Horsemen across the state and beyond reaping the benefits of Virginia Thoroughbred Association’s innovative Virginia Certified program

Colonial Downs invites horsemen across the country to discover if their Thoroughbred, bred outside of Virginia, qualifies as Virginia Certified; therefore, eligible to enter in the many Virginia Restricted races. Any horse that maintained residency in Virginia for at least a six-month consecutive period prior to December 31 of its two-year-old year qualifies. There are 46 Virginia Restricted races in the first book alone. Across the 9-week 2024 Colonial Downs racing season, over $2.4 million in non-stakes purses are up for grabs. 

“We often hear from owners and trainers who did not know their horse qualifies for our Virginia Restricted races,” said Gary Palmisano, Executive Director of Racing for Churchill Downs. “The rules are unique to what you find in other states in that the groundwork to become eligible is done early in a horse’s career, so horses claimed or bought at auction may in fact be eligible unbeknownst to the current connections. I would just encourage trainers and owners to double check their eligibility so that they can take advantage of this fantastic opportunity.”  

The Virginia Thoroughbred Association has diligently kept track of all Virginia-certified, Virginia-sired, and Virginia-bred Thoroughbreds, and horsemen can reap the benefits by following this link to check if their horse qualifies: https://link.edgepilot.com/s/541590df/YvqvI35q20aypvlj3PzFnw?u=https://www.vabred.org/vbf/searchthoroughbreds/.

“If the horse wasn’t named when we registered it, then it’s not named in the database,” said Debbie Easter, Executive Director of the Virginia Thoroughbred Association. “If they don’t find it by name, then they need to search for it by the dam’s name and the date of birth.”

On the website, one can simply check the box for “Virginia Certified” at the top of the page, then either search by horse’s name, dam’s name and date of birth, or view a list of all registered horses alphabetically. 

Created in 2016 by the Virginia Thoroughbred Association, the Virginia Certified program incentives horsemen to raise and train their Thoroughbreds in the Commonwealth state. It has been integral to breathing life into Virginia’s horse industry. In a recently conducted economic study, it was found that the program has generated $86.2 million in economic benefits for the state.

“What this has done is save our industry’s infrastructure in Virginia,” Easter said. “Our farms were going away. Our training centers and our farms that raise young horses were going away. We were losing veterinarians, blacksmiths, everyone you need for the horse industry. We designed this certified program with hopes of bringing 400 horses to Virginia each foal crop. It is bringing more like 800 to 900. It’s been a huge savior to our farms.”

The Virginia Certified program has awarded $14.6 million to owners since 2016. The Virginia Owner’s Purse Bonus awards owners of Virginia-bred and Virginia-sired horses a 50% purse bonus for horses finishing 1st through 4th in all open races. When a Virginia Restricted horse wins an open company race, the Virginia Developer’s Purse Bonus offers up to a 25% purse bonus to that horse’s developer (the owner of the horse when it makes its first lifetime start). 

“Our Virginia farms are hiring people, they’re making capital improvements, they’re able to raise their rates,” Easter said. “In these 7 years that we’ve been registering certified horses, we’ve gotten over 5,000 horses in our program. These are the beautiful things about what we’re doing.”

Those 5,000 and counting Virginia Certified horses are eligible to enter in the Virginia Restricted races at Colonial Downs, and the purses are run for 15% more than the open company races. 

Opening day at Colonial Downs is Thursday, July 11. The first condition book can be found here: https://link.edgepilot.com/s/4c7cf51a/BXzY6LScskCcswjL_xp8Tg?u=https://www.equibase.com/premium/eqbHorsemenAreaDownloadAction.cfm?sn=CB-CNL-20240711-20240815D.

Listed below is a list of VA- Certified horses that have started in 2024, and are eligible for Va- Restricted races at Colonial Downs.

The 9-week summer thoroughbred racing season at Colonial Downs will be conducted from July 11 through September 7 with racing every Thursday through Saturday. Post time is 11:45 AM on Thursday, 4:30 PM on Friday and 1:30 PM on Saturday. The popular “Festival of Racing” program will return August 10 and feature the Grade 1 Arlington Million, Grade 2 Beverly D ($500,000 purse) and Grade 2 Secretariat Stakes ($500,000). The Million will be run at 1-1/4 miles, the Beverly D. will be contested at 1-3/16 miles and the Secretariat will cover one mile. All three races will be held on Colonial’s acclaimed Secretariat Turf Course. 

The Beverly D. has again been selected as a Breeders’ Cup Challenge Win and You’re In race for the Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Turf to be held November 2 at Del Mar. Festival Day is being expanded for 2024 to include four additional stakes races: the $100,000 Petramalo Mile, a one-mile dirt race for 3-year-olds and its sister race, the $100,000 Penny Chenery for fillies at seven furlongs; the $150,000 Van Clief for 3-year-olds & up at 5½ furlongs on the turf and its distaff companion event, the $150,000 Andy Guest. 

Opening weekend action will be highlighted by a new event — the Million Preview Day card — July 13 that includes three new turf stakes: the $125,000 Arlington Million Prep at 1-1/8 miles; $125,000 Beverly D. Prep over 1-1/16 miles; and the $125,000 Boston at one mile, a prep for the Secretariat. 

The Boston Stakes will resonate with fans locally in Central Virginia, which is home to Colonial Downs. Boston, who was bred by Richmond attorney John Wickam and foaled in nearby Henrico County, was America’s most accomplished racehorse in an era when thoroughbred racing was the nation’s most popular sport. Boston won 40 of 45 known races between 1836 and 1943 on tracks from Georgia to New. York, once in front of a crowd of 70,000. Later a renowned sire, he was an inaugural inductee into the National Museum of Racing’s Hall of Fame in 1955. He lived from 1833-1850 

Boston is a grandson of Sir Archy and was a regal chestnut-colored horse with a white blaze on his nose. During his racing career, he was undefeated as a 4 and 5-year-old starting in 15 races. Thirty of Boston’s victories were in four-mile heats and nine were in three-milers. In the era of grueling marathon contests, Boston was in a class of his own.

