2021 Breeders' Cup Turf: Mishriff will stay home, take a break, and return next year
Mishriff, winner of three Group 1 races in Europe and the Middle East this year, will not start in the Breeders’ Cup Turf at Del Mar on Nov. 6.
Trainer John Gosden said on Thursday that Mishriff is in need “of a little bit of a rest.”
“You need to be 100 percent happy that you’re doing the right thing,” Gosden said. “He’s been a pretty busy boy.”
Mishriff was rated as a leading contender for the BC Turf at 1 1/2 miles, a role that now firmly belongs to Tarnawa, who won the 2020 BC Turf at Keeneland. Tarnawa was second in the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe at Longchamp Racecourse in Paris on Oct. 3.
Gosden said Mishriff may stay in training in 2022 with the Breeders’ Cup Classic on dirt at Keeneland next fall as a long-range goal.
Owned by Abdul Rahman al Faisal, Mishriff won 3 of 6 starts this year. The wins were in Group 1 races, including the $20 million Saudi Cup on dirt in February, the $5 million Sheema Classic on turf in Dubai in March, and the $1.37 million Juddmonte International Stakes at York Racecourse in England in August.
In his final start of 2021, Mishriff, 4, was fourth in the Group 1 Champion Stakes at Ascot Racecourse in England on Oct. 16. Gosden said earlier this week that Mishriff was not suited to the good-to-soft turf conditions at Ascot.