Category
🥇
SportsTranscript
00:00:00For the love of the horse, for generations to come.
00:00:28Welcome to another edition of the TDN Writer's Room Podcast.
00:00:31My name is Bill Finlay.
00:00:32I'm a correspondent for the Thoroughbred Daily News and scratching my head, where are
00:00:36you and what are you in, Randy Moss?
00:00:39I'll show you in just a second, Randy Moss, NBC Sports, I'm here in Stanford, Connecticut
00:00:45for the Olympics.
00:00:46I'll give you a little quick tour in just a moment here of my padded cell that I'll
00:00:51be occupying for a couple of weeks.
00:00:53I knew it was just a matter of time before they put Randy in a padded cell.
00:00:58I just knew it was coming.
00:01:00Zoe Caban here from Saratoga with First Racing.
00:01:03Randy, let's take a look at your padded cell.
00:01:06Yeah, I can almost touch every wall here.
00:01:09There are like 25 of these at the NBC Sports Complex in Stanford, Connecticut.
00:01:14It's a not so dirty little secret that the vast majority of sports that you will see
00:01:20on NBC's Olympic coverage are actually called from the United States.
00:01:26With the exception of the really high profile sports like the swimming, track and field,
00:01:31gymnastics, USA basketball, the announcers for those are in Paris.
00:01:35Everywhere else, we're here in Stanford and we're doing it in these little cubicles here.
00:01:40You can see this is an information screen with every Olympic sport.
00:01:46All I got to do is click on equestrian, which oddly enough is what I'll be doing, eventing,
00:01:51show jumping and dressage.
00:01:54The producer is across the, through the glass over there, Amy Zimmerman.
00:01:59And then we'll be calling the action just on these two TV monitors.
00:02:05So yeah, we'll be here, this is my home, away from home for a couple of weeks now.
00:02:11All right, well Randy's getting ready to report on the four-legged competitors in Paris.
00:02:17Let's talk about the four-legged competitors in Thoroughbred Racing.
00:02:20Obviously, we want to start the conversation with the Haskell last week, which Randy was
00:02:24at for NBC Sports.
00:02:26And boy, I tell you, you know, I have become a, how can you not believe in Dornach now?
00:02:33This horse is so tenacious and so game.
00:02:37This was in many ways a rerun of the Belmont Stakes with him in mind frame.
00:02:41Once again, at the stretch call, Equibase has mind frame in front of Dornach.
00:02:47Dornach comes back.
00:02:48He just won't let this horse beat him.
00:02:51He is, Randy, he's got to come up there with Dermis Otagaki for you, he's one of your favorites,
00:02:55I got to tell you.
00:02:57He's just an easy horse to like.
00:02:59Danny Gargan is a very good natured guy.
00:03:02You know, we've been looking for a leader of the three-year-old division, well, we found
00:03:05it.
00:03:06Yeah, you know, and it even goes back to the Rimson when he was a two-year-old and Sierra
00:03:09Leone went by him in mid-stretch and he battled back on the inside to win that one.
00:03:14And on that day, most handicappers, I think, chalked it up to the theory that there was
00:03:20an extremely fast rail that day at Aqueduct and that's why Dornach was able to come back
00:03:26from behind and win.
00:03:27Well, as it turns out, that might not necessarily be the situation.
00:03:31Dornach is just a very tenacious horse.
00:03:34I mean, look, he's benefited from some pretty good trips.
00:03:38He benefited from a fairly slow pace in the Haskell.
00:03:41They went a half mile in 48 seconds.
00:03:44But when Mindframe went by him slightly, I'm not convinced Mindframe ever actually
00:03:49got by him, but at the very least, Mindframe got up on even terms with him.
00:03:54And at that point, if Mindframe is the kind of horse they thought he was, he's supposed
00:03:58to win.
00:04:00And Dornach, you know, showed his trademark gameness and tenacity and was able to pull
00:04:07it off anyway.
00:04:08Remarkable.
00:04:09I'll get you that bottle you still haven't given me that he didn't pass him at the head
00:04:13of the lane.
00:04:14You can double that up.
00:04:15We'll take another look at that.
00:04:17I believe he passed him and he ran against the grain that day.
00:04:20Not too many horses won on the lead.
00:04:23Now, for all the bitching and moaning that dear Danny did about getting the one hole
00:04:27again, this horse needs the one hole.
00:04:30I mean, that clearly aided him in his trip.
00:04:34He was inside.
00:04:36He cut the corner.
00:04:38Mindframe was in the middle of the racetrack.
00:04:39I can guarantee the next time we see Mindframe, he'll be wearing a pair of blinkers because
00:04:44that's exactly what he needs.
00:04:46Todd Pletcher, not willing to say that right now, he'll probably work him a couple more
00:04:50times.
00:04:51He'll be in blinkers next time.
00:04:53Louis Saez and Dornach are the perfect team together because Louis knows how to pedal
00:04:58a bike and he won't stop pedaling.
00:05:01He's aggressive.
00:05:02And Dornach, you know, the more you pedal, the faster he gets.
00:05:06He's game.
00:05:07He's resilient.
00:05:08And he's just a fun, neat horse to watch.
00:05:10If you watch him close up in the race, you can almost see that white eye rolling back
00:05:14in his head as he's looking backwards, looking for the competition where he should have been
00:05:18looking out to the side.
00:05:20But just a cool horse, cool ride and great connections.
00:05:24One day we'll get Jason Worth on this podcast.
00:05:27One day.
00:05:28One day.
00:05:29Zoe, I'm trying.
00:05:30Please.
00:05:31If Dornach was my horse and I could have picked post positions, I would have picked post position
00:05:34number one.
00:05:35Yeah.
00:05:36Absolutely.
00:05:37Well, it certainly did benefit from it.
00:05:40All right.
00:05:41So at Saratoga, they are going to run the Jim Dandy this weekend.
00:05:43We'll get to that a little bit later.
00:05:45That's the three-year-old race for three-year-old males in Saratoga.
00:05:47But another horse, I mean, Torpedo Anna.
00:05:50I voted for her after she won the Coaching Club American Oaks in the NTRA poll.
00:05:54Number one.
00:05:55I mean, I look at it.
00:05:56Who would be horse of the year if the year ended today?
00:05:59And I think it would be Torpedo Anna.
00:06:00At least that's who I would vote for.
00:06:02Then, of course, now the big discussion after she wins this race, which she's supposed to,
00:06:07does she go in the Traverse for trainer Kenny McPeak?
00:06:10He's playing it close to the vest.
00:06:11I got to think, knowing McPeak and how much he loves to challenge and how much he is,
00:06:17you know, kind of one of those few trainers who will really take some chances.
00:06:20I got to think she's in the Traverse Stakes.
00:06:24I believe she'll be in the Traverse Stakes, but Kenny's going to leave it day by day and
00:06:29make everybody guess and wonder.
00:06:32I don't see why not.
00:06:35Now, it will be a very good matchup between her and Dornach, who will have similar running
00:06:39styles and she'll get tested because he'll eyeball her.
00:06:44So if she goes in there, that's one thing that's going to be in the back of Kenny McPeak's
00:06:49mind as far as she is concerned.
00:06:52I got one more thing to say about her, but I'll let Randy jump in right now.
