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Nashville Retires to WinStar

CHC Inc. and WinStar Farm's track record-setting Nashville (Speightstown–Veronique, by Mizzen Mast) has been retired from racing and will stand alongside his sire at WinStar, the farm announced Thursday.

Tabbed a 'TDN Rising Star' off his impressive 11 1/2 length debut romp at Saratoga in September of 2020, the $460,000 KEESEP buy followed suit with a dominant Keeneland allowance win a month later, good for a 103 Beyer Speed Figure.

Nashville may not have won the GI Breeders' Cup Sprint, but he was the fastest sprint winner on the card. After sizzling through fractions of :21.54 for the opening quarter and :43.87 for the half-mile, Nashville sailed home the easiest of winners. Geared down in the late stages, he crossed the wire 3 1/2 lengths ahead of his nearest pursuer in the new track-record time of 1:07.89, earning a 102 Beyer Speed Figure. Nashville's final clocking proved nearly a second faster than subsequent Eclipse Champion Sprinter Whitmore's time (1:08.61) in winning the $2 million Breeders' Cup Sprint later that same day.

This season, Nashville continued his winning ways with a 4/34-length, wire-to-wire victory at Fair Grounds in March, covering six furlongs in 1:08.61, the fastest sprint race of the entire Fair Grounds meet and the fastest time at that distance in more than two years.

“Nashville is the fastest horse we have ever had at WinStar,” said Elliott Walden, president, CEO and racing manager of WinStar. “He is a freak of nature. Three times he went :43 and change; he led through the first quarter in every start and led after a half in all but one start. The brilliance he showed will give him a big chance at stud. Speightstown is always a plus, already having six sons to sire Grade I winners.”

By champion sprinter Speightstown, Nashville is out Veronique, a half-sister to multiple stakes winner Almond Roca (Speightstown) and graded stakes-placed Calistoga (Speightstown), who was purchased by James Delahooke for $800,000 in foal to Collected at Keeneland November in 2020 just days after Nashville's powerhouse performance in the Perryville. He hails from the direct female family of GI Kentucky Derby winner Giacomo, GI Santa Anita Derby winner Tiago, and graded stakes winner and Grade I-placed Stanwyck. Nashville was bred in Kentucky by Breffini Farm and purchased from the Lane's End consignment.

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Joe Miller Named Additional U.S. Tattersalls Rep

Tattersalls has tabbed American Joe Miller as an additional representative in the U.S. to work alongside Lincoln Collins, who has long been the Tattersalls North American representative.

“Joe is a perfect addition to the Tattersalls team and his appointment reflects the importance we attach to promoting Tattersalls sales to purchasers and vendors throughout North America,” said Tattersalls Chairman Edmond Mahony. “Having worked alongside our existing North American representative Lincoln Collins for many years, Joe is already wholly familiar with the Tattersalls ethos and sales portfolio, and between him and Lincoln they will cover pretty well every base in what is a key market for Tattersalls.”

A bloodstock consultant and a native of Saratoga Springs, Miller has worked with Collins at Central Kentucky's Kern Thoroughbreds for the past 18 years. In addition to managing a number of high-profile racing and breeding operations, Miller has been a regular buyer at Tattersalls on behalf of numerous clients including Red Baron's Barn and Rancho Temescal, Tracy Farmer, Triton Racing, and Williamson Racing.

“Tattersalls already has an outstanding reputation throughout North America,” said Miller, “and I am enormously looking forward to working alongside Lincoln Collins in promoting the Tattersalls portfolio of European market-leading sales to as wide an audience as possible. Tattersalls graduates, particularly from Book 1 of the October Yearling Sale, have achieved extraordinary results over here in recent years and we will be working hard to build further on this success.”

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Biomechanics Pioneer Paul Mostert Dies at 94

Paul Mostert, one of the founders of the study of the biomechanics in racehorses, died May 6 in Lexington at the age of 94, according to a story in the Lexington Herald-Leader. Mostert served in the Navy until the end of World War II, and would go on to get a Ph.D from Purdue University. A mathematics teacher at the University of Kansas, he retired to work in the field of biomechanics and would develop 14 software programs using mathematical models of the biomechanics of racehorses. He was the president of EQUIX from 1985 to 2003. A graveside service is scheduled for Friday, May 13, at 11:30 a.m. at the Lexington (Ky.) Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, his family requests donations to Rhodes College, where he received his Bachelor's Degree, or to the educational university of one's choice.

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Larry Collmus Talks Derby Shocker On Writers’ Room

Larry Collmus has been calling races at the highest level for a long time, but even his vast experience and expertise could hardly prepare him for what happened in Saturday's stunning GI Kentucky Derby, as 80-1 bomb Rich Strike (Keen Ice) came seemingly from nowhere to surge past the short-priced pair of Epicenter (Not This Time) and Zandon (Upstart) and score the second-largest upset in the 148-year history of the Run for the Roses. Tuesday, Collmus joined the TDN Writers' Room presented by Keeneland as the Green Group Guest of the Week to recall his shock as he saw Rich Strike rallying up the inside, discuss whether or not he misses being a full-time racecaller, impart his advice for future generations of racecallers and more.

“I wouldn't say a little bit of surprise, I'd say a lot of surprise,” Collmus said of his reaction during Saturday's stretch run. “I honestly wish I had picked him up earlier, but it's tough in the Kentucky Derby trying to follow all of these horses and the moves are usually coming up on the outside, so that's where you're looking for the late moves. And while that's going on, here comes the last possible horse you'd be looking for in Rich Strike. He wasn't even in the race as of 9:00 on Friday. Luckily, as racecallers do, we go by the silks, the jockey's colors, and he was the only red-and-white silked horse in the race, thank goodness. So here he comes on the inside and you're like, that's got to be Rich Strike, and boom, you catch him just in time. I'm glad I caught him at all to be honest.”

The 20-horse Derby is a uniquely difficult challenge as the biggest flat racing field in North America, and Collmus was asked what he does to prepare for such a daunting task compared to a more standard race.

“My preparation varies, but the Kentucky Derby is its own thing,” he said. “So in other words, I'll start like everybody else watching the prep races from January and start to familiarize myself with those horses. Then when we get to crunch time, within 10 days of the race, Churchill Downs will send me a PDF of all the jockey silks, and I will make flashcards to start memorizing the names five, six times a day. That's this horse, that's this horse, and thank goodness I did the also eligibles. Then, of course, you've got [silks] colors that may be similar in the Derby, so you want to know running styles, you want to know what color the horse is, any facial markings, do they have a white blaze, do they not, do they wear blinkers. Anything to separate all those horses. On a day-to-day basis, you don't have to do that because you've got 12 horses max and there's a lot less pressure.”

Elsewhere on the show, which is also sponsored by Coolmore, Lane's End, the KTOB, XBTV, West Point Thoroughbreds and Legacy Bloodstock, the writers broke down all the star-studded action from Derby/Oaks weekend and reacted to the announcement of a trial date for indicted trainer Jason Servis. Click here to watch the show; click here for the audio-only version or find it on Apple Podcasts or Spotify.

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