- 1 day ago
George Boughey joined this week's TDN Writers' Room after his filly Survie beat the boys in the GI Christophe Clement Stakes. Plus, the Writers' Room team breaks down the charges against Marshall Gramm and looks ahead to this weekend's racing.
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00:00:18Welcome to another edition of the TDN Riders Room podcast.
00:00:21My name is Bill Finley.
00:00:23I am a correspondent for the Thoroughbred Daily News, also co-hosts the Sirius XM Horse
00:00:29Racing Down the Stretch show every Saturday with the legendary Dave Johnson, and I do
00:00:34mean legendary.
00:00:35I am Randy Moss with NBC Sports and the Buyer's Speed Figure team.
00:00:41Zoe Kammel with First Racing and First TV.
00:00:44Delighted to be here, and we have a lot to talk about.
00:00:48Another week, another scandal in horse racing.
00:00:52How about that, guys?
00:00:53We just got through the Angel Quiro's Fair Hill Five story last week.
00:00:57Lo and behold, another very surprising story comes out.
00:01:02I'll try to give you, most people know what's going on now, but I'll try to give you the
00:01:05shortened version.
00:01:06Back about in June, some very curious past performances showed up on Twitter that showed not only the
00:01:14horse's records, but their vet records.
00:01:17One horse who happened to be deterministic, probably the best turf horse in the country
00:01:21right now, showed some shockwave therapy, according to his vet records, and another horse showed
00:01:29also some interarticular injections.
00:01:33Nobody quite knew what to make of this.
00:01:35It was kind of a weird story, and then it kind of went away.
00:01:38Then all of a sudden, wow, comes out this week that Marshall Graham was behind all this.
00:01:45Now, Marshall Graham, most people would know him.
00:01:47He's the managing partner of Ten Strike Stable.
00:01:50He's an economics professor at Rhodes College.
00:01:53He's a devoted horse player and really, really smart guy.
00:02:00He has admitted that through his access as an owner that he got into there and found this
00:02:10information, not just on these two horses, but presumably hundreds because he was doing it
00:02:16for quite some time.
00:02:18As with most things here, this raises a lot of questions.
00:02:22We don't have all the answers.
00:02:24I've always respected Marshall.
00:02:26I've always liked Marshall.
00:02:27He's always been a go-to guy for the media, especially when it comes to betting and CAWs.
00:02:33But Marshall, what the hell were you thinking?
00:02:37I mean, this was a very dumb move.
00:02:40And by the way, the news broke today that he has been booted out of the jockey club
00:02:45because of his role in this scandal.
00:02:49I don't really understand what he was doing.
00:02:53I don't really understand why this extra information was so valuable to him.
00:02:59Obviously, he believed that it was.
00:03:02Was he using it to make his own bets?
00:03:05Was he using it to help himself in handicapping contests?
00:03:08Was he using it to claim horses?
00:03:12Haise is going after him.
00:03:14They have said that they have relayed the information to law enforcement authorities
00:03:20and have brought up the issue of charging him as a fraud.
00:03:25That's not going to happen, by the way.
00:03:27But Marshall's in a lot of trouble.
00:03:29And Zoe, I'll start with you.
00:03:32What the hell was this guy thinking?
00:03:35Honestly, I don't know.
00:03:36When I first heard about it, I'm at a loss for words.
00:03:39I don't know the whole story.
00:03:41I don't know the ins and outs.
00:03:44I do believe that Marshall Graham is a good guy, a very smart guy.
00:03:48I don't think there was really anything nefarious.
00:03:50There are two sides to every story.
00:03:52And we don't know all of it.
00:03:54We do know that he spent $210,000 claiming nine horses over that period of six weeks.
00:04:02Now, it's not like all of a sudden he made a million dollars claiming these horses.
00:04:07The earnings for those nine horses he claimed equated to $80,000.
00:04:12And I've got the horses down in case anyone wants to know.
00:04:15Dispersion, Scribble, Tiger Moon, Coastal Breeze, Dance When You Can, Split Success,
00:04:21Barksdale, Real Macho, and Lex.
00:04:23A total claiming price of $210,000.
00:04:26They made $80,000 during that time period.
00:04:30It's not like he was using this data to just garner millions of dollars.
00:04:35I don't know what he gambled.
00:04:37I don't know the whole story.
00:04:38We do know that it's a terrible look for horse racing.
00:04:43You mentioned he got booted off the Chalky Club.
00:04:46He's on the TCA board.
00:04:47He's on the Toba board.
00:04:48He's the go-to guy for seminars to talk about what's going on in horse racing.
00:04:54There was a quote directly from him, and it said, I quote,
00:04:59Making me a focus of this matter is a distraction from the fundamental issues HISA needs to address with its
00:05:07systems.
00:05:08The main problem is that the HISA database was supposed to be, you know, impenetrable.
00:05:15You could not get in there.
00:05:17Well, he did, and apparently did it quite easily.
00:05:21So that is one thing that needs to be addressed.
00:05:23There's a whole lot that needs to be addressed.
00:05:25I can't condemn him as a cheater.
00:05:27There are plenty worse cheaters than Marshall Graham, in my opinion.
00:05:31But I don't know the whole story, so that's probably all I can say about it right now.
00:05:36It's just not a terrible look for horse racing on the heels of the Fair Hill Five last week.
00:05:41It's just not a good look.
00:05:44What's the legal term?
00:05:45I almost need to recuse myself here because Marshall is a friend of mine.
00:05:50He's a longtime friend of mine.
00:05:52And I've spoken to one of his college classes one time.
00:05:55As Bill mentioned, you know, he's a go-to guy for anybody that's got questions, for example, about CAW.
00:06:01He's part of a CAW team.
00:06:04He did issue a statement acknowledging that he made some mistakes in judgment, which are pretty obvious when you look
00:06:17at the accusations.
00:06:19And he admitted when he was first confronted with the evidence from HISA that, yeah, it was him.
00:06:25And he did get into the systems.
00:06:28And this is how he did it.
00:06:29And, you know, he said his primary error of judgment was in using the information rather than notifying HISA, hey,
00:06:39you've got a problem here.
00:06:40You know, this is very easily obtained.
00:06:42I don't know if you want this to be obtained or not.
00:06:45So we'll see when the lawyers lawyer up and they go at it.
00:06:50And we'll see what winds up happening.
00:06:52What this does, though, on a sort of related but separate issue that some people have brought up on social
00:07:01media, it does also make you wonder.
00:07:06I mean, there are billions of dollars, literally billions of dollars wagered in this game on the outcome of races.
00:07:14And yet this information about the physical well-being and the treatment, the veterinary treatment of racehorses is treated by
00:07:23the industry as some sort of top secret that has to be, you know, that has to be hoarded and
00:07:30guarded and you can't let it out.
00:07:32Why not?
00:07:34Why can't horsemen, you know, why can't horsemen know?
00:07:39Why can't horseplayers know that deterministic had shockwave therapy twice, right?
00:07:46I mean, ultimately, horseplayers may decide, okay, that's too much information.
00:07:53We don't know what to make of all this.
00:07:55We're going to ignore it.
00:07:56But what's wrong with having all the information possible out there for people to judge when there's billions of dollars
00:08:03being wagered on the outcome of these races?
00:08:06I mean, I can remember, and you guys can remember, too, back when the Daily Racing Forum Pass performances used
00:08:12to put an N in the PPs for nasal strip, as if that was going to be some huge performance
00:08:20enhancer, right?
00:08:21But they got the information out there, and I don't know why this stuff can't be made public to everybody.
00:08:27Randy, just as an aside to you, and I had thought, had the same thought about why wouldn't this information
00:08:34just be generally available?
00:08:36And Hong Kong is known as a place that tells you everything there is to know about horses.
00:08:45I checked with Pat Cummings just to prepare for this podcast.
00:08:49He says, no, this information would not be available in Hong Kong, which I was a little bit surprised because,
00:08:55again, I mean, if a horse has a sniffle, it's going to be down on the records.
00:09:01And I think it might have something to do with kind of, you know, just like a patient-client privilege.
00:09:08This is – I can't go into a hospital and steal the hospital records of somebody who's going in for
00:09:16heart surgery.
00:09:17So I don't think you're necessarily wrong about this, but I can see where they're coming from, that this is
00:09:23proprietary information that really shouldn't be shared beyond the horsemen themselves.
