Photo:
Renee Torbit / Churchill Downs
Zambezi led all performers on Friday with a 141 Horse Racing Nation speed figure at Churchill Downs in a six-furlong sprint for conditioned $80,000 claiming horses. The 5-year-old gelding by Candy Ride, trained by David Jacobson, led at every call and drew off to win by six lengths at 3-5 odds. It was his third win in 19 starts, and his first in seven outings this year.
Bourbon Day earned a 126 HRN speed figure at Aqueduct in an allowance optional claiming race at 1 1/8 miles on the dirt. The 6-year-old gelding by Race Day, trained by Linda Rice, stalked the pace and drew off to win by 5 1/2 lengths, defying his 8-1 odds. It was his second victory in six starts this year, and his ninth in 24 lifetime races.
Little Miss Curlin completed the top three with a 126 HRN speed figure at Fair Grounds in the Donovan L. Ferguson Memorial Stakes. The 2-year-old filly by Charlatan, trained by Patrick Devereux Jr., was the 9-5 favorite in a field of nine. She battled on the pace early before drawing off to a five-length victory, remaining undefeated after two starts.
Friday’s top 10 speed figures
| HRN | Horse | Sire | Age | Race | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 141 | Zambezi | Candy Ride | 5G | CD 1 | 1 mile dirt |
| 126 | Bourbon Day | Race Day | 6G | AQU 4 | 1 1/8 dirt |
| 126 | Little Miss Curlin | Charlatan | 2F | FG 7 | 6f dirt |
| 126 | Kekoa | Reload | 3G | WO 6 | 1 1/16 syn |
| 123 | Thought Control | Gun Runner | 3C | GP 6 | 5 1/2f syn |
| 121 | Runaway Again | Hard Spun | 3G | WO 4 | 1 1/16 syn |
| 118 | Mamba Out | Mor Spirit | 5M | FG 1 | 6f dirt |
| 116 | Airdrie Hill | Girvin | 3F | GP 8 | 5 1/2f syn |
| 114 | Uncle Dar | Uncle Lino | 5G | LRL 5 | 5 1/2f turf |
| 114 | B West | Mineshaft | 5H | LRL 2 | 6f dirt |
Fastest maiden winners
Thought Control earned a 123 HRN speed figure for his maiden win at Gulfstream Park, the day’s highest for a maiden winner. A 3-year-old colt by Gun Runner, he led at every call in the 5 1/2-furlong Tapeta sprint, winning by 2 1/2 lengths as the 7-5 favorite. The Saffie Joseph Jr. trainee is out of In It for the Gold, a winning Speightstown daughter of Grade 1-placed All Due Respect. All four starters out of In It for the Gold are winners including Englishman, a 2-year-old by Maxfield who won his Churchill Downs debut by 7 1/4 lengths for Cherie DeVaux in September.
Paradise Perfect posted a 113 HRN speed figure when graduating in a seven-furlong maiden-optional claiming sprint on the Tapeta at Woodbine. The Krista Cole trainee, sent off the 7-10 betting favorite, was off slowly but rallied from last to first to win by 1 1/2 lengths. The 5-year-old Perfect Timber gelding got off the mark in his 25th start, though he had hit the board in 12 of his previous races. He is out of D’oro Paradise, a winning Medaglia d’Oro granddaughter of Miesque. She has produced one other winner: Crazy Frazy, winner of the Sapling Stakes and Aventura Stakes in 2024.
Lyudmila earned a 112 HRN speed figure in her debut win, which came in a six-furlong dirt sprint at Laurel Park. The 2-year-old Gun Runner filly, trained by Justin Nixon, rallied from midfield and drew off to win by six lengths as the 5-2 second choice in the eight-horse field. Her dam is the Into Mischief mare Lucrezia, a two-time stakes winner who also finished second to Swiss Skydiver in the 2020 Gulfstream Park Oaks (G2). Her only other starter, the 3-year-old Quality Road filly Medici Road, is winless in two starts so far.
Friday’s top maiden winners
| HRN | Horse | Sire | Age | Race | Distance | Winning Margin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 123 | Thought Control | Gun Runner | 3C | GP 6 | 5 1/2f syn | 2 1/2 |
| 113 | Paradise Perfect | Perfect Timber | 5G | WO 1 | 7f syn | 1 1/2 |
| 112 | Lyudmila | Gun Runner | 2F | LRL 6 | 6f dirt | 6 |
| 111 | Morlock | Bernardini | 3G | CD 3 | 1 1/16 dirt | 4 1/4 |
| 106 | Clairita | Gun Runner | 3F | CD 8 | 1 1/16 dirt | 12 |
| 106 | Texas Splurge | Texas Red | 4G | FG 5 | 1 mile 70 yds dirt | 1/4 |
| 99 | Persian | Blofeld | 3F | LRL 9 | 6f dirt | 1 3/4 |
| 96 | Sweet Lazarus | Sweetontheladies | 3G | GP 4 | 7f dirt | 1 1/2 |
| 93 | Lady Pippa | Practical Joke | 3F | CD 4 | 6 1/2f dirt | 4 1/4 |
| 93 | Beware of Ooh Lala | Medaglia d’Oro | 2F | LRL 1 | 5 1/2f turf | 1/4 |
About HRN speed figures
HRN speed figures are AI-generated using HRN‘s proprietary machine-learning algorithms. Although they involve less human input than other speed figures, we see that as a plus as human adjustments often knock down surprisingly good performances to match expectations. HRN speed figures were launched in December 2024, and our expectation is also that the AI-generated speed figures will continuously get better over time.
The HRN speed figure scale goes from 1 to 160. Part of the reason for this higher scale is this helps us avoid assigning a speed figure of zero. For some products, in weaker races, half the field or more may get a speed figure of zero, which leads to inaccuracy and defeats the purpose of speed figures.
Because the HRN speed figures are based on machine learning, as we improve our models we can compute the numbers historically.
Using the top last-race speed figure as a benchmark, here are stats from 2021 to 2024 for HRN and other speed-figure providers:
Top HRN figure 26.2% winners
Top Beyer figure 28.1% winners
Top TimeformUS figure 28.4% winners
Although all HRN speed figures are published on individual horse profile pages on a weekly basis, the daily reports are focused on the top and medium-tier tracks, which represent the majority of top speed figures.
Note: For the fastest maiden winners mentioned, all dam and sibling earnings are based on North American starts only.
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