The Show: BloodHorse Monday, Oct. 5
The speaker: Barry Irwin, owner of Team Valor International's U. S. S. Valor, winner of the Champagne Stakes (G1) Oct. 3 at Belmont Park
The topic: His decision to not race the horse in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile (G1) Oct. 30 at Keeneland
The quote: "The Breeders' Cup was never ever going to be in the plans. He's run three races. He's run fast every time. He's had too many hard races, too many fast races, and has gotten enough out of his races. And, next year, we think we got a Kentucky Derby prospect. That's what we want. I'm not interested in hammering him to try to win some more money or whatever this year. I know a lot of people say, by me skipping the Breeders' Cup, that I've eliminated him from consideration for an Eclipse Award, and they're probably right only because of one thing: that the people that vote for the Eclipse Award are kind of irritated at me because I'm taking their fun away. So, for those people, I say, 'Vote your conscience.' Right now, my horse is the top dog. If Hughes goes out and wins the Breeders' Cup, then he will be the champion. If he doesn't, by rights, my horse probably should. But will he? No, because of some small-minded people whose fun I took away."
The Show: At The Races With Steve Byk, Oct. 5
The speaker: Trainer and former jockey John Grabowski
The topic: Winning the Frizette Stakes (G1) Oct. 3 at Belmont Park with Dotsy for owner Thomas Paluck of TSP Enterprises
The quote: "Well, right now, my owner feels that it's a once-in-a-lifetime thing for him. He told me back when after she won in Saratoga, and we got offered at that time when she broke her maiden, we got offered over $400,000 for her, and I said, 'What do you think?' And he said, 'I don't want to sell her. I don't want to sell her. This is this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity,' But he also said, 'Well, I'll do whatever you really want me to do, but I don't want to sell her,' and it just made my heart aglow because I felt at that time, 'Wow, this is what you dream of.' Every year, you hope to one day get a horse like this, one day, and it happened, and it is just the most amazing experience of my life. I'm gonna choke up right now, but it is."
The Show: Nick Luck Daily Podcast, Oct. 5
The speaker: Nemone Routh, racing office manager at Aga Khan Studs
The topic: Whether or not Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe (G1) winner Daryz will race one more time, possibly in the Breeders' Cup
The quote: "If we had a strong feeling we wanted to take him to the Champion Stakes, Calandagan can step aside, there's no problem with that. Is it ideal running him back less than two weeks? I don't know. I'm sure he could probably do it, do we need to do it? I don't know. And, also putting him on a flight to go to the Breeders' Cup at Keeneland, quite a tight track, I'm not sure either of those options are really ideal for him, but they will be discussed, and we'll look at the merits of both of those races and, obviously, we have his stallion career in mind, but they're not obvious races, I don't think."