00:09:27So maybe deterministic might have gotten upset, everybody knowing that he had shockwave therapy?
00:09:34Here's another question, Randy, and I want to ask you this.
00:09:37As a gambler, what would you do with this information?
00:09:42Would you have not bet on deterministic because, oh, he's got some problems?
00:09:48Would you have, yes, bet on him because Miguel Clement was obviously doing everything possible to get him ready for
00:09:56a race?
00:09:56From a gambling standpoint – and Marshall's a lot smarter than I am, and he's a lot better handicapper than
00:10:01I am – I don't necessarily understand why this information is that useful, to be honest with you.
00:10:07And it may not be useful.
00:10:09It may wind up falling into the category of nasal strips, you know, but if it does become available –
00:10:15and I'm looking at horses that have, for example, shockwave therapy,
00:10:19and I see multiple instances in which horses look like, you know, they're favorites and should win, and suddenly, you
00:10:27know, having suddenly had shockwave therapy,
00:10:29they don't win and they run poorly, I'm going to note that.
00:10:33Right now, I wouldn't know what to think about it because I haven't been – you know, that information hasn't
00:10:38been privy to us.
00:10:40But it's just, you know, it's transparency really is what it is, and the industry talks about it a lot,
00:10:47and this is an example of a way they can perhaps be a little more transparent.
00:10:52So let's just keep a couple of things here, Bill, about shockwave therapy, just in case somebody's listening and doesn't
00:10:58really know what it is.
00:10:59I think there's a certain time frame.
00:11:01I'm not sure how many days you can do it.
00:11:03It's two weeks out or something.
00:11:05You can't do it right on top of the race.
00:11:07That is not allowed.
00:11:08So one of the things you'd be looking for is how close to the race is it?
00:11:12These are checked.
00:11:12Horses have to go out.
00:11:14Horses have in-and-out slips getting in and out of the racetrack.
00:11:17They leave the racetrack for any reason.
00:11:19It has to be listed.
00:11:20So shockwave therapy, for people that are wondering, is a non-invasive medical treatment that sends high-energy acoustic sound
00:11:28waves through the skin to the injured area, basically promoting blood flow.
00:11:33It's used a lot on two-year-olds that may have some shins.
00:11:36It's a therapeutic machine that does it.
00:11:41So it's nothing – it's not like you're injecting tons of needles into horses.
00:11:44It's shockwave therapy.
00:11:46It's a therapy that some trainers use, but you can't do it on top of the race.
00:11:51Well, before we wrap up this story with Marshall Graham, surely more is going to come out.
00:11:55And maybe we will learn more about his computer acumen because that is something – again, he's a smart guy.
00:12:03But again, at this point, let's all take a deep breath.
00:12:08More is going to come out on this story.
00:12:11And right now, it's he said versus she said.
00:12:15So let's leave it at that.
00:12:18All right.
00:12:18So before the Fairhill 5 story goes away – and it's not going to go away for any amount of
00:12:23time because there's still a lot of shoes to drop here.
00:12:26But Angel Quiros, the trainer who is at the center of all the shenanigans that went on, it was reported
00:12:34last week that he had an albuterol positive, which is a bronchodilator along the lines of clumbuterol, not on one
00:12:41of the horses involved in the vetting scandal, but a horse that did not participate.
00:12:45Now, again, this raises a lot of questions.
00:12:48By the way, if he is found guilty of this, he faces a two-year ban.
00:12:54But I had thought originally that they weren't going to be able to hang anything on these guys, that they
00:13:01didn't really violate any rules.
00:13:03But Haiz has been – Haiz has been a little bit less than forthcoming about the testing, when things are
00:13:11going to come back.
00:13:12But, Randy, could it be that – they obviously tested the winners, the four winners.
00:13:18Could they possibly test positive for this drug?
00:13:21And if they do, that really changes the story.
00:13:25Well, that opens up a whole other spider web of things here with the Fairhills stuff.
00:13:31Haiz has been busy, haven't they?
00:13:32They've got a lot on their table right now.
00:13:36Just yet another controversy, yet another scandal in a sport that – Zoe, that needs everything but scandal right now.
00:13:45I love how it was monikered practically immediately, the Fairhill Five.
00:13:51Yeah.
00:13:52I mean, you can't make it up.
00:13:54You just can't make it up.
00:13:55Obviously, they're going to test every inch of every horse, every hair sample.
00:13:59They're going to go back 60 days.
00:14:00The horse they caught is out of competition testing.
00:14:04Albuterol is not illegal.
00:14:07It's illegal intravenously.
00:14:09So then they've got to figure out, you know, was the horse inhaling it?
00:14:12How much is in there?
00:14:14You know, there's all these levels to go through.
00:14:15It's going to take forever to figure something out.
00:14:18Meanwhile, somebody's counting their money somewhere.
00:14:20They may not have got all the money, but they certainly did get paid.
00:14:25And I'd love to know who that is.
00:14:28It really should be the Fairhill Six, because there was the six horse that cloned me.
00:14:32But the Fairhill Five sounds better.
00:14:33That's why we're all picking up on that.
00:14:37Zoe, I know that you were on the ground observing the face of Tipton Saratoga sale.
00:14:44Why don't you give us your thoughts and insights on that?
00:14:48Where do you want me to start?
00:14:50Hold on.
00:14:50Let me see.
00:14:51I wrote it down somewhere.
00:14:52A lot of dollar signs.
00:14:53How about that?
00:14:54A lot of dollar signs.
00:14:55Where is it?
00:14:56So they're calling it, you know, the magical seven days.
00:14:59It was by far, and everyone has been quoted saying this, the greatest horse sale ever in
00:15:06the land of horse sales.
00:15:07I talked about it last Tuesday, saying you couldn't even see a table in the place.
00:15:11It was absolutely packed.
00:15:12The final total was $143 million.
00:15:16$118 million of that came out of the sale of 152 yearlings.
00:15:22Now, the average was $777,000.
00:15:25The median was up 24% from $450,000 to $525,000.
00:15:33Randy, there were 35 individual horses out of that 152 that sold for a million dollars or more.
00:15:42There were two horses.
00:15:43Remember when that used to be like a huge deal, right?
00:15:45A million dollar yearling.
00:15:47Oh, my gosh.
00:15:48I know.
00:15:49There were two horses that sold for $4 million or more.
00:15:53The sale topper was a $4.2 million, no surprise, into Mischief Coal.
00:15:58Sold by first-time consignors, Hartwood Farm, Sarah Sutherland, Juan Aguilar.
00:16:03Big congratulations to them.
00:16:05They also sold a $3 million into Mischief Coal.
00:16:08Flying Dutchman, the coffee.
00:16:10Have you ever had that coffee, Dutch Bros Coffee?
00:16:11Yes, you sure have.
00:16:12It's good.
00:16:13They spent over $21 million on horses at the sale.
00:16:20The coffee business is doing well.
00:16:23I mean, you can't make it up.
00:16:25It is the greatest horse sale ever.
00:16:27And it continued into the New York Bread sale.
00:16:30The New York Bread sale, $24.6 million, the sale topper last night.
00:16:35$550,000, a life is good cult.
00:16:38Gone to Miguel Clement.
00:16:39Marlene Brody is 94 years old.
00:16:43Gallagher's stud, she's been around for five decades.
00:16:47Her late husband, Jerry, had Gallagher's Steakhouse.
00:16:51Myself and Mariette Farrell actually went for lunch with her the other day,
00:16:54and we get to the stud farm.
00:16:56She's 94 and a half, and she still lives on her own.
00:16:59Got dinner, lunch laid out, and she's like,
00:17:02Now, Zoe, we are going to have champagne at lunchtime because, you know,
00:17:09time is short, and I might not have long.
00:17:12She's 94 and a half.
00:17:13We had champagne at lunch, and she sold the sales topper.
00:17:17Truly remarkable lady.
00:17:18If you know nothing about Marlene Brody, look her up.
00:17:21She speaks six languages.
00:17:23I probably won't be alive at 94, let alone have my marbles.
00:17:28Longtime farm manager, Mallory Moore, has done a fantastic job.
00:17:32All in all, it was a terrific sale, and it will move on to Keeneland
00:17:36because all those horses had underbidders, and underbidders under that,
00:17:41and they're all going to Keeneland to go and spend more millions.
00:17:44We keep thinking that there's going to be a top, and it just keeps going.