00:06:57Okay, I'll be very surprised if she does not run in the Traverse Stakes.
00:07:04If she runs in the Traverse, she might even be the favorite and might even be the deserving
00:07:09favorite.
00:07:10It kind of depends on how Sierra Leone looks.
00:07:11We'll talk about the Jim Dandy a little bit later running this weekend.
00:07:15But you know, the numbers guys, and I'm a numbers guy, obviously.
00:07:20I'm involved with the buyer speed figure team, but there's more to horse racing.
00:07:25There's more to handicapping the horses than just numbers.
00:07:30And you know, no, Torpedo Anna doesn't have quite the numbers of a Dornach and maybe a
00:07:37mind frame right now.
00:07:39But when you see the type of acceleration that Torpedo Anna has and the dominant way
00:07:46that she goes by horses and she wins her races, right, I mean, she just blew away the competition
00:07:52at the quarter pole.
00:07:53When a horse shows that kind of turn of foot and that kind of acceleration, it's been my
00:07:58experience that it usually means that if necessary, they can improve their speed figures and run
00:08:07faster.
00:08:08And I think that's what will happen if Torpedo Anna runs in the Traverse.
00:08:13She's big enough to hold her own against the boys, a mile and a quarter should be no problem.
00:08:19I honestly, I think if she runs in the Traverse, she'll probably win it.
00:08:23She might.
00:08:24I mean, Dornach might not get a chance to eyeball her because she might already be by
00:08:28him by the time he starts grinding away.
00:08:32Can we not?
00:08:33I mean, is it too early to start comparing her to Rachel Alexander?
00:08:37Yes.
00:08:38OK.
00:08:39Yeah, because let her win the Traverse like Rachel won the Preakness.
00:08:44I'm not saying it can't happen.
00:08:46It might happen.
00:08:47I'm going to say that's a little premature.
00:08:50It's been a long time.
00:08:51So this is what Rachel did after taking down the Kentucky Oaks.
00:08:55Kentucky Oaks, Preakness, Mother Goose, Haskell, Woodward.
00:08:59And then after the Woodward, the wheels kind of fell off.
00:09:02But I mean, I'm not sure there can ever be another one like Rachel Alexander putting
00:09:07that kind of performance together, that string of races.
00:09:11I mean, Oaks, Fantasy, Kentucky Oaks, Preakness, Mother Goose, Haskell, Woodward.
00:09:17That's unbelievable, even for a male horse or any horse.
00:09:19Right.
00:09:20And I agree with Bill.
00:09:22But you know, Torpedo Anna right now is just head and shoulders the best three-year-old
00:09:28filly out there.
00:09:30And in a year in which the three-year-old males until the Haskell just take turns beating
00:09:36each other, I think this is a perfect opportunity for a horse like Torpedo Anna.
00:09:41Lots of racing action last week.
00:09:42And I want to mention one other race, the Molly Pitcher at Monmouth.
00:09:46And speaking of horses that looked beat, boy, did Idiomatic look dead beat in that race.
00:09:52She was the one to five favorite horse by the name of Soul of an Angel, came up and
00:09:56went right by her.
00:09:58Yes, I give her credit for being tenacious.
00:10:00But the Idiomatic that I know wins that race after especially going to the front and soft
00:10:06fractions handily.
00:10:07I just I don't think she's as good right now or sharp as she was at her best last year.
00:10:13It's possible she might not be.
00:10:15But, you know, in a situation like this, I mean, I think you've always got to gauge your
00:10:19performance by like this when Idiomatic, you know, had to really battle to win.
00:10:26OK, who was she battling with and how good is that horse?
00:10:31OK, Soul of an Angel race before last in her first start for trainer Safi Joseph ran an
00:10:37absolute hole in the wind, OK, and she showed a completely different dimension in that
00:10:44race. She was she beat randomized by four and three quarters links.
00:10:50And we know how good randomized is.
00:10:52Right. So Soul of an Angel is a is a very sharp horse when she is at her best.
00:10:57Very talented horse.
00:10:59Safi Joseph has really gotten the best out of that mare.
00:11:02And she ran exceptionally well against Idiomatic.
00:11:06And there was nine links back to the rest of the field.
00:11:09So, yeah, I mean, maybe Idiomatic is not quite as good right now as she was last year.
00:11:16It's hard to say for me.
00:11:18But I'm not really going to hold against her the fact that she battled gamely and, you
00:11:26know, sort of like Dornoch, you know, wouldn't let Soul of an Angel go by to win.
00:11:31The pace helped her a lot.
00:11:32It was a very, very slow pace.
00:11:34But as we already knew, Idiomatic is a very game mare herself.
00:11:39And I think she gets a lot of credit for that.
00:11:41She is as game as a pedal, a pebble.
00:11:43And she gets all of the credit.
00:11:45I mean, Florent Giroux and I love floater bits, but you're riding a mare who's 17
00:11:50hands. Now, she doesn't have a turf as turn of foot.
00:11:53She is not going to accelerate when you go the half and 50 and one.
00:11:58She just doesn't have that.
00:11:59Look, she's a galloper.
00:12:00Go 48.
00:12:02She's huge.
00:12:03She can gallop along and go, why are you going so slow and letting them come up on
00:12:06you? Just go like he was lucky he won.
00:12:11He should have just gone like she's a galloper.
00:12:14I'm watching him down the backside and I'm like 50 and one.
00:12:17And they're all bunched up.
00:12:18She's got no turn of foot.
00:12:20She's a galloper.
00:12:21So, I mean, next time, just take take your foot off the brake flow.
00:12:24Just go.
00:12:27That's too slow.
00:12:29But she won in Spider-Man.
00:12:32Do want to remind you that the TDN writers room is brought to you by Keeneland.
00:12:36There was some big news out of Keeneland this week, and it's a new sale.
00:12:40The championship sale will be held on Wednesday, October the 30th in the paddock at Del Mar.
00:12:46And now this is this is really, really important.
00:12:49It will feature Breeders' Cup contenders, direct relations to contenders and stallion shares or breeding rights in Breeders' Cup entrance.
00:12:59It's an invitation to play at the highest level, much like they do in England with the sale the night before Royal Ascot.
00:13:07You can buy a piece of a horse.
00:13:09You can get in on the action.
00:13:11And it's time to get in on the action at Keeneland.
00:13:14We would also like to remind you that the entry deadline for the Keeneland November breeding stock sale is August the 1st.
00:13:21And we will be right back after this message from Keeneland.
00:13:30Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen, on behalf of the management and staff of Keeneland, I would like to welcome you to the September yearling sale.
00:13:35Good to have you back with us.
00:13:37The energy at Keeneland Book One is unlike any other sale that you'll go to.
00:13:41It is the marketplace of the center of the horse universe.
00:13:45It's electric. You can't replicate the urgency that's at Keeneland September.
00:13:48Quality in quantity. Keeneland September Book One.
00:13:52Every breeder's dream.
00:13:53This edition of the fastest horse of the week is brought to you by none other than Life is Good, one of the fastest of those fast sires at Windstar Farm.
00:14:07The first foals sired by Life is Good arrived this spring and breeders have used many adjectives to describe those foals.
00:14:15Among them, forward, dead correct, very impressive physically, great scope, balance, natural strength, light on their feet, well put together.
