Coolmore Turf Mile filled with top-class horses

LEXINGTON, Ky. –The 37th Coolmore Turf Mile is a prime example of what horse racing was meant to be – a full field of top-class horses making for nearly impossible handicapping. Superlatives just aren’t enough for this one.

Suffice it to say that the Grade 1, $1 million Coolmore Mile deserves top billing on the richest card of the richest meet in the 86-year history of Keeneland Race Course. It will be run Saturday as the 10th of 11 races and the last of five straight graded stakes on a day that surely will realize its intent of foreshadowing the importance of the upcoming Breeders’ Cup.

First post is 1 p.m. Eastern, with the Coolmore Mile going at 5:45 as part of a live CNBC broadcast that starts at 5.

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Paulo Lobo, the Brazilian-born trainer who has won the last two runnings of the annual fall-meet showcase, calls the Coolmore Mile “a very, very tough race” while expressing optimism that Ivar is as good as any in a remarkably deep lineup. Lobo won in 2020 with Ivar and last year with In Love.

Ivar, a 6-year-old horse, was a distant second behind Modern Games in the Grade 1 Woodbine Mile three weeks ago. Modern Games is the early favorite for the BC Mile, part of the Nov. 4-5 Breeders’ Cup championships to be run at Keeneland.

Ivar “came back super well from Canada,” said Lobo, adding that In Love will be diverted to a turf allowance here next week. “[Ivar] wasn’t going to beat the winner, I know, but his trip was a bit unlucky and now we’re taking off his blinkers because I think maybe turning for home he didn’t see the other horse very well. And this is his third start of the year, so I think he will run his very best.”

Ivar, with Joe Talamo riding from post 6, is among three Coolmore starters among the top 10 prospects for the BC Mile in the initial Daily Racing Form rankings released this week. The others are Casa Creed (post 9, Luis Saez), a last-out winner of the Grade 1 Fourstardave on the stretchout at Saratoga, and Santin (post 7, Tyler Gaffalione), winner of the Grade 1 Arlington Million at Churchill Downs.

Smooth Like Strait was scratched from the race after suffering a minor cut to his knee.

Santin, the lukewarm program favorite at 7-2, has thrived in his training since the Million on Aug. 13, said trainer Brendan Walsh, who is hoping for a decent trip and another top effort.

“If he can just hold his form, we should be in good shape,” Walsh said.

Order of Australia (post 3, Christophe Soumillon) is back on the scene of his greatest moment as the 73-1 winner of the 2020 BC Mile at Keeneland. The Irish-bred 5-year-old finished last of 12 in this race last year, but appears to be rounding back to form after most recently finishing second in the Group 1 Prix du Moulin at Longchamp in France.

The accomplished 3-year-olds Classic Causeway (post 1, Julien Leparoux) and Annapolis (post 8, Irad Ortiz Jr.) will be trying older horses for the first time here. Classic Causeway transitioned beautifully to turf for Kenny McPeek with a 26-1 upset of the Grade 1 Belmont Derby in July, while Annapolis has never been worse than second in six career starts, the latest resulting in a total domination of the Grade 3 Saranac for Todd Pletcher.

Chad Brown steps in with the capable pair of Masen (post 5, Flavien Prat) and Emaraaty (post 11, Florent Geroux), while divisional stalwarts such as New York-bred Somelikeithotbrown (post 10, Jose Ortiz) and stretch-running Set Piece (post 12, Joel Rosario) also will take their best shots.

In all, 16 are entered, but only as many as 12 can start.

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A fast pace can be expected, with Classic Causeway and Smooth Like Strait likely to be given hot pursuit from a few others after being sent from their inside posts.

This is the first year Coolmore has sponsored the Turf Mile, which has undergone numerous name changes since its 1986 inaugural. It will be preceded on the blockbuster card by the Grade 2 Woodford (race 6), Grade 2 Thoroughbred Club of America (race 7), Grade 1 First Lady (race 8), and Grade 1 Breeders’ Futurity (race 9), all of them forming a pick five wager.

Sunshine and a high of just 61 are in the local forecast for Saturday. Ontrack admission is sold out, although tickets are available via resale at tickets.keeneland.com. Many fans will leave Keeneland late in the day for the 7:30 p.m. football game matching South Carolina and Kentucky just a few miles away at Kroger Field.

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