April, 2023 | Horse Racing Free Tips

‘We Have Listened’: Horseshoe Indianapolis To Drop Jackpot, Add Second Pick 5 To Wagering Menu

Horseshoe Indianapolis in Shelbyville, Ind., is always seeking ways to take racing to the next level. One of the most important aspects to the team is customer satisfaction. Track management has listened to those who support the racing program in Indiana. As a result, a few changes will be implemented when racing resumes at 2:30 p.m. ET Tuesday, April 18, for the 21^st season of racing.

“Our team stays engaged with customers year-round and there's no question that the single most requested change from many of our best players was to eliminate the Jackpot Straight Fire 6,” said Eric Halstrom, vice president and general manager of racing. “We have listened and are taking the Jackpot Pick 6 off the wagering format in 2023. It will be replaced with an additional Pick 5 on the first five Thoroughbred races daily and we think this will be a win-win for both our customers and horsemen.”

The Late Fire 5 joins the current Pick 5, which moves to the first five Thoroughbred races on the program. Both wagers will offer an industry low takeout of 11.99 percent, a very well received option by racing customers two years ago. Each racing program will also retain two pick four wagers on the card, with the first Pick 4 held starting on the second Thoroughbred race and the late Pick 4 scheduled for the last four Thoroughbred races on the card. Both Pick 4 wagers also have a reduced takeout of 15 percent. All four wagers begin with a 50-cent minimum and provide separate pools, each with their own carryovers.

“We realize that sometimes our two Pick 5 wagers will overlap in the middle of our program, but we feel this is an additional wager our fans will embrace,” added Halstrom. “By offering lower takeouts, an additional Pick 5, and adjusting our post times to work around other tracks running, we feel this is a good combination to engage and enhance our racing presentation to our wagering customers.”

In addition to the Pick 5 and Pick 4 wagers, the exotic wagering format also includes a rolling Pick 3 and Daily Double from the first race on, including the Quarter Horse races, a Grand Hi 5 (top five finishers in one race) beginning in the sixth race on the remaining Thoroughbred races daily, and a Grand Hi-5 on all Quarter Horse races. Each of the Grand Hi 5 wagers offer a 10-cent minimum and provide carryovers.

The 21^st season of live Thoroughbred and Quarter Horse racing will resume Tuesday, April 18 for a 123-day meet. The season extends through Friday, Nov. 17. Live racing will be held Monday through Wednesday at 2:30 p.m. with Thursday post time set for 2:10 p.m. Saturday racing will be held during the summer months featuring six all-Quarter Horse dates June 3, July 1, July 22, Aug. 12, Sept. 2, and Oct. 7 beginning at 10:45 a.m. Indiana's featured event, the Grade 3 $300,000 Indiana Derby is set for Saturday, July 8 with a first post time of 12 p.m. For more information on live racing at Horseshoe Indianapolis, visit www.caesars.com/horseshoe-indianapolis.

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Who Will Be This Year’s Leading First-Crop Sire?

From this year's class, which freshman sire will emerge on top? And what sire currently flying under the radar will be the year's biggest surprise? With 2-year-old sales season upon us, over the next few days, we will be hearing from some of the experts.

NIALL BRENNAN

Top Pick: Vino Rosso (Curlin–Mythical Bride, by Street Cry {Ire}). Spendthrift Farm, 2023 fee: $15,000.

The Mitoles were popular at the yearling sales and they sold well at the OBS March sale. They look like they will be early types. There will be some pressure on him because the expectation for him will be for him to get quite a few 2-year-old winners. I have a Vino Rosso who is quite nice. I'll pick Vino Rosso and the reason is, he was a very good racehorse and has the pedigree. He was a very good older horse. But from what we've seen so far, they have quite a bit of maturity and look like they could be summer 2-year-olds. That's impressive for a stallion where you might think they'll be better later on. From the Vino Rossos, I am seeing athleticism and mental maturity. It's between Mitole and Vino Ross, but I'll give the edge to Vino Rosso.

Under-the-radar pick: Demarchelier (Dubawi {Ire}–Loveisallyouneed {Ire}, by Sadler's Wells). Claiborne Farm, 2023 fee: $5,000.