00:14:26And those are a lot of the same adjectives that were used to describe Life is Good himself.
00:14:32We know what a great stallion into mischief is.
00:14:34It says a lot that Life is Good was into mischief's fastest son to date.
00:14:39He had nine triple digit buyer speed figures, including a fig of one hundred twelve.
00:14:44And Life is Good stands at Windstar Farm for eighty five thousand dollars.
00:14:49Now for that fastest horse of the week, this will be brief.
00:14:52No surprise. Dornick from his Haskell win over Mindframe earned a career high buyer speed figure in that race of one oh three.
00:15:02And not only was Dornick incredibly game and tenacious, he is this week's fastest horse of the week.
00:15:10All right, now it's that time again on the podcast, it's time for our guest of the week brought to you by the Green Group, a tax accounting, consulting and advisory firm with an entrepreneurial styled approach and niche areas of expertise that include the equine industry.
00:15:30Welcome another Green Group guest of the week.
00:15:32And it's Corey Johnson.
00:15:33You know, Corey, the man who's more in a lot of different hats in the racing industry.
00:15:37And the current one is a very exciting one.
00:15:39His title is he's the interim CEO of the Maryland Thoroughbred Racetrack Operating Authority, which is quite a mouthful.
00:15:46But what that means is as Maryland Racing heads into the future, there's going to be a changing of the guard.
00:15:52This Maryland Thoroughbred Racetrack Operating Authority, much like Naira, is going to run the show after a little bit.
00:15:58And Corey Johnson is going to be one of the men pulling the strings in there.
00:16:02Corey, thanks for joining us.
00:16:04And first of all, just tell us where things stand.
00:16:06Update on how much progress you've made.
00:16:08What are you working on right now?
00:16:10Tell us what the latest is.
00:16:12Well, I think as most people in the industry know, in April, a bill passed that allowed for a $400 million bond package to rebuild a Pimlico and build a state-of-the-art training center in Maryland.
00:16:30The governor signed it in May.
00:16:32And so the Maryland Thoroughbred Racetrack Operating Authority came into existence.
00:16:38What we've been doing since then is working on a number of things, like the transition with the Stronic Group.
00:16:46For example, on July 1st, we officially bought Pimlico for $1.
00:16:52And we have been working on a lot of transition issues with the Stronic Group.
00:16:57They've been fantastic to deal with, very cooperative.
00:17:01Mike Rogers is my kind of contact there.
00:17:04He's the general manager for Maryland Jockey Club.
00:17:07Then we've also been working on a number of design issues.
00:17:12We have to be done by the 2027 Preakness.
00:17:18So what happens is you have to make a lot of design decisions today so you can meet your deadlines.
00:17:25And as I think everybody knows, the 2025 Preakness, the 150th running, will be at the old Pimlico.
00:17:34So we can do some demolition in advance of that, but we cannot demolish the existing old grandstand.
00:17:42So basically, June 1st, 2025, demolition starts.
00:17:47And then you've got the construction process, demolition and then construction.
00:17:52So it's got to move fast.
00:17:53Plus, we're going to be building a $100 million-plus training center somewhere in Maryland.
00:18:00That site hasn't been chosen yet, but we have to choose that site within 30 to 60 days.
00:18:05So does that kind of answer your question, Bill, as to where we are?
00:18:08Absolutely, yes. Absolutely.
00:18:10So roughly, I guess 30 years ago, Corey, you were intimately involved with the construction of Lone Star Park in Grand Prairie.
00:18:21How has that experienced – how is it helping you and what you're doing right now?
00:18:27Yeah, Randy, it actually goes back – if you remember correctly, it goes back to 1987.
00:18:33And I was involved in the team that built Remington Park from the ground up.
00:18:39So I learned a lot.
00:18:40Remember, I went from Louisiana Downs to Remington Park, and I learned a lot there.
00:18:45And then with Lone Star Park, I learned a tremendous amount.
00:18:51And add to that, we were the international racing consultant on Hippodromo de las Americas in Mexico City and Moronia's racetrack in Uruguay.
00:19:01So I've done this four times.
00:19:03So there's really nothing that surprises me.
00:19:06I mean, it's the same – how am I going to say this?
00:19:10There are the same basic people, roles, architects, design people, owner's rep for construction.
00:19:20I mean, they're all there, and the process is so similar.
00:19:24It's real complicated because we're kind of taking over another facility and franchise.
00:19:34It probably adds some complexity there.
00:19:37But yeah, nothing surprises me, Randy.
00:19:40And my experience in horse racing has been very helpful through this process.
00:19:50So that being said, Corey, where are you right now?
00:19:54Because it looks like you're in a warehouse.
00:19:56Like, where is Corey Johnson?
00:19:58This is a game we like to play every week on the TDN, find out where people are.
00:20:02Where are you?
00:20:04I'm in Baltimore in the South Harbor.
00:20:07Our Baltimore architect is Ayers St. Grosse.
00:20:12The architect of record on this project is Populous.
00:20:16And so we're having a design meeting today in the Ayers St. Grosse offices,
00:20:22which are part of the Under Armour campus that's been developed in the South Harbor in Baltimore.
00:20:29So it is actually an old warehouse.
00:20:32We also, just in a kind of announcement, was approved is that we've hired Canopy.
00:20:39And the principal of Canopy is Janet Marie Smith.
00:20:44Janet was a driving force behind the design behind Camden Yards,
00:20:49which is one of the great ballparks built in the last 30 or 40 years and stood the test of time.
00:20:57And Janet had that vision.
00:20:59She's from Baltimore.
00:21:01She's also done work.
00:21:03Last week, she was out working for the Dodgers.
00:21:06She's done work at Fenway Parkville.
00:21:09Some of the new things at Fenway, she had that vision.
00:21:13And you would obviously understand what that is.
00:21:16Pittsburgh Pirates Stadium.
00:21:18So she's done a lot of work.
00:21:20So we have a design team that I'm telling you is second to none.
00:21:25Populous is the world's expert in equestrian design.
00:21:30I mean, they've done the Olympics.
00:21:32They've done tracks all over the world.
00:21:34They recently, well, they're doing the Belmont reconstruction.
00:21:39So we have them.
00:21:40We have Air St. Gros, is a local firm that understands all the nuances of building in Park Heights and outside of Baltimore.
00:21:50And they're extremely valuable.
00:21:52And then you add Janet Marie Smith to the team.
00:21:56You're catching me at a good time because I'm in a room with about 20 really smart people.
00:22:04And the fact that we're able to master plan this project kind of from the ground up is such an advantage.
00:22:14And I just feel very blessed, honored, pick a word, to be part of this project.
00:22:22Corey, I can't help myself.
00:22:24One little snarky comment here.
00:22:26And $1 you overpaid for Pimlico, which is why it's being torn down.
00:22:32And it's a dollar a year lease on Laurel for the next three.
00:22:37All right.
00:22:38That's your comment.
00:22:39Not mine.
00:22:40But I am going to get a picture of the deed of Pimlico for the filing fee was $150.
00:22:48And the cost for buying Pimlico was $1.
00:22:51Corey, as you talked about in your discussion with Randy, you've done so many things in racing, been at so many different tracks.