00:17:5035 horses for a million bucks or more?
00:17:52That's insane.
00:17:53You speak two languages.
00:17:55You speak the King's English and English.
00:18:00It can be two separate languages sometimes.
00:18:03Most of the time.
00:18:04The puma, for example.
00:18:07The puma, excuse me.
00:18:08The puma.
00:18:09The puma.
00:18:10And what do you call dessert again?
00:18:13Pudding, right?
00:18:13Pudding.
00:18:14Pudding, okay.
00:18:15Pudding.
00:18:16Yes.
00:18:16All right.
00:18:17WCs, windscreens, you name it.
00:18:19Well, we're going to take a break.
00:18:20When we come back, we're going to have the Gaines Way guest of the week,
00:18:22and it's George Bowie, the trainer of that fabulous mayor, Servi,
00:18:27who won the Christophe Clermont against the boys last Saturday at Saratoga.
00:18:31Very good interview.
00:18:32Stay with us, and we'll be right back.
00:18:34I do want to remind you that each and every week,
00:18:36the TDN Writers' Room is brought to you by Keeneland.
00:18:38Now, a legacy is carried by the horse and the land beneath it.
00:18:43On October the 28th, Keeneland's championship sale will be held
00:18:47at the historic Castleton Lions Farm.
00:18:50If you've never been there, Google it, look at it online.
00:18:54It is one of the most fabulous pieces of property that I have ever seen.
00:18:58This year's event, however, will culminate with the iconic horse farm
00:19:03as the final offering in collaboration with Bluegrass Sotheby's International Realty.
00:19:09Learn more at www.keeneland.com.
00:19:14We do this so your granddaughter can work on a farm someday.
00:19:19So the stands will still be packed in 50 years.
00:19:23That's why we come to work every day.
00:19:26Obsess over every single detail.
00:19:31Because the story of racing is written one moment at a time.
00:19:35And the future of our industry deserves nothing less.
00:19:40Keeneland. Every moment matters.
00:19:44The fastest horse of the week brought to you, as always, by the fast sires at Windstar Farm.
00:19:50And it's time for another update on Constitution.
00:19:53He had two millionaires at the Saratoga sale.
00:19:56HIP 119 sold to Travis Borsma's Flying Dutchman for $1.45 million.
00:20:01Then HIP 186 went for a million dollars even to the partnership of St. Elias, West Point, Woodford, and Belladonna.
00:20:09That now gives Constitution seven-figure yearling colts in each of the last five years.
00:20:15The only active sires that have done that into Mischief, Gunrunner, Curlin, and now Constitution.
00:20:23Windstar Stallion.
00:20:24Constitution is your foundation for the future.
00:20:28And guess who bred our fastest horse of the week?
00:20:31Windstar Farm.
00:20:32Actually, the fastest two horses of the week came courtesy of the Island Stakes on Saturday at Monmouth.
00:20:38Only a four-horse field.
00:20:39But what an entertaining race.
00:20:41Chunk of Gold and Bishop's Bay were one-two from the start.
00:20:45They battled gamely down the stretch.
00:20:47Bishop's Bay getting his head down on the wire to win it.
00:20:50And the buyer speed figures came back 106 for Bishop's Bay and a career-high 105 for Chunk of Gold.
00:20:57Bishop's Bay owned by the Saudi Royal Family, which purchased him last November at auction for $1.3 million just
00:21:04before he won the Cigar Mile in December with the career-high 107 buyer.
00:21:09He's been trained all along by Brad Cox, the son of Uncle Bo, one of the leading contenders for the
00:21:14Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile.
00:21:15First or second place finishes in 15 of his 17 starts.
00:21:21The Windstar, Brad Bishop's Bay, our fastest horse of the week.
00:21:28Welcome in now to Gainesway Guest of the Week, George Bowie.
00:21:31He's the trainer of that fabulous Mayor Servi who won the Christophe Clement.
00:21:36Welcome, George.
00:21:37And, you know, you guys over there certainly do things differently.
00:21:41She won the Glens Falls, came back in 13 days, Mayor running against the boys, and actually had a workout
00:21:50in between.
00:21:51If you were an American trainer, they would have said you were insane.
00:21:55Did you ever have any reservations about the schedule you put her through?
00:22:01Firstly, hey guys, and thanks for having me on.
00:22:03But, yeah, look, I think obviously different jurisdictions around the world do things differently.
00:22:09And for me, it was quite a normal preparation.
00:22:14We kind of trialed it earlier in the year when she went to Saudi Arabia.
00:22:18I wanted to run up.
00:22:20She ran at Lingfield on the weather and then ran 13 days later in the Middle East.
00:22:25So she had to ship out there, train out on the track for a week, and then run.
00:22:30And she seemed to handle it very well.
00:22:32And in my opinion, that set her up beautifully for the summer.
00:22:36The style of racing was obviously very different in England.
00:22:39But being able to take those two races very quickly meant that the Glens Falls and the Christophe Clement
00:22:45looked like a beautiful setup for when we could get back over 12 furlongs.
00:22:51So we can get back to Servi here in a minute.
00:22:53But what an amazing and, at times, very difficult week for you last week.
00:23:01It can be such a range of emotions training horses.
00:23:04I don't know how you guys do it sometimes.
00:23:06On Tuesday, your sensational bow echo was announced, had to be retired.
00:23:10The best miler in the world, probably six for six lifetime.
00:23:13And then later in the week, obviously, you went with Servi.
00:23:16What was that roller coaster of emotions like for you last week?
00:23:21I think it's, you kind of get used to it as a trainer, being the highs and lows of it.
00:23:27But I've made it my sort of, my thing through my career, not to get too high, not to get
00:23:34too low on success and failure.
00:23:36And, you know, bow echo was an amazing horse.
00:23:40And I might go a long time to find another one like him.
00:23:43But, you know, you're always one thing away from, you know, not having that horse.
00:23:48And I think fundamentally, it was a call that we didn't take lightly.
00:23:54And, you know, he's a horse who, I actually just watched him have a lead out around the barn this
00:23:59evening.
00:23:59And, you know, he looks magnificent.
00:24:01He's got a photographer coming to photograph him.
00:24:04And, you know, we're going to get him painted and on the wall and that sort of thing.
00:24:08And he's in the peak of his power.
00:24:09And, but with the pedigree he has and the, you know, the race record he has, it wasn't worth, you
00:24:20know, wasn't worth tarnishing that for a horse who's effectively retired sound.
00:24:24He had a little setback, but effectively he's all okay.
00:24:28So to have that, you know, we were obviously upset, but we didn't take it too hard.
00:24:33And knowing that we had so heavy later in the week, it's, it's always something that you're looking forward to.
00:24:37And I think you hear the best people in the game sort of not dwell on things in any sport,
00:24:42really.
00:24:43And the way that she was training, the videos coming through on my phone from Antonia Peck, who's, you know,
00:24:50my stable foreman out there, right?
00:24:52She was pretty high on the horse.
00:24:53And, you know, we had it on the horizon and luckily he was, she was able to get the job
00:24:58done.
00:24:59Let's go back to Bo Echo really quickly.
00:25:01He retires six for six, George.
00:25:04He's probably the best horse you've ever trained to date, unbeaten, yourself, a young trainer, Billy the Kid, Billy Loughnane,
00:25:13beaten Aidan O'Brien and the well-regarded Stard.
00:25:17What kind of horse was he like to be around?
00:25:19Surely that had to be one of your crowning moments.
00:25:22I think without doubt it was, you know, I, um, I've said it a number of times.
00:25:27I never really forget the time when Sheikh Mohammed Abade's office contacted my office to say that he wanted to
00:25:35speak to me
00:25:35and wanted to send some horses, you know, in a year's time, a few years ago.
00:25:39And that for me was the moment where we just had the thousand guineas winner.
00:25:43And it was, you know, giving us the ammunition to hopefully find a horse like Bo Echo.
00:25:49I think everyone who's trained for the late Sheikh Mohammed Abade was given an opportunity to train some amazing pedigrees.
00:25:55And that really is, um, you know, it's life changing.
00:26:01You know, he was a horse who immediately when he came in the yard, he looked a star and it's
00:26:07very rare that happens to that high level.
00:26:10We have back home in England, there's a sort of thing of five to follow through the, through the stable.
00:26:15And he came in and within one month it closes and I had him in my five to follow.
