Journalism, a Curlin colt trained by Michael McCarthy, has had an impressive 2025 season, really making a name for himself as one of the top three-year-olds in the sport. After coming in second in a thrilling and rainy Kentucky Derby—where he took the lead early on before Sovereignty zoomed past in the final stretch—Journalism made a strong comeback at the Preakness Stakes in May, rallying from five lengths back to clinch the 150th running in 1:55.47 with jockey Umberto Rispoli aboard.

He followed that up with another solid performance in the Belmont Stakes at Saratoga, coming in a respectable second to Sovereignty again. Since Belmont, Journalism has been gearing up for his next big challenge: the G1 Haskell Stakes at Monmouth Park.

As the 4-5 morning-line favorite and starting from post 2, he’s set to lead an eight-horse field, and his team is feeling pretty good about how he’ll perform. He’s still working on his conditioning with McCarthy keeping a close eye on him, as the team gets him ready for what might be another big win in his impressive campaign.

Right before this important race, the horse racing community received some extremely upsetting news. On X, Agentes305 reported: “MOPOTISM, mother of JOURNALISM, has died due to complications from colic at @hsdonalberto USA. She leaves two unraced products, a yearling filly daughter of Into Mishief and a 2 months old filly by Flightline.”

Mopotism, a Grade 2 stakes winner by Uncle Mo, racked up around $900,000 on the racetrack and had several solid finishes in Grade 1 races. She has two foals that haven’t raced yet: a yearling filly by Into Mischief and a 2-month-old filly by Flightline. Her passing really brings a heavy feeling, especially now that her star son is gearing up for a big Graded 1 race.

It highlights just how delicate and emotionally layered Thoroughbred racing can be. As Journalism gets underway at Monmouth, fans and connections will be feeling a mix of excitement and sadness.

The racing community mourned Journalism’s mother

This season, Journalism is definitely the standout horse. So, there’s a lot of buzz about him gearing up for his G1 race, but this really tough news has left the community feeling pretty down. One fan mentioned, “This is really sad. Best wishes to the connections.” Another fan chimed in, saying, “Damn. Been there. Ripped my heart out. RIP big girl. Your work here is done.” A straightforward tribute read, “Very sad news. RIP beautiful girl.”

Don Alberto shared his sadness over the loss of their mare, saying, “We are heartbroken to report the loss of our mare Mopotism, due to complications related to colic. She was a gift to all those that got to know her beautiful eye, strong mind, and gentle way. We are grateful to everyone that has taken care of her over the years and poured so much love into her each day.” The mare had some winners, and one of them was Journalism. Alberto is feeling a mix of sadness over the horse, but he’s also pretty excited to see what kind of legacy her son might create with the performances he’s been putting on lately.

This fan shared, “Enjoy the tall sweet grass in Heaven Mopotism..your legacy will live on. Let’s win this one for her….” Another respectful but heartbroken comment said, “Sad news. RIP MOPOTISM. Condolences to all the connections.” Even with all the buzz about the next big race in journalism, these reactions really show the strong emotional connections in the horse racing community—where losing a top mare turns into a shared moment of sadness and remembrance.