It’s been a fascinating and memorable meeting, and Knicks Go put up another great performance to land the Classic at the end of the two days. Brad Cox has his first Classic winner, Joel Rosario his second. It’s been a great two days, with Charlie Appleby dominant for the Europeans and Japan is celebrating not one, but two, winners.
It’s back to Keeneland in Kentucky next year, when the temperatures will be cooler but the excitement hopefully will be just as intense.
I don’t know if it was a Guardian thing or a Virgin Net thing but my connection went AGAIN just as they were leaving the stalls. Apologies.
But Knicks Go went straight into the lead for Joel Rosario and he set steady fractions from there before staying on well in the stretch. Essential Quality was being niggled a long way out, and it was Medina Spirit that kept on for second with Essential Quality third.
Knicks Go wins the the Breeders’ Cup Classic.
Off and running
They are heading into the stalls, Essential Quality still just favourite but Hot Rod Charlie is getting plenty of support too.
Five minutes to post for the Classic and they are out on the track. A special moment in the racing year.
But it does come down to Medina Spirit in many ways, because he’s - probably - going to be the first horse to be disqualified from the Kentucky Derby for a failed dope test since Dancer’s Image in 1968. The NBC feed just suggested that “there are two sides” to the debate, but from where I’m sitting, there’s just the simple fact that the horse tested positive for a banned substance on raceday and it *still* hasn’t been DQd.
There is one more big hitter in the Classic field: Knicks Go. He won the Lukas Classic last time:
Hot Rod Charlie is another big runner, he finished third at Churchill and then went down by one-and-a-quarter lengths to Essential Quality in the Belmont:
Essential Quality is the narrow 9-5 favourite to continue the incredible run of the Godolphin colours. This is going to be his last race and he’s only lost one - the Kentucky Derby - in his entire career.
Here’s the Run For The Roses, with Medina Spirit* first past the post and Essential Quality back in fourth. Consider how much more ground Essential Quality covers from a wide draw.
And now we move on to the Classic, my favourite race of the year.
That was some run through the field by Yibir, who kicked off his season finishing third in the Sandown Classic Trial. The winner there was Alenquer, a Group Two winner at Royal Ascot next time, and the runner-up was Adayar, the Derby winner. Lone Eagle, who was touched off in the Irish Derby, was fourth. A classic Classic Trial, for sure.
For the Godolphin operation, meanwhile, it could yet get even better, as Essential Quality is a huge runner for the royal blue colours in the Breeders’ Cup Classic - up next!
What a Breeders’ Cup for Charlie Appleby and Wlliam Buick, and what a year too. That’s their third winner at the meeting, and Yibir came with an irresistible run to collar the outsider Broome a few strides from the line.
Tarnawa is a long way back, Broome goes clear in the stretch but now here comes Yibir and William Buick, they are getting up!
The field is stretched, the pace is strong, but bunching more as they turn out. of the back
Yibir is rhid, Bolshoi Ballet fourth, Channel Maker prominent in the chasing pack too
Level break, Tribhuvan and Acclimate go several lengths clear turning in first time
Off and running in the Breeders’ Cup Turf!
A great stat after the Mile was that Charlie Appleby has had runners in 10 races in the US this year, and won six of those. Walton Street and Yibir could make it seven from 11. Won’t be long now, the last ones are going in ...
Gufo, third in the Joe Hirsch at Belmont last time, is also on the backers’ minds, at 7-1. Teona, who skipped the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe after the ground went soft, is 9-1 for Roger Varian’s Newmarket stable.
Ten minutes to post time for the Turf, and the runners are heading out to the track. Tarnawa is now 3-2, Charlie Appleby’s Walton Street is 7-1 and his other runner Yibir is 11-1.
The Turf is up next, Tarnawa is 6-5 favourite to repeat last year’s success.
The pace in that race was crazy and Letruska was beaten before the home turn. But what a result, and a first win for Japan in the Distaff with their first runner in the race. Yoshito Yahagi, whose purple titfer is a sight to behold, is the big story of this year’s Breeders’ Cup.
Oisin Murphy is being interviewed on the track:
I try very hard to get on the best horses I can around the world. I’m only 26 years old and these are the opportunities I crave.”
And the winning rider is none other than Oisin Murphy!
It’s Marche Lorraine for Japan, the biggest price on the board at 45-1!
It’s on the nod after a great run to the line, and it could be another for Japan. Marche Lorraine and Dunbar Road flashed past together.
