Thousand Words

1st-Keeneland, $74,144, Msw, 4-7, 2yo, f, 4 1/2f, :52.44, ft, head. THE QUEENS M G (f, 2, Thousand Words--Show Queen, by Grindstone) became her freshman sire's first winner Sunday. One of the longest shots on the board at 45-1, she flashed early speed from the far outside gate but was quickly confronted by West Memorial (Caracaro) to her inside on the run around the far turn. That pair opened up a sizable gap to the rest of the field with The Queens M G just getting the better of the...

The Supplemental Catalog for the Ocala Breeders' Sales Company's 2023 October Yearling Sale is now available via the OBS website and in printed form at the OBS sales grounds. Thirty-seven horses have been supplemented; in all 713 horses will be sold. There are two sessions, set for Tuesday, Oct. 10 and Wednesday, Oct. 11. Hip No.'s 1-338 plus supplements 339-359 will be offered Tuesday and Hip No's 401-739 plus supplements 740-755 will be sold Wednesday. Both sessions will begin at 10:00 a.m. The supplemental catalog adds substantial sire power to...

Spendthrift Farm's Thousand Words (Pioneerof the Nile), the undefeated Grade II winner at two and multiple stakes winner at three, sired his first reported foal on Tuesday when a filly was born at Bison Ridge Equine in Bartlesville, OK. Bred by Hidden Creek Farm, the chestnut filly is the first foal out of the Laoban mare Laoban Furen, whose dam is the stakes-winning and stakes-producing Malibu Moon mare Hung the Moon. Laoban Furen is a half-sister to Brill (Medaglia d'Oro), a million-dollar, sale-topping yearling and Santa Anita stakes winner. "She's...

Spendthrift Farm's MGSW Thousand Words had his first mare confirmed in foal. Covered Feb. 10, the Unbridled's Song mare Maymont scanned in foal Thursday for owners Richard and Yvette Wira at Wynnstay Farm in Winchester, KY. A $1-million KEESEP yearling, Thousand Words won graded events at age two and three. He stands for $7,500 S&N.

It took just two words for Mark Toothaker to explain why he believes Thousand Words (Pioneerof the Nile) will excel in the Spendthrift stud barn: looks and pedigree. Those same characteristics are what kept the Albaugh-Spendthrift partnership bidding at the Keeneland September Sale until they brought the colt home for $1 million. It didn't take long to find an appropriate name for the youngster. [tdn_vimeo_embed title="Thousand Words at Spendthrift" admp4="https://player.vimeo.com/external/500151634.sd.mp4?s=844a5d02b62a033a1e8411b7c050bcf410e91b6a&profile_id=165" videomp4= "https://player.vimeo.com/external/507225698.sd.mp4?s=6e8e6dc8679363f6033354a84ffb91e685b177c8&profile_id=165" thumbnail= ""] "Eric Gustavon, our president, named him," Toothaker recalled. "He's such a beautiful horse that the name...

Thousand Words (Pioneerof the Nile--Pomeroy's Pistol, by Pomeroy) has been retired from racing and will begin stud duties this year at B. Wayne Hughes's Spendthrift Farm. The 4-year-old, a $1-million Keeneland September purchase, was campaigned by Spendthrift and Albaugh Family Stables and was trained by Bob Baffert. He won the 2019 GII Los Alamitos Futurity and 2020 GIII Robert B. Lewis S. and Shared Belief S. He was also second in the GIII Los Alamitos Derby. Thousand Words retires with four wins and a second from nine starts and earnings...

Unbeaten 'TDN Rising Star' Nashville (Speightstown) has been nothing, but sensational in his three racetrack appearances thus far and he looks to take his career to the next level in the GI Runhappy Malibu S. at Santa Anita Saturday. Romping by 11 1/2 lengths in the slop in his Saratoga unveiling Sept. 2, the $460,000 KEESEP purchase demolished a Keeneland allowance by 9 3/4 lengths next out Oct. 10. His Hall of Fame trainer Steve Asmussen decided to take a more sensible route with his pupil and bypassed the GI...

The adage reckons a picture to be worth 1,000 words. Of course, as has been remarked, that means 1,001 words must be worth more than a picture. (On which wiseguy basis, I will generously trade this column for that Rembrandt in your loft.) But then it might take something closer to 1,000 pages to record everything the owners of Thousand Words (Pioneerof the Nile) have experienced over the past year. This colt gave a literal quality to their topsy-turvy fortunes when rearing and toppling in the Derby preliminaries, sending Bob...

All of 2020 has been unconventional to say the least and the Triple Crown series is no exception. Instead of starting with the GI Kentucky Derby on the First Saturday in May, the highlight of the 3-year-old season kicked off in mid-June with a shortened GI Belmont S., which is traditionally the final leg of the series. It was 11 weeks before the Run for the Roses on the First Saturday in September and now, another four weeks later, the Triple Crown road comes to an end in Baltimore Saturday...

GI Kentucky Derby hero Authentic (Into Mischief) was assigned gate nine in a field of 11 and was installed the 9-5 morning-line favorite for Saturday' GI Preakness S. at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore. John Velazquez has the return call on Authentic, who goes for a third consecutive victory at the Grade I level, having beaten Ny Traffic (Cross Traffic) in the GI TVG.com Haskell S. before defying those who concluded he would not stay the 10 furlongs of the Derby by outfighting heavily favored Tiz the Law (Constitution) beneath...

A trio of candidates for the GI Preakness S. at Pimlico Oct. 3 turned in their final serious moves Saturday morning at Churchill Downs. Bruce Lunsford's Art Collector (Bernardini), who was forced to miss the Sept. 5 GI Kentucky Derby owing to a minor foot injury, tuned up for the final leg of this year's reconstituted Triple Crown by drilling a half-mile in :48 flat with big-race rider Brian Hernandez, Jr. in the saddle. The GII Toyota Blue Grass S. and Runhappy Ellis Park Derby hero was caught in fractions...

GI Kentucky Derby hero Authentic (Into Mischief) and GI Kentucky Oaks victress Shedaresthedevil (Daredevil) both returned to the worktab Saturday at Churchill Downs. GI Preakness S.-bound Authentic covered five panels in :59.20, the fastest of 38 works at the distance. With jockey Martin Garcia aboard, the bay clicked off splits in :23.80 and :35.40, galloping out six furlongs in 1:12.20. "It went very well. Martin has been with me," said trainer Bob Baffert, who came to Louisville from the Keeneland Sale in Lexington. "He knows what I expect. I told...