Rail Talk Podcast

This week on Rail Talk, Jon Green returns from his Canadian vacation and rejoins his buddy Joe Bianca, just home from opening week at Saratoga! The two break down all the storylines from the Spa—smaller than average crowds but solid handle, impressive 2-year-old performances and a speed-favoring dirt track. The boys then welcome Paulick Report founder and publisher Ray Paulick to analyze the lates...

Happy Saratoga opening day! This week on Rail Talk, the team is back from a holiday weekend and Joe Bianca is joined by guest co-host Jim Politano, owner, bettor and rockstar. The two break down the latest court ruling on HISA’s constitutionality and Jim gives his input as a horseman on what needs to be fixed. They also discuss the concerns surrounding fantasy horse racing app Game of Silks, which...

This week on Breakaway Rail Talk sponsored by Arion Pedigrees, Joe Bianca sits down for an in-depth 1-on-1 conversation with Dave Lyon, the founder and managing partner of Blue Lion Thoroughbreds. A Saratoga native, Lyon started Blue Lion as a tight-knit partnership with local friends and acquaintances. Before they knew it, the group found themselves on the Kentucky Derby trail with Gotham Stakes...

We made it to 50 episodes! It’s been an absolute joy for the team here at Rail Talk to experience this journey with all of you, so for this week’s episode we had to celebrate our milestone with an extravaganza of surprise guests, games, and of course, some straight talk on racing’s hot-button topics. First, Joe Bianca and Jon Green react to the Supreme Court rebuffing a constitutional challenge to...

This week on Rail Talk, Joe Bianca and Jon Green welcome back HISA CEO Lisa Lazarus for another illuminating, substantive discussion about a wide variety of racing’s hot-button topics. Joe and Jon ask about the improved breakdown statistics from the first quarter of 2024, the rationale behind HISA’s deferment of metformin suspensions, HISA’s investigative powers, the successful pressure campaign f...

For the first time in its history, the Belmont Stakes moved north to Saratoga, and the buzz was unmistakable at the old Spa during a phenomenal racing festival. This week on Rail Talk, Joe Bianca and Jon Green react to the thrilling capper to an exhilarating—and safe—Triple Crown and celebrate an array of superstar performances. Joe, who was in attendance all week at Saratoga, is then put in the h...

This week on Rail Talk, Joe Bianca and Jon Green welcome Louisiana racing’s finest and New Orleans native Dallas Stewart to update us on the pushback to the Bayou State’s racing commission loosening drug regulations. Stewart lets the viewers in on discussions happening behind closed doors to make the LRC reconsider the drastic move that will make horses less safe if enacted. He also touches on his...

Joe Bianca and Jon Green had to get behind their mics for an emergency Rail Talk this morning after stunning news broke that the Louisiana Racing Commission is purposefully loosening regulations on drugs and injections for its horses. Outraged by the decision, Joe and Jon discuss the potential fallout—Louisiana racing ending up on an island where no one wants to ship in or out, potential revocatio...

Two races in, the 2024 Triple Crown has produced a pair of phenomenal stories, with the good vibes continuing Saturday as 88-year-old D. Wayne Lukas’s Seize the Grey went wire to wire at a rain-soaked Pimlico in Saturday’s Preakness. Joe Bianca and Jon Green broke down all angles of the popular victory, starting of course with the legendary Lukas. They went on to analyze the other myriad storyline...

This week on Rail Talk! Joe Bianca and Jon Green look forward to Preakness 149, a race that was drastically changed with the scratch of morning line favorite Muth. How likely is Mystik Dan now to take the Triple Crown’s second jewel? Who are the main contenders left standing in his way? And will this be the last Preakness day before Pimlico is finally brought into the 21st century? The boys are th...

The stars shined bright all week at Churchill Downs, culminating in a heart-pounding renewal of the Kentucky Derby that went to Mystik Dan in a razor-thin three-horse photo, and Joe Bianca and Jon Green soaked up every last bit of Derby goodness this week on Rail Talk with very, very special guest Mike Tirico. The legendary and incredibly versatile broadcaster sat down with the boys for nearly 40...

Surprise! It’s a double dose of Rail Talk this week, as Joe Bianca and Jon Green follow up their Derby 150 preview show with an examination of the much-anticipated New York Times documentary Broken Horses. Despite the scary and sensationalist title, Joe and Jon came away feeling like the show did an excellent job telling the entire story of racing in the 21st century—the ills, but also the major e...

The milestone 150th running of the Kentucky Derby is almost upon us and to celebrate, Joe Bianca and Jon Green welcomed the ‘Brunette Bonanza’ of America’s Best Racing’s Keeneland Weekend Preview Show to the Rail Talk set! Alexa Zepp, Ren Carothers and Rachel Miller’s show has caught on a ton and with good reason, bringing the humor and levity of racing/handicapping to the forefront. That was obvi...