Thirteen of his starts took place in Virginia including eight in Petersburg –- all of which he won. Post-racing, Boston was the leading sire in 1851, 1852 and 1853 and eventually sired 95 winners of 293 races. Among his noted progeny were Lexington and Lecomte.

To celebrate his importance to Virginia racing, the County of Henrico will dedicate a new historical marker at Boston’s foaling location this summer, soon after the inaugural Boston Stakes at Colonial.  

Steeplechase racing will be showcased on six different Thursdays throughout the 2024 summer racing season at Colonial Downs and for the first time in several years, pari-mutuel wagering will be offered on the entire jump slate — 18 races in all. Three jump races will be contested on the following Thursdays — July 11 (opening day), July 18, August 1, August 8, August 22 and September 5. 

First race each Thursday is 11:45 AM and all three will be completed in time for Colonial’s first scheduled flat race at 1:30 PM. Steeplechase riders will use the regular jockey’s room on the track’s front side and horses will saddle in the paddock. The jump races will be available to watch and wager via Colonial’s simulcast signal. In addition to regular bets, there will be an All-Steeplechase Pick-3 and two daily doubles that cover races 1-2 and 2-3.  

The first of two Colonial Downs condition books is out and available online via the track’s website. Conditions for four of the six jump days are included and feature four $50,000 maiden hurdles, a pair of $55,000 allowance hurdles and a $50,000 filly/mare maiden hurdle among others. A pair of $100,000 filly and mare stakes highlight the schedule — the Randolph D. Rouse on August 8 and the Life’s Illusion on September 5. Both will be run at the 2 ¼ miles distance. More details are available at nationalsteeplechase.com. 

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Casse returns along with multiple champion Stidham, DeVaux, Desormeaux, and Clement lead the list of new trainers

Signaling the beginning of the 2024 Thoroughbred season, Colonial Downs’ barn area will open on Monday, June 24, welcoming returning conditioners, as well as newcomers who are sure to impact the standings. Training is scheduled to begin on Thursday, June 27.

Multiple leading trainer Mike Stidham and Hall of Fame conditioner Mark Casse are among the trainers preparing their string for Colonial Downs 2024 Thoroughbred Season. Casse returns after a successful debut meet where he won 10 races, including Fev Rover’s score in the Grade 1 $500,000 Beverly D., a Breeders’ Cup Challenge Win and You’re In race for the Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Turf.

“It was our first meet and we loved it,” Casse said. “(Colonial Downs) has got one of the nicest turf courses in North America. When I came in for the Beverly D, I flew in with Tyler Gaffalione, Kendrick Carmouche, and Javier (Castellano), and they all commented that this is one of the nicest turf courses they have ridden.”

A celebrated mainstay of the summer season, Karen Dennehy Godsey plans to return to Colonial Downs, coming off the most successful meet in terms of earnings of the trainer’s 11-year career.

“Colonial offers races that no other track has, especially given the Virginia-bred and Virginia-certified program,” Godsey said. “It’s quality racing. The money is good, the racing is good, and the track is gorgeous. There is no other turf course like it. Most every horse in my barn is Virginia-bred or Virginia-certified, so those races they offer level the playing field.”

Newcomers expected to stable at Colonial in 2024 include Christophe Clement, Cherie DeVaux, Jordan Blair, and Keith Desormeaux.

“After looking at the condition book, I saw they have a lot of 2-year-old races, they have a lot of 2-year-old route races, and they have plenty of turf racing,” Desormeaux said. “The surface is second to none –turf and dirt. The facility is very nice, the purses are substantial — there were many features that attracted me. Our goal does not change — we’re developing horses to run at the highest level. It’s going to be a great place to develop these young horses.”

Exiting the most successful season in the history of the racetrack, in terms of record number of races, race days, visitors, horses in competition, live bets and off-track bets, Colonial Downs’ 2024 stakes program consists of 27 races worth $5.7 million. The season will feature daily average purses of nearly $700,000.

The 27-day meet runs from Thursday, July 11 through Saturday, September 7.

MEET HIGHLIGHTS:

Every Thursday is Thirsty Thursday with $3 domestic draft refills every Thursday with the purchase of a souvenir cup.

With a 4:30 p.m. post time, Fridays are Party at the Downs featuring happy hour beer and wine specials from 4 p.m. until 7 p.m. and live entertainment in the Trackside Tent.

Opening weekend Saturday, July 13 is highlighted by the inaugural editions of the $125,000 Million Preview, $125,000 Beverly D. Preview, and the $125,000 Boston, which serves as a prep for the Secretariat Stakes. Nominations for the three stakes close Thursday, June 27.

Saturday July 13 also features a giveaway of an 18-month calendar loaded with photos of the stars of the 2023 season at Colonial Downs.

Colonial’s races will be prominently featured on FanDuel TV all season long. Additionally, FanDuel TV will be on-site for coverage of the Festival of Racing on August 10.

Racing fans are encouraged to wager on racing from Colonial Downs via www.TwinSpires.com, the official advance-deposit wagering service for Churchill Downs Incorporated and its family of racetracks. TwinSpires.com boasts an improved wagering experience and mobile app combining the latest technology with the ability to wager on virtually every quarter, harness and thoroughbred horse race from venues around the globe. TwinSpires.com also offers access to unmatched insight and analysis from our horse racing experts, handicappers, insiders, educators and Bloodstock Research Information Services (Brisnet).

