Better Talk Now (USA)
February 25, 1999 – June 27, 2017
Talkin Man (CAN) x Bendita (USA), by Baldski (USA)
Family 1-l
February 25, 1999 – June 27, 2017
Talkin Man (CAN) x Bendita (USA), by Baldski (USA)
Family 1-l
Better Talk Now was 27-1 when he upset a field that included the year's American turf male champion Kitten's Joy in the 2004 John Deere Breeders' Cup Turf (USA-G1), but he ended his career having won five Grade 1 races and over US$4.3 million. As with other top geldings such as Exterminator and John Henry, he kept gaining fans during a long racing career and remained a fan favorite in retirement, which ended with his death from colic in 2017.
Race record
51 starts, 14 wins, 8 seconds, 5 thirds, US$4,356,664 (includes Canadian earnings)
2003:
2004:
2005:
2006:
2007:
2008:
2009:
Assessments
The North American Ratings Committee rated Better Talk Now at 121 pounds, tops among older runners on turf routes in 2004.
As an individual
A dark bay or brown who was gelded as a youngster due to his unruly disposition, Better Talk Now had a tough, willful attitude even after the operation but nonetheless enjoyed visitors both while racing and in retirement. At his best, he had a relentless closing kick on the race course and was particularly effective on softer going. He loved peppermints as treats.
Connections
Foaled in Kentucky, Better Talk Now was bred and owned by Wimborne Farms LLC and was initially trained by Diane Perkins. After being moved to the turf in his fifth start and breaking his maiden in that race, he was purchased privately by Bushwood Racing Partners (Brent Johnson, Karl Barth and Chris Dwyer) and raced in the silks of their Bushwood Stables, with Graham Motion as his new trainer. He was officially retired from racing on September 29, 2009, due to a suspensory injury of the left hind leg suffered while training for the 2009 Joe Hirsch Turf Classic (USA-G1). He was euthanized due to complications of colic surgery in June 2017.
Pedigree notes
Better Talk Now is inbred 5x4 to the great sire Northern Dancer, a racetrack champion in both Canada (where he was Horse of the Year in 1964) and the United States. He is a half brother to Grade 2-placed listed stakes winner B. A. Way (by Lasting Approval) and to Talkin and Singing (by Songandaprayer), dam of multiple Grade 2 winner Danzing Candy (by Twirling Candy).
Better Talk Now's dam Bendita was stakes-placed on the track. She is a half sister to Bien Rouge (by Redtop III), second dam of 2009 Gran Premio Dardo Rocha-Internacional (ARG-G1) winner Bien Toi. Their dam Bonne Note was bred in France and is by 1966 French champion 3-year-old male Bon Mot, a winner of the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe.
The next dam in Better Talk Now's tail-female line is 1959 Prix de Minerve winner Mandolina (by 1950 Grand Prix de Saint-Cloud winner Ocarina). She is a half sister to the stakes-winning colts Hidalgo (by Caldarium) and Negresco (by Silca Boy) as well as to 1950 Prix de Minerve winner Nuit de Folies (by Tornado), dam of 1957 Michigan Mile and One-Sixteenth winner My Night Out (by Phalanx), 1961 Del Mar Derby winner and 1985 American champion broodmare sire Speak John (by Prince John) and stakes winner London Jet (by Ridan) and second dam of 1973 Cotillion Handicap (USA-G1) winner Lilac Hill, 1976 Gran Premio di Milano (ITY-G1) winner Rouge Sang, and 1963 Astoria Stakes winner Miss Twist. Mandolina is also a half sister to stakes-placed Folie Douce (by Caldarium), dam of 1959 French champion 3-year-old filly Mi Carina (by Ocarina),1958 Princess Royal Stakes winner Mother Goose (by Escamillo), and 1967 Gazelle Handicap and Ladies Handicap winner Sweet Folly (by Tom Fool). Folie Douce is also the second dam of 1968 Belmont Stakes winner and American co-champion 3-year-old male Stage Door Johnny and Grade 2 winner Jack Sprat.
Books and media
Footage of Better Talk Now's victories in the 2004 Breeders' Cup Turf and the 2007 Manhattan Handicap can be accessed in Mike Curry's article "Better Talk Now: Remembering a True One of a Kind," published June 28, 2017, at America's Best Racing (https://www.americasbestracing.net/lifestyle/2017-better-talk-now-remembering-true-one-kind).
Fun facts
Photo credit
Photo taken by Jessica Morgan in 2009. Used by permission.
Last updated: October 5, 2022
Race record
51 starts, 14 wins, 8 seconds, 5 thirds, US$4,356,664 (includes Canadian earnings)
2003:
- Won Knickerbocker Handicap (USA-G2, 9FT, Aqueduct)
- Won Eight Thirty Stakes (USA, 8FT, Delaware)
- 2nd Arlington Handicap (USA-G3, 10FT, Arlingon Park)
- 3rd Niagara Breeders' Cup Handicap (CAN-G2, 12FT, Woodbine)
2004:
- Won Breeders' Cup Turf (USA-G1, 12FT, Lone Star)
- Won Sword Dancer Invitational Handicap (USA-G1, 12FT, Saratoga)
- 2nd Bowling Green Handicap (USA-G2, 11FT, Belmont)
- 2nd Battlefield Stakes (USA, 9FT, Monmouth)
2005:
- Won United Nations Stakes (USA-G1, 11FT, Monmouth)
- Won Man o' War Stakes (USA-G1, 11FT, Belmont)
- Won Fort Marcy Handicap (USA-G3, 8.5FT, Aqueduct)
2006:
- Won Sky Classic Stakes (CAN-G2, 11FT, Woodbine)
- Won Comp.USA Dixie Stakes (USA-G2, 9FT, Pimlico)
- 2nd Breeders' Cup Turf (USA-G1, 12FT, Churchill Downs)
2007:
- Won Manhattan Handicap (USA-G1, 10FT, Belmont)
- 3rd United Nations Handicap (USA-G1, 11FT, Monmouth)
2008:
- 2nd Sword Dancer Invitational Stakes (USA-G1, 12FT, Saratoga)
- 3rd Man o' War Stakes (USA-G1, 11FT, Belmont)
2009:
- 3rd Woodford Reserve Manhattan Handicap (USA-G1, 10FT, Belmont)
Assessments
The North American Ratings Committee rated Better Talk Now at 121 pounds, tops among older runners on turf routes in 2004.