00:26:20He just looked like this different animal to us.
00:26:23And, um, yeah, just very lucky to have a horse so early.
00:26:29Um, but I got the right people around me to be able to manage that.
00:26:32And, you know, there's a lot of people to, to thank.
00:26:34And I've, I've done it countless times already, so we won't go over it again.
00:26:38But, um, yeah, it was, there was obviously pressure and, um, a lot of people helped me manage that.
00:26:46George, now getting back to Servi, um, there was some giving the ground on Saturday at Saratoga.
00:26:52Uh, we didn't really know what it was going to be like because it was the first turf race run
00:26:56on the day.
00:26:58Nonetheless, the fractions were so slow.
00:27:01And even our race caller, Frank Miramati made some comment, basically saying that Servi was, is, was in a, uh,
00:27:09an unwinnable position.
00:27:11Um, were you getting a little nervous there or with that electric turn of foot that she has, did you
00:27:17think, well, she's going to come through again, despite the slow pace?
00:27:20I think if we go back a little bit to how she was sort of trained in England for the
00:27:25race, you know, she was working over six and seven furlongs here to try and allow her to, you know,
00:27:32we wear a lot of the heart rate monitors on the horses.
00:27:35You know, a bit of a more modern way of sort of tracking their pace.
00:27:40And, you know, for me, she works like a miler and she was doing some pretty fast, you know, 11
00:27:46and change final sectionals.
00:27:48And if she was able to relax and if she was able to relax, I thought she could finish as
00:27:54she has.
00:27:54And it's easy to say in hindsight that, you know, we thought she'd be able to pick them up from
00:27:58held up last.
00:27:59No one saw the, the lack of pace in the race both times.
00:28:03You know, I thought surely the second time we get a bit of a gallop and then we would be
00:28:07able to see that turn of foot.
00:28:09But, yeah, it was, it was pretty, pretty cool to see because, you know, obviously it's only her first or
00:28:18second time out there and taking on some real pros.
00:28:21It's not lost on me that, you know, it's grade one racing, grade two racing.
00:28:24They go around there every day.
00:28:26They know the score.
00:28:27And for her to be able to adapt her first and second time is, it's pretty impressive.
00:28:33So is she back with you yet now in the UK?
00:28:36No, I think she flies, uh, middle of the night US time.
00:28:43So, or sort of four o'clock maybe tomorrow morning.
00:28:45So, uh, she'll be back with us tomorrow afternoon or something like that.
00:28:49And, um, it'd be good to have her back.
00:28:51I, you know, the plan is to go straight to the Breeders' Cup, I think.
00:28:55It's probably one of your next questions, so I'm slightly into it.
00:28:58But, um, but yeah, it'll, it'll be good to have her back because I, as much as we were very
00:29:05confident,
00:29:06I, I hadn't seen the filly for three weeks and to get her back on home soil, you know,
00:29:11be, it'll be interesting to see how she is before we plan, plan going forward.
00:29:14Well, George, I've seen her on boots on the ground here at Saratoga.
00:29:17And she is quite a little madam, is she not?
00:29:22Yeah, she is.
00:29:23I think I mentioned Antonia Peck, who's done an amazing job with her.
00:29:27Like, I think I might, I might have not been privy to her coming off one or two times.
00:29:32And, you know, she's, she's a difficult filly, but I think it's harnessing that, um,
00:29:38which has been the main thing for us.
00:29:41You know, she, she has a teddy bear in the stall with her every day and has to go around
00:29:45the world with it.
00:29:46And, you know, there's all those little things that, you know, when she came to us, that's
00:29:51how the guys before managed her.
00:29:54And, um, but yeah, I think, you know, huge credit to Antonia because she's, she's not
00:30:00easy, but I think that little bit of fire in her is, um, probably what takes it to the
00:30:05next level.
00:30:05I love it.
00:30:06I loved her last week.
00:30:07Uh, we were there on hand for her breeze.
00:30:10So not only did she run twice in 13 days, she worked, but she got loose before the work
00:30:15and a nice little canter around there and then ducked up the cones, galloping out and
00:30:20drop poor Antonio again.
00:30:23And she was tough to saddle the first time.
00:30:26She didn't like the saddling stalled.
00:30:27And I got to say John Terranova, a trainer out here and Simon who works closely with John
00:30:34did a great job of saddling her.
00:30:36I guess she's a little claustrophobic and didn't like the inside saddling store, but
00:30:39she was perfect.
00:30:41And the good ones can be tricky, right?
00:30:43Yeah.
00:30:44And I actually, I mean, I was watching on an iPhone in my hotel room in France and trying
00:30:48to see as much detail as I could.
00:30:50And, you know, Antonia was texting me at the time and if I hadn't, you know, if she wasn't
00:30:56like that, I'd be worried, you know, there'd been a couple of times I actually ran her over
00:30:59a mile at Kempton in a race called the Snowdrop Stakes earlier in the year, in the year.
00:31:04And she was quiet as a lamb and I was stood in the paddock and I thought this isn't right
00:31:10for her.
00:31:11You know, she just, for some reason wasn't right.
00:31:14She was slow out the gates as she often is.
00:31:16It was only over a mile, but I was trying to get that pace into her.
00:31:18But when she's fiery at the races, that's what we want to see.
00:31:22You know, she was hot in Saudi Arabia in February and admittedly it was very hot out there.
00:31:27But I hope when we see her next, she's, you know, she's equally as fiery because keeping
00:31:34those fillies on the go for a long time is hard to do.
00:31:38So, yeah, we'll give her an easy time and work her back up.
00:31:43George, when you say the Breeders' Cup, obviously you mean the Breeders' Cup turf, not the Breeders'
00:31:47Cup filly and mare turf.
00:31:49Was that an easy decision between the two races?
00:31:51I think the distance is a massive thing for her.
00:31:55I'd intentionally been running her a bit short for a while.
00:31:58And in the knowing that she's already won a grade two, a group two in France, over 12
00:32:02furlongs, stamina assured, we just wanted to build up to that.
00:32:07So I'd kick myself if I ran a, I think it's the nine and a half furlongs, the filly and
00:32:12mare.
00:32:13And if I did that and she didn't quite get there, it wouldn't look the cleverest of calls.
00:32:20So it's not to say she might not have an entry in the race, but I think the last time
00:32:25the
00:32:25Breeders' Cup was run at Keeneland, it was a one-two for the Irish fillies, possibly
00:32:30in the race.
00:32:31And yeah, the distance is key for her.
00:32:34George, tell us a little bit about your background.
00:32:37It seems like you're not necessarily an overnight sensation.
00:32:39I have in my notes that you started off your career training a few horses out of a porter
00:32:46cabin, of all things.
00:32:49Yeah, look, I mean, I've had a very fortunate education through it.
00:32:55You know, I spent a long time with Hugo Palmer, who, you know, he was only a very small trainer
00:33:00when we got going.
00:33:01And yeah, I spent six years there, then took out my license, having been in Australia.
00:33:08And yeah, I think I had three or four horses when we started.
00:33:11You had to have three to get a license.
00:33:13And so we were claiming low-grade horses six, seven years ago.
00:33:17And bumped into a few fun horses along the way, which has taken the journey to a bit of
00:33:24a different level recently.
00:33:25But yeah, it's been great.
00:33:29You know, we really did have three or four horses six or seven years ago.
00:33:33And lucky we've kept growing year on year.
00:33:37Before you worked for Hugo Palmer, correct me if I'm wrong, your bags were packed basically
00:33:42to come to the U.S. and work for Todd Pletcher.
00:33:45Yeah, that is actually true.
00:33:47Yeah.
00:33:47So Hugo was flying along and he got a new yard.
00:33:53He had a lot of horses.
00:33:55And I was kind of going through the visa sort of set up.
00:34:00And it's obviously quite difficult to get a long-term visa.
00:34:03And I was speaking to Todd at the time and to come out to America.
00:34:07And it's funny how paths change, isn't it?
00:34:11You know, I got not stuck here, but, you know, it was a fantastic job opportunity to
00:34:16basically train 50 horses for Hugo under his name.
00:34:20And it gave me that chance to do it in this country.
00:34:26And then I kind of never left.
00:34:27But it could have been very different if I'd ended up at Todd's and out with you guys
00:34:32out there.
00:34:33Did you spell with gay in Australia?
