- 12 minutes ago
Andrew Rosen was still on cloud nine on this week's TDN Writers' Room as he discussed his Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies winner Emphatic, who he co-owns with Antony Beck's Gainesway Stable. Rosen discussed how he came to own the filly and what's in store for her future, as well as his long history with the Breeders' Cup.
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00:00:18Welcome to another edition of the TDN Writer's Room presented by Keeneland.
00:00:22My name is Bill Finley.
00:00:23I'm a correspondent for the Thoroughbred Daily News.
00:00:25And please catch me every Saturday, 10 a.m. Eastern on Channel 85 as I co-host the Down the
00:00:30Stretch radio show.
00:00:32How are y'all doing?
00:00:34I'm Randy Moss with NBC Sports.
00:00:36I live in suburban Minneapolis.
00:00:38My head is still hurting from that offensive performance turned in by the Minnesota Vikings last night.
00:00:43Let's focus on football.
00:00:45Excuse me, horse racing instead of football here.
00:00:48Probably a good idea.
00:00:49Probably a very good idea.
00:00:51Zoe Catman with First TV.
00:00:53Still here at Keeneland.
00:00:54And the sale goes on.
00:00:56Well, in last week's post Breeders' Cup show, we talked about who should be horse of the year.
00:01:00We were unanimous.
00:01:01It should be sovereignty.
00:01:03And I'm not going to change my mind.
00:01:04And I'm not going to try to talk Zoe or Randy into changing their minds either.
00:01:08But some of our listeners and viewers disagree.
00:01:12And we always encourage people to watch us on YouTube because that's a great place where you can put comments
00:01:18down in the comment section.
00:01:19And this is from SwissMiss9218.
00:01:23Deterministic for horse of the year.
00:01:25Has three grade one wins, including the Breeders' Cup against the Euros.
00:01:28One grade one second.
00:01:30And the grade three win in May.
00:01:31Five starts, never worse than second.
00:01:33Amazing horse.
00:01:34Betsy Hobby Wicker4051 said, why not deterministic for horse of the year?
00:01:40So, again, like I said, I'm not going to change my mind.
00:01:42But I think maybe it would be a good time to take a deeper dive in this.
00:01:46I'm going to bring up some historical perspective here.
00:01:49Sovereignty, as we know, only raced four times and had two wins on the year.
00:01:53Two grade ones.
00:01:54The last horse to win horse of the year and to only win two grade one races, you have to
00:02:00go back to Ghost Zapper in 2004.
00:02:03No horse in the history of horse of the year has ever earned the title with only two wins.
00:02:09So, I think he will be horse of the year.
00:02:10I think he'll be a rather convincing winner of that.
00:02:14But a precedent will be set.
00:02:16And you're going to have to set the bar lower to vote for him.
00:02:21Again, there is some historical perspective here.
00:02:24Flight Line only raced three times.
00:02:25Wasn't horse of the year in 2020.
00:02:27But he was three for three with three grade one wins.
00:02:30And going back to Ghost Zapper in 2004, he only raced four times.
00:02:34But he was four for four with two grade one wins.
00:02:37Randy, do our listeners like Swiss Miss 9218 have a point?
00:02:43Well, look, deterministic is an exceptional horse.
00:02:46He really is.
00:02:47But if I could bet a trifecta for horse of the year, I would bet sovereignty nitrogen deterministic or maybe
00:02:54sovereignty deterministic nitrogen.
00:02:56Look, the American racing revolves largely around dirt.
00:03:01As we know, turf racing is getting more and more of a foothold.
00:03:04But typically in these situations, the horses that run in the major races on dirt are running against better competition
00:03:13than the horses running in American races on grass.
00:03:16True, deterministic did beat notable speech in the Breeders' Cup mile when he had a much better trip than notable
00:03:23speech did.
00:03:24But all in all, you know, when you look at sovereignty's wins in the Whitney and in the Breeders' Cup
00:03:29Classic in particular, I think, given American racing, I think that trumps personally what deterministic did.
00:03:37But if the Puma had beaten sovereignty in the Breeders' Cup Classic, if sovereignty had gotten held up in traffic
00:03:45when he made his rally, all right, at that point, deterministic probably or nitrogen probably becomes horse of the year.
00:03:51But I think sovereignty is going to be a pretty convincing winner in the voting, in my opinion.
00:03:58I couldn't agree with you more, but deterministic will get some votes if you go through the numbers.
00:04:04Five starts, four wins, three of them grade ones, second in the grade one, 2.4 million.
00:04:10Sovereignty, four starts, two grade ones, a second and a third.
00:04:15If you look at the body of work for the year, deterministic is very good.
00:04:19But then you come to the Classic and you look at who he beat.
00:04:23He beat the Puma who took down the Pennsylvania Derby.
00:04:27Knightsbridge, Pacific Classic winner, among other things.
00:04:30Forever Young took down the Classic last year.
00:04:34You've got Golden Tempo, the Derby winner, the Preakness winner, Napoleon Solo.
00:04:38That's a good group of horses behind him.
00:04:41And he beat all of them.
00:04:42He didn't just beat them.
00:04:44He smashed them into the ground.
00:04:46He was an absolute beast.
00:04:48So while I do agree with everything that everybody has said about deterministic,
00:04:54I think that sovereignty just lays over everybody.
00:04:57He will get some votes and so will nitrogen.
00:04:59It'll be closer than maybe you think, but I truly believe that sovereignty will come out
00:05:04at the end of the day.
00:05:06But I couldn't blame anybody at all for voting for nitrogen or deterministic.
00:05:10Myself, I'm voting for sovereignty.
00:05:13Yeah, I mean, I think Randy made the key point.
00:05:16And whether it's fair or not, these titles largely go to the dirt horses because that's
00:05:23the emphasis in American racing.
00:05:25And when you see a horse, a turf horse, become horse of the air like bricks and mortars, it's
00:05:31largely because there was not a real solid candidate.
00:05:35And I think sovereignty, despite the things that I said about only winning two times, is
00:05:39a solid candidate.
00:05:40But I'll add this to the conversation.
00:05:42If deterministic had won the Woodbine mile and swept the year and gone five for five,
00:05:48that would have tilted my vote.
00:05:49I would have gone for deterministic over sovereignty.
00:05:52I would have made the exception.
00:05:54But again, Randy and Zoe, you made all the right points that, you know, look who we beat
00:05:58in the Breeders' Cup Classic.
00:06:00And it also has a lot to do with what is the trend in modern American racing.
00:06:04It's not unusual for horses to run four times a year.
00:06:08Yeah.
00:06:08And it's not going to be long until we are voting for turf horses for horse of the year.
00:06:13Bricks and mortar was the obsession.
00:06:15I still think that Syfair got robbed for champion two-year-old Philly.
00:06:19I think she should have got it.
00:06:21And that was kind of a knock against the turf for her.
00:06:24And, you know, she's come on and she's a very, very good Philly indeed.
00:06:27So I firmly believe that in the coming years, it's pretty much 50-50 turf racing and dirt
00:06:33racing now.
00:06:34It's got a firm hold.
00:06:35Racetracks cannot survive on dirt racing alone.
00:06:38They just cannot.
00:06:39They can't fill the fields.
00:06:40Turf racing are better betting races, bigger fields, longevity in horses.
00:06:46It's going to be the way to go.
00:06:47And it's overriding the dirt racing.
00:06:49Obviously, the derby is the be-all and end-all.
00:06:52But a lot of people's, I was talking to Graham Motion the other day, and he goes, I just want
00:06:56to win one more Breeders' Cup.
00:06:58I'm like, not a derby?
00:07:00He's like, well, that would be nice, but it's just so hard.
00:07:03He's like, I want to win another Breeders' Cup race.
00:07:06So, I mean, you're pushing towards the turf a little bit more.
00:07:09And I'm not saying that Graham wouldn't love to win a derby, believe me, but there are
00:07:13a lot more Breeders' Cup races to win than there are derbies.
00:07:17And one more point I'd like to make.
00:07:18I mean, I'm voting for sovereignty for champion older male.
00:07:21I'm voting for sovereignty for horse of the year, but I'm voting for deterministic for
00:07:25champion turf male, which I think he'll get.
00:07:28And that's not a bad consolation prize, if you want to call it that.
00:07:32Yeah, I think he would be a slam dunk for that title and very well-deserving.
00:07:38Okay, so we have Forever Young updates, and it was announced, two announcements came out,
00:07:43one day after the other.
