Featured News

Bahamian Squall 5-Year-Old Shakes off Some of the Rust

    Nobody can ever accuse Douglas Jones of not being persistent.     Jones is the breeder, owner and trainer of Rusty Pistol, a 5-year-old son of Bahamian Squall, and Jones has been trying to break his maiden since 2022. In his first 11 starts, 10 of them at Tampa Bay Downs, the best

It’s Not the Energizer Bunny; It’s Petulant Delight

    Petulant Delight is First Dude’s answer to the Energizer Bunny: he just keeps going and going. Just when it appeared as though the 10-year-old gelding was ready to call it a career (he was on an 11-race losing streak), he pops up at Parx Racing to win a 7-furlong race – and pays

First Dude Gelding Makes Impact on $200,000 List

    When First Dude’s $200,000 club list was first compiled, there were 17 entrants. It has continued to grow ever since, and red-hot Impacto has become the 32nd entry, moving onto the list as No. 30.     The 6-year-old gelding bred by Jose Manuel Contreras scored in near-record time in a six-furlong, $54,000

Marin and Sweet Nola Make a Great Team

    Sam Marin has Sweet Nola on a roll at Tampa Bay Downs, and the daughter of First Dude has reached new heights at the age of five. She’s won her last three in a row, while recording the three best Equibase ‘E’ speed figures of her 26-race career.    Sweet Nola scored by

Exonerated Prez Lights Up the Board at Thistledown

    Under a beautifully timed ride from Yan Aviles, Exonerated Prez broke out of a prolonged slump and scored a major upset in a six-furlong test at Thistledown.     Sent off at odds of 25-1, the 7-year-old First Dude gelding bred in Kentucky by Donald Dizney sat a comfortable rail trip down the

Bahamian Moon Heading for $500,000 at Age 8

    In this day, when geldings’ careers outlive all the rest, Bahamian Moon continues to raise eyebrows. The 8-year-old mare by Bahamian Squall not only is still racing, she’s in top form.     Bahamian Squall’s top race-winner and second-leading money-winner, Bahamian Moon made it two in a row with a wire-to-wire score at

Amazing: 5-Year-Old Gelding Cruises in Career Debut

    It would hardly seem appropriate to designate a 5-year-old as a TDN rising star, but in the case of Bajan Sun it would be wholly appropriate.     The Bahamian Squall gelding was making his career debut racing five furlongs at Horseshoe Indianapolis with Marcellino Pedroza in the irons. Bajan Sun was listed

It’s 3 in a Row for Zayas and Right Karma

    In his first five career starts in 2023, Right Karma’s best effort was one second-place finish; he then spent 18 months on the bench. But the 5-year-old son of First Dude bred by Best A Luck Farm has returned with a vengeance, finishing fourth, then second, and now with three straight victories under

Kirk Douglas Would Be Proud of Ferrer and Spartacus’s Dude

    In his first two starts, Spartacus’s Dude finished eighth and ninth with Marco Meneses and Sam Marin in the irons. In start No. 3, Jose Ferrer took over the reins on the 3-year-old colt, and although it took a little time, the son of First Dude broke his maiden at Tampa Bay Downs

Berks Goes Wire-to-Wire at Laurel for 13th Victory

    After taking a break of almost three months, Berks has returned with two victories in a row at Parx and Laurel for owner/breeder Jagger Inc., and now has 13 for his 32-race career.     The 6-year-old Maryland-bred gelding by First Dude had Jaime Rodriguez aboard in his latest at a mile and