The following was written by Frank Vespe and appeared in “The Racing Biz” June 6th. Larry Johnson is a Virginia thoroughbred horse breeder and owner whose Legacy Farm is based in in Bluefield, VA. His Future Is Now, a 4-year-old Great Notion filly, broke his maiden at Colonial Downs last August and will compete in the Grade 2 Intercontinental Stakes at Saratoga June 7th. Johnson also bred Mindframe, 7-2 second favorite in Saturday’s $2 million Belmont Stakes! Frank Vespe’s article follows:

“It ain’t a science,” Larry Johnson laughed about breeding racehorses. 

Maybe not. But he said that a few days before Saturday’s Grade 1 Belmont Stakes – to be run at Saratoga this year and next – in which Mindframe, a horse he bred, is the 7-2 second choice on the morning line. The Belmont will be one day after Johnson’s homebred Future Is Now tries to live up to her name in the Grade 2 Intercontinental as the third choice.

Which comes two weeks after Future Is Now won Pimlico’s The Very One, in which another Johnson homebred, Hollywood Walk – who is a half to Mindframe – finished third. Also that weekend, yet another Johnson homebred, Call Another Play, finished third, just missing second, in the Grade 2 Black-Eyed Susan. All are Maryland-breds.

Maybe it’s not a science, in other words, but it sure is a business where it pays to be in the right place at the right time.

“It’s a great ride,” Johnson said. “I don’t do this to necessarily make money. I try not to lose money. But it’s weeks like this: if this doesn’t get you going, you really ought to just go into hibernation someplace.”

Johnson sold Mindframe as a yearling, and he fetched a top bid of $600,000 from Repole Stable and St. Elias Stables. They sent him to trainer Todd Pletcher, and while Mindframe remained unraced – and even unnamed – until the first quarter of his three-year-old season, he’s made up for some lost time with two wins by a combined 20-plus lengths.

Remarkably enough, the Constitution colt, who’s raced only twice and whose top victory came in a first-level allowance, is 7-2 on the morning line for Saturday’s Belmont. That’s lower than either the Kentucky Derby winner, Mystik Dan (5-1), or the Preakness winner Seize the Grey (8-1). Sierra Leone is the 9-5 favorite.

“My gut tells me it’s not just [trainer Todd] Pletcher [that accounts for his short odds]. It’s the brilliance that he shows,” Johnson surmised. “The way in which Mindframe ran his two races, if your project out a little bit, is brilliant. So I think there is a lot of projection going on with him.”

Mindframe is out of the Street Sense mare Walk of Stars, who won five times in her career and earned over $150,000. Among those wins were a victory in Charles Town’s Pink Ribbon Stakes and a maiden score by 30 ¼ lengths – that’s not a typo – at Timonium.

Walk of Stars has had four offspring to race, including Mindframe and the stakes-placed Hollywood Walk, who may very well become a stakes winner before the end of the turf season. By Animal Kingdom, the five-year-old mare’s third-place finish in The Very One was her best performance to date. Her value is teetering on the brink of a major increase.

For Johnson, a forensic accountant by trade, the breeding of Mindframe may not have been scientific, but it is the result – and may become the pinnacle of – a family he’s been building literally for decades. All the way back in 1986, he and James Kehoe bred Ran’s Chick to Parfaitement – Deputed Testamony’s entrymate in the 1983 Preakness – to produce Special Kell.

Special Kell won a stake for Johnson, and later he bred her to Star de Naskra, a combination that produced the four-time winner Star Kell. Bred to Street Sense, she produced Walk of Stars, the dam of Mindframe.

An overnight success nearly 40 years in the making, you might say.

Speaking of which: the last Maryland-bred Triple Crown race winner was Caveat, who won the 1983 Belmont, three weeks after Deputed Testamony won the Preakness while coupled to Parfaitement. That’s a streak Mindframe will try to snap Saturday.

“Whether it’s sisters or nieces or mother, it all goes back Ran’s Chick and the foal she had, Special Kell,” Johnson said. “Special Kell has just been phenomenal. She’s the great-granddam of Future Is Now, and the granddam of Mindframe. If he would achieve Grade 1 success, the influence it would have on the pedigrees of so many of my horses… it’s just overwhelming “

Walk of Stars is a half-sister to the multiple graded-placed Strike the Moon, whose wins included the 2011 Charles Town Oaks, in which she defeated the great distaff sprinter Groupie Doll. That pedigree, plus her own racing success – and Johnson’s ownership of a share of Constitution – made breeding Walk of Stars to Constitution, a multiple Grade 1 winner by Tapit, a logical decision.

Early returns, of course, are promising, so Johnson sent the mare back to Constitution for a late cover this spring. He expects to learn in the next couple of weeks whether she’s pregnant.

The story’s similar with Future Is Now. She’s by Great Notion, out of the Bernardini mare Past as Prelude. The winless Past as Prelude was out of the unraced Meadowlake mare Magical Meadow, who in turn was out of… wait for it… Special Kell.

Future Is Now showed early promise, scuffled a bit, and then really began to come around this winter at Gulfstream Park, winning an allowance race impressively before running a good second in the Captiva Island behind 7-10 favorite Stone Silent. Shipped back north to Laurel, she finished fifth against the boys in the King T. Leatherbury before winning The Very One.

Future Is Now is 8-1 on the morning line in the Intercontinental, which makes her the third choice. Pennsylvania-bred Roses for Debra, undefeated when sprinting on the turf against distaffers, is the 6-5 morning line choice.

All in all, it could make for quite a weekend, though Johnson will not be in Saratoga to witness it. “Too complicated and congested,” he said, so instead he’ll have a watch party at his Northern Virginia farm.

