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Kip Deville Headed To Hong Kong

November 20, 2008 By Ryan Leave a Comment

Exercise rider Michelle Nevin says that Kip Deville isn’t too happy that he lost to a girl in the Breeders Cup Mile. She even said he is “ticked off”. It’s good to know the son of Kipling still has some fire in his belly, because he is headed to Hong Kong to compete in the prestigious Hong Kong Mile.

I bet Kip Deville in the Breeders Cup, and unfortunately I was a year late. I still think he is a great horse and should compete in Hong Kong. Rick Dutrow said he simply got beat by a better horse and he has no qualms with that. He also stated that Kip has been training well since the Breeders Cup. Kip Deville will arrive in Hong Kong on Monday along with Michelle Nevin. The biggest problem for him may be running the “wrong way”, and he will be training as such leading up to the race.

I always root for the American horse overseas regardless of who it is. I’ll be cheering hard for Kip Deville and I hope he wins this one. Whether you like Rick Dutrow or not, there is no denying his ability as a trainer. I think he will do a great job getting Kip ready for this one.

The Hong Kong Mile takes place at Sha Tin race horse in Hong Kong (Who would’ve guessed?!). It was contested at seven furlong until 1999 when it took its current name and distance. To the best of my knowledge, Eishin Preston is the last U.S. bred horse to win the race. He took the race in 2001, and went on to win back to back editions of the Queen Elizabeth II Cup.

I’m not sure what time the race will take place back here in the States, but I hope to be able to watch this event live. Regardless of who wins, its great to see that international racing is thriving.

Filed Under: Horse Racing News

HorsePlayer Magazine Update

November 19, 2008 By Ryan Leave a Comment

I got my copy of HorsePlayer Magazine in the mail yesterday. Their coverage of the Breeders Cup was very impressive, and I really enjoyed helping out. Nick Hines and I covered the Breeders Cup Sprint. I’ve got to give him a lot of credit on our selection, Fatal Bullet. I can’t remember his post time odds, but he was a fairly decent price and ended up finishing second to Midnight Lute who ran a monster race. The Sarge liked Fatal Bullet a lot, and for a moment I thought he was going to win the race. I’m sure we will see him at next years Breeders Cup, and with much more support from the betting public.

You’ve got to love the cover art on this magazine. It has the logo’s of many of the past Breeders Cup behind what I would say is a trophy. I recognize the twin spires in the bottom right corner. That logo is from the 2006 Breeders Cup at Churchill Downs. I had the good fortune to be present that day, and the most memorable race for me was the Juvenile Fillies. Watching Dreaming of Anna win was something else, and she became one of my favorite horses after that victory.

The horse pictured above is Street Boss along with his regular pilot, David Flores. I liked his chances, but he was unable to power his way to a win and finished third. He looked amazing when he won the Los Angeles Handicap. He stumbled badly and clipped heels in that race and STILL won. Not only did he win, but he broke the track record! Street Boss has been retired and will join Darley’s roster of studs. His fee will be $25,000.

You can probably recognize Midnight Lute and the triumphant looking Garrett  Gomez in the picture above. That picture was taken just after he romped home at Monmouth, similar to how he ran away at Santa Anita this year. Bob Baffert called Midnight Lute the “perfect thoroughbred” and the best horse he has ever trained. That in itself speaks volumes about how good the son of Real Quiet is. He has since been retired and will stand for $25,000. Thats quite a deal if you ask me.

As you can see in the picture above, the URL of this website was included in the article. I’d like to thank my good friend Nick Hines for allowing me to help him with this article, and I hope to do it again in the future. I’ve picked up a few unrelated writing assignments since then, but if you have any horse racing related writing jobs, don’t hesitate to email me at ryanthethird [at] gmail.com. Thanks for reading, and feel free to leave a comment with your thoughts on this years Breeders Cup Sprint, or any other Breeeders Cup races for that matter!

Filed Under: Horse Racing News

Better Talk Now

November 16, 2008 By Ryan Leave a Comment

Every sport has its warriors who seem to play forever. I watched a repeat of the Roy Jones Jr. fight last night, and he just isn’t the same guy I’m used to watching. The Roy Jones Jr. I know is fast and arrogant and one of the best boxers alive. He was struggling to keep up in this fight, but still hung in there for the entire twelve rounds.

Near the end of the fight you could see Jones talking to his opponent, Joe Calzaghe. I’m not sure what he was saying, but it was probably something like “you can’t knock me out”. Although Jones was made to bleed for the first time in a fight and was clearly going to lose, he still had that swagger you except from a champion.

Better Talk Now, winner of the 2004 Breeders Cup Turf and earner of $4.2 million will return to racing at the age of 10. Just like Jones, Better Talk Now is well past his prime. The son of Talkin Man is winless since taking the Grade 1 Manhattan at Belmont Park in 2007. That isn’t to say he hasn’t put together some nice performances.

In his attempt to defend his Manhattan title in 2008, he was forced to check hard while making a winning move. He then went on to finish third in the Grade 1 Man O’ War, taking on Horse of the Year, Curlin and 2006 Breeders Cup Turf winner, Red Rocks. Better Talk Now would follow that up with his best finish of the year, a second place performance in the Grade 1 Sword Dancer Invitational.

He has been racing in Grade 1 company consistently for over two years, and though he isn’t winning, he is running well. With a drop to Grade 3, or even Grade 2 company he could probably win several races in 2009. Trainer Graham Motion said a win in a Grade 1 race, preferably the Manhattan, would be the goal for this year. Better Talk Now has been one of my favorite horses over the years and I would like nothing more than for them to accomplish that goal. Good luck old boy!