00:22:58But when I called you the other day or we texted to get you to come on there, you were like a little kid at Christmas.
00:23:04You said, Bill, I've never been so excited in my life.
00:23:06This is like just the greatest thing ever.
00:23:08What is generating that sort of excitement for you?
00:23:12Just.
00:23:14OK.
00:23:17Maryland thoroughbred racing, you could argue, is the birthplace of the sport and the industry in America.
00:23:26There are so many fine members of the horse community in Maryland.
00:23:33That and they have kind of been in, I don't know, not no man's land, but for the last 10 or 15 years, there have just been a lot of challenges, but they've all hung in there.
00:23:46I mean, these are people that are as good a horse people in America.
00:23:51The not only the racing, the trainers, but the breeders.
00:23:56I mean, when I'm around them, it's it's magical.
00:24:00And so add to that this opportunity where we have money and we have some great resources.
00:24:09I'm just this is my last charge up the hill.
00:24:13You know, I was called. I was working on CJ thoroughbreds and our charity hope for all like a lot.
00:24:21I mean, you know, 40 hours plus a week.
00:24:24And then I got the call in March and I had to think about it.
00:24:27And it's such a great opportunity that I said, yeah, here we go.
00:24:32I don't know what's anybody know.
00:24:33Teddy Roosevelt's horse that he charged up the hill on.
00:24:36I need to probably understand that.
00:24:38And that's what I feel like.
00:24:41It was San Juan Hill.
00:24:42I think I was going to ask you why the hell you were doing this to yourself at this time of your life.
00:24:46But you just you just answered that.
00:24:49So in addition to your expertise with horse racing and construction of tracks and all that,
00:24:55you've also been pretty adept at playing the political game over the years.
00:24:58Right. A lot of politics was involved in in in getting the the bid to to build and operate Lone Star Park.
00:25:06A lot of politics went into the HHR machines that you successfully, you know, were able to put into Kentucky Downs.
00:25:15How much politics, how many political landmines still remain right now in Maryland?
00:25:23Or are you completely past all that?
00:25:27That's one of the reasons I'm so excited about this opportunity.
00:25:31We're a quasi state agency.
00:25:35And remember, this would never have happened without the support of Governor Westmore and the House and the Senate.
00:25:44In Maryland would have never happened.
00:25:47So, Randy, many times, especially if you're a private entity or a publicly traded gaming company,
00:25:55the government kind of looks at you like, well, you know what I mean?
00:25:58These guys are just going to come in here.
00:26:00They're just going to take money out of the state.
00:26:02And we're not they're going to pay their own way.
00:26:05And we're not really going to cooperate that much.
00:26:08It is totally the opposite here.
00:26:11Our chairman is Greg Cross.
00:26:13He's a brilliant person.
00:26:15Now, think about what he was able to do.
00:26:17He was able to bring together government, the horse industry and the stronic group to do something that is truly amazing.
00:26:28He was able to garner the support of a very charismatic leader in Governor Westmore and legislative leaders to be able to get us to this point.
00:26:39So what the difference is, Randy, is that we have like, for example, I'm on a lot.
00:26:45I mean, a lot of meetings and on Zoom calls.
00:26:48Our executive director is a gentleman by the name of Mark Brody, who's worked in legislative affairs, not only in Washington, D.C., but in Maryland.
00:26:58And we've got like the Park Heights Renaissance people, the Baltimore Housing Department, the transportation entities, the Department of Natural Resources.
00:27:11They all want to help us.
00:27:14And it's really going to make a difference in this project.
00:27:18I mean, Randy, imagine a master planned kind of Preakness entrance in Park Heights where we're able to work with, you know, moving roads or changing different things there.
00:27:32I mean, we're going to have like a, you know, obviously, I'm really excited now, but we are going to have a hotel on the site.
00:27:40Now, it may not be there in 2027, but it is going to happen.
00:27:46I mean, I'll keep going.
00:27:48We had a meeting with the Maryland State Archives group.
00:27:52We are going to archive every piece of history memorabilia in not only Pimlico, but Laurel.
00:28:00And we are going to incorporate that into the design of the new Pimlico.
00:28:06We are master planning the Preakness area.
00:28:10So we had that.
00:28:11We have everybody on this call has been in the Preakness compound.
00:28:15Well, imagine that now master planned.
00:28:18And so other than the two weeks a year that you have the Preakness, now that's going to be open the rest of the year as kind of a visitor center, part of the park.
00:28:31You just think Santa Anita and some of the great parks that are on the, let's call it the backside of a track.
00:28:38Well, now that Preakness center, we're going to have a visitor center there, catering options.
00:28:44I mean, we'll have the memorabilia, trophies and everything in there.
00:28:50So that's why, you know, I'm so excited.
00:28:55And the state archive group is going to they're going to Pimlico next week, and they're going to start inventorying all the things.
00:29:02So our architects know, hey, we can put this, you know, in our big event space, or we can put this in the Preakness compound.
00:29:10We can put this in the hotel or somewhere in the building in the racetrack building.
00:29:15So, obviously, I'm excited.
00:29:17But one of the reasons is the cooperation between the state and our entity.
00:29:23And then, as you know, we are a non we are going to be a nonprofit horse industry based.
00:29:30So whatever money we make goes back into the industry in terms of purses or capital improvements or whatever.
00:29:37There is no question.
00:29:39It is can only be good for the Park Heights neighborhood.
00:29:42Having been there, we've all been there numerous times for the Preakness.
00:29:45It definitely does need a facelift.
00:29:47And it's really going to bring the community together.
00:29:50But with all these plans, is 400 million enough?
00:29:54I mean, we've we've seen what they've been doing to Belmont.
00:29:57Is that going to be enough to get it done?
00:30:00So we we we do have more than 400 million.
00:30:03It's a 400 million dollar bond package.
00:30:06And we already have some money in the bank.
00:30:08So it's more it's hard for me to give you an exact number, but it's going to be closer to 500.
00:30:14The other thing is the main structure will not be as big as, say, the Belmont structure.
00:30:23So there will be savings on climate, climate controlled space.
00:30:29But also remember this member when I talked about Janet Marie Smith and canopy and that vision, we're able to master plan the infield.
00:30:39We're able to master plan going up the stretch.
00:30:43I talked to you a little bit about the Preakness compound.
00:30:46So so we're we are going to maximize our site, but it may not be these big cavernous bricks and mortar climate control facilities.
00:30:58So that I think that's how we're going to get there.
00:31:01Zoe. Awesome, Corey.
00:31:05Well, when you guys take over on January 1st at Laurel, maybe that would be a better time to ask this question.
00:31:10But one of the things the Stornick group said, the reasons why they were looking to perhaps get out,
00:31:15because Laurel Pimico goes 50 weeks a year, two weeks to ammonium.
00:31:21And they said it's just not sustainable anymore.
00:31:23We don't have enough horses.
00:31:24We don't have enough first money to have year round racing.
00:31:27What's your view on that?
00:31:29And fast forward to 2027.
00:31:32What is the Maryland racing schedule look like?
00:31:35Yeah. Bill, I need to be a good listener.
00:31:40I need to sit back and learn from the Maryland Thoroughbred Horsemen's Group.
00:31:47You know, Alan Foreman has been a longtime leader in that organization.
00:31:53They have a great group.