00:07:46First of all, he's going to make his final career start on December 29th in the Tokyo
00:07:51Dasho Tin Stakes, which will be run at OI, is that how you pronounce it?
00:07:55O-I Racetrack.
00:07:57I think so.
00:07:57He's the only grade one race run on the dirt in all of Japan, and then afterwards, he's
00:08:03going to be retired.
00:08:05The race has a purse when you convert it to U.S. dollars of $1.1 million.
00:08:11And it's cool what they're doing, and I can see why they're retiring him.
00:08:16But the owner and the trainer have said that they want to give the Japanese fans who haven't
00:08:22had a lot of opportunity to see him, to give them one more chance to see him before he
00:08:28goes out to stud.
00:08:30A couple of questions, and there's a lot we can talk about here.
00:08:34But Zoe, does he have to run better than he did in the Breeders' Cup to win this thing?
00:08:38I have no idea who he's going to run against.
00:08:40But would you be a little bit worried that maybe he's over the top?
00:08:47I firmly believe he's over the top.
00:08:50But running in Japan, I think he lays over the rest of the field.
00:08:53And I hope he wins by 10.
00:08:55I really do.
00:08:56He will forever be remembered, the man with the hat who brought him over.
00:09:00What a campaign they had.
00:09:03I think I pulled it up earlier.
00:09:04Let me see if I can find it.
00:09:06But, I mean, he had just an amazing campaign, one that I don't think we're ever going to
00:09:13see again.
00:09:15Oh, gosh.
00:09:16Hold on.
00:09:18So, by the way, there is one other grade one stakes on dirt in Japan.
00:09:23It used to be called the Japan Cup Dirt, and now it's called the Champions Cup, running
00:09:30early December.
00:09:31But, yeah.
00:09:33Go ahead, Zoe.
00:09:34Okay.
00:09:35Okay, I've got it.
00:09:36So, he started off his career breaking his maiden.
00:09:39He won his first five.
00:09:40Then, that including the UAE Derby.
00:09:44Then he comes over, runs third in the Kentucky Derby, which was absolutely monumental.
00:09:50Huge.
00:09:50He goes back.
00:09:51He takes down the Japan Dirt Classic.
00:09:53Comes over, runs third in the Breeders' Cup.
00:09:56Massive race for that.
00:09:57He wins a grade one at Oye.
00:10:00Wins the Saudi Cup.
00:10:02Third in the Dubai Cup.
00:10:03Takes another race in Japan.
00:10:05Comes over.
00:10:06Wins the Classic.
00:10:08Finally.
00:10:09Goes back.
00:10:10Wins the Saudi Cup.
00:10:11Runs second in the Dubai World Cup.
00:10:13Takes down the Jockey World Cup.
00:10:14Jockey Club stakes.
00:10:16And then takes down, doesn't take down the Classic.
00:10:18He runs fifth.
00:10:19Thirty-two million dollars.
00:10:22I mean, you can just applaud everybody for bringing him over.
00:10:25He is a horse for the ages.
00:10:27One I don't think we're ever going to see again.
00:10:29I really don't.
00:10:30The race in Oye that you pointed out that he won before the Saudi Cup went over Romantic
00:10:35Warrior was the same race.
00:10:37The Tokyo Daishaten or whatever it's called.
00:10:39So he has won this race before in 2024.
00:10:44Amy Zimmerman from Santa Anita, who you know very well, Zoe, who's on our NBC production
00:10:51team, did the math.
00:10:52She got her calculator and she did the MapQuest or Google Maps or whatever.
00:10:57And she traced all of Forever Young's travels, air miles.
00:11:04And this is just like point to point as the crow flies and came up with a total of 71
00:11:09,000
00:11:10miles that the horse has flown during his career.
00:11:14And if you start with the latitude of Lexington, Kentucky, that's like three and a half times
00:11:19around the globe.
00:11:20Wow.
00:11:21And it's just unbelievable that he was able to maintain the consistency to the point that
00:11:30until the Breeders' Cup Classic, he had never finished worse than third, competing against
00:11:34the best horses in the world, constantly on a plane, traveling.
00:11:38That's something that I don't think we'll ever see again.
00:11:42It's a big statement, but we've never seen it to date.
00:11:45No.
00:11:45And just a cool horse.
00:11:47A friend of mine was here working for Brendan Walsh, Jack, and he's like, he's an Irish
00:11:52guy.
00:11:53He's like, geez, Zoe, have you seen that Forever Young?
00:11:55I'm like, yeah, I've seen him.
00:11:56He's like, oh, what a character he is.
00:11:58He's like, I saw him in the paddock.
00:11:59He was walking by me.
00:12:01He goes, all of a sudden, he went over to the bush and dove his head in it, trying to
00:12:05eat something out of the bush, almost pulled the rider out of the stirrups.
00:12:08He said, then he picked his head off and took down the trail, bucking and kicking.
00:12:12He's like, he's some character.
00:12:13He goes, and the guy was just laughing, riding legs length, and then he got to the end of
00:12:18the paddock, stuck his head in the other bush at the other end of the paddock.
00:12:21Just a cool horse that didn't take his track with him.
00:12:25He could run anywhere over rocks.
00:12:27And I hope he wins by 10, and I'm sure they might have reservations that he'll get beat.
00:12:32But I applaud them wanting to showcase him for Japan, which is amazing.
00:12:39It's going to be a packed house.
00:12:40I wish I could go, honestly.
00:12:41That would be really cool.
00:12:43Maybe we should do our podcast from there, from Tokyo.
00:12:46How about that, guys?
00:12:47That would be great.
00:12:48I'm in.
00:12:48Okay.
00:12:49Yeah.
00:12:49Let's put Sue to work on that.
00:12:51All right.
00:12:51He's going to stand at stud at the Shaddai Stallion Station.
00:12:55Okay.
00:12:55So let's further put this in perspective.
00:12:58Where does he belong in the hierarchy?
00:13:01Let's just say, forget about European horses, but horses that have campaigned in the U.S.
00:13:07in our lifetimes.
00:13:10For Randy and I, that goes back a long, long time.
00:13:14I'm going to say that my top 10, but no better.
00:13:17And the campaign was remarkable.
00:13:20And I don't want to take anything away from this horse.
00:13:22But, you know, all the victories, he did lose in two Dubai World Cups.
00:13:28He did lose in a Breeders' Cup Classic.
00:13:29He did lose in the Kentucky Derby.
00:13:31And remember, the $32 million, $20 million of that comes from the Saudi Cup earnings.
00:13:37For horses like Justify, American Pharaoh, even Sagar, who did have the Dubai World Cup,
00:13:43there was no Saudi Cup.
00:13:44So, you know, what might their earnings have been if that race existed?
00:13:49So, you know, kudos to him.
00:13:52Terrific racehorse.
00:13:53But top 10.
00:13:54Randy, how about you?
00:13:56Yeah.
00:13:57You know, it's so subjective.
00:14:01It really kind of depends on what your criteria is.
00:14:05If you just visualize, if you put all these horses in the starting gate and run a race,
00:14:11and how would the horse fare in a situation like that?
00:14:14Well, Forever Young's not going to outrun Flightline.
00:14:17He's not going to outrun Secretariat.
00:14:19He's not going to outrun Spectacular Bid or horses like the Seattle Slough.
00:14:24So that's one way of looking at it where maybe his accomplishments might be lessened just a little bit.
00:14:31But then on the other hand, if you just look at the career resume
00:14:37and all the things that he has accomplished, all the places he went, all the travels that he had,
00:14:43and you look at it from that perspective, then he obviously bounces up the list pretty substantially.
00:14:49Would I put him in the top 10 all time?
00:14:54Probably not.
00:14:55But I think he deserves an incredible amount of credit for the durability and the consistency that he showed in
00:15:03his career.
00:15:04Body of work, I think, is what we're looking at and the longevity of his career.
00:15:10For that and that alone, he's definitely got to be top five.
00:15:14And I'm not talking about being able to beat Flightline and Secretariat and all that.
00:15:19It seems like only a couple of years ago we were talking about him in the UAE derby
00:15:24and not switching leads and lugging in and hating the kickback.
00:15:27And it's been so fun to watch him progress into a really good racehorse.
00:15:33Remember how green he was in all his starts watching those races in Japan
00:15:37and then watching him win the UAE derby and he's lugging in and he's on the wrong lead
00:15:41and he wouldn't switch leads.
