Category Archives: What’s Happening!

One of the most beloved figures in all of horse racing, jockey Victor Espinoza, made his stakes return after facing lengthy rehabilitation and questions as to whether he might ever ride again, on Bob Baffert’s favored Much Better in the Bay Shore S.-G3 at Aqueduct yesterday, April 6.

The Kentucky Derby picture remains muddy after yesterday’s Florida Derby-G1. Maximum Security, a previous $16,000 claimer trained by Jason Servis, ran away with the race, leaving such royally bred colts as Hidden Scroll, Code of Honor and Bourbon War eating his dust. Jason Servis says he now must cancel his May fishing trip, since Maximum Security has earned 100 points and sits, with other leaders, atop the Kentucky Derby starters list.

The Jockey Club today released a major white paper calling for comprehensive reform of the U.S. horse racing industry including a major overhaul of drug use and uniform out-of-competition drug testing, citing the need for “transparency into the medical treatment, injuries, and health of all racehorses.”

The lag time between submitting your horse for a public auction’s catalogue and the printing and distribution of the sales catalogue can create some interesting issues for buyers and sellers alike. When the Keeneland November, 2017, sale took place, its opening day was November 7, and a Tapit weanling out of the Grade 1 winning mare, My Conquestadory, brought $775,000, a huge investment on a weanling.

In an article from the Thoroughbred Daily News, the hugely popular rider of American Pharoah and California Chrome, Victor Espinoza commented on the imminent rule changes regarding the whip in California. Riders are going to be told that they can only use their whips for corrective and safety purposes – for instance to keep a wayward horse from lugging sideways, impeding other runners, or attempting to run out or jump the rail etc..

It’s about time! Read Belinda Stronach’s statement regarding the banning of Lasix on all race day drugs in California! — An Open Letter about the Future of Thoroughbred Racing in California

U.S. Reps. Paul Tonko (D-NY), and Andy Barr (R-KY), who represent two of the meccas of American Thoroughbred racing – Saratoga Springs and Lexington – have introduced the Horseracing Integrity Act to create a uniform national standard for drug testing that would be overseen by the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency (USADA).

“My team and I have been chomping at the bit to get the Horseracing Integrity Act back in the starting gate for the 116th Congress,” said Rep. Paul Tonko. “We set a fast pace last session, garnering more cosponsors down the stretch than ever before in our efforts to get this bill across the finish line.

In light of the Santa Anita breakdowns, a Thoroughbred People fan has ventured that  “Vehicular traffic (tractor and ambulance) is highly destructive to the cushion. Horse drawn harrows and gate have great advantages.” Watching the tractors tow the harrows between races, I have also wondered how the compression of narrow lanes of the track by a multi-ton John Deere tractor vehicle effects the track. Whether it adds to the track inconsistency or not, what a nice sight it would be for racing fans to see the harrows towed by plough horses instead.  

Saturday March 2nd’s 14-race program at Gulfstream Park, highlighted by Code of Honor’s victory in the 73rd running of the Xpressbet.com Fountain of Youth (G2), produced a record total handle on Fountain of Youth Day of $31,230,535, a 9-percent increase over last year’s 14-race program.