00:31:54They do a great job.
00:31:56And they are reaching out to the mid-Atlantic other tracks and horsemen's groups.
00:32:03I will say this.
00:32:04There will be, and again, this is all with their approval.
00:32:09You know, this is a little different than most tracks that we're here to benefit the horse industry and the citizens of Maryland.
00:32:19So if they were to, say, push back and say, we really need this, then we might reconsider.
00:32:26But on the other hand, Bill, I have to bring my experience to bear and say, look,
00:32:33we need to get this thing back to break even or make some money on live racing.
00:32:38Now, we're going to make money on pregnancy, Bill.
00:32:40I mean, we are.
00:32:42We're going to make money on year-round events and catering and things like that.
00:32:50I mean, we're going to make money there.
00:32:52But we also, I think we all agree, the goal needs to be to turn a profit on our everyday racing.
00:33:00And I believe, and I think the horsemen believe, and the breeders, because you can't just do this in a vacuum.
00:33:08You have to have enough racing opportunities for Maryland breds, for those breeders to breed their mares and bring in stallions.
00:33:18So there's this balancing act.
00:33:20But I think there's going to be a significant reduction in race dates in 2025 and that there will be some breaks in the schedule.
00:33:32I can't really tell you when, Bill, because we're still kind of working that out with other tracks internally.
00:33:40But within 30 to 60 days, we'll make an announcement on our schedule and there will be a reduction.
00:33:48And I think that will benefit everybody for, frankly, all the reasons that this group understands.
00:33:56Well, Corey, I want to thank you for spending some time with us and bringing us up to speed.
00:34:00Kind of lost track of this a little bit with everything going on with the Triple Crown.
00:34:03But now it's time to look forward to a very bright future in Maryland racing.
00:34:07And I think it's going to be, I can see why you're excited.
00:34:09Corey, thanks for joining us as the Green Group Guest of the Week.
00:34:14And as our Green Group Guest of the Week, Corey Johnson will receive a free one-hour tax consultation with Lynn Green and the Green Group.
00:34:22The Green Group can also help you save money on your taxes.
00:34:26To find out how, visit www.greencode.com.
00:34:32When it comes to the horse industry, tax laws are complicated and unique.
00:34:36That is why most people overpay on their taxes.
00:34:39Why not get a second opinion from the top-rated accounting and tax firm in the thoroughbred industry?
00:34:44With over 800 clients in the horse business alone, the Green Group has the expertise to save you taxes.
00:34:50There is a reason the most successful owners, breeders, trainers, vets, and horsemen use the Green Group as their tax advisors.
00:34:57We save you taxes.
00:34:59Over the past 40 years, the Green Group founder, Lynn Green, has owned and bred some of the best racehorses in the history of the sport.
00:35:06His DJ stable competes at the highest level and has received the game's most prestigious honors.
00:35:12Lynn Green's in-depth, hands-on industry knowledge, combined with current-edge tax-saving strategies, produces positive tax-saving results for clients.
00:35:21Take advantage of this special offer. The Green Group will give you a complimentary and confidential review of your tax return.
00:35:28Contact us at 732-634-5100 or visit our website at www.greencode.com.
00:35:38He can't go back from the way at the start he said, hold on, and a million five last time.
00:35:53Big Ebs has won the Brails Cup!
00:35:56Rosalion, who will triumph now.
00:35:58Rosalion and Sean Levy are up in the giddy!
00:36:08This month's News You Can Use segment is presented by Dali.
00:36:14Dali's Knight of Thunder is currently the leading sire of three-year-olds in Europe this year with 45 individual winners.
00:36:22And he is the only stallion in Europe with a winner's to runner's strike rate in excess of 50%.
00:36:28That's unheard of!
00:36:29And his is 53%.
00:36:32He is head of champion sire Frankel and his own great sire Dubawi.
00:36:38Knight of Thunder's top two-year-olds this year are led by the one and only Fairy Godmother, winner of the Albany Stakes at Royal Ascot,
00:36:45and they include the Aga Khan's impressive Currah Maiden winner, Hazdan.
00:36:50Keep an eye on three-year-old Ombudsman 2 as he is from the Gosden stable.
00:36:55He's unbeaten and with a timeform rating of 106p.
00:37:00He is surely bound for group races soon.
00:37:03On this week's News You Can Use, we are proud to introduce Emma Barry, the cornhole champion of France, along with Sue Finlay.
00:37:11How you doing, Emma?
00:37:12Well, I'm practicing my cornhole and also revising my form for this week's King George on Saturday at Ascot.
00:37:20Yeah, big weekend coming up.
00:37:22Well, Emma, I think the question about the King George is everybody's going to be asking.
00:37:26Two Breeders' Cup Turf winners, Rebels Romance and Auguste Rodin, the last two Breeders' Cup Turf winners will meet in this race.
00:37:33What's your take on that?
00:37:34Who's likely to be the favorite?
00:37:36Who do you think will win?
00:37:38Well, that's a great question.
00:37:40I mean, current favorite is Auguste Rodin, and we all know with him, he can be absolutely tremendous and sometimes quite terrible.
00:37:49They've only met once before these two, and that was in Dubai when Rebels Romance won the Shima Classic and Auguste Rodin was last.
00:37:57So, you know, it's round two now.
00:38:00It's by no means just a two-horse race, but we saw what I like to think of as the real Auguste Rodin at Royal Ascot when he won the Prince of Wales Estates,
00:38:09really nicely coming back to the form that we know he can produce on his good days.
00:38:16So I guess everyone just holds their breath going into this, hoping that he's going to pull out all the stops and do what he can do best.
00:38:26But Rebels Romance is six now.
00:38:29He's so consistent.
00:38:31He's traveled all over the world.
00:38:33He's, I think, won 13 of his 18 races or something like that.
00:38:36He's just a terrific performer all around the globe.
00:38:41It would be great to see him get his group one in England where he's trained, obviously, by Charlie Appleby most of the time, although he does spend a lot of time on aeroplanes.
00:38:49Well, Emma, also on the immediate horizon over there is Goodwood.
00:38:54This particular five-day meeting known worldwide as Glorious Goodwood.
00:38:59Give us what you're anticipating to be the highlights of Glorious Goodwood this year.
00:39:06Well, I mean, the Sussex Stakes is always really the week's highlight.
00:39:12That's on Wednesday.
00:39:13I'm just going to dip in quickly before that as a real confirmed lover of stairs.
00:39:18And we start with the Goodwood Cup on the Tuesday, next Tuesday.
00:39:21And that's always a terrific contest.
00:39:24I mean, if people think Epsom is a weird track, they should go and see Goodwood because it's a real sort of helter-skelter,
00:39:30down's track and uphill, downdale all over the place.
00:39:34But, you know, we're going to see Kiprios hopefully come back.
00:39:38He won the Goodwood Cup two years ago, came back in June and won the Ascot Gold Cup for the second time.
00:39:43But in between, he's had a death defying injury.
00:39:46And, you know, it's terrific to see him back around.
00:39:48But I guess really what we're all mostly looking forward to is a return of Rosalian,
00:39:55who is really building up into the, you know, outstanding three-year-old Colt,
00:40:00I think, certainly in the miling division in Europe this year.
