Editor’s note: This feature has been updated to reflect Donna Barton Brothers’ announcement that she would retire from NBC Sports, where she has covered Triple Crown races for the past 26 years, following the 2026 Preakness Stakes. Donna Barton Brothers did not set out to follow the path blazed by her mother, Patti, by becoming a jockey. And yet she rode from 1987-98 and ranked as the second-leading money earner of all time among women when she retired.
Category: Horse Racing News
Triple Crown Turning Point: A Claimer, a Crafty Admiral, and a Colt Named Affirmed
With a superstar young jockey, dueling rivals, and electrifying finishes, the 1978 Triple Crown stands out among the other 12 on the strength of the sheer thrills and chills that Affirmed and Alydar brought each time they met on the racetrack.
JANE MANGAN: It’s Day Two at Punchestown and two chasing superstars clash for the fourth time this season in the Gold Cup – here’s who I think will have the edge
Where else to start today but with the Ladbrokes Punchestown Gold Cup, the best race of the week. It's the rematch between Gaelic Warrior and Fact To File.
On the Rise: Sofia Thompson, Assistant to Trainer Riley Mott
Sofia Thompson knew little to nothing about the racing industry until a summer job several years ago, working as a hotwalker in the barn of Hall of Famer Bill Mott, changed the course of her life.