And though a win by Future Is Now would be no mean feat, Johnson’s eyes are pointed towards Saturday.

“Right now I’m trying to do a little work, but all I can think about is the race call on Saturday,” he laughed, imagining Mindframe drawing away to victory. “Who knows? But Saturday at 6:45 can’t get here quick enough.”

The following appeared in the Paulick Report June 6, 2024.

Centennial Farms will look to double their tally in the Grade 1 Belmont Stakes presented by NYRA Bets when they send out Antiquarian in Saturday’s 10-furlong test for 3-year-olds, at Saratoga Race Course.

Trained by Hall of Famer Todd Pletcher, the $250,000 Keeneland September Yearling Sale purchase will look to follow in the footsteps of Centennial’s 1993 Belmont Stakes-winner Colonial Affair. He was conditioned by Hall of Fame trainer Scotty Schulhofer and ridden to victory by future Hall of Famer Julie Krone, who became the first female jockey to win a Triple Crown race.

Antiquarian graduated at second asking over a sloppy and sealed main track in February at Fair Grounds, earning a shot there in the Grade 2 Louisiana Derby where he broke through the gate before the start. He was reloaded and endured a difficult trip when sixth, defeated four lengths by the victorious Catching Freedom.

The talented chestnut, by the Centennial Farms-campaigned Preservationist, redeemed himself last out, overcoming being bumped at the break by Deterministic before racing three-wide from third position and making a five-wide bid through the turn en route to a three-quarter length score over returning rival The Wine Steward.

Antiquarian galloped on the Oklahoma training track on Wednesday before visiting the gate for a schooling session that went off without a hitch with Don Little, Jr., president and co-owner of Centennial Farms keeping close watch.

“Right after the Louisiana Derby, the first time he went to the gate he stood there for two or three minutes and had no issues whatsoever,” recalled Little, Jr. “I think in Louisiana, when the handler cocked his head straight, he thought it was gate time and anticipated it a little bit. I’m not worried about it. He’s doing great. He’s on the right path and couldn’t be doing any better right now.”

Antiquarian, piloted through all five starts by Hall of Famer John Velazquez, will look to become the tenth horse to complete the Peter Pan-Belmont Stakes double following Counterpoint [1951], High Gun [1954], Gallant Man [1957], Cavan [1958], Coastal [1979], Danzig Connection [1986], A.P. Indy [1992], Tonalist [2014] and last year’s winner Arcangelo.

Little, Jr. said Antiquarian’s Peter Pan score, in which he surged past The Wine Steward inside the final sixteenth, confirmed his status as a serious horse.

“It really solidified what Todd – and Johnny – had thought and told us, that he had a lot of room to grow,” Little, Jr. said. “He put it all together and it was a great performance. The neat thing about this horse is he’s very intelligent and he’s gaining from every experience.”

With the ongoing construction of a new and reimagined Belmont Park downstate, the Belmont Stakes will be contested at 1 1/4-miles at the Spa – but Little, Jr. noted his horse is one that may have thrived at the 12-furlong ‘Test of the Champion’ distance.

“We’ve said that right from the beginning,” Little, Jr. said. “Everyone says there’s an asterisk, but you can put an asterisk on a lot of events. The fact that this race is still a little bit longer than he’s gone will help him. I think he’ll be right there at the end.”

Centennial Farms has been involved in the highest levels of thoroughbred racing and breeding and, through the use of racing partnerships, has opened the door for many people to enjoy the sport.

Little, Jr. credits a loyal group of longtime owners as well as racing manager Dr. Stephen Carr and yearling trainer Paula Parsons for helping support and develop another potential Classic winner for Centennial. And he is hopeful that there will be more reasons to celebrate come Saturday.

“We have a very good tactician on his back,” Little, Jr. said. “Hall of Famer Johnny Velazquez has ridden him every time and he’s helped him grow every time. I think we’ll be stalking right there and be ready to run.”

Perhaps the fact that Antiquarian, who also paddock schooled Wednesday, will exit post 5 is a good omen as he will be wearing the same number that his sire sported en route to victory in the Spa’s 2019 Grade 1 Woodward.

“I hope so,” said Little, Jr., with a laugh. “Preservationist got off to a good start. He had [stakes winner] Band of Gold with Kenny McPeek and, percentage wise, his number of winners is pretty good. Airdrie breeds nice horses. We’re fortunate they took him in as a stallion and we’re hoping Saturday adds to Preservationists’ success as a stallion.”

The $2 million Belmont Stakes — third leg of thoroughbred racing’s Triple Crown Series — will be held at Saratoga Racecourse Saturday June 10th. An article on results of the post position draw is below courtesy of the Paulick Report.

The Belmont Stakes program features six Grade 1 stakes races — and all will be carded consecutively which will make for some very attractive multi-race wagers. The Belmont itself is Race 12 and will go to post at 6:41 PM. The $1 million Manhattan (Race 11), $1 million Hill ‘n Dale Metropolitan Handicap (Race 10), $1 million Jaipur Stakes (Race 9), $500,000 Woody Stephens Stakes (Race 8) and $500,000 Ogden Phipps (Race 7) all precede the Belmont. A trio of other stakes will be contested in Races 4 thru 6 — the True North (G2), Poker (G3) and Suburban (G2).

Fans can bet the action at any Rosie’s Gaming Emporium — located in New Kent, Richmond, Hampton, Dumfries, Emporia, Vinton and Collinsville, at either VA-Horseplay OTB located at Breakers Sports Grille in Henrico and Buckets Bar & Grill in Chesapeake, and online via TwinSpires, TVG, XpressBet and NYRABets.