00:15:43And he's just been a fun horse to follow.
00:15:45And we don't have that over here.
00:15:48Our fun horse is to follow.
00:15:49We follow them for three months or six months in the summer and then they're retired to stud.
00:15:55For me, being able to watch him over the course of the past few years has been brilliant.
00:16:00It's like watching Cigar when he ran.
00:16:02And you can see much more of it because everything's so much more televised.
00:16:08We've got social media.
00:16:09Watching him and how they interacted with the fans
00:16:12and watching him on the breakfast show, the TVG FanDuel breakfast show,
00:16:17come over, put his head over and let people pet him was just really cool.
00:16:20Really, really cool.
00:16:22So for that, he'd probably have to be in the top five.
00:16:25You know, when we talk about things like this, guys, we almost need to qualify it
00:16:32in terms of, like, for example, where does he rank among the horses we've seen in the last 20 years,
00:16:40in the last decade, right?
00:16:43Because, I mean, you go back, look at the list of Triple Crown winners, right?
00:16:47You know, your citations, and then you look at swaps and Native Dancer, and not just that,
00:16:54but then Secretariat, Affirm, Seattle Slough, all these fantastic racehorses of yesteryear
00:16:59that have to be included if you're talking about the best of all time.
00:17:02And that makes it very tough for even a horse like Forever Young to crack the top 10 or even
00:17:09the top 15
00:17:09when you look at all-time best racehorses.
00:17:13But if you look at the last 10 or 15 years, 20 years, yeah.
00:17:16Yeah, I would totally put him on a list with that qualifier.
00:17:20Man in the hat.
00:17:22Well, he has been quite the story, and let's hope, I agree with you, Zoe,
00:17:26let's hope he goes out with a 10-length win with Jesus Races in Japan.
00:17:31There'll probably be 100,000 people there to wish him goodbye.
00:17:34So thank you Forever Young and the connections and the man in the hat for a brilliant campaign
00:17:40and bringing so much fun to horse racing all over the world.
00:17:45Okay, here's what we're going to do.
00:17:46We're going to take a quick break.
00:17:47We're going to hear from Keeneland.
00:17:48Also find out who the fastest horse of the week was.
00:17:51And we come back, it's our Gainsway Guest of the Week.
00:17:54It's a guy who's won the Breeders' Cup in its first year and in the most recent year.
00:18:00And we're talking about Andrew Rosen as Gainsway Guest of the Week.
00:18:09As always, the TDN Writers' Room is brought to you by Keeneland.
00:18:12I am still at Keeneland.
00:18:14There has been electric energy this fall.
00:18:17The 2026 Keeneland November breeding stock sale delivered powerhouse momentum surging
00:18:23out of the gate with nearly $96 million in book one alone.
00:18:27Driven by a fierce international demand and 25 seven-figure fireworks led by the sensational
00:18:33$5.2 million broodmare.
00:18:36Quiet side, congratulations to Lynn Hancock and Stone Farm who sold her.
00:18:40The global blood stock market proved vibrant, competitive, and remarkably strong.
00:18:45The November sale concludes on Wednesday, November the 11th and is followed by the November
00:18:51Horses of Racing Age sale on Thursday.
00:18:54We'll be right back after this message from Keeneland.
00:18:58We do this so your granddaughter can work on a farm someday.
00:19:02So the stands will still be packed in 50 years.
00:19:07That's why we come to work every day.
00:19:10Obsess over every single detail.
00:19:14Because the story of racing is written one moment at a time.
00:19:19And the future of our industry deserves nothing less.
00:19:24Keeneland.
00:19:25Every moment matters.
00:19:27Our fastest horse of the week brought to you as usual by the fast sires at Windstar Farms such as
00:19:35Life is Good.
00:19:36It was having not just a good but an exceptional first year at stud as demonstrated by the November sales.
00:19:44He's better than good in the sales ring.
00:19:47He's the number one first crop sire by weanling average.
00:19:51Just over $402,000.
00:19:55That puts him sixth among all sires.
00:19:57Led by such giants like Not This Time, Justify, Gunrunner, and Curlin.
00:20:03Life is Good's progeny are also better than good on the dirt.
00:20:08He's the number one first crop sire on dirt by grade one winners, by graded stakes winners, black type horses,
00:20:15and earnings.
00:20:16And Life is Good stands at Windstar in 2027 for a fee of $125,000.
00:20:23Our fastest horse of the week, Saturday, Belmont Park, a race that we'll be talking about.
00:20:28Patience, patience, in just a few moments.
00:20:31On the podcast, the Dwyer Stakes won by Stimulate, who drew off to a very impressive victory.
00:20:37His signature win so far in his young career.
00:20:40And Stimulate earned a buyer's speed figure in that race of 107.
00:20:44Easily the best in his career and easily the best of any horse that ran last week.
00:20:50Making Stimulate our fastest horse of the week.
00:20:57Welcome to now the Gaines Way Guests of the Week.
00:20:59It's Andrew Rosen.
00:21:01Andrew, you must have a big smile on your face after your wonderful two-year-old filly emphatic won the
00:21:07Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies.
00:21:08Welcome to the TDN Writers Room Podcast.
00:21:11Yeah, thank you.
00:21:12I'm still living in the afterglow of that amazing victory.
00:21:18Well, our producers told us when they were talking to you that this victory was extra special to you.
00:21:24Is there a reason beyond just how special it is to win a Breeders' Cup race?
00:21:28Well, yeah, I mean, I won the first Breeders' Cup race ever run 42 years ago.
00:21:35And so it took 42 years to win the second one.
00:21:38And it was nice to get that to happen.
00:21:44Well, since you opened that door to go back into the Wayback Machine, let's go back to 1984.
00:21:50Your father had passed away, Carl Rosen, in, I believe, the summer of 1983.
00:21:56Oh, yeah.
00:21:57He had a mare named Six Crowns by Secretariat out of Chris Everett, dual triple crown winners.
00:22:04Of course, he raced the great Chris Everett.
00:22:07You chose to name the foal, the filly, or the colt, rather, Chief's Crown because your father, one of his
00:22:15nicknames was the Chief.
00:22:16So when you win that very first Breeders' Cup race after all this, I mean, what were those emotions like
00:22:23in 1984?
00:22:25Well, I mean, Chief's Crown was just an incredible experience.
00:22:28And, you know, the horse being named after my dad and all was extra, you know, meaningful.
00:22:36And my dad was just one of the most amazing people I've ever, ever known.
00:22:43And he loved horses.
00:22:45He loved horse racing.
00:22:46And I was fortunate enough to be able to follow in his footsteps and get lucky enough with Chief Crown
00:22:54and then to be able to do it again on my own, so to speak.
00:22:59But, you know, it was interesting because winning the first Breeders' Cup race, I mean, we didn't know what the
00:23:07Breeders' Cup was going to be.
00:23:09So in a way, it was just like another race.
00:23:12But today, it's not just another race.
00:23:14It's really the championship of the season.
00:23:17And when you look back on that first win in the juvenile, I mean, second was Tank's prospect.
00:23:23Third was Spindebuck.
00:23:24Yeah, don't remind me.
00:23:28I mean, how is it possible that we beat the Kentucky Derby winner and the Preakness winner, but we couldn't
00:23:37do it when the time came?
00:23:39And we were the favorite in both of those races.
00:23:42Actually, he's the answer to a trivia question, believe it or not.
00:23:45He's the only horse ever to be the beaten favorite in the Derby and the Preakness and the Belmont.
00:23:51But he wins the Travers.
00:23:53Yeah.
00:23:54I mean, Chiefs Crown won eight grade one races in two years.
00:23:59And if you think about that, I mean, if a horse did that today, that would be a super horse.
00:24:05And, you know, he really was a super horse.
00:24:07Unfortunately, you know, in the Derby, the racetrack was like a road and Spindebuck got loose on the lead and
00:24:16there was no catching him.
00:24:17And then in the Preakness, I mean, that was that was heartbreaking.
00:24:24You got beat that far.
00:24:25Maybe.
00:24:26Yeah.
00:24:26So anyway, but that's what makes the winning all the worth.
00:24:31But the more special, right, is you have to accept the fact that you lose most of the time.
00:24:39Well, Andrew, you're a self-proclaimed addict, a horse racing and horse addict, besides all your many other jobs.
00:24:47We'll get to theory in just a moment.
00:24:48But what has kept you in the game for so long?