00:34:36Yeah, I had a great, great time at Gay's.
00:34:40Gay is, you know, she's like a sort of mentor to me.
00:34:43I often, not often, but I do sort of bounce things off her.
00:34:46I've had a couple of big decisions to make in my career as to, you know, whether I stayed
00:34:51in England at one point.
00:34:52And I spoke to her at length about that.
00:34:55And yeah, it was good.
00:34:59It was great.
00:34:59It was hard work.
00:35:00It was fun.
00:35:01We had some amazing horses, Piero, more joyous, overreach at that time.
00:35:06And I think even just the little intricate details of working with those superstar horses
00:35:11helps you along the way when, you know, when we're lucky enough to get one of our own.
00:35:17So starting off with three or four horses, no big money owners behind you, scratching
00:35:22and clawing, having to go to sales and buy horses on spec and then try to give them to
00:35:28other owners to now when you're training some horses for Coolmore, like this horse, Michael
00:35:34Tabor, MV Magnar, and some other high-powered owners.
00:35:37Could you have imagined going from A to B as smoothly as you've done it?
00:35:44Or at least it seems smoothly.
00:35:46Well, it hasn't probably been quite as smooth as it looks on the outside.
00:35:49But look, I think you've got to have a dream to get to, you know, we're working towards
00:35:57where we want to be.
00:35:58You know, I want to train a lot of good horses for good people.
00:36:01And I've always had that belief.
00:36:03But I've worked, as I said at the start, I've worked for people who set me up with the passion
00:36:09and drive to try and work to the top.
00:36:13We're a long way off it at the moment.
00:36:15But we're starting to train a better quality horse on a day-to-day basis.
00:36:19And yeah, it wasn't in my 10-year plan, 20-year plan to be where I am in seven.
00:36:27And so it wasn't in my 50-year plan, to be honest, but we've got to try and enjoy it
00:36:33along the way.
00:36:34And yeah, as I say, there's a lot more than meets the eye of, you know, just sending horses
00:36:41around the world and then winning grade ones at Saratoga.
00:36:44It's, you know, it's been a journey to get there.
00:36:46But I think as much as anything, I love the journey of it.
00:36:50You know, it's, it strives me to, you know, want to bring more horses to America next
00:36:56year and, you know, try and drum up some trade to have a, you know, possibly a small barn
00:37:03out there in the summer and, you know, do something like that.
00:37:08I think is, you know, you see a lot of people taking horses to the Middle East in the winter
00:37:12here.
00:37:12And we've, you know, we've had success out there, but there's not many people who have
00:37:17taken a bigger volume of horses to America.
00:37:21And it's something that I'd love to do.
00:37:23Well, George, before we let you go, that begs the question, as a six-year-old, could we see
00:37:29Servi back in Saratoga next year or is the plans to retire her and breed her?
00:37:34It's not impossible.
00:37:36It's not impossible at all.
00:37:37It's a conversation that we've had, but at the end of the day, I think, you know, she's
00:37:43achieved as much as Michael and Doreen Tabor wanted her to, but they are incredibly sporting
00:37:50owners.
00:37:51You know, Michael and Doreen have had some fantastic horses over the years and have a
00:37:54huge volume of horses.
00:37:56And I think that they've got a huge thrill out of this, Philly.
00:38:00I think American racing is massive for them.
00:38:03And as much as predominantly they race horses in England and Ireland, it'd be no surprise
00:38:10to see her stay in training.
00:38:12That was the conversation that was had recently and be huge for our stable because, as I mentioned,
00:38:18you know, we want to try and have a bit more of an American presence next year and she
00:38:23could headline it.
00:38:25And I hope Michael Tabor had a nice Glens Falls, Christophe Clément parlay wager there.
00:38:31I'm sure he might have.
00:38:35He might have been playing with a bit of the dealer's chips for the second time anyway.
00:38:38So, but no, it was, it was good.
00:38:42Terrific.
00:38:43Well, George, we were, as I told you, when I set this phone call up, everybody in America
00:38:48is so impressed with this mayor.
00:38:49She's fantastic.
00:38:50You've done a great job with her.
00:38:53Congratulations on winning two stakes races in Saratoga, including beating the males and
00:38:58the Christophe Clément and a special accomplishment and kudos to you and your whole team.
00:39:04And thanks for joining us on the TDN Writers Room podcast as the Gainesway Guest of the
00:39:09Week.
00:39:10Thanks, George.
00:39:12Our Guest of the Week, George Bowie, appeared courtesy of Gainesway, home to Stallion Olympiad.
00:39:18And how about this?
00:39:19Olympiad had three winners last Wednesday.
00:39:23His big day started in Ireland when Citrus Springs won a maiden race at Gowran Park in
00:39:29her third start, then fast forward to Colonial Downs over here.
00:39:33My lucky wife won a maiden in her second start.
00:39:36And finally, at Saratoga later in the afternoon, Baby Beth won her career debut.
00:39:42One day, three winners, all Phillies.
00:39:46And Olympiad now has six winners in three different countries, putting him seventh among all first
00:39:52crop sires.
00:39:53Gainesway, power, passion, performance.
00:40:11Olympiad gets the gold in the Jockey Club Gold Cup.
00:40:17And we're at $410,000.
00:40:19There's your winner.
00:40:20$410,000.
00:40:21$400,000.
00:40:26The Pennsylvania Breeding Program is the best program in the country.
00:40:31The Stallion Awards, the Owner Bonuses, also the Restrictive Races and the Stakes Races
00:40:37for Pennsylvania Breeds.
00:40:38Last year, 321 Pennsylvania breeders earned Breeders Awards.
00:40:4322 Pennsylvania breeders earned over $100,000.
00:40:48We have the best program in the country.
00:40:51Take advantage of the fantastic program that we have.
00:40:54Learn more at pabred.com.
00:40:58The TD and Riders Room also brought to you by the Pennsylvania Horse Breeders Association,
00:41:02the PHBA, which on Friday night celebrated Pennsylvania Day at Penn National with three
00:41:08stakes races.
00:41:10This is Jean Valjean, the seven-year-old turf speedster who's now three for three at Penn
00:41:16National after this win in the $75,000 Marshall Jenny Stakes.
00:41:20He's a homebred for Michael Powazerat and Martha Nevins Hastings Farm.
00:41:26Next, in the $75,000 Crowd Pleaser Stakes for three-year-olds, Jess See Me, bred by Blackstone
00:41:34Farm.
00:41:34The winner, he's now six for eight this year.
00:41:37And in the $150,000 Pennsylvania Governor's Cup on the grass, that goes to Greg Newell's
00:41:43five-year-old homebred Bartlett, who is now a stakes winner on turf and dirt.
00:41:48The Governor's Cup was for open company, but PA Breds finished first and third.
00:41:53And Bartlett is by not this time out of a smarty Jones mare.
00:41:58How's that for Pennsylvania breeding?
00:42:00To learn more about the PA Bred program, contact Brian San Frutello at 610-444-1050.
00:42:08Well, let's review the weekend racing.
00:42:10And we already heard from George Bowie about Christophe Clermont victory with Servi.
00:42:16And what a fantastic race.
00:42:17And as I mentioned to him earlier, the pace was, I know there was give in the ground, but
00:42:2526-1, 56-2, 118-4.
00:42:28Frank Miramani, the announcer, actually said, Servi would have to unleash a furious rally from
00:42:36there.
00:42:37Well, Randy, that's exactly what she did.
00:42:40That was a furious rally.
00:42:43She's something else.
00:42:44And apparently, other than Zoe, she didn't have a whole lot of believers going into the
00:42:49Christophe Clermont because she was the fourth betting choice in a six-horse field, even
00:42:54after she finished up the Glens Falls in 21 and change for her final quarter of a mile.
00:43:00Now, she didn't run nearly that fast the final quarter in the Christophe Clermont just because
00:43:05the turf course was yielding and had a lot of give to it.
00:43:07But to make up that much ground against decent American turf forces after that kind of a
00:43:14pace, almost going 119 for the first three quarters of a mile, is just, it's not shocking
00:43:22though, because how many European horses have we seen come over here and deliver that sort
00:43:27of sizzling turn of foot?
00:43:29That's what they're trained to do.
00:43:30They're much better at it at longer distance than American turf forces are.
00:43:34And she's right on the short list of leading contenders now for the Breeders' Cup turf.
