2021 Breeders' Cup Juvenile: It's Classic Causeway's turn to step up
Corniche validated his fast debut victory by winning last Saturday’s Grade 1 American Pharoah at Santa Anita. Jack Christopher did the same winning the Grade 1 Champagne at Belmont Park. What say you, Classic Causeway?
Classic Causeway, a blowout 6 1/2-length debut winner at Saratoga, will seek his Grade 1 victory and a ticket to the $2 million Breeders’ Cup Juvenile when he heads a bulky field in Saturday’s $500,000 Breeders’ Futurity at Keeneland.
Classic Causeway drew the outside post in a field of 13-drawn Wednesday for Saturday’s Breeders’ Futurity, the last of four Win and You’re In races for the Juvenile, which will be held Nov. 5 at Del Mar.
The Breeders’ Futurity, which drew a field of 13, is the last of four Win and You’re In races for the Juvenile, to be run Nov. 5 at Del Mar.
Classic Causeway, one of the last remaining progeny of the stallion Giant’s Causeway, was a front-running winner of a seven-furlong maiden race at Saratoga on Sept. 4. He ran seven furlongs in 1:22.67 and earned a 90 Beyer Speed Figure. Trainer Brian Lynch said, “It wasn’t a complete shocker” to see Classic Causeway run as well as he did.
However, Lynch always viewed Classic Causeway as a two-turn horse, so he’s naturally looking forward to stretching him out to 1 1/16 miles in the Breeders’ Futurity and potentially the Breeders’ Cup thereafter.
“He’s always shown good two-turn speed. Hopefully we’re on the right direction with him,” Lynch said. “This will be the stepping-stone to see if we even fit as a potential Breeders’ Cup horse. We’ll get through Saturday and re-evaluate it.”
Classic Causeway was flattered when Trafalgar, runner-up to him at Saratoga, came back to win a maiden race with a visually impressive victory at Churchill Downs last Saturday.
Classic Causeway will have plenty of challengers in the Futurity. Double Thunder and American Sanctuary finished one-two in the Sapling at Monmouth Park, both running better than it may appear on paper. Stellar Tap, fifth as the favorite in the Iroquois, and Costa Terra, third in the Ellis Park Juvenile, will represent the Steve Asmussen barn, which likely lost a BC Juvenile candidate when Hopeful winner Gunite ran so poorly in the Champagne. Gunite did ship to California on Tuesday as he does work with Echo Zulu, the probable favorite for the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies.
Meanwhile, Corniche and Jack Christopher both made their cases to go postward as the Juvenile favorite with their performances last weekend. In the American Pharoah, at Santa Anita, Corniche recorded a 3 1/4-length victory over Pappacap, backing up his 4 1/4-length score at Del Mar on Sept. 4. Pappacap and Oviatt Class, separated by a half-length when second and third in the American Pharoah, are both being pointed to the Juvenile.
Bob Baffert, who trains Corniche, is also pointing Grade 1 Del Mar Futurity winner Pinehurst to the Juvenile.
At Belmont, Jack Christopher ran by Gunite and was well clear of Commandperformance. Jack Christopher, a son of Munnings, is trained by Chad Brown, who won the 2017 Juvenile at Del Mar with Good Magic. Commandperformance, who as Good Magic was four years ago, remains a maiden after two starts. But his connections are listing the Juvenile as one of several options for the colt’s next start.