This week on Rail Talk: Sales and Slam Dunks! Jon Green and Joe Bianca are back from Ocala with a wrap from the OBS spring sale while they fanboy over the New York teams in the NBA/NHL playoffs. Joining the boys were Boyd Browning, Fasig Tipton’s President and CEO, and Anna Seitz, their Director of Client Relations. They dove into Fasig Tipton’s digital and physical sales, and announced a special...

This week on Rail Talk! Joe Bianca and Jon Green are on-site from Mark Casse's gorgeous training center in Ocala and welcome a star-studded lineup of guests before checking out seven-figure OBS March buy Sandman's latest impressive breeze. Stopping by the set were Casse himself, West Point Thoroughbred's CEO Terry Finley and founder of The Green Group/DJ Stable Len Green. Casse discuss...

In the shadow of a cosmic marvel, there were some star performances on the racetrack this weekend with the final round of major Kentucky Derby preps setting the stage for the 150th Run for the Roses, and Joe Bianca and Jon Green teamed up to break it all down. With two clear favorites emerging in Fierceness and Sierra Leone, who else can we expect to shine on the first Saturday in May? The boys th...

It was a busy weekend of Kentucky Derby preps as we inch closer to the 150th Run for the Roses, and Joe Bianca, Jon Green and Tinky broke it all down this week on Rail Talk. Showing us his face for the first time, Tinky (Tony Cobitz) appreciated Fierceness’s monster win in the Florida Derby before examining Todd Pletcher’s poor record in the Derby and what it says about owners of 3-year-old colts....

This week on Rail Talk, Joe Bianca and Jon Green welcome the always opinionated and thoughtful owner of Hill ‘n’ Dale Farm, John Sikura. The three tackle the challenges of introducing new stallions to the market, breeding for heartiness and not just speed, and innovative ways to increase interest/purses at the Breeders’ Cup. Joe and Jon then praise the three sales companies for coming together to...

Jon Green speaks with Gulfstream Park Handicapper and Paddock Host Samantha Perry about her cross-country journey from Oklahoma quarter horse tracks to the Jersey Shore to South Beach. They also discuss how to handicap races on Gulfstream’s synthetic track and what to look for on Saturday’s Florida Derby card. Jon asks Samantha how being an exercise rider improved her ability to predict winners an...

This week on Rail Talk, Joe Bianca and Jon Green are back from Ocala and full of takes. First they discuss the disaster befalling the American betting system on Tampa Bay Derby day and how the sport needs to show more to respect its core customer, the average horseplayer. Then they look forward to Saturday’s Louisiana Derby card and touch on the latest racing Twitter beef. Fresh off his 2,000th ca...

This week on Rail Talk, it’s the illuminating second half of Joe Bianca and Jon Green’s conversation with Tony Cobitz, the artist formerly known as Tinky. Continuing their discussion on ‘super trainers’ in general and Bob Baffert specifically, Tony also touched on his Twitter debate with Tom Ryan and the appreciation he has for open, respectful debate. The trio then moved on to the recent Mike Rep...

Horse racing Twitter lightning rod Tinky has returned for his third visit to the Rail Talk studio and this time came prepared to reveal his true identity to the audience. The former clocker, advisor, writer, author, consultant, track analyst, mating analyst, legal expert and jock’s agent joined hosts Joe Bianca and Jon Green to review his many years in the Thoroughbred industry before weighing in...

This week on Rail Talk, Joe Bianca and Jon Green confront the ugly and apparently avoidable loss of Congruent on Saturday at Gulfstream, wondering why and how the system failed another horse whose life had as much value as any superstar runner’s. Joe and Jon then analyzed the latest round of Kentucky Derby preps and welcomed Steve Crist, a Mt. Rushmore-level figure in the worlds of handicapping an...

With the racing industry going through a crucial transitional period, Joe Bianca and Jon Green sat down with The Jockey Club President and COO Jim Gagliano for the latest edition of Rail Talk. The three had an expansive discussion on the most pressing issues facing the business and its biggest stakeholders—owners, breeders, horsemen and horseplayers. Topics included: the rollout of HISA, what can...

The reaction was overwhelming—both positive and negative—to last week’s episode of Rail Talk, where Joe Bianca and Jon Green welcomed polarizing racing Twitter personality Tinky. So naturally, the boys had him back on this week to respond to the vitriol aimed his way, but also for another substantive, illuminating discussion on the hot-button issues in the sport today. The three tackled the failed...