00:43:40She was eye-catching.
00:43:42And yes, I did have a little wager on her.
00:43:45Absolutely fabulous.
00:43:46And I think the thing that's lost on a lot of people, if you have a deep closer like her,
00:43:52is that they always think they need a fast pace.
00:43:55So think about this.
00:43:57If you have a turn of foot that's a wicked turn of foot, right?
00:44:00You have it whether you're 10 lengths back or you're three lengths back.
00:44:05So she's close to a very, very slow pace.
00:44:09119 or 118.98 was the three-quarter split.
00:44:13And she's like right on them.
00:44:15Her turn of foot is so much better than everyone else's.
00:44:18It's actually a help that they went so slow.
00:44:20Now, the key is that they have to relax.
00:44:23And she did relax.
00:44:25Now, she is a madam.
00:44:26She's tough to sell.
00:44:27She's tough to handle.
00:44:28She drops a rider.
00:44:29She's a madam, for want of a better word.
00:44:32However, she relaxed beautifully in the race.
00:44:35She got a terrific trip under Manny Franco, who tipped her out just at the right moment.
00:44:40And she was sitting close to that fast pace.
00:44:42And then she unleashed that wicked turn of foot.
00:44:45Her final 16th was the fastest of all.
00:44:48Now, according to the clocking, the last quarter was 23.65.
00:44:52But that's when she was last.
00:44:53She had to go 22 and change 23 flat over a course listed as yielding.
00:44:59And I can guarantee, obviously, Flavian Pratt has his allegiances to the Chad Brown ban for good reason.
00:45:06But if you'd have asked Pratt going into the race, would he trade places and ride the filly against the
00:45:11boys?
00:45:11I guarantee he's going to say yes.
00:45:13And twice on Sundays, because that probably had to hurt watching her fly by the rest of the field, undress
00:45:20the whole field.
00:45:21Manny Franco rode by everyone with five sets of underwear attached to his silts, because he just undressed everybody.
00:45:28And she was fabulous.
00:45:29I can't wait to see her at Keeneland.
00:45:31And the good thing about her is she's not ground dependent, because you're going to get a softer turf course
00:45:36at Keeneland, and she's going to love it.
00:45:39So up north at Woodbine, the Kingsplate, the big favorite in the Philly, Luster won.
00:45:44And she was just fantastic.
00:45:47And we've seen so many fillies win the Kingsplate slash Queensplate over the years.
00:45:51But for the most part, you look at them and you don't think they're really going to go on and
00:45:57make a mark in U.S. racing.
00:45:59Not this filly.
00:46:00She is absolutely sensational.
00:46:03She whipped the field in the Woodbine Oaks.
00:46:05She whipped the field in the Kingsplate.
00:46:08They are not going to try for the Canadian Triple Crown.
00:46:11Instead, they say they're going to go for the Queen Elizabeth II at Keeneland.
00:46:15And I've got to imagine she's going to be the favorite in that race.
00:46:20And she, Randy, she's good.
00:46:23I mean, she's got a bright future.
00:46:25Oh, it's Josie Carroll's fourth win in the race.
00:46:29Three times Queen's Plate, one time King's Plate.
00:46:31She was the first woman to win the Queen's Plate when she won it for the first time back in
00:46:362006.
00:46:38And this is pretty interesting to me.
00:46:40It's pretty weird.
00:46:42The King's Plate is the oldest continually run race in North America, right?
00:46:48This was the 167th running of the race.
00:46:53The Kentucky Derby just had its 152nd running.
00:46:58So it's about 15 years younger.
00:47:00The Kentucky Derby has had three winning fillies during that period of time.
00:47:06Regret, genuine risk, and winning colors.
00:47:09Luster becomes the 40th, 4-0, the 40th filly to win the Queen's Plate slash King's Plate.
00:47:17That's an unbelievable difference.
00:47:20And there may be reasons for that.
00:47:22I mean, in America, we have the Kentucky Oaks, which is not as prestigious as the Derby,
00:47:27but it's very prestigious in its own right.
00:47:30Other than the Queen's Plate, King's Plate, there's not really a race for Canadian-bred three-year-old fillies with
00:47:37anywhere close the name recognition of the big race.
00:47:41So maybe that has a lot to do with why so many fillies run it and try to win it.
00:47:45But boy, I mean, Zoe, she's something special.
00:47:48Yeah, we'll be bringing Nick's go-back from Korea or wherever he is soon.
00:47:53But she was absolutely fantastic and so smart for Josie Carroll.
00:47:58Obviously, you have to feel for her previous rider, but, you know, he'll get a shot.
00:48:03But so smart for Josie to call out to Johnny B to ride her because he was in the position
00:48:09he wanted to be in in every single portion of the race.
00:48:13She broke well. He sat in the pocket, let the speed go, tipped her wide, everything.
00:48:19She answered every little call that he gave her.
00:48:22And what about Johnny B riding in the form of his life?
00:48:25So aside from winning races at Saratoga the past week, just this month alone in August, he won three stake
00:48:32races at Woodbine on Saturday.
00:48:33He went to Mountaineer, took down the West Virginia Derby on Zilnal, the Governor's Stakes on Bracket Buster.
00:48:41The week before he'd been to Colonial, he took down the Beverly D Stakes, the Van Cleef Stakes, the Petramo
00:48:48Mile Stakes.
00:48:49There's nothing Johnny B can't do. He's all over the place.
00:48:51Have bag, will travel. Well done.
00:48:54Can I go down a 30-second rabbit hole here?
00:48:56Do it.
00:48:57Oh, go, please.
00:48:58Go, please. It's kind of interesting.
00:49:00The co-owner of Luster is a guy named Andrew Rosen, who's a good friend of Gainesway's Anthony Beck.
00:49:06And Andrew Rosen's father was a gentleman named Carl Rosen, who in 1972 spent $32,000 to buy a filly.
00:49:14He also owned a clothing line.
00:49:16He had recently signed tennis star Chris Everett to represent his clothing line.
00:49:20And so this filly that he bought at auction, he named her Chris Everett in honor of the tennis player.
00:49:25All she does is become the filly Triple Crown winner.
00:49:28Back when the filly Triple Crown was a big deal, upon her retirement, he breeds her to Secretariat.
00:49:33So you've got two Triple Crown winners.
00:49:36The filly that they got out of that mating was called Six Crowns, who was a minor stakes winner.
00:49:42Okay?
00:49:42Follow me here.
00:49:43Carl Rosen bred Six Crowns to Danzig and got Chief's Crown, the champion two-year-old of 1984.
00:49:51Unfortunately, Carl Rosen never had a chance to see Chief's Crown run.
00:49:55He won the very first Breeders' Cup race ever held at Hollywood Park in 1984.
00:49:59He passed away in 1983.
00:50:02Andrew Rosen and the rest of the family picked up the horse racing bug afterward and have campaigned, you know,
00:50:10the stable not nearly with as much success over the last 40 years or so.
00:50:14And you can look at Luster's pedigree, and I don't think Andrew Rosen knew this when he bought into the
00:50:19horse.
00:50:20The third dam is a daughter of Chief's Crown.
00:50:24Wow.
00:50:25So it all kind of comes back together here.
00:50:29Anthropology, right?
00:50:31That's the clothing line?
00:50:32Yes.
00:50:33And Chief's Crown's also the answer to an interesting trivia question that very few people know.
00:50:37I didn't know it.
00:50:38He's the only horse ever to be the favorite in the Kentucky Derby, Preakness, and Belmont Stakes and lose all
00:50:46three.
00:50:47Oh!
00:50:49He was third in the Derby, second in the Preakness by that far to Tank's Prospect, and then he was
00:50:54third in the Belmont.
00:50:55Wow.
00:50:55I mean, horses used to run in all three legs of the Triple Crown?
00:50:58I didn't know that.
00:50:59Can we even say Triple Crown anymore?
00:51:02Are we allowed to even reference the Triple Crown?
00:51:05Not sure about that.
00:51:07So one of the things that makes this time of year so much fun in racing is you get these
00:51:11maiden races at Saratoga and Del Mar, and you could be looking at the cards and say, you know what?
00:51:18The Breeders' Cup winner might be in here.
00:51:20The Kentucky Derby winner might be in here.
00:51:22The Kentucky Oaks winner might get in here.
00:51:24What Zoe was saying about the sales right now, to see a horse that sold for $400,000 is like,
00:51:29ah, that's chump change.
