Racehorse Update: Big Brown, Curlin, Chelokee, and Barbaro's Brother, Nicanor

Today Ready Set, a trainee of Barbaro's trainer, Michael Matz, didn't win one of the stakes races named after Matz' most famous horse, but Matz is training Barbaro's younger brother, Nicanor. The two-year-old is already working out, but it'll be a few months before he begins racing. America can be sure that his connections will be pointing him towards the Triple Crown trail, and he's going to get a lot of attention once he starts racing. It is to be noted that sibling horses don't often end up being of the same caliber, so Nicanor may not turn out to be another Barbaro (who was a very good horse; just not one of the greatest), but we'll have to wait and see.

Chelokee, the Matz-trained horse that was injured in the Alysheba stakes and that won one of the Barbaro Stakes races, is doing very well after his injury. He will soon begin his life on the farm, and he has the life of a stud horse to look forward to in the future. He's lucky he was trained by the trainer of Barbaro; otherwise he might not have been so well taken care of.

As for the horses that are considered the top two in the nation, Curlin recently gave running on turf a try, and he put in a pretty good effort. He did, however, finish second, so he may not be as much of a superhorse as he's been played up to be. He was making his first start on turf in an attempt to run in the new richest race in the world: the Prix de le l'Arc de Triomphe in France. He now may start in one more turf race, and if things don't go as well as hoped then, he may just be pointed toward an attempt at another Breeder's Cup win.