Race Recap

©Tod Marks Saratoga stalwart Jimmy P gets up to take Grade 1 $150,000 Steinman Paul and Molly Willis and Madaket Stables’ Jimmy P again proved he’s a horse for the course with a narrow, come-from-behind victory in the third running of the Beverly R. Steinman handicap hurdle at the Spa this afternoon. With Stephen Mulqueen…

©Tod Marks With win today, McTigue becomes one of four different Grade 1 winners on the season. It’s beginning to look a lot like…2025. As was the case last year, no jumper this year has more than a single Grade 1 victory, meaning the race for Lonesome Glory (leading runner by earnings) and the Eclipse…

©Tod Marks Irish-bred Mr. Percy blossoms in fourth NSA start After coming over from Europe following four wins in 14 carer outings, Shannon Hill Farm’s Mr. Percy has made the most of his National Steeplechase Association starts in the spring. In his initial try at Foxfield in April, he closed ground to finish a close…

©Tod Marks Smart Uncle earns Grade 1 glory in first graded stakes score After making a big splash with three straight wins — capped by a score in the Van Clief Memorial restricted stakes at Foxfield — early in his National Steeplechase Association career, Gill Johnston’s Smart Uncle made a couple of starts on the…

© Tod Marks Campaigned Grade 1 winner Show Court Mark W. Buyck Jr., a well-known figure on the National Steeplechase Association circuit who had a particular affinity for  Springdale Race Course in his home state of South Carolina, passed away on Saturday. A lifelong horseman and former member of the Camden Hunt, Buyck and his then-wife-to-be,…

© Tod Marks An iffy forecast may have hurt attendance, but full fields and competitive contests made for an exciting nine-race Memorial Day card. The National Steeplechase Association closed out its spring season on a high note, as jump racing returned to Fair Hill in Elkton, Md., after a seven-year hiatus. The race meet was supposed…

©Tod Marks Riverdee Stable and Del Rio Racing soar in Nashville, while Joe Davies triples in Kennett Square. Before a huge crowd estimated at 35,000, the 85th Iroquois Races outside of Nashville proved to be a tour de force for leading owner Riverdee Stable, which captured two of the four stakes on the seven-race, $730,000…

©Tod Marks The competition on Saturday in The Plains was top class, as the Virginia Gold Cup began its second century with the 101st running of the second richest meet of the spring. Seven races were on tap at Great Meadow Race Course including three stakes highlighted by the season’s first Grade 1, the $150,000…

Third times’ a charm for Mr. Fine Threads Under rainy skies, Armata Stables’ Mr. Fine Threads began inching his way up at the 16th of 22 fences, moved into second at the next jump, and after a scintillating duel with Upland Partner’s late-charging Shootist, managed to pull clear late by six lengths to capture America’s…

©Tod Marks Glenwood Park hosts stars and stakes action at the Middleburg Spring Races on Saturday with an eight-race $300,000 card, anchored by the talent-laden $100,000 Temple Gwathmey stakes and $30,000 Middleburg Hunt Cup, marking the return of timber champion Keys Discount. The Grade 2 Gwathmey handicap hurdle, at 2 ½ miles, is shaping up…