00:40:05And he won the St. James's Palace in his last run at Royal Ascot.
00:40:09He's the Irish 2000 Guineas winner.
00:40:11And he was second in the 2000 Guineas, a new market to notable speech, who we hope will be back in action in the Sussex Stakes.
00:40:17He sort of flopped at Ascot.
00:40:19So we're going to see him back and, you know, a proper battle between the two Guineas winners.
00:40:25But also in the mix is Henry Longfellow from Valley Doyle, trained by Edna Brown, of course.
00:40:31And, you know, he went really close to Rosalian last time at Ascot.
00:40:35And, you know, I think it's going to be an absolutely absorbing contest, not just for three-year-olds, of course.
00:40:40They're taking on older horses as well, but they will be the market leaders for sure.
00:40:46What's going on with the other King George a little bit later on the week?
00:40:50Because I'm really looking forward to seeing Big Evs. Can we expect to see Big Evs running?
00:40:54I think so. I believe so. He's certainly entered.
00:40:57You know, we're a little way out from Goodwood as we're recording, but that seems to be the plan.
00:41:01Back to five furlongs for him.
00:41:05And we're back to a sort of sharper five furlongs, if you like.
00:41:11He will be taking on again Asfora, the Australian mare who turned up at Royal Ascot and did what we've seen lots of Australians do in the past.
00:41:21Won a Group One very nicely. And, yeah, they'll be hopefully back in competition again.
00:41:27But Big Evs, you know, he's had such a glorious two-year-old year culminating at the Breeders' Cup last year.
00:41:33And then, you know, he hasn't done much wrong so far. He won on his debut and was third at Ascot.
00:41:38So it'd be great to see him back. I'm particularly looking forward to him getting, I think, back to York for the Nunthock.
00:41:44But yeah, hopefully we'll see him at Goodwood first.
00:41:47Can I just ask Emma to quickly explain for those of you that have never been.
00:41:51It's like Ascot and Royal Ascot. You've got Goodwood and glorious Goodwood.
00:41:56Can you explain to people what makes it glorious?
00:41:59I suppose it's just the feature summer meeting.
00:42:02It's always a real highlight, I suppose, of the English social scene through the summer.
00:42:08It's obviously five days now. You know, it's and because it's midsummer, it should be glorious.
00:42:14But we'll know the English weather isn't always playing ball.
00:42:17So, yeah, it's just it's it's like the tag it always had for that particular.
00:42:22And it's the best racing of the year at Goodwood in this week.
00:42:26Well, Emma, I want to thank you for taking time out of your busy cornhole schedule to join us this morning on the TDN writers room with news.
00:42:33You can use some great things coming up in Europe.
00:42:35And we'll all be paying attention and we'll catch up with you again in a couple of weeks.
00:42:39Great. Look forward to seeing you and showing off my cornhole trophy.
00:42:43Thanks, Emma. Well, we've gone through the Haskell.
00:42:46Now let's talk about the Jim Dandy, which would be the big three year old race this weekend.
00:42:50Race 10 on Saturday at Saratoga. And it's got some of the major players in it.
00:42:55This race really came up strong. Sierra Leone, Fierceness are in there.
00:42:59Batten Down, who's in good shape right now after an Ohio Derby win.
00:43:02Seize the Gray, the Preakness winner for Wayne Lucas.
00:43:05I'm going to start, though, I I'm not going to make a pick yet because I don't know what to do with Fierceness.
00:43:12I mean, I've never seen a horse like this. It is so enigmatic.
00:43:16Which one shows up in this race? I still think if he runs his race, he's the best three year old in here.
00:43:22But I have no idea. And also, I'm not so sure that the race is really going to set up that well for him.
00:43:28There's a lot of speed to his inside. He's got the outside post.
00:43:32You know, is he going to go forward early to try to stay out of trouble?
00:43:35Because he has such a problem when he gets into trouble.
00:43:38That's my take on the Sierra Leone is a very good horse.
00:43:41He's just fallen short in both the Belmont and Kentucky Derby.
00:43:44But to lose the Belmont by one and a half lengths in the Kentucky Derby by a nose.
00:43:49No knock on him, but it's going to be a very important race, but a puzzling race.
00:43:54Unless Fierceness has a Florida Derby flashback, this race is absolutely tailor made for Sierra Leone.
00:44:03Number two, seize the gray speed.
00:44:05Number three, batten down speed.
00:44:07Number four, Pony Express speed.
00:44:10Number five, Gould's Gold close.
00:44:13Number six, Fierceness speed.
00:44:16I mean, Sierra Leone is going to get the absolutely perfect pace set up.
00:44:21And if he does, if the race develops like it looks like it's going to,
00:44:26and they go fast early over a demanding track like Saratoga at a mile and an eighth,
00:44:31and Sierra Leone makes that big run and then does his antics and starts lugging in and gets himself beat,
00:44:37I'm done with it.
00:44:40This race is absolutely, it couldn't be drawn up any better for Sierra Leone to finally break through.
00:44:48And I concur.
00:44:50And he gets the one hole, which is something I believe he's been screwed.
00:44:54Hey, anytime a horse lugs in, just leave him on the rail.
00:44:56That's where they want to be.
00:44:58So it'll be really interesting if I'm Flavian Pratt, which I'll never be Flavian Pratt for obvious reasons.
00:45:04But if I'm Flavian and I'm riding him,
00:45:06I'm just going to hug the fence the whole way around there and just pray it opens up and just come barreling through
00:45:11because, you know, they're going to be going fast.
00:45:13Horses get tired. They come off the rail.
00:45:15They just start wobbling all over the place and he can come straight through the rail.
00:45:20So it is tailor made for him to win this race.
00:45:23Now, Fierceness, if the real Fierceness shows up, everyone might be running for second.
00:45:28Cesar Grey surprised everybody this morning here at Saratoga.
00:45:32We're shooting this on Tuesday.
00:45:34We had some rain overnight. The Oklahoma track was sealed.
00:45:37I mean, it's rare that you'll find a trainer work a horse over a sealed track nowadays,
00:45:42but that doesn't deter DeWayne Lucas.
00:45:45Took him out there first thing this morning under the cover of darkness.
00:45:48And he worked in 47 and 4 and looked really, really good coming down the lane in a solo work.
00:45:55So he's sharp and that's just going to add to the speed.
00:45:59So, yeah, it's Sierra Leone's race to lose.
00:46:02Zoe, put your ex-jockey hat back on.
00:46:05If you were riding Fierceness, what's the right trip for him,
00:46:08especially considering the circumstances Randy talked about, all the speed to his inside?
00:46:13If you're John Velasquez, what do you try to do?
00:46:16How do you work out the perfect trip here?
00:46:18I just stay wide. I stay wide and go to the lead.
00:46:22If anyone wants to go stupid crazy fast, you just sit on the outside of them.
00:46:28I know we all believe that Fierceness is a need the lead type.
00:46:33I just think he needs things his own way.
00:46:35And if he's outside, he can control everything to the inside of him.
00:46:39So that is exactly what I do.
00:46:41I'm not sure I'd send him and get over to the rail and lead that way,
00:46:44because then you're a sitting duck for all the other speed on your outside that's stalking you.
00:46:48I would like to be on the outside.
