What a Kentucky Derby Day! Heck, the whole week was amazing. But nothing topped the weekend’s biggest story. Trainer Cherie DeVaux is now known outside of her family and her industry. The first female to win the Derby, with Golden Tempo and Jose Ortiz aboard, reminds us of one my favorite things about this horse racing. It is where females can compete head-to-head with the males.
And whether it is trainers like Cherie, jockeys like Katie Davis and many others, and fillies like Always a Runner, who won the Oaks Friday with that same Ortiz brother aboard, racing is a sport where women shine, and lead. The more the industry does to highlight those accomplishments, and bring more women into the sport, the better its chances of thriving, not simply surviving.
We’ve moved this blog to a weekly publication, to make room for some varied insights I’m looking forward to bringing to you, starting this week. Now, to the WEEKLY claimer.
🟥 [ 1 ] WIN: The Week That Was (4/27–5/03)
The claiming world just moved through its most volatile seven-day cycle of the year. While the Triple Crown focus was on the stars, the sport’s middle class engine was fueled by high-end roster churn as stables cleared space for summer campaigns. We saw a record-breaking number of claims at Churchill Downs during the Derby Week festivities, alongside a surge in turf-sprint acquisitions at Belmont at the Big A.
Circuit Leaderboard (Weekly Composite):
⬜ [ 2 ] PLACE: 3 Big Stories & The Look-Ahead
The “Post-Derby” Stall Vacuum: As of this morning, over 100 horses are being vanned out of Louisville to make room for Preakness contenders and the summer migration to Saratoga/Del Mar. This creates a 48-hour “Buyer’s Market” (Mon-Tue) where trainers often drop tags to $10k–$20k just to avoid vanning costs.
The Maryland-Churchill Downs Incorporated (CDI) Speculation: Following CDI’s $85M acquisition of the Preakness Intellectual Property, scouts are aggressively targeting Maryland-bred claimers this week. The anticipation is that CDI will introduce a “Ship-and-Win” bonus for horses moving between Churchill and Pimlico, potentially raising the residual value of Mid-Atlantic stock by 15% by 2027.
The Turf Sprint “Premium”: Looking ahead to this weekend’s cards at New York and Santa Anita, we expect a bidding war for grass specialists. With Linda Rice and Tom Morley leading the charge, expect $40k–$50k turf sprinters to see 5+ slips in the box as stables secure their “Saratoga anchors.”
🟦 [ 3 ] SHOW: Industry Pulse & The Manual
Industry News – HISA “Starts-Only” Model: The 2026 HISA budget is now fully operational under the “Starts-Only” fee model. For the upcoming week, owners should factor in a predictable, flat line item per race, removing the percentage-of-purse overhead. This transparency is currently encouraging more aggressive multi-stable partnerships.
Scouting Intel – Digital Vetting: We observed a significant increase in the use of Thermal Gait Imaging during the Derby undercard. This technology is now standard for $50k+ claims, allowing scouts to identify “silent” inflammation before the horse even enters the paddock.
📘 THE CLAIMER’S MANUAL
Tip: The “First-Time Gelding” Graduation
Keep an eye on the mid-week regional cards (Parx/Will Rogers). Scan for the (G) or “First Time Gelding” equipment change.
The Logic: A distracted 3-year-old colt often finds 2–4 lengths of improvement immediately after being gelded.
The Play: If a trainer drops a horse from “Maiden Special” to “Maiden Optional” for their first start as a gelding, they are usually trying to secure a win before the horse becomes too professional and too expensive to keep. It’s the ultimate “Win-and-Lose” strategy for savvy claimers.
📋 APPENDIX: The Claimer’s Glossary
APPENDIX: THE 2026 CLAIMER’S GLOSSARY
100% Bonus Depreciation: A key provision of the OBBBA (One Big Beautiful Act) of 2025 that allows owners to deduct the full purchase price of a horse in the first year of service—making claiming horses a premier tax-mitigation tool.
HERF (HISA Equine Recovery Foundation): A new 501(c)(3) nonprofit launched in early 2026 dedicated to providing critical assistance for Thoroughbreds that sustain career-ending injuries.
Proximal Hindlimb Advisory: A 2026 HISA health directive that identifies key biomechanical risk factors; trainers now use wearable biometric sensors to flag these risks before a race.
Sleip Imaging: Mobile AI-powered gait analysis technology used in the paddock to detect subtle asymmetries or lameness that the human eye might miss.
The Unfriendly Claim Restriction: A rule preventing a successfully claimed horse from running for six months if it is sold or leased to one of the unsuccessful original claimants.
Wait-and-Muck: A Derby-week strategy where trainers drop fit horses at low tags simply to “muck out” stall space for arriving stakes contenders.