Essential Quality

8th-FG, $54k, Msw, 2yo, f, 1mT, post time: 5:15 p.m. ET AL LATAFAH (Essential Quality) makes her first trip to the races for owner and breeder Shadwell Farm and trainer Brendan Walsh. The Feb. 5 foal is the first produce from her dam Altaf (Medaglia d'Oro), who was only seventh when making her first career appearance on the turf, but she went on to add three wins from as many starts on the main track, including the 2021 Lady's Secret Stakes at Monmouth Park in what would become her final...

3rd-Keeneland, $110,000, Msw, 10-16, 2yo, 7f, 1:23.84, ft, 3 lengths. CONFESSIONAL (c, 2, Essential Quality--Speedy Vanessa, by American Pharoah) outran his 12-1 odds to graduate first out Thursday and become the 10th winner for his freshman sire (by Tapit). Wide of the speed from his outer draw, he stalked just off frontrunning Grand Slam Sam (American Pharoah) past the half-mile pole. Pushing past that rival into the stretch, he opened up three lengths to the wire. 'Insight' runners Colossus (Constitution) and Our Forefathers (Constitution) finished sixth and eighth respectively. Speedy...

GISW Highland Falls (Curlin--Round Pond, by Awesome Again) and MGSW & 'TDN Rising Star', presented by Hagyard First Mission (Street Sense--Elude, by Medaglia d'Oro) will join the Darley America stallion roster with stud fees set at $10,000 each for 2026, according to a press release from Jonabell Farm on Thursday. Darley said that topping the list will be GI Kentucky Derby victor Nyquist (by Uncle Mo)--the sire of ten career GI winners--but his fee will be announced after the Breeders' Cup. Highland Falls, the 2024 GI Jockey Club Gold Cup...

3rd-SA, 60k, Msw, 2yo, f, 6fT, 5:01 p.m. ET Randall Lowe homebred Essential Lady (Essential Quality), a half-sister to two-time Breeders' Cup winner and young Coolmore stallion Golden Pal (Uncle Mo), debuts for Tim Yakteen sprinting over the Santa Anita lawn. Her talented dam Lady Shipman (Midshipman) was a GSW and narrow runner-up in the 2015 GI Breeders' Cup Turf Sprint at Keeneland. Lady Shipman's yearling colt by Flightline brought $1.5 million from Resolute Bloodstock at the recently concluded Keeneland September sale. The field of eight also includes Ramayana (Uncle...

The GI Spendthrift Farm Hopeful Stakes is carded as the anchor for Monday's Labor Day festivities, which marks the last set of races for the season upstate. A scan through the past winners of the top-level affair over the past 25 years include a strong list of future sires. How about for starters Sky Mesa (2002), First Samurai (2005), Shanghai Bobby (2012) and Competitive Edge (2014)? More recently Practical Joke (2016), Mind Control (2018), Basin (2019), Jackie's Warrior (2020), Gunite (2021) and Forte (2022) got their picture taken before heading...

Brad Cox is native son of Louisville, Kentucky and proud of it. He also never goes anywhere without his trademark blue and white Brad Cox baseball cap. Career dreams? Of course he has them. One of these days, he might even take a vacation. Brad sat down with the TDN's Tim Wilkin to talk about that and a whole lot more. Here is the final installment of the Saratoga Q&A TDN: You grew up two blocks from Churchill Downs, correct? Brad Cox: That is correct. TDN: And you got a...

Looking to hand her freshman sire his first stakes score, Chopsticks (Essential Quality) was tough as nails down the lane as she stood on business in the Debutante Stakes at Ellis Park on Sunday afternoon. Chopsticks was a debut winner at Churchill Downs June 27 when she cleared and graduated by three lengths. Slammed at the windows to the tune of 70 cents on the dollar here, the juvenile raced in the three path up the backstretch as a longshot showed the way. The grey continued to fan wide around...

6th-Saratoga, $80,000, (R), Msw, 8-8, 2yo, 6f, 1:12.64, ft, 1 1/2 lengths. AYE EYE (c, 2, Essential Quality--Divine Queen {MSW, $339,344}, by Divine Park) might have touched 500-1 if there were in-play wagering on American racing, but turned in a rally for the ages to graduate going away at first asking. Dismissed as the longest shot on the board ad 26-1, the gray colt walked out of the gate and at the end of the first two furlongs, was nearly 20 lengths behind pacesetting favorite Escape Hall (Independence Hall). Still...

3rd-Churchill Downs, $118,987, Msw, 6-27, 2yo, f, 6f, 1:10.21, ft, 3 lengths. CHOPSTICKS (f, 2, Essential Quality--Miss Southern Miss {SW & GSP, $220,399}, by More Than Ready) got her picture taken at Churchill Downs on Friday afternoon and became the first winner for freshman sire Essential Quality (by Tapit). The 2-1 second choice here broke from one of the outside posts and vied for a spot midpack up the backstretch as a pair of speedsters went to town on each other. Chopsticks had plenty of pace to run into around...

1st-CD, $120K, Msw, 2yo, 5f, 12:45 p.m. ET. The news broke this past week that Hall of Fame trainer D. Wayne Lukas would be stepping down as the head of his stable because of health reasons and assistant Bas Nicholl would be taking over for the man known to many as 'Coach.' In Saturday's opener on the card, the aptly-named TRACK LEGEND (Charlatan) will be unveiled for owner Live the Legacy with Lukas still listed in the program. Out of Canadian champion female sprinter Moonlit Promise (Malibu Moon), the dark...

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 Hanshin and Nakayama Racecourses: Saturday, April 19, 2025 2nd-HSN, ¥10,600,000 ($74k), Maiden, 3yo, 1200m AALLOTTARET (f, 3, Practical Joke--Folklore, by Tiznow), the latest offspring of 2005 champion juvenile filly Folklore to make the races, cost her connections $260,000 at the...

Al Pike is set to retire from his position as director of sales and the conditioner for 2-year-olds in-training at Highland Training Center, and will be replaced by Colin Brennan after the Fasig-Tipton Midlantic sale in May ends, the center announced via press release. While Pike will be retiring to Lexington, Kentucky with Brennan making the move to Texas, Pike will continue to work with Highlander in a consulting and advisory role. The retiring director and training began his career with horses in 1978 but eventually transitioned to a fruitful...