00:24:51And describe how you got hooked up with Gaines Way and what led you to emphatic this year in the
00:24:57Breeders' Cup.
00:24:58How did that come about?
00:24:59Yeah, I mean, as I said earlier, my dad introduced me to horse racing.
00:25:05My dad loved horse racing.
00:25:06He actually loved the betting on horses.
00:25:09And I remember going to the racetrack when I was really little and just hanging out with my dad and
00:25:17always going to the opening day at Santa Anita.
00:25:20That was sort of the big, big event of the year.
00:25:23Going to the Derby, you know, and my dad was pretty good.
00:25:27But at handicapping, and so he used to win a lot of money, and I would get to count it
00:25:33and keep a few hundred when it was all over.
00:25:36So I had a really good introduction that way.
00:25:39And then my dad, as Randy said, my dad passed away in 1983, and the first horse that the family
00:25:49had after my dad passed away was Chief Scram.
00:25:53And, you know, so I sort of got spoiled at the top of the game with Chief Scram and all
00:26:00of the incredible stuff he did.
00:26:02And I just followed through and, you know, managed the family horses for a number of years.
00:26:08And then when I sold my company in 2003, I started to buy my own horses.
00:26:18Well, Andrew, you've had so much success with Chief's Crown.
00:26:22I want to also get to Luster.
00:26:24You won the King's Plate.
00:26:25Yeah.
00:26:25Again, a horse that you own in a joint deal with Gainesway, our sponsor of this segment.
00:26:33Let's get back to him, Fatic.
00:26:36Wad at Keeneland September, so a shout-out to another one of our sponsors.
00:26:39But in this day and age, as we see these horses fly off the shelf for $1 million, $260,000
00:26:45doesn't seem like a whole lot of money.
00:26:47Tell us about the purchase.
00:26:50Who was your advisor for you in Gainesway?
00:26:53And why did she, I mean, I guess in this day and age, relatively a bargain?
00:26:59So, yeah, you asked me about my relationship with Gainesway.
00:27:05And, you know, Anthony and I have been friends and partners for like 15 years.
00:27:11And, you know, Anthony is one of those guys that from the first day I met him, he and I
00:27:16were friends.
00:27:17It's the first moment.
00:27:18And we actually, I met him because I invested in Hat Trick, the stallion.
00:27:29And Hat Trick, we stood at Gainesway Farm, and that's how I met Anthony.
00:27:36And so Anthony and I owned Hat Trick together with a group of people.
00:27:39And then we owned a few horses together, and then we started buying mares together.
00:27:44And, you know, we've been doing stuff over the last 15 years and pretty successfully.
00:27:50You know, sometimes you have partners you have good luck with.
00:27:54Sometimes you have partners you have bad luck with.
00:27:56Anthony's been a partner that I've had really, really good luck with.
00:27:59And he's a close friend.
00:28:00And Gainesway is just, you know, an incredible operation.
00:28:06I think they have a great team.
00:28:07And Anthony called me up, and he said, my son, Andrew, is going to come and work at the farm.
00:28:15And he and the guys are going to buy a few horses.
00:28:19You want to partner with me on those horses?
00:28:21I said, absolutely.
00:28:22Whatever you do, I'm good for.
00:28:25So that's how this sort of thing got started.
00:28:29And we decided to buy horses in book three and four, you know, not buy horses in book one and
00:28:37two.
00:28:37And the first year we bought, I think, three horses.
00:28:41One of them turned out to be Luster, who's going to be the most probably the horse of the year
00:28:46in Canada this year.
00:28:48And she cost $80,000.
00:28:50And the next year we bought four horses together.
00:28:53And one of them was emphatic.
00:28:56So the team at Gainesway, led by Anthony's son, Andrew, and Ben Gowans, and then Brian Graves and Anthony, they
00:29:09did all the work.
00:29:09I was just lucky enough to have the right association and get the phone call.
00:29:15So you've partnered with some of the biggest names over the years, from Coolmore to Michael Dubb to Three Chimneys
00:29:20to now Gainesway.
00:29:21I'm curious with Luster, when did you first find out that Luster is actually a descendant of Chief's Crown?
00:29:31I knew that, but that wasn't the reason we purchased her.
00:29:36I mean, Luster's is sort of an interesting story because, I mean, a Philly by Nixco bred in Canada.
00:29:42And when she went up to Canada, Josie Carroll called me up one day and said, this thing, this one
00:29:51is special.
00:29:52And after she won her first race, she said to me, you know, she's going to be good for the
00:29:56King's Plate.
00:29:57And I like said, what are you kidding me?
00:30:01So that was a real Cinderella story there.
00:30:07I mean, that was a fun ride.
00:30:09What was it like winning the King's Plate?
00:30:11I mean, that's like winning the Derby.
00:30:13It's amazing.
00:30:13It was amazing.
00:30:14It was unbelievable.
00:30:16I mean, that was my first time up at Woodbine.
00:30:19And the people at Woodbine, the setup, the hospitality, everything, and then winning the King's Plate, I was in heaven.
00:30:28I mean, that's sort of what it's all about, you know.
00:30:31And then to think a few months later to end up winning the Breeders' Cup, I mean, it's incredible.
00:30:37That's a hell of a year.
00:30:39Yeah.
00:30:39When people ask you, friends maybe, what do you like so much about thoroughbred racing?
00:30:45What do you say?
00:30:46What's your answer?
00:30:49I like the opportunity to win a race like the King's Plate or the Breeders' Cup.
00:30:54I mean, you know, that's what we do it for is to ultimately hopefully get lucky enough to win one
00:31:00of those races.
00:31:01I mean, I've won a fair amount of races, you know, good races over the years.
00:31:07But, I mean, this year has been incredible.
00:31:09And, you know, the thrill of victory is worth all the agony of defeat.
00:31:17So, what's next for Luster?
00:31:21You know, Luster's taking a break.
00:31:24She had a full campaign this year, and she's on break.
00:31:29And, you know, hopefully she gets started again next year.
00:31:32With no plan for her at the moment.
00:31:37Obviously, emphatic is a different story.
00:31:40So, let's get to that.
00:31:42Have you, the Gainsaway team and Brendan Walsh, mapped out a campaign to her?
00:31:47Obviously, the Kentucky Oaks, I think, would be the end goal.
00:31:49Has she headed down to Florida yet?
00:31:52What might we see from her in 2027?
00:31:55So, I spoke to Brendan yesterday and, you know, just wanted to thank him for the incredible job he did
00:32:03last year.
00:32:03And, you know, just, you know, how happy he made me with that victory.
00:32:09And we discussed a little bit.
00:32:11She's down in Florida now.
00:32:13She's at Palm Meadows.
00:32:15She's going to have an easy time for the next month.
00:32:18And, you know, probably a prep race in March, the Ashland at Keeneland in April, and then hopefully the Kentucky
00:32:29Oaks.
00:32:30All right.
00:32:31Let's go back now.
00:32:32Let's go back 50 years.
00:32:33How about it?
00:32:34Right?
00:32:35I've done a little homework.
00:32:37Unfortunately, I could go back that far.
00:32:39Unfortunately, so can Bill and I.
00:32:42They're doing a little homework on this, right?
00:32:44All right.
00:32:46Descendants of Chris Everett are not only still around, but Juddmont bought into the family.
00:32:51And they've got Tate's Creek and Sightseek and Obligatory and now Deep Flame.
00:32:57So, your father bought Chris Everett initially at Keeneland July for $32,000.
00:33:02And I guess you were probably in high school?
00:33:05No.
00:33:06What do you?
00:33:06A grade school, but yeah.
00:33:10What do you remember about that ride, about the Philly Triple Crown ride that Chris Everett took the whole family
00:33:17on?
00:33:18I mean, that came out of nowhere.
00:33:19And the most exciting thing about Chris Everett, I mean, Chris Everett won the Acorn, the Mother Goose, the Coaching
00:33:33Club Oaks, then went to Saratoga and ran in the Alabama, just got beat ahead there.
00:33:42And then came back like eight days later and ran in the Traverse and was third to, I think, Little
00:33:48Current and Bo Forbes or something.
00:33:52You know, so she was amazing.
00:33:56I mean, she was unbelievable.
00:33:57The most exciting thing, though, about Chris Everett was the match race at Hollywood Park the next year.
00:34:03And my dad, who was quite a gambler, put up $100,000, and Aaron Jones put up $100,000.
00:34:13Aaron Jones had a Philly on the West Coast called Miss Musket.
