Magical, who was hailed as the “ultimate racehorse” after winning the Champion Stakes at Ascot last Saturday, is expected to make the final start of her career in the Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Turf at Santa Anita on Saturday week, Aidan O’Brien, her trainer, confirmed on Wednesday.
Magical has won four of her 14 starts in Group One contests and finished second behind the outstanding Enable in three more. The Breeders’ Cup Turf, over a mile-and-a-half, is her official “first preference” for next week’s two-day meeting in California, but O’Brien will run Anthony Van Dyck, the Derby winner this year, in that race and attempt to win a first Filly & Mare Turf with his talented and adaptable four-year-old filly.
O’Brien’s runners, as so often, are the backbone of the European challenge at this year’s Breeders’ Cup, with his Ballydoyle stable likely to field runners in all seven of the meeting’s turf events. His long-standing ambition to win the Classic on dirt, however, will not be realised this year as the weekend’s feature race has no European entries.
“We’ve just had a meeting with the lads [from the Coolmore Stud syndicate] and decided that she will go to [the stallion] No Nay Never next year,” O’Brien said. “If she runs, it will be the Filly & Mare Turf. She’s progressed all the time through the year and we’ve kept her ticking over with the autumn in mind.”
O’Brien warned that “a horse can change in 24 hours at this time of the year” but assuming that Magical lines up at Santa Anita, it will be the second year in a row that she has raced at all four of the biggest autumn meetings at Leopardstown, Longchamp, Ascot and in America. She will also be contesting a Group One race for the seventh month in a row, a sequence stretching back to her win in the Tattersalls Gold Cup in May.
Magical is second-favourite at around 9-4 to end her career with a fifth top-level win, in a market headed by last year’s winner Sistercharlie at 15-8. O’Brien also has a strong hand in the Juvenile Turf where Arizona, second behind Pinatubo in the Dewhurst Stakes earlier this month, is the early favourite. Jessica Harrington’s Albigna heads the market for the Juvenile Fillies’ Turf while two more O’Brien-trained colts, Anthony Van Dyck and Circus Maximus, are favourites for the Turf and Mile respectively.
In all, there are 32 horses from British and Irish stables among the likely runners at Santa Anita next week, with other familiar names including Billesdon Brook, last year’s 1,000 Guineas winner, who will give Sean Levey a first ride at the meeting in the Filly & Mare Turf.
A’Ali, the Norfolk Stakes winner at Royal Ascot, is one of two likely runners for Simon Crisford in the Juvenile Turf Sprint and a confirmed ride for Frankie Dettori, while Dr Simpson (Tom Dascombe), Dream Shot (James Tate) and Band Practice (Archie Watson) have also made it into the probable field next Friday.
The Breeders’ Cup returns to Santa Anita for the first time since 2016 following a difficult time for the track in the first half of the year, when the deaths of 30 horses either during racing or training turned a harsh spotlight on welfare standards at one of America’s most famous venues.
The Breeders’ Cup committee considered moving to an alternative venue but voted unanimously in June to keep the meeting at a course that has hosted the event more frequently than any other American track.
Craig Fravel, the president and chief executive of the Breeders’ Cup, said that a number of new initiatives have been introduced at the course for its autumn season, which opened in September. Two horses have died during races since the start of the current season, while two more have suffered fatal injuries while training.
“No jurisdiction in the world has been safer than southern California since the beginning of June,” Fravel said. “The California Horse Racing Board, horsemen in California, Santa Anita and its staff have done extraordinary work in screening horses and instituting new protocols. No stone has been left unturned to make sure that safety is the first priority.
“There will be a team of 14 veterinarians at Santa Anita all week and all runners have to be there 72 hours out, so that they are available for inspection and review. There will also be 20 veterinarians on duty on the racing days.”
Thursday’s best bets, by Chris Cook
Jamie Snowden has a couple of interesting runners at Southwell today, both representing him for the first time after switching to his yard from Kate Buckett in the off-season. Tractor Fred in the second race is probably best watched but Battleofthesomme (1.40) could be worth an interest on this chasing debut and the market certainly seems to think so, as he’s halved in price to 7-1.
He showed a very little promise in his early novice hurdles and should appreciate this step back in trip. Snowden has had four winners from 14 runners in the past fortnight.
Global Citizen (2.25) might have sufficient pace for a hot novice chase at Carlisle, for which he’s 5-2. Metro Boulot Dodo (4.35) should be better for his reappearance run and can land a handicap hurdle at 3-1.
The nap is Big Boris (5.00) at 7-2 for Chelmsford’s opener, in which David Evans’s juvenile should benefit for the extra quarter-mile after a pleasing nursery debut at Chepstow.
Southwell 1.40 Battleofthesomme 2.10 Notachance 2.45 Blackfinch 3.20 For Jim 3.50 The Kings Baby 4.25 Percy Thrower 4.55 Will Sting
Ludlow 2.00 Humble Hero 2.35 Midnight Magic 3.10 Legends Gold 3.40 Kingofthecotswolds 4.15 Lerichi Belle 4.45 Global Tour 5.20 Karakoram
Carlisle 1.50 Overthetop 2.25 Global Citizen 3.00 Iolani 3.30 Buddha Scheme 4.05 Sebastian Beach 4.35 Metro Boulot Dodo 5.10 Hot Gossip
Chelmsford 5.00 Big Boris (nap) 5.30 Daysaq 6.00 Futuristic 6.30 Al Asef 7.00 Almaha 7.30 Yusra 8.00 J’Ouvert 8.30 Casual Reply
Wolverhampton 5.15 Shepherd’s Purse 5.45 Sharrabang 6.15 Kinsman 6.45 Buwardy 7.15 Anglo Saxson (nb) 7.45 She Looks Like Fun 8.15 Roving Mission
