Horse Racing News | Horse Racing Free Tips

Hong Kong On Skalleti Agenda

Jean-Claude Seroul’s Skalleti (Fr) (Kendargent {Fr}) could target the Hong Kong International meeting on Dec. 13 off the back of his second-place finish in the G1 Champion S. last weekend.

The 5-year-old gelding-who stays in training next year-was trying Group 1 company for the first time in the Champion. He has won nine of his last 12 starts including six black-type races and two runnings of the G2 Prix Dollar. He has been off the board just once in 16 starts.

“You always go to the races with a lot of confidence with this horse, because he always gives you everything,” said trainer Jerome Reynier. “He had the conditions to suit [at Ascot], because he handles that sticky ground well. To be fair, he is good on soft and heavy, straight tracks or right or left-handed, and he has even been winning on Polytrack–he’s just an amazing horse.

“Now the question is whether we go to Hong Kong with him. He hasn’t had a big campaign this year, because he only started in May and had two light starts on good ground before we started to step things up in August. We could now be aiming for Hong Kong, where I will enter him in the Hong Kong Cup over a mile and a quarter and the Hong Kong Vase over a mile and a half. You have to stay really well over a mile and a quarter at Ascot on that sort of ground, and he wasn’t fading out–when Magical came to him he kept going to finish second. I think he would stay a mile and a half on good ground in Hong Kong. Everyone is saying the races will not be as competitive this year, because the Japanese horses are not so good and the local level isn’t so strong either, so this could be the year to try it.”

Skalleti’s trainer is already eyeing a return to Ascot for next year’s G1 Prince of Wales’s S.

“The owner really wants to keep him in one piece and doesn’t want to try silly things, so I can understand if he decides to put him away for next year,” Reynier said. “We could aim for the [G1] Prix Ganay in France in April, and everyone is saying we should consider the Prince of Wales’s S. in June, because sometimes it’s raining and they can get soft ground. We will definitely consider that, because there is no option in France at that time of year.”

The post Hong Kong On Skalleti Agenda appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Source of original post

‘Poise and Stride’ Published by Joe Osborne

Poise and Stride, a book of 41 short essays based on Joe Osborne’s observations from business, entertainment and sport during his 40-year career, has been published by Osborne, Managing Director of Godolphin Ireland. Originally written as contributions to the Godolphin Flying Start quarterly newsletter ‘Time Flies’, all proceeds from the sale of this book will go to Racing Academy & Centre of Education (RACE) in Kildare Town. The academy, a registered charity, was established by Joe’s father Michael Osborne in 1973 with Stan Cosgrove and Derek O’Sullivan. The forward is written by RACE graduate, former champion jockey turned trainer Johnny Murtagh, with illustrations by Declan Considine. The book is available for €20 (plus postage) by emailing RACE at poiseandstride@racingacademy.ie or by contacting their office at +353 45 522468.

“This project has been a labour of love and a welcome distraction during the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Osborne. “The essays cover a diverse range of topics and I hope that the core messages in them will resonate with readers. My family has a longstanding link with RACE, so this is an opportunity to support the academy and to highlight the great work they are doing.”

The post ‘Poise and Stride’ Published by Joe Osborne appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Source of original post

Del Mar Lowers Pick Six Minimum Wager To 50 Cents For Fall Meet

Following strong growth in its Pick Four and Pick Five bets when they were shifted to a 50¢ wager, Del Mar will change its traditional $2 Pick Six bet to a 50¢ one with the start of its fall race meeting on Saturday, October 31.

Otherwise, the seaside oval will conduct its seventh Bing Crosby Season with the same betting format it has presented at all its recent meets, offering 17 different ways to wager during the 15-day session that will run through Sunday, November 29.

The Pick Six, first introduced to Del Mar in 1980, is one of the track's most popular bets for those who like to “take a swing” at a difficult – but potentially very rewarding – wager where the bettor has to select each winner of the last six races on the day's card. Payouts of six-figures – and occasionally even seven-figures – have become part of the lure and lore of the bet.

“We think our shift to the 50¢ bet will make our Pick Six even more accessible and more exciting to a broad cross section of our fans,” said Bill Navarro, Del Mar's director of mutuels. “When we went to the 50¢ bet with our other two big exotics – the Pick 4 and the Pick 5 – the betting quickly swelled to double digit increases. They are our most favored bets right now and we foresee a similar enhancement happening with the Pick Six.”

Under the previous Pick Six arrangement, the payout was 70% of the pool to the winner(s), 15% to consolations (those with the next-most winners) and 15% to the track's “Jackpot” pool, where a separate pot grows and is only paid out in the case of a single-ticket winner. With the new Pick Six presentation the breakdown will be 80% to the winner(s) and 20% to the “Jackpot” pool. If there are no winners (6 of 6), the 80% of the pool is carried over to the next day (the same as the track's Pick 5 bet).

The betting menu starts with the traditional win, place and show wagers and expands out to popular exotic bets mentioned above.

The full array of Del Mar bets is as follows: $2 win, place and show (on all races); $1 Exacta (all); $2 Quinella (all); 50¢ Trifecta (all); $2 Rolling Doubles (all but last); 50¢ Rolling Pick 3 (all but last two); $1 Superfecta (10¢ minimum – all); $1 Place Pick All (all); $1 Super High Five (last); 50¢ Jackpot Pick Six (last six); 50¢ Pick 5 (first five, last five); 50¢ Pick 4 (second through fifth, last four); $2 Win-Place-Show Parlay (all but last).

After its Saturday/Sunday opening, the track will present three weekends of Friday-Saturday-Sunday cards, then finish up the meet with a four-day run beginning with the Thursday (November 26) Thanksgiving program.

First post daily will be at 12:30 p.m. throughout the stand with the exception of the Thanksgiving Day holiday and its early 11 a.m. start time.

The post Del Mar Lowers Pick Six Minimum Wager To 50 Cents For Fall Meet appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post

Stud Fees Announced for Darley’s U.S. Stallions; Medaglia d’Oro Lowered to $150k

Stud fees have been announced for Darley’s U.S. stallions in 2021, with leading sire Medaglia d’Oro set to stand for $150,000. He stood the 2020 season for $200,000. He is currently the number one yearling sire in North America by both average and median and was represented by four million dollar-plus offerings in 2020, the same number he was represented by in 2019.

“These are trying times breeders are facing,” said Darley Sales Manager Darren Fox. “We gave great consideration to this when setting our fees to reflect the economic reality of today. Breeders are attempting to navigate a sales environment that is both unpredictable and difficult. Subsequently, all but one of our stallions will see a decrease in stud fee from last year. We sincerely appreciate the past support from breeders, and we are looking forward to a better and brighter 2021.”

First-crop sire phenomenon Nyquist will stand for a fee of $75,000 in 2021 after commanding $40,000 this year. His 10 juvenile winners to date include GI Spinaway S. winner Vequist and GI Summer S. winner Gretzky the Great, both slated to run in the Breeders’ Cup next month. Not since Danzig in 1984 has a stallion had two Grade I winners so early in his career.

Darley’s 2021 Roster (Stud Fee)
Medaglia d’Oro ($150,000)
Nyquist ($75,000)
Street Sense ($60,000)
Bernardini ($35,000)
Hard Spun ($35,000)
Frosted ($25,000)
Street Boss ($15,000)
Astern ($7,500)
Enticed ($7,500)
Midshipman ($7,500)

The post Stud Fees Announced for Darley’s U.S. Stallions; Medaglia d’Oro Lowered to $150k appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Source of original post