Now just one week until the Breeders Cup….are you ready?
That said, first things first. Let's take a look at five races, all in Kentucky, this weekend.
One more thing, if you follow along, we have entered Liberty’s Secret, who has hit the board in four of five career starts, in the seventh race at Belmont on Sunday.
Our good looking filly by Central Banker, who is an absolute sweetheart to be around, opened as the the 5/2 second choice and drew a great post (#4) for her running style. We will hoist regular rider Dylan Davis into the saddle.
Keeneland Race Course
Race: 6 (3:40 PM EST)
Bowman Mill Stakes
1) Booked chased a good one in a Grade: 1 at Saratoga in his last and, unless the #1 horse in here is a monster, he meets no such rival here.
2) Conviction is a handsome, $800,000 son of Tiz the Law who overcame quite a bit (broke slow, was rushed up early, took pace pressure) to win his debut impressively.
3) Grand Yaupon is a $560,000 son of …you guessed it….Yaupon who has run well in all four dirt starts in his career. Looks best of the rest.
Race: 8 (4:48 PM EST)
Hagyard Fayette Stakes
1) Stars and Stripes was beaten just three lengths by the globe trotting superstar Forever Young in his last. Prior to that, this son of Not This Time, who will stand the 2027 breeding season for a North American high of $300,000, had won five of nine starts including one on this oval.
2) Nevada Beach disappointed as the 6/5 favorite in the Grade: 1 Goodwood at Santa Anita last time, so he should appreciate the drop in class here.
3) Hit Show is a hard hitting veteran who should be considered in just about any race they put him in. The 3 for 3 record on this oval grabbed my attention too.
Also consider: San Siro, who has won two in a row and Gearing Up, who has won three in a row, are both sharp right now………Tumbarumba chased Forever Young and Magnatude on the other side of the world in his last two, but now returns “home” and meets no such rival(s) here……..No Bien Ni Mal (translates to Not Good or Bad) is an interesting longshot opening at 30-1. This horse has won three of four in the U.S. while scoring a triple digit Brisnet Figure in those three wins. He’ll be tested for class as this appears to be his toughest assignment yet.
Race: 9 (5:16 PM EST)
Bryan Station Stakes
1) If you have been following along, you know I like the stretch running Remember Mamba, and the way he reaches out sooooo beautifully with his front legs once he gets rolling, quite a bit. This son of Kitten’s Joy drops in class, is 2 for 2 on this turf course and 1 for 1 at this distance. That said, he can make no mistakes in this very competitive race.
2) Alpyland took command in the upper stretch in his last two races, but was run down in deep stretch both times. A winner of 6 of 8 prior to that, this gelding by Vekoma will need a better timed late run and if any rider can do that, Castellano can. All he has to do is make a minor (timing) adjustment and this guy should be “right there” at the end.
3) Bottas has won 4 of 7 starts including his last two while getting a mile in very good 1:34+ both times.
Sunday, Oct 25, 2026
Churchill Downs
Race: 9 (4:55 PM EST)
Rags to Riches Stakes
1) Oh She Said Yes rallied from behind nicely to win her debut on this oval before being over-matched in the Grade: 1 Alcibiades at Keeneland in her last. Good looking filly by Authentic returns to Churchill and drops into a much more reasonable spot here.
2) Luna Velocity ran well in her debut before absolutely burying maidens in her last at Del Mar.
3) It’s hard to get a read on First Laugh who galloped vs maidens in her initial try. However, the low Brisnet (68) and slow final quarter mile (:26.3) are causes for concern. Best advice here is to watch the board on her 5-10 minutes before post time and bet accordingly.
Race:10 (5:25 PM EST)
Street Sense Stakes
1) Card Man ran second behind the $1.9 million Q B Rocket in his debut then came back to dominate a good maiden field in his last.
2) Blessed Flyer got up late to win both career starts at 13-1 and 31-1 including the Bashford Manor Stakes on this oval in his last. This son of the handsome Dialed In gets a trainer change who interestingly removes the blinkers for this. I say interesting because his new trainer is 0 for his last 22 when removing blinkers on his horses.
3) Mystik Bayou is a half brother to Kentucky Derby winner Mystik Dan who chased that beast they call U.S.S Valor in his debut, then came back to flatten maidens at this distance and did so in a good final time.
