Breeders' Cup Friday handle hurt by six-horse field in Juvenile
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Total commingled betting on the five Breeders’ Cup races held on Friday at Del Mar in Southern California was down 10.8 percent, according to charts of the races.
The betting total for the five races was dragged down by a 30 percent drop in betting on the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile, which had a six-horse field this year, compared to 10 horses last year. Betting on the Juvenile dropped nearly $2.42 million, from $8.04 million last year to $5.62 million this year.
Including all multi-leg bets ending in the five races, total betting for the Breeders’ Cup slate was $40.8 million, down from $45.73 million last year. Both events were held at Del Mar, with the races going off at nearly identical times. Fifty-one horses ran in the five races this year, compared to 54 this year.
None of the races this year posted total higher handle numbers than last year. The wagering menus for both days were nearly identical.
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Total handle for the full 10-race card at Del Mar on Friday was $62 million, according to Breeders’ Cup, a decline of 2.6 percent compared to last year’s 10-race card.
The first Breeders’ Cup race this year had a post of 2:48 local time, or 5:48 p.m. Eastern. The last of the five Breeders’ Cup races went off at 5:29 local, or 8:29 Eastern.
The Friday slate at Del Mar was the third time that Breeders’ Cup ran its Friday card on Halloween. The last time the Friday slate was held on Oct. 31 was in 2020, the year Covid sharply limited ontrack attendance and handle at the host track, Keeneland. Handle on the Friday Breeders’ Cup races that year was down 10 percent compared to the Friday card at Santa Anita in 2019.
The Friday card for the 2015 event was also held on Halloween at Keeneland. That year, the Friday handle on the Breeders’ Cup races was up 5.5 percent, to $29 million, when compared to the 2014 Friday card at Santa Anita.
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