Author Archives: Richard R. Gross

Saturday’s 24th edition of the Dubai World Cup, the richest day in horseracing, was indeed rich in many respects. The headliner was lightly regarded Laurel River’s record 8 ½-length front-running...

Eight horses will enter their gate in the 39th running of the $6 million Longines Breeders’ Cup Classic. Seven of them will be racing over Keeneland’s mile-and-a-quarter dirt track for...

“There is a reason they run the race.” It is one of the most oft-heard phrases among Thoroughbred racing fans, so often heard it could seem a tired cliché…save for...

Belgian jockey Christophe Soumillon has had his contract as first retained rider in France for Aga Khan Studs terminated, effective immediately. The decision follows an incident in which the French-based...

Late favorite Alpinista (Sir M. Prescott/L. Morris), the five-year-old gray mare, wins the Qatar Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe in the rain at ParisLongchamp. Vadeni (C. Rouget/C. Soumillon) was second,...

hy-per-bo-le  (noun) exaggerated statements or claims Driving into this New York borough, the familiar green road sign overhead reads: “Welcome to Brooklyn…Believe The Hype!” Hype is not limited to a...

On a clear, bright day at The Spa, the Champion Three-Year-Old Male Eclipse Award chase became clearer and brighter for favorite Epicenter and trainer Steve Asmussen. The son of Not...

In today’s overheated partisan environment, it would be easy to forget the greatest rivalries have not been between Red States and Blue States or Republicans and Democrats. The greatest, even...

Kentucky Derby (G1) winner Rich Strike has a lot in common with stand-up comedian Rodney Dangerfield. A headline act across New York’s Borscht Belt in the 1950s and 60s, and...

While their neighbors to the north spent the holiday weekend celebrating Canada Day and Americans the 246th anniversary of their nation’s Declaration of Independence, the greatest regulatory change in U.S....

Horseracing in the United States was born on the farmlands of the nation’s Southern states and in border states like Kentucky where African Americans dominated the workforce of the slavery-era....

When you go east to race Thoroughbreds, you enter Todd Pletcher-trained territory. The Hall of Fame trainer proved it again as Mo Donegal and the filly Nest finished 1-2 for...

Think of the places most connected with Thoroughbred racing in America. There is of course Kentucky, the unofficial birthplace of the sport in the U.S. In the East, there’s New...

“As God is my judge, this filly may be better than Secretariat!”—Secretariat trainer Lucien Laurin It’s Belmont week. All the talk deservedly is about Kentucky Derby winner Rich Strike. His...

As post time for Preakness (G1) 147 drew near, bettors recalled the shocking upset two weeks ago in the Kentucky Derby (G1) won by 80-1 Rich Strike. Following their hearts,...

It is already an unusual year in American racing’s Triple Crown—the Kentucky Derby, the Preakness Stakes and the Belmont Stakes (all G1s). Firstly, there was no Bob Baffert horse entered...

“Do not mistake temptation for opportunity.” – Chinese Proverb With horseracing fans still head in the clouds after the most improbable Kentucky Derby (G1) finish in more than a century,...

Fair-y tale (noun): a children’s story that is magical, idealized or extremely happy. Horseracing’s past has been replete with fairy tale endings. There was that day in 1938 when a...

If you live to be 86 years of age, you probably will have experienced most of the highs and lows that life has to offer. If you’ve spent the bulk...

Saturday’s Kentucky Derby 148 (G1) hopes the first “normal” Run for the Roses in four years. The last three years have seen the Derby marked by controversy and COVID. First...