Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf Sprint: Golden Pal clear favorite in expected 14-horse field
The Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf Sprint has been a popular addition to the Breeders’ Cup program. This year’s third renewal of the Grade 2, $1 million race is no exception, as it could have one of the biggest fields of the weekend, with one of the strongest favorites.
There were 24 horses pre-entered for the Juvenile Turf Sprint, the Breeders’ Cup announced Wednesday. Of those, 14 will be allowed start in the race, set for Friday, Nov. 6, at Keeneland. The Juvenile Turf Sprint has the most pre-entries of any of the Breeders’ Cup races, with the Juvenile Turf and Dirt Mile each having drawn 23 pre-entries.
Golden Pal is the 5-2 choice on Daily Racing Form’s early line established by David Aragona. Golden Pal has not raced since winning the Skidmore Stakes on Aug. 21 at Saratoga. In June, he was second by a neck in the Group 2 Norfolk Stakes at Ascot in England.
“From Day 1, he’s just shown immense talent, even before we started breezing him,” trainer Wesley Ward said. “You could just tell with his demeanor, his physique, and everything that he was evolving, like a high school star quarterback going into college. He just keeps moving forward.”
The horses currently excluded from the top 14, in order of preference by the Breeders’ Cup’s panel of racing directors and secretaries, are Into the Sunrise, County Final, Windy City Red, Dirty Dangle, Invincible Gal, Blame the Booze, Gypsy King, Trade Deal, Omaha City, and Pizzazz. Some may yet get their chance to run, as several horses ahead of them also have been pre-entered in another race that is designated as their first preference. The fields will be set next Monday.
Campanelle (first preference in Juvenile Fillies Turf), Outadore (Juvenile Turf), Royal Approval (Juvenile Fillies Turf), and Union Gables (Juvenile Fillies Turf) all have their first preference elsewhere. Their defections would drastically change the makeup of the field and make Golden Pal an even stronger favorite. Campanelle (3-1) and Outadore (6-1), both trained by Ward, are the second and third choices on Aragona’s early line.
Ward also has After Five and Amanzi Yimpilo guaranteed a spot in the main body of the field and trains Into the Sunrise, Blame the Booze, Gypsy King, and Trade Deal.