By Jarrod Horak The Grade 3 Iroquois Stakes will be run Churchill Downs on Saturday, Sept. 16. Nine juvenile males entered this flat mile contest, and this is the first road to Kentucky Derby 2024 points race. I will look at pace ratings and best final time ratings, rank the contenders first to last, and [...]

By Jarrod Horak The road to Kentucky Derby 2024 kicks off the with Grade 3 Iroquois Stakes at Churchill Downs on Saturday, Sept. 16, and Risk It looks like the one to beat in the paper race. I will cover that event in an article and video later this week, and I will also debut [...]

By Jarrod Horak I feel vindicated for keeping Arabian Knight on top of my list after he finished third in the Haskell. That effort was definitely better than appears, and he rebounded with a strong front running victory in the Grace 1 Pacific Classic at Del Mar on Saturday, Sept. 2. Arcangelo won the Travers [...]

Even though Del Mar is in the midst of their 8 week summer season, 1st Racing and Santa Anita have to have their name in the news. Part of this I like and part of it I don’t. The part I like is that they will do away with the Rainbow pick six starting with [...]

By Jarrod Horak We are well into the second half of the year and the 3-year-old male division title is still very much up for grabs. Forte, last year’s 2-year-old champ, captured his third graded race in 2023 in the Grade 2 Jim Dandy Stakes at Saratoga on Saturday, July 29. A win in the [...]

By Jarrod Horak Richard Mandella means business when he ships a horse to Monmouth Park for their marquee race. He previously won the Haskell in 2000 with Dixie Union. This year, his lightly raced California invader Geaux Rocket Ride stalked the pace and spurted away from Kentucky Derby hero Mage and Bob Baffert’s highly regarded [...]

By Jarrod Horak Eight sophomore males take center stage in the Grade 1, $1 million Haskell Stakes at Monmouth Park on Saturday, July 22. Bob Baffert has won the Haskell a record 9 times and he is represented this year by undefeated colt Arabian Knight, the 5-2 morning line favorite.   Click here for Haskell [...]

By Jarrod Horak The 2023 Kentucky Derby featured a blistering pace and place finisher Two Phil’s was the only forwardly placed runner around at the end. On July 8, two pace casualties from the Derby got back on track with stakes victories.  First up was Verifying in the Grade 3 Indiana Derby. He dueled from [...]

By Jarrod Horak The 2023 Belmont Stakes was loaded with graded talent and Arcangelo parlayed a ground saving trip into a 7-1 upset over Forte and Tapit Trice in the final jewel of the Triple Crown at Belmont Park on Saturday, June 10. Jena Antonucci had this one primed to run a big race and [...]

By Jarrod Horak Only one Kentucky Derby 2023 participant competed in the Preakness and Mage was that runner. The Derby hero faced six rivals in Baltimore and Blazing Sevens was the only other graded winner.  The Preakness sure did not look like a strong race on paper and it got even weaker after the defection [...]

By Jarrod Horak Five horses defected from the 2023 Kentucky Derby and there was one Preakness scratch. Can any of those runners make an impact this summer and fall?  Continuar (JPN): He would have been one of the longest shots on the board in the Derby. His trainer was not happy with his fitness level [...]

By Jarrod Horak The 2023 Triple Crown is in the rear-view mirror and we are speeding towards the big summer targets. The 3-year-old division is wide open at this stage and it is time to catch up with the sophomore leaders.  Two Phil’s appeared to reach the top of the leaderboard after an impressive score [...]

By Jarrod Horak The early pace was swift and Mage rolled home from off the pace to capture the 2023 Kentucky Derby. Five horses scratched and the Florida shipper ended up defeating 17 runners on the first Saturday in May, and the strong early pace really helped the late runners.  Ten horses have run back. [...]

By Jarrod Horak Arcangelo took advantage of a ground saving trip to win the 2023 Belmont Stakes. Javier Castellano rode the winner for Jena Antonucci. It was the first Belmont win for rider and trainer, and Antonucci became the first female conditioner to capture the Belmont and first to win any of the Triple Crown [...]

By Jarrod Horak The 2023 Belmont Stakes will be run later today at Belmont Park and the conditions could not be more ideal. The track is fast with sunny skies and temperatures in the mid 70’s. It is time to take one final look at the nine entrants. 1 – Tapit Shoes (20-1): Brad Cox’s [...]

