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Has any breeder had a better fortnight than John Gunther? On June 9, he was in the box seats at Belmont Park with his daughter Tanya and lifelong friend Steve Irwin watching Justify win the Triple Crown. Ten days later, in tails and top hat, Gunther was across the Atlantic at Royal Ascot to see Without Parole, whom he not only bred but owns, take ...

When you’ve been involved in anything for half a century, especially something that encompasses your life, you have a tendency to fall back on history when dealing with the present and looking ahead to the future. To ignore history is to indulge in nothing more than speculation and the slim possibility that something can be accomplished that ...

June 9, 2018, is a date we won’t soon forget, watching Justify become the 13th winner of the Triple Crown in front of 90,000-plus at Belmont Park. June 7, 2014, is a date we won’t forget either, but not because of what happened on the track. It’s what was said after California Chrome finished fourth in his bid for the Triple Crown. Co-owner ...

Earlier this year, we recounted the iconic 4-year-old campaign of the great Dr. Fager in a five-part retrospective. Continuing our look back at 1968, and the 50th anniversary of one of the most unforgettable years in racing history, we turn our attention to the Belmont Stakes and the culmination of arguably the most controversial Triple Crown ...

Could it be that the Gunthers, John and his daughter Tanya, can perform the unthinkable -- sweep the Triple Crown with Justify, while breeding the first two finishers of the Belmont. Or they can possibly sweep the Triple Crown with two different horses they bred? Of course they want a Triple Crown sweep with Justify, but the ...

As Justify prepares at Churchill Downs for a run at the Triple Crown in the June 9 Belmont Stakes (G1), one question turns to who will face off against the son of Scat Daddy in the Big Apple? Post positions won’t be drawn until June 5 at a specialty event at Citi Field, the home of the New York Mets. Who’s in? We’re not sure…but we do know who ...

There is something exciting about a horse attempting to sweep the Triple Crown, but when that horse is undefeated, as Justify is, it adds a special element to what is already an historic event. The Belmont Stakes has seen four  undefeated horses attempt to sweep the Triple Crown, with Seattle Slew the only one who succeeded. The ...

In the span of two weeks, Justify, the sizable son of Scat Daddy, thrilled us twice with his speed and resiliency, most recently by winning the Preakness Stakes (G1) by a half-length over the more seasoned Bravazo, Tenfold, and last year’s champion 2-year-old male and Kentucky Derby Presented by Woodford Reserve (G1) runner-up Good Magic. Good ...

The color of the official Maryland Jockey Club photograph has faded some, but the memories are as bright as the day we bounded into the winner’s circle at Pimlico Race Course on Preakness Stakes (G1) Day 30 years ago. It wasn’t for the big race on the card, but the day’s first race, a six-furlong event for $30,000 claiming types. We made enough on ...

While many of the leading Preakness contenders are preparing for the second jewel in the Triple Crown at Churchill Downs and Belmont Park, several of them coming out of the Kentucky Derby, there is one horse likely waiting for the Belmont Stakes who is tucked away far from the action, enjoying the tranquility of Saratoga Race Course and ...