Blame

In a wide-open edition of the GII Bank of America Valley View Stakes, it was Claiborne Farm's homebred filly Admit (Blame) who stepped up to the mark Friday, capturing her first graded stakes race under John Velazquez. After breaking her maiden in her third career start on the Tapeta at Turfway last December, the Thomas Drury trainee tried the Road to the Kentucky Oaks, earning placings in both the Cincinnati Trophy Stakes and the Bourbonette Oaks on the synthetic surface before switching to the dirt to contest the GI Central...

Edited Press Release With a stud fee for multiple Grade I winner Mindframe (Constitution--Walk of Stars, by Street Sense) still to be determined pending his start in the GI Breeders' Cup Classic, Claiborne Farm has released its advertised stud fees for 2026, with Grade I winner Prince of Monaco (Speightstown--Rainier, by Medaglia d'Oro) leading the way at $30,000. The fastest-ever 2-year-old by prominent sire-of-sires Speightstown, Prince of Monaco covered a Claiborne-record 176 mares, including 44 black-type runners in his first season at stud in 2025. GI Breeders' Cup Classic winner...

Stablemates Tamara (Bolt d'Oro) and Kopion (Omaha Beach) were among several Breeders' Cup hopefuls to make an appearance Monday morning on the worktab at Santa Anita ahead of a multi-day rainstorm that's expected to arrive in the area later in the evening. Trained by Richard Mandella, Grade I winners Tamara and Kopion both worked three furlongs with the former being clocked in :37.40 (7/19) on the main track while the latter went to the synthetic training track and was timed in :39.80 (4/4). Kopion wears glue-on shoes, according to Mandella,...

Gary Barber and Peter Deutsch's Final Accord (War of Will), a very sharp debut winner sprinting over the Woodbine lawn Sept. 11, stayed perfect in Thursday's GIII Matron S. at the Belmont at the Big A meeting. Sixth through a half mile in :44.60, Junior Alvarado tipped Final Accord out off the turn for home and the 5-1 chance came rolling down the center while racing greenly to win by a length. Favored Royal Testament (Midshipman) nosed out unlucky pacesetter Should've (Not This Time) for second. The latter was rushed...

One of Francis-Henri Graffard's clutch of top-class geldings, Sibayan (Blame) delivered more Group 1 glory to the stable in Sunday's Preis von Europa at Cologne. Sent off the 2-5 favourite for the 12-furlong feature, having mastered a pair of Group 2 tests in ParisLongchamp's Prix Maurice de Nieuil and the Grand Prix de Deauville, the Aga Khan Studs homebred was made to wait patiently by Mickael Barzalona throughout the early stages. Swooping powerfully inside the final furlong, he surged to the line to record a 2 1/2-length success from the...

It's not often a Grade I-winning mare recreates her success in her offspring, but seven years after her dam was prima ballerina at the Spa, Hope Road (Quality Road) sailed home convincingly in the GI Ballerina Stakes to take home her first elite level victory. Hope Road was last seen May 26 running third in the GIII Winning Colors Stakes at Churchill Downs and before that hit the board against Grade I company for the first time May 3 in GI Derby City Distaff when fellow California girl MGISW Kopion...

In this continuing series, we take a look ahead at US-bred and/or conceived runners entered for the upcoming weekend at the tracks on the Japan Racing Association circuit, with a focus on pedigree and/or performance in the sales ring. Here are the horses of interest for this weekend running at Sapporo and Niigata Racecourses: Saturday, August 23, 2025 5th-SAP, ¥14,250,000 ($97k), Newcomers, 2yo, 1500mT MISS JADE (JPN) (f, 2, Blame--Asscher, by Harlan's Holiday) is set to become the second foal to the races for her dam, a half-sister to the...

5. READY FOR CANDY, SAR, 8/17, 1 1/8 miles (turf) (VIDEO) Beyer Speed Figure-86 (f, 3, by Twirling Candy--Enoree, by More Than Ready) O-Lindy Farms. B-Mark Dodson (Ont-C). T-Philip Antonacci. J-Irad Ortiz Jr. The Antonacci family is legendary in harness racing, but has had success with thoroughbreds, too, and February $400k Fasig Tipton buy Ready for Candy made a splash at Saratoga in her 3-year-old debut. Now trained by young Phil Antonacci, she controlled the pace to the stretch then zipped away by 7 ¾ lengths. For her previous connections,...

Charting a course then declaring 'here be dragons' when she made land in the seaside oval winner's circle, Explora (Blame--Collections Choice, by Bernardini) set sail from the gate and never looked back in a maiden-breaking performance on Sunday which earned her a 'TDN Rising Star' flag for her top mast. The heavy favorite established her lead up the backstretch and tacked around the far turn like she had even pulled out her pocket handkerchiefs. With rider Juan Hernandez playing the role of bosun, Explora went easy en route to win...

Anyone kindly persevering with this column as it gropes through the pedigree maze will by now be familiar, perhaps wearily so, with my proclivity for broodmare sires. From all that tremendous sport at Saratoga last Saturday, then, you won't be surprised that I'm going to focus on the fact that two of four Grade I winners--Kilwin (Twirling Candy) and World Beater (Oscar Performance)--were out of Blame mares. Though approaching the evening of his career at 19, the Claiborne stallion remains highly precocious in this slow-burning sphere. His daughters have not...

Some of the most highly anticipated races during the summer season are the 'baby' races during the boutique meetings at Saratoga and Del Mar and at Ellis Park, which attract its fair share of high-priced juveniles from a variety of top national outfits. Summer Breezes, sponsored by OBS Sales, highlights debuting and stakes-entered 2-year-olds at those meetings that have been sourced at the breeze-up sales earlier in the year, including links to their under-tack previews. Here are the horses entered for Thursday at Saratoga.  Thursday, August 7, 2025 Saratoga 6,...

Five Kentucky Derby hopefuls were on track Saturday morning during the special training period for Oaks and Derby horses at Churchill Downs, but one, GISW Tappan Street (Into Mischief), has been withdrawn from the big race with an injury. As reported early Saturday morning, the son of Into Mischief had just completed a five furlong breeze when regular rider Luis Saez felt that 'something was off' afterwards. X-rays back at the barn revealed a condylar fracture, and while trainer Brad Cox reports it is not a major injury, it will...