00:34:17She was undefeated, trained by Charlie Whittingham.
00:34:20And Marge Everett at Hollywood Park put up $150,000.
00:34:24Winner take all match race, $350,000.
00:34:29And I remember that was the most nervous I ever saw my dad.
00:34:33And he figured the only way that he could lose is if there was a fix-in with the jockeys.
00:34:40And he promised Georgie Velasquez $50,000 if he won the race.
00:34:47And she won by 50 lengths.
00:34:50Yeah, right.
00:34:52Wow.
00:34:53So, Andrew, let's talk a little bit about your other career.
00:34:56You've been nicknamed the godfather of contemporary American fashion.
00:35:01Apologize for wearing Ralph Lauren.
00:35:03Nobody bought me any theory stuff for Christmas or something like that.
00:35:07Ralph Lauren's about the only company you haven't been involved with.
00:35:12What's your secret to success?
00:35:14You know, the list of companies.
00:35:16And what are you up to today?
00:35:18I mean, listen, I think that, like in horse racing, I was able to follow my dad there in clothing.
00:35:26That was my dad's profession.
00:35:28And he spent his whole life doing it.
00:35:32His father spent his whole life doing it.
00:35:34And I've spent my whole life doing it.
00:35:36And, you know, I guess there's something in the breeding there.
00:35:41But I started out working for my dad when I was 19 years old.
00:35:46And, you know, just got an incredible experience working in warehouses and factories.
00:35:51And ultimately came to New York and really worked at his side for six years until he passed away.
00:36:00So I just feel like I got an incredible education in the fashion industry and how to feel for it.
00:36:09And have been, you know, fortunate enough to be able to spot, like spotting good horses, spotting good companies to
00:36:17invest in and build on.
00:36:19So what's your favorite thing about the fashion industry?
00:36:23Like, what is your favorite thing to do?
00:36:24Invest in new companies?
00:36:26I mean, I've invested in companies and start companies.
00:36:32I mean, starting companies is super hard.
00:36:34The last one I started was five years ago was a company called TWP.
00:36:40And it's been an amazing success and sort of, you know, something that I'm just in love with doing right
00:36:50now.
00:36:50I think I like the whole idea of building things, of, you know, starting with an idea and being able
00:36:59to create and build and grow it.
00:37:03You know, it's similar to the horse business in that you're starting out with an idea and, you know, investing
00:37:11and building in it.
00:37:12And, you know, in the clothing industry, it's making clothes and the horse business, it's horses.
00:37:19So it's sort of similar.
00:37:22But I just like the challenge of being able to build it and build something.
00:37:27And that's likewise the same way I like the challenge of being able to sort of buy or breed a
00:37:33horse and see how it develops and grows.
00:37:37I can't imagine how gratifying all this must be to you, because shortly before your father passed away, he put
00:37:44you in charge as CEO of Puritan Fashion.
00:37:48Is that the name of the company?
00:37:50You were just 27 years old.
00:37:52And after your father passed away, you took some slings and arrows.
00:37:55I mean, Calvin Klein criticized you publicly.
00:37:58He was an investor in your company.
00:38:00Yeah.
00:38:00And now, fast forward, you've many times over proven yourself in the fashion industry.
00:38:07And now you've carried your father's legacy forward on your own and won another Breeders' Cup race.
00:38:13All that just must be incredibly gratifying.
00:38:15Well, I mean, thank you for saying that.
00:38:17I mean, I tend to look forward and not look back.
00:38:20And, you know, I'm looking forward to what's ahead.
00:38:24You know, I just, I don't try to look back and see what I accomplished.
00:38:30I think when I do that, I'm going to have to retire.
00:38:32But right now, I'm just sort of focused on the opportunities with Emphatic, the opportunities that I have in my
00:38:41businesses and so on.
00:38:42But I really appreciate what you said.
00:38:45And it means a lot to me that that happened for sure.
00:38:49Who's in charge of the naming?
00:38:52Because those are two great names, Luster and Emphatic.
00:38:55Brilliant names.
00:38:57Well, I think in this case, Andrew Beck did both of them.
00:39:00Okay.
00:39:01And the truth on Emphatic is Anthony came up with a name that was actually not so good.
00:39:11And we all stumbled.
00:39:13What was it?
00:39:14What was it?
00:39:15I can't.
00:39:16I have to go look and remember, but we all stumbled.
00:39:19We all stumbled to say yes.
00:39:22Like we were on a group chat together and no one was saying yes to the name.
00:39:28And then Andrew Beck came back with Emphatic.
00:39:30But, I mean, you know, we never could have imagined that, you know, the Emphatic would be Emphatic as she
00:39:40has been, right?
00:39:41I mean, that's, I mean, and just to think about, I mean, I heard that her top speed in the
00:39:48Breeders' Cup Juvenile was 42 miles an hour.
00:39:51That's incredible.
00:39:53Probably around the 5-16th bowl that she was putting six or seven lengths on the field behind her.
00:39:58I mean, but she did the exact same thing in the Al Sabaitis, just the other horse went with her.
00:40:04And I think in the, and they ended up beating the rest of the field by like 18 lengths.
00:40:08I think that would, if someone had gone with her in the, I think she got a little idle on
00:40:13the lead there in the Breeders' Cup.
00:40:16But, I mean, that, you know, that other horse ran super well, but I don't think anything was catching Emphatic
00:40:23that day.
00:40:26Well, Andrew, thank you so much for joining us, the Gainesway Guest of the Week, to talk about the horse
00:40:32you co-own with Gainesway, Emphatic, and also Luster, another horse you co-own with Gainesway.
00:40:38Congratulations on all your success on the racetrack.
00:40:40And thank you so much for being our Gainesway Guest of the Week.
00:40:44And let's hope you have another brilliant campaign next year, including perhaps a Kentucky Oaks win with Emphatic.
00:40:52We'll see.
00:40:54It was nice to be with you.
00:40:56Many thanks to Andrew Rosen, who is this week's Gainesway Guest of the Week.
00:41:00Of course, Rosen partnered for a 2026 Breeders' Cup win with Emphatic with Anthony Beck's Gainesway Farm,
00:41:07who, coincidentally, Stan Muth, whose first weanlings have been warmly welcomed at the Keeneland November sale.
00:41:14I can attest to that.
00:41:16I've seen many of them.
00:41:17Over the first two books at Keeneland, Muth's seven weanlings averaged over $265,000 and were led by a $525
00:41:26,000 filly purchased by one of the best in the game,
00:41:30including Donato Lani from the Gainesway consignment.
00:41:33Caitlin Dunn purchased a $325,000 Muth filly from four-star sales for a saggy bloodstock in book two.
00:41:41Muth saw his other offerings bring $285,000, $225,000, $180,000, $170,000 and $150,000.
00:41:50He will stand for a fee of a mere $25,000 in 2027.
00:41:55Gainesway, power, passion, performance.
00:42:30The Pennsylvania Breeding Program is the best program in the country.
00:42:35The stallion awards, the owner bonuses, also the restrictive races and the stakes races for Pennsylvania breads.
00:42:42Last year, 321 Pennsylvania breeders earned breeders awards.
00:42:4622 Pennsylvania breeders earned over $100,000.
00:42:51We have the best program in the country.
00:42:55Take advantage of the fantastic program that we have.
00:42:58Learn more at pabread.com.
00:43:00The TD and Riders Room brought to you by the Pennsylvania Horse Breeders Association, the PHBA.
00:43:07After the Keeneland November sale, two exciting mares are headed to Pennsylvania.
00:43:13Congratulations to my fellow Arkansan, John Ed Anthony, who sold Quiet Side, his race mare, for $5.2 million to
00:43:23Erdenheim Farm in Springfield and White Marsh Townships in Pennsylvania, where she will be headed.
00:43:29Quiet Side, the highest-priced mare sold in North America in 2026, was sold in full to Nyquist.
00:43:37And a little later in that sale, the 2025 test winner, Kilwin, was also picked up by Erdenheim for a
00:43:44price of $2.6 million.
00:43:46She will begin her new career as a broodmare in 2027.
00:43:51To learn why breeding and racing in Pennsylvania makes such financial good sense, contact Brian Sanfratello at 610-444-1050
00:44:02or go to pabread.com.
00:44:05Well, the Dwyer, not even a graded stakes race, was run Saturday at Belmont Park.
00:44:11But for a couple of reasons, it was certainly the most important race run over the weekend.
