BC sets race order, offers jockey bet

Breeders' Cup plans to offer a parimutuel bet on which jockey has the most wins in the 14 Breeders' Cup races, scheduled for Nov. 6-7 at Santa Anita Park, the organization announced on Thursday.

Though the field for the wager has yet to be set, the bet will likely have 14 wagering interests, according to Ken Kirchner, the simulcasting consultant for Breeders' Cup. The 14th betting interest will be a field comprising all jockeys that are not named individually, and ties will be treated as a dead heat, Kirchner said. Wagering will open on Nov. 5, after riders have been named.

This is the first time Breeders' Cup has offered a bet on jockeys, though the organization has offered other proposition-type bets in the past, with limited success.

"We think it's important to be able to come up with these types of products to stay competitive," Kirchner said. "The marketplace is going to allow us to move more in this direction in the future."

Also on Thursday, Breeders' Cup announced its official race order, post times for the 14 races, and the wagering menu.

The Friday card will start at 11:15 a.m. Pacific with two allowance races. The first Breeders' Cup race, the Marathon, will go off at 12:35 p.m., and will be followed by the Juvenile Fillies Turf (1:08), the Juvenile Fillies (1:45), the Filly and Mare Turf (2:23), the Filly and Mare Sprint (3:02), and the Ladies' Classic (3:45).

On Saturday, the first Breeders' Cup race, the Juvenile Turf, will go off at 10:45 a.m., followed by the Turf Sprint (11:23), the Sprint (12:10), the Juvenile (12:49), the Mile (1:28), the Dirt Mile (2:12), the Turf (2:57), and the Classic (3:45).

A pick six on the Saturday card will link the Sprint to the Classic and carry a $2 million guarantee, according to Breeders' Cup. A pick six on the Friday card will link the Marathon through the Ladies' Classic and carry a $500,000 guarantee. If no one correctly selects all six winners on Friday, then 75 percent of the net pool will carry over to Saturday's pick six. Saturday's pick six must be paid out and will not carry over.

A pick four on the Friday card linking the Juvenile Fillies to the Ladies' Classic will have a $500,000 guarantee. An early pick four on Saturday linking the first four Breeders' Cup races on the card, the Juvenile Turf through the Juvenile, will have a $1 million guarantee, and a late pick four linking the Mile through the Classic will have a $1.5 million guarantee.

Breeders' Cup is also offering a super high five on the Ladies' Classic and the Classic. A super high five requires bettors to pick the first five finishers in order. A daily double will also link the Ladies' Classic and the Classic for the first time.

Win, place, show, exacta, trifecta, and superfectas will be offered on all races, along with rolling daily doubles and rolling pick threes. Takeout will be 15.43 percent on all win, place, and show bets, and 20.68 percent on all other wagers.

Last year, bettors wagered $155 million on the 14 Breeders' Cup races offered over two days at Santa Anita.