{Sunday, May 31, 2009}   Zito duo breeze in tandem for Belmont With the recent spell of wet weather having finally moved on at Belmont Park, three contenders for the 141st running of the $1 million Belmont S. (G1) turned in their

{Friday, May 29, 2009} BIG DOINGS AT BELMONT The eyes of the racing world will be focused on Belmont Park the next two Saturdays, more so of course on the first Saturday of June than the last Saturday of May. As this is being

{Wednesday, May 27, 2009} ONE TOUGH WEEK Gambling aside, this has been one hellacious week for thoroughbred racing. First and foremost of course were the debilitating injuries sustained by jockey Rene Douglas in a spill Saturday in the

{Monday, May 25, 2009} TRIUMPH AND TRAGEDY
by John Piesen The best and worst of thoroughbred racing was on display Saturday afternoon at racetracks in Chicago and Los Angeles. At Arlington Park in Chicago, jockey Rene Douglas went

{Sunday, May 24, 2009}   Criticism brooks no opposition in Sheepshead Bay In what has become a pattern this season, Darley Stable's homebred CRITICISM (GB) (Machiavellian) went straight to the early lead, carved out fractions

{Friday, May 22, 2009} DERBY CONTROVERSY While Calvin Borel was gunning Mine That Bird down the gold rail to win the Kentucky Derby, there was a battle royal raging among three horses for second money...a rather significant battle for

{Wednesday, May 20, 2009} A Personal Message From John Piesen... I'm being asked how I nailed the $142 exacta cold in the fifth race on Sunday, May 17 at Belmont.

Strike the Bell and Minishaft,

{Monday, May 18, 2009} POST PREAKNESS NEWS & NOTES At no time during my 13 years in Hot Springs hangin' with Calvin Borel did I ever think this was the biggest star to come out of Arkansas since Billy Bob. Bigger even. You don't

{Sunday, May 17, 2009} Derby dodge doesn't suit queen 'Rachel'
Could she have become first filly to wear racing's Crown? We'll never know Rachel Alexandra thundered over the finish line at Pimlico Race Course on Saturday,

{Friday, May 15, 2009} THE 2009 PREAKNESS: IT'S ALL ABOUT RACHEL Win or lose, Rachel Alexandra clearly is the story of the 134th Preakness. Rachel is the reason, and only reason, why Pimlico Race Course --

{Wednesday, May 13, 2009} PREAKNESS STORY LINES There may have been -- make that certainly have been -- deeper Preakness fields, but this baby has 'em all beat when it comes to story lines. Where do you begin? You've got Mine

{Monday, May 11, 2009}   A PREAKNESS CONSPIRACY? I was very disappointed this morning to learn that the connections of Mine That Bird and Pioneerof the Nile overnight have scrapped their devious plan

{Friday, May 08, 2009} WHO DOES BOREL RIDE? In the light of recent developments, suddenly the key figure in the Triple Crown picture is none other than Jerry Hissam, the agent for jockey Calvin Borel. Hissam, who was the subject

{Wednesday, May 06, 2009} MORE POST DERBY NOTES - CHURCHILL'S PICK-6 Boy, was I wrong! I'm not talking my Derby selections. Like the rest of the western world, I was dead wrong with those. No, I'm referring to how wrong I was about the

{Monday, May 04, 2009} IN THE WAKE OF THE DERBY In the wake of the Kentucky Derby, I was wondering how Calvin Borel, clearly one of the premier riders in the country, happened to wind up on hopeless longshot Mine That Bird in the first

{Sunday, May 03, 2009}   No-Name Gelding Wins Derby
by Ray Kerrison LOUISVILLE, Ky. -- I've seen a few shockers in my day around the racetrack, but I can't remember one quite the equal to the absolutely stunning,