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[image url=''http://cdn.bloodhorse.com/images/content/shaskin_large.jpg'']Steve Haskin[/image] Blood-Horse senior correspondent Steve Haskin returns to Talkin' Horses for a recap of the 2008 Triple Crown, one of the most memorable in recent history. Haskin is an award-winning Turf writer renowned for his Kentucky Derby commentary, with weekly ...

Vision d'Etat retained his unbeaten record with a head victory in the Prix du Jockey-Club - French Derby (gr. I). Vision d'Etat has a pedigree that is obscure by almost any standard. Chichicastenango - the sire of Vision d'Etat - was one of only two stakes winners for his sire, Smadoun. A son of Kaldoun (by Caro), Smadoun started 63 times over ...

We are often asked the question on nick ratings - ''do they work across multiple generations?'' The answer ironically depends on the genuine strength of the affinity between the sire lines in question. Examples of nicks that seem to span generations and withstand the scrutiny of time include Fappiano over In Reality-line mares and Seattle Slew ...

It’s amazing that six weeks can go by so quickly, yet also seem like an eternity. Was it just last month, or was it last year when we saw Big Brown bound past us on the Churchill Downs backstretch during a chilly morning in Louisville? Was it just a few weeks ago, or was it a couple of months ago that we witnessed a coronation off the Northern ...

Curlin might not be the King of Pop, but he is the King of Romp. I am determined to go to Churchill Downs Saturday to watch the ruling power of the race course in the Stephen Foster Handicap (gr. I). It is also the fact he is racing against other favorites of mine that I am excited about, Einstein and Brass Hat! Not to mention Thorn Song, another ...

Bill Casner had been out of racing for 18 years when the Texas native was invited to a suite to celebrate the opening night of racing at Lone Star Park, just north of Dallas. He spotted a man across the room and felt sure he knew him.Casner and Noah Powell, who had first met each other 30 years earlier when Casner was training horses, reminisced ...

  Moments after the Belmont Stakes, once the shock wore off, the first words out of my mouth were, ''This is why horse racing is the most unpredictable and crazy sport there is. They could run that race 100 more times and I still would not wager $1 on Da' Tara.'' Now that 24 hours have passed and I've had time to digest it all, I feel the ...

  As I wrote yesterday, Big Brown will win the Belmont. With that already established, I believe the best way to make money on Saturday is by playing the late Pick 4, which is a $1 million guarenteed. Look at it this way, it really becomes a Pick 3 when you single Big Brown in the final leg. And if you get one price horse in the middle, the ...

So everyone has put in their two cents or even ten cents except me. So here is my 50 cents or so. After listening and observing all the handicappers and horse enthusiasts that I care to listen too, co-workers ect...Pedigree matters most in the Belmont. Distance will get you at the end. Big Brown will have to shoot out of the starting gate to ...

  The nearly three decade drought is over. Big Brown takes over after six furlongs, opens up a clear lead, and holds off a very game Denis of Cork by two lengths to win the Belmont Stakes. That is my prediction and although it is the way I see the Belmont unfolding, to back myself up I will also use Denis of Cork in the top spot. Since the ...