Mar 062024
 

Bloodhorse – Dick Downey – Agreement: CHRB to Order Justify DQ, Pay Ruis $300,000

TDN – T.D. Thornton – CHRB Settles with Ruis in ’18 Santa Anita Derby Dispute Involving Justify DQ


TDN – TD Thornton – Baffert Wants Bettors’ Class-Action Suit Reassigned To Judge Who Already Dismissed Similar Case

Bloodhorse – Dick Downey – Baffert Asks for New Judge in Derby Bettors’ Case

TDN – TD Thornton – Bettors-Vs.-Baffert Suit Transferred to Kentucky


TDN – T.D. Thornton – Facing Extortion Allegations, Defendants in Defamation Lawsuit Contend ‘Baffert is the Rare Libel-Proof Plaintiff’

Bloodhorse – Dick Downey – Baffert Seeks Default Judgment in Defamation Suit

Phil says it’s time for all horse players who are on Twitter (X) to start bashing responding to that fucking asshole Not that @swifthitter.

@swifthitter sure flaps his jaws at lot, but then hides behind his mother’s skirt when the bailiffs come looking for him. When they came to serve him was he in the basement of his mother’s trailer.

Rhetoric is a poor substitute for action, and we have trusted only to rhetoric. If we are really to be a great nation, we must not merely talk; we must act big.

Theodore Roosevelt

Talk doesn’t cook rice.

Chinese Proverb

Talk that does not end in any kind of action is better suppressed altogether.

Thomas Carlyle


Bloodhorse – Eric Mitchell – NY Commission Upholds Suspension Due to Forte Positive

TDN – Bill Finley – Pletcher, Repole Lose Another Round in Fight to Overturn Hopeful DQ


Paulick Report – No, Justify Isn’t Going To Lose His Triple Crown Title; Here’s Why

Bloodhorse – Dick Downey – Horseman Ruis Prevails in Justify Disqualification Suit

Phil has a question:

Where do the dominoes stop.

Is this a case of the old lady who swallowed a fly.


Bloodhorse – Dean Keppler – Racing Commission Approves Turf Paradise Race Dates

TDN – T.D. Thornton – Turf Paradise Approved to Run ’24 Meet, Pending Sign-off by HISA Authority

Bloodhorse – Byron King – Arizona HBPA: Turf Paradise to Reopen Jan. 29

TDN – Report: Racing To Resume at Turf Paradise in January


 

OPENING DAY HIGHLIGHTS
Free* Santa Anita Wall Calendar
Frontrunner Buffet
Craft Beer Trackside Festival
Loge Box Seats & Trackside Dining
Whiskey in Winter in the Chandelier Room
Winter Family Fun Zone
Premium Golden Road Pub
Showvivor Contest Begins

*With paid admission, while supplies last


The Current Race Meet at Century Mile Is Not in Great Shape


Remember this: classics never make a comeback. They wait for that perfect moment to take the spotlight from overdone, tired trends. 

Tabatha Coffey

TDN – Bill Finley – P. Val Eyeing Comeback

Paulick Report – ‘Most Everybody Has Been Encouraging’: Pat Valenzuela Considering Comeback

Do It Again

Paulick Report – Ray Paulick – What I Learned At The Global Symposium On Racing

National Post – Steven Beattie – Heather gets the last word: Queen of reading launches her Indigo comeback

Paulick Report – ‘He Kind Of Came To Life’: Just Steel To Get Second Chance At Two Turns In Oaklawn Derby Prep

The Ringer – The 27 Best Albums of 2023

Paulick Report – Economic Indicators: November Handle Nearly Level, Despite Breeders’ Cup Declines

Thoroughbred Racing Commentary – Fund-raising calendar for 2024 honors Secretariat’s daughter Secrettame

Bloodhorse – Byron King – Symposium: Track Closures Expected to Continue

TDN – TD Thornton – U of A Symposium: Trying to Find a Way Forward Amid Track Closures

Paulick Report – HISA, Palantir Technologies Develop AI Tool To Help Identify Horses At Risk Of Increased Injury; To Debut In Early 2024

Bloodhorse – Juddmonte Lands Teona for $5.7M+ at Tatts December

The Ringer – Paul Thompson – Dangerous Insecurity: ‘May December’ and the Rotting Core of True Crime

Global News – Elizabeth McSheffrey & Kylie Stanton – Now in disrepair, world’s largest hockey stick in Duncan, B.C. to be benched for good

The Ringer – Ben Solak – Quarterback Injuries Are Defining the NFL Playoff Race

Front Office Sports – Eric Fisher – NHL Plans To Stage 2024 Draft At $2.3B Vegas Sphere

If you ever injected truth into politics you have no politics. 

Will Rogers

The Ringer – Adam Nayman – The Best Movies of 2023

Fairytale of New York

Phil was doing a quick perusal of the Stakes nominations at Fairgrounds to see when the nominations for the Gun Runner close when what to his astonished eyes did appear but a Stakes Race restricted to Alabama breds called the Magic City Classic running on December 8, 2023. Alabama doesn’t even have their own state book on the Jockey Club, but they do have a stakes race restricted to Alabama breds. There are only 6 horses entered and half the field is by a sire aptly named Doc n Bubba G out of the same Cryptyoclearance mare Ausbrook.

Phil’s not gonna denigrate the fine state of Alabama for the state of their thoroughbred breeding industry, but Phil got to wondering if Clark Kent and the Undertaker could manage thoroughbred racing in Alabama.

Sweet Home Alabama

Bloodhorse – Karen M Johnson – On the Rise: Matt Dinerman

Mommy, why does daddy cuss the TV and call it Howard? 