My under-the-radar pick will be Demarchelier, a son of Dubawi who stands at Claiborne. He was an excellent racehorse in the making who won his first three starts before he got hurt. That reminds me of Danzig, who only had three starts and was retired. I'm not comparing him to Danzig. I'm just saying it is a similar story. He's the only son of Dubawi to stand over here and he had a lot of talent. I bred a mare to him because I thought he was a super value. Like Oscar Performance, he's going to have to step up and prove himself because he's a turf horse standing in America. They are average-sized, which he was. I have two that I really like. They are sharp and forward. I saw a couple breeze well at the March sale. I wouldn't be surprised if he comes up with four or five nice 2-year-old winners on the grass. He has the quality to do that. He has the potential to break out and have some really nice turf horses.

CARRIE BROGDEN

Top pick: Audible (Into Mischief–Blue Devil Bel, by Gilded Time). WinStar Farm, 2023 fee: $25,000.

I think that every year, the early chatter about who is good and who is going to struggle is very telling, so I have learned to listen to that. Last year in January and February, all the talk was about Bolt d'Oro. The year before in January and February, it was Gun Runner. So we bred three mares to him on his bubble year, off the early chatter. So I'm going to have to go with the horse that everyone was talking about, and that was Audible. With Bolt d'Oro, every single person you talked to had one they liked. I felt that was the case this year with Audible. At Saratoga, we sold an Audible filly to MyRacehorse named Lady Blitz, and I bought a microshare just to keep up with her. She has just gone to Todd Pletcher's barn and she is the real deal. Now, full disclosure: I have a share in Audible, but we have shares in a lot of stallions. Before the speed works and everything, that early chatter tells you who the horses are that like to train.

Under-the-radar pick: Maximus Mischief (Into Mischief–Reina Maria, by Songandaprayer). Spendthrift Farm: 2023 fee: $7,500.

Once again, I'm very biased here. We pinhooked him, raised him, sold him at Saratoga, stayed in on him with Cary Frommer, and took him to the 2-year-old sale. He was very fast. I think his horses look just like him. I'm biased, but I do feel like he's got a big shot. He throws a very different physical than Audible, who seems to throw a stouter body type. He was slightly long, and he throws a big, long horse.

JARED HUGHES

Top pick: Omaha Beach (War Front–Charming, by Seeking the Gold). Spendthrift Farm, 2023 fee: $30,000.

I've liked Omaha Beach from the start and he hasn't disappointed at any step of the way. Great physical from a tremendous female family and they've looked like runners as weanlings, yearlings, and now 2-year-olds. I'm excited to see what he can do this year.

Under-the-radar pick: Solomini (Curlin–Surf Song, by Storm Cat). McMahon of Saratoga, 2023 fee: $6,500

The under-the-radar pick is tricky this year due to a lack of depth, but I've liked the Solominis. He was a good 2-year-old who finished first in a Grade I and looks like he could be a standout in the New York market. Curlin is hot as a sire of sires right now with Good Magic waving the flag with three in the Derby.

Want to send in your first-crop sire selections? Email suefinley@thetdn.com.

In tomorrow's TDN: more first-crop sire picks (and lots of red, red wine).

The post Who Will Be This Year’s Leading First-Crop Sire? appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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KHRC Rules Committee Recommends Tweaks to Partnership Requirements

The rules committee of the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission (KHRC) on Tuesday advanced a recommendation to amend the state's horse ownership regulations to do away with a requirement that no more than five individuals can be licensed as owners of a single horse.

In addition, a separate tweak would codify that up to 10 individual owners or entities may be listed in the track program as owners of a single horse. That limit was previously five, and it was based on the above-referenced regulation that also stated if more than five individual persons owned interests in a horse, one person was to be named as the licensed representative.

But now, in any horse ownership involving two or more owners, one of the members would have to be designated as the licensed principal owner.

And yet another change would do away with the requirement that partnership groups “shall” register with the commission. The recommended amendment would require partnership registration only “if requested by the stewards or the commission.”

Another subtle shift has to do with any kind of joint venture, such as stable names, partnerships or corporations. The new language would state that they “may be listed in the program with the principal owner's name shown parenthetically.”

The KHRC rules committee approved all of those proposed changes by unanimous voice vote at the Apr. 11 meeting. The measures still must be acted upon by the full KHRC board before they go into effect.

“What we're suggesting is that we change [the existing rule] to state that there's no specific limit on the number of people who can be licensed,” said Jennifer Wolsing, the general counsel for the KHRC. “But if we have more than two people who own interests in a single horse, then they have to designate a member of that partnership to be the licensed principal owner.”

And in terms of partnerships and their registration, Wolsing added, “We are basically saying these partnerships do not have to register unless requested by stewards of the commission itself.”

