Korean horse to run in Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile

Blue Chipper will make some history on Saturday when he starts in the Grade 1, $1 million Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile at Santa Anita. The 4-year-old son of Tiznow, who has won his last six starts by a combined margin of 45 1/4 lengths, is based at Busan Racecourse in South Korea.

“He’s the first horse to represent Korea in the Breeders’ Cup,” said Seungho Ryu, general manager of the international department of the Korea Racing Authority.

Blue Chipper arrived in North America on Oct. 21. He has been training at Santa Anita since clearing quarantine and has settled in well, said Ryu.

“He looks very happy,” he said. “He looks like he feels at home.”

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Blue Chipper is owned by Byeong-Boo Choi and trained by Young Kwan Kim. Ryu said Choi raced Triple Nine, a multiple Horse of the Year title winner in Korea. Kim is an 11-time training champion, said Ryu, and has won five runnings of both the Grand Prix and Korean Oaks.

“He’s the most successful trainer in Korea,” Ryu said. “He’s like Bob Baffert in the U.S.”

Blue Chipper is 7-for-8 for earnings of $931,251 and this year is unbeaten, with a 5-for-5 record in 2019. In his most recent start, Blue Chipper captured the Group 1 Korea Sprint at about six furlongs Sept. 8 at Seoul Racecourse. It was his second graded appearance. His first came July 28, in the Group 3 Owners’ Cup at about at mile at Busan. Blue Chipper won by 10.

“The mile race, that’s why he’s running in the Dirt Mile,” said Ryu.

Flavien Prat has the mount Saturday.

“We did research and learned Flavien Prat won the same race two years ago,” Ryu said of the 2017 Dirt Mile with Battle of Midway. The connections also liked Prat’s record at Santa Anita.

“He accepted our offer,” Ryu said of the mount.

Blue Chipper ranks among the top three candidates for 2019 Korea Horse of the Year and he would likely lock up the title with a win Saturday.