Ger Lyons has Big Bad Bob’s Berg Bahn in the UAE Oaks

If you’re reading this from anywhere in the world but Ireland and Dubai, you’re probably wondering who the hell are Ger Lyons, Big Bad Bob and Berg Bahn? Ger Lyons is an Irish trainer who’s married to Lynne Lyons — who I had the pleasure of meeting on Twitter, along with Ger – and he trains the [...]

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Our Emblem colt Sal Grosso wins first leg of Rio triple today

(The following notes are from Diego Mitagstein of Turf Diario, on the first leg of Rio’s triple crown for colts. The photo of Sal Grosso by Davi Oliveira.) Sal Grosso, bred and owned by Goncalo Torrealba’s Stud TNT, conquered the Group 1 Grande Premio Estado do Río de Janeiro – Haras das Estrelas (G1) Sunday, the first leg of Gavea’s triple crown for [...]

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Dolly Max strikes for Sadler’s Wells sire Crimson Tide in Rio

(The following notes are from Diego Mitagstein of Turf Diario, on the first leg of Rio’s triple crown for fillies. The photo of Dolly Max courtesy of Gersons Martin.) Dolly Max was invincible in the Gran Premio Henrique Possolo – Haras das Estrelas (G1) over the metric  mile on turf at Hipódromo da Gavea, in Rio de [...]

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Tom Thornbury candidly about South America, Jack Werk

Before I left for California on Sunday, I’d been thinking of Tom Thornbury, the respected and well-liked associate director of sales at Keeneland because Tom had been asked to select the yearlings for the Copa aBullrich sale in Argentina in May — somewhat of a minefield to navigate because in Argentina the select sale concept is in its [...]

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Undefeated Caracortado’s Storm Cat sire now in Indiana

Caracortado, the undefeated winner of the Grade 2 Robert B. Lewis Stakes at Santa Anita today, is by the Storm Cat sire Cat Dreams, now listed as standing at stud at Still Creek Farms in Brookville, Indiana, for $1,500 live foal for owner Triple ‘R’ Thoroughbred Syndicate. The horse began his career in California at [...]

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Turkish Group 2 form held well at Meydan Thursday night

The top two finishers in the Group 2 Bosphorus Cup at Veliefendi in Istanbul last Sept. 3 were in action at Meydan in Dubai Thursday night in consecutive races, and each won. Click here to access the charts for Race #7 (Halicarnassus) and Race #8 (Pan River). The chart of the Bosphorus Cup is below: [...]

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Wind Flow wins Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques Cup

The 6-year-old Dr. Fong horse Wind Flow won the 2400-meter Custodian of the  Two Holy Mosques Cup (King’s Cup) at Janadriyah today from Muller, last year’s winner. The chart of the KSA Group 1 race is below, from the Equestrian Club of Riyadh. The winner raced the distance in 2:29.05 and won by 4-plus lengths.  Click [...]

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Sale of stallion prospect at Fasig-Tipton raises eyebrows

One-day mixed sales, like Monday’s Fasig-Tipton Kentucky mixed sale, frequently have the stallion prospects catalogued at the end of the book. Stallion prospects in mixed sales are usually lower-level horses destined for regional or foreign markets, and as such the people who buy these types are either horse traders, buying at wholesale prices to sell at retail, or end users [...]

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Argentine Group 1 winner Ishitaki in UAE Guineas tomorrow

The UAE 1000 Guineas (Race #5) at Meydan tomorrow features not only the Chilean 2-year-old champion filly Mensajera De La Luz  highlighted in the post below this one but also one of the best 2-year-old fillies in Argentina in 2009, Ishitaki.  Godolphin purchased Ishitaki after the filly had won her second Group 1, the Gran Premio Jorge de [...]

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Chilean champ Mensajera De La Luz in UAE 1000 Guineas

Undefeated Chilean filly Mensajera De La Luz makes her Middle Eastern début Thursday in the  UAE 1000 Guineas at Meydan (Race #5) in a matchup against Argentine Group 1 winner Ishitaki, the Brazilian Group 2 winner Opera Comica, and the Australian-bred, South African Raihana, already a winner at Meydan. A champion 2-year-old who was purchased by the familiar Saudi-based owner/trainer duo of Prince [...]

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Rocket Man’s half-brother Our Giant is entered at Meydan

The New Zealand-bred McGinty mare Macrosa has the notable distinction of producing two international sprints stars: Singapore’s ace Rocket Man (see a post below) and South Africa’s Our Giant, a Group 1 winner. Both were bred in Australia. Rocket Man is by the Quest for Fame sire Viscount, a Group 1 winner at 7 and 8 [...]

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Is Israel behind the assassination of Hamas leader in Dubai?

On the eve of the Dubai World Cup, a recent high-profile assassination in Dubai is the talk of the town, while the trial of the assassination of a former Russian commander on Dubai World Cup day last year is underway.   The big question these days: Did Israel sanction the assassination of a Hamas leader in Dubai [...]

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Singapore sprint ace Rocket Man, 8 for 9, returns a winner

The field for the Golden Shaheen just got another player: Singapore sprint ace Rocket Man, 8 for 9 now, returned a winner today over Kranji’s synthetic surface. Read the details from the Singapore Turf Club here. The video of today’s race is directly below, and beneath that is the video of the Group 1 KrisFlyer International Sprint [...]

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Little girl Jacqueline rises to occasion: Makes Derby history

 (The following report was filed from India by Major Srinivas Nargolkar, former Keeper of the Indian Stud Book. The Major has covered each of Jacqueline’s classic triumphs in this space, and links to each recap are available at the end of this post. Race result chart and video courtesy of Indiarace.com.)  “Talita Kumi.” Christ is said to [...]

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Oasis Star 2nd at Meydan today confirms India’s race form

Oasis Star, shown directly below winning the Indian Group 1 Dr. S.C. Jain Sprinters Championship at Mumbai on March 15, 2009, made her Dubai début at Meydan today a memorable one with a fine second-place finish to 2009 UAE 1000 Guineas winner So Shiny. The latter, an Argentine-bred daughter of Indygo Shiner now representing Saudi Arabia, was [...]

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