00:44:17Reason number one, Stimulate.
00:44:20Beautifully well-bred horse by Tappet out of Elate.
00:44:23Elate, of course, a grade one winner, two-time grade one winner, trained by Belmont.
00:44:27Stimulate is trained by Belmont, won by seven and a half lengths.
00:44:34And have we had the fastest horse of the week segment yet?
00:44:37Yes, we have.
00:44:38And it was Stimulate.
00:44:40And it was Stimulate, yes.
00:44:42Stimulate was the fastest horse of the week.
00:44:45And we're going to get to Ted Noffi in a minute, but let's start with Stimulate.
00:44:49And Randy, I'm not really sure where this race came from.
00:44:52There was nothing in his past performances to me that suggested that he could run a 107 buyer.
00:44:57But boy, he ran his eyeballs out.
00:45:00And we had Belmont on last week as our guest.
00:45:03And one of the things I was thinking about, you lose Knightsbridge and sovereignty to the breeding shed.
00:45:09How do you regroup?
00:45:10Well, of course, Mott's not going to have a bad staple, but he lost two superstars.
00:45:15Could this possibly be his 2027 star?
00:45:19I mean, winning the Dwyer is just one step, but he sure looked like a horse that's got some big
00:45:26potential.
00:45:27Drew a way to win by seven and a half lengths.
00:45:30But there is something in his past performances that would indicate that he would be capable of something like this.
00:45:37And it says, buy Tappitt out of Elate.
00:45:43Tappitt, we all know, is one of the best sires of the last couple of decades.
00:45:47And Elate was a top-class race mare campaign by Belmont, one of the very best in the country.
00:45:53If you recall, she ended her racing career running against males in the Breeders' Cup Classic.
00:45:59I think this is her third fold to date.
00:46:01And what's interesting about that breeding, Tappitt out of Elate, you would think that Stimulate would be at his best
00:46:09going a mile and a half.
00:46:10Certainly a mile and a quarter would be right in his wheelhouse.
00:46:13But before the Dwyer, Mott ran him around two turns in a minor stakes race at Churchill Downs, and he
00:46:21didn't finish up very well.
00:46:23Now, to be fair, that race was won by a Bob Baffert-trained horse named Plutarch, who was just as
00:46:30impressive in winning that race as Stimulate was in winning the Dwyer.
00:46:34I mean, Plutarch ran like a wild horse in that race.
00:46:38So, I mean, Stimulate wasn't exactly in against easy competition.
00:46:42But Mott was really scratching his head because he thought that Stimulate would be much better around two turns, much
00:46:48better at longer distances.
00:46:50And then after he came back and won the Dwyer around one turn like that, he had to really kind
00:46:54of reevaluate.
00:46:55He still thinks that Stimulate is going to be a two-turn type horse.
00:47:00He's going to look at the Pegasus World Cup, for example, as a possibility for the horse's next start.
00:47:06But no doubt, Zoe, the horse has a tremendous amount of natural ability, as his pedigree suggests he should.
00:47:13Elate, one of my favorite horses of all time.
00:47:16She was a really cool race mare.
00:47:19Big, stands over a lot of ground, and she throws that well in her foals.
00:47:24He's a beautiful-looking individual.
00:47:26By Tappet, like you mentioned, he's got the size of Elate.
00:47:30And this was his coming-out party.
00:47:32I believe he'll go two turns all day long.
00:47:34I just don't think mentally he's got it all figured out yet.
00:47:37So he backed him up in distance.
00:47:39He's like, oh, this is kind of fun.
00:47:41Let me just sit here on the outside.
00:47:44Junior's got his feet on the dashboard.
00:47:46And he just drew off like a good thing.
00:47:49And he looked good.
00:47:50107 buyer, like you mentioned.
00:47:52Really, really good.
00:47:54The only disappointment out of that race was Ted Noffey.
00:47:57And I mentioned Plutarch beating Stimulate in that race at Churchill Downs.
00:48:01You know, with these horses retiring, right, with Sovereignty retiring and Knightsbridge retiring and others, and you're looking ahead.
00:48:08I mean, not only will Stimulate be a horse to really look forward to, but Plutarch will too.
00:48:12When he won that race at Churchill, he got a buyer speed figure of 106.
00:48:17He's now won three races in a row.
00:48:19So he's in training at Churchill Downs.
00:48:21So we've got a couple of horses to really look forward to when we talk about the months coming up.
00:48:26All right.
00:48:26So let's turn our attention to Ted Noffey.
00:48:29He was not good.
00:48:30I mean, there's no other way to put it.
00:48:32He was fifth beat in 12 and a half lengths.
00:48:34Really, really didn't do much running at all.
00:48:36We're recording this on Tuesday.
00:48:38And within minutes of the official announcement from Spendthruth Farm about two of their top stars, number one, Ted Noffey
00:48:47has been retired.
00:48:48No surprise there whatsoever.
00:48:50We'll stand at stud for $60,000.
00:48:52I mean, we all knew this was coming.
00:48:55After a race like that, there was no point continuing on with him and taking the risk that he would
00:49:01not be a good four-year-old.
00:49:03He's had a tremendous resume, was a great two-year-old.
00:49:07He'll be well-received in the stallion barn.
00:49:09I don't know if I mentioned this, but if I'm repeating myself, I apologize.
00:49:14We'll stand for $60,000.
00:49:15They also announced that further ado, after originally saying that he was going to stand at stud next year, then
00:49:21they said they're going to revisit that decision.
00:49:25The Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile winner now will race next year.
00:49:29So, Randy, you can add him to the list of horses in 2027 that could perhaps have a big impact.
00:49:38But can't be any surprise about the Ted Noffey decision, Randy.
00:49:41No, and Ted Noffey's defense, I mean, he hadn't run since winning the Breeders' Cup Juvenile as a two-year
00:49:49-old.
00:49:50But, you know, I mean, there were obviously physical issues, but they were looking for the right spot for a
00:49:56horse worth the money Ted Noffey's worth at stud.
00:50:00They wanted to find a nice spot for him to make his comeback.
00:50:03They picked out an ungraded listed stakes in the Dwyer.
00:50:07And to everybody's surprise, it turns out to be a grade one level race the way that Stimulate won it.
00:50:15So Ted Noffey ran into a buzzsaw, but they certainly expected him to run better than that.
00:50:20I mean, he really showed no turn of foot whatsoever, and I think he struggled home fifth.
00:50:26So it was a pretty easy decision to make, I think.
00:50:30We were all going to speculate, even before we didn't know, that he was likely going to be retired.
00:50:36He was a brilliant two-year-old.
00:50:37Four for four was a $650,000 September yearling, sold by TaylorMade, buy into Mischief, had a streak of luck.
00:50:45He's a beautiful-looking yearling, really good mover.
00:50:49It's funny how horses change as they get a little older.
00:50:51He grew up and never really filled out, but when he gets to the stallion shed, he's going to be
00:50:57an absolute specimen to look at.
00:50:59Very good mover.
00:51:01He was pink, actually, when you looked at him as a yearling.
00:51:04He just had this kind of pink hue to him, and he's going to be very well-received.
00:51:09Good two-year-olds are very well-received at the stallion shed.
00:51:13So the other big race at Belmont on Saturday was the Mother Goose.
00:51:17Good day for Tappet.
00:51:18Tappet to open.
00:51:19Another beautifully bred horse, Tappet, out of I'll Take Charge, wins the Mother Goose.
00:51:24Unless one of my colleagues wants to comment on that, I'd actually like to move on to a race Sunday
00:51:29at Belmont because, again, it's not too early to get excited about.
00:51:34It's never too early to get excited about the Kentucky Derby.
00:51:37And, okay, I'm getting ahead of myself because this horse won an allowance race with four horses.
00:51:42But Hullaboo Ray Ray, this horse looked good.
00:51:46And I kind of love the name.
00:51:49Hullaboo Ray Ray is the fight song for the Tulane football team.
00:51:55And Craig Burnick is a Tulane graduate and a diehard Tulane fan.
00:52:00And apparently his whole family is slaying.
00:52:04And I interviewed him about Hullaboo Ray Ray after he became a TDN Rising Star presented by Haguard.
00:52:10And first thing he says, my football team stinks.
00:52:13But his horse doesn't stink, Zoe.
00:52:16Okay, again, he only wins a four-horse field.
00:52:19The rems in his neck.
00:52:20We'll find out more about him.
00:52:22But he wins by nine and a half.
