The 2022 Kentucky Derby winner, an Epsom rematch at the Curragh, a new Ballydoyle star and a £2m bonus in the UK feature in our weekly digest of recent international racing news
Rich Strike back in light training with Bill Mott
USA: Rich Strike, shock 81-1 winner of the Kentucky Derby in 2022, is back in training with Bill Mott with a view to a possible comeback later in the season.
The five-year-old had been retired after just one outing in 2023 but has since undergone stem-cell therapy for a suspensory issue. “He certainly has more to do over the next couple months with his training in order to be prepared to race at a high level,” said owner Rick Dawson on his Facebook page.
“Most importantly, he must stay sound & healthy throughout the training processes & if he races again, he must continue to stay sound & healthy.” Dawson and Kentucky Derby-winning trainer Eric Reed split amid a row over movie rights. More here
Irish Derby: Epsom runner-up Ambiente Friendly heads to Curragh
Ireland: Epsom Derby runner-up Ambiente Friendly has been supplemented to the Dubai Duty Free Irish Derby at a cost of €100,000 – thereby setting up a rematch with Epsom third Los Angeles in the Curragh Classic on Sunday [June 30].
Los Angeles’s trainer Aidan O’Brien is set to run four horses in the €1.25 million contest in a bid to ensure the necessary eight-runner field required for place betting in the international World Pool market, considered vital to Irish racing finances.
Ambiente Friendly, who was 2¾ lengths behind City Of Troy at Epsom, is joined by British-trained compatriots Matsuri and Sunway in the Irish Derby, the feature event of a three-day meeting featuring two massive nine-race cards on both Saturday and Sunday. More here
Bedtime Story stunning at Royal Ascot
GB: Bedtime Story shot to the head of betting for next year’s 1,000 Guineas with a stunning 9½-length romp at Royal Ascot on Saturday [June 22].
The daughter of world #1 sire Frankel could hardly have been more impressive as she followed up her debut victory at Leopardstown by slamming her Listed rivals in the Chesham Stakes over seven furlongs. More here
Bedtime Story was cut to 3-1 favourite for next year’s 1,000 Guineas – ahead of her Aidan O’Brien-trained stable companion Fairy Godmother, who also impressed in Friday’s G3 Albany Stakes.
Richard Hannon-trained Rosallion – now in the world Top Ten according to TRC Global Rankings– is also clear leader in Cartier Horse of the Year standings after following up his Irish 2,000 Guineas win with more of the same in the St James’s Palace Stakes at Royal Ascot. More here
New £2m Triple Crown bonus as Betfred sponsor all five British Classics
GB: Betfred have stepped into the breach to sponsor both Newmarket’s Guineas races from 2025 onwards.
As a result, the bookmaker will become the first sponsor to back all five British Classics – and a £2m bonus will be on offer as a new ‘Betfred Triple Crown’ incentive to any horse winning the 2,000 Guineas, Derby and St Leger. The feat has not been achieved since Nijinsky in 1970, though it has rarely been attempted since. More here
The Guineas was one of several major events left seeking a new sponsor when QIPCO (the Qatar Investment and Project Development Holding Co.) pulled out.
Although they are to continue backing British racing an extension of sponsorship at Ascot (as official partner) and British Champions Day through until 2026, QIPCO will no longer back the King George or the British Champions Series. More here
Breeders’ Cup places earned in Japan, Brazil and Peru
A trio of races last weekend across the globe were part of the Breeders’ Cup ‘Win and You’re In’ Challenge, offering fees-paid berths in this year’s two-day championships at Del Mar on November 1-2.
Chief among them was the richly endowed Takarazuka Kinen at Kyoto racecourse on Sunday [June 23], in which Blow The Horn recorded his first G1 strike to earn a spot in the BC Turf. Racing in testing conditions after rain, the five-year-old beat last year’s Satsuki Sho winner Sol Oriens by two lengths. More here
Also guaranteed a place in the Turf is three-year-old Obataye after forging to the front in a four-horse battle to win the Grande Premio Brasil, Brazil’s most prestigious race at Gavea in Rio on Sunday. Meanwhile, Boudica sped fast favored Alexandrina in midstretch to win the Gran Premio Pamplona at the Hipodromo de Monterrico in the Peruvian capital Lima to earn a place in the BC Filly & Mare Turf. More here
The BC Challenge stays at home this weekend with the Stephen Foster at Churchill Downs offering a place in the BC Classic. More here
Jockey Fourie hits 350-winner mark
South Africa: Richard Fourie, on the verge of his first South African jockeys’ title, has become the first jockey in South Africa to reach the 350-winner mark in a single season.
He reached the landmark with a treble at Kenilworth in Cape Town on Tuesday {June 25] via We Have Touchdown, Greenaldn and Prime Venture. Foruie has more than double the number of wins as his closest pursuer, Muzi Yeni, with 175.
Fourie had already established a new record when he partnered his 335th winner of the season on Double Grand Slam at Greyville on June 8, thereby breaking Anthony Delpech’s record of 334 winners in 1998-99. More here
Elsewhere in racing …
USA: Coolmore ‘elder statesman’ Tale Of The Cat dies, aged 30 More here
USA: Rockingham Park Legacy Group out of the gate More here
Australia: Peter & Paul Snowden to end training partnership More here
Japan: 2018 Japanese Derby winner Roger Barows dies, aged eight More here
GB: GB: Japanese Classic winner Durezza entered for Juddmonte International More here
GB: Racing to School celebrates Small Charity Week More here
Hong Kong: Ding-dong battle for trainers’ title race More here
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