By Jarrod Horak I took a look at the Preakness pace scenario prior to the second jewel of the Triple Crown, and this time I will see if I can unwrap the puzzling Belmont Stakes race shape.  In the Kentucky Derby, the pace was sizzling and Mage rumbled home from the back of the pack. [...]

By Jarrod Horak Preakness hero National Treasure has worked twice for the 2023 Belmont Stakes and the two morning moves could not have been more different. What does it mean and how will it affect his performance on Saturday? On Tuesday, May 30, National Treasure was surprisingly back on the worktab a mere 10 days [...]

By Jarrod Horak The 2023 Belmont Stakes includes two runners from the powerful Todd Pletcher barn, 2-year-old champion Forte and Grade 1 Blue Grass hero Tapit Trice. Last year, Pletcher trainees Mo Donegal and Nest finished first and second in the final leg of the Triple Crown, and he seeks his fifth Belmont winner on [...]

By Jarrod Horak The 2023 Belmont Stakes is shaping up as a very good betting race. Kentucky Derby winner Mage will not be running at Belmont Park after a show finish in the Preakness crushed his Triple Crown dreams, but National Treasure, the wire-to-wire winner of that race, is eyeing the final jewel of the [...]

By Jarrod Horak The 2023 Preakness Stakes played out in real time just the way it looked on paper. National Treasure broke smoothly from the inside post, got to the front with relative ease, and held off Blazing Sevens in the lane to win by a head. Kentucky Derby winner Mage was third.  The complexion [...]

By Jarrod Horak The 2023 Preakness Stakes lost a major contender when First Mission scratched on Friday morning due to a problem with his left-hind ankle. How does that defection impact the race? Let’s find out.  I wrote an article about the Preakness pace scenario earlier this week and stated that there were only three [...]

By Jarrod Horak The 2023 Preakness Stakes has eight entrants and sire Good Magic is responsible for three of those runners including Kentucky Derby winner Mage. He also has Perform and Blazing Sevens. Is it possible for all three of those runners to finish in the trifecta? Stranger things have happened.  Good Magic was the [...]

By Jarrod Horak The 2023 Preakness field is set and Mage is the 8-5 morning line favorite. His biggest hurdle might be the lack of pace in the paper race, and in this report we will take a look at the likely race shape. There are no confirmed front runners in the field so we [...]

By Jarrod Horak The Preakness 2023 field currently stands at eight after two defections and one addition. Confidence Game is out for trainer Keith Desormeaux. He came out of the Derby with a sore shoulder and will miss the second jewel of the Triple Crown.  In late breaking news, Disarm, most recently seen running fourth [...]

By Jarrod Horak There are currently nine horses under consideration for Preakness 2023, and Kentucky Derby winner Mage is one of them. The lightly raced Good Magic colt came out of his victory on the first Saturday in May in good order. He was a 15-1 longshot last weekend and is expected to be the [...]

By Jarrod Horak Kentucky Derby 2023 was a crazy race. Five horses scratched late in the week including morning line favorite Forte on the morning of the race. That left a field of 18 and Arkansas Derby hero Angel of Empire was the post time favorite, but Florida Derby runner-up Mage stole the show with [...]

By Jarrod Horak Pretty Mischievous held off Gambling Girl’s late bid to capture the 2023 Kentucky Oaks by a diminishing neck. She got lost in the betting shuffle and went off at 10-1. Tyler Gaffalione rode the Into Mischief filly for Brendan Walsh, and she completed her 1 1/8 mile journey in 1:49.77.  There were [...]

By Jarrod Horak After Kentucky Derby 2023 post positions were drawn on Monday, we had a 20-horse field with a trio of also-eligibles. As I reported yesterday, Practical Move, Lord Miles, and Continuar dropped out of the race, and Cyclone Mischief, Mandarin Hero, and King Russell drew in.  On Friday, word came down that Skinner [...]

By Jarrod Horak Kentucky Derby 2023 post positions were drawn on Monday, May 1. A total of 23 horses including three also-eligibles threw their hat in the ring, and in a crazy turn of events, all three alternates are now in the race.  Practical Move was the first defection. He spiked a temperature and scratched [...]

By Jarrod Horak The Kentucky Oaks 2023 field is set and there have been no changes since post positions were drawn earlier this week. Wet Paint is the deserving morning line favorite. She won the Martha Washington, Honeybee, and Fantasy Stakes from off the pace in her last three starts at Oaklawn. She is fine [...]

