Bayakoa

Well, okay, maybe he has retired--but Frank Penn has never quit. "You know the problem with life?" he asks with a chuckle. "By the time you know everything you need to know, you're too damn old to do anything with it." But that won't keep the rest of us from profiting. We're not here to learn about the half-dozen mares Penn still shares with brother John and nephew Alex, over at their place near Paris, nor about the show horses keeping him interested in his own paddocks. Instead we're at...

In this continuing series, we examine the past winners of significant filly/mare races by the lasting influence they've had on the breed. Up today is the GI Apple Blossom H., Oaklawn's signature distaff event. The Apple Blossom is such a mainstay in the older filly and mare ranks that it might be a surprise to all but those with the longest memories that the first several winners were males. It's the last 50 years that have been devoted exclusively to the ladies, resulting in a steady diet of champions in...

In this continuing series from last year, we examine the past winners of significant filly/mare races by the lasting influence they've had on the breed. Up today is Santa Anita's GI Beholder Mile S., the first Grade I event of the year in the distaff division. Formerly the Vanity, formerly run at Hollywood Park, and formerly run at distances up to 1 1/4 miles, the Beholder Mile has had one constant: class. Some of the most decorated racemares of our sport have won it since it was inaugurated in 1940,...

In this continuing series, we examine the past winners of significant filly/mare races by the lasting influence they've had on the breed. Up today is Keeneland's GI Juddmonte Spinster S., always a stellar race that also has a number of notable producers to its credit. First run in 1956, the Spinster has become one of the most coveted prizes on the racing calendar. There's just something special about the fall event and the copious champions it has attracted in front of the home crowd. Juddmonte, honored with the Eclipse as...

Hall of Fame inductee Bayakoa (Arg) (Consultant's Bid) put Frank and Janis Whitham's racing program on the map when she won the GI Breeders' Cup Distaff in 1989 and again in 1990. Over two decades later, Bayakoa's great-granddaughter Walkathon (Twirling Candy) is carrying out her female family's accomplished legacy. Last weekend, the 3-year-old Whitham homebred trained by Ian Wilkes got her first graded stakes win in the GIII Regret S. Still a maiden after her first four starts, Walkathon switched to the turf this spring and reeled off consecutive scores...

Twenty-four years after he last started a horse in the race, Ron McAnally could achieve as a breeder what he was never accomplished as a trainer--win the GI Kentucky Derby. Along with his wife Deborah, McAnally is the breeder of the GI Santa Anita Derby winner Rock Your World (Candy Ride {Arg}), who will be among the favorites come Derby day. It is the latest chapter in a Hall of Fame career that has included wins with superstars like John Henry, Paseana and Bayakoa and three Eclipse Awards as the...

Monomoy Girl (Tapizar), who was last seen on the racetrack capping her second championship campaign with a win in the GI Longines Breeders' Cup Distaff, returned to the races with an easy two-length victory in the GIII Bayakoa S. at Oaklawn Park Sunday. The 6-year-old mare, who has now won 14 races from 16 starts--10 in graded company--sold for $9.5 million at the Fasig-Tipton November sale just a day after her second Distaff triumph last November and was making her first start for new owners Spendthrift Farm, My Racehorse.com Stable...

MyRacehorse and Spendthrift Farm will partner on the 2021 racing campaign of two-time champion Monomoy Girl (Tapizar), who makes her 2021 debut Sunday at Oaklawn in the GIII Bayakoa S. In a lease-to-race agreement for the 2021 season, MyRacehorse has acquired a majority ownership interest in the 6-year-old mare, purchased by Spendthrift at the 2020 Fasig-Tipton November Sale for $9.5 million. The news was first reported by Bob Ehalt on BloodHorse.com, who discussed the details with Sol Kumin, who has also bought back into the mare. Shares in Monomoy Girl,...

Champion Monomoy Girl (Tapizar) will make her 2021 debut in the GIII Bayakoa S. Feb. 15 at Oaklawn, trainer Brad Cox told the track's notes team. A lock to win her second championship after a perfect 2020 season capped by a victory in the GI Breeders' Cup Distaff in November, the chestnut was purchased by Spendthrift for $9.5 million at the Fasig-Tipton November Sale and returned to the Cox barn for a 2021 campaign. "Honestly, with her breeze this past weekend, she's probably a little ahead of schedule, as far...