BIG IMPACT: Racing lost a legend when D. Wayne Lukas, the famed “Coach,” passed away on June 28 at the age of 89. Lukas left an indelible mark on the sport with 15 Triple Crown victories, including four Kentucky Derbies, and 20 Breeders’ Cup victories. He finished with 4,967 wins and more than $310 million in earnings. His family said in a statement: “Wayne dedicated his life not only to horses, but to the industry, developing riders and riders and growing the game.” Even in the twilight of his career, Lukas used a staircase to climb onto his pony, so that he could keep an eye on his horses as closely as possible during training hours. “The most important decision you will ever make in your life is your attitude decision. Make it early and make it right,” he said in response to a question about his longevity. Lukas was a great ambassador for the game and often invited kids he didn’t know into the winners circle.
SOVEREIGNTY RULES: The Godolphin homebred Sovereignty overcame a disheartening trend when he rallied from far back and then outwitted the favored journalism to win the Kentucky Derby, presented by Woodford Reserve, by a length and a half for trainer Bill Mott and jockey Junior Alvarado. Horses like Sovereignty with just two Derby preparations had gone 0-for-47 in the battle for the roses since 2016, and yet Mott had his Into Mischief colt as ready as he could be after a win in the Coolmore Fountain of Youth Stakes and a second-place finish in the Curlin Florida Derby. Mott, now 72, earned his second Derby victory. His first was bittersweet when stewards put Country House first due to interference from Maximum Security. “This one landed in the right place,” Mott said of the team effort involved in Sovereignty’s dazzling performance.
HUGE BREAKTHROUGH: Forever Young scored a milestone victory when he became the first Japanese horse to win the $7 million Longines Breeders’ Cup Classic in the race’s 42-year history. After finishing third behind Sierra Leone and Fierceness last year, he turned the tables by seeing off Sierra Leone by half a length at Del Mar. Fierceness settled for third place. Avenging that result in North America’s richest race meant a lot to owner Susumu Fujita. He described the triumph as “my dream” and said with the help of a translator: “Fierceness and Sierra Leone will retire, so this was my last chance against these guys.” Forever Young was trained by Yoshito Yahagi and ridden by Ryusei Sakai and won his 10e won in 13 starts, while his career bankroll soared to $19,358,590.
LEADING YOUTH: Ted Noffey stamped himself as the early 2026 Kentucky Derby favorite when he put an exclamation point on a 4-for-4 campaign by winning the $2 million FanDuel Breeders’ Cup Juvenile presented by TAA by one length at Del Mar. The naming of the Into Mischief colt, a $650,000 purchase by Spendthrift Farm at Keeneland’s September Yearling Sale, was an errant but well-intentioned attempt to pay tribute to Wasteful general manager Ned Toffey. Ted Noffey, however, did nothing wrong when he scored his first win on August 2 at Saratoga, ruling the Spendthrift Hopeful Stakes by 8 ½ lengths and then passing his first two-turn test in the Claiborne Breeders’ Futurity on October 4 at Keeneland before continuing his success with the Breeders’ Cup victory for trainer Todd Pletcher and jockey John Velazquez. Pletcher sees Ted Noffey as the total package. “Aside from his natural talent and ability, he has a great mind to go along with it,” Pletcher said. “That really helps.”
MOTT’S TRAVERS: Bill Mott filled one of the few missing holes on his resume as Sovereignty destroyed his rivals by 10 lengths in the $1.25 million DraftKings Travers Stakes, ending an 0-for-13 drought in the Travers. Mott had finished second in the race three times, most recently in 2019 with Tacitus. Mott made it clear how much success in the “Mid-summer Derby” meant to him when he said, “We’re racing mainly in New York now. Two Kentucky Derbies are great, but I have to say I think the Travers is a great race to win. It’s very satisfying and satisfying to get that done.” The margin was so comfortable that track announcer Frank Mirahmadi had time to say, “Congratulations Bill Mott. There’s your Travers.”
