Oy vey.

The CHRB has nothing to do with the Breeders\' Cup vet team.

...

Had a Paul Cornman Appreciation ATR Monday w/ Aron Yagoda, Paul Matties, Mike Tanner, Mig, Alison McGaughey, Mandy Minger, John Pricci, The Groaner ~ Jan Person, Mitch Levites, Michael \'Wiz\' Kipness. And Bill Nader, Joe Cardello, Brad Thomas and Beyer (back surgery recovery) were all on deck..

ARCHIVE LINKS: https://stevebyk.com/broadcast/2025-06-23/

100% on Fierceness = Dull. In the paddock, he was totally listless.

Very sad news.. He was a gem. Spent countless days at the Barbecue with him and learned a lot. Bill. And Alan. And Julian. We all need to bet some 30-1 shots this weekend in their honor.

They continue to negotiate and the sticking point is in a very specific area of the contract, so it feels like they\'ll get to agreeing before Saratoga opens Thursday.

As discussed this week, in terms of an alternate ADW, if you have any stakeholder ties to New York at all, you should be betting with NYRA Bets which returns the largest percentage of wagers to purses and capital improvement. Otherwise, TwinSpires and AmWager are very good alternatives.

Oxbow had a similar Derby pace attendee profile as well..

From the recent Oaks-Derby FW..

https://www.kentuckyderby.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/03/DerbyOaksDouble-combined.pdf

Impel-Catching Freedom: $147.70
Impel-Just a Touch: $225.11
Impel-Timberlake: $100.23

Tarifa-Catching Freedom: $389.70
Tarifa-Just a Touch: $318.91
Tarifa-Timberlake: $50.12

West Omaha-Catching Freedom: $2,215.65
West Omaha-Just a Touch: $3,508.11
West Omaha-Timberlake: $637.83

Also in that pool.. Encino (Blue Grass next), Nash (staying shorter) and Alpine Princess (meh)..

Day 1 leader TJ Sonde is a TG user..

Interestingly, here\'s coverage in Women\'s Wear Daily (!) focusing on Alix Earle (who grew up near Monmouth) and the party: https://wwd.com/eye/parties/pegasus-world-cup-baccarat-calvin-harris-alix-earle-miami-1236161458/

1/ST\'s Pete Rotondo was on with me this week and noted that NBC\'s ratings were very good for the telecast and that they tracked audience increases corresponding to Earle\'s communication efforts on IG and TikTok.

I understand veteran players being irked by initiatives like this and the game being marketed as a \'lifestyle\', but it can\'t hurt. Many of the pro athletes in the game (Erik Johnson, Alex Bregman, Jake Ballis, Jake Delhomme, etc.) are bringing teammates in as owners and players through big day exposure.

Former Churchill head Bob Evans flew a gaggle of CEO\'s in to Louisville several years ago for a carefully orchestrated Derby Weekend experience that resulted in some of them getting into the sport as owners/bettors.

Does it really matter how we introduce racing to the uninitiated as long as we hook some of them on the game? At the same time of course, we can\'t lose sight of the everyday player by doing everything possible to offer an engaging on track product at a reasonable price.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PnJWNTWnUcg

LEON BLUSIEWICZ on ATR

2018: https://stevebyk.com/broadcast/hour-1-leon-blusiewicz/

2019: https://stevebyk.com/broadcast/hour-2-guest-names-coming-soon/

2020: https://stevebyk.com/broadcast/part-2-leon-blue-bluciwicz-nick-tammaro/

2021: https://stevebyk.com/broadcast/part3live-from-pimlicoleon-blusiewicz-seth-merrow/

2022: https://stevebyk.com/broadcast/live-from-pimlico-part-1-the-preakness-visit-with-blu-leon-blusiewicz/

2023: https://stevebyk.com/broadcast/tuesday-form2win-preakness-stakes-week-atr-at-pimlico-part-3-leon-blusiewicz-blue-jon-white/

As he said on ATR in May, \"I\'m not running out of money, I\'m running out of time\" and Blu passed this morning.. There will not come another like Leon Blusiewicz, a direct connection to the game’s last 8+ decades. His wit and wisdom engaged all that listened and enhanced their enjoyment and understanding of the sport. In addition to his outsized personality, Blu was a consistently successful horseman and brilliant pedigree tactician. We were lucky to have him on the scene for as long as we did and all should be forever grateful for his friendship and generous spirit.. ðŸ'™

Training was cancelled at BEL & SAR for Thursday morning last night and racing decision comes later this morning.. However, from here in Merrick, things look very promising with clear, cool dawn and no smoke scent detectable. The 3p first post plays in favor of the forecast as well..