by Frank Smith

American Pharoah was the last horse to achieve the Triple Crown in American horse racing when he won all three of the major events in the 2015 season. The bay colt was a truly exceptional competitor and brought glory for legendary trainer Bob Baffert.   

Baffert has another strong contender on his hands that could emulate the success of American Pharoah. Justify has the quality to match the accomplishments of his predecessor and is backed in the latest odds provided by Betway at 100/30 as of May 1st 2018 to secure the victory at the Woodford Reserve Kentucky Derby.

American Pharoah’s triumphs were historic, becoming the first horse to pull off the feat since Affirmed in 1978, highlighting the challenge ahead of Justify. Only 12 horses have managed to win the Triple Crown. Its company are the elite of the American horse racing, and we’ll now break down whether another one of Baffert’s horses is capable of joining the class by analysing American Pharoah’s run to glory.

American Pharoah’s Early Dominance

The stallion had a poor start to his career, finishing fifth and well off the pace in his first race at Del Mar despite being considered the favourite. However, American Pharoah bounced back with a fine performance in his second outing, securing victory at the Del Mar Futurity by four-and-a-half lengths ahead of his nearest rival. He finished his debut campaign with another win this time at Santa Anita in the FrontRunner Stakes, triumphing by a comfortable margin.

Read more: Could Justify Match American Pharoah's Triple Crown?

by Ivy Joy Zalavarria-Trillana

Britain’s glorious Gloucestershire countryside will once again play host to four days of brilliant action with the Cheltenham Festival (13th-16th March). The Festival contains some of the most important horse racing events in steeplechasing and hurdling, including the Champion Hurdle, Queen Mother Champion Chase and the Cheltenham Gold Cup. While none of these races get the worldwide attention of, say, the Kentucky Derby or Melbourne Cup, Cheltenham has nonetheless a high concentration of top class races. Of the 28 races held at the Festival, 14 are Grade 1 races.

Still questions over Faugheen in the Champion Hurdle

There is, of course, always plenty of intrigue in the lead up to Festival. Much of the talk has been about the form, or lack thereof, of Faugheen. The 10-year-old was seen as one of the all-time great hurdlers for much of his career. He was injury plagued for the last couple of seasons, but he came back with a win to start the national hunt season in November. Faugheen has had a rough time of it in his last two races though, coming second in one and pulling up in another. He currently sits at odds of 6/1 (+600) for the Champion Hurdle (13th March). Most bettors are plumping for last year’s winner, Buveur D’Air, at odds of 4/7 (-175.00).

Read more: Cheltenham 2018 Set to Go Off with a Bang

American sports fans are hearing plenty from Bode Miller just now. The country’s greatest male Alpine skiier is a key and outspoken member of the NBC TV coverage of the Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang. But Miller’s sporting passion these days is horse racing. He runs an experimental training establishment in Maryland, and his views on how to condition racehorses, and his plans for the future, are as progressive and unconventional as anything he’ll be saying in the commentary box, as Geir Stabell found out.

Bode Miller, Alpine skiing great, philanthropist, friend of Bob Baffert, is the most successful male American Alpine skier in FIS (International Ski Federation) World Cup history. He took part in 438 World Cup races and has 33 wins to his name. He was on the podium 79 times.

He purchased the Perfect Sky 1 Barn at Fair Hill Training Center from Earl Mack two years ago with the ambition of one day becoming a trainer.

With James ‘Chuck’ Lawrence II, previously a top-flight steeplechase rider, in charge of his horses, Miller runs a project experimenting with new ways of training and monitoring Thoroughbreds.

“Bode has great ideas coming from the human aspect,” Lawrence explains, “and some of these things are very different to traditional training methods.”

Read more: Why this Winter Olympics Skiing Legend is ‘Great for racing’

by Natalie Voss

The MeToo sexual harassment movement has yet to find its stride in the horse industry.

In the broader news world, every morning seems to bring a new name of a high-profile man accused of sexual harassment or assault, followed by (sometimes) swift removal of Hollywood stars, producers, political figures, writers, and news anchors from their jobs. As Time magazine put it in its Person of the Year article on ‘Silence Breakers' released last week: “This reckoning appears to have sprung up overnight. But it has actually been simmering for years, decades, centuries. Women have had it with bosses and co-workers who not only cross boundaries but don't even seem to know that boundaries exist. They've had it with the fear of retaliation, of being blackballed, of being fired from a job they can't afford to lose.”

A time when it feels like serial offenders might be hiding behind any well-known name, people have started asking me when this sea change is going to hit the racing business. And I cynically laugh.

It isn't that racing is immune from the problem of harassment. If anything, sexism, and the mistreatment that can sometimes come along with it, are woven into the sport's culture. It was not really that long ago that women were not permitted on the backstretch, only 50 years ago male jockeys refused to ride against women. It was just 39 years ago the Daily Racing Form told Jane Goldstein it didn't hire women, and five years ago top jockey Rosie Napravnik told 60 Minutes she was often told to “stay in the kitchen” by irate railbirds in the course of doing her job.

Read more: Sexual Harassment In Racing And Why The Industry Is Not Ready For ‘Silence Breakers’

Following his success in the Breeders’ Cup Classic last month at Del Mar, Gun Runner is now considered as the best dirt horse in the world today. The four-year-old will get the opportunity to reaffirm that status when he lines up in the richest race on the planet, the Pegasus World Cup, next month.

Gun Runner started his run of four consecutive victories at Churchill Downs back in June where he made all over 1800m. He then showed his class at Saratoga over the same trip in the Whitney Stakes in which his margin of victory was over five lengths.

The distance between Gun Runner and his rivals when crossing the line in the Grade One Woodward Stakes was even bigger in September as he forged clear in the home straight to put ten lengths between himself and Rally Cry who was the best of the rest of the pack in second place.

