Dr. Venkman

DEL MAR, Calif. - Bentornato (Valiant Minister) avenged his too-good-to-lose second at last year's Championships with a powerful, front-running performance in Saturday's GI Breeders' Cup Sprint at Del Mar. Imagination (Into Mischief) just held off Dr. Venkman (Ghostzapper) for second. Last year's Sprint winner Straight No Chaser (Speightster) tired to seventh. The 8-5 favorite provided back-to-back Breeders' Cup winners for trainer Jose D'Angelo and jockey Irad Ortiz, Jr., who also teamed up for a popular win with 'TDN Rising Star, presented by Hagyard' Shisospicy (Mitole) one race earlier on the...

Imagination (Into Mischief) showed an electric turn-of-foot in the lane to overhaul the defending champion and claim his automatic berth to the Breeders' Cup by way of the GII Santa Anita Sprint Championship Stakes. Back at the six furlong distance for the first time since his debut two years ago at Del Mar, the Bob Baffert trainee had predominantly been a two-turn horse in his career and had two elite-level placings last year to his credit--once in the spring in the GI Santa Anita Derby when he came a neck...

In fairness, an authentic Triple Crown was never available to Sovereignty even if his connections had deigned to seek one. We must still wait and see, then, whether Into Mischief can someday crown his evolution into a Classic influence with the winner of a 12-furlong Belmont Stakes. As and when that happens, it will feel much as when Justify-representing another Storm Cat speed brand, Scat Daddy-set off fast and just kept going. That ability to carry speed is the dirt grail and perhaps we can give some credit for the...

Dr. Venkman (g, 5, Ghostzapper--Theory of Change, by Archarcharch), winner of the GII San Diego Handicap at Del Mar 13 months ago, returned to the scene of his biggest career triumph to add the GII Pat O'Brien Stakes Saturday. The $250,000 Pat O'Brien, run at seven furlongs, offers a 'Win and You're In' berth to the GI Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile, to be held over this surface Nov. 1. Despite a field of veterans, the Pat O'Brien was not without incident. Two of the six horses--Stronghold (Ghostzapper) and Spirit of...

There really isn't a whole lot that trainer Bill Mott has left to accomplish in the Thoroughbred business. Since recording his first graded stakes victory with Heatherten--who also gave him his first Grade I success--for owner John Franks some 41 years ago, the 72-year-old has saddled the winners of over 150 top-level contests with superstars of either sex, such as Taylor's Special, Theatrical (Ire), Paradise Creek, Fraise, legendary dual Horse of the Year Cigar, Ajina, Escena, Wekiva Springs, Favorite Trick, Dream Supreme and her son Majestic Warrior, Drosselmeyer, To Honor...

It was bomb's away Saturday at Del Mar as Lovesick Blues (Grazen) surged past pacesetter Hejazi (Bernardini) in the final sixteenth to spring the upset in the GI Bing Crosby Stakes and secure himself a spot in the GI Breeders' Cup Sprint in November. The true war horse of the field (his 40 starts are more than several other runners combined), the 7-year-old gelding began his career all the way back in 2020, earning wins at nearly every California track and banking over $500,000. And while his career began at...

About the only thing missing from Saturday's $1-million GI Stephen Foster Stakes is a Horse of the Year--for good measure, she runs elsewhere on Saturday's blockbuster program on the final weekend of racing at Churchill Downs--but the nine-furlong event is rich in quality and brings together the winners of such prestigious events such as the GI Breeders' Cup Classic, the GI Kentucky Derby, and the G1 Dubai World Cup. A 'bananas' Foster, indeed. The horses that will line up for the 'Win and You're In' qualifier for this year's Classic...

Opting for a confidence-builder over a trip to Saratoga for next weekend's GI Metropolitan Handicap, Baoma Corp's 'TDN Rising Star' Nysos (Nyquist) made light work of three rivals in Saturday's GIII Triple Bend Stakes at Santa Anita, strolling home under little encouragement from Juan Hernandez to score as a mile the best. The slowest away from the inside stall, the prohibitive favorite methodically made his way through at the inside and poked his head in front as they raced in post-position order into the far turn. The comebacking Dr. Venkman...

A bevy of horses pre-entered in next weekend's Breeders' Cup at Del Mar worked Saturday at Santa Anita. Out in force were horses trained by Bob Baffert and Phil D'Amato, who combined pre-entered 18 horses to the 41st Breeders' Cup. D'Amato worked all eight of his Breeders' Cup pre-entrants. One Magic Philly (Good Magic) (Filly & Mare Sprint), winner of the GIII Chillingworth Stakes last out, and Vodka With a Twist (Thousand Words) (Juvenile Fillies), second in the GI Del Mar Debutante, worked in company. One Magic Philly was clocked...

Runners gearing up towards the GI FanDuel Racing Pacific Classic worked over the weekend with three weeks to the big race. Last year's winner, 'TDN Rising Star' Arabian Knight (Uncle Mo) may not return to defend his title after finishing fourth in the GII San Diego per trainer Bob Baffert. "He's doing fine," Baffert said. "But I don't know what I'm going to run in the Pacific Classic." Meanwhile Subsanador (Fortify), one of two Argentine-breds thought to be headed to the Pacific Classic, will instead run in the GIII Iselin...

The Chosen Vron (Vronsky) exited his win in Saturday's GI Bing Crosby Stakes at Del Mar in fine shape and trainer Eric Kruljac is already thinking of options to get the classy Cal-bred to the GI Breeders' Cup Sprint. "He's doing super," Kruljac said Sunday morning. "He wasn't tired and cleaned up his feed. He looks like a million bucks." The Chosen Vron won his sixth straight race while successfully defending his Bing Crosby title. The race awarded the 6-year-old gelding an automatic berth in the Breeders' Cup Sprint. Last...

In a race featuring the return of heralded 'TDN Rising Star' Arabian Knight (Uncle Mo), it was the lightly-raced 4-year-old Dr. Venkman (Ghostzapper) who stole the show en route to a win in the GII San Diego Handicap Saturday at Del Mar. A winner last year of his first two starts at Del Mar by a combined 10 3/4 lengths, the Mark Glatt runner shipped east to just miss by a head in the Perryville Stakes at Keeneland in October. Off a long layoff, he reappeared in California to contest...