00:52:24I don't think it's hype to be pretty excited about this horse.
00:52:28Did you try and talk him off of running in the remsen?
00:52:31You know, we know what you think of the remsen stakes.
00:52:34I have no problem with the remsen.
00:52:37Really?
00:52:38Or maybe it's Randy.
00:52:40He doesn't like the remsen stakes.
00:52:41Well, I've got a problem with the remsen at a mile.
00:52:43And, you know, it's going to be a one-turn mile in an eight, though, Zoe.
00:52:46Right, yeah.
00:52:47So that's key for a horse by Jackie's Warrior out of a sprint mare.
00:52:52Okay, so I remember him at Saratoga.
00:52:56Tom Proctor had a bunch of horses there.
00:52:58When he ran second or third in his maiden race, I think he was third.
00:53:03I can't remember.
00:53:04He was 10 to one, and I bet on him that day.
00:53:06Because he does not look like he's out of a sprint mare.
00:53:10Jackie's Warrior was a big, beautiful horse.
00:53:12And this guy is big, beautiful, long, stands over a ton of ground.
00:53:16He's a proper horse to look at.
00:53:18And I don't believe he's going to have a problem going two turns whatsoever.
00:53:22Tom's been very high on him from day one.
00:53:25He's got a great, great name.
00:53:27I thought Bill was going to come on and sing the song for a minute there because I looked it
00:53:31up.
00:53:32Listened to a bunch of college girls cheering this song, and I'm like, well, that's kind of cool.
00:53:37Very cool song.
00:53:38He's out of a half-sister to She Dares the Double who took down the grade one Kentucky Oaks.
00:53:44So distance, in my opinion, is not going to be a problem for Hullabaloo Ray Ray.
00:53:49Okay.
00:53:51Okay.
00:53:51All right.
00:53:52By Jackie's Warrior out of a sprinter.
00:53:54Okay.
00:53:56I've actually been in the middle of Hullabaloo Ray Ray at Tulane Green Wave Stadium.
00:54:01My daughter is married to a graduate of Tulane.
00:54:03And so when they were good, about three years ago or so, I went to a game one night there
00:54:08while we were visiting Nolans.
00:54:10And it was a fun atmosphere.
00:54:13Sounds it.
00:54:15Well, we'll see if Hullabaloo Ray Ray turns out to be more successful than the Tulane Green Wave football team.
00:54:21I haven't looked up their record lately, but I know Craig was not happy with the season that they were
00:54:26having.
00:54:27All right.
00:54:27We're going to take another break.
00:54:28And among others, we're going to find out who is the work of the week.
00:54:32And then when we come back, we'll wrap things up in our final segment here on the TDN Writer's Room
00:54:37podcast presented by Keeneland.
00:54:39Stay with us.
00:54:40The TDN Writer's Room Work of the Week is brought to you by First TV.
00:54:44Caldera, a winner of three of his four starts in 2026 and second in the Grade 1 Goodwood Stakes in
00:54:51his last start,
00:54:53was back in Florida and out on the Palm Meadows Training Center track for a half-mile breeze in 47
00:54:59-4 for trainer Safi Joseph Jr.
00:55:01Joseph has not indicated where Caldera will be headed next.
00:55:05We'll be right back after this message from First TV.
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00:56:10The TDN Writer's Room also brought to you by West Point Thoroughbreds, whose Yenzer, if you recall, flirted with the
00:56:17Kentucky Derby Trail in early 2025 after breaking his maiden on dirt.
00:56:22And then it was figured out, hey, Yenzer might be even better on the turf.
00:56:26And he is.
00:56:27As he's made his last 10 starts on the grass, he's won four of his last five on turf, taking
00:56:31his game to another level as a four-year-old, along with jockey Keith Asmussen.
00:56:36His latest win came Friday at Churchill Downs, where two rivals tried to challenge him early.
00:56:41But Yenzer's early speed was too much, and he drew away for another convincing victory.
00:56:46Now, it's back to stakes company at the fairgrounds this winter for Yenzer and his Hall of Fame trainer, Steve
00:56:52Asmussen.
00:56:54Well, Zoe already talked about it in the promotional read for Keeneland, but Zoe, you are our salesperson, so you
00:57:02have been at Keeneland for the November sale and also, of course, the Fasic-Tipton Night of the Stars sale.
00:57:10General take, I guess, is the same as what we've been talking about, but virtually every sale over the last
00:57:16several years, the sky has no limit.
00:57:20I think it might have leveled off just a little bit.
00:57:23I mean, you can't argue with the numbers.
00:57:25Twenty-five million dollar horses at Keeneland alone has been huge.
00:57:29Sale topper here.
00:57:31The sale topper of all the November sales, 5.2 million.
00:57:35Quiet side.
00:57:36We saw, we'll talk about her in a minute, USS Valor, the first horse to make a million dollars in
00:57:41book three of the sale.
00:57:43A lot of the weanlings are coming through.
00:57:45Some of the new sires that have really caught my eye.
00:57:49Cogburn, Arabian Knight.
00:57:50He's the talk of the town.
00:57:52Domestic products.
00:57:54National treasure.
00:57:55Chargets have been very, very nice.
00:57:57It's good to see these new young stallions coming through.
00:58:00I think that last year a lot of the pin hookers were getting yearling prices for weanlings, and that's not
00:58:08been quite the same this year.
00:58:10There's been a little bit of a drop-off.
00:58:12It's kind of leveled.
00:58:13And I'm not saying the sale has dropped down whatsoever because it's just been so high the last couple of
00:58:18years, but that has certainly leveled off.
00:58:20And what we're going to see is some of the smaller breeders might be dropping off as well just because
00:58:26it's so expensive to try and take a horse to market.
00:58:29So you're not seeing so many of those.
00:58:31The big commercial breeders are just printing money.
00:58:33They really are.
00:58:35The sale's been very, very successful throughout the course of the last year.
00:58:40It's been amazing.
00:58:43Well, it has.
00:58:44And one of the big stories, as you mentioned, was the dam of USS Valor's Spangled Banner selling for $1
00:58:49million.
00:58:51And it's interesting.
00:58:52You know, Barry Irwin from Team Valor, boy, he's made all the right moves with this deal.
00:58:57He bought this mayor for $225,000 in a digital sale, gets USS Valor, now turns around and makes a
00:59:05$775,000 profit with selling her at Keeneland November.
00:59:13And I'm sure Randy will want to check in with this as well.
00:59:16But Zoe, again, I mean, breed her to some great stallion, and if the foal looks good, it's going to
00:59:25sell for a lot of money.
00:59:25She is 15 years old.
00:59:28That's not – she's a little long in the tooth.
00:59:31She's not young, but she's a beautiful-looking mare.
00:59:34She does not look 15, which is a big plus for her.
00:59:37And, you know, the foal in her belly is going to make a lot of money next year, regardless of
00:59:41what USS Valor does.
00:59:45So we'll have to wait and see that horse.
00:59:47Whether they opt to hang on to it or put it up for auction is going to be worth an
00:59:51awful lot of money.
00:59:52Bertie Butler signed the ticket.
00:59:54He's been buying horses for Al Ruiz of Saudi.
00:59:57He also signed for Eve of War for $2.4 million.
01:00:01She's the dam of Randy's favorite horse, the Puma.
01:00:04So he's been spending an awful lot of money, and he said this was the one he wanted.
01:00:08So they went to a million dollars.
01:00:10And any time you go to a million dollars, you're not on your own thinking a 15-year-old mare
01:00:14is worth the money.
01:00:15And they'll get paid in spades when she has a foal next year.
01:00:20It's interesting, too.
01:00:21This is the eighth time she's been sold at auction.
01:00:24One time for us, it was $35,000.
01:00:27She's just bounced up and down like that.
01:00:29Of course it, I hate that.
01:00:31I hate that.
01:00:32And she's a really sweet man.
01:00:34She looks really, really good.
01:00:36And you talk about Erwin making all the right moves.
01:00:38You recall the story when we had him on as our guest of the week.
01:00:41There was a horse that literally ran a hole in the wind in his debut at Saratoga called Express Man.
01:00:49And then within a week, Barry notices that the dam of Express Man is in this digital sale.
01:00:55And that was Spangled Manor.
01:00:56And that's why he spent the money that he spent, $230,000 or whatever, to buy her, immediately breeds her.
01:01:04And her first foal for him is USS Valor.
01:01:07So, charmed.
