With no fewer than 15 ‘Win and You’re In’ qualifiers spread across four US venues plus important events in Canada, the UK and Japan, last weekend’s action was full to brimming with potential Breeders’ Cup significance.
Push may not have come to shove in some cases – they are called ‘prep races’ for a reason – but at times it was hard to know where to look. So here’s a quickfire recap of certain matters arising in the major divisions, plus odds generally available with European bookmakers on their ante-post markets.
Please note: these betting lists aren't a morning line (or anything like that in US terms) – they are prices currently available at the time of writing with UK firms, as per the Oddschecker market comparison website. Obviously there are various different prices available with different companies; these were the most 'general' odds, listed for information purposes only to illustrate how the markets are shaping up on the other side of the Atlantic.
CLASSIC
While there were no designated BC Classic trials on tap last week, that’s not the same as saying nothing happened with regard to America’s richest race.
Having missed the Kentucky Derby after spiking a fever, Santa Anita Derby winner Practical Move (Tim Yakteen) returned victorious at odds-on of 2-5 fter a six-month layoff in a salty four-runner allowance at the Breeders’ Cup venue on Friday [Oct 6], which means he’ll go to the big show on a five-timer.
According to the Daily Racing Form, he’ll be pre-entered in both the Classic and the Dirt Mile; the latter was the distance of Friday’s win and he’s never been a mile and a quarter. As far as European bookmakers are concerned, it’s a no-brainer: Practical Move is 33-1 for the Classic and 5-1 second favourite for the Dirt Mile.
Meanwhile, last year’s juvenile champion Forte (Todd Pletcher) is reportedly making progress towards the Classic after injury, while last year’s Saudi Cup winner Emblem Road (Ahmad Aldulwahed) is also on course. An overflow field looks a distinct possibility.
Betting: 7-2 Arcangelo, 6 Arabian Knight, 7 Geaux Rocket Ride, White Abarrio, 11 Ushba Tesoro, 12 Forte, Saudi Crown, 14 Bright Future, 16 Mage, Paddington, 20 Derma Sotogake, Senor Buscador, 25 bar.
TURF
A couple of weeks ago, this looked set to be the race of the meeting. Now it’s not looking quite so formidable, as Arc runner-up Westover suffered a career-ending injury in the French showpiece, while Juddmonte International winner Mostahdaf is set to run in the Qipco Champion Stakes at Ascot on October 21. He could turn out twice, I suppose, but it seems unlikely.
As such, the most interesting developments over the weekend came closer to home in the US, as star racemare War Like Goddess (Bill Mott) completed back-to-back victories in the delayed Joe Hirsch Turf Classic at Aqueduct … okay, ‘Belmont at the Big A’, if we really must.
She was third in last year’s Turf behind Rebel’s Romance (Charlie Appleby), a disappointing odds-on favourite in the Joe Hirsch. While this was a weird race – a 90-1 longshot had a 15-length advantage on the back stretch on rain-softened ground – the Godolphin representative has had a star-crossed 2023.
Stablemate Nations Pride has been ruled out after winning a weak-looking Canadian International. “I don't think he'll stretch out to a mile and a half,” said Appleby. “We might take him to Bahrain for the Bahrain International and then contemplate Hong Kong."
On the other hand, America’s leading turf horse Up To The Mark (Todd Pletcher) will move up in trip after edging out Master Of The Seas in the Coolmore Turf Mile at Keeneland. "I wasn't worried about the distance,” said Pletcher. “I was worried about if he was ready enough to run to his capabilities off the layoff.”
Betting: 5-2 Auguste Rodin, 5 Mostahdaf, 8 Onesto, 10 Up To The Mark, Warm Heart, 12 Emily Upjohn, King Of Steel, War Like Goddess, 16 bar.
MILE
With Coolmore Turf Mile winner Up To The Mark seemingly destined for the Turf, it will be left to Godolphin’s Master Of The Seas (Charlie Appleby) to represent the Keeneland form. He won the race everywhere but where it mattered – and the margin was a nose.
However. perhaps more significant BC Mile preps happened elsewhere via a couple of top-class fillies elsewhere across the globe. Inspiral (John & Thady Gosden) gave Frankie Dettori his 500th victory at his home track Newmarket with an impressive 3¾-length success in the G1 Sun Chariot Stakes.
