Flavien Prat

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y.--Last summer, we hardly knew Kentucky-based trainer Al Stall Jr. During the 40 days of the 2023 Saratoga meet, Stall came up with one win in 12 starts. It's a little different a year later. Four days into the Spa season and Stall has started three horses. He has won with two of them and finished second with the third. "This pays the bar tab and the food tab," Stall said inside his office at his barn on the Saratoga backstretch Sunday morning. "We have to start working...

Scratched as the morning-line favorite from Friday's Coronation Cup against her own gender in favor of taking on the boys Sunday, 'TDN Rising Star' Star of Mystery (GB) (Kodiac {GB}) responded in kind with an easy win in the GIII Quick Call Stakes at Saratoga. A Godolphin runner from the Charlie Appleby barn, the 3-year-old filly began her racing in 'Rising Star' style, winning at second asking by 11 lengths in her native England just over a year ago. A stakes runner now in three countries, Star of Mystery placed...

In the first Grade I of the 2024 Saratoga meet, Juddmonte homebred Whitebeam (GB) (m, 5, Caravaggio--Sleep Walk {GB}, by Oasis Dream {GB}) repeated in the Diana Stakes, giving trainer Chad Brown a record ninth win in the race and eighth in the last nine years. It also marked his 154th career Grade I win. Canada's 2022 Horse of the Year and Queen's Plate winner Moira (Ghostzapper) was second, while MGISW Gina Romantica (Into Mischief) finished third. In a textbook front-running ride from Flavien Prat, Whitebeam lulled them to sleep...

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY--Finally, 'TDN Rising Star' Long Neck Paula (Uncle Mo) gets her chance to run at Saratoga Race Course. The 2-year-old filly, trained by Wesley Ward, is one of 11 entered to run in the 106th running of the $175,000 Listed Schuylerville Stakes on Thursday's opening day card at the Spa. Long Neck Paula was the 2-1 morning-line favorite in the June 6 Astoria S. at Saratoga but didn't get to run after the stewards scratched her. Ward had taken her off the grounds for cold water spa therapy,...

In a sit-sprint race that turned out to be a tactical affair, Trikari (Oscar Performance), the lesser-preferred half of an uncoupled, Amerman Racing-owned entry with 8-5 second choice Endlessly (Oscar Performance), sat handy to a sluggish pace, engaged long-time leader White Palomino (Kitten's Joy) at the furlong grounds and just held off a late re-rally from the pace-advantaged front-runner to take Saturday's GI Belmont Derby Invitational Stakes at Aqueduct. Two-back winner of the May 4 GII American Turf Stakes--at cricket-score odds--and exiting a game third in the GIII Penn Mile...

Domestic Product (Practical Joke), a forgettable 13th after getting pinched at the start in the GI Kentucky Derby, showed no mercy on his three rivals in Saturday's GIII Dwyer Stakes at the Big A. Turning back to a one-turn mile, the 3-5 favorite stalked the early leaders from an outside third. He launched while three deep entering the far turn, hit the front as they straightened for home and blasted off to score by 7 1/2 lengths over Hades (Awesome Slew). The pacesetter Billal (Street Sense) was third. "He was...

It's a good time to be Flavien Prat. He has amassed $13.4 million in earnings so far this year, is riding regularly for the Chad Brown barn and, through the first half of the year has won 26 graded stakes, four of them worth $1 million or more. This is what he hoped for when he made the decision in 2022 to leave Southern California, where he was dominating, to come East, which is firmly established as one of the very best jockey colonies in the sport.      ...

Flavien Prat is performing at the top of jockey standings both in New York and on a national stage. The rider joined this week's TDN Writers' Room to discuss his background in the sport, the move from California to New York, the recent impressive win aboard Unmatched Wisdom and more.

MGISW Shedaresthedevil (Daredevil) broke her maiden at first asking under the Twin Spires by just over three lengths and that is how her younger 3-year-old half-brother Star of Wonder (Uncle Mo--Starship Warpspeed, by Congrats) tackled a sloppy Sunday afternoon at Churchill Downs. For his efforts, the homebred rose into the 'TDN Rising Star' heavens. Well-backed as the 2-1 second choice here, he bided his time toward the back as the frontrunners set a hot pace of :22.65 for the first quarter mile and :45.35 for the initial half-mile. Keeping off...

Cugino has been knocking on the door of a stakes win for Shug McGaughey since breaking his maiden at first asking at Aqueduct last November. In three starts earlier this year, he's been beaten by a length, a neck and a nose to take second in the Colonel Liam S. at Gulfstream in March and the GIII Transylvania S. at Keeneland in April. Caught way back last time out, he still rallied in first-time blinkers to be fourth in the GII American Turf S. on Derby Day last month. Adding...

The $400,000 GIII Penn Mile, the lone graded stakes annually on the Penn National stakes schedule, has attracted a competitive field of 10 and, adding further intrigue to an already challenging handicapping puzzle Friday evening, is the presence of some of this country's top reinsmen, making a rare appearance at the Central Pennsylvania oval. A good many were pushing for an Amerman Racing-owned son of Oscar Performance to contest the GII American Turf S. at Churchill Downs May 4, but GIII Jeff Ruby Steaks winner Endlessly opted for the GI...

'TDN Rising Star' Sierra Leone (Gun Runner) will have a new running mate in the GI Belmont S. at Saratoga Race Course on June 8. After watching the GI Kentucky Derby runner-up work five furlongs in 1:02.64 (5/6) on the Oklahoma Training Track Saturday morning, Brown said he was making a rider change. Tyler Gaffalione is out; Flavien Prat is in. Sierra Leone lost the Derby by a nose to Mystik Dan (Goldencents) and finished a nose ahead of Forever Young (Jpn) (Real Steel {Jpn}). Sierra Leone is owned by...