Tue, 08/26/2008 - 00:00

Doncaster sale gains

The St. Leger yearling sale at Doncaster Bloodstock Sales in England easily outdid last year’s numbers Tuesday at its first of three sessions.

The opening session sold 144 of 166 yearlings on offer for about $9,920,704, resulting in an average price of about $68,894 and a median price of approximately $49,959. Compared year to year in British pounds sterling, the gross was up 14 percent from last season’s opener, when 139 horses sold. The average price rose 10 percent, and the median was up 9 percent.

Mon, 08/25/2008 - 00:00

Bushranger plays spoiler to Naaqoos

Bushranger rallied to win the $517,000 Prix Morny at Deauville on Sunday to deny trainer Freddy Head a sweep of Deauville's four Group 1 races as his favored Naaqoos could manage only fifth in the 14-runner. six-furlong sprint for 2-year-old colts and fillies.

Sat, 08/23/2008 - 00:00

Duke of Marmalade wins his fifth Group 1 of '08

Duke of Marmalade recorded his fifth Group 1 triumph of the year at Newmarket on Saturday with a thoroughly professional victory in the Group 1 Juddmonte International Stakes, in which he beat the Epsom Derby winner New Approach into a nonthreatening third.

Fri, 08/22/2008 - 00:00

Atlantic crossing needn't be one-way path

NEW YORK - The abandonment of the plan to run Curlin in the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe means that this year's running of the mythical European championship will be without an American-trained participant for the 17th year in succession.

Fri, 08/22/2008 - 00:00

Lush Lashes wins, sets mark

Lush Lashes proved herself one of the most versatile fillies in training on Friday when she set a Newmarket July Course course record for 1 1/2 miles winning the Group 1, $309,000 Yorkshire Oaks, a race transplanted from York after this week's Ebor meeting had been washed out.

Fri, 08/22/2008 - 00:00

Lui Rei poses threat to Naaqoos in Prix Morny

Freddy Head seeks a clean sweep of all four of Deauville's Group 1 prizes on Sunday when he sends out Naaqoos in the $520,000 Prix Morny, a six-furlong dash for 2-year-olds.

Naaqoos, owned by Hamdan al-Maktoum, was a winner first time out over the Morny course and distance on Aug. 2, but his time that day was 1:21.50, painfully slow even considering the soft ground. On Sunday the going will be good and could favor Lui Rei, the Italian-bred winner of the Group 2 Prix Robert Papin, or the front-running Classic Blade, winner of the Group 2 July Stakes at Newmarket.

Thu, 08/21/2008 - 00:00

New Approach meeting Duke of Marmalade

The twice-postponed Juddmonte International Stakes will finally go off at Newmarket on Saturday in a slightly shortened version but still featuring the same intergenerational clash between Europe's highest rated older horse, Duke of Marmalade, and the Epsom Derby winner, New Approach.

Originally scheduled to be run at waterlogged York on Tuesday and then postponed to Friday, the Group 1, $930,000 Juddmonte was ultimately switched to Newmarket's July Course Saturday meeting and will be run on good ground at an exact 1 1/4 miles, or 88 yards shorter than customary.

Wed, 08/20/2008 - 00:00

Entire York meet washed out

York Racecourse has abandoned its entire four-day Ebor Meeting after a Wednesday morning inspection found that the Yorkshire track was still waterlogged from almost continuous rain during the past week.

As a result, the Yorkshire Oaks and the Nunthorpe Stakes have been switched to Newmarket on Friday, while the Juddmonte International Stakes will be run at Newmarket on Saturday. The Great Voltigeur Stakes will be run at Goodwood on Saturday.

Tue, 08/19/2008 - 00:00

Rain sinks first two days at York

The weird weather that has been plaguing England and Ireland this summer has struck at York, as heavy rains forced the track to cancel the first two days of its prestigious four-day Ebor Meeting on Tuesday and Wednesday due to a waterlogged course. As a result, the Juddmonte International Stakes, which was to have featured a much-anticipated clash between Duke of Marmalade and New Approach, has been postponed until Friday, weather permitting.

Mon, 08/18/2008 - 00:00

Tamayuz targets Breeders' Cup Mile

Tamayuz has the Breeders' Cup Mile in his sights after handing trainer Freddie Head his fifth Group 1 triumph in the last 38 days with an impressive 2 1/2-length score over Natagora in the $880,000 Prix Jacques le Marois at Deauville on Sunday.

The victory by Tamayuz means that Head, who won this race six times as a jockey, including twice aboard Miesque and once on Lyphard, has won all three Group 1 races run at Deauville so far this month.

Tamayuz, 5 for 6 lifetime, traveled the straight mile on good to soft ground in 1:36.40.