Sierra Leone will get a new bit and a new rider in Flavien Prat for the Belmont Stakes, and has drawn post nine (Pat McDonough photo)

A Kentucky Derby winner and a Preakness winner will be in the starting gates for this Saturday’s unique edition of the Belmont Stakes, to be held for the first time at Saratoga Race Course over a distance of 1 1/4 miles. However, neither Mystik Dan nor Seize The Grey will be favored for the third leg of the Triple Crown.

That honor goes to Chad Brown-trained Sierra Leone, who finished second in the Kentucky Derby, beaten just a nose for the win after lugging in through the stretch run. The Gun Runner colt is favored on the Belmont Stakes morning line at 9-5. Sierra Leone will get a new bit and a new rider in Flavien Prat for the Belmont Stakes, and has drawn post nine in the field of 10 3-year-olds.

Peter M. Brant, Mrs. John Magnier, Michael Tabor, Derrick Smith, Westerberg, and Brook T. Smith’s Sierra Leone is two noses shy of a perfect 5-for-5 record. The colt made his first two starts at Aqueduct Racetrack with a first-out win in November and a narrow defeat in December to returning rival Dornoch in the Grade 2 Remsen after lugging in down the lane.

Sierra Leone added blinkers and was perfect through his first two starts this year, closing from deep to take the Grade 2 Risen Star over sloppy and sealed footing in February at Fair Grounds and the Grade 1 Blue Grass in April at Keeneland.

The $2.3 million Fasig-Tipton Saratoga Select Yearling Sale purchase, out of the Grade 1-winning Malibu Moon mare Heavenly Love, exited post 2-of-20 under Tyler Gaffalione in the Kentucky Derby and after saving ground early, rallied wide down the lane, bumping with Forever Young from the three-sixteenths to the furlong grounds. Sierra Leone and Forever Young, who share the same second dam in the multiple graded stakes-placed Darling My Darling, brushed to the wire with only a nose between them – but also a further nose back of the victorious Mystik Dan.

Brown remains level-headed about the narrow defeat.

“You have no choice but to move forward,” said Brown, whose best previous Belmont Stakes result is a runner-up effort in 2018 with Gronkowski. “It’s not something I think about every day, but that’s horse racing. I’ve been on both ends of it and it just so happens that it was the biggest race in this country. It’s a tough thing to lose the Kentucky Derby by a nose, but hopefully he can redeem himself in this race and I’m just so grateful I have the horse.

“He ran a super race and never let us down in terms of not showing up in the race. He’s always fired,” Brown added. “Has he gotten in his own way a couple times that prevented him from being undefeated? Probably, but he has so much raw ability that you take the good with the bad—and there’s a lot more good. I’m more or less managing him to try to make him Champion 3-Year-Old – picking the right races and giving him the rest that would be most beneficial to him.”

While the Derby winner continued to the Preakness, Sierra Leone, bred in Kentucky by Debby Oxley, has trained locally over the Oklahoma dirt training track with a new cage bit and on Saturday will have the services of a new rider in Flavien Prat.

“I think the left stick would have done him a world of good on the turn in the Derby, but that’s hindsight, now,” Brown said. “Nevertheless, I decided, for insurance, to have something on him to provide more power-steering. With horses, sometimes you try something when they’re younger and it doesn’t seem to move the needle much, but you try something when they’re more mature—it could be equipment or the ground they run on or a track they don’t like—and it does.”

Sierra Leone has collected more than $1.9 million in purse earnings through a 5-3-2-0 ledger.

Hall of Fame trainer Todd Pletcher will saddle a trio in the Belmont Stakes, led by 7-2 second choice Mindframe for Mike Repole and St. Elias Stable. Drawn in post 10 under Irad Ortiz, Jr., the lightly-raced son of Constitution has won his two career starts by a combined 21 1/4 lengths.

“He’s been super-impressive in his two races and the way he’s done that and how easily he’s won those races, how fast those races have been – it gives you the confidence he has the talent,” Pletcher said. “The question mark is if he has the experience and the seasoning. Obviously, he’s giving up some experience to some really good horses, so that’s the concern. I think, from a talent perspective, he has enough talent to compete with this field, but he doesn’t have the foundation and the experience that most of the ones in here do.”

Pletcher’s other two entrants are G3 Peter Pan winner Antiquarian (post five, 12-1) and the maiden Protective (post seven, 20-1).

“I liked the way Antiquarian finished [in the Peter Pan], and I really like the way he galloped out. I’m excited about giving him the opportunity to run a mile and a quarter,” Pletcher said.

Ken McPeek was pleased with post three for his Kentucky Derby winner and Preakness runner-up Mystik Dan (5-1). 

Lance Gasaway, 4 G Racing, Daniel Hamby, III and Valley View Farm’s Grade 1 Kentucky Derby-winner Mystik Dan will become the only horse to race in all three legs of the Triple Crown this year, but jockey Brian Hernandez will have to work out another good trip for the son of Goldencents.

McPeek credits Hernandez, Jr. for engineering an incredible trip when a matter of inches decided the Derby.

“He’s been doing that for me for years,” McPeek said. “I don’t question it when he’s out there and I don’t worry when it doesn’t go right. He’s ultra-consistent and he’s not scared to go inside. Any tactic he takes, I trust it. As a relationship between jockey and trainer, it’s the best one I’ve ever had.

“He gets a horse to travel very well underneath him and they’re very efficient when he’s on them, so the way they move across the ground and how a rider gets a horse to flow in the middle of the race can be more important than the finish,” added McPeek, who completed a long-awaited personal Triple Crown with Mystik Dan after winning the Belmont Stakes in 2002 with Sarava – who, at 70-1, denied War Emblem a Triple Crown – and the Grade 1 Preakness in 2020 with filly Swiss Skydiver. “Brian gets the horse very comfortable, and he has very soft hands. He never checks a horse, ever, unless somebody takes him out, so there’s never any lost motion.”

