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.
Share This: Bound for Nowhere races regularly at Keeneland. He finished third in the Group 1 Diamond Jubilee Stakes at Royal Ascot.
All good things must come to an end. The 5 days of racing at Royal Ascot concluded today. There were several contenders representing America and with a scattering of races that provide a berth into the Breeders’ Cup we will see many of these Thoroughbreds compete in champion races again. Now that the races are over, let’s see the results in the aftermath of the Ascot.
Chelsea Cloisters, pictured at Keeneland, was a contender in the Queen Mary Stakes.
Ascot Racecourse in Ascot, Berkshire, England opened for live racing in 1711. The racecourse was founded by Queen Anne of the British Royal Family. The Royals still attend and enter contenders annually. In the same year of the racecourse’s inauguration, Queen Anne also initiated Royal Ascot, the 5 day highlight of British racing’s calendar year. In 2018, the races were held Tuesday, June 18th thru Saturday 6/23. 18 Grouped (the British version of Graded) Stakes took place. 8 races were Group One. The purse was over 7.3 million pounds (more than 9.6 million in U.S dollars). The event is very ritzy, with the classiest of fashion. 4 races offered automatic berths into the 2018 Breeders’ Cup.
Lady Aurelia won the Giant’s Causeway at Keeneland, she raced at Royal Ascot for a third time.
Here is a listing of the 8 Group One stakes with the distance and the winner as well as another BC berth race:
The Queen Anne Stakes- 1 mile – Accidental Agent -berth into the BC Mile
The King’s Stand Stakes – 5 furlongs – Blue Point
The St. James’s Palace Stakes – 1 mile – Without Parole
The Prince of Wales’s Stakes -1 mile and 2 furlongs – Poet’s Word -berth into the BC Turf
The Norfolk Stakes (this is the only Group 2 on this list)-5 furlongs – Shang Shang Shang -berth into the BC Juvenile Turf Sprint
The Gold Cup -2 miles and 4 furlongs –Stradivarius
The Commonwealth Cup – 6 furlongs –Eqtidaar
The Coronation Stakes – 1 mile –Alpha Centauri
The Diamond Jubilee Stakes – 6 furlongs – Merchant Navy -berth into the BC Turf Sprint
Lady Aurelia at Keeneland this past Spring raced at Royal Ascot for a third time.
Congratulations to all of the Royal Ascot winners and for the talented American racehorses that were worthy to attend. Royal Ascot is on my bucket list. I would love to experience the glamor and royalty of this 5 day racing event. I hope you were pleased with the aftermath of the Ascot. Keep following for more information on this summer’s top races and all things Thoroughbred.
Share This: Justify comes into view as the clear leader of the Belmont Stakes!
I waited most of my life to witness a Triple Crown victory. Seattle Slew and Affirmed did it back to back when I was a toddler and the great Secretariat won shortly prior to my birth. I was raised on the stories but I did not know what it was like to see it with my own eyes. After following the career of champion California Chrome, I wasn’t sure if I would ever see a Triple Crown winner race. Then, in 2015, my dream came true. American Pharoah won after a 37 year drought. It was emotional and something I knew would always stick with me. I also thought it may never happen again in my lifetime. Then, to my surprise a great horse won the Kentucky Derby and once again there was hope for another Triple Crown winner, the hope was in Justify and he did not disappoint. Justify left me jumping for joy with his win in the Belmont Stakes, our lucky 13th Triple Crown winner!
Share This: Good Magic (#11) won this ride for Jose Ortiz in the Blue Grass Stakes to earn the second spot on the leaderboard for the 2018 Kentucky Derby!
Oh, lucky day! With just 13 days left on the countdown to the 144th running of the Kentucky Derby there is still so much to consider when choosing a favorite. With a field of 20 contenders it is still best to wait for the post position draw on Tuesday to make any hasty decisions. It is a good time to think about all 40 athletes that will face off on 5/5/18. The Thoroughbreds always capture my attention and imagination but what thought do I give the jockeys? Having spent time in and around Keeneland’s jockey quarters this spring meet I have paid more attention to their influence. In this story, I want to focus on two jockeys that will compete in the upcoming KY Derby, the brothers Ortiz.
Share This: A newborn foal at the Fasig-Tipton Kentucky Winter Mixed Sale
The new year is here and it’s about time for a foaling frenzy! Due to the January 1st birthday, that all Northern Hemisphere Thoroughbreds must share, it is of upmost importance that no newborn be born prior to that day but we see a rapid upswing in foals thereafter. A few foals have already made their arrival. Literally, several hundred per sire are on the way, fathered by the most popular of studs. Most horse farm tours are open to stallion visits but naturally the very pregnant mares and new foals are sheltered and protected. My best chances, for now, of seeing the babies, is at the sales. With the majority of the broodmares currently pregnant there are usually a few who give birth while they are in the sales barns. I am hoping to see some of the newest foals to the Thoroughbreds, we love so much, tomorrow. Read on to see which foals I am in most anticipation of as I am foaling in love.
Rise and shine! It’s another beautiful day in sunny Del Mar, California. The race track will soon be packed with fans from all over the earth to watch the last day of the Breeders’ Cup World Championships. Today, the final 9 races will take place where each contending Thoroughbred will stake their place in history.
Share This: American Pharoah at stud following his 2015 Grand Slam in the Breeders’ Cup
Good morning racing fans! Today is the day we have been waiting for. The finale of our 2017 champion racing season is upon us. For 2 days only, we will witness a lucky 13 signature races that will define many of the world’s best champion Thoroughbreds. Welcome to the Breeders’ Cup!
The best 17 days of Fall are over in the Bluegrass. Keeneland Racetrack, in Lexington, KY ended their Fall Meet yesterday on a high note filled with many records and new memories. It was a special meet filled with quality Thoroughbreds, trainers, jockeys and owners. An outstanding 31 horses that raced and trained at Keeneland this October are pre-entries for the Breeders’ Cup. The BC World Championships will be held at Del Mar in California on November 3rd and 4th. Final entries for each of the lucky 13 races will post tomorrow. Return to this same post for updates. For now, here is a bit more on the BC bound Thoroughbreds that came through Keeneland this month.
Miss Temple City, winner of the 2016 Shadwell Turf Mile at Keeneland
Alas, Keeneland is open for live racing again. I have long awaited, since the end of April, for live Thoroughbred racing to return to my hometown. Friday, October 6, 2017 at 1:05 PM EDT marks the start of Keeneland’s October meet. Racing continues through the 28th. There are so many fantastic things taking place this meet, including two Win And You’re In Breeders’ Cup races the very first day and so many more to follow. It is hard to know where to begin. I’m pretty interested in the return of Miss Temple City to my hometrack, where she always finishes in the money!
The Scat Daddy fillies are really turning my head. On a mission to find this sire’s beautiful Lady Aurelia, I was wildly entertained by another of his gorgeous daughters, Daddys Lil Darling.