Steven Asmussen horse’s biggest of his career came at Del Mar as not only was he taking on the defending champion Arrogate in the leading dirt race of the year, he also had to overcome West Coast and Collected. The son of Candy Ride rose to the challenge as he made all at the Californian track to establish himself as a superstar in the sport.

Read more: World’s Best Gun Runner Set for Return in Pegasus World Cup

One of the biggest and best events towards the end of the racing calendar is the Breeder Cup meeting in America. With long distance traveling, hot weather and different surfaces to contend with, the Europeans are often at a disadvantage when trying to compete with the American horses. However, when it comes to the races on turf, Europe holds the key.

The Breeders Cup Filly & Mare Turf is a race the European trainers target and a race they have had success in recently. Last year, Queen’s Trust, trained by Sir Michael Stoute, won the race, partnered by experienced Italian Frankie Dettori. That was a third win in the race for Stoute, one he clearly targets as many of the European trainers do.

Looking ahead to this year’s meeting, the Breeders Cup Filly & Mare Turf has been targeted again by the European trainers, as has the Breeders Cup Turf. It is expected that we will see a strong European challenge in both of these races. It comes as no surprise that these two races are two of the races where European trainers hold the advantage.

Read more: Europeans Hold the Key in Breeders Cup Turf Races

By Marion E. Altieri for Equine Info Exchange

“Screw the men. I’ve got the horse.”

The entire horse racing community is mourning the loss of Helen B. (Penny) Chenery, the driven horsewoman who died on September 16, 2017. Part of the healthy grief process is to talk it out, via the sharing of stories about the beloved, recently-departed. The tales help us make sense of the death, and assure us that—even if only in legend and lore—the one we love lives on.

I am one such person, who needs to tell my story. I’m sharing it because it’s true—because I love Penny--and, that actually through a bizarre twist of fortune—I got to know her in a way that very few others have. I was singled out not because of any great thing I did, but because I was in the right church, at the right time.

If social media is any indication, it appears that half the world population has a Penny Narrative: of meeting her, knowing her—and the usual, Sharing a Sherry/night before a Belmont Stakes anecdote. Many people (most notably, women and grrrlz) met her over the years, and came away from the experience inspired to pursue their racing careers. Indeed, many have been thusly blessed.

Penny meant so much to me personally, for reasons that are multi-layered: she was more than a brilliant businesswoman who showed the way. More than a famous person who taught by example—that it’s OK to be strong, smart; funny, irreverent; well-heeled and wildly earthy—all at the same time.

Read more: Penny Chenery: Mentor, Leader, Supernatural Horsewoman, Klingon Warrior

An opera singer turned horse trainer sings Mozart in the stables, as animals dance and whinny. Heather Main sings to her steeds but insists she is "neither barmy nor living in fairyland" and claims Mozart is the horses' favourite classical composer.

Heather Main, a former opera singer, now trains horses to win races. Island Cloud, a three-year-old filly, is the yard’s leading soprano.

Heather adds: “She has a wonderful voice – a clear, high-pitched whinny. And she loves to dance. Al Kout is our top tenor. He’s an unraced three-year-old that cost us just £11,000. He has lots of class and a grand voice.”

Heather revealed the secret to her success after landing a 440-1 treble with Childesplay (8-1) and Rake’s Progress (6-1) at her local Newbury track, and Fair Selene (6-1) at Chepstow. She followed up with Royal Melody (15-2) at Lingfield a few days later.

Leading equine psychologist Grahame Frank, the “horse mind doctor”, said: “I’ve never heard anything like this before, but it definitely can work. Horses will respond to many things in many ways.

“This lady has found a remarkable formula that’s doing well for her and long may it last. Being relaxed like this is one thing, but the horse must still have the ability to do the job.”

Holding a trainer’s license led Heather to abandon her busy stage career, which included solo performances at the Royal Albert Hall and The Barbican. Heather, 49, says: “I’ve just taken in an unnamed bay sprinter that is showing excellent promise. “He’s got a decent voice and has responded brilliantly to my Mozart bits.”

Read more: The Amazing Horse Trainer Who Sings Opera to Her Horses

by Marion E. Altieri

The concept of Equestricon has been around for eons: that is to say, it’s long been a dream of many in Thoroughbred horse racing to create a convention for race fans and professionals, to gather—to exchange ideas and business cards—and to bang heads, as it were, to educate, elucidate and find ways to move the sport healthily into the 21st Century.

A trio consisting of wife-and-husband team, Kathryn Sharp and Justin Nicholson, with colleague, Dan Tordjman rose up out of the throngs of racing pros and fans: together, they invested money, time and energy to make the long-awaited fan convention happen in August, in Saratoga Springs, New York. It happens that this summer in Saratoga, horse racing is going through some severe scrutiny—most of it shouted into bullhorns, by people who know neither horses nor the sport and industry. Empty kettles do make the most noise.

The first-ever horse racing convention could not have been better timed: even though the event was over a year in the making, and its three parents could not have known that the sport would need a shot in the flank, right now—the racing gods conspired to give this unique gift of beauty, elegance, excitement and camaraderie to race fans and professionals at this exact moment in time.

Racing’s professional community came together to assure that fans (and, hopefully, new fans) experienced The Best that our sport has to offer: Official Charity Partner, Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance was joined by the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame; Daily Racing Form and Breeders’ Cup (Signature Sponsors), and Sponsors, West Point Thoroughbreds, Horse Country and The Stronach Group…a list too long to name all in an article of this size. So suffice it to say—the industry was behind Equestricon, 100%.

Read more: Equestricon 2017: Racing News, Views — and an EIE Scoop