The 88-year-old D. Wayne Lukas will be looking to add a fifth Belmont with the horse that provided him a seventh Preakness win in MyRacehorse’s Seize the Grey. The son of Arrogate will break from the rail post position under up-and-coming rider Jaime Torres. Listed at 8-1 on the morning line, Seize The Grey also won the G2 Pat Day Mile on Kentucky Derby day, so both he and Mystik Dan are racing for the third time in five weeks.

Lukas lauded his charge’s versatility in being able to compete on Derby Day as well as in the Preakness, as he mirrors the race spacing of Mystik Dan.

“He’s not one-dimensional,” Lukas said. “I told Jaime Torres before the Preakness – I gave him two things to think about – if you break sharp and they let you have the pace, then just take it. Don’t get creative and try to be cute. Just let him do his thing. If they go with you – Baffert [Imagination] and one other horse or two break, take him back and lay comfortably in the 3-or-4 spot and get him in a better position to run at the quarter-pole.

“That’s all you got to do – you either make a decision off the break to go or you make a decision to settle off it,” continued Lukas. “That’s what this horse can do. He is definitely not one-dimensional. He’ll rate very kindly. Now, at a mile and a quarter, again the early fractions are probably going to be a little slower. He could end up on the lead again.”

Other Kentucky Derby runners entered in the Belmont Stakes are sixth-place finisher Resilience for trainer Bill Mott (post 2, 10-1), eighth-place finisher Honor Marie for trainer Whit Beckman (post 8, 12-1), and tenth-place finisher Dornoch for trainer Danny Gargan (post 6, 15-1). 

G3 Peter Pan runner-up The Wine Steward completes the field for trainer Mike Maker (post 4, 15-1).

1. Seize The Grey (D. Wayne Lukas, Jaime Torres) 8-1
2. Resilience (Bill Mott, Junior Alvarado) 10-1
3. Mystik Dan (Ken McPeek, Brian Hernandez, Jr.) 5-1
4. The Wine Steward (Mike Maker, Manny Franco) 15-1
5. Antiquarian (Todd Pletcher, John Velazquez) 12-1
6. Dornoch (Danny Gargan, Luis Saez) 15-1
7. Protective (Todd Pletcher, Tyler Gaffalione) 20-1
8. Honor Marie (Whit Beckman, Florent Geroux) 12-1
9. Sierra Leone (Chad Brown, Flavien Prat) 9-5
10. Mindframe (Todd Pletcher, Irad Ortiz, Jr.) 7-2

The 2024 Upperville Colt & Horse Show presented by MARS EQUESTRIAN™ is the oldest horse show in the U.S. and will celebrate its 171st year this June 3 through 9. Parking and general admission are free again this year.

Founded in 1853 as a one-day show to encourage better breeding and care of horses, the show has grown to a weeklong tradition with thousands of equestrian and equine pairs competing in a variety of competitive disciplines. Many of the continent’s top professional riders as well as amateurs compete under the spectacular setting featuring the famous oaks at Grafton Farm—the same location since 1853.

The UCHS is an FEI CSI4* event that attracts hundreds of world-class equestrians year after year. The equine and human athletes compete in disciplines ranging from international level show jumping, hunters and equitation to local ponies, in-hand conformation classes, and women in traditional, elegant sidesaddle. In addition to its CSI4* designation, the competition boasts Premier and Jumper Rating Six classifications with US Equestrian, is sanctioned by the Virginia Horse Shows Association and the Maryland Horse Shows Association and is a World Championship Hunter Rider recognized show. UCHS is also one of a handful of qualified Heritage Horse Shows across the United States.

The week-long show culminates on June 9 with the excitement of the $226,000 Upperville Jumper Classic CSI4* featuring top equestrians from across the nation and around the globe. The day’s entertainment includes junior and amateur riders and the Horses & Horsepower car show. Vendors throughout the show offer a variety of food as well as equestrian, sporting, and fashionable clothing, milliners, tack and leather goods, jewelry, art and hand-crafted gifts. The venue is beautifully located in the heart of Virginia’s hunt country.

MARS EQUESTRIAN’s sponsorship launched in 2018 to extend Mars, Incorporated’s long-time support of equestrian sports and to honor an equestrian legacy through purposeful partnerships.

In addition to being the presenting sponsor of UCHS, MARS EQUESTRIAN will have multiple touchpoints across the 2024 showgrounds including: Sponsorship of the Hunter and Jumper Riders Lounges, which will be open to riders, trainers and grooms, and recognition of The Ethel M® Chocolate Brand as the Co-Sponsor of the 2024 FEI $226,000 Jumper Classic, along with Lugano Diamonds.

Also of note for equestrians wishing to compete in this year’s UCHS, regular entry opening date is Monday, April 15 at noon. Entry opening date for hunter breeding, leadline, walk-trot, side saddle, Cleveland Bay, Irish Hunter and Connemara divisions is Thursday, May 2 at noon. To see the UCHS Prize List and classes, click here.

On Sunday, June 2, UCHS holds a special unrated show day for both hunters and jumpers. Upperville Jump 4 Fun Jumper Schooling Show and Upperville Jump 4 Fun Hunter Schooling Show open for entries on Tuesday, May 2 at noon, through www.horseshowslonline.com. All classes are open to horses and ponies ridden by juniors, amateurs or professionals. To see the Jump 4 Fun Prize List, click here.

