoah has made another cross-country trip to take on Texas Red and Frosted, and several others, on their home turf at Saratoga.We have already seen the explosive power of Texas Red, who not only is reaching his peak, he has the ...

In March 2013 eight states in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast—Delaware, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and West Virginia—announced their intentions to adopt uniform regulations governing equine medication rules and drug testing. The effort, spearheaded by the Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association, which ...

Watching Beholder decimate her male opponents in the Pacific Classic and the aftermath on TVG and social media, it made me realize how times have changed; how the great fillies of the past never received the national recognition of a Beholder, a Zenyatta, or a Rachel Alexandra, or even a Black Caviar and Goldikova.I then began to think what an ...

Although we are well aware of Saratoga’s reputation, this in no way is meant to suggest or influence what American Pharoah’s connections should do regarding running in the Travers Stakes. Bob Baffert and Ahmed Zayat have handled the colt perfectly so far, from his injury suffered before the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile and subsequent layoff over the ...