SPECIAL SECURITY: Thorpedo Anna, who joined Rachel Alexandra last season as the only three-year-old fillies to ever win Horse of the Year, retired in October due to minor bone bruises. A $40,000 yearling purchase by trainer Ken McPeek, daughter of Fast Anna, won 12 of 16 starts with two second-place finishes for earnings that topped $5.4 million. Her brilliance was underlined by 10 stakes wins. “We are truly proud of her,” McPeek said in a statement announcing her retirement. “She has had tremendous support. Thank you to all the fans who have cheered her on throughout her career.” Thorpedo Anna now joins the broodmare band at Hill ‘n’ Dale Farm at Xalapa in Lexington, Ky.
GREAT RECOVERY: If there were an award for sportsmanship, it should go to the connections of journalism, and if there were an award for bravery, it should go to the horse itself. The son of Curlin, trained by Michael McCarthy and ridden by Umberto Rispoli, appeared headed for certain defeat in the Preakness Stakes when he was trapped among the horses as Gosger opened a five-length gap at the eighth pole. Journalism clawed its way out of trouble, switching leads and launching an extraordinary final kick to overtake Gosger by half a length. “This win symbolizes so much about life,” said Aron Wellman, principal of co-owner Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners. “It took guts for Michael McCarthy to make the call to get here. It took guts for Umberto Rispoli to be swept aside, thread the needle and keep going and it took guts for an incredible horse to somehow find his way to victory.” Journalism was the only horse to compete in all three legs of the Triple Crown as part of an eight-race campaign that culminated in a solid fourth-place finish against older horses in the Breeders’ Cup Classic.
GREAT RECOVERY II: When jockey John Velazquez tried to chase Fierceness from the starting gate in the Pacific Classic Stakes, his horse overreacted and briefly walked toward the inside rail at Del Mar. He quickly recovered to record a thrilling 3 ¼ length victory against Journalism. It was one of several stirring scores for homebred owner Mike Repole during a three-year career that saw him win half of his 14 starts and make three appearances in the Breeders’ Cup, capturing the 2023 FanDuel Breeders’ Cup Juvenile presented by TAA before finishing in second and third places in the Classic. Fierceness, praised by Pletcher as a “brilliant horse,” has grossed more than $5.7 million in his lifetime. He retired from Coolmore America’s Ashford Stud.
FAVORABLE LEGISLATIONThe horse industry, and the breeding industry in particular, benefited from changes to depreciation and business deductions included in a massive budget reconciliation bill passed by Congress in the summer of 2025 known as the “One Big Beautiful Bill.” Shortly after its passage, Fasig-Tipton’s Saratoga Sale and Keeneland’s September Yearling Sale soared to record highs. The two-night Fasig-Tipton auction achieved gross sales of $100,715,000, up 22.6 percent from $82,160,000 the year before. Keeneland achieved the highest gross for any international auction when 3,070 horses sold for $531.5 million. “We certainly had reasons to be optimistic going in, but the strength of the results day after day exceeded even our expectations,” said Shannon Arvin, president and CEO of Keeneland, of the unprecedented demand.
GODOLPHIN POWER HOUSE: Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum’s dedication to excellence with his international breeding and racing activities has been richly rewarded. Through the opening week of December, Godolphin dominated the breeder leaderboard with $26,444,915 in revenue. WinStar Farm ranked second with $11,021,938. Godolphin’s stellar year was headlined by the Kentucky Derby weekend, when the then undefeated Good Cheer won the Longines Kentucky Oaks before Ruling Court took Great Britain’s 2,000 Guineas. Then came the most important win of all when Sovereignty gave Godolphin his first Kentucky Derby win in 14 tries. Good Cheer and Sovereignty were home bred animals. Michael Banahan, director of blood testing at Godolphin USA, praised Sheikh Mohammed’s willingness to spend money on quality. “He gave us the tools to have the broodmare bond that we have,” Banahan noted.
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