Additional sponsors include Buckeye Nutrition, Royal Canin, Lugano Diamonds, The Salamander Collection, B&D Builders, Markel Insurance, Delta and Piedmont Equine Practice.

For more information and the weeklong show schedule, visit www.upperville.com.

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About the Upperville Colt & Horse Show

The Upperville Colt & Horse Show, also known as the Upperville Horse Show and UCHS, is the oldest horse show in the U.S. Founded in 1853 as a one-day show to encourage better breeding and care of horses, the show has grown to a weeklong tradition with thousands of equestrian and equine pairs competing in a variety of competitive disciplines. Many of the continent’s top professional riders as well as amateurs compete under the spectacular setting featuring the famous oaks at Grafton Farm—the same location as 1853. UCHS is a 501(c)3 charitable organization that raises funds for The Churches of Upperville Outreach Program and supports other area charities. For complete schedules and up-to-the-minute results, visit the website at www.upperville.com.

Bad weather played a role in the weekend’s action, which was punctuated by rain, clouds and cool temperatures. Yet, the dreary conditions didn’t stop fans from turning out in large numbers at both the Virginia Gold Cup Races on Saturday in The Plains and Winterthur Point-to-Point outside of Wilmington, Del.

Nine races were on tap at Great Meadow Race Course in Virginia, highlighted by the inaugural Grade 1 $150,000 Commonwealth Cup, a handicap hurdle at 2 1/8 miles, along with the historic $75,000 Virginia Gold Cup at 4 miles, one of the most prestigious timber stakes in America. The results of the Commonwealth Cup shone a bright light on one of the sport’s rising stars and the Gold Cup celebrated yet another remarkable milestone in the incredible career of a remarkable warrior.

There were standout performances on the human side, too. Leading NSA trainer Leslie Young had another big weekend with a combined five winners (four over jumps). Besides taking the Commonwealth Cup, Young scored with Silverton Hill’s Kelmscott in a maiden special weights hurdle and Runnymoore Racing’s Clifton Down in the Speedy Smithwick stakes at Gold Cup, and Leipers Fork Steeplechasers’ Fast Vision in the Winterthur Bowl allowance and Potter Group USA and Ashwell Stable’s Right Tempo in the Middletown Cup training flat contest (that doesn’t count in the standings). The wins gave the NSA’s leading trainer the past two seasons, 15 for the spring, nine more than Jack Fisher. She also has a commanding lead of more than $220,000 in earnings over the Hall of Fame conditioner.

Jockeys Bernie Dalton, Jamie Bargary, and Stephen Mulqueen also doubled at Gold Cup, while Freddie Procter doubled at Winterthur. Keri Brion had a training double at Gold Cup.

Rampoldi Plan romps in Commonwealth Cup

Coming into the race, Leipers Fork Steeplechasers’ Rampoldi Plan had made five NSA starts after a career in England, breaking his maiden and finishing second in an allowance appearance. In the Commonwealth Cup, the five-year-old Florida-bred son of Hard Spun stalked pacesetter West Newton, took charge on the final turn, and had the lead with two fences to go. At the wire, he was two lengths clear of hard-charging Welshman, who closed stoutly from seventh. 2023 novice champion L’Imperator was third.  The winner was sent off at 13-1 at the meet, which once again offered pari-mutuel wagering. For jockey Jamie Bargary, it was his first Grade 1 score.

Schoodic is spectacular, again, in Gold Cup

Dolly Fisher’s 14-year-old, ridden by Graham Watters and trained by Jack Fisher, captured his fourth straight stake with a blockbuster victory over a tough Awesome Adrian in the Virginia Gold Cup stakes. The 2023 timber champion, who won his first start of the season at Middleburg two weeks ago, showed his competitive fire hasn’t diminished one bit. The ageless star and 2-1 betting choice closely stalked Bogey’s image (Teddy Davies) and overtook Nancy Reed’s Awesome Adrian, who rallied from last to take the top spot with two fences remaining, collaring the leader in deep stretch to score by 2 lengths. Bogey’s Image was far back in third.

For the winner it continued a remarkable skein of 10 consecutive top-three finishes dating back three years. Overall, it was his 17th career win and elevated his bankroll to $634,606. It was also his second Virginia Gold Cup victory. In addition, Schoodic owns two wins in the race’s fall counterpart, the International Gold Cup.

Clifton Down is “speedy” in Smithwick

Another relative NSA newcomer, Runnymoore Racing’s Clifton Down showed spark when he finished a distant second to runaway winner Lightning Ridge in his stakes debut at three in the Alston Cup at Charleston last fall. After a close second to Hold Hard to begin 2024 at the Old Dominion Hounds meet in April, the Irish-bred was untouchable in the $50,000 Speedy Smithwick Memorial four-year-old stakes, romping by 10 ¼ lengths for the rider-trainer tandem of Bargary and Young. The 2-1 favorite moved up to second after the opening mile, took command on the final turn, and extended his advantage after the final fence. Layton Register’s Haint Blue (Bernie Dalton), who broke her maiden at Aiken in her NSA debut in March, was second. The aforementioned Lightning Ridge was third after leading for a mile and a half.

Southpaw Mike, Kitten Around, Juulstone rise to the top in maiden claimers

The Gold Cup card featured a trio of $20,000 optional claiming hurdles for maidens, with jockey Stephen Mulqueen and trainer Keri Brion combining for two of them. In the second race, Joseph Fowler’s Southpaw Mike came from off the pace at 14-1 under Bernie Dalton to defeat Hurricana Farm’s Fingal (Ryan Treacy) by 4 lengths for trainer Kate Dalton. In the eighth, Upland Flats Racing, Darkhorse Racing, and The International Venture’s Kitten Around outgutted Clarke Ohrstrom’s Giantsbane (Virginia Korrell), to prevail by a half length under Mulqueen, who struck again in the finale with Christopher LaBerge and USA Steeplechase’s Juulstone. The latter came on with a flourish at the final fence to defeat Turks Head Turf’s Exuma (Dan Nevin) by a length and three-quarters.

