Young sires in North America and Europe are showing potential with progeny headed into the upcoming classics, which are coming in May and June.
Monthly Archives: April 2018
Caledonia Road Soars in Season Debut at Belmont
Reigning champion 2-year-old filly Caledonia Road returned to racing April 29 and won her season debut by 3 1/2 lengths at Belmont Park.
Kentucky Derby a Tribute to The Best of Scat Daddy
With his sons Justify, Mendelssohn, Flameaway, and Combatant all slated to start in the first leg of the Triple Crown, the impact of the late Scat Daddy lords over the Kentucky Derby this season.
Cracksman Powers Forward to Win Prix Ganay
European champion Cracksman returned to the track in style April 29, with a convincing success in the €600,000 Prix Ganay – Prix de l’Inauguration de ParisLongchamp (G1) at ParisLongchamp.
Rainbow Line Takes Tenno Sho (Spring)
Rainbow Line (JPN) got through between horses in the final yards to win the Tenno Sho (Spring) (G1) April 29 at Kyoto Racecourse, narrowly defeating Cheval Grand (JPN) and Clincher (JPN).
Chocolate Martini in Sweet Spot for Oaks
Chocolate Martini, a $25,000 claim at Fair Grounds Feb. 2, takes aim at the $1 million Longines Kentucky Oaks (G1) for trainer Tom Amoss and Double Doors Racing’s David Walker and Amanda DaBruzzo.
Americas Cardroom Hit with Another DDoS Attack, Forced to Cancel Tournaments
In September 2017, Americas Cardroom, a US-facing poker site, was hit with a serious Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attack on its server, causing tournaments and cash games to be […]
The post Americas Cardroom Hit with Another DDoS Attack, Forced to Cancel Tournaments appeared first on .
Americas Cardroom Hit with Another DDoS Attack, Forced to Cancel Tournaments
In September 2017, Americas Cardroom, a US-facing poker site, was hit with a serious Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attack on its server, causing tournaments and cash games to be […]
The post Americas Cardroom Hit with Another DDoS Attack, Forced to Cancel Tournaments appeared first on .
Sunland Park Oaks Winner Blamed Out of Kentucky Oaks
Blamed, winner of the Sunland Park Oaks, has been withdrawn from consideration in the May 4 Longines Kentucky Oaks (G1) after a hairline fracture in her right hind pastern was discovered the morning of April 29.
Hofburg 'Smooth As Silk' in Half-Mile Breeze
Hofburg was the lone Kentucky Derby Presented by Woodford Reserve (G1) hopeful on the Churchill Downs grounds to put in a timed workout April 29, going in company with Villamay during a half-mile breeze in :48 1/5.
Instilled Regard, Solomini Put in Final Derby Works
Six days ahead of the Run for the Roses, Instilled Regard covered five furlongs in 1:00 4/5 at Santa Anita Park.
Spanish gaming giant Cirsa sold to Blackstone Group
Spanish gaming giant Cirsa Gaming Corp has been acquired by private equity funds managed by The Blackstone Group.
On Friday, Cirsa and Blackstone issued a joint statement saying they’d reached agreement on a deal under which Blackstone will acquire Cirsa’s casino, bingo and sports betting operations in Spain, Italy and Latin America, with the exception of the Argentinean business, which will continue to exist as a separate entity under the rule of Cirsa founder Manuel Lao Hernandez.
Terms of the deal weren’t disclosed, but the Barcelona-based Cirsa had been expected to fetch somewhere between €2b and €2.5b via the hedge fund bidding war that began in February. Earlier this month, media reports indicated that the field of possible bidders had narrowed to just Blackstone and rival hedge funders Apollo Global Management, creating doubts as to whether a deal was actually in the offing. Cirsa was also reportedly mulling an initial public offering should a direct sale not transpire.
Cirsa’s current empire includes 147 casinos, 178 salons, 70 bingo halls, over 2k sports betting points of sale and over 75k gaming machines. Cirsa is also a joint venture partner with UK bookmaker Ladbrokes in the Sportium sports betting operation. The company’s 2017 revenue exceeded €1.7b and extended Cirsa’s streak of consecutive quarterly earnings growth to 47.
Florida Derby Moves to Top of Prep Races
Should Audible win this year’s Kentucky Derby, it will mark the third straight year the Florida Derby (G1) winner has gone on to win the Louisville classic, a stretch that moved the Gulfstream race to the top of the list of Derby preps.
Kumin Sends out Trio in Search of Derby Glory
Owner Sol Kumin has a sprinkling of yearling buys and more recent private purchases as his Monomoy Girl seeks to win the Longines Kentucky Oaks while Justify, Audible, and My Man Jack go looking for roses in the Kentucky Derby
Brown Has Reason to Smile Heading Into Kentucky Derby
Over the past couple seasons, Chad Brown’s operation has put some of the sport’s most significant prizes on its mantel.
Dr. Dorr Dominant in Californian Stakes
Jill Baffert’s Dr. Dorr continued his ascent up the class ladder with the most impressive victory of his career April 28 in the $200,000 Californian Stakes (G2) at Santa Anita Park.
Photo Finish for Let It Ride Mom in Whimsical Stakes
Driving the crowd to a frenzy as she dug in at the wire, Let It Ride Mom, with jockey Patrick Husbands aboard, split from midpack in the last seconds of the Whimsical Stakes (G3) for a final time of 1:08.96.
Queen Blossom Breaks Slump in Santa Barbara Stakes
After longshot Space Cadet made most of the running, stablemate Queen Blossom (IRE) took over when it counted to best Causeforcommotion by a half length over the Santa Anita Park course.
Svenska Spel’s online gambling growth outpaces int’l competitors
Sweden’s state-owned gambling operator Svenska Spel posted online growth in Q1 that handily outpaced its internationally licensed competitors.
Figures released Friday by Sweden’s Lotteriinspektionen gaming regulator show the nation’s gambling market generated turnover of SEK5.63b (US$618m) in the first three months of 2018, up 2.8% from the same period last year.
Swedish-licensed land-based and online operators’ turnover slipped 1.1% to SEK4.13b while internationally licensed online gambling operators grew 15.3% to SEK1.5b. Those international sites claimed a 27% slice of the overall pie, roughly four points higher than in Q1 2017.
Svenska Spel’s total turnover was up 1.4% to just under SEK2.2b, thanks entirely to its online operations. While the state betting monopoly’s online arm still makes up less than 30% of its total turnover, the digital ops posted growth of 24.8% in Q1, while land-based turnover fell 6.1%.
China Horse Club Buys Into Oaks Contender Sassy Sienna
The China Horse Club has purchased an interest in Longines Kentucky Oaks (G1) contender Sassy Sienna from Medallion Racing, Sandra Lazaruk, and Jerry McClanahan.