As an individual
A dark bay or brown who was gelded as a youngster due to his unruly disposition, Better Talk Now had a tough, willful attitude even after the operation but nonetheless enjoyed visitors both while racing and in retirement. At his best, he had a relentless closing kick on the race course and was particularly effective on softer going. He loved peppermints as treats.
Connections
Foaled in Kentucky, Better Talk Now was bred and owned by Wimborne Farms LLC and was initially trained by Diane Perkins. After being moved to the turf in his fifth start and breaking his maiden in that race, he was purchased privately by Bushwood Racing Partners (Brent Johnson, Karl Barth and Chris Dwyer) and raced in the silks of their Bushwood Stables, with Graham Motion as his new trainer. He was officially retired from racing on September 29, 2009, due to a suspensory injury of the left hind leg suffered while training for the 2009 Joe Hirsch Turf Classic (USA-G1). He was euthanized due to complications of colic surgery in June 2017.
Pedigree notes
Better Talk Now is inbred 5x4 to the great sire Northern Dancer, a racetrack champion in both Canada (where he was Horse of the Year in 1964) and the United States. He is a half brother to Grade 2-placed listed stakes winner B. A. Way (by Lasting Approval) and to Talkin and Singing (by Songandaprayer), dam of multiple Grade 2 winner Danzing Candy (by Twirling Candy).
Better Talk Now's dam Bendita was stakes-placed on the track. She is a half sister to Bien Rouge (by Redtop III), second dam of 2009 Gran Premio Dardo Rocha-Internacional (ARG-G1) winner Bien Toi. Their dam Bonne Note was bred in France and is by 1966 French champion 3-year-old male Bon Mot, a winner of the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe.
The next dam in Better Talk Now's tail-female line is 1959 Prix de Minerve winner Mandolina (by 1950 Grand Prix de Saint-Cloud winner Ocarina). She is a half sister to the stakes-winning colts Hidalgo (by Caldarium) and Negresco (by Silca Boy) as well as to 1950 Prix de Minerve winner Nuit de Folies (by Tornado), dam of 1957 Michigan Mile and One-Sixteenth winner My Night Out (by Phalanx), 1961 Del Mar Derby winner and 1985 American champion broodmare sire Speak John (by Prince John) and stakes winner London Jet (by Ridan) and second dam of 1973 Cotillion Handicap (USA-G1) winner Lilac Hill, 1976 Gran Premio di Milano (ITY-G1) winner Rouge Sang, and 1963 Astoria Stakes winner Miss Twist. Mandolina is also a half sister to stakes-placed Folie Douce (by Caldarium), dam of 1959 French champion 3-year-old filly Mi Carina (by Ocarina),1958 Princess Royal Stakes winner Mother Goose (by Escamillo), and 1967 Gazelle Handicap and Ladies Handicap winner Sweet Folly (by Tom Fool). Folie Douce is also the second dam of 1968 Belmont Stakes winner and American co-champion 3-year-old male Stage Door Johnny and Grade 2 winner Jack Sprat.
Books and media
Footage of Better Talk Now's victories in the 2004 Breeders' Cup Turf and the 2007 Manhattan Handicap can be accessed in Mike Curry's article "Better Talk Now: Remembering a True One of a Kind," published June 28, 2017, at America's Best Racing (https://www.americasbestracing.net/lifestyle/2017-better-talk-now-remembering-true-one-kind).
Fun facts
- Better Talk Now's stable name was “Blackie.”
- The Better Talk Now Stakes is a 1-mile turf event for 3-year-olds at Saratoga.
- Better Talk Now was the first horse to win a Breeders' Cup race for trainer Graham Motion, whose later stars have included 2011 Kentucky Derby—Presented by Yum! Brands (USA-G1) winner and American champion 3-year-old male Animal Kingdom; 2014 American champion older male and champion turf male Main Sequence, who won that year's Longines Breeders' Cup Turf (USA-G1), and multiple Grade 1 winner Miss Temple City. Better Talk Now was also the first winning Breeders' Cup mount for National Museum of Racing Hall of Fame member Ramon Dominguez.
- Stakes-placed Shake the Bank, who served as Better Talk Now's pacemaker in several major events, gained at least one fan of his own in Lauren Hamilton, who wrote to Motion and owner Brent Johnson to express her interest in the gelding after meeting the horse at the veterinary clinic where she was working. Following Shake the Bank's retirement, Motion and Johnson decided to give the gelding to Hamilton, who retrained him as a jumper.
Photo credit
Photo taken by Jessica Morgan in 2009. Used by permission.
Last updated: October 5, 2022