00:46:50I know Randy's going to shake his head because he's all about lengths lost
00:46:53and he can't be four wide and all this, which is true, which is true.
00:46:58But I believe if you're drawn comfortably on the outside,
00:47:02why are you going to give that up when you've got speed and you can be on the outside looking in?
00:47:07If I'm shaking my head, it's not because of the ground loss.
00:47:13It's because you just described the exact position that Fierceness was in in the Kentucky Derby.
00:47:18Yeah, I suppose.
00:47:19He was drawn outside. He was sitting three wide outside of the other speed.
00:47:23He was in the catbird seat. He was in a perfect spot.
00:47:25He was right up on the lead, close to the lead, and got to the top of the stretch and looked like he was loaded.
00:47:31But didn't Todd say that part of that was because Johnny sent him because he had to out of the gate
00:47:39and that kind of turned him on.
00:47:41So maybe if he doesn't turn him on, leaving the gate and just sits on him, I don't know.
00:47:46Obviously, we're dealing with a sensitive Fierceness who has to be handled with kid gloves.
00:47:51Yeah, I don't buy that. I just think it was the bad Fierceness.
00:47:59Yeah.
00:48:00And obviously, if he runs his Breeders' Cup Juvenile back, if he runs his Florida Derby back,
00:48:07I mean, who knows what's in the horse's mind?
00:48:10He's capable, like Bill said, of running these spectacular races.
00:48:15But after that, you know, I don't believe the good race bad, good race bad.
00:48:20That's so silly.
00:48:22But, you know, I'm skeptical after the Kentucky Derby.
00:48:28I hear you.
00:48:30Saturday's card at Saratoga also includes the Alpha G Vanderbilt handicap grade one for sprinters, male sprinters.
00:48:36Got a field of six in there.
00:48:38But let's go to Del Mar now because I don't want to be accused of having any kind of East Coast bias here.
00:48:44It was opening weekend at Del Mar and got everybody smiling about that.
00:48:49But, Randy, another horse that you have been high on for a long time.
00:48:53And I noticed you mentioned him on the NBC Haskell show.
00:48:56You put him in your they had to do a top ten or something like that.
00:48:59Kind of been out of sight, out of mind.
00:49:01Arabian Knight. What's up with him?
00:49:03He hasn't run since the Breeders' Cup Classic.
00:49:07I think he was was he fourth in the Breeders' Cup Classic?
00:49:09Fourth.
00:49:10Yeah, I mean, he ran a really good race, given the pace scenario in the Breeders' Cup Classic.
00:49:15With the Breeders' Cup at Del Mar this year, you know, Bob Baffert has had a specific target of races for him.
00:49:23He got back into training, heavy duty training in April.
00:49:27I believe he has had now 16 breezes since the second week of April.
00:49:34All of them between six and nine days apart.
00:49:38He hasn't missed a single breeze.
00:49:40You know, it's adjusted according to the weather occasionally.
00:49:44But, I mean, the horse has been training brilliantly.
00:49:47He's going to be a heavy favorite in the San Diego on Saturday at a mile on the 16th, which has been the target race for Baffert.
00:49:54Then probably the Pacific Classic and then probably the Breeders' Cup Classic.
00:49:58So he doesn't have a whole lot to beat.
00:50:01Express train, maybe. Subsanitor, maybe.
00:50:05He'll be an odds-on favorite in there.
00:50:07And it'll be fascinating to see, you know, how Arabian Night comes back off that layoff.
00:50:12Because, Zoe, he certainly had enough work in the morning to be ready to roll.
00:50:16That's funny because I counted each one of his works this morning as well.
00:50:20I'm like, I know Bob's usually like a 12 or 15 coming off a long layoff.
00:50:24And I'm like, one, two, like 16.
00:50:27I think he's ready. There is no excuse whatsoever.
00:50:31That is an overmatch field.
00:50:33Dr. Venkman, Subsanitor, Newgrange, Express train.
00:50:36Katona, if he can't beat those even off the layoff, there is no excuse for him whatsoever.
00:50:41So it looks like we'll be talking about him next week.
00:50:44I'm sure we will be.
00:50:46Well, then there's also a Del Mar.
00:50:47There's the Bing Crosby, the grade one Bing Crosby, the chosen brawn.
00:50:52Yeah.
00:50:53One of our favorite horses is back to defend his title in the Bing Crosby last year.
00:50:59He got his what still remains the only grade one win of his career.
00:51:03And he's coming about he's coming into this race exactly the same way he did last year.
00:51:08The Thor's Echo for California breads and then a couple of months off to be fresh into the Bing Crosby.
00:51:14Now, last year, they went straight from the Bing Crosby to the Breeders' Cup Sprint.
00:51:17This year, they'll probably find some race in between if all goes well.
00:51:21But we're talking about a horse here that's won 13 of his last 14 races.
00:51:27And it's going to be a pretty big field, I think, for the Bing Crosby.
00:51:30I think that's what they're expecting.
00:51:32But the chosen brawn is, I mean, he knows his way to the winner's circle.
00:51:36That's for damn sure.
00:51:37Do we know if Jackstown's going to be running for Bob?
00:51:40I meant to text him this morning.
00:51:42Obviously, we're doing this on Tuesday, but he's a horse who won at Santa Anita a couple of months ago off a two-year layoff.
00:51:49And he's pretty good.
00:51:51If he's in there, he might be one to look the chosen brawn in the eye.
00:51:56But how could you not root for the cowbred and the connections?
00:52:00A really cool story.
00:52:01And, hey, I hope we're talking about him leading up to the Breeders' Cup as being one of the favorites in the sprint.
00:52:06I really do.
00:52:07One more little nugget about the chosen brawn.
00:52:09Amy Zimmerman told me this.
00:52:11She's going to be the producer here for Equestrian, my producer.
00:52:14She's within NBC, Santa Anita.
00:52:17The chosen brawn has now won 17 stakes races in his career.
00:52:21Nowadays, in American racing, that's unbelievable.
00:52:24Twelve of those stakes wins have been at Santa Anita.
00:52:27That ties John Henry.
00:52:30John Henry had 12 stakes wins.
00:52:32The all-time leader, Beholder, had 13 stakes wins at Santa Anita.
00:52:37So that's the sort of rarefied air that the cowbred, the chosen brawn, finds himself in.
00:52:42Now, this is a Delmar, obviously, the Bing Crosby.
00:52:44But it just goes to show you exactly how unbelievable this horse has been.
00:52:49The TD and Riders' Room, also brought to you by the Pennsylvania Horse Breeders' Association.
00:52:54This is a big week for Pennsylvania breds.
00:52:56At Saratoga on Thursday, roses for Debra.
00:53:01And don't look back at all.
00:53:03Hook up in the Grade 3, $200,000 Caress Stakes.
00:53:06Roses for Debra.
00:53:07The 8 to 5 morning line favorite in that one.
00:53:10And on Saturday, Twisted Ride goes in the Vanderbilt, right?
00:53:15$350,000.
00:53:17Twisted Ride, by the way, last year, 2023, earned $178,944 in Pennsylvania bred stakes, awards, and bonuses for his connections.
00:53:27For information on how you can benefit from some of that PA bred cash, you can contact Pennsylvania Horse Breeders' Association directly.
00:53:36There you see the number, 610-444-1050.