Another strong quarter, Private Mission still leads turning in, Letruska has dropped away
Private Mission leads, a very strong pace, Letruska is just behind in second and As Time Goes By is third
Off and running in the Breeders’ Cup Distaff!
Letruska is 6-5 on the tote, Malthaat is 7-2 and Shedaresthedevil is 6-1. Here’s Malathaat in her last race in the Alabama Stakes at Saratoga:
Next up at Del Mar is the $2m Distaff,in which Letruska, who is on a five-race winning streak including four Grade Ones, heads the market as she attempts to extend her career record to 18 wins from 23 starts.
Here she is going down by a head to today’s rival Shedaresthedevil when giving her 6lb at Oaklawn in March (the only race that Letruska has lost all year by the way):
That was Space Blues’ final race before going to stud and William Buick is delighted that he went out with a win.
I knew he had a turn of foot and he really is one of my favourites. I wanted him to go out with a win and I probably felt a bit more pressure than I usually would. He’s been a great horse for us and now he’ll go to stud and hopefully become a great stallion.
William Buick was perfectly positioned to strike off the bend and Space Blues did it nicely from there.
Into the stretch, Space Blues second and running at the lead, he’s in front and wins! It’s just like yesterday, except this time the winner’s backer’s get paid.
Space Blues now third, down the back stretch, Got Stormy is fourth, 47.3 sec for the half which isn’t too quick
Off and running in the Breeders’ Cup Mile
Space Blues is fourth, Smooth Like Strait leads, Blowout second
Unlike last night, Appleby’s other runner has not been officially scratched. Going back in ...
James Doyle walks back with his saddle and tack, Master Of The Seas looks fine.
For the second day running, Charlie Appleby has lost a runner just before the off, Master Of The Seas is out after getting upset in the stalls.
Again like last night, he has another runner: Space Blues.
A problem at the gates,
Updated
Other Europeans in the Mile include Pearls Galore for Paddy Twomey while victory for Hideaki Fujirawa’s Vin De Garde would redouble the delight for Japan and then redouble it again.
Mo Forza leads the home team, he’s done most of his winning at Grade Two level but this is his win in the Hollywood Derby at Del Mar last year.
Some form to consider: here’s Space Blues winning the Group One Prix de la Foret at Longchamp on Arc day.
That was a terrific finish to the Sprint, as on-the-nod as it gets.
But we must move on, to the Mile - which has always been a key race for the Europeans. Space Blues is favourite for Charlie Appleby and William Buick, and he has Master Of The Seas (James Doyle) as backup. Other European runners include Mother Earth, the 1,000 Guineas winner, for Aidan O’Brien and Ryan Moore, but in a race that gave us a 73-1 upset 12 months ago, I’m taking a small stab at Jessica Harrington’s Real Appeal (currently a 70-1 shot on the local tote). As a reserve that got into the race only because of a scratch, Real Appeal has the outside draw, but he has a hold-up running style so would need to drop in in any case, and he has plenty of boot at the business end of the race if Shane Foley can find a way through. And at that kind of price, it costs almost nothing to take a chance.
Apologies for the drop off in updates, I lost my internet connection just as they went off for the Sprint. And what a race it was, Dr Schivel looked to have sealed the win with a burst of speed inside the final furlong but Aloha West closed relentlessly all the way to the line and got it on the nod. That was a semi-flared nostril that won it.
And among the outsiders we have Firenze Fire, a horse with a distinctly carnivorous streak:
Dr Schivel is drawn nine of nine, which isn’t ideal, but he’s a serious sprinter as he showed at Santa Anita last time:
After that moment of racing history, we move on to the Sprint, and another short-priced favourite in Jackie’s Warrior. Steve Asmussen’s three-year-old is currently showing at 2-5 on the tote board, with Dr Schivel (my fancy for the race) showing at 9-2. Here’s Jackie’s Warrior in the Gallant Bob Stakes at Parx:
Loves Only You is trained by Yoshito Yahagi, who is quite a colourful chap apparently:
Loves Only You's trainer Yoshito Yahagi is some character. Rocked up at morning trackwork for HKIR one day in full cowboy gear saying he'd come straight from the casino in Macau. And I don't think he was joking.
— Graham Cunningham (@gcunning12) November 6, 2021
Love was fourth by the way, and Audarya fifth.
Loves Only You was a 4-1 shot, and her connections are now picking up the prize. “A dream come true for Japanese racing,” her owner says, and promises to come back for more next year.
