Julien Leparoux

Before trainer Michael Matz can find out if Union Rags will get the clean trip he failed to get at the Kentucky Derby, the promising colt must hope for some luck with traffic. Union Rags, like all of the horses set to run in the 144th Belmont on...

When I'll Have Another narrowly dodged being clipped by a rider-less horse who had gotten loose on the Belmont Park track last week, he avoided the sort of complication nobody had been talking about. Who could worry about something like that when there...

Really, the frustration began at last year’s Belmont. That’s when Animal Kingdom, Graham Motion’s finest horse to date, was cut off and, while veering away, clipped heels and almost tossed his jockey. It took a thunderous run at the end...

NEW YORK - Union Rags picked up right where I'll Have Another left off, coming from behind to catch a Bob Baffert-trained horse at the finish in a Triple Crown race. In Saturday's Belmont Stakes, it was another photo finish decided by a neck. Just...

LOUISVILLE, Ky.- Hot pace. Muggy day. One of the deepest, talented fields in years. A delicious stew with all the ingredients for an unpredictable Kentucky Derby. The 20-horse field for Saturday's race is so stacked that unbeaten Gemologist is no...

About 7 p.m. Saturday, 25-year-old Mario Gutierrez was escorted by a group of handlers and police officers into the paddock at Churchill Downs. The sign over his head, the one touting the 138 years of Kentucky Derby history by listing the first and...

As preparations begin on Old Hilltop for the 137th running of the Preakness Stakes, the star of the field already has a confirmed arrival date. Kentucky Derby winner I’ll Have Another will show up Monday, much earlier than originally expected...

A steady, cool wind swept across the track at the Fair Hill Training Center Friday as two trainers prepared colts to run in next Saturday’s 137th Preakness. Went the Day Well, the fourth-place finisher in the Kentucky Derby trained by Graham...

D. Wayne Lukas has had plenty of success with horses running in the second leg of the Triple Crown. His five career wins at Pimlico's featured event speak for themselves. But this year, Lukas decided to take a slightly different approach. His horse,...

At the desk where he works through entries after all of his morning training sessions are through, Michael Matz keeps a photo leaning against the wall. In a walnut frame, it is slightly – and surprisingly – faded. The text below a horse in...

Race 1 Varsity kicked off the 2012 Preakness with a win in a five-furlong run on Pimlico’s turf. He entered the race as the favorite at 7-5. Agnostic, ridden by Maryland’s 2011 top jockey Sheldon Russell, finished second, while Night...

We're more than a month from the Kentucky Derby, but the jostling has begun. A horse named Take Charge Indy won the $1 million, Grade 1 Florida Derby with a wire-to-wire dash under the ever-daring Calvin Borel Saturday. Reveron gave him a run coming...