By Jarrod Horak Kentucky Derby 2023 post positions will be drawn on Monday, May 1. We are getting close now, and I will be back on Derby week with more reports. Forte is expected to be the morning line favorite. The 2-year-old champion has a strong resume with four Grade 1 wins. He has earned [...]

By Jarrod Horak The 2023 Kentucky Oaks is just around the corner and the race is shaping up as a wide open betting affair. Wet Paint is the likely favorite after late running victories in the Martha Washington, Honeybee, and Fantasy Stakes. All of those races were at Oaklawn Park, and she is hoping for [...]

By Jarrod Horak We have reached the end of the Kentucky Derby 2023 points race series, and Todd Pletcher still holds three aces. He has juvenile champ Forte and young upstart Kingsbarns, and Tapit Trice followed up his late running win in the Tampa Bay Derby with a smart stalking score in the Blue Grass [...]

By Jarrod Horak All of the Kentucky Oaks 2023 points races are in the books and there was plenty of late movement on the points list. Defining Purpose and Promiseher America seemingly came out of nowhere with upset wins in the Ashland and Gazelle, and those late qualifiers knocked some big names out of the [...]

By Jarrod Horak As mentioned in my previous Kentucky Derby 2023 report, Todd Pletcher dominated the points races in March with Forte, Tapit Trice, and Kingsbarns. Fast forward to April, and the more things change the more they stay the same. Forte cemented his status as the Kentucky Derby favorite by winning the Florida Derby [...]

By Jarrod Horak Affirmative Lady and Wet Paint were the big winners in the latest road to Kentucky Oaks 2023 points races. The former has been thriving at Gulfstream Park this year and is on the upswing for Graham Motion, and the latter is the queen of Oaklawn Park following stakes wins in the Martha [...]

By Jarrod Horak Todd Pletcher trainees dominated the Kentucky Derby 2023 points races in March. First it was Forte in the Fountain of Youth on March 4, and Tapit Trice made his case in the Tampa Bay Derby a week later. On March 25, it was Kingsbarns and Flavien Prat wiring the field in the [...]

By Jarrod Horak Southlawn seemingly came out of nowhere and is suddenly prominent player on the road to Kentucky Oaks 2023. The daughter of Pioneerof the Nile was just 1-for-5 last year. She romped in her optional claiming return at Fair Grounds on Feb. 17, and stormed home from off the pace in a strong [...]

By Jarrod Horak The road to Kentucky Derby 2023 is suddenly Todd Pletcher’s playground. His talented juvenile champion Forte was excellent in his seasonal bow in the Fountain of Youth, and he is the solid Derby favorite after that easy victory on March 4. Fast forward one week, and his $1.3 million Tapit colt Tapit [...]

By Jarrod Horak We saw the biggest shocker yet on the road to Kentucky Oaks 2023. That stunning result was in the Davona Dale at Gulfstream Park on March 4. Dorth Vader pressed the pace and kicked clear to score as a 46-1 outsider. She is probably not a top Oaks contender but that sure [...]

By Jarrod Horak The road to Kentucky Derby 2023 is picking up serious momentum. Two-year-old champion Forte made his much anticipated return in the Fountain of Youth Stakes on March 4, and he did not disappoint. He solidified his position as the early Kentucky Derby favorite with another strong stalk and pounce victory at 1 [...]

By Jarrod Horak The road to Kentucky Derby 2023 is starting to heat up. The races are getting longer and more points are on the line as we prepare to turn the calendar from February to March. Juvenile champion Forte is scheduled to make his much anticipated seasonal bow in the Fountain of Youth Stakes [...]

By Jarrod Horak There were plenty of surprises in recent Kentucky Oaks 2023 prep races. Champion juvenile filly Wonder Wheel lost her first start of the year by a neck in the Suncoast Stakes, and Todd Pletcher’s well-bred filly Julia Shining landed the show in that same race. Highly regarded Tom Amoss trainee Hoosier Philly [...]

By Jarrod Horak The ten juvenile points races on the road to Kentucky Derby 2023 have all been completed, and Forte is likely to be the juvenile male champ after Grade 1 victories in the Hopeful, Breeders’ Futurity, and Breeders’ Cup Juvenile. The latter race was deep with Cave Rock landing the place and National [...]

By Jarrod Horak The first nine Kentucky Oaks 2023 points races are in the books. Wonder Wheel won two big Grade 1 races at Keeneland, the Alcibiades and Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies, and she will almost certainly be named the juvenile filly champion. Honorable mention goes to sharp Golden Rod winner Hoosier Philly, and promising [...]