The Triple Crown season is upon us, and while we’re all watching, waiting, and hoping for the 12th Triple Crown winner in history to join the ranks of Secretariat, Citation, Seattle Slew, and Affirmed, there are a virtual plethora of interesting and not readily apparent facts about horse racing ... Views: 956
When in 1915 Regret forayed into the male dominated race and glided to a neat victory in a wire to wire win at the Churchill Downs, becoming the first filly to win the Kentucky Derby since its inception and after almost 14 other fillies to have tried the same feat, it was nothing short of a ... Views: 952
Calvin Borel, the immensely popular Midwestern-based jockey, crashed the Kentucky Derby history books when from 2007--2010 he became the only jockey to ever win the American classic three times in a four-year span. At the 2012 Kentucky Derby, Borel is scheduled to ride Florida Derby winner Take ... Views: 937
Since its inaugural running in 1996, the Dubai World Cup in the United Arab Emirates has been the world's richest horse race. The first edition, which was won by none other than Racing Hall of Fame inductee Cigar, was worth a cool $6 million, which still today would be the biggest purse in the ... Views: 934
If Seabiscuit could talk, he would have probably answered a million questions about him, many that were insufficiently answered over a period of time by race experts and his own connections and many that still lay uncovered under wraps of curiosity and doubt. Despite a best-seller biographical ... Views: 924
When Bill Corum addressed the 125th Kentucky Derby run the “Run for the Roses”, it was clear to many that the tradition was there to stay and today after 137 years of this inspiring heritage still moving forward firmly with its traditional practices ranking it as one of the most prestigious and ... Views: 921
The biggest story on the international racing scene for more than a year has been the exploits of Australia's latest “super horse,” Black Caviar. The undefeated mare has 19 wins and counting, almost all against top-flight competition, and is now being pointed to an international campaign that ... Views: 918
The 138h Kentucky Derby is set to be run at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky on Saturday, May 5, 2012, with a post time of 6:24 EDT.
The Derby prep schedule is well underway, and the big question is, of course, who are the best 2012 Kentucky Derby contenders? One thing people do when ... Views: 905
Technically, Foolish Pleasure won the race on that ill-fated day of 6th July at Belmont but did he really earn it? Born at around the same time of the year as his biggest contender ever, Ruffian, Foolish Pleasure was probably one amongst the most unfortunate horses to have had to face critical ... Views: 898
The racing world is abuzz with talk on who is going to be the favorite for the 2012 Kentucky Derby, which is scheduled to be run May 5 with a post time of 6:24 p.m. Eastern. Even the longtime morning-line maker for the Kentucky Derby, Mike Battaglia, remains unsure on who to make the favorite ... Views: 896
The Derby prize has come and gone to many thoroughbreds since 1875 and each year a new thoroughbred has etched its name on the trophy’s ownership after a gruelling duel to the wire running their first longest race, well almost in all cases, a mile and a half’s distance never exposed to before. ... Views: 883
The Santa Anita Derby provides the West Coast's last stop on the road to the Kentucky Derby and given its $1 million purse, a win or runner-up finish in the historic race virtually guarantees a berth in the Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs.
The Santa Anita Derby has been run every year since ... Views: 882
Winning the Kentucky Derby is the pinnacle of every jockey's racing career. To find the right horse and then provide it with the perfect ride on the first Saturday in May can certainly be viewed as a fitting culmination of a lifetime of work.
In the 137 runnings of the Kentucky Derby, first ... Views: 873
The past few years and probably further more to come have been and would be greatly influenced by female racehorses, if we swear by the trend thoroughbred racing has been subjected to recently. With Rachel Alexandra, winning away the Horse of the Year in 2009, followed by Zenyatta in 2010 and ... Views: 872
It's been well-documented how 2011 was not exactly a vintage season for horse racing in the United States. A look at the recently-released World Thoroughbred Rankings, which was topped by European sensation Frankel, certainly confirms that fact. The highest ranked U.S.-based horse on the list ... Views: 868
We take a look at some of the leading horses in the male handicap division and some of the possibilities for the Breeders Cup Classic this coming fall at Churchill Downs.
The newest star to emerge is Flat Out, who came up with a breakthrough performance in the Grade 2, $300,000 Suburban ... Views: 863
The Grade 1 Florida Derby at Gulfstream Park has been one of the major prep races for the Kentucky Derby for decades. Recent editions have been particularly vintage, as no fewer than three winners of the Kentucky Derby since 2001 used the Florida Derby as their final Kentucky Derby prep.
