Breeders' Cup: O'Brien plans to run 11 of his 19 pre-entered horses
?q=100)
Trainer Aidan O’Brien said on Friday that he plans to send 11 horses to Del Mar for the Breeders’ Cup on Nov. 1-2, and that eight of his pre-entered runners will remain in Ireland.
O’Brien’s team is led by the outstanding 3-year-old City of Troy, who will start on dirt for the first time in the $7 million Breeders’ Cup Classic at 1 1/4 miles, the showcase race of the two-day series.
O’Brien will have runners in six other races. On Friday, Henri Matisse will run in the Juvenile Turf, while Monumental will not be sent to California. In the Juvenile Fillies Turf, Heavens Gate and Lake Victoria give the stable two leading chances. Bubbling will not race.
The absence of Bubbling will allow Correto, who was third in the Grade 2 Miss Grillo Stakes at Aqueduct on Oct. 6 to join the field.
In the Juvenile Turf Sprint, O’Brien will start his two pre-entered runners, Ides of March and Whistlejacket.
O’Brien has 12 runners pre-entered for Saturday’s stakes, and intends to ship six. Aesop’s Fables will not run in the Turf Sprint, he said.
“The vet wasn’t happy with him,” O’Brien said. Breeders’ Cup “vet checks are very strenuous. Rather being withdrawn by your vet, it’s right to do it here.
“Your vets have to be very careful, which is understandable.”
Content and Ylang Ylang are intended starters in the Filly and Mare Turf, while Luxembourg and Wingspan are probable for the Turf. Wingspan is cross-entered in the Filly and Mare Turf at 1 3/8 miles, but O’Brien said on Friday that the Turf at 1 1/2 miles is preferred.
In the Turf, O’Brien will not start the 2024 group stakes winners Continuous or Illinois.
Illinois is “a little ouchy on one foot,” O’Brien said. “We were afraid he wouldn’t pass the vet.”
Diego Velazquez will be the stable’s only runner in the BC Mile. Henry Longfellow, Mountain Bear, and River Tiber will be withdrawn from consideration for the BC Mile. River of Tiber was on the also-eligible list when pre-entries were published on Wednesday and was not certain to gain a berth in the field.
:: Want to learn more about handicapping and wagering? Check out DRF's Handicapping 101 and Wagering 101 pages.