Furthermore, if you are a syndicate or partnership member who owns a very minor or micro-share of a horse, but would like to still be licensed individually, there is nothing stopping you from doing so.

“Anybody [other than the principal owner] who is in that partnership can obtain a license by going to the license office [and] writing the horse's name on an application,” said KHRC chief state steward Barbara Borden. “But I don't think [the stewards] would require anybody who hasn't divulged ownership [via syndicate] in the horse to obtain a license.”

The KHRC rules committee first took up this subject back in January, when KHRC commissioner Charlie O'Connor said he had “been approached by several ownership groups that we make room for more names” in the program.

“As syndicate groups in this country are becoming a big deal, [people] who invest their money in the horse business want to see their name on a program,” O'Connor said at that time.

The KHRC rules committee couldn't come up with an immediate solution at the January meeting. But now, three months later, O'Connor said he was pleased with the proposed rule amendments.

“I think that covers what we're trying to achieve here, because we've all been blown up about this,” O'Connor said. “It's a very important thing for these owners.”

Anna Seitz, a rules committee member who works with Fasig-Tipton and with international syndicates, said “I think it will help get new owners, honestly.”

Prior to the meeting's adjournment, Seitz floated another idea: Would there be any chance that Kentucky might swap out its annual license renewal requirement and go to three-year licensure, like in New York?

Frank Jones, Jr., a KHRC commissioner who chairs the rules committee, said he wasn't sure why the requirement exists as a one-year renewal. But he agreed that the committee should look into it.

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Blue Grass Winner Tapit Trice Puts Pletcher Runners 1-2 In NTRA 3-Year-Old Poll

Week 11 of the 2023 NTRA Top 3-Year-Old Thoroughbred Poll and the NTRA Top Thoroughbred Poll conducted by the National Thoroughbred Racing Association (NTRA), covering racing performances through April 9. Voting is conducted by national media.

The 3-Year-Old poll represents horses competing up and through the Triple Crown.

The Top Thoroughbred poll represents horses competing for Horse of the Year. The Top Thoroughbred Poll concludes on Tuesday, Nov. 7 following the Breeders' Cup World Championships.

Rankings on both polls are on a 10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-1 basis with first place votes in parentheses, 2023 record and total points. A-S: Age-Sex, Sex: C-colt, G-gelding, H-horse, F-filly, M-mare, R-ridgling.

The victory by Tapit Trice in the Grade 1 Toyota Blue Grass Stakes on April 8 gave trainer Todd Pletcher the top two spots and three of the top five in the 3-Year-Old poll, with G1 Florida Derby winner and reigning champion Forte maintaining his No. 1 position. Pletcher-trained Kingsbarns occupies the No. 5 spot following his G2 TwinSpires Louisiana Derby win on March 25.

Two horses moved into the top 10 for the first time. Blue Grass runner-up Verifying jumped up to No. 8 from 32, joining fellow Brad Cox runner Angel of Empire, winner of the G1 Arkansas Derby on April 1 and ranked at No. 4. Japanese-bred Mandarin Hero, who came up a nose short of Practical Move in the G1 Runhappy Santa Anita Derby on April 8, made the list for the first time after his U.S. debut.

Other horses receiving votes: MAGE (66 points), HIT SHOW (25), WET PAINT (24), LORD MILES (24), FAIZA (22), ARABIAN KNIGHT (14), CAVE ROCK (12), SKINNER (11), MUNNYS GOLD (9), ROCKET CAN (7), REINCARNATE (5), BLAZING SEVENS (4), DISARM (2), CYCLONE MISCHIEF (2), GEAUX ROCKET RIDE (2), AFFIRMATIVE LADY (1)

In the Top Thoroughbred Poll, 2022 champion male sprinter Elite Power remained at No. 1 off his lone 2023 start, an impressive victory in the G3 Riyadh Dirt Sprint on the Saudi Cup card at King Abdulaziz racecourse in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

Other horses receiving votes: FORTE (51 points), DEFUNDED (46), SIBELIUS (40), PROXY (37), A MO REAY (34), CARAVEL (34), TAIBA (25), MODERN GAMES (21), CLAIRIERE (17), ENDORSED (15), IN ITALIAN (14), TAPIT TRICE (12), WAR LIKE GODDESS (10), STAINLESS STEEL (9), EMMANUEL (8), PRACTICAL MOVE (8), DOPPELGANGER (8), MATAREYA (7), ATONE (6), GUNITE (4), SPOOKY CHANNEL (2), AMAZING GRACE (1), CHARGE IT (1)

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