Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf: James Garfield gets reference from a high source

So much remains up in the air regarding the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf, but one thing seems settled: James Garfield will be making the trip from England with a solid chance for second-year trainer George Scott.

James Garfield already has raced six times this year, and his connections are talking about him more as a 2018 3-year-old for the six-furlong Commonwealth Cup than a colt to go as far as one mile in Guineas races. But Frankie Dettori knows American racing well, and said after his first ride aboard James Garfield, a near-miss Aug. 23 in the Acomb Stakes, that the horse could get one mile over the relatively tight Del Mar course.

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James Garfield enhanced his standing last weekend winning the Group 2 Mill Reef Stakes over six furlongs at Newbury by three-quarters of a length. Provided all goes well, he is a confirmed runner in the Juvenile Turf.

His trainer, the 29-year-old Scott, is not unfamiliar with California, having served as an assistant with Southern California-based Simon Callaghan.

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Other overseas contenders for the Juvenile Turf could emerge this weekend. On Saturday, Newmarket hosts the Royal Lodge Stakes, a Breeders’ Cup Challenge Win and You’re In race for the Juvenile Turf, and Sunday’s Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe card at Chantilly has another such race, the Jean-Luc Lagardere.

The Pilgrim Stakes on Saturday at Belmont seems likely to produce a Juvenile Turf starter or two, especially considering the lack of standout North American performances in the division so far this year, while the final Win and You’re In race for 2-year-old turf horses is the Bourbon Stakes on Oct. 8 at Keeneland.

The $100,000 Zuma Beach, a one-mile turf race Oct. 9 at Santa Anita, lost Southern California’s divisional leader Encumbered, who Daily Racing Form reported this week will try dirt in the FrontRunner Stakes this Saturday at Santa Anita.

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