Dangerous air quality conditions caused by wildfires in Canada have forced the cancellation of the live racing programs at Hawthorne Race Course in suburban Chicago and at Horseshoe Indianapolis further to the south and east.
“Based on the poor air quality in Indiana today's races have been canceled,” a tweet from the track read. “This decision was made mutually with our horsemen based on the safety of the participants in our racing program coming first. A decision on bringing today's races back will be made shortly.”
Track announcer John Dooley tweeted a graphic from WRTV in Indianapolis indicating that the air quality index (AQI) in the state capitol was a 'very unhealthy' 257 as of 8 a.m. ET Wednesday. Racing is scheduled to return Thursday at 2:10 p.m. ET.
“Safety and consideration for our equine and human athletes always comes first, no matter what the circumstances are,” said Eric Halstrom, Vice President and General Manager of Racing. “We are fortunate to have a great partnership with our racing organizations, and as a group, we decided this decision was the best for everyone involved. We even want to take into consideration the safety of our racing fans who enjoy sitting trackside to watch the horses.”
The AQI as of 7 a.m. ET in Cicero, Illinois, was also in the very unhealthy range at 218, according to Hawthorne's Jim Miller, prompting track officials to take a similar decision. Miller said racing is expected to return Thursday.
Racing at Belterra Park near Cincinnati, at Presque Isle Downs in Erie, Pennyslyvania, and at JACK Thistledown outside of Cleveland was also called off.
Tracks on the eastern seaboard were also forced to cancel racing over the last few weeks, the result of wildfires in Eastern Canada.
For comparison sakes. A normal day @ClubHawthorne w/ the Chicago skyline behind me and then what it currently looks like today. Needless to say, horse and human health far more important and no live racing today. pic.twitter.com/zqOVamdRzx
The fan-voted G1 Takarazuka Kinen drew no fewer than eight Group 1 winners, but the spotlight was squarely on Silk Racing's world number one Equinox (Jpn) (Kitasan Black {Jpn}), who was making his first start since decimating a world-class field in the G1 Longines Dubai Sheema Classic at Meydan in late March. At the end of 2200 metres in front of a reported crowd of 45,000 at Hanshin Racecourse Sunday afternoon, the baldy faced 4-year-old did not disappoint, overcoming a wide trip that was very much by design before holding off longshot Through Seven Seas (Jpn) (Dream Journey {Jpn}) in the waning strides. Leading stayer Justin Palace (Jpn) (Deep Impact {Jpn}) outfinished the regally bred Geraldina (Jpn) (Maurice {Jpn}) for third.
Drawn neatly in gate five in a race that has not been kind to favourites of late, the 1.30 (3-10) chalk secured a midfield position passing the stands for the first time, but drifted back through the pack as 2011 runner-up Unicorn Lion (Ire) (No Nay Never) and the 3-year-old Dura Erede (Jpn) (Duramente {Jpn}) set off at a brisk gallop that saw the opening four furlongs traversed in :46.6.
In the company of Geraldina and Through Seven Seas at the tail of the field as they reached the halfway point, Equinox was still ridden quietly by Christophe Lemaire and they raced with cover before steering out at the 600-metre pole. Happy to sacrifice that considerable ground loss for an uncheckered passage, Equinox was some nine or 10 wide off the final corner, but steamed down the centre of the course–the best ground on the afternoon–and went on to win cosily. Through Seven Seas did not have the luxury of clear sailing and was strung up in traffic at a crucial stage before rattling home to put at least a small scare into those that backed Equinox. Distant second betting choice Justin Palace, backing up significantly in trip after winning the G1 Tenno Sho over two miles last time, predictably kept on well for third.
Sunday's tactics were dramatically different from those used in Dubai three months ago, when they chose to lead with Equinox and he glided effortlessly away. In the end, Lemaire was happy to play the hand he was dealt.