A huge moment for Japanese racing, and a truly memorable finishing flourish by Loves Only You to seal the win at the end of the best race of the night (so far), and beat the best that America and Europe had to offer.
Loves Only You is chasing the favourite, Love on the inside too, but Loves Only You has done it! Japan’s first winner at the Breeders’ Cup!
Loves Only You fifth, travelling well, War Like Goddess goes wide and into the lead at the top of the stretch
Turning back out for another circuit, War Like Goddess was last but now makes a move
Going To Vegas leads early from Dogtag and Pocket Square, Loves Only You fifth and Love in sixth.
Not long now in the Filly & Mare Turf, they are going in quickly ...
And OFF AND RUNNING!
The NBC feed points out that Japan’s record at the Breeders’ Cup is 0-16 after three more losers so far this year, but very few runners from there have gone off at as short a price as Loves Only You. She is, incidentally, rated 1lb in front of Love and War Like Goddess by Timeform.
My pick here was Loves Only You, for what that’s worth, but it’s a fascinating race with any number of plausible winners. War Like Goddess is now 2-1 at the track, with Love on 5-2 and Loves Only You on 9-2. Audarya is 13-1 to defend her title, while Pocket Square, a Grade Three winner at Belmont last time, is around the same odds.
Rougir also merits close consideration after her win in the Prix de l’Opera at Longchamp last time:
Love is a familiar name to European racing fans, having run away with the Oaks at Epsom last year, but Loves Only You needs a little more introduction. Here she is winning the QEII Cup at Sha Tin:
We’re heading back to the green stuff shortly for the Filly & Mare Turf: Love, Audarya - last year’s winner - and Japan’s Loves Only You, up against War Like Goddess for the home team (and a few more besides).
In the early betting, War Like Goddess is the favourite at 5-2, with Love and Loves Only You popular too.
Here’s the favourite winning the Flower Bowl at Saratoga earlier this year:
Life Is Good is going clear, this is another very easy win, Life Is Good is very, very good
Life Is Good leads into the straight, Ginobli in pursuit, stretch drive coming up
The favourite leads once again, 21.88sec for the quarter, that’s lightning fast
Life Is Good leads, followed by Jasper Prince and Eight Rings
OFF AND RUNNING IN THE DIRT MILE:
Going into the gates for the Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile ...
Ginobli is a 9-2 chance, he won the Pat O’Brien Stakes right here (well, there) at Del Mar, over seven furlongs:
Silver State is the second-favourite for Steve Asmussen, he won the Metropolitan Handicap at Belmont in June:
Another odds-on shot for the next Breeders’ Cup race, Life Is Good is current 3-5 for the Dirt Mile. He started his three-year-old career in Bob Baffert’s barn and was the early favourite for the Kentucky Derby after winning the San Felipe Stakes by eight lengths. An injury ruled him out of theTriple Crown races, however, and he then switched stables to join Todd Pletcher. Here he is winning the Kelso Handicap at Belmont unchallenged:
Just tidying up the other Europeans: A Case Of You was fifth and Golden Slippers eighth.
Andrea Atzeni, meanwhile, sums up Emaraaty Ana’s race into fourth place fairly succinctly.
Golden Pal is a great horse and I couldn’t really go with him. I was hoping he’d stop but he didn’t.
Wesley Ward, Golden Pal’s trainer, happily confirms that the three-year-old is the best horse he has trained (so far).
He’s the best, the best so far. He’s just fast, now that he’s matured he’s got so much upstairs as well, so much natural ability.
There were some fast horses up against Golden Pal, but he flew out of the stalls and did not see another rival from that point. A brutal and exhilarating exhibition of sprinting.
Still Golden Pal turning in, and he quickens! Golden Pal all the way ...
Golden Pal straight into the lead, came out with afterburners, Lieutenant Dan second, then Caravel and Emaraaty Ana
They are going into the stalls quickly ... and now off and running in the Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint!
Glass Slippers is 13-1 on the PMU, Emaraaty Ana currently 8-1, and Lieutenant Dan is 7-2. He won the Eddie D Stakes at Santa Anita last time out:
Golden Pal is a warm favourite here at around 5-2, and would be only the fifth horse to win two different races at the Breeders’ Cup. And they are now coming out onto the track.
While this might seem like an obvious target for Europe’s best sprinters, though, it is worth recalling that last year’s renewal was the 13th since the race was added to the schedule and Glass Slippers was the first European-trained runner to win.
