The loss of two great equine females, top two-year-old set for Florida route to Kentucky plus Japan Cup news – all this and more in our weekly digest of recent international racing news
Death of Belmont Stakes heroine Rags To Riches aged 21
USA: Rags To Riches, who made racing history in 2007 when she became the first filly to win the Belmont Stakes for 102 years, has died owing to the infirmities of old age at 21.
Trainer Todd Pletcher’s first Classic winner, the daughter of A.P. Indy earned a lasting place in the equine pantheon after an epic stretch duel with Preakness Stakes winner Curlin in the final leg of the Triple Crown. Representing the Coolmore team and carrying the colours of Michael Tabor, she won three other G1s including the Kentucky Oaks.
“Rags to Riches was a truly talented racehorse, and it’s been a privilege to be around a horse of her calibre,” said Coolmore America manager Dermot Ryan. More here
Ted Noffey to follow Florida route to Kentucky
USA: Two-year-old champion elect Ted Noffey, who completed his unbeaten campaign with his third G1 success in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile, will take the Florida route to next year’s Kentucky Derby.
Trainer Todd Pletcher is eyeing the Holy Bull (Jan 31) or the Fountain of Youth (Feb 28) for the colt’s three-year-old debut before the $1m Florida Derby – a G1 event he has won a record eight times in the past.
“He’s had pretty much a two-year-old season as good as you could put together,” said Pletcher. “He handled everything we asked him to – step up in class, stretch out in distance and ship across the country. You can’t say enough good things about him.”
At 6-1, Ted Noffey was this week pegged as the leading individual choice in the second Kentucky Derby future wager; the son of Into Mischief is also clear favorite with European bookmakers. More here
• USA: Gulfstream Park Championship Meet kicks off on Nov. 27 More here
Japan Cup: Calandagan bids to end European drought
Japan: Calandagan, recently named European Horse of the Year, bids to become the first overseas winner of the Japan Cup for 20 years in Tokyo on Sunday [Nov 30], when he is drawn eight in an 18-runner field full of fellow G1 winners.
“It’s a race we've been thinking about for a long time for the horse,” said trainer Francis Graffard at a press conference on Thursday [Nov 27]. “We targeted this race after the King George. He loves a mile and a half, he likes good fast ground, he goes well left-handed.”
No horse trained outside Japan has made the frame in the ¥1.090bn ($7.05m/£5.37m) contest since dual Breeders’ Cup winner Conduit finished fourth in 2009. Likely favourite is the recent Tenno Sho winner Masquerade Ball, ahead of his Tokyo Yushun (Japanese Derby) conqueror Croix Du Nord and Dubai Sheema Classic victor Danon Decile. More here
• Japan: Equinox and Kitasan Black head Shadai stallion roster for 2026 at ¥25m ($160,000) More here
Japanese great Gentildonna dies aged 16
Japan: Seven-time G1 winner Gentildonna, one of the greatest mares in the history of Japanese racing, died on Tuesday [Nov 25] at Northern Farm on Hokkaido. She was 16.
“She had been suffering from increasingly poor health since the beginning of this year, so she retired from broodmare status and was staying at a ranch,” said Sunday Racing president Shunsuke Yoshida. “However, her condition worsened and she was unable to stand. It’s very said.”
Still the only horse to win back-to-back runnings of the Japan Cup (2012-13, both times by a nose), the daughter of Deep Impact was a top-class performer over several seasons for trainer Sei Ishizaka, completing the Triple Tiara as a three-year-old in 2012 and twice being named Japanese Horse of the Year (2012, 2014). With £12.2 banked, she retired as the leading prize-money earner the sport had ever seen. More here
Rudy Rodriguez faces HISA sanction under cruelty rules
USA: G1-winning trainer Rudy Rodriguez, a 13-time meet title winner on the NYRA circuit, is facing possible suspension after the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority (HISA), issued him a show-cause notice for alleged equine welfare violations.
The notice, issued on Nov 21, claims the New York-based trainer breached HISA Rule 2215(a)(4) concerning ‘cruelty, mistreatement, neglect or abuse’ in failing to provide required veterinary care and diagnostic follow-up for several horses placed on the veterinarians' list. Three of 15 named horses died.
Clark Brewster, attorney for 53-year-old Rodriguez, has defended the trainer’s record, saying he is “very confident” he did nothing wrong. More here
British racing welcomes exemption from gambling tax rises
GB: British racing’s rulers are breathing a sigh of relief after Wednesday’s Budget in which he UK Government spared the industry from any rise in direct gambling taxation – although tax on other forms of remote betting has been increased to 25%.
Rachel Reeves (right), the chancellor of the exchequer, confirmed that racing would be exempt from gambling tax increase and the sport’s remote betting tax rate would remain at 15%.
The news came after the sport mounted a high-profile campaign against a mooted tax rise, which the British Horseracing Authority (BHA) claimed would have had “catastrophic implications” for an industry “supporting 85,000 livelihoods and with an economic impact of £4bn”.
The BHA issued a statement, saying: “It is welcome that the chancellor has today rightly recognised the vital importance of racing as a cultural, social and economic asset and acted to help secure the sport’s long-term future. We are grateful that the treasury and No. 10 have listened to racing, speaking as one, and acted to protect the future of racing.” More here
Elsewhere in racing …
UAE: Listed target for Heart Of Honor after winning Meydan comeback More here
UAE: Over 300 entries from 19 countries for Dubai Carnival More here
USA: Last hurrah for Dubai hero Hit Show in Clark at Churchill Downs More here
Saudi Arabia: G1 status for Neom Turf Cup More here
Hong Kong: HKIR fields feature 22 G1 winners More here
South Africa: Cape Flying Championship joins Breeders’ Cup Challenge More here
India: Economics set for Poonawalla Stud Farms More here
GB: Nine-year ban for jump jockey Dylan Kitts in Hillsin corruption case More here
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