National Treasure

Last year ended on a high note for Top o' the Lane Farm and has continued into 2025. Vixen (Vekoma) was second by a neck in the GI Natalma Stakes last September, then followed it up by a solid run in the Breeders' Cup after having to break from the parking lot and has continued on in 2025 after a short break to capture the Sweetest Chant Stakes and GIII Herecomesthebride Stakes. Keeneland November was a major success with three foals going through the ring to great connections through Highgate...

The TDN staff is once again sitting down with leading breeders to find out what stallions they have chosen for their mares, and why. Today we caught up with Blue Heaven Farm. 2024 was Blue Heaven Farm's best year on record. In addition to several nice results at the Keeneland September sale, we were represented by five different stakes horses on the track, including two runners in the Breeders' Cup. We are hoping to keep the momentum going in 2025 and beyond.  Below are the mating plans for a handful...

   Chip Montgomery sits down with TDN to discuss his 2025 mating plans for Haymarket Farm. The 2025 mating season will be a milestone for Haymarket Farm, as, for the first time, all of our mares will be based in central Kentucky, rather than on our farm in Simpsonville. It was such a competitive disadvantage being located outside of the core nucleus of the terrific vets, farriers, et al, that serve our farms and in this day, we need all the economic help we can get! You ask what we're...

The English polymath John Ruskin, who was always hard at work scribbling a well-timed observation for some future generation to co-opt, said when it came to the weather, "Sunshine is delicious, rain is refreshing, wind braces us up, snow is exhilarating; there is really no such thing as bad weather, only different kinds of good weather." Well, bully for you Mr. Ruskin! Send him a going stick and put him to work on the nearest turf course. Some might care to offer quite a different observation after recent events. What...

Only a courageous runner-up effort behind 'TDN Rising Star' and 3-year-old male Eclipse finalist Fierceness (City of Light) in the GI Travers Stakes this past August stood between Brookdale Racing Inc, Mark Edwards, Judy Hicks and Magdalena Racing's 'TDN Rising Star' Thorpedo Anna (Fast Anna) and a perfect season in 2024. But the enormously talented dark bay filly was utterly dominant against her own sex in 2024 and became the first female since Havre de Grace (Saint Liam) in 2011 to take home the coveted Horse of the Year statuette...

With victories in 2024 in two of the most prestigious races run in this country, National Treasure (Quality Road) proved a handy winner of the Eclipse Award for champion older dirt male, easily outpointing GI Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile upseter Full Serrano (Arg) (Full Mast) and Straight No Chaser (Speightster), who caused a bit of a surprise in the GI Breeders' Cup Sprint. National Treasure is just the second Bob Baffert trainee to take home the statuette in this particular division (Improbable, 2020). After giving future Horse of the Year...

It's an interesting year when it comes to the Eclipse Awards, which will be announced next week. As always, there are the categories that are no-brainers where the winners should be unanimous. But there are several divisions this year that aren't so clear-cut, which will make for an interesting ceremony come Jan. 23. Here's a look at my ballot: Two-Year-Old Male: Citizen Bull (Into Mischief) Became the obvious pick after winning the 2024 GI FanDuel Breeders' Cup Juvenile. Scary thing is that he might be no better than the third...

Mt. Brilliant Family Foundation has signed on for the third consecutive year as the presenting sponsor for the Thoroughbred Charities of America's (TCA) upcoming 35th Annual Stallion Season Auction to be held Wednesday, Jan. 8 through Sunday, Jan. 12, the organization said via a Wednesday press release. The largest fundraiser for the TCA opens with an online auction beginning at 9:00 a.m. ET. Jan. 8 and continues through 4:00 p.m. ET. on Friday, Jan. 10. The online auction will offer over 200 seasons to stallions standing in 13 states and...

With 'TDN Rising Stars' Sierre Leone (Gun Runner) and Fierceness (City of Light) extending their rivalry into 2025, and the GI Kentucky Derby winner also persevering to a third campaign, there's no denying that the new intake of Bluegrass sires has a fairly bunched look. A cluster of second-tier names can duly compete for mares that might otherwise have favored one of the sophomore leaders, with eight of the 23 newcomers targeting broadly similar budgets between $40,000 and $30,000. Whether that qualifies any of them as "value" can only be...

This past year marked a new record for Spendthrift Farm when they came just six short of covering 3,700 mares during an exceedingly busy breeding season. After adding three new recruits for 2025, they'll likely surpass that number next year with a growing roster of 29 stallions. It's the biggest sire lineup in Spendthrift's history since the farm was purchased by B. Wayne Hughes 20 years ago. With such a wide array of stallions, open house season is a busy time at Spendthrift. As the Keeneland November Sale transpired some...

National Treasure, the three-time Grade I-winning son of Quality Road, has been retired from racing and will take up residence at Eric & Tamara Gustavson's Spendthrift Farm in Lexington, Kentucky, where he will stand stud in 2025 for an introductory fee of $40,000 S&N, according to a post on the farm's website. A classic winner of the GI Preakness Stakes and victor in this year's GI Pegasus World Cup and GI Metropolitan Handicap, National Treasure is now available for inspection by appointment. Spendthrift acquired the breeding rights to the colt,...

With her convincing victory in Saturday's GI Longines Breeders' Cup Distaff at Del Mar, 'TDN Rising Star' Thorpedo Anna (Fast Anna) displaced fellow 'Rising Star' Fierceness (City of Light) atop the final National Thoroughbred Racing Association Top Thoroughbred Poll for 2024. The Ken McPeek-trained filly, who received 26 of a possible 30 first-place votes, should be a unanimous choice for champion 3-year-old filly and cemented her case for Horse of the Year with her front-running, 2 1/2-length defeat of Raging Sea (Curlin) in the Distaff, and combined with Fierceness's runner-up...