01:01:10So, other news that came out of the sale.
01:01:12Ways and Means.
01:01:12She sold for $5 million.
01:01:14Correct me if I'm wrong at a Fasic-Dipton November sale.
01:01:18We thought she was going to be retired, bought by Boyd Racing.
01:01:21Now they're on the fence.
01:01:23They've sent her back to Chad Brown's barn at Payson Park.
01:01:26And so far, they said they haven't made a decision yet about whether or not she will run next year.
01:01:32And, you know, boy, whatever they do with her.
01:01:36She's a runner, certainly, and Eclipse Award, the Slam Dunk for Philly Mayor Sprint Award winner.
01:01:42Let's move on, though, to the other announcement this week that Englishman was retired.
01:01:46And that came out on Monday.
01:01:49And they had, you know, little flakes they found after doing the obvious checks that they'll do.
01:01:58I don't think he went out on a bad boat, to be honest with you.
01:02:01I thought, as we talked about last week, he ran a terrific race in the Breeders' Cup Sprint.
01:02:07He just got run down by, you know, a freak in T.O. Elvis.
01:02:13Randy, as fast as this horse was as a three-year-old this year, those huge buyer numbers, and how
01:02:21the breeders and the buyers just love speed now, I've got to imagine he's going to be extremely well-received
01:02:28as a sire.
01:02:29Standing at Lane's End, by the way.
01:02:30Yeah, by Max Field out of a Spightstown Mare.
01:02:33And, yeah, in the aftermath of the Breeders' Cup, I've been diving into all the replays.
01:02:40I mean, there are 14 of them, so it takes a little while, making notes on all the horses.
01:02:45And Englishman, I think, ran even better in the Breeders' Cup Sprint than I had initially given him credit for.
01:02:52I mean, any time at Keeneland, where the track was not, you know, Southern California-type lightning fast.
01:03:00It was fast, but it wasn't like a paved highway fast.
01:03:04Any time on a track like that, you can go the quarter in 21.68.
01:03:09You go the first three furlongs in 32.83.
01:03:14You get to the top of the stretch in 44.42.
01:03:18And then you shade 24 for your final quarter of a mile.
01:03:22I mean, that's almost unbeatable.
01:03:25And yet, T.O. Elvis runs his final quarter in 22.88, which on dirt is just beyond spectacular.
01:03:34And if it weren't for T.O. Elvis, Englishman's running line would have been leading by a length in a
01:03:39quarter at the top of the stretch by three lengths at the eighth bowl and winning by four,
01:03:43which would have been a pretty nice Breeders' Cup Sprint win.
01:03:45But T.O. Elvis just was in the, you know, the next galaxy, the way he ran him down.
01:03:52It'll be interesting to see what he does next year as well, T.O. Elvis, because he's been very successful
01:03:58coming stateside.
01:04:00He was brilliant.
01:04:01Englishman was brilliant.
01:04:03Everything he said, and he's a gorgeous horse to look at by Maxfield.
01:04:06I went and looked at some stallions yesterday.
01:04:09There's Maxfield right there with his tongue out.
01:04:11Isn't he cool?
01:04:14I like that.
01:04:15Yeah, really cool.
01:04:16He's just such a ham.
01:04:18And, yeah, I believe he's standing for 50,000, and the phone has already been ringing off the hook for
01:04:24Englishman.
01:04:25Obviously, he had a little issue with the ankles, flaking each ankle.
01:04:29They've gone ahead and cleared that up already, and he will be available for inspection the first week of December
01:04:34at Lane's End Farm.
01:04:36I'm actually going to go out a little bit later because I want to see Deterministic one more time and
01:04:41take a look at Flightline.
01:04:42I went to Coolmore yesterday and saw Magnitude, who looked spectacular.
01:04:46Saw Sovereignty and Knightsbridge and Cogburn and Collicule.
01:04:51It's a fun week here in Kentucky going to look at those stallions.
01:04:54Randy, you leave too early.
01:04:57You need to stay a little longer and go and look at some of these horses.
01:05:01It's really fun.
01:05:02I don't disagree with that.
01:05:04I love doing that when I get a chance to do it.
01:05:06Yeah.
01:05:06Yeah.
01:05:07All right.
01:05:08A couple things before we wrap up the show.
01:05:10And, again, I said earlier, please watch us on any avenue.
01:05:16That's great.
01:05:17But if you want to leave comments, YouTube's the place to go.
01:05:22And we love to hear what our listeners have to say.
01:05:25And of no surprise, people were just overwhelmed with the Bill Mott interview we did last week and the class
01:05:35that this person has, how great a trainer he is.
01:05:40And here's what Matt Vane, 8303, had to say.
01:05:44I know it's said by many on this page channel, but I grew up on the racetrack and have been
01:05:49there all my life.
01:05:49I don't think it's been said enough about this man, but Bill Mott is truly one of the best human
01:05:54beings that's ever been on the track.
01:05:55And we just don't see enough of his kind on or off the track.
01:05:58He's definitely among the small group of goats that we're lucky enough to still have in the business.
01:06:03I like this.
01:06:04He would be the Larry Bird of trainers.
01:06:07In that discussion argument, you can't block a shot and he might not be able to jump, but be damned
01:06:12if you're going to get anything by him.
01:06:14Biggest difference between Bill and Larry Bird is Bill doesn't trash talk anyone.
01:06:18If he hasn't already, he's worthy of his own category in Saratoga at the Horse Racing Hall of Fame.
01:06:24What a gentleman and a great man.
01:06:25Thanks, Bill.
01:06:27Roshan, excuse me, oh my God.
01:06:29Roshan, I'm not even going to try to pronounce your last name.
01:06:31You know who you are.
01:06:33Bill Mott is the goat, well said.
01:06:35And Kennedy Neely, 7938, said, one example for our sport, our detractors need to spend the day with Bill.
01:06:42Great interview, folks.
01:06:43Okay, a couple other things.
01:06:45I know it's not even Thanksgiving yet, but we're already going into holiday mode.
01:06:51We do an end of the year show and we take a little break to give all our team and
01:06:57these guys drink their Starbucks coffee.
01:07:01But it's got Christmas on it.
01:07:03It's too early for that stuff.
01:07:05They shouldn't have it.
01:07:06It's November 10th.
01:07:08Come on.
01:07:08Buy a humbug.
01:07:10I drove by a restaurant yesterday that had all the Christmas decorations up.
01:07:15Come on.
01:07:16Fabulous.
01:07:17Are you going to take a look at your house?
01:07:18I'm putting up my Christmas lights tomorrow.
01:07:20Yeah.
01:07:21It's too early, guys.
01:07:23Gosh.
01:07:24You know, why don't you put them up on July 4th, why don't you?
01:07:28You try putting up Christmas lights in suburban Minneapolis in December and see if you can feel your hands and
01:07:34feet by the time you're done.
01:07:35Randy, you have a point.
01:07:37Okay.
01:07:37So what we'd like you to do is for our holiday show, we're going to extend what I've been talking
01:07:45about, about the YouTube comments.
01:07:46We want our listeners and viewers to ask us questions.
01:07:51What would you like to know?
01:07:53What would you like to solicit our opinions on things?
01:07:56Take this where you want to go and we'll be glad to jump on those subjects and use those as
01:08:03talking points.
01:08:05Rather than going to YouTube, please mail those comments to Sue Finley, Sue, F-I-N-L-E-Y, at
01:08:12thetdn.com.
01:08:15Once again, Sue Finley at thetdn.com.
01:08:18And please do it quickly.
01:08:20We don't have a lot of time for that.
01:08:23So, again, thank you for everybody for – and there were another dozen comments about Mott, how much people appreciate
01:08:31him and his role in the industry.
01:08:33And just, again, the class that he has.
01:08:36But, okay.
01:08:37So that is a long-winded speech to end the show, and I'm going to do my typical wrap-up.
01:08:43We want to thank our Gainsway Guest of the Week, Andrew Rosen.
01:08:47I want to thank my partner, Zoe Cabin and Randy Moss.
01:08:50I also want to thank the people who work behind the scenes.
01:08:53That is Sue Finley, Katie Petruniak, Anthony LaRocca, and Leah LaRocca.
01:08:57And as I say each and every week, they're the stars of the show because when it comes out, it
01:09:01looks great.
01:09:02And they're the ones responsible for that.
01:09:04We'll be back next week with another edition of the TDN Writers Room Podcast presented by Kaelin.
01:09:09See you then.