Kelmscott beats back big field in maiden special weights hurdle

Silverton Hill’s flashy gray son of European Group 1 classic winner Mastercraftsman was never worse than third in the field of 10, drew even with pro-tem leader Noble Speaker on the final turn, then took charge over the final fence. But the race tightened considerably when Jacqueline Ohrstrom’s 14-1 Blue Nile, under Virginia Korrell, closed powerfully to come within 1 ¼ lengths of the winner. Paddy O’Hanlon, riding for trainer Leslie Young, earned his fourth victory of the season.

Hold Hard makes it two for two in 2024

Rolling Tide’s Hold Hard, 7-1, gave jockey Bernie Dalton his second winner on the card following a spirited duel with Gill Johnston’s Pure Courage (Elizabeth Scully) in a $45,000 hurdle event for non-winners of two races. The margin of victory was three-quarters of a length. Pure Courage, who set the pace for a mile and a half, battled gamely but was simply outfinished by the Doug Fout-trainee, who was exiting a maiden score at the Old Dominion Hounds meet in April where he defeated, among others, Speedy Smithwick Memorial Stakes winner Clifton Down.

Crealion is last man standing in $20,000 Steeplethon

Plenty of odd things have happened during the running of the Steeplethon over mixed obstacles at Great Meadow over the years. And on Saturday it was no different when two of the four runners went off course and the winner, Sheila Fisher and Northwoods Stable’s Storm Team, missed a beacon and was subsequently disqualified. When the dust cleared, it was Armata Stables’ runner up, Crealion, trained and ridden by Tom Garner, who was declared the winner in his first NSA start following 29 in Europe.

Crealion, a French-bred eight-year-old, led most of the 3-mile contest after betting favorite Court Ruler and recent My Lady’s Manor Stakes winner Our Friend went off course midway through. From there on, Storm Team and Graham Watters tracked Crealion closely over the timber and natural brush fences and through Swan Lake. Storm Team assumed the lead two fences from home, crossing the wire 2 ½ lengths in front. But after review, stewards disqualified the winner for missing a beacon.

Benefits of Virginia-Certified Residency Program to be on Display at Upcoming Colonial Downs Summer Meet

A newly released study commissioned by the Virginia Equine Alliance demonstrates the significant impact of the Virginia-Certified Residency Program for thoroughbreds on Virginia’s economy.

According to the study, the program has generated an estimated economic impact of $86.2 million between 2017 – 2023. 

The program requires out-of-state thoroughbred horses to reside at least six consecutive months (prior to turning three years old) at a Virginia farm to receive a certification as a Virginia-certified thoroughbred horse. Upon completion of their residency, those horses then qualify to receive bonuses in eligible races.

“This is a significant total, especially taking into consideration that the program is still relatively new,” said Debbie Easter, President of the Virginia Equine Alliance. “The program didn’t begin until 2017, yet already is demonstrating its value.” 

Hundreds of Virginia horse farms participate in the program, receiving income from horse owners and breeders from outside of the state. 

More than 5,000 horses have participated in the Virginia-Certified Residency program since its inception. 

The large pool of Certified horses to draw from is now evident in the 2024 Colonial Downs Condition Book. Six Virginia-Restricted stakes with combined purse money of $750,000 will be offered during the summer meet in New Kent which begins July 11. The Hickory Tree and Keswick Stakes — two-year-old dirt sprints — will be held August 3 while a four-pack of Handicap events for older horses will be contested on Commonwealth Stakes Day, August 31. The Meadow Stable, Camptown, Bert Allen and Nellie Mae Cox each have a purse of $150,000. 

A total of 40 Virginia-restricted overnight races will also be offered in the first Condition Book which covers the first 16 days of a 27-day meet. Fourteen maiden special weight races, with a purse of $75,000 each, are listed along with a variety of others including six allowance races. 

Highlights of the new study include: From 2017-2023:

*The direct spending of the program was estimated at $54.5 million for the seven years from 2017 to 2023. These spending activities generated ripple (indirect plus induced) effects yielding a total economic impact of $86.2 million. 

*The program generated an estimated $1.8 million in tax revenue for the state government.

*The cumulative economic impact is 5.9 times larger than the total incentive payout, representing a strong return on investment in the program. 

The Virginia-Certified Residency Program for thoroughbreds is just one component of Virginia’s thriving horse breeding and racing industry. 

For more information on the Virginia Certified program and bonus incentives visit www.virginiahorseracing.com.

The study was commissioned by the Virginia Equine Alliance, the industry’s organizational body that promotes the horse racing and breeding industry throughout the state. Chmura Economics and Analytics (Chmura), a research consulting firm in Richmond, Virginia, conducted the study. 

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About Virginia Equine Alliance

The Virginia Equine Alliance is the state sanctioned organization representing horse racing throughout the state. The Alliance is a non-profit, 501(c)6 organization comprised of the Virginia Harness Horse Association, Virginia Horsemen’s Benevolent & Protective Association, Virginia Gold Cup Association and Virginia Thoroughbred Association. Virginia Equine Alliance’s primary mission is to sustain, promote an expand the horse breeding and horse racing industry in the Commonwealth of Virginia. 

About Chmura Economics and Analytics

Chmura Economics and Analytics is a consultation business providing labor market software, consulting, and data, so you can make informed decisions that grow your community. Chmura’s staff consist of PhD economists, data scientists, and strategic planners who are able to guide client’s local labor market.