Head-to-head betting returns

Breeders' Cup plans to devise head-to-head betting matchups for all 12 races on championship day Oct. 25 at Santa Anita Park in Southern California, the association announced on Monday.

The head-to-head wagers will ask bettors to pick one horse over another horse in a given race, regardless of the finish positions of either horse. Breeders' Cup first tried head-to-head wagers last year, and the total handle on the seven matchups was $768,894, "a good start," said Ken Kirchner, the director of simulcasting for Breeders' Cup.

In addition to the head-to-head wagers, each race on the card will also have win, place, show, exacta, trifecta, and superfecta betting. Rolling daily doubles and rolling pick threes will link all races, and a $3 million-guaranteed pick six will link six Breeders' Cup races, from the Mile to the Classic. The Classic and the following three Oak Tree races will be linked by a $400,000-guaranteed pick four.