Speaker's Corner

Regally-Bred, Grade I-Caliber Homebreds Join Darley Roster

Speaker's Corner (Street Sense - Tyburn Brook, by Bernardini) and Mystic Guide (Ghostzapper - Music Note, by A.P. Indy), both Grade I-winning homebreds for Godolphin, have joined the Darley America stallion roster for 2023. The newcomers hail from impressive Godolphin families. Speaker's Corner, who will command an initial stud fee of $20,000, is out of a daughter of GI Breeders' Cup Distaff victress Round Pond (Awesome Again), while Mystic Guide, a 'TDN Rising Star' who will stand for $15,000, is a son of five-time Grade I winner Music Note. "We...

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Medaglia d'Oro Again Tops Darley America's 2023 Fees; Speaker's Corner Retired

Perennial top sire Medaglia d'Oro once again heads Darley's Jonabell Farm roster for 2023 with his fee remaining at $100,000, the same amount as 2022. Darley has also added two new stallions to the now-11 horse roster, including G1SW Mystic Guide (Ghostzapper) and GISW Speaker's Corner (Street Sense). Mystic Guide, who won the 2021 G1 Dubai World Cup, was retired earlier this year. He will stand for a fee of $15,000 in his initial season at stud. Speaker's Corner, a Godolphin homebred out of Tyburn Brook (Bernardini) who is bred...

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Runhappy Travers Tops Super Saturday at the Spa

The GI Runhappy Travers S. is one of the summer's most highly anticipated events and for the past several years it has been the centerpiece of a Super Saturday card at Saratoga that serves as a Breeders' Cup preview. The Travers is one of five star-studded Grade Is on the 14-race card, which also includes the GII Ballston Spa S. for turf fillies. Intriguing storylines abound in this year's eight-horse renewal of the summer centerpiece for sophomore colts, which is topped by GII Jim Dandy S. winner Epicenter (Not This...

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Life Is Good As Good As Ever in Nerud

The uber-talented 'TDN Rising Star' Life Is Good (Into Mischief), last seen tiring to fourth in the G1 Dubai World Cup Mar. 26, returned from the bench in style with a dominating, front-running win sprinting over three rivals in the GII John A. Nerud S. at Belmont Park Saturday. Away alertly from his rail draw, the 1-5 favorite was shadowed by GI Carter H. winner Speaker's Corner (Street Sense) through an opening quarter in :22.19 and a half-mile in :44.70. With Flavien Prat sitting chilly, Life Is Good hit the...

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Life Is Good Headlines Star-Studded Saturday of Racing

Holiday weekends are often synonymous with exciting race cards and this Fourth of July weekend is no exception with a dozen graded events on tap Saturday that include some of racing's best. The highlight of the day's action is the return of 'TDN Rising Star' Life Is Good (Into Mischief), who is making his first start back since finishing fourth in the G1 Dubai World Cup Mar. 26 in Belmont's GII John A. Nerud S. A dominant winner of last year's GII Kelso H. and GI Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile...

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Flightline Overcomes Eventful Trip in Hill 'n' Dale Met Mile

A few strides into the running of Satuday's GI Hill 'n' Dale Metropolitan H. at Belmont Park, John Sadler, the trainer of 'TDN Rising Star' Flightline (Tapit), admitted to a bit of a queasy feeling in the pit of his stomach. "When I saw him behind early, I wanted to throw up on myself," he said. Despite some very anxious moments, particularly at multiple junctures during the opening 440 yards of the stallion-making test, the $1-million Fasig-Tipton Saratoga graduate proved more than equal to the task, as he strode clear...

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Baaeed Leads The Longines WBRR After Lockinge Romp

Shadwell's brilliant, undefeated Baaeed (GB) (Sea The Stars {Ire}) was given a mark of 125 and now leads the Longines World's Best Racehorse Rankings. The bay made his 4-year-old debut in the G1 Al Shaqab Lockinge S. and ran out a 3 1/4-length victor. America's Life Is Good (Into Mischief) and crack sprinter Nature Strip (Aus) (Nicconi {Aus}) share second at 124, while Speaker's Corner (Street Sense) sits fourth just one point below. It is a four-way tie for fifth at 122, with Hong Kong wunderkind Golden Sixty (Aus) (Medaglia...

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Guineas Win Propels Coroebus Up The Longines WBRR

After winning the G1 QIPCO 2000 Guineas at the end of April, Coroebus (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}) moved up to a ranking of 121 in the Longines World's Best Racehorse Rankings. The new mark puts him even with fellow improvers Jackie's Warrior (Maclean's Music), who won the GI Churchill Downs S. on Kentucky Derby Day and G1 Tenno Sho (Spring) scorer Titleholder (Jpn) (Duramente {Jpn}). They join Golden Pal (Uncle Mo) and Country Grammer (Tonalist) at that rating, which is a five-way tie for fifth in the standings. Leading the list...

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Green Light Go Euthanized After Belmont Workout

Green Light Go (h, 5, Hard Spun--Light Green, by Pleasantly Perfect), winner of the 2019 GII Saratoga Special S. and runner-up in that term's GI Champagne S., was euthanized after breaking the sesamoid bone in his right foreleg during a workout Friday morning over the Belmont Park training track, according to Daily Racing Form's David Grening. "It looked like he was just cruising," trainer Jimmy Jerkens told DRF. The Stronach Stables runner was preparing for a start May 7 in the GIII Westchester S. at Belmont Park following a fourth-place...

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Nature Strip Tops LWBRR With Life Is Good

Australian sprinting king Nature Strip (Aus) (Nicconi {Aus}) won the G1 T J Smith S. in Australia recently and moves to the top of the Longines World's Best Racehorse Rankings with a mark of 124 shared with GI Pegasus World Cup Invitational S. hero Life Is Good (Into Mischief). Next on the rankings list is Speaker's Corner (Street Sense), the 4 1/2-length victor of the GI Carter H. at 123. Hong Kong superhorse Golden Sixty (Aus) (Medaglia d'Oro) returned to the winner's circle in the G2 Chairman's Trophy S., and...

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'Speaker' Latest to Cry Freedom for Sire Line

Not quite nailing the GI Kentucky Derby with Essential Quality (Tapit) felt like one of very few omissions from a spectacular 2021 for Godolphin on both sides of the Atlantic. And while it seems that Sheikh Mohammed must wait at least another year to satisfy that particular craving, his team certainly won't have felt too marginalized during the coast-to-coast sequence of rehearsals that gripped our attention last Saturday. Because they now know for a fact that they have one of the outstanding talents of the previous crop in Speaker's Corner...

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Speaker's Corner Dominates Carter

Speaker's Corner (Street Sense) took his 2022 record to a perfect three-for-three with a sensational victory in the GI Carter H. on a picture-perfect Saturday afternoon at Aqueduct. Hammered down to 3-5 favoritism, the Godolphin homebred was quickest away from the outside stall, but was quickly joined on the front end by a trio of rivals to his inside. Speaker's Corner spurted away to gain a clear lead after the first quarter went up in :23.17 with Reinvestment Risk (Upstart) tracking from second to his inside. That foe backed up...

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