With doubts over Paddington and Tahiyra – set for a mouthwatering clash in Ascot’s Queen Elizabeth II Stakes – the Gosdens’ five-time G1 winner is clear market leader with UK betting firms. That said, John Gosden was non-committal, saying: “She is in the QEII and she could be entered at the Breeders’ Cup but we won’t make a decision for at least a week or two.”
No such reservations apply to Japanese star Songline (Toru Hayashi), despite the mare’s suffering a narrow defeat in the G2 Mainichi Okan at Tokyo racecourse on Sunday [Oct 8]. The five-year-old was nosed out, but to my mind she enjoyed not far off an ideal prep – other than the result, of course, though there was little shame in losing to a progressive in-form rival who got first run.
Just look at the race replay and watch Songline (number ten, orange cap, black white red cross-belts) fly home from an impossible position towards the rear. She’s a three-time G1 winner over the Tokyo mile, plus a seven-furlong win over top US sprinters in Saudi; she will surely be a big player for a strong Japanese team at Santa Anita.
Betting: 4 Inspiral, 5 Paddington, 8 Kelina, Kinross, Master Of The Seas, Songline, Tahiyra, 9 Up To The Mark, 12 Chaldean, 14 Mawj, 16 bar.
DISTAFF
A changing of the guard here, with monster-sized filly Idiomatic (Brad Cox) jumping to the head of affairs with a dominant all-the-way win for the sponsors Juddmonte in the G1 Spinster at Keeneland to follow a similar effort in the Personal Ensign at a sloppy Saratoga.
"We're obviously tremendously excited about how well she's doing,” Cox said. "Hopefully she can do it for one more. It comes down to, you know, California is speed, she’s got speed, and we’ll see who else signs on. It’ll be a showdown, I’m sure. She’s a tremendous talent.”
It remains to be seen what she’ll be like if she is taken on, but otherwise the Juddmonte daughter of Curlin is coming good at the right time – while Nest (Todd Pletcher), for so long the leader of this division, is going the other way. She suffered a little bobble at the start but that’s twice now she has been brushed aside by the winner.
Alabama Stakes heroine Randomized (Chad Brown) coasted home ahead of G1 winner A Mo Reay in the Beldame. “It looks like she's getting stronger and better the older she gets,” said jockey Joel Rosario. “She was very quick out of the gate. I was trying to get her to settle, because if you let her go, she can go :22.”
Last year’s Kentucky Oaks winner Sacred Oath is out of the picture, retired after a minor ankle injury and set to go through the ring at Fasig-Tipton.
Betting: 5-2 Idiomatic, 6 Adare Manor, Nest, 8 Randomized, 10 Clairiere, Society, 14 bar.
FILLY & MARE TURF
Unless Chad Brown gets involved – and rest assured he will get involved – this $2m event is usually marked for export. European fillies duly proliferate at the head of the market, though it is hard to know which ones will show up.
As for Brown, he took his winning sequence to six in the First Lady at Keeneland and he duly recorded a one-two with Peter Brant-owned pair Gina Romantica and In Italian.
On the same Saturday card, the trainer also claimed a seventh victory in the G3 Waya over 11 furlongs with a powerful closing kick from McKulick. All three may well run in the Filly & Mare Turf, won by Brown four times in the last 11 years (the other seven winners all came from overseas). In Italian was second to Tuesday 12 months ago after making the running.
There was a lot to like about the performance of dual Argentine G1 winner Didia (Ignacio Correas) as she extended her US record to five-from-six over course and distance in the Rodeo Drive. She hadn’t run since being beaten by Brown-trained Marketsegmentation in the G1 New York Stakes on June 9 – and her trainer scored at the Breeders’ Cup with Blue Prize in 2019.
Betting: 3 Inspiral, Warm Heart, 4 Nashwa, 6 Blue Rose Cen, 8 Emily Upjohn, 10 Dida, Jackie Oh, Mqse de Sevigne, Tahiyra, 16 bar.
TURF SPRINT
On the face of it, weakening into fourth after getting a clear lead in a G2 contest might not appear the greatest advertisement for Breeders’ Cup success. However, connections of surprise Nunthorpe Stakes winner Live In The Dream (Adam West) seemed happy enough after their gelding was overwhelmed to finish fourth, more than three lengths behind the winner Arzak, in the G2 Woodford at Keeneland.
