Stars and Stakes

Mutasaabeq won the Bourbon Stakes at Keeneland in 2020!
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Inthemidstofbiz, won the 2020 Thoroughbred Club of America Stakes at Keeneland.
Inthemidstofbiz, won the 2020 Thoroughbred Club of America Stakes at Keeneland.

Keeneland is back! Legendary, live racing returns to the Horse Capital of the World October 8th, 2021. The Fall Meet marks the 85th anniversary of racing at Keeneland. Seventeen days of racing will be hosted Friday, 10/8, through Saturday, 10/30/21. First, it’s Fall Stars Weekend!

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Breeders’ Cup: Then and Now

Keeneland hosted the 37th Breeders' Cup in November of 2020!
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Authentic wins the Breeders' Cup Classic at Keeneland by 2.25 lengths!
Authentic wins the Breeders’ Cup Classic at Keeneland by 2.25 lengths!

What a difference a week makes! After looking forward to Breeders’ Cup for so long the two day event raced by in a flash. Each of the 14 BC races were spectacular. Let’s look at the winners and what their post championship life looks like today.

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What’s Up With This Breeders’ Cup?

Keeneland welcomes the 37th Breeders' Cup!
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Keeneland has gone purple to host the 37th running of the Breeders' Cup!
Keeneland has gone purple to host the 37th running of the Breeders’ Cup!

What’s up with this Breeders’ Cup? In three words, World Championship racing! The relentless COVID-19 pandemic has imposed many changes in every aspect of life and racing was not spared. Fortunately, thoroughbred horse racing has stayed the course, though augmented. Most tracks were able to offer live racing at some point during the calendar year and we eventually experienced the thrill of each of the Triple Crown Races! Now, as we have done every year since 1984, it is time to witness and honor the best thoroughbred race horses in North America and the world as a whole!

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Count on Keeneland for Stars and Stakes

Keeneland At Home keeps the spectators away from Keeneland's Fall Meet.
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Fall Stars Weekend kicks off Keeneland's Fall Meet!
Fall Stars Weekend kicks off Keeneland’s Fall Meet!

Keeneland kicked off its Fall Meet with Fall Stars Weekend. Live racing at Keeneland from October 2nd through 24th foreshadows the Breeders’ Cup set for November 6th and 7th at this very same racecource. This meet features 18 stakes races, 10 of which are “Win and You’re In” races for an automatic berth into the Breeders’ Cup! Check out what this Fall at Keeneland has to offer.

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Fifteen Years of Old Friends Farm

Silver Charm stands out as a favorite at Old Friends Farm!

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Little Silver Charm is the only non-thoroughbred equine at Old Friends.
Little Silver Charm is the only non-thoroughbred equine at Old Friends.

Old Friends Farm is celebrating its 15th year of rescuing retired Thoroughbreds.  Operating at 3 locations and home to hundreds of horses, the Georgetown, KY farm is full of famous champions and a broad spectrum of former Thoroughbred racehorses.   On a beautiful Kentucky Fall day I paid the farm another visit.

 

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Breeders’ Cup Summed Up

Mendelssohn preps for the Breeders' Cup Classic

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The Breeders' Cup Trophy on the grounds of Churchill Downs
The Breeders’ Cup Trophy on the grounds of Churchill Downs

Today, we welcome the world back to my old Kentucky home!  Once again, Churchill Downs in Louisville, KY welcomes visitors and viewers from all corners of the earth.   This racetrack continues to take the international spotlight for grand Thoroughbred racing!  Churchill Downs is known  for delivering the “Greatest Two Minutes In Sports” for over 144 years and is now hosting it’s ninth of 35 Breeders’ Cup Events.  The Breeders’ Cup is serving up 2 days of 14 World Championship races with $30 million in purse money.  I just could not help but attend Dawn at the Downs to see the last morning workout before Breeders’ Cup 2018 (BC18) begins!

 

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Breeders’ Cup has Broad Borders

Breeders' Cup World Championships is enjoyed by many countries.

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Breeders' Cup World Championships is enjoyed by many countries.
Breeders’ Cup World Championships is enjoyed by many countries.

With just 60 days to go before the 2018 Breeders’ Cup World Championships the entries for the contenders of each race are filing up fast.  While the BC races take place in America and Canada, we have entries from all over the world.  85 Challenge Series races held in 12 countries help to define the field of each race.  The 35th year of BC races will be hosted by Churchill Downs in Louisville, KY on November 2nd and 3rd.  Several of the entries in the 14 BC races are contenders that were bred or live abroad.  BC18 welcomes the world!

 

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A Trio for Travers Day

Saratoga is happy to tie in Runhappy with the Travers and H. Allen Jerkens Stakes!

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Saratoga is happy to tie in Runhappy with the Travers and H. Allen Jerkens Stakes!

Saratoga is happy to tie in Runhappy with the Travers and H. Allen Jerkens Stakes!

  1. Saturday at Saratoga serves up several stakes!  The Midsummer Derby is only one of seven graded stakes on the day’s card of a lucky 13 races.  Five of the stakes offer an automatic berth in the Breeders’ Cup!  ‎Three stakes will be covered by NBC.  Who will win the Forego, the Sword Dancer or the Travers Stakes?

 

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Following the Classic Path

Game On Dude, Pacific Classic winner from 2013, enjoys his retirement at Old Friends.

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California Chrome's saddlecloth from his 2016 Pacific Classic win!
California Chrome’s saddlecloth from his 2016 Pacific Classic win!

The Breeders’ Cup Classic field is filling up fast!  Who will earn the next berth?  We will find out this coming Saturday following the great Pacific Classic Stakes.  After the 2016 edition, when California Chrome won, the Pacific Classic will always be a favorite stakes race of mine.  Does this stakes hold a special memory for you or will you have a new found interest after this 2018 running?

 

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Triple Crown Trends

American Pharoah wins the one and only Grand Slam!

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Justify, our 13th Triple Crown winner!
Justify, our 13th Triple Crown winner!

This week brought the disappointing news that no one wanted but many had already suspected.  Our 13th Triple Crown winner, Justify, retired from racing.  Justify achieved more than I ever would have expected but his 111 day racing career ended sooner than I anticipated.  There are several more races I would have enjoyed seeing him participate in but tragically that won’t happen now.  This got me to thinking,  what are our assumptions about a triple crown winner?  Thus, I set out to examine the triple crown trends.

 

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