Howard Cosell

ESPN – GM Dana Brown says Astros not trading ‘pillar’ 3B Alex Bregman

Phil has a question:

Will Mattress Mack offer free furniture for life to get Bregman to re-sign with the Astros.

Will Mattress Mack offer free breeding to Runhappy for life to get Bregman to re-sign with the Astros.

Bloodhorse – Bernhards, Bregman Named New Owners of the Year

TDN – Bill Finley – European Riders Murphy and Levey Look to Make Their Marks at Gulfstream

Bloodhorse – Dean Keppler – Ring The Bell, Mistletoe Head Oaklawn Dec. 9 Stakes

Bloodhorse – Lauren Gash – Fasig-Tipton Midlantic Mixed Sale Caps 2023

Paulick Report – Natalie Voss – This Week In History: Man o’ War’s Legacy Overshadows Sir Barton

Fairytale of New York

Los Angeles Times – Nabih Bulos – ‘The Bedouins are being whipped from both sides’ in the Israel-Hamas war

Southern Living – 26 Easy Cookie Recipes For Once-A-Year Bakers

The cookie recipe once a year bakers really use.

A wise man can learn more from a foolish question than a fool can learn from a wise answer. 

Bruce Lee

Sports Business Journal – Bret McCormick – Clippers confirm Levy will handle Intuit Dome F&B

FiveThirtyEight – Geoffrey Skelley – The fourth Republican debate may have just three participants

When The Night Feels My Song

A story should have a beginning, a middle, and an end…but not necessarily in that order.

Jean-Luc Godard.

The Ringer – Miles Surrey – “I Don’t Play by the Rules”: John Woo Returns to Hollywood With a Blood-Soaked Christmas Thriller

“Most thoughtful hostess gift ever? A timely RSVP.”

Now, don’t get me wrong—flowers, wine, cookies, and candles are classics. Keep ’em coming. Just give them with the intention for your hostess to enjoy them after the party, so she doesn’t feel compelled to vase, pour, plate, or light a fire that makes her powder room smell like a sugarplum fairy was in there for an hour. And give them with the knowledge that they might be regifted. Kay says, “There is a certain candle that is meant to go around the world.”

Garden and Gun – Helen Ellis – What’s the Best Hostess Gift?

Phil has a question:

If you went to someone’s house as a guest and brought a cookbook for a hostess gift wouldn’t you be setting yourself up for a punch in the teeth rather than a thank you.

Bloodhorse – America’s Day at the Races to Expand Oaklawn Coverage

Southern Living – Brandee Gruener – Auburn University Is First In Nation To Offer Masters Degree In The Science Of Brewing Beer

Phil has a question:

When will they offer a degree in the science of drinking beer.

Thoroughbred Racing Commentary – Kevin Kilroy – James Graham hits 3,000-win milestone at Fair Grounds

Bloodhorse – Molly Rollins – Stay Hot Sizzles in Cecil B. DeMille Stakes at Del Mar

TDN – Stay Hot Rebounds Off Breeders’ Cup Loss To Take Cecil B. DeMille

Before you say ‘cut,’ wait five more seconds.

Wim Wenders

Bloodhorse – Tracy Gantz – Surge Capacity Tops Brown-Trained Matriarch Superfecta

TDN – More Matriarch Domination: Brown Runners 1-2-3-4 at Del Mar

Paulick Report – ‘Possibly The Holy Bull’: Connections Mull What’s Next For In Reality Victor Seminole Chief

ESPN – Bill Connelly – How the CFP committee got it all wrong with Florida State

ESPN – Undefeated Florida State left out of College Football Playoff

If you use Boo Corrigan’s lack of logic a 1 win team who played a really good game at the end of the year could get in cuz they’re not the same team that they were through their first 12 blowout losses.

It is an absolute slap in the face to every player who has ever put on a helmet, laced up cleats and marched onto the field to battle for a victory, because a bunch of folks in a conference room in Texas decided their sacrifice was not as important as the Las Vegas line on a potential playoff matchup.

It’s a (Phil would have used an adjective here) joke.

ESPN – David Hale – CFP Anger Index: Unpacking the outrage of Florida State’s snub

This whole situation is essentially a giant advertisement for the College Football Playoff’s expansion to 12 teams, which is scheduled to happen next season. But it’s also a reminder of what’s changed, for better and for worse, and what quiet parts can now be said out loud. Florida State deserved to make the playoff. But deserve’s got nothing to do with it.

The Ringer – Dan Heifetz – The College Football Playoff Has Never Been About Fairness

Front Office Sports – Eric Fisher – After Unbeaten FSU’s Snub, Financial and Legal Fallout

The CFP committee blew it. If they’re going to penalize FSU for an injured quarterback then they should have looked at the absolutely lucky hail Mary pass that was barely caught in bounds to give Alabama their win and say that perhaps Georgia was a better team than Alabama and Alabama just got lucky.

The more successful the villain, the more successful the picture.

Alfred Hitchcock.

The Ringer – Ben Solak – The Hot Read, Week 13: The 49ers Are Back to Peak Form

Paulick Report – Tenacious Remsen Winner Dornoch Has Gargan Derby Dreaming

Bloodhorse – Change in Violence’s 2024 Stud Fee Announced

If a million people see my movie, I hope they see a million different movies.”

Quentin Tarantino

Paulick Report – Saudi Cup Penciled In For Front-Running Cigar Mile Winner Hoist The Gold

Paulick Report – Joe Nevills – The 2023-24 All-Value Sire Team Presented By Pedigrees 360: Team Captain And Turf Sire

TDN – Bill Finley – The Week in Review: Takeaways from Justify – Scopolamine Verdict, and Other Thoughts

The Score – Dan Wilkins – Key takeaways and analysis from Week 13 in the NFL

Sports Business Journal – Coyotes nearing land deal for potential new arena


Phil M Stockmen

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