The bare result hides a multitude, however, as Live In The Dream broke alertly, as usual, easily cleared her rivals and handled the turn with aplomb. Moreover, the BC Turf Sprint is a half-furlong shorter – though less positive is that the competition will be stiffer.
“Incredibly fast,” commented West, accurately. “Very strong headwind today – for me anyway, that would paint the target on him. When we get to Santa Anita, he’s going to be hard to catch. On a sharper track, we’ll really lay it to them.”
Betting: 5 Highfield Princess, 10 Bradsell, Kinross, Live In The Dream, 12 Caravel, Nobals, 14 bar.
DIRT MILE
You can’t say it’s all been straightforward for Dubai World Cup runner-up Algiers (Simon & Ed Crisford) on his way to the Dirt Mile. First he was due to get a taste for US dirt in the Woodward at Aqueduct, only for heavy rain to prompt a scratch.
Re-routed to Woodbine for the G3 Durham Cup on Saturday - no dirt, just something completely different in Tapeta, but at least a much-needed outing – and he gets beaten by Artie’s Storm after a troubled passage, staying on well when finally finding some daylight. “He was a little bit rusty,” said jockey Robert Havlin – hardly surprising, as he hadn’t run since Dubai in March.
Havlin added: “It was a good first run back though, he just took a while to pick up and he's used to longer straights than that. I’m not too disappointed.”
Havlin was right – this wasn’t a disaster by any means. Trouble is, he still hasn’t tried proper US dirt, the straight at Santa Anita is even shorter and Cody’s Wish will be a tough nut to crack.
Betting: 5-2 Cody’s Wish, 5 Practical Move, 7 Saudi Crown, 8 Algiers, Lemon Pop, 10 Gunite, 12 Anarchist, Proxy, 14 bar.
JUVENILE
Despite a multitude of G1 two-year-old contests in New York, Kentucky and California, it was hard to avoid the idea that we were missing the main attractions. That said, even if Bob Baffert left his first-choice pistol in the holster – Del Mar Futurity winner Prince Of Monaco goes straight to the BC – he still dominated the American Pharoah (formerly Norfolk, formerly FrontRunner) with a one-two via Muth and Wine Me Up.
Both are pointing to the BC Juvenile. “I don’t like to look too far ahead until I see them work back, but that’s the plan for now,” Baffert said. He’s won the G1 contest 12 times altogether; two of them went on to win the BC Juvenile (Game Winner 2018, Corniche 2021).
Elsewhere, Locked (Todd Pletcher) added to a fine weekend for his trainer when charging wide form the rear to win the Breeders’ Futurity at Keeneland, while Timberlake (Bard Cox) cleared away for a ready success in the Champagne at a sloppy Aqueduct. The latter form may be slightly suspect as odds-on favourite Fierceness ran no sort of race after a troubled start.
Betting: 4 Prince Of Monaco, 5 Locked, 11-2 Timberlake, 6 City Of Troy, Muth, 14 Book ’Em Danno, 16 bar.
JUVENILE FILLIES
Runaway Del Mar winner Tamara (Richard Mandella) remains hot favourite, despite staying in Richard Mandella’s barn as three proper trials went ahead over the weekend.
Perhaps the biggest rival to emerge was Candied (Todd Pletcher), who won the Darley Alcibiades at Keeneland in the same Eclipse Thoroughbreds silks as Locked – and in virtually the same manner, swinging out in the stretch before outbattling stubborn favourite V V’s Dream (Ken McPeek). The favourite Brightwork faded to fifth; the BC is “not out of the question,” according to trainer John Ortiz.
Both head to Santa Anita, where Chatalas (Mark Glatt), a duaghter of Classic winner Gun Runner, made all under Antonio Fresu for a game success in the G2 Chandelier on Sunday [Oct 8] to put herself in the BC mix.
Just F Y I (Bill Mott), a son of Triple Crown winner Justify, seemed to enjoy the step up in trip on the slop at Aqueduct. Another half-furlong in the BC Juvenile Fillies won’t hurt.
Betting: 7-4 Tamara, 5 Candied, 8 Just F Y I, 10 Dreamfyre, 16 Chatalas, 20 bar.
• Visit the Breeders’ Cup website and the Breeders’ Cup Challenge web page
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