Phipps Stable

Having so often berated Europeans for neglecting Not This Time, I do see the irony in the odyssey of his son Six Speed. Last spring, this colt was one of few Not This Time foals to have been given conspicuous opportunity to plant his flag on European turf. As a yearling, he had been found at Keeneland by Mags O'Toole, showing the familiar acuity that exonerates her from charges of myopia that must be leveled at so many other bloodstock professionals over the water. He cost just $50,000, from breeder...

Golden Tempo (c, 3, Curlin--Carrumba, by Bernardini), tabbed as a 'TDN Rising Star, presented by Hagyard' in a last-to-first debut victory sprinting at Fair Grounds Dec. 20, ran by them all once again to stay perfect with a 3/4-length victory in Saturday's GIII Lecomte S. at Fair Grounds, good for 20 points on the Road to the Kentucky Derby. Mesquite (Union Rags) rounded out the Cherie DeVaux-trained exacta. Longshot Carson Street (Street Sense), forwardly placed throughout, held on for third. The 5-2 favorite raced toward the rear through fractions of...

Making up for lost 'time' after racing at the tail of the field for the opening half of a six-furlong Fair Grounds maiden Saturday afternoon, Phipps Stable and St. Elias Stable's Golden Tempo (c, 2, Curlin--Carrumba, by Bernardini) cornered wide into the long straight under a full head of steam and kept that powerful rally up all the way through the line to become the newest 'TDN Rising Star' presented by Hagyard. Pinched back right out of the gates, the well-backed 14-5 chance was well behind early and Jose Ortiz...

Snap Decision (Hard Spun), champion steeplechase horse of 2024 and the second-leading earner in United States steeplechase history, has been retired by owner Bruton Street-US and trainer Jack Fisher. Bred in Kentucky by Phipps Stable, the 11-year-old gelding won 17 of 32 starts over hurdles, finished second eight times and was third twice while racing from 2019-2025. Snap Decision earned $1,258,150 over jumps, second only to Hall of Famer McDynamo's $1,310,104 in North American history. The gelding won an Eclipse Award as champion steeplechaser of 2024 and was a finalist...

One of the more meaningful aspects of Saratoga's summer meet is how it brings people together. Whether they're new faces on the scene or returning regulars of the historic venue, they all seem to share the same passion for the Thoroughbred racehorse. It's a place that brings prestige to all who ride, work and walk upon its grounds, felt during the mornings spent on the Oklahoma training track, to the steps taken across Union Avenue, and the palpable excitement that flows throughout the paddock and winner's circle on race day....

Godolphin's Cody's Wish (Curlin) was named 2023 Kentucky-bred Horse of the Year and older dirt male, while his dam, Dance Card (Tapit), was named broodmare of the year by the Kentucky Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders. Godolphin also received awards for Pretty Mischievous (Into Mischief) as champion 3-year-old filly and as KTDF Owner of the Year and winner of the P.A.B. Widener Trophy as KTOB Breeder of the Year. Other Kentucky-bred champions announced Wednesday: 2-year-old male: Fierceness (City of Light) (Breeder Repole Stable); 2-year-old filly Just F Y I (Justify) (George...

6th-Gulfstream, $70,000, Msw, 1-14, 3yo, f, 6f, 1:11.68, ft, 1/2 length. MYSTIFYING (f, 3, Curlin--Puzzling {SP, $127,312}, by Ghostzapper) debuted with Lasix and as a 7-1 shot here. The homebred hustled for the lead to the inside of a pair of competitors up the backstretch. Poking her head in front around the far turn, the filly continued to pour on the speed at the top of the lane and she gamely held off the favorite Bedazzle 'Em (American Pharoah) to graduate by half a length. "Jose [Ortiz] worked her out...

4th-GP, $89K, Msw, 3yo, f, 6f, 1:38 p.m. ET. Bred by Stonehaven Steadings & Leah O'Meara, LESLIE'S HUMOR (Kantharos) makes the races for LSU Stables. Initially sold for $125,000 at the Keeneland September Sale, the chestnut RNA'd for $110,000 at OBS April before going for $500,000 at the Fasig-Tipton Midlantic Sale in June. The second to race for La Titina (Distorted Humor), the 3-year-old filly's younger half-brother by Not This Time was purchased for $310,000 last September at Keeneland by Hartley/De Renzo Thoroughbreds. Granddam and MGISW Ask the Moon (Malibu...

Clarence H. Willis III, better known as Jack, a longtime horseman and assistant in racing on the East Coast, died Monday at the age of 81. Willis worked for the prominent Bostwick family in Aiken, SC before going on to work for the Phipps family under trainer Angel Penna, Sr. in the 1980s. He oversaw all of the powerhouse stable's yearlings and some layups in Aiken before moving north to help manage the Phippses' racing stable on the New York circuit of Belmont and Saratoga. Some of the more well-known...

Imagining (Giant's Causeway--Daydreaming, by A.P. Indy) was euthanized Aug. 23 due to complications from colic, according to a release from Anchor & Hope Farm. The 14-year-old, who won the GI Man O' War S. in 2014 for Phipps Stable and Shug McGaughey, was under the care of veterinarians at New Bolton Center, where surgery was attempted, but the damage was deemed too severe. "Imagining has been with us since the start in 2015. We want to thank Shug McGaughey and the Phipps family for trusting us to bring a Grade...

Snap Decision (Hard Spun) may be the best jumper in the country, but his next assignment will be in a flat race, Wednesday's $150,000 Colonial Cup at Colonial Downs. As trainer Jack Fisher sees it, he's got nothing to lose. While he wants to win and doesn't think that is out of the question, Fisher said one of the reasons he went into the race is that it should set his horse up for the G1 Jonathan Sheppard S., an Aug. 17 steeplechase at Saratoga. "If nothing else, this will...

Last Thursday, I received an email out of the blue from someone I didn't know. Evidently Jason Brooks listens to me every Wednesday on Steve Byk's "At the Races" radio show where we discuss pedigrees among other things, and Brooks wanted to inform me that there were "21 graded stakes wins in the first half of 2022 for horses with Phipps pedigrees." According to Brooks, he does social media for Phipps Stable and operates the account @PhippsStableFan on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube. Curious, I took a look at his...