Breeders' Cup Turf Sprint: Golden Pal has home-field advantage
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Two-time Breeders’ Cup winner Golden Pal has been the king of the Keeneland turf course. This month, he will prepare to defend that home turf against Highfield Princess, a serious threat to his crown as she is expected to travel from Europe for the Grade 1, $1 million Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint.
Golden Pal is the 5-2 early favorite for the Nov. 5 Turf Sprint on the line of Daily Racing Form’s Brad Free. Highfield Princess is 3-1.
Golden Pal is expected to have his final Breeders’ Cup prep in the Grade 2 Woodford on Saturday at Keeneland, where trainer Wesley Ward is based and where the colt has never lost. He won the 2020 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf Sprint there, and won the 2021 Woodford en route to winning last year’s Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint at Del Mar. He opened this year by winning the Grade 2 Shakertown in dazzling fashion, coasting home by 4 3/4 lengths and earning a career-high 110 Beyer Speed Figure.
Golden Pal uncharacteristically broke poorly in the Group 1 King’s Stand at Royal Ascot and was 16th. He rebounded with a narrow win in the Grade 3 Troy at Saratoga, in which he again broke a beat slowly but showed a new dimension to come on for the win.
“He’s certainly the best horse I’ve ever had,” Ward said. “Every time you lead him over, he proves more and more what a joy it is to be around a special horse like this. It would make every single trainer get up in the morning. He’s a once-in-a-lifetime horse, and I’ve been blessed to have a few of them, but this guy is certainly the best.”
Highfield Princess has rebounded from a poor showing at Royal Ascot – she was sixth in the Group 1 Platinum Jubilee – by winning three consecutive Group 1 races: the Maurice de Gheest in France, the Nunthorpe in England, and the Flying Five on Sept. 11 at The Curragh. The Breeders’ Cup has long been mentioned as a target.
“If she’s okay, that will be the plan,” trainer John Quinn told the British press. “In the spring she was working well, and I said to [assistant Sean Quinn] that I’d love to see her go around Keeneland.”
Highfield Princess will be looking to emulate Glass Slippers in 2020 at Keeneland as the only European-based winner of the Turf Sprint, which was added to the Breeders’ Cup program in 2008.
The Nunthorpe and Flying Five were both Win and You’re In events, earning Highfield Princess an automatic berth into Turf Sprint and, crucially, a travel allowance. Of the other automatic qualifiers, only Bran (Turf Sprint at Kentucky Downs) is definitely targeting the BC Turf Sprint.
Australian-based Nature Strip (King’s Stand) will not travel to America, while Lieutenant Dan (Green Flash) was recently put away for the season. The Platinum Queen, who defeated older foes in the Prix de l’Abbaye, will use her travel allowance toward the Juvenile Turf Sprint.
Casa Creed owns berths in both the Turf Sprint, by virtue of his victory in the Grade 1 Jaipur, and Mile, from the Grade 1 Fourstardave. He goes in this weekend’s Coolmore Turf Mile at Keeneland on what is expected to be firm turf.
The prevailing weather and turf conditions later in the Keeneland meet could factor in to his Breeders’ Cup decision, as trainer Bill Mott has opined that the horse would prefer firm turf at a mile.
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