Nitrogen

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. - With temperatures expected to hover from the high 80s to the low 90s for the next week in Louisville, Kentucky, Hall of Fame trainer Mark Casse decided to keep his star filly Nitrogen (Medaglia d'Oro) out of the Bluegrass furnace. Originally scheduled to ship to Kentucky from Saratoga on Sunday--where the 4-year-old was being pointed to the GII Locust Grove Stakes at Churchill Downs next Saturday--Casse will pivot and ship Nitrogen to Belmont Park on Tuesday. The news was first reported by Dave Grening and the...

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. - On his final day at Saratoga Race Course, Hall of Fame trainer Mark Casse had a little bit of business before closing out shop for the summer. Casse leaves Saratoga on Thursday, bound for Kentucky Downs. On a raw, overcast Wednesday morning at the Spa, Casse sent two horses with fall goals out for their final Saratoga workouts. One of them, Nitrogen (Medgalia d'Oro) has a lofty target as she is set to return to the Breeders' Cup. The other, Sandman (Tapit), continues on the comeback...

The only filly to finish in front of Fully Subscribed (f, 4, Tiz the Law--Sweetbaby, by Candy Ride {Arg}) in her two previous starts this summer at Saratoga was Nitrogen (Medaglia d'Oro), the undisputed leader of the older filly and mare division. Last year's 3-year-old filly champ, Nitrogen sat out the GI Personal Ensign Stakes at Saratoga Saturday after running instead in the Aug. 8 GI Whitney Stakes, finishing a fantastic second over the heavy hitters of the older male division to reigning Horse of the Year Sovereignty (Into Mischief)....

The Mark Casse stable is enjoying another blockbuster summer at Saratoga that could get even better this weekend. Currently sitting third in the Spa trainer standings with 10 wins and over $1.86 million in earnings, Casse walks us through some of his top horses, including four lining up for stakes contention this weekend, in this latest edition of Down the Shedrow, presented by OBS Sales. Casse couldn't help but glow when discussing the ultra-talented Nitrogen, laying out the strategy behind pointing her to the GII Locust Grove Stakes as a...

Hall of Fame trainer Mark Casse has announced that his champion filly Nitrogen (Medaglia d'Oro) will make her next start in the GII Fasig-Tipton Locust Grove Stakes at Churchill Downs Sept. 12. The original plan had been to run the GI Whitney Stakes runner-up in the Oct. 4 GI Spinster Stakes at Keeneland. "The more [DJ Stable General Manager] Jon Green and I looked at it, we thought the timing of this race was better for her," Casse said. "Obviously, our biggest goal is the Breeders' Cup. This gives her...

6--FIVE A SIDE, ELP, 8-9, Groupie Doll Stakes, 1m Beyer Speed Figure-91 (f, 4, Spun to Run--Kylbrylie, by Pulpit) O-Main Line Racing Stable and Avalon Racing Stables. B-Porta Pia Stables (Ky). T-John Servis. J-Jaime Torres. The full-sister to stakes winner Fulmine became a stakes winner herself in her sixth try, blowing away odds-on Cash Call by 6 1/4 lengths with a career-high Beyer Speed Figure. It was also the first Ellis stakes score for Servis, of Smarty Jones fame. 5--KENTUCKY BELLE, SAR, 8-7, GII Saratoga Oaks, 1 3/16mT VIDEO Beyer...

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. - A little after 7:00 Sunday morning, Bill Mott walked down the shedrow of his barn at the Oklahoma Training Track and peered into the stall of his comeback kid, Sovereignty (Into Mischief). "He's sleeping," Mott said with a laugh to a couple of writers. Sovereignty certainly deserved the shut eye after his rousing performance Saturday in the $1-million GI Whitney Stakes. The 4 3/4-length win, against an all-star field, put to rest the notion that the 2025 Horse of the Year was all done after starting...

After an ill-timed fever knocked him out of the GI Breeders' Cup Classic late last year, reigning Horse of the Year Sovereignty (Into Mischief) reminded everyone just how much he loves Saratoga with a dominating come-from-behind victory in Saturday's 'Win and You're In' GI Whitney Stakes, securing his position for another run at the Classic. Named last year's 3-year-old champion colt and Horse of the Year after wins in the GI Kentucky Derby, the GI Belmont Stakes, the GII Jim Dandy and the GI Travers Stakes, the Godolphin homebred failed...

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. - Jose Ortiz, one of the top jockeys on the planet, can't be on two horses at once. When a quandary pops up--like it did before the GI, $1-million Whitney Stakes--Ortiz defers to Steve Rushing, his high-powered agent, to make the call. The decision they had to make was which horse to ride in the Whitney, the race that could very well be the best of the 46-day meet. Magnitude (Not This Time), the leader of the older horse division, or Nitrogen (Medaglia d'Oro), the fabulous filly....

It's difficult to put into words just how good a field will assemble Saturday in Saratoga Springs, New York for the GI Whitney Stakes, a 'Win and You're In' race for November's GI Breeders' Cup Classic. A pair of 2025 Eclipse Award winners, the 2025 Horse of the Year, one additional 3-year-old male Eclipse finalist and the G1 Dubai World Cup winner. These eight horses have 13 individual Grade/Group I wins between them and combined earnings a staggering $32.7-million. For trainer Steve Asmussen, it's all a little deja vu. Asmussen,...

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. - It's not a done deal by any means, but trainer Chad Summers is taking a long, hard look at running GI Preakness Stakes winner Napoleon Solo (Liam's Map) in the GI DK Travers Stakes Aug. 29. "We are strongly considering the Travers," Summers said on the Saratoga backstretch Wednesday morning. "The Travers is a very historic race. [GI Kentucky Derby, GI Belmont Stakes winner] Golden Tempo (Curlin) is clearly the clear-cut favorite for championship honors for 3-year-old of the year, maybe the best 3-year-olds need to...

Johnny (don't call him John; we'll explain) Velazquez has been as solid a jockey who has ever called Saratoga Race Course his summer stage. He is the all-time leading rider at arguably the most competitive race meet in the world. The other day, he set a personal milestone with his 800th career graded stakes win. The TDN's Tim Wilkin sat down with the thoughtful, opinionated Velazquez outside the jockey's quarters. He picked his brain about various subjects, including his favorite sport other than horse racing, his favorite horse out of...