00:51:30I mean, so we had three TDN rising stars over the weekend.
00:51:36Inshallah, I hope I'm pronouncing that right, which means God willing in Arabic, $2.1 million flight line, a New
00:51:43York bread of all things, sold at the basic Tipton Mid-Atlantic sale, one at Del Mar.
00:51:48And on the same day at Saratoga, the Philly Libby Lloyd, a homebred from Brett Jones and that family, trained
00:51:57by Chad Brown, won by 10 lengths.
00:52:01Two races later, QB Rocket, $1.9 million yearling, excuse me, two-year-old buy at Timonium, won by a
00:52:10length and three quarters.
00:52:11I thought they were all great, Randy.
00:52:13Anyone among the three stand out to you?
00:52:15Well, I mean, Inshallah is, you know, Breeders' Cup through and through, a son of flight line for winner of
00:52:23the Breeders' Cup Classic.
00:52:25The dam is bar of gold, winner of the Breeders' Cup Philly Amare Sprint and a big upset back in
00:52:30the day.
00:52:31You know, it's got the Broman family through and through, Chester and the late Mary Broman, bread and bar of
00:52:39gold and also bread, Inshallah, $2.1 million.
00:52:43Thank you very much for Inshallah.
00:52:45So, who impressed you the most, though?
00:52:47Inshallah was fast.
00:52:49I think he actually shocked trainer John Sadler.
00:52:51I know that Pedro Lanz, who buys for KAS Stables, King Abdullah and Sons, he flew out there and was
00:52:57very, very excited.
00:52:59But he's not kind of your atypical flight line.
00:53:01He's a bit more compact.
00:53:03He's more sprinter-looking.
00:53:05And he's chestnut.
00:53:07And flight lines obviously seem like they want to go two turns.
00:53:11But this guy's quick.
00:53:12And I think he shocked trainer John Sadler and everyone else with that 21.53 opening quarter.
00:53:18He broke like a shock.
00:53:19I was shocked.
00:53:19I actually stayed awake till 9 o'clock just to watch it.
00:53:23He was impressive.
00:53:24But for me, the most impressive one was Libby Lloyd, named for Brett Jones' mother, a homebred, out of Indian
00:53:31pride, who broke her maiden by eight lengths, was a TDN Rising Star on debut in 2019, I think.
00:53:38I can't believe she was even 92 on the morning line.
00:53:41She went off the favorite.
00:53:42She won by 10.
00:53:43Now Brennan did the pre-training for her.
00:53:45And he's loved her all along.
00:53:48She's just a classy filly.
00:53:49Just an absolutely beautiful, classy filly.
00:53:52She, to me, was the most impressive.
00:53:54QB Rocket, the 25th Rising Star for Gunrunner, he obviously was impressive and went, I think, a tenth of a
00:54:02second faster than Libby Lloyd, who won by 10.
00:54:05But I'm going to leave it with Libby Lloyd for me.
00:54:07QB Rocket co-bred by Bob Baffert, who raced the dam, formerly known as Jill Baffert, Natalie in the PPs.
00:54:19But Jill owned the dam, Ginja, who just won one race, with stakes placed.
00:54:25But talk about a score.
00:54:26I mean, as the co-breeder to sell this horse for $1.9 million.
00:54:30They sold the mare, Ginja, by the way, for $290,000 a couple years ago.
00:54:34And one really quick rabbit hole story again about QB Rocket, the co-owner of Frank Fletcher.
00:54:39You've seen all these horses rocket this, rocket that.
00:54:42It's his German Shepherd's rocket, right?
00:54:45But this guy's like a huge businessman in Arkansas way back in the day, like the early 1970s.
00:54:52He was a paint salesman.
00:54:54And he was visiting hardware stores, selling his paint.
00:54:58I think it was DuPont.
00:54:59And this one hardware store owner in Bentonville, Arkansas, really took a liking to him and said,
00:55:05I really like the way you do your business.
00:55:06He said, I'm getting ready to expand and open some more hardware stores.
00:55:10I want you to come to work for me.
00:55:12Forget about this DuPont paint.
00:55:14I want you to come to work for me.
00:55:16Sam Walton, Walmart.
00:55:18And he became one of the leading guys for Sam Walton and Walmart.
00:55:22And that's how Frank Fletcher started his business empire that's now extended into some pretty darn good resources.
00:55:30A mine of information.
00:55:32What would we do without you, Andy?
00:55:33Yeah, right.
00:55:34You'd go down far fewer rabbit holes.
00:55:37I know that.
00:55:39The TDN Rises Room Work of the Week is brought to you by First TV.
00:55:43Here he is, the great white flash back on the track, the 2025 two-year-old champion, Ted Noffy.
00:55:50Not Ned Toffy, although he was on hand to watch the champ have his second work back for trainer Todd
00:55:55Pletcher.
00:55:56He worked a half a mile in a very easy solo 49.33.
00:56:00Ted Noffy rejoined Pletcher's barn at Saratoga in early August and logged his first official work last week, going three
00:56:09furlongs in a very tepid 38.33.
00:56:12While future plans hinge on how he progresses through his morning workouts, Todd said he believes that the Colts should
00:56:19come around relatively quickly.
00:56:21As you can see, he's not an overly empowering horse.
00:56:26It shouldn't take him long to get ready at all, but he does look pretty darn good.
00:56:30We'll be right back after this message from First TV.
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00:57:27West Point Thoroughbreds.
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00:57:29The gold standard in racing partnerships.
00:57:31Visit westpointtv.com.
00:57:35The T&E writers room brought to you by West Point Thoroughbreds.
00:57:38The West Point yearling class began taking shape with the addition of seven Colts and a Philly from the phasing
00:57:44Tipton Saratoga Select Sale, along with three Colts from the New York Bread Sale.
00:57:49From the New York Bread Sale comes a son of champion and first crop sire Archangelo, hip 322, to be
00:57:57trained by George Weaver.
00:57:59West Point got him for $150,000.
00:58:02Coincidentally, the same price West Point paid for Counting Stars at an OBS two-year-old sale in 2025.
00:58:10And of course, Counting Stars will be heavily favored Saturday in the Alabama Stakes as she bids for that rarity.
00:58:16Three grade one victories in a single summer at Saratoga.
00:58:21To learn more about West Point, visit westpointtv.com.
00:58:26Well, a big weekend of racing includes some major races overseas in Europe.
00:58:30The Lab Breeders' Cup ramifications starting, of course, with the Juddmont International.
00:58:35Ombudsman is 6 to 5 in the morning line, but it doesn't look like a one-horse race.
00:58:40Constitution River, 13 to 8 in the early prices over there.
00:58:45And Randy, can you just give us a brief overview of what to expect in Europe this week?
00:58:50Yeah, I mean, this is on Wednesday, so obviously the people downloading this podcast or watching it, listening to it,
00:58:56whatever, will probably know what happened.
00:58:57But just to give you a little bit of a preview of what to expect, I mean, you talk about
00:59:02a showdown.
00:59:03Ombudsman, probably the best horse in the world right now.
00:59:06Constitution River, the three-year-old won the French Derby this year.
00:59:10You've got Godolphin versus Coolmore.
00:59:12You've got John Gosden versus Aidan O'Brien in the Battle of Words that we've seen between those two recently.
00:59:20It's at a mile and five-sixteenths, and it could be a key race looking ahead to the Breeders' Cup
00:59:26turf,
00:59:26because I know Ombudsman at least is being considered for that right now at Keeneland by Gosden.
00:59:32Zoe?
00:59:32I would definitely take Ombudsman.
00:59:35He's, like, been in my stable for the past couple of years.
00:59:38He's just a cool dude, and you mentioned Godolphin Coolmore.
00:59:42Well, it's been Godolphin Coolmore all week long, especially we mentioned the sales at Fazek Tipton,
00:59:48but we just wrapped up the Arcana sale at Deauville, and it was Godolphin Coolmore trying to outdo each other
00:59:54every step of the way.
00:59:55They spend a lot of money over there, but I'll hang my hat on Ombudsman.
01:00:00But one of the races I'm really looking forward is the Nunthorpe Stakes.
01:00:04Baccio coming in for Wesley Ward.
01:00:06Is J.J. Hernandez flying back out there to ride him?
01:00:09He rode him so well at Royal Ascot.