Golden Pal, who won the Juvenile Turf Sprint at Keeneland last year, is the big hope for the homes team. European backers may recall that Wesley Ward’s sprinter was a distinct flop when he was sent to York for the Nunthorpe Stakes in August, but he bounced back to form in his next race and is likely to take all the beating if he can get on the pace.
We are heading onto the turf for the next of our Grade One races, the Turf Sprint to be precise, in which Kevin Ryan’s Glass Slippers, last year’s winner, is joined by her stable companion Emaraaty Ana and also A Case Of You – one for the Joni Mitchell fans there – from Adrian McGuinness’s yard in Ireland. Emaraaty Ana arrives fresh, having been rested since his win in the Haydock Sprint Trophy in September, while Glass Slippers and A Case Of You were third and first respectively in the Prix de l’Abbaye at Longchamp last month:
Bob Baffert, Gamine’s trainer, is interviewed afterwards.
It wasn’t her day today. I could tell she was struggling. It hurts me like my children when they get beat but the winner is a good filly.
A real surprise to kick off proceedings, Gamine could never dominate as she did last year and the writing was on the wall as soon as Ce Ce edged in front in the stretch.
Gamine is fading! Bella Sofia too, it’s a big upset, Ce Ce takes the spoils!
Edgeway is close up in third with Ce Ce, Gamine leads them into the straight between horses
Gamine straight into the lead, Bella Sofia half a length behind, 22.31sec for the opening quarter ...
Going into the gates ... and now off and running in the Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Sprint
Gamine is now 2-5 to get the Del Mar punters off to a flying start. Bella Sofia, who is rated 6lb behind the favourite by the sages at the Timeform organisation, is the only real danger to the favourite according to the betting. She is a Grade One winner, in the Test Stakes at Saratoga in August, and followed up with this success in a four-runner Gallant Bloom Handicap at Belmont Park in late September.
Preamble
Hello and welcome to the Guardian’s live coverage of day two of the Breeders’ Cup meeting at Del Mar in southern California, where the question that many racegoers will ask themselves is whether anything on today’s nine-race, multi-million dollar card can possibly match Friday’s Juvenile Turf when it comes to drama, uncertainty and confusion.
The answer, almost certainly, is no, but that can only be a good thing, as a chorus of boos and jeers from a packed grandstand after a Grade One race is the worst possible look from the Breeders’ Cup organisation’s point of view. As Charlie Appleby, the trainer of the winner, Modern Games, said afterwards: “For the sport, you hate to see it but the fans are here to have a fun weekend and hopefully they will still enjoy it. We’ll have a better day tomorrow.”
We certainly should, as the meeting’s main card has much to excite and entertain for fans on both sides of the Pond and, perhaps, in Japan too, as the country’s long-awaited first winner at the meeting is a distinct possibility. Europe will hope, indeed probably expect, to add to Appleby’s success yesterday, with Tarnawa favoured to defend her title in the Turf at 23.40 GMT.
Glass Slippers, another defending champion, is one of three big Anglo-Irish contenders for the Turf Sprint (19.40), while Love and Audarya are lined up for the Filly & Mare Turf (20.59) and Appleby’s Space Blues is favourite for the Mile (22.20), a race which also features several more European-trained challengers.
And at the top of the card, there is the Classic, where the presence of Bob Baffert’s Medina Spirit, the, er, Kentucky Derby winner*, could lead to some more unwelcome headlines for the Cup committee on Sunday. Medina Spirit is still, officially, the winner of this year’s Run For The Roses, despite testing positive for bethamethasone, a banned corticosteroid, a few days later, a shocking situation for the sport in the US and one which seems likely to continue to hang over it for some time to come.
Baffert’s filly Gamine – who also features on Baffert’s disciplinary record having been DQd from third place in last season’s Kentucky Oaks after a positive for betamethasone – is the hot favourite for the first Breeders’ Cup race on the card, the Filly & Mare Sprint (19.05).
Away from possible Baffert-related controversy, meanwhile, Loves Only You is Japan’s big hope in the Filly & Mare Turf, while American fans in particular will be looking forward to an intriguing renewal of the Distaff at 23.00, with Letruska, Shedaresthedevil, Malathaat and Royal Flag among a closely-matched bunch of leading contenders.
It should also be pointed out that this is the first Breeders’ Cup at which the race-day anti-bleeding medication, Lasix, is banned in all 14 races, which can only be a good thing for international racing going forward. Some thoughts about Saturday’s main events are here, and there will be previews, tips, results, post-race quotes and more throughout the card as the action unfolds.
