Bet to win.
Wolverhampton 7.0 City Escape – win bet.
Month: December 2022
12 Questions: Sue Finley
Sue Morris Finley, Publisher & CEO of the Thoroughbred Daily News, spent her childhood driving back and forth to Aqueduct, Belmont and Saratoga with her family. In 1993, she was part of the team that took over the production of the Thoroughbred Daily News, and oversaw its move to Red Bank, NJ, becoming its co-publisher. For 12 years, she was the First Vice President of the Thoroughbred Retirement Foundation, a national organization dedicated to the humane retirement of former racehorses, and served three years on the board of the Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance.
What was your racing highlight of the year?
Unquestionably, Flightline's Breeders' Cup. I bought my Breeders' Cup tickets early, made sure to get outdoor seating so I could see him in person, and then kept my fingers and toes crossed all year that he would make it. It was worth the wait.
What is one moment in 2022 that you haven't gotten over yet?
The turmoil over HISA. I feel as if all of our lives and careers are hanging in the balance, and no one is in charge.
Who, if anyone, do you think was the equine breakout star of the year?
Forte. Totally in command in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile to win his third Grade I. Wow.
What about a human breakout star?
It's a tie among the 26 incredible people who work at the TDN. Their journalistic skills and dedication to their jobs are second to none, and they've driven us to another record year. It's an honor to work with them all.
Favorite international meet?
I love going to the races at Deauville during the Arqana summer yearling sale, but I think my favorite day at the races ever was at a small track outside of Berlin called Hoppegarten. Not only did almost everyone at the track bring their dog to the races with them, but they all stood and applauded each horse as they came back from the race—win or lose.
Favorite Thoroughbred of all time?
It's a tie. Affirmed, because my parents took me to see the 1978 Belmont Stakes and it kindled my love for the sport. And Renaissance Bob, who we rescued from a slaughter auction and who went on to spend 23 years at the TRF's Wallkill Correctional Facility, helping incarcerated men to change their lives. Both chestnuts, incidentally.
What is one change you'd like to see happen in racing in the foreseeable future?
I would like to see video replays made freely accessible everywhere. How can we promote the sport when we can't see it and show it to others?
What or who surprised you the most this year? Could be a performance, a stallion, a sales price, etc.
Sharp Azteca, who's currently number one on the first-crop list with 34 winners!
You get to have one conversation with someone deceased in the racing industry. Who are you talking to and what's the topic?
My dad. I'm counting him as being in the industry since he was one of our most important assets: a die-hard fan and a $2 bettor who loved nothing more than coming home with a $10 profit after a long day at the track. And because I'd give anything to talk to my dad again.
What was the biggest lesson you learned in 2022?
Don't count your chickens.
Finally, what are you most looking forward to in 2023?
Discovering the next Flightline. Is it too early to start looking for him?
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Lured By Huge Purses, British Rider McEntee to Debut at Turfway
Unless you are riding in the very best races for the best stables, it's not easy being a jockey in Great Britain. Prize money in the bread-and-butter races is dreadful and, even in these lower-level events, the competition for mounts can be fierce. Four years into her career, 22-year-old jockey Grace McEntee had had enough. In search of a better life, she booked a one-way ticket to Kentucky and will begin the next stage of her career Saturday at Turfway Park when she makes her U.S. debut.
“This is very exciting,” said McEntee, who will be joined in the Turfway riding colony by her boyfriend, Tyler Heard. “I have never been to the States before. It will be a completely new world for me and I just want to make the most of the opportunities. I've been riding over here for four years now and I feel I'm at the stage where I'm ready to go on and do something in America. The prize money and the opportunities at home are a lot more limited than they are in America. I'm young enough and in a position where I could move to America and try to take advantage of all the opportunities here.”
McEntee is the daughter of Newmarket trainer Phil McEntee and began riding in 2019. She was neither a star nor a bust, settling in somewhere near the middle of the pack when it came to British riders. She won 24 races in 2021 and 24 this year from 224 mounts.
“I'd get plenty of regular rides, but not in stakes races or in the bigger handicaps,” she said. “The jockeys are so good and so competitive there are very few opportunities at the higher levels. Everyone wants to use one of the top jockeys.”
McEntee's earnings this year were £153,958. She said that jockeys in the U.K. get 8 percent of their horse's earnings, making her 2022 paycheck from prize-money £12,316. That comes out to $14,864.
For McEntee, choosing Kentucky over other U.S. circuits was an easy choice. Not only is the purse money good but she has a number of relatives there who can help her out. Her first Turfway mount will be in Saturday's Gowell S., where she will ride Baytown Lovely (Fast Anna) for Paul McEntee, who is her uncle. Her brother, Jake, is an assistant to trainer Kenny McPeek. She has two other uncles working in Kentucky, one a bloodstock advisor, the other a farm manager.
McEntee was set to travel to Kentucky on Friday and to make her way to the Turfway backstretch Saturday morning to work horses and meet trainers. She has hired Jose Santos Jr. to be her agent. She should not have any trouble adjusting to Turfway's Tapeta surface as many of her winners in the U.K. have come over all-weather surfaces. McEntee said she doesn't know yet if she will stay here permanently and will decide after she sees how much business she gets.
The purse for the Gowell is $125,000 and Baytown Lovely is 20-1 in the morning line. She said she will have a mount on Sunday's card for trainer John Ortiz. The goal is to meet as many trainers as possible and to convince them to give her a chance. She doesn't have to ride in seven races a day. Thanks in large part to the revenue that comes in from Historical Horse Racing machines, maidens go for $70,000 at Turfway and the purse for allowance races is in the neighborhood of $75,000. There's plenty of money to go around. By way of comparison, McEntee's most recent winner came in a Dec. 29 race at Southwell and the purse was the equivalent of $9,000.
“It's pretty simple,” she said. “I can have a better life in the States.”
The post Lured By Huge Purses, British Rider McEntee to Debut at Turfway appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.
12 Questions: Padraic Gahan
First job in the Thoroughbred industry?
With Helen Markham a few miles from home in Grangecon, County Wicklow. I was only 14, but learned many lessons about horses and humans over the course of four years.
Biggest influence on your career?
That would be my father. He has been my sounding board for advice on Thoroughbreds and my life in the industry.
Favourite racehorse of all time, and why?
Kauto Star. He was the horse that gave me that warm, fuzzy feeling about this as a sport.
Who will be champion first-season sire in 2023?
I will go with Blue Point. He appears to have covered sufficient mares, and sufficient quality mares, to do it and they seem to have found themselves in good hands. The ones that I encountered had a toughness to them.
Greatest race in the world?
The Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe.
If you could be someone else in the industry for a day, who would it be, and why?
Probably one of my longest friends Jerry Horan. Because you would be guaranteed to have a story to tell after the day!
Emerging talent in the industry (human)?
There are too many to name. It is a fantastic time for young people who are making their mark in all facets of the industry. Some of them are not seen at the races or at the sales; they are in the stables or on the studs. I work with some of them at Baroda Stud.
Name a horse TDN should have made a Rising Star, and didn't?
Bayside Boy. He also embarks on his stud career at Ballylinch Stud in 2023.
Under-the-radar stallion?
I think that Due Diligence punches above his weight and has his best crop of 2-year-olds to represent him next year.
Friday night treat?
A pint of Guinness.
Guilty pleasure outside racing?
Going to a rugby match or playing 18 holes.
Race I wish I'd been there for?
I have had some brilliant days racing with colleagues and friends but a recent one was when Imaginarium, who I bred, won a Curragh maiden in October.
The post 12 Questions: Padraic Gahan appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.
