Fri, 01/23/2026 - 13:13

Madaket Road scratched from Pegasus World Cup

Barbara D. Livingston
Madaket Road was one of three California-based horses who shipped to Gulfstream Park earlier this week for the Grade 1 Pegasus World Cup.

HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. – Madaket Road will scratch from Saturday’s $3 million Pegasus World Cup Invitational at Gulfstream Park, per Tom Ryan, Managing Partner for SF Racing. Ryan and SF Racing are among Madaket Road's many owners, a group that includes Starlight Racing and Madaket Stables.

Fri, 01/23/2026 - 12:52

Horse of the Year Sovereignty's ultimate goal for 2026 is the BC Classic

Sovereignty.Bill Mott Oct 12 2025
Barbara D. Livingston
Sovereignty is in training with Bill Mott at Payson Park. He is galloping daily but a few weeks away from a workout.

INDIANTOWN, Fla. – Unlike a year ago, trainer Bill Mott does not have a wish list of races in which he’d like to run Sovereignty in 2026.

Okay, maybe one.

“I’d like to make the Breeders’ Cup Classic at the end of the year and whatever makes any kind of sense in between,” Mott said the day before Sovereignty was crowned 2025 Horse of the Year and 3-year-old champion male at Thursday’s Eclipse Awards ceremony at The Breakers in Palm Beach, Fla.

Thu, 01/22/2026 - 20:02

Eclipse Awards: Sovereignty named 2025 Horse of the Year

Barbara D. Livingston
Sovereignty won 5 of 6 starts, in 2025, including the Kentucky Derby, Belmont, and Travers (above).

PALM BEACH, Fla. -- Sovereignty, who in 2025 won the Kentucky Derby, Belmont Stakes, and Travers as part of a 5-for-6 campaign, was voted Horse of the Year, capping another big night at the Eclipse Awards for Godolphin, the global racing and breeding operation headed by Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum.

Thu, 01/22/2026 - 14:35

Trainer James Cassidy dead at 80

Barbara D. Livingston
Cassidy’s stable thrived with turf horses, particularly British imports.

James Cassidy, who began training in his 40s and had 10 Grade 1 wins in the 2000s and 2010s, died on Wednesday at his home in Monrovia, Calif., his friends said.

Cassidy, best known as Jim, was 80 and had been suffering from heart-related health issues in recent years.

In addition to operating his stable, Cassidy served two terms as president of the California Thoroughbred Trainers Association – in 2009, and again from 2012 to 2019. The organization represents trainers in regulatory matters and works with racetrack management on a wide variety of issues.

Wed, 01/21/2026 - 15:30

Stadium Authority to buy Laurel from Stronach Group, convert it into a training center

Barbara D. Livingston
In a change of plans, Laurel Park, not Shamrock Farm, will be converted into a training center when the new Pimlico Race Course reopens as Maryland's lone racing facility.

The Maryland Stadium Authority, which in 2024 announced plans to rebuild Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, has reached a tentative agreement with The Stronach Group to acquire Laurel Park for the purposes of developing it into a year-round Thoroughbred training center when racing operations switch to Pimlico on a full-time basis in 2028.

Laurel Park will replace the previously chosen site of Shamrock Farm in Woodbine, Md., as a training facility.

It was unclear how much The Stronach Group will receive for the property at Laurel.

Wed, 01/21/2026 - 11:59

Santa Anita files court papers seeking return of Racing on Demand machines

Steve Andersen
The California Department of Justice seizes 26 Racing On Demand machines on Jan. 17 at Santa Anita.

Santa Anita filed a petition for a writ of mandate against California Attorney General Rob Bonta and the state Department of Justice in Los Angeles Superior Court on Tuesday, seeking a return of 26 slot-styled parimutuel gaming machines seized by law enforcement officials at the track late Saturday afternoon.

The machines, known as Racing on Demand, were installed Jan. 15 and were in operation for three days in a first-floor pavilion before they were confiscated.

Mon, 01/19/2026 - 12:03

Godolphin should loom large in Eclipse Awards

Barbara D. Livingston
Sovereignty won the Kentucky Derby, Belmont Stakes, and Travers (above) in 2025.

While there figures to be some drama in categories such as older dirt male, jockey, and perhaps trainer, Thursday’s Eclipse Awards ceremony in South Florida is expected to be another big night for Godolphin, the global racing and breeding operation of Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al Maktoum, the ruling leader of Dubai.

Sun, 01/18/2026 - 18:18

Santa Anita likely to take legal action after seizure of gaming machines

Barbara D. Livingston

ARCADIA, Calif. – The seizure of 26 slot-styled parimutuel gaming machines at Santa Anita late Saturday by law enforcement officers is expected to lead to legal action by the track as soon as this week, a high-ranking executive said Monday.

The machines, which offered a single game called Racing on Demand, were installed last Thursday and were available to the public for less than three racing days before the government intervened.

Sun, 01/18/2026 - 18:02

Harris Farms reduced, but retains key role in California racing

Benoit
Start the Ride was given a 76 Beyer Speed Figure for Saturday's victory in the California Cup Derby at Santa Anita.

The reorganization of Harris Farms, the famed California Thoroughbred breeding facility, has been underway since the death of owner John Harris last July.

Gone are the stallions who stood at the Coalinga, Calif., property that is undergoing a transformation to cropland. The farm has reduced its herd of mares and moved them to nearby Sanger, Calif. A reduction sale of racing and breeding stock was conducted last August, with 75 horses selling for $1,045,000.

Sun, 01/18/2026 - 17:07

Golden Tempo has Risen Star Stakes as next target

Hodges Photography
Golden Tempo was given an 81 Beyer Speed Figure for Saturday's victory in the Lecomte at Fair Grounds.

Golden Tempo came out of his Lecomte Stakes win in good shape, at least as of Sunday, and all being well will make his next start Feb. 14 at Fair Grounds in the Risen Star Stakes.

A debut sprint winner on Dec. 20, Golden Tempo closed from last of 10 to win the 1 1/16-mile Lecomte by three-quarters of a length, though he was going away at the finish. His raw time of 1:44.98 worked out to an 81 Beyer Speed Figure, up from a 78 in his debut, but a pedestrian number for a Kentucky Derby prep in mid-January. That left the colt’s trainer, Cherie DeVaux, unconcerned.