The weekly TRC industry digest - a round-up of the international racing news from the past week.
New turf course for Churchill Downs
North America: Churchill Downs will invest $10 million to install a new grass track that will widen the running surface and increase durability to allow increased turf racing throughout the year. It could be ready for use by the November 2021 Fall Meet.
The current turf course, a seven-furlong oval inside the one-mile dirt track, is the original surface when grass racing debuted there 35 years ago. The capital project will begin immediately after the completion of next year’s Spring Meet.
The surface will be designed by UK-based STRI Group, which has designed, constructed, maintained and provided consulting and monitoring services for Ascot and the Riyadh Equestrian Club.
Limited crowds to be allowed at English racetracks
Europe: Crowds are set to return to racing in England next month in areas with lower coronavirus infection rates following a restructuring announced by Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who did not confirm what the capacity limits or percentages would be.
It has been reported that 4,000 spectators or 50 percent capacity limits – whichever is lowest – would be in place in Tier 1, the most lenient, while reports state that venues in Tier 2, including London, would be 2,000 outdoors and 1,000 indoors, or 50 percent capacity. No spectators would be allowed in Tier 3 regions.
Johnson said in a statement to the House of Commons, “Spectator sports and business events will be free to resume inside and outside with capacity limits and social distancing, providing more consistency with indoor performances in theatres and concert halls.
Spectators had been due to return to stadiums from October 1, but the Government pressed pause on that decision due to a rise in infections nationwide.
BHA (British Horseracing Board) Chief Executive Nick Rust said, “This is more good news for racing and for our many millions of fans, who have been unable to watch in person the sport they love since March. We know the numbers are limited to begin with and not all venues will be allowed to admit spectators, but this is progress.
“I am confident that all our racegoers will follow the Government’s public health guidelines when they return to racing and this will allow us to increase the numbers attending. We have always said that racing will act responsibly, and we all look forward to getting back on the track.”
Winx unlikely to be mated this time
Oceania: Winx’s part-owner Peter Tighe admitted that time was running out for her be served this spring, with the champion mare appearing far more likely to return to the breeding barn in 2021.
The winner of 33 wins in a row, and a record 25 G1s, is currently recovering after her first foal, a filly by I Am Invincible, was stillborn. Tighe revealed that he received the call at 5am, believing it to be news of the birth of Winx’s first foal.
“It was devastating because that was the one scenario we had not planned for,” he said.
It is five weeks after the ordeal and the Australian confirmed that the superstar mare was convalescing well, and that it was “so upsetting for all the owners”. “In this game you have to take the hard knocks,” he added.
Into Mischief breaks earnings record
North America: Spendthrift Farm’s champion sire Into Mischief has surpassed Tapit to set a North American record for the most single-season offspring earnings.
As of November 23, the TRC’s world #1 dirt sire’s earnings stand at $19,998,855.
The son of Harlan’s Holiday also leads nearly every category on the U.S. 2020 General Sire list, with 28 black-type winners, 58 black-type horses, 26 Graded stakes horses, and three G1 winners, including the KY Derby and Breeders’ Cup with Authentic, who will join his sire at Spendthrift for the 2021 breeding season.
Spendthrift General Manager Ned Toffey paid tribute to the “remarkable horse” that can “get any level of horse and at the same time is very consistent”.
He highlighted the mentality of the offspring. “They get to the racetrack and they perform,” he said. “We are proud to be associated with him.”
After breeding 248 mares, his largest book, in 2020, Into Mischief is standing the 2021 season for $225,000. His desirability has been reflected in the sales ring – just recently five lots at the Keeneland September Yearling sale demanded at least $1 million.
Relief over success of Keeneland November sale
North America: Keeneland’s ten-day November Breeding Stock Sale recorded gross sales of $151,019,300 for 2,198 horses, for an average of $68,708 and a median of $23,000, with nine horses sold for $1 million or more.
Outgoing president and CEO Bill Thomason confessed to a sense of relief that, given the impact of Covid-19 on the global industry, “we were able to conduct our fall events on the dates originally scheduled.” It was “a major accomplishment that should be celebrated by all involved”.
Online bidding, which Keeneland introduced at the September sale, continued to gain popularity as 279 horses sold over the internet for $16,274,300.
Of particular note is that more horses sold each day via the internet during the second week of the auction than during the first week.
Ghaiyyath is Cartier Horse of the Year
Europe: World #3 Ghaiyyath has become the third Cartier European Horse of the Year owned by the Maktoum family’s Godolphin operation. Daylami won in 1999 and Fantastic Light two years later.
The 5-year-old son of Dubawi took the Coronation Cup, Coral-Eclipse and Juddmonte International for trainer Charlie Appleby. Hugh Anderson, Godolphin’s managing director, described him as “one of the all-time Godolphin greats” that “made 2020 a memorable year for us”.
Recently deposed world #1 trainer John Gosden - responsible for a record five Cartier Horses of the Year – was recipient of the Cartier/Daily Telegraph Award of Merit. Moreover, two of his horses won awards - one for stayer Stradivarius and one for the top 3-year-old colt, the St James’s Palace winner Palace Pier.
Charlie Hills’s stable star, Battaash, was named sprinter of the year, while Aidan O’Brien’s Love and Van Gogh won the 3-year-old filly and 2-year-old colt awards. Son Joseph’s Pretty Gorgeous was the top 2-year-old filly.
Riders happy with new synthetic track
Oceania: A new synthetic track in New Zealand received a tick of approval from leading jockey Samantha Collett after its first set of trials on Tuesday.
It was the second time Collett has ridden on Cambridge Jockey Club’s track after previously riding on the surface at jump-outs earlier this month. “I think it is really fantastic,” she said. “The club can be really proud of what they have produced.
The jump-outs were conducted in inclement weather and Collett said the track handled just as well then. “You could feel a bit of moisture under the horses’ feet but there were no inconsistencies. It seemed to ride just as well as it did today,” she said.
Collett said the track is a godsend for trainers in the region and horses will benefit a lot from trialling and racing on the surface all year-round.
“I feel like the track is really nice and forgiving,” she said. “It is going to produce a really nice, even surface that we can look forward to using all year round, especially in the winter months when our turf tracks are deteriorating. It’s going to be a great tool to have.”
Collett said the universal consensus in the jockeys room was positive.
What will be bid for this Enable item?
Europe: A head-collar worn by the mighty Enable and signed by trainer John Gosden and jockey Frankie Dettori is to be offered as part of a Celebrity Bottom Drawer auction in aid of East Anglia’s Children’s Hospices (EACH).
The ten-day online auction, organised by comedian Griff Rhys Jones and commencing on Friday (November 27), includes top-grade cast-offs, memorabilia and treasure donated from many other UK-based celebrities.
Elsewhere in racing …
Europe: British jockey Hollie Doyle has been named Sunday Times Sportswoman of the Year. More here
North America: Oklahoma sprint star Highland Ice has died at 27. More here
Europe: David Jones has been appointed to the BHA board as a regulatory independent non-executive director. More here
North America: UK trainer Hugh McMahon has reached the 1,000-win milestone. More here