The ... Views: 862
Most casual sports fans are aware of horse racing's Triple Crown and Breeders' Cup World Championships. However, a longtime challenge for the game has been how to provide fans with a cohesive format that bridges the sport's two showcase events. Enter the Breeders' Cup Challenge.
The Breeders' ... Views: 858
Remembering Kentucky Derby Winners After Their Greatest Triumph
Kentucky Derby winners have always held a special place in the hearts and minds of American sports fans. The combination of speed, stamina and competitive spirit that is required to win the Kentucky Derby are all much admired ... Views: 857
Azeri was the filly who stole the 2002 racing season’s show winning away the Horse of the Year along with Champion Older Female Racehorse starting 2002 until 2004. Azeri, was later recognized with the honour of Azeri Stakes, held at Oaklawn Park Racetrack; the stakes race features four years old ... Views: 855
The $1 million Arkansas Derby at Oaklawn Park, which is one of only five Grade 1 races on the road to the Kentucky Derby, has a long history of producing top contenders for the three races that comprise Thoroughbred racing's Triple Crown.
Since its inaugural running in1936, two winners of ... Views: 851
Mint Juleps will be in many hands when the post time for the 137th Kentucky Derby arrives at 6:24 P.M. on Saturday, May 5, 2012 at historic Churchill Downs Racetrack in Louisville, Kentucky. By the time the starting gate opens and the horses break from the gate, NBC (who is broadcasting the Run ... Views: 849
In 1973, horse racing in North America entered a new era when the concept of “graded stakes” races became a reality. The idea of assigning grades to various stakes races, which is administered by the Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association, was designed to provide breeders with an easy ... Views: 849
Devil Diver may not have been a winner as a three year old, the most important season for any thoroughbred’s racing career but he sure made a remarkable presence in the thoroughbred racing arena with his exemplary performance as an older horse.
He was foaled in the year 1939 and he lived long ... Views: 847
The countdown has begun for those of us who can’t live without thoroughbred horse racing. The first Saturday of May is within sight, less than a month away and there are a whole bunch of unanswered questions before 20 three-year-olds enter the starting gate at Churchill Downs for the Kentucky ... Views: 844
Winning the Preakness Stakes, the middle jewel of horse racing's Triple Crown, is a career-defining moment for any Thoroughbred racehorse. However, a handful of previous Preakness winners have separated themselves from the pack with record-breaking performances. Below we will look at the four ... Views: 843
The much acclaimed rivalry for the top horse of the year in progress, astonishingly between Hansen and Union Rags, would now be a questionable argument as Discreet Dancer goes ahead scoring a three digit Beyer Speed Figure in his maiden break at GulfStream Park. While the two top competitors are ... Views: 836
A little more than an hour's drive from the famed Twin Spires of Churchill Downs, site of the Kentucky Derby, a handful of the top 3-year-olds in the country compete each spring in the historic Blue Grass Stakes at Keeneland Race Course. The Grade 1, $750,000 Blue Grass Stakes is one of the last ... Views: 832
THE MOST IMPORTANT BETTING SECRET! With Triple Crown season almost upon us, you can bet that people all over not just the United States, but the world will be hoping to find just the right bet for the Kentucky Derby (6:24 EDT Post Time, 5/5/12). There are still several key Kentucky Derby prep ... Views: 831
Only a handful of racing thoroughbreds have retired undefeated and fillies, even lesser. One of the greatest fillies ever run and never seen a defeat was Personal Ensign, a Champion American Older Female Horse raced during 1986-1988 and also continued as a distinguished broodmare recognized with ... Views: 830
The Breeder’s Cup Classic was the richest race in the world until in 1996 a new race took over the winning baton for offering the highest purse of $10million. Dubai World Cup may be a similar racing tournament like the Classics, but the highest purse makes it stand out as the target for many ... Views: 830
An analysis of the current 2012 Kentucky Derby odds shows bettors are expecting another wide-open race this year—with perhaps one notable exception. Union Rags, despite getting upended in the Florida Derby in his final Kentucky Derby prep, remains the solid 7-to-2 favorite in the latest Kentucky ... Views: 827
The “Lillies for the Fillies” is also as aged and traditionally rich as is the Kentucky Derby. Constituting the first leg of the Triple Tiara of Thoroughbred Racing, the Kentucky Oaks is run a day prior to the big “Run for the Roses” and is specifically staged to showcase the top three year old ... Views: 827