01:00:12I don't know.
01:00:13It's a jockey.
01:00:14It's a jockey.
01:00:16I don't follow jockeys.
01:00:19It's Jerry Bailey and Zoe Cadman.
01:00:22Sorry, jockeys.
01:00:24Whoever they get to ride him will do a heck of a job.
01:00:27He's quick.
01:00:28He's quick, so wishing everyone the best of luck with him.
01:00:30But, I mean, he's really the only one I know that's running in there.
01:00:34That's a Breeders' Cup Challenge race for the Breeders' Cup Turf Sprint.
01:00:38Also on Wednesday, it's a race called the Acombe Stakes at York, a Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf when you're in,
01:00:45a challenge race.
01:00:46And then on Thursday, the Yorkshire Oaks, also at York for three-year-old fillies at a mile and a
01:00:51half, a Breeders' Cup Challenge race.
01:00:53So, Bill, a lot of Breeders' Cup-connected races run on weekdays this week over there.
01:01:00Over in the U.K.
01:01:02Closer to home, of course, the big race at Saratoga Saturday is the Alabama.
01:01:07What more do we need to say about Counting Stars?
01:01:10She's the heroine of the division, the obvious best horse.
01:01:16And if she were to win this, she would be the first horse to sweep the Acorn Coaching Club American
01:01:22Oaks and the Alabama since Sky Beauty in 1993.
01:01:26And in between, Sky Beauty also won the Mother Goose.
01:01:29What a great horse she was for the late Alan Jerkins.
01:01:36Jeez, what's to say about her at this point?
01:01:38Zoe, she's going to win.
01:01:40Chad Brown, always a runner, is not going to take her on this time.
01:01:45I guess sometimes when they look this easy, funny things can happen.
01:01:48But my goodness, at one to five or whatever it's going to be, how are they going to beat her?
01:01:53And she's drawn terrifically outside.
01:01:55You get Irad Ortiz back in the saddle, back off injury this Saturday.
01:01:59Good draw.
01:02:00She's a beautiful-looking filly.
01:02:03They absolutely stole her at the OBS April sale last year.
01:02:06And she's been training brilliantly.
01:02:08She carries a decent amount of weight on her.
01:02:11She's just as pretty as a picture.
01:02:13She is one of the few horses.
01:02:14There's some horses that stand out on the racetrack every morning when you watch horses train.
01:02:19We're up on the roof.
01:02:20I can spot her a mile off.
01:02:22She has this fabulous blaze that's all jagged down the middle of her forehead.
01:02:27And she's easy to spot.
01:02:28She makes my life extremely easy watching her in the morning.
01:02:32She'll be one to ten in this spot because not only is she the best on form, she's the only
01:02:36speed in the race.
01:02:37And she's got a good draw from the outside.
01:02:39They can watch and see how everything unfolds.
01:02:41The only other horse in the race that you can even project could conceivably give Counting Stars a problem or
01:02:48maybe could win if Counting Stars runs off form for whatever reason is the Chad Brown train, My Guns Loaded,
01:02:54who really has stepped up at Saratoga in her last two starts.
01:02:58She won by daylight in a maiden race and then an allowance race.
01:03:01And she's going up in the right direction.
01:03:03And she's got decent numbers.
01:03:05She'll have to take another big step forward.
01:03:07But at least it's not out of the realm of possibility.
01:03:11Zoe, I understand you have a pick for us in the Del Mar Oaks, the one of two grade one
01:03:15races at Del Mar on Saturday.
01:03:17We'll obviously delve more into the Pacific Classic.
01:03:21Yeah, the PP's aren't out yet, but I know apparently Green Carrera is supposed to be running for Joseph O
01:03:27'Brien.
01:03:28She's kind of my survey for the Del Mar Oaks.
01:03:31She comes in with a pretty good resume, but not the best resume.
01:03:35But, man, does she have a wicked turn of foot.
01:03:37So that's where I'm going to land it.
01:03:39It's actually a pretty good field inside to outside.
01:03:42Brendan Walsh is shipping a couple over there.
01:03:44It's going to be a good field, a good betting race.
01:03:47But I will land my hat on Green Carrera.
01:03:50Watch out for Kensington Lane coming off that big win in the Belmont Oaks.
01:03:56OK, so the Pacific Classic, Knightsbridge, what do you do with him?
01:04:02He is the most enigmatic horse.
01:04:05I mean, he should win off that 122 buyer.
01:04:08But there's a lot of buts here.
01:04:10Can he go a mile and a quarter?
01:04:11And Bill Mott has said the only reason he's in this race is he doesn't want to run against Sovereignty,
01:04:16who's going to already won the Whitney, is going to go in the Jockey Club Bowl Cup.
01:04:19And it's his only chance to get a grade one win into him before the Breeders' Cup Classic.
01:04:24So he's stepping out a horse that before wasn't going beyond a mile.
01:04:27Now he's going to try a mile and a quarter.
01:04:30Randy, sometimes those 122, those huge figures make me nervous.
01:04:35Bouncing.
01:04:36But I'm not going to pick against him.
01:04:38I mean, I've been a fan of his all along.
01:04:41But, like I said, there are some buts here.
01:04:44Well, his previous career high buyer was 112 in the Gulfstream Park Mile.
01:04:48And he followed that up with a head-scratching performance, a no-show performance in his next start in the
01:04:54Churchill Downstakes for no apparent reason.
01:04:56So that might give you a little cause for pause.
01:04:58And also, this race is going to be run completely differently, completely differently from Knightsbridge's last win in the Monmouth
01:05:06Cup in a five-horse field in which he controlled the pace.
01:05:08Look at all the speed in here, all right?
01:05:10Just on paper, what you can see, you've got Malerchuk, who's got a little bit of speed.
01:05:15You've got Full Serrano from the outside, who's always speed.
01:05:20You've got Navajo Warrior, the Saffy Joseph Force, who won the Pimlico Special and the Cornhusker in his last two
01:05:26races, wire-to-wire.
01:05:27You've got Forge Steele, who won the Hollywood Gold Cup wire-to-wire and has speed.
01:05:32And one that you don't see on paper, the Japanese horse, the Tokyo Derby winner, Finger.
01:05:38You go back and look at his recent races, sheer speed.
01:05:43And he's got an inside draw.
01:05:45So there's going to be a lot of pace.
01:05:47I could see Knightsbridge maybe sitting fifth, fourth in the early stages.
01:05:53So it's going to be a different kind of race for Knightsbridge, for sure.
01:05:58But if that 122 buyer is an indication of a horse that is really coming into his own, then it
01:06:04shouldn't matter.
01:06:05But it's going to tell us Breeders' Cup Classic or Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile.
01:06:10I mean, the one thing that you can definitely say about him, that 122, the only time he's ever run
01:06:17two turns.
01:06:17That was the first time he's ever done it.
01:06:19So no one can say he can't do it again.
01:06:23It's a great draw on the outside.
01:06:25I ran up to Bill Mott yesterday and was chatting to him.
01:06:29And I'm like, wow, that's a great draw.
01:06:31He's like, I know.
01:06:32He was practically salivating.
01:06:35Delighted with drawing the 11 hole on the outside with the speed down on the inside.
01:06:40I asked him if he's going to go.
01:06:42He said he's probably going to stay here and send Kenny McCarthy.
01:06:44The horse is due to leave yesterday.
01:06:47Now, Saffy Joseph's horse has already left, but they had to have a connecting flight.
01:06:52Apparently, he could get a direct flight from here yesterday.
01:06:55So that's what they've done with Knightsbridge.
01:06:57But yeah, he's got a good draw.
01:07:00If you can't figure out a trip from the outside going a mile and a quarter at Del Mar from
01:07:04that post, it's his race to lose.
01:07:11Well, that's a wrap on this week's TDN Writer's Room podcast.
01:07:15It's been an interesting one now, hasn't it?
01:07:17I want to thank my co-host, Randy Moss and Zoe Cabin, and of course, our Gainesway guests of the
01:07:25week, George Bowie,
01:07:26as well as the people that work behind the scenes to make this show look so good.
01:07:29And that's Katie Petroniak, Sue Finley, Anthony LaRocca, and Aliyah LaRocca.
01:07:34We'll see how County Stars does in the Alabamas.
01:07:36The heavy favorite should be a fun weekend of racing.
01:07:39We'll catch up with you next week.
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