“Though we were unable get a good position toward the front due to the fast pace at the beginning, the horse was relaxed in the rear and I wasn't worried at all,” Lemaire said. As the inner track condition was not so good, we made [our] bid from the outside early and turned wide to the straight where he stretched really well. Hanshin's inner course is tricky and the Takarazuka Kinen is a difficult race to win even for champion horses, so I'm very happy that I was able to win the race with the No. 1 horse in the World's Best Racehorse Rankings. I realized again how strong he is. I hope to win more big races with him in autumn.”
The victory earned Equinox a fees-paid berth into the GI Breeders' Cup Turf in November and also a spot in the G1 Cox Plate, though big-money events at home including the G1 Tenno Sho (Autumn), G1 Japan Cup and G1 Arima Kinen will naturally be strongly considered. Equinox skipped last year's Japan Cup, but was victorious in the other two races en route to being named Horse of the Year.
Pedigree Notes:
On behalf of Shadai Farm, bloodstock agent Patrick Barbe went to $410,000 to acquire Equinox's fourth dam, Blanche Reine (Fr) (Nureyev) in foal to Alleged at the 1988 Keeneland November Sale and the resulting produce was Maison Blanche, a stakes-placed earner of better than $931,000 for Kazuko Yoshida whose half-brother Balleroy (Kaldoun {Fr}) won the G3 Prix de Guiche and was second in the G1 Prix Jean Prat in 1991. The family remained fairly quiet until Maison Blanche's foal of 2010, Chateau Blanche, did her part to enhance the page, carrying theses same Silk Racing colours when defeating the top-class Marialite (Jpn) (Deep Impact {Jpn}) in Group 3 company in 2015.
Chateau Blanche is the dam of three winners from three to the races, a number that also includes Group 3 winner Weiss Meteor (Jpn) (King Kamehameha {Jpn}). She is also the dam of the 2-year-old filly Garza Blanca (Jpn) (Kizuna {Jpn}) and foaled a full-sister to Equinox Feb. 26.
Sunday, Hanshin, Japan TAKARAZUKA KINEN-G1, ¥423,280,000, Hanshin, 6-25, 3yo/up, 2200mT, 2:11.20, gd/fm.
1–EQUINOX (JPN), 128, c, 4, by Kitasan Black (Jpn) 1st Dam: Chateau Blanche (Jpn), by King Halo (Jpn) 2nd Dam: Blancherie (Jpn), by Tony Bin (Ire) 3rd Dam: Maison Blanche (Jpn), by Alleged
O-Silk Racing; B-Northern Farm; T-Tetsuya Kimura; J-Christophe Lemaire; ¥223,696,000. Lifetime Record: Horse of the Year & Ch. 3yo Colt-Jpn, G1SW-UAE, 8-6-2-0, $11,072,697. Werk Nick Rating: A+++ *Triple Plus*. Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree.Click for the free Equineline.com catalog-style pedigree.
2–Through Seven Seas (Jpn), 123, m, 5, Dream Journey (Jpn)–Mighty Slew (Jpn), by Kurofune. O-Carrot Farm; B-Northern Farm; ¥89,056,000.
3–Justin Palace (Jpn), 128, c, 4, Deep Impact (Jpn)–Palace Rumor, by Royal Anthem. (¥190,000,000 Ylg '20 JRHAJUL). O-Masahiro Miki; B-Northern Farm; ¥55,528,000.
Margins: NK, 1, HD. Odds: 0.30, 54.70, 7.50.
Also Ran: Geraldina (Jpn), Deep Bond (Jpn), Pradaria (Jpn), Boccherini (Jpn), Vela Azul (Jpn), Geoglyph (Jpn), Dura Erede (Jpn), Ask Victor More (Jpn), Breakup (Jpn), Danon the Kid (Jpn), Mozu Bello (Jpn), Unicorn Lion (Ire), Karate (Jpn), Lilac (Jpn). Click for the JRA chart.
Fan favorite Rated R Superstar (Kodiak Kowboy), a 13-time winner of over $1.8 million in a career that spanned nine seasons at the racetrack, has been retired and will take up residence at Old Friends Farm in Georgetown, Kentucky, according to a series of tweets from Allison Caldwell, the wife of trainer Danny Caldwell.