No Derby prep race can in its totality ensure their accuracy with predicting the most rightful contenders for the Triple Crown. Even a reputed graded stakes as the Wood Memorial Stakes can fail or fall in the hands of an upset. The prime purpose the prep races serve is the test of the ... Views: 827
The American continent is home to a collection of historic and picturesque racing tracks owing to the country’s association with the game for centuries. Since the sport was limited to the elite and the wealthy, the royalty flowed in through ages making the game more of a luxurious indulgence of ... Views: 820
When Frankel raced his maiden win on 13th August in 2010, the mile long Newmarket race track seemed like a cakewalk to the colt, easily defeating his contender Nathaniel by half a length effortlessly. Nathaniel would later go on to win the King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes later in July ... Views: 819
Thoroughbred racing has existed and prevailed for a few centuries now and being one among the top 100 is no cake walk. The Blood-Horse magazine ranked the thoroughbreds over the years in a way that each suited their position appropriately without hampering the remaining contenders on the list. ... Views: 817
Calvin Borel, the immensely popular Midwestern-based jockey, crashed the Kentucky Derby history books when from 2007--2010 he became the only jockey to ever win the American classic three times in a four-year span. At the 2012 Kentucky Derby, Borel is scheduled to ride Florida Derby winner Take ... Views: 816
Come post time for the Kentucky Derby, which is 6:24 p.m. Eastern on May 5, fans will be treated to what's been described as “the most exciting two minutes in sports.” The Kentucky Derby earned that nickname because the first horse across the wire typically completes the 1 1/4-mile voyage about ... Views: 814
Handicapping horses in horse racing is no child’s affair. If roulette and black jack were casino hotshot favorites, handicapping is a field favorite requiring plenty of study and analysis and not just a lucky streak. Well however enticing it may seem, earning a profitable return in handicapping ... Views: 813
The Derby trail approaches its end each season with the most prime and critical races towards the end of March or the first week of April. This time of the year, the colts make their final attempt at gathering enough pre-Derby points so they go out the final day at maximum odds and also rate as ... Views: 808
Futurity Stakes, more commonly known as the Belmont Futurity is a race who’s tradition dates back to 1888 when the race was inaugurated at seven furlongs for two year olds. The race was first run on Labour Day at Sheepshead Bay Race Track back then, is now run annually at the Belmont Park Race ... Views: 807
In 2006, historic Gulfstream Park in Hallandale, Fla., became much more than just a place to race horses. It was that spring that the first in a series of renovations, designed to bring the facility into the 21st-century, were unveiled to the general public.
Now, in addition to watching and ... Views: 807
Being a favourite for two consecutive seasons, as a two and three year old, Alsab was even compared to the legendary Man O’War for his racing style and what he could easily achieve. When closing in on the wire in the final furlongs, Alsab’s speeding into a high never appeared effortful or ... Views: 804
Mucho Macho Man may not have enjoyed the red carpet treatment failing at the final furlongs each time victory would conspire against it with the remaining field in until last season; his campaign this year is probably one of his best in his three year racing career.
With three consecutive wins ... Views: 804
It wouldn’t be wrong if the pedigree was credited for more than a major fraction of Assault’s assault on the racing field and winning all the attention of the audience that had merely begun relishing the taste of a Triple Crown winner.
Assault’s pedigree suggested legendary names; Man o’War, ... Views: 802
Though the list is out and the top 20 Derby starters have almost already been chosen based on their graded stakes earnings and odds released by the bookmakers but on the Derby trail, there are a number of starters who have been taken off it due to fatigue, injury or simply a different strategy. ... Views: 801
A handful of horses saw their racing dreams coming to reality only after they had crossed their prime; an extremely famous and renowned racing horse that was known for his extraordinary growth from a regular racing horse to a champion only after his sophomore season was Seabiscuit. Azeri, foaled ... Views: 798
The American continent is home to a collection of historic and picturesque racing tracks owing to the country’s association with the game for centuries. Since the sport was limited to the elite and the wealthy, the royalty flowed in through ages making the game more of a luxurious indulgence of ... Views: 797
Despite the fact that the one of highest Beyer Speed Figure of 113 recorded for the season’s older male category comes from the Whisper Hill Farm bred, Tiznow-Bethany colt, Tizway; my introspect regarding the finalists nominated for the Older Male Category tend to favour Game On Dude. ... Views: 792