Filed Under: Horse Racing Information

Horse Racing Park

November 12, 2008 By Ryan Leave a Comment

Checking my stable and training my horses is one of the first things I do in the morning. I like to have my horses on the track at Golden Gate and ready for their workouts bright and early. Russell Baze is usual up if I want to give them a handily work. Just like in real life, Baze is one of the best riders at Horse Racing Park.

Horse Racing Park, or HRP for short, is a virtual horse racing game. I’ve been an owner/trainer there since July of 2006. The game mimics reality to a tee and is an alternative for those of us who cant quite afford a real horse. Horse can be claimed for as little as $1, or bred for $8.

HRP has most of the real tracks in the United States. Such high level tracks as SA, HOL, AQU and CD race frequently. Lower level tracks such as RD, TUP, TDN, and SUF are also found at Horse Racing Park. MNR operates as the “free track” for new owners. It is the same as any other track minus the competition and entry fees. Just like the real tracks at HRP, the jockeys are almost all names you have heard. You can use favorites like Garrett Gomez and John Velazquez to pilot your horses.

You can race for free, or against other trainers for money. Most of the normal races contain purses from $1 to $100, but the purses for stakes races can go as high as $5,000. You also have the option to buy and sell horses in the auction. Horses can be purchased in the auction for as little as $1 and there are always bargains to be found. The winner of this years Breeders Cup Juvenile was sold for $127 in March!

Have you always wanted to win the Kentucky Derby?  How about the Breeders Cup Classic? HRP gives you the chance to do just that. They card 95% of the stakes races that take place in real life. I recently won the Grade 3 Kentucky Cup Juvenile with my homebred colt, Entourage.

HRP also has breeding. I am going to use Entourage as my first in house sire at the end of his three-year-old campaign.  You can breed with your own horses, or you can pay a stud or lease fee. Horse Racing Park also has their own version of the DRF, called the SRF.

There are plenty of things I haven’t mentioned for you to explore. If you sign up through my link by clicking Horse Racing Park or HRP anywhere in this post, you will get 5 free horses. Head on over to HRP and check it out for yourself. What are you waiting for?!

Filed Under: Horse Racing Information

Auction Thoughts

November 5, 2008 By Ryan Leave a Comment

The sale at Keeneland has been quite eventful. I’ve seen more than a few bargains slip through the auction ring, along with some horses who sold for massive prices. Stardom Bound, winner of the 2008 Breeders Cup Juvenile Fillies, was the best buy at $5.7 million. IEAH purchased her and she will evidently be trained by Richard Dutrow who wouldn’t let them stop bidding. I don’t think they are going to regret their purchase of the filly that Mike Smith has called “Baby Zenyatta”.

The first progeny of several star racehorses also passed through the sale. Among them are sons and daughters of Bernardini, Aragorn, Bluegrass Cat, First Samurai, and Flower Alley. I’m really interested to know how the Bluegrass Cat foals pan out. He was magnificent at 2 and 3 and is royally bred. He is a son of Storm Cat, and his broodmare sire is AP Indy. I don’t think it gets much better than that!

Better Than Honour, the broodmare of Belmont Stakes winners Jazil and Rags to Riches sold for a record price of $14 million to Southern Equine Stables. She is also the broodmare of Japanese sensation Casino Drive. Mike Moreno described her as “priceless”. That’s hard to argue with.

Hystericalady went for $3 million. She had a great 2008 campaign but she met her match in Zenyatta just like many fillies and mares before her. Hystericalady will probably be remembered most for her second place finish in the 2007 Breeders Cup Distaff. Her racing career is most likely over.

I can only imagine spending this kind of money on a racehorse, or anything for that matter. I’m sure many horses slipped through unnoticed in $10-100k range that we will hear about in the future. Lets not forget, Big Brown sold for $60k as a yearling. I could perhaps afford a horse of that price when I’m done with college. Hopefully Big Brown will pale in his comparison. I’m not holding my breath.

Filed Under: Horse Racing News

Rare Blend Stakes

November 4, 2008 By Ryan Leave a Comment

The next two weeks cant pass fast enough. I didn’t realize how much I rely on my laptop until I couldn’t use it! My brother has kindly allowed me to use his computer so I’m able to blog in between working and studying. I’m just itching to get to the track and play one of my favorite tracks, Aquduct. They will be racing the Rare Blend Stakes there on Wednesday. It is a minor stakes for three-year-old fillies and up, contested at 8.5 furlongs on the turf. It has drawn a contentious field of 12.

Namaste’s Wish will be racing for Bill Mott and she looks like the class of the field. Her best race this year was a second place finish in the Grade 3 Virginia Oaks. She will have John Velazquez in the irons. He is one of my favorite jockeys. The daughter of Pulpit should take up a stalking position a few lengths from the pacesetters.

Remarkable Remy has been racing well for John Kimmel in the second half of the year, but her post position of 12 is a concern. Her most recent performance was a win in the $100,000 Pebbles Stakes at Belmont Park. She closed from well back in that race. JJ Castellano will be piloting this one, and she looks competitive if she can overcome her post position.

Never Retreat will be making her turf debut. After being thrashed by Music Note not once, but twice she ran third in a minor stakes. She is from the sire Smart Strike. He sired the 2007 Breeders Cup Turf winner, English Channel. She has been working well, but will have to step her game up if she is going to win this event.

I’ll go with Namaste’s Wish to find the winners circle. Who do you like? Click here to take a look at the past performances!

Filed Under: Horse Handicapping

Down Time

November 2, 2008 By Ryan 2 Comments

My laptop is being repaired and I will be out of commission for about two weeks. I encourage you to visit The Paulick Report until I am able to return. Good luck, and don’t forget to vote on Tuesday November 4, 2008!

Thanks

Filed Under: Horse Racing News