Rated R Superstar began his career in the barn of Ken McPeek and was third to Brody's Cause (Giant's Causeway) in the 2015 GI Claiborne Breeders' Futurity before finishing unplaced behind Nyquist (Uncle Mo) in the GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile. Winner of the GIII Carry Back S. in 2016, he added the GIII Ben Ali S. as a 5-year-old in 2018 and was claimed by Cipriano Contreras for $62,500 late that year. Winner of the 2019 Essex H., Rated R Superstar was haltered by Caldwell for $50,000 in January 2021 and posted his richest career victory in the 2022 GIII Essex H. A two-time winner of the Governor's Cup at Remington Park in 2021 and 2022, he was being aimed for a third try at that event, but Allison Caldwell tweeted that medication constructs dictated that he be retired “sound, healthy and happy.”
“Today is a bittersweet one, as @IloveFastHorses (Danny Caldwell) and I announce Rated R superstar's retirement to Old Friends,” Allison Caldwell said in the first of a three-tweet thread. “Owning Rated R has been one of the greatest gifts in our racing careers. He's a member of the family and we've always done things his way, in his best interest.
“As rule changes for Lasix this year, we feel an absence of therapeutic medication is not in the best interest for optimal health & performance. We're not in the habit of changing the things that are working for rules that do not benefit the health of our horses as individual.
“We are very excited about this next chapter and we ask that if you're in the area of Old Friends, please schedule a time to visit or make a donation on his behalf. He's a very social guy and he loves seeing his friends!”
In reply, Old Friends tweeted: “Allison, we are thrilled at the prospect of Rated R Superstar retiring to Old Friends. Thank you for trusting us with your boy!”
The Belmont at the Big A Fall Meet will offer 40 added-money events worth nearly $8.8 million, officials from the New York Racing Association announced Saturday.
Due to ongoing capital improvements at Belmont Park, the fall meeting will be staged for the second straight season at Aqueduct from Thursday, Sept. 14 through Sunday, Oct. 29, and will feature three Grade I events and a half-dozen 'Win and You're In' qualifiers in a variety of Breeders' Cup divisions.
The GIII Fasig-Tipton Jockey Club Oaks over 11 furlongs on turf, the final leg of the Fasig-Tipton Fillies Turf Triple, kicks off the stakes action Saturday, Sept. 16, and the program scheduled for Saturday, Sept. 30 will feature four graded events, highlighted by the $500,000 GI Joe Hirsch Turf Classic at a mile and four panels on the grass. That card also includes the GII Woodward S., the GII Gallant Bloom S. and the GII Vosburgh S., offering the winner a spot in the field for the GI Breeders' Cup Sprint. An additional pair of qualifiers are set for Sunday, Oct. 1, both for the juvenile set at 8 1/2 furlongs on turf, the GII Miss Grillo S. for fillies and the GII Pilgrim S. for the boys.
The 'Win and You're In' action continues Saturday, Oct. 7, with the running of the $500,000 GI Champagne S., a Breeders' Cup Juvenile prep, and the filly counterpart, the $400,000 GI Frizette S. The card also includes the GIII Belmont Turf Sprint, the GIII Fasig-Tipton Waya S. and the GIII Jockey Club Derby, shortened from a mile and a half to a mile and three-eighths. The Sunday, Oct. 8, program features the last of the Breeders' Cup qualifiers, the GIII Futurity S., a feeder into the GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf Sprint, as well as the GII Beldame S. and the GIII Matron S.
The one-mile GII Kelso S. has been renamed the Forty Niner S. and will offer the top three finishers all-expenses paid berths into the GI Cigar Mile H. during the Aqueduct fall meeting. The Oct. 28 card also includes the GII Mother Goose S., previously held during the spring/summer meet at Belmont, the Listed Awad S. and the Listed Pumpkin Pie S.
The Belmont at the Big A meeting concludes with Empire Showcase Day, the richest events of which are the Empire Classic and Empire Distaff, each worth $250,000.