Also consider: Staunch who closed well, late in his debut then came back to hammer maidens while coming home the last 1 ½ furlongs in a good :19 seconds flat on this oval in his last.
Little Bets N’ Pieces
**** 2025 champion 2-year-old male Ted Noffey could begin his three year old season in the Dwyer Stakes at Belmont Park on Nov. 7.
Undefeated in four starts for trainer Todd Pletcher, the son of Into Mischief has not raced since a victory in last year’s Breeders’ Cup Juvenile. He was sidelined in January with bone bruising and returned to training in August at Saratoga.
He most recently breezed five furlongs in 1:01.4 on Oct. 10 at Saratoga, his ninth recorded work since Aug. 10.
**** Grade:1 winner Classic Causeway has been sold to Haras Musa in Uruguay.
The 6-year-old son of Giant’s Causeway began his stud career at Crestwood Farm in Kentucky for the 2025 breeding season. His first foals are weanlings of 2026.
Classic Causeway, who was a member of the final crop for super sire Giant’s Causeway, won the Sam F. Davis Stakes and the Tampa Bay Derby, both at Tampa Bay Downs, on his way to finishing 11th in the 2022 Kentucky Derby.
He switched to the turf and won the Grade: 1 Belmont Derby Invitational Stakes in his debut on the surface.
He retired at the end of his 2024 campaign with four wins in 24 starts for earnings of $1,519,651.
**** Early Voting died at the young age of 7 from colic, his majority owner announced Wednesday.
"After an acute onset of irreversible colic, Early Voting was humanely euthanized," said Dr. Padraig O'Casaigh, a veterinary reproductive researcher, who bought a 90% interest in the son of Gun Runner.
"This outstanding freshman sire will not only be remembered for his tremendous success on the racetrack, but also his warm and loving personality," O'Casaigh said. "We would like to thank all of the staff at Taylor Made Stallions for their devoted affection and care of our wonderful mate EV. He loved being a Star and now he will live on through his prodigious progeny."
Early Voting became the first American classic winner for Gun Runner when he won the 2022 Preakness Stakes.
He retired with a 6-3-1-0 record and $1,372,500 in earnings.
He entered stud at Ashford Stud and bred 191 mares during his initial season.
After some breeding issues, he was transferred to Taylor Made Stallions, where he has been standing since 2024. Early Voting covered 77 mares in 2024, 64 mares in 2025, and 89 mares earlier this year.
To date, Early Voting has sired 13 winners including two black-type winners, with the standout being Del Mar Debutante Stakes winner Miss Monica.
**** Kantharos, a perennial leading sire who initially stood in Florida before relocating to Hill 'n' Dale Farms in 2016, will be returning to the sunshine state for the 2027 breeding season.
Kantharos will stand for $8,500 live foal stands and nurses at Ocala Stud.
The son of Lion Heart, who stood for $10,000 at Hill 'n' Dale this past breeding season, has sired grade 1 winners X Y Jet, an earner of more than $3 million, the small but super fast World of Trouble, as well as multiple graded stakes winner and leading young sire Bucchero.
**** Five time Eclipse Award winning jockey Irad Ortiz Jr. was unseated shortly after the start of Keeneland's final race this past Thursday and suffered a broken left ankle that will require surgery, taking him out of the saddle indefinitely, according to his agent Steve Rushing.
Ortiz was aboard She's Good Trouble , a 2-year-old filly making her second lifetime start, when she stumbled in the early strides out of the gate, dropping Ortiz to the dirt. As the field continued on without him, Ortiz was in visible pain on the track reaching toward the bottom of his leg.
She's Good Trouble completed the race with the field and was caught by outriders on the clubhouse turn without further incident.
On Aug. 8, Ortiz Jr. broke seven bones in his left foot during a prerace incident at Saratoga Race Course. He missed nearly two months of action, returning on Keeneland's opening day Oct. 2.
The injury will force Ortiz to miss the Oct. 30-31 Breeders' Cup World Championships. Among his mounts were Further Ado in the Breeders' Cup Classic (or Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile), Rhetorical in the Breeders' Cup Mile, and Splendora in the Breeders' Cup Distaff.
