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Dream Run (TrueNicks,SRO) was a talented and versatile runner in the mold of his sire Cherokee Run. At three he won the Perryville Stakes at 7 furlongs while also placing in three graded fixtures including the Illinois Derby (gr. II) going two turns. As a 4-year-old, he took the Gulfstream Park Breeders’ Cup Sprint Championship H. (gr. II) over ...

Out of sight, out of mind. That's the way it is on the Kentucky Derby trail when 3-year-olds that win prep races are elevated to higher status and those making belated seasonal debuts are forgotten. Noble's Promise is a perfect example of the latter. A two-time stakes winner, including the grade I Dixiana Breeders' Futurity, the son of Cuvee is ...

More than one shrewd commentator has noted that through the centuries, sire lines have frequently been advanced through individuals from certain powerful female lines, frequently through inbreeding to them. The phenomenon goes right back to the late 1600s and the famed Spanker Mare. Her son, Jigg, was by The Byerley Turk, and is one of the links ...

(Originally published in the March 6, 2010 issue of The Blood-Horse magazine. Feel free to share your own thoughts and opinions at the bottom of the column.)   Speaking recently to a group of students in the University of Louisville’s Equine Industry Program, I wanted to make a point about the dwindling size of newspapers and ...

In the UAE Oaks Guineas, Raihana avenged her UAE 1,000 Guineas defeat by Siyaadah, who took third here. A daughter of Elusive Quality (TrueNicks,SRO) , Raihana is out of the Sunday Silence mare, Esubooh. The mating is rated B+ by TrueNicks on the basis of the broad Mr. Prospector/Sunday Silence cross, a nick that has also produced Japanese grade ...

Good news and bad news from New Jersey, where the state wants to drastically overhaul horse racing. The good news is any proposed drastic overhaul. The bad news is that at face value, it’s not all-inclusive and lacks long-term vision. The return to a roughly June-through-Labor Day schedule at Monmouth Park is long overdue, and The Meadowlands ...

 1 Eskendereya Todd Pletcher Giant's Causeway—Aldebaran Light, by Seattle Slew So, where does he go from here? Monster wins on the Derby trail are nice, but you want to see his Fountain of Youth effort on the first Saturday in May. Hate the six weeks from the Fla. Derby, but it may actually help him, especially if he runs another ...

This is the first of a three-part diary on the $5-million Apple Blossom Invitational (gr. I) April 9, pitting Rachel Alexandra and Zenyatta in a long-awaited battle for the ages. Part two will cover the month of March and part three will cover the days leading up to the race, the race itself, and the aftermath. Feb. 11 - Charles Cella announced ...

By Rachel Levine, author of Thorough Chat With the Triple Crown trail underway, I thought it would be a good time to share a story of a horse that is near and dear to my heart. He didn't make the Triple Crown, but he captured my heart forever. The first time I ever went to a race track was November 16, 2006, I was a freshman at a local Community ...

With nearly two months of the Derby prep trail completed, quite honestly I have not been blown away with the 3-year-old crop as a whole. Maybe that's why the horse I have ranked No. 1 on my list doesn't even have any graded earnings yet. I'm hoping my outlook changes in March. Admittedly, Eskendereya's Fountain of Youth performance was superb and ...