Stars of the Breeders’ Cup: the power of the international challenge

It may be missing a few of the world’s standout performers - Aussie supermare Winx and French star Almanzor being top of that list - but the 33rd Breeders’ Cup has done pretty well in its effort to attract an international cast to justify its ‘World Championships’ tag.

They were never going to lure Winx to America, certainly not just two weeks after the Cox Plate, the most important all-aged race south of the Equator, even though she was automatically qualified for Santa Anita after winning The Star Doncaster Mile at Randwick in April, a ‘Win and You’re In’ race for the Breeders’ Cup.

Indeed, it’s looking increasingly unlikely anyway that the world’s highest-rated female will ever face the cream of the Northern Hemisphere. “Come and race her in Australia if you think you’re good enough” seems to be trainer Chris Waller’s attitude, and who can blame him?

The world’s highest-rated turf male, Almanzor, who also earned a Breeders’ Cup berth by winning a ‘Win and You’re In’ race (the Irish Champion Stakes), is finished for the season after his British Champion Stakes win at Ascot three weeks ago.

Another leading international, Postponed, whose three 2016 G1s include the ‘Win and You’re In’ Juddmonte International at York, is also taking a break - after a disappointing run when favourite for the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe, and the top Japanese stars, like Maurice (winner of the $2 million Tenno Sho on Sunday) and A Shin Hikari, were never likely to head to California with so many fabulously lucrative targets in the Far East to go for instead.

But this year’s is still a formidable international challenge, particularly from Europe, particularly from Aidan O’Brien.

The master of Ballydoyle, the world’s top-ranked trainer in the TRC Global Rankings, has 12 horses going to post in the turf events at Santa Anita. That’s more than half the non-North American runners at the Breeders’ Cup.

His headline act, of course, is the remarkable Found. The Longines Breeders’ Cup Turf, which she won at Keeneland last season, will be the mare’s 10th run of a campaign that began at the beginning of April and has included runners-up finishes in six of Europe’s outstanding G1s - plus, of course, victory in the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe. Saturday’s race will be her third in just under five weeks at the absolute top level of world racing. She ran in the same three races last year - and seemed to get better with each run.

Three more of O’Brien’s frontliners - King George winner Highland Reel, triple G1 heroine Alice Springs and dual Oaks winner Seventh Heaven - have also made the trip, and they, along with the spectacular July Cup and Prix de la Foret winner Limato, have ensured that Europe’s Breeders’ Cup challenge is very much out of the top drawer.

International runners at the Breeders’ Cup

TRC Global Rankings for connections in brackets

JUVENILE TURF

Harbour Master, now trained in the U.S. by James Cassidy, raced in Britain under the care of Jamie Osborne until last month.

JUVENILE FILLIES TURF

Spain Burg, winner of the ‘Win and You’re In’ G2 Rockfel Stakes at Newmarket in September, was trained in France by Xavier Thomas-Demeaulte until last month. She is now trained in the U.S. by Kathy Ritvo.

FILLY & MARE TURF

**Seventh Heaven qualified for the Filly & Mare Turf by winning the G1 Yorkshire Oaks, a ‘Win and You’re In’ race, at York in August.

Alice Springs, trained by Aidan O’Brien, qualified for the Filly & Mare Turf by winning the G1 Matron Stakes at Leopardstown in September but runs instead in the Mile.

TURF SPRINT

LONGINES TURF

**Mondialiste qualified for the Longines Turf by winning the G1 Arlington Million, a ‘Win and You’re In’ race, in Chicago in August.

***Highland Reel qualified by winning the G1 King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes, a ‘Win and You’re In’ race, at Ascot in July.

MILE

**Alice Springs runs in the Mile instead of the Filly & Mare Turf, for which she qualified by winning the G1 Matron Stakes, a ‘Win and You’re In’ race, at Leopardstown in September.

Odds used are those generally available with British bookmakers.