00:53:40Or you can just go to pabred.com.
00:53:44The PA Horse Breeders' Association presents the new and improved Pennsylvania Stallion Series.
00:53:50Six $100,000 stakes for PA-sired, PA-bred zoo parks.
00:53:55Two six-furlong contests on PA Derby Day.
00:53:58The two-year-olds then go seven furlongs on December 30th.
00:54:02The last two races are in August 2025 for three-year-olds.
00:54:06Then 50,000 in breeder bonuses go to the top three horses in the series.
00:54:10For more, go to pabred.com.
00:54:14So the big news off track last week was on Friday, Churchill Downs reinstated Bob Baffert.
00:54:21I don't think we expected it at that time because previously they had said he was going to be subject to the ban throughout all of 2024.
00:54:29It's over with.
00:54:31There's nothing right now for him to run at Churchill Downs.
00:54:34I don't think you'd see him there until next year for the Derby anyways.
00:54:38My main feeling is I'm so glad this is over with.
00:54:42I think when everybody looks back and Baffert did some things wrong, Churchill did some things wrong,
00:54:48and it was kind of a thing that there were no winners here, there were only losers,
00:54:53but Baffert more than paid the price for putting a betamethasone or having a positive for betamethasone in the Derby.
00:55:05But he also in this thing, I mean, I don't know if the lawyers wrote it up or Churchill PR,
00:55:10he put out a very conciliatory statement.
00:55:12It's the first time we've really heard from him to say, yeah, I was wrong here.
00:55:17It was the train of responsibility rule.
00:55:19This shouldn't have happened.
00:55:20And I look forward to getting back to the Derby.
00:55:23But that's my main feeling, Zoe, is thank God this is over.
00:55:29Hopefully we won't ever have to talk about it again.
00:55:31Turn the page. Move on.
00:55:332024 Kentucky Derby, I'm sure we'll see, Bob.
00:55:36So, yeah, I'm glad that's done.
00:55:40I wonder what barn Churchill's going to put him in.
00:55:42He might be by the crack kitchen.
00:55:47That sort of a letter could have been written by Baffert a year ago,
00:55:52and who knows, he may have even considered writing a letter like that a year ago.
00:55:56But the fact remains that there was legal action at that time involved.
00:56:02Baffert had legal action.
00:56:04Amherst Zidane had legal action as recently as this spring
00:56:07to try to get Muth into the Kentucky Derby.
00:56:10And as I'm sure the lawyers advised,
00:56:13you can't be sending a letter to Churchill Downs accepting blame
00:56:19if you're involved in legal action against Churchill Downs
00:56:23or against the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission.
00:56:25So now that that's all completely gone,
00:56:28and now that all that's water under the bridge,
00:56:30nice, apparently, nice letter by Baffert,
00:56:33and maybe we can just completely, like you said,
00:56:36wash our hands from all this.
00:56:38There's plenty enough blame to go around.
00:56:40You can assign some blame to Churchill Downs
00:56:43for how they handled it all to begin with.
00:56:46Certainly Baffert for maybe, you know,
00:56:51a certain level of carelessness in the way the beta methadone
00:56:55got into the horse's system in the first place.
00:56:57The veterinarian involved.
00:56:59There's a lot of things you can say about the situation,
00:57:02but just glad it's over.
00:57:04I share that sentiment.
00:57:06Okay, from Bob to more Bob.
00:57:08As we tune into the XBTV Work of the Week,
00:57:11it is a joint work between Muth, this is for you, Randy,
00:57:15Muth and Parenting.
00:57:17Parenting, this was on Sunday at Del Mar.
00:57:19The pair worked six furlongs in 111 for trainer Bob Baffert.
00:57:22That's Muth on the outside in the yellow cap.
00:57:25Muth hasn't run since his win in the Arkansas Derby
00:57:28on March the 30th.
00:57:30He has now had five works back since a fever forced him
00:57:33to scratch from the pregnancy.
00:57:35Parenting on the inside was the winner of the affirmed stakes
00:57:38in his last start on June the 9th.
00:57:40Bob said he is considering the grade one Travers
00:57:43on August the 24th and the grade one Penn Derby
00:57:47on September the 21st for the pair.
00:57:50Now they're going head and head.
00:57:52It's hard to like split the pair of them,
00:57:55but I'm going to give the edge to Muth here on the outside.
00:57:58A really, really good work from both Colts
00:58:01for Hall of Famer Bob Baffert.
00:58:03Do you think Bob would bring Muth back at a mile and a quarter
00:58:06having not run since the Arkansas Derby?
00:58:09I have a funny feeling that Parenting
00:58:14is a true mile and a quarter horse.
00:58:16Watching the two work, Muth was like better
00:58:20all the way to the wire.
00:58:22Parenting won the gallop out.
00:58:24Muth is always a good handy work horse anyway.
00:58:28He's one of those types of horses.
00:58:30I guess we'll have to wait and see.
00:58:35Be a smarter, better with XBTV.
00:58:38The best horses.
00:58:42With thousands of exclusive morning workouts.
00:58:46All at your fingertips and delivered right into your inbox.
00:58:52Everything you need to be informed.
00:58:55Be smart, bet smart with XBTV.
00:59:02All the thrills.
00:59:06Fraction of the bills.
00:59:11Experience the fun.
00:59:15The power of the partnership.
00:59:20Change your life, make new friends
00:59:22and compete at the highest level of thoroughbred racing.
00:59:27West Point Thoroughbreds.
00:59:29The gold standard in racing partnerships.
00:59:31Visit westpointtv.com
00:59:35The TDN Riders are brought to you by West Point Thoroughbreds
00:59:38which as always is focusing heavily this summer
00:59:41on both Saratoga and Del Mar
00:59:43with horses and staff on scene at both tracks.
00:59:46Thursday, the speedy Don't Look Back at All
00:59:50goes at Saratoga and the Caress Stakes.
00:59:52That's a Pennsylvania bred that we talked about earlier
00:59:55who's going to be running against Roses for Deborah.
00:59:57Don't Look Back at All is riding back-to-back stakes wins
01:00:00for trainer Christophe Clement
01:00:02and she has five wins in five seconds in 12 lifetime starts.
01:00:07That's a heck of a record.
01:00:08To learn more about how you can join in
01:00:10on all this West Point fun, visit westpointtv.com.
01:00:16I'm going to take the blame for this
01:00:18but we've been doing this for about an hour.
01:00:19We missed the biggest story of the week, Zoe.
01:00:21Book him Dano at Monmouth on Friday.
01:00:24Yes, absolutely.
01:00:26Talk about a performance.
01:00:28Dano did it and he's headed to the Allen Jerkins.
01:00:30So I thought that would put a smile on your face.
01:00:33All right, I want to thank everybody for taking part
01:00:35in this week's TDN Riders Room Podcast.
01:00:37My partners, Randy Moss and Zoe Cadman
01:00:40and also Emma Berry with a report from the UK
01:00:43and I want to thank Corey Johnson,
01:00:45the Green Group Guest of the Week
01:00:46as well as our producers, Katie Petruniak,
01:00:48Anthony LaRocca and Aaliyah LaRocca.
01:00:51Thanks for joining us.
01:00:52Cheers, guys.
01:00:54Cheers.