Breeders' Cup betting rises 12 percent from last year

Total wagering on the 14 Breeders’ Cup races held on Friday and Saturday at Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, Calif., set a record for the fourth year in a row, increasing nearly 12 percent over the total amount bet last year on a 14-race card at Churchill Downs in Louisville, according to charts of the races.

Total handle was $152.40 million on the 14 races, the second year in a row that Breeders’ Cup has run 14 races, with five races for juveniles held on Friday and the remaining nine races, capped by the Classic, run on Saturday. Because of the time difference, this year’s Saturday races were run approximately three hours later than the Saturday races last year, a major factor in the handle gains.

A total of 163 horses ran in the 14 races, for an average field size of 11.6 horses per race. Last year, 176 horses ran in the 14 races, for an average field size of 12.6 horses.

Saturday handle numbers were especially strong in the straight and single-race exotic pools, with the exception of the Classic, where all of those pools, with the exception of the Super Hi 5, were lower than last year. However, significant gains in several multi-leg pools, including the pick 5 and pick 6 pools, drove the Classic’s total wagering numbers to a record of $34.3 million. This year’s Classic had 11 runners, compared to 14 last year.

Weather at Santa Anita on both Friday and Saturday was warm and sunny. Attendance for the Friday card was 41,243, while attendance on Saturday was 67,811, according to Breeders’ Cup.

The last time that the Breeders’ Cup was held at Santa Anita was 2016, when total wagering for 13 races was $128.11 million.