It was 40 years ago that John Henry, a gelding who rose to stardom from relative obscurity, won the world’s first $1 million Thoroughbred race, the Arlington Million, by a scant nose. John Henry won 39 times during his extraordinary career. Of those 39 victories, the 1981 Arlington Million quite possibly was his finest […]
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If a horse sweeps the Belmont Stakes, Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes this year, will the horse be a Triple Crown winner who deserves an asterisk? That question is being pondered now that we know the Triple Crown is going to be radically different this year. The three-race series has been forced to undergo a […]
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Saturday night, I received an e-mail with the following headline: Breaking News…Baffert Sweeps Oaklawn 3-year-old Stakes! What’s next? Just In…Sun Set in the West! Film at 11. It should be breaking news only when Bob Baffert doesn’t train the winner of a 3-year-old graded stakes race at Oaklawn Park. The Hall-of-Fame trainer has been treating […]
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As a consequence of the worldwide coronavirus pandemic, having fun these days has become quite a challenge. But trainer Bob Baffert is one person who did have some fun last Saturday. Watching on television at his Southern California home not far from Santa Anita, Baffert was understandably elated as to what happened in the two […]
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Two…that’s two…for the price of one. To borrow a phrase, ‘Double your pleasure, double your fun.’ There’s no Kentucky Derby Saturday–COVID 19 saw to that–instead we’ve got two versions of the Arkansas Derby—where 22 original entries necessitated a ‘split’ of the race into two divisions. It’s a unique opportunity to see if, on the first […]
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Bob Baffert no doubt hopes it goes better for him at Oaklawn Park this Saturday than it did in last year’s Rebel Stakes. When the 2019 Rebel attracted 19 entries, Oaklawn split the race into two divisions. Baffert sent out the odds-on favorite in each division. They both narrowly lost, causing their Hall of Fame […]
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A pair of bullets were fired in morning workouts Wednesday (April 15) at Santa Anita. Nadal drilled five furlongs in :59.80, fastest of 65 works at the distance. Charlatan worked six furlongs in 1:12.20, fastest of 11 works at the distance. Two-time Triple Crown-winning trainer Bob Baffert recently revealed plans for Charlatan and Nadal, plus […]
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Pool 4 of Churchill Downs’ Kentucky Derby Future Wager (KDFW) gives us a snapshot of how bettors currently view the picture for the 146th running of the Kentucky Derby. This year’s Run for the Roses, originally scheduled for May 2, has been moved to Sept. 5 due to the coronavirus crisis. Pool 4 of the […]
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As a California resident, I have been one of the 39 million or so in the Golden State mandated to stay at home due to the coronavirus pandemic in an order issued last Thursday by Gov. Gavin Newsom. As this health crisis wreaks more and more havoc on our lives, it’s becoming harder and harder […]
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The Kentucky Derby, this country’s most famous horse race, has been held on the first Saturday in May for decades. It had been scheduled to be run this year on May 2. But as a consequence of the coronavirus pandemic, this year’s 146th running of the Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs has been shifted to […]
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Mucho Gusto, Midnight Bisou, Maximum Security and McKinzie are ranked 1-2-3-4 in this week’s first National Thoroughbred Racing Association (NTRA) Top Thoroughbred Poll of 2020. And these four outstanding equine athletes are scheduled to clash on Feb. 29 in the richest race on the planet, the new $20 million Saudi Cup. The results for this […]
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