2021 Breeders' Cup Juvenile: Déjà vu, but maybe not all over again
DEL MAR, Calif. – The last time the Breeders’ Cup was held at Del Mar, in 2017, the $2 million Juvenile was won by a maiden trained by Chad Brown.
Friday, when the Breeders’ Cup returns to Del Mar for a second time, it wouldn’t be surprising to again see the Juvenile winner trained by Brown. It also wouldn’t be shocking to see the winner be a maiden. This time, however, it wouldn’t be the same horse.
Brown, whose Good Magic won the 2017 Juvenile, returns to the race with Jack Christopher, a flashy-looking son of Munnings who won his debut by 8 3/4 lengths at Saratoga and then captured the Grade 1 Champagne by 2 3/4 lengths at Belmont Park. The time of the Champagne, originally recorded as 1:37.31, was reviewed by clockers associated with Daily Racing Form, who believe the time was actually 1:36.48. That translated to a 102 Beyer Speed Figure, the fastest number recorded by a 2-year-old in four years.
“He’s up there in rare territory of horses that start off their career that fast, so it makes them high-profile horses, which he deserves to be,” Brown said Monday at Del Mar. “He worked brilliantly before he ever ran, he’s run brilliantly in both starts. He deserves all the recognition. With that comes high expectations.”
Jack Christopher’s two starts have come in races run around one turn. The Juvenile is run around two turns at 1 1/16 miles.
“It’s a legitimate question with certain horses,” Brown said. “I honestly don’t see it being a problem for this horse in this particular race. I’ve been doing this long enough now, when you’re the trainer of the horse trying the thing that’s in question, you’re always going to be optimistic about it. But I truly do believe it.
“If he’s not successful in the race, Brown added. “I don’t think it’s because of the two turns.”
Jack Christopher will break from the rail under Jose Ortiz, who was the rider of Good Magic four years ago.
The maiden in the field with a chance to win is Commandperformance. The son of Union Rags – second in the 2011 Juvenile after winning the Champagne – was a troubled-trip second in a Sept. 6 maiden race at Saratoga. His connections, trainer Todd Pletcher and owners Mike Repole and Vinnie Viola, treated it as a winning effort and opted to run in the Champagne.
Commandperformance was a late-running second in the Champagne, beaten 2 3/4 lengths by Jack Christopher, while finishing seven lengths clear of the rest of the field. Pletcher, a two-time Juvenile winner, saw enough in the Champagne and the colt’s subsequent training to give Commandperformance a try in the Juvenile.
“The figures came back fast on the race. I think he’s continued to develop, I think he’s going to appreciate the added distance,” Pletcher said. “He got a lot of experience in his first race, ate a lot of dirt. For a maiden only having two starts, he’s got some seasoning.”
Irad Ortiz Jr. rides Commandperformance from post 10 in the 12-horse field.
Pletcher also entered Double Thunder, a son of his 2010 Kentucky Derby winner Super Saver, who has three wins from five starts. Double Thunder won the Sapling at Monmouth going a two-turn mile and came back with a solid second behind Rattle N Roll in the Grade 1 Breeders’ Futurity on Oct. 9 at Keeneland.
Pletcher is putting blinkers on Double Thunder for the Juvenile. He has worked him twice in such equipment.
“He needs to continue to step up, but if things were to unfold right and the blinkers move him forward and he gets a good trip I think he could get a piece of it,” said Pletcher, who has Flavien Prat to ride.
Bob Baffert, a four-time Juvenile-winning trainer, has entered three in this year’s race. Corniche and Pine-hurst are both unbeaten Grade 1 winners. Barossa is coming off a maiden victory going two turns on Oct. 15 at Santa Anita.
Corniche, a son of Quality Road, advanced from a 5 1/2-furlong maiden victory on Sept. 4 at Del Mar to winning the Grade 1 American Pharoah at 1 1/16 miles on Oct. 1 at Santa Anita.
“I wasn’t sure about him, but then after he did it I felt better,” Baffert said. “He’s come back, had a couple of works that were sort of messed up, but [Saturday] he had a nice work. I think he’s going into it really well, but there’s a lot of speed in the race. It’s all about the trip. In the Breeders’ Cup, the margin for error is so small.”
Mike Smith will have to work out a trip on Corniche from post 12.
Pinehurst, a son of Twirling Candy, won a maiden and the Grade 1 Del Mar Futurity in a five-week span at Del Mar. He comes into the Juvenile having not run in two months, but Baffert believes he benefited from the freshening.
“I think it helped him,” Baffert said. “He ran hard and fast.”
Barossa is a work in progress, but Baffert believes the talent is there. He was impressed with the way Barossa hung in with Pinehurst in a workout last Saturday at Santa Anita.
“He’s a very immature horse mentally and he’s still getting there,” Baffert said.
American Sanctuary, one of two horses sent out by Chris Davis, is a live longshot in the Juvenile. He had trouble soon after the start in the Breeders’ Futurity and was last of 13 early. He made a couple of different moves in the race and finished fourth, beaten just 1 1/2 lengths for second.
“We made up a lot of ground in that race,” Davis said. “With a cleaner trip, better post position, better break, we’ll see what happens.”
Florent Geroux rides American Sanctuary. Sophie Doyle, who had ridden American Sanctuary, opted to ride Tough to Tame for Davis. Tough to Tame was second, beaten a neck at odds of 37-1, in the Grade 3 Iroquois on Sept. 17. Tough to Tame has to overcome post 11.
Pappacap and Oviatt Class finished second and third, respectively, behind Corniche in the American Pharoah. Oviatt Class, trained by Keith Desormeaux, has a similar running style of 2014 Juvenile winner Texas Red, also trained by Desormeaux.
Pappacap, trained by Mark Casse, won the Grade 2 Best Pal sprinting here in August and was fourth to Pinehurst in the Del Mar Futurity.
Giant Game, a maiden winner going two turns at Keeneland, and Jasper Great, a Kentucky-bred son of Arrogate who won